Shining Spirit

The streets are shiny this morning,
narrow black tunnels through
rain soaked trees;
song birds sleep much later
in wet, cold weather.
No deer nibbling plants in the front yard.
The bobcat isn’t out looking for the rabbit,
and at 6:20, a reasonable hour, it is
still as black as coal outside.
It is as if the world is paused in night mode,
waiting, somewhat impatiently,
to fling back the curtain
and let the drama of the day begin.

But where is the script?
What words do I say when
the house lights go down?
What emotional expressions?
Robust or recluse? Courageous
or cowering? But there is no
script, is there.
Only reaction to, or better yet,
relationship with the unfolding
of life in the immediate moments
ahead. To be in relationship with
is so very different from
reacting to…

Today I will be in relationship
with life, in communion with
the revealing,
not as critical spectator,
but as a participant, a small
element of the eternal.
Today I will help write history.
And so will you.
Today matters.

I was stomping around on a wet patch of ground soaked by two days of non-stop rain, trying to get just the right position for the perfect picture of a large rock formation. It wasn’t easy because the ground was uneven, a little slippery, and I wasn’t looking down much because of my focus on the picture target. When I was about to settle into that “perfect” place, at about the final stride through thick underbrush, I looked down and met the angels. One more step would have put me right in the middle of a pansy patch, a beautiful collection of bright purple flowers, each one boasting the design of an angel with extended wings. For a wonderful moment, I forgot about the rocks and the difficulty journey to photogaph them and I started shooting pictures of these remarkable flowers. The big rock formation will be there for a long, long time, but the angels will fly away very soon. So, I brought them this morning to share with you. There are angels all over the place, so watch where you walk, where you step. We are not alone in this time and place. You might even have encountered one and not known it. Rejoice in the reality that life is precious, that we are all related as members of this remarkable creation, and that angels abound. Thanks be to God!

Do you see it? It’s right there. Slightly to the left of center. On the horizon. It’s the end, or the beginning, of a rainbow. I know it’s difficult to see…but then, so are a lot of life’s wonderful surprises. Maybe today or tomorrow a rainbow will pop up on your horizon. Take time to look, to listen, to feel the affirmations and blessings that will surely come your way. They won’t intrude, but they will welcome your embrace. Keep looking. Press on.

You’re looking at The Three Graces, three large rock formations in Nehalem Bay on the coast of Oregon. Many years ago, when fishermen brought their boats to the narrow passage from the Pacific Ocean into the bay, they searched the horizon for The Three Graces, markers very important for their safety. The helmsman would align the boat in a certain way in reference to the Graces, thus increasing chances that the little craft would make it over the extremely rough waters at the bay’s entrance. Markers are important, aren’t they. Most of us need markers to keep us on course, out of treacherous waters. Spend a little time today taking inventory of the markers in your life. What guidelines, principles, imperatives have helped to keep you on course? It’s good to keep them in sight because rough waters can appear unexpectedly. But you know that, don’t you. In Christ, press on.

I hope you have a spoonful of joy today! Take stock of your blessings…name them one by one. And then be a blessing in gratitude.

Dark clouds like to think they are so powerful, so ominous that they can block out the light of hope in human lives. Dark clouds have big egos. The ones I’ve met over the years refuse to believe that light is stronger than darkness. They deny and deny, but light always finds a way through. That’s the message of the photo, a beautiful illustration of light’s tenacity.

It won’t be long before the season of Advent begins in the Christian tradition, four weeks leading up Christmas and the birth of the one who was called “the light of the world.” The Jewish community also celebrates a special season on the calendar. It’s called the “festival of light” or Hanukkah. When I saw this beautiful scene over the Pacific Ocean yesterday, I felt deep gratitude for the times in my life when Light overcame darkness.

In your life, too? I’m not surprised. Light shines on and through us, even in the darkest times. Give thanks today for the light you see and for the Light you carry in your soul. Be Light.

You’ve guessed by now that I love trees. They are beautiful, living creations, even the ones with unusual shapes and sizes. I met this tree recently while on a neighborhood walk, and I had to look twice to believe my eyes. You see it, don’t you? She winked at me! Proves my theory: all living things want to communicate because we are all related…in a sense. Having passed my tree friend and seeing her wink, I am encouraged to say “Hello” to all my relatives…flowers and birds and the deer in my forest. All of them. Maybe today you will bump into a friend or acquaintance unexpectedly. My recommendation: when that happens, put a smile on your face and say “Hi. Good to see you!” (Use your own discretion about the wink.) Let your Spirit shine today. Here’s a rather daring idea: say hello to strangers, too, as you pass through this good day. As always, Press On.

It looks a little like yesterday. Well, same coast. Same ocean. Different wonder moment. Just when I thought there could be nothing better than yesterday, there it was. Isn’t that the way it is? Just when we think “it can’t get better than this,” it does. The key word is anticipate. Be on the lookout. Watch for wonder today? See it in the face of a friend or loved one, in the surprises that life brings, in the common and routine. It might even be hiding in the laundry or the trip to the grocery store. Look for the blessing, and when you find it, with gratitude, become the blessing for those around you. Press on.

My friend, Charles, will recognize the letters “P.O.D.” as Plan of the Day, a term every Navy woman or man knows well. But I use it today to mean “Picture of the Day”…and this is it. Eight o’clock in the morning; 38 degrees outside; morning walk. I tried to think how I could frame this picture in my mind. I’d like to pull it up again, even after I’ve walked away and become immersed in something else. Here’s what came to my mind. Thanks to F.S. Pierpoint, who, in 1864 wrote the lovely hymn “For The Beauty of The Earth”, I have a morning mantra that rises to the surface during most morning outings. I hope Mr. Pierpoint won’t mind if I change the pronouns in the first verse, so that the wonderful lyric goes like this: “For the beauty of the earth, for the glory of the skies, for the love which from (my) birth over and around (me) lies, Lord of all to Thee (I) raise this (my) hymn of grateful praise.” Try reciting those words to yourself, over and over again, when you walk the earth, and all will be well. Press on.

Let me explain. These things are called trees. Say it after me: Trees. A friend called the other day and asked for our street address here in Oregon, wanting to find the location on an iphone app. I gave him the information, there was a slight pause as he entered it properly, and then he said: Oh, well. I can’t see where you are. There are too many trees in the way. So, my greeting this morning is for everyone, but especially for friends in Tucson and Oro Valley, AZ who needed the explanation because these giants do not exist in the Sonoran Desert. The desert is beautiful in its own way, and those adapted trees called Mesquites are very nice. But, oh, the amazing height of these ancient inhabitants of the Pacific Northwest. Ancient is the word, even older than my good friend, Harvey, the centenarian. Isn’t it wonderful how living things can adapt to location and climate. Living beings are remarkable creations, related and relying on each other. So, whether in Oregon or Arizona, say good morning to a tree, those hummingbirds that dart and dive at your window, to your sometimes grumpy neighbor, to mountains and oceans…you get it. All living beings. And while you’re at it, say thank you to God for all our interactions in this beautiful creation. Be blessed today, and then share the blessing.