SPARKS

“Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle. The world you desired can be won. It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours.” Ayn Rand

I am grateful for these words today. I will hold tightly to each of my "irreplaceable sparks!"

What are you grateful for?

WATER NOT BOAT

Flow on, flow on! Surrender to that which already is...

"In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins - not by strength but by perseverance." - H. Jackson Brown

The winding, graceful and persistent stream ever flowing on...what a lovely image.

I often find the serendipitous "little things" arrive as the universe's messengers.

...the perfect timing of reading a certain book, spotting a photo, catching a particular song.

Words and images that speak directly to where I am and what I need at that precise moment.

A mirror.

It's true that these words reflect back upon us that which already resides within us.

What a brilliant reminder!

"The calm river of your life approaches the rocky chute of the rapids - flow on through. You are the same water. The rocks cannot hurt you. Remember, now and then, that you are the water and not the boat. Flow on!” unknown

IN ITS BSENCE

“I took a deep breath and listened to the old bray of my heart: I am, I am, I am.” Sylvia Plath

Do you ever get that feeling - whether in art, work, pleasure or a recipe...

a phantom limb of sorts...

Something you can't quite put your finger on. It is none-the-less present in its definable absence.

What's missing?

Must you have experienced a condition in order to truly recognize its opposite?

When is it appropriate to actively identify, seek out and find this missing piece? Or will it naturally present itself when the time is ripe?

“Freedom is strangely ephemeral. It is something like breathing; one only becomes acutely aware of its importance when one is choking.” William E. Simon

WHERE WE MEET

“We're fascinated by the words--but where we meet is in the silence behind them.”
Ram Dass

These words describe a powerful experience for me.

When I truly began to meditate it was with a sense of working my way slowly behind the thoughts in my head. I discovered the serene space that exists buried beneath the momentary clutter of my thoughts.

The truest, most authentic moments of my life have been enjoyed TOGETHER with those I love but in absolute silence...

...driving feeling true companionship beside someone, top down, wind blowing our hair, off on an adventure...
...during a strong, warm hug that says more than any words could...
...resting my head against warm, bare skin, feeling the rise and fall of calm, steady, contented breaths...
...walking purposefully, hands firmly held, knowing not where we will go only that we will be together...
...looking directly into someone else's eyes and knowing in that moment that you both feel the same way and it is a feeling utterly beyond description...
...beneath the high canopy and among the cradling roots...
...an unspoken connection even when miles apart...

“Things aren't so tangible and sayable as people would usually have us believe; most experiences are unsayable, they happen in a space that no word has ever entered.”
Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet

ELICIT A REACTION

"When the artist is alive in any person, whatever his kind of work may be, he becomes an inventive, searching, daring, self-expressing creature. He becomes interesting to other people. He disturbs, upsets, enlightens and he opens the way for a better understanding." Robert Henri

Our ability to elicit a reaction in our audience - to cause them to spend any degree of time outside and away from where they normally reside - that is enough. It does not have to be a choreographed or strictly navigated response.

Our purpose becomes to disturb the natural order of thought, perception and order.

To experiment, explore and play and to encourage that mindful exploration in others.

What fun!

What reaction do you want to tease out of your audience?

YOU ARE WHAT YOU READ

As the old adage goes...you are what you eat. I am a voracious reader. I consume books, of all varieties. I tear through them. I linger over them. Sometimes I savour pages and chapters, drawing them out like a lengthy meal with wine shared with excellent company...and yet other times, I read with a velocity that barely allows time enough for comprehension and digestion.

If a palm reader could pour over my shelves and spread the recent collection of my readings wide, I wonder what she would conclude? (And why do I automatically assume that all palm readers are female?)

Below I reveal the indiscriminate pattern of my most recent reads...perhaps you can elucidate on any hidden meanings as you see fit...

These are from the last few months...

My Antonia, Willa Cather (again)

Images of the wide open west, its raw beauty, the allure of its possibilities, its savageness.

Society of S, Susan Hubbard

Vampires struggling against one another in a race to develop synthetic blood.

Evermore, Alyson Noel

Haunted by conversations with her ghostly little sister, a mortal is drawn to an immortal. This is not the first lifetime they have met...

The Book of Air and Shadows, Michael Gruber

Action, suspense and romance when letters point to the existence of an original Shakespeare manuscript.

Blue Moon, Alyson Noel

Second in the immortals series. Ever lives on...

Death in Venice, Thomas Mann

Worth several readings. Mann packs every sentence in this tragic tale.

Lace Reader's Guide, Brunonia Barry

A twisting narrative loaded with surprises.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (Flavia de Luce mystery series), Alan Bradley (first-time author at 70!)

A spunky 11-year-old, consumed with chemistry and fascinated by poisons, solves her first mystery.

The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag, Alan Bradley

Second in the series. A traveling puppeteer arrives and sinister things begin to occur in this small English village.

The Tiger Who Came to Tea, Judith Kerr

What happens when a tiger arrives at the door expecting tea.

City of Bones, Cassandra Clare

First in the Mortal Instruments Series. Clary is introduced to the world of Shadowhunters.

The Wednesday Letters, Jason F. Wright

A husband's tradition of writing a letter to his wife every Wednesday exposes a family secret after his death.

City of Ashes, Cassandra Clare

Second in the Mortal Instruments Series. Shadowhunters continue their battle in Manhattan.

I Am Papa Snap and These are My Favorite No Such Stories, Tomie Ungerer

An odd collection of short stories with imaginative illustrations and slightly off-center characters. Think Mercer Mayer's Professor Wormbog in Search for the Zipperump-A-Zoo but darker.

Babar the King, Jean de Brunhoff

Babar at his best - imaginative, adventurous, clever and endearing.

The Best Buddhist Writing, compilation

Compelling shorts shed light on varying Buddhist perspectives.

City of Glass, Cassandra Clare

Third and final installment. Return to the homeland of Idris.

Babar and Zephyr, Jean de Brunhoff

Follow the monkey on his adventures as he meets mermaids, charms terrifying monsters and attempts to rescue a kidnapped princess. Wonderfully imaginative!

Wicked Lovely, Melissa Marr

Faeries lure a mortal into their world in another attempt to fulfill the legends.

LEAP

Hop. Jump. Spring. Pounce. Twirl. Dive. Flounce. Jaunt. Skip. Cartwheel. Chasse. Slide.

All of the above.

Whatever the action word that gets me up, out and moving, right NOW.

Move it, move it!

I am daring to create the outcome that I desire.

I know what I want. As we speak I am leaping.

What are you up to?

What is your action verb of choice?