If this is the first time you’ve read my blog, thank you, I feel blessed and honored. If you have been here before, you will note a change in my blog design. What better time to make changes in one’s life than the first day, of the first month, of the year 2012.
I plan to make more changes within the blog and more importantly, within my life. Stay tuned as I share these changes with you.
Peace, love and light in 2012; may all your realities far exceed all your dreams.
Namaste’
Marian McQuade of Oak Hill, West Virginia, has been recognized nationally by the United States as the founder of National Grandparents Day. Her goal, to educate the youth in our communities the important contributions seniors have made throughout history. She also urged the youth to “adopt” a grandparent, not just for one day a year, but for a lifetime.
In February, 1977, Congressional legislation was passed proclaiming the first Sunday after Labor Day, Grandparents Day. The statute cites the day’s purpose as: “…to honor grandparents, to give grandparents an opportunity to show love for their children’s children, and to help children become aware of strength, information, and guidance older people can offer”.
Do you remember the primer books many of us first learned to read? Remember “Fun with Dick & Jane”? These books came out after the Egyptians stop writing on walls. We experienced so many adventures with Dick, Jane and little sister Sally. See Dick. See Dick Run. Run Dick Run. Run, run, Run. These books were created in the 1930’s and are now referred to as vintage.
What I remember most about these books were the family trips to see the grandparents on the farm and all their many adventures, not forgetting all the good things grandmother baked for the children. You could almost smell the aroma of warm apple pie as it sat on the window sill to cool. These grandparents were perfect, giving the children a perfect balance of direction, discipline and love.
How will your grandchildren remember you? Will it be a fairytale? Will it be filled with expensive gifts, but no real connection? Will it be filled with loneliness, longing and regret? Or will it be filled with fun, laughter, adventure and love? We have an opportunity to create a legacy for our grandchildren, even changing our legacy in this moment, it is never too late.
I am a grandmother to 3-year-old O’Farrell and there is another grandson due January 31st. My daughter gave my mother her Grandparent’s Day gift earlier this week. When the sonogram determined it was indeed another boy, she told her, his name is William, after my father. This brought my mother to tears and to me as well, when I heard.
I can’t wait to tell little William how his great-grandfather was a social activist, how he stood up to injustice even when he was confronted with racism. He lost his leg in WWII, never honored with a Purple Heart and still he stood to make this a better country for our future, for his name sake, and everyone’s grandchildren.
Now it’s my time to create a legacy for my grandsons. What I know for sure is I’ll buy them toys, but they will also have an educational value. I will roll around on the floor and then worry about how to get back up. I’ll take them to the movies, feed them too much junk food and allow them to stay up way past their bedtime.
I’ll also strive to walk my talk as a Lightworker. I’ll teach them they are perfect just as they are. I’ll teach them the Law of Causality, so they know they will reap what they sow. I’ll teach them that Jesus the Christ was a wonderful ascended master, but not the only one. I’ll teach them we are all created equal and we are our brother’s keeper. I’ll teach them we are spiritual beings having a human experience. I’ll teach them we all come to this life with a purpose and that purpose is of service to the one race, the human race. I’ll teach them that God can look like anything they want, including being a Her. And lastly, I’ll teach them that just as Spirit loves them unconditionally, so do I.
For those of you who have no grandchildren, find a child or children that need that special kind of love that only YOU can provide.
For YOU grandparents and great-grand, enjoy your special day and know that whatever legacy you leave for your grandchildren, it will be enough.
My two-week vacation is whirling by, now only a few days remain. Most of this time has been spent with my 3-year-old grandson, O’Farrell. He is a bundle of energy, never sitting down until one of us older family members insists that he do.
I cover him with kisses that begins each morning as he bust into my bedroom, he leans in toward me to make sure I cover his face completely. I only see his twice a year, so I try to pack as much one-on-one time as possible. I’ve taken him to his first visit to a movie theater. He was afraid to walk into the darkened theater, and was ready to go after he’s eaten all his popcorn and Laffy Taffy, chasing it all down with Spirit. However, once the movie was over he didn’t understand why we couldn’t stay and watch it again.
We’ve spent time at the pool. Once assured of his safety with a life jacket builted into his swim suit the fun begins .He ends up drinking quite a bit of pool water, because he can’t stop smiling from ear to ear. It got even better for him the day we invited his older cousin, Alexis to join us.
At night we sit on the couch watching Shrek over and over. He has the whole collection but prefers the first because of the pink dragon. Bedtime comes and he cries every night when we have to part. He doesn’t realize I feel the separation as much as he does, so I cover him with more kisses to last until the morning.
Don’t get me wrong I love seeing my mother, we can’t have enough time together and my daughter, my baby girl is the wind beneath my wings and we have a ball together, especially since Monique is expecting her second child in January. I love when Mom, Monique and I are out wandering around, it doesn’t matter what we’re looking at, it’s all about being together.
Summertime means family time and time for me to decompress. I take this time to reflect, to go inward and set my intentions for the rest of the year. I take time to read something for the sheer enjoyment of reading; this summer it’s “The Help”. A wonderfully written book I honestly didn’t want to like because it was written about black maids in the 1960′s by a white woman. I love when a judgement I’ve made based on an assumption is wrong, it’s another lesson learned. I look forward to the movie.
The return to school marks the return to work with a renewed zest for what lays ahead. We don’t feel the change in season as much in Florida as in other areas of the country, but we know when the breeze gets cooler that time is upon us. The days get shorter and I fall back into my routines, doing the work that I love.
For now, I’ll enjoy the last of my vacation and all the hugs and kisses I get from my little man. I dread saying good-bye to him, and the rest of the family, but this is the perfect time to remember the power of the NOW and fill each moment with all the love I can muster. The good news is Christmas is only five months away, and I will get another visit with those that I love.
Namaste’
I am a 33 year buddhist, studying Nichiren Daishonin Buddhism. I have a fond connection to this country and its people, although I never have the fortune of visiting there. I’ve found that the Japanese are a very nobel, proud and wise people. Since World War II, they have excelled at everything they do and have become a leader on the world stage.
This buddhism was brought to this country by Japanese War brides. With broken english they spread the word of this teaching, slowly touching the lives of people in this country and countries all over the world. Some of our well know members are entertainer Tina Turner, actor Patrick Duffy, music man Herbie Hancock. It changed my life and I will be forever grateful to the War Brides that taught me and set a foundation that has enabled me to become the woman I am today.
Now these people need us in a way that has never been imagined before. The earthquake and tsunami pales in comparison to the potential of contamination by the nuclear plants. This is not just a country or a continent problem, it’s not about them, it’s about us, all of us. It is about all of us praying for the protect of our planet.
It isn’t about their religion verses ours; it’s about all of us, hand-in-hand praying for the protection of us all; the goodness of us all; the longevity of us all; and the love of us all. it’s time to pray to the God of your understanding, with all you have, because it is about all we have, in Japan, the USA, and every other place on this earth plane. Shine your light as you pray, allowing others to connect with your light, intensifying your prayers as they continue to multiply; and remember love is the greatest energy of all.
Namaste’
When I think of Cairo I see pyramids, vibrant colors in bazaars, and heat rising off the sand. There on the bank of the Nile I see history, I see the oldest city on the continent of Africa, I see Giza. Cairo as old as the Sphinx, monuments from antiquity, all representing a majestic part of our history as the human race.
Now there are no romantic figures, no Indiana Jones to rescue us or them; instead we have images of unrest that bombard us as the pictures go viral. There’s no escaping the images, a city, a country that has reached the point of no return. What we see is real and dramatic. The country and it’s president have come to a parting of the way as we view the upheaval in Egypt.
I understand change and I understand each human has the right to the best life possible for themselves and their families. Each of us, each community, each country should have the right to decide when and how change should come and what change should look like.
My prayer is for the Egyptians to find their own course, to find their way to freedom, independence, peace and purpose. I pray that as the old guard relinquish power it’s replaced by a forward thinking government that will take Egypt and it’s people toward the dawn of a new era; an era of peace for the next 10,000 years. Egypt, we pray for you, we stand with you and we hold the light as you make your way toward peace.
Namaste’
February 1, 2011, can you believe we have already completed a full month in this new year? How have you spent your time? Has it been more of the same, or have you been able to start making some of the changes you vowed you would make?
Regardless of the answer know that today is a new day, just as tomorrow will be, and the next day, and the next. All we have is the eternal NOW, and in that space between past and present, we have the opportunity to create the life we vowed to make. Know that you are capable and deserving of the life you envision, let NOW be the first day to the rest of your life.
Namaste’
“We tend not to choose the unknown, which might be a shock or disappointment or simply a little difficult to cope with. And yet it is the unknown with all its disappointments and surprises that is the most enriching.”
–Anne Morrow Lindbergh
How many times have we been confronted with a situation and had to choose between the known and the unknown? We know that what we’ve done before has not served us, yet we keep trying again and again. The definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over, and expect a different result.
If we can take a breath and find the courage to try the unknown we may be disappointed, or we may be surprised in a way that we couldn’t imagine.
Challenging the unknown is stepping out in faith. Faith in our Creator, insures our strength and determination. If we are dissapointed in the outcome we can learn from our mistakes, if we get positive results we can bask in the victory of our decisions. Take a breath and take the plunge, the best is yet to come.
Namaste’
My family has always had great Christmases. My mother, the matriarch, has a knack for making holidays special, and Christmas was always at the top of the list of holidays. For the last three years, I have travelled from Florida to Kentucky to be with my mother, daughter and our family.
This has been a wonderful Christmas, family around and lots of love. My grandson is the alpha and omega of my life. At the age of 2, he has a better understanding of Christmas and Santa. He had one request, a dolphin pillow pet. He saw one on tv and it was love at first sight. For weeks and weeks he asked for the dolphin, no matter what other pets or toys he saw. He told everyone he saw, “I want a dolphin.” His mother used the Santa visit as a carrot, and it worked.
Fast forward and Christmas morning came. The first thing he saw was a tent, complete with tunnel, and he ran right in. From there he opened all his presents one at a time, always going to the fat present, his mother redirecting his attention. I don’t know how he knew this was the present he was looking for. Finally the moment of truth. His eyes were huge as he torn open the wrapping paper to see his beloved dolphin. His response was, “He bringed it, Santa bringed it!”) That, for me was worth the trip. He then said, “I want two dolphins”, throwing up two little fingers (which was also something else he had asked for, but we were ignoring him).
The Christmas celebration went from my daughter’s house to my mother’s, and low and behold his great-grandmother gave him another blue dolphin, saying, “He said he wanted two”. To see him trying to hold on to both with two-year old arms, was amusing, but there was a light in his eyes that melted my heart. The wonder, the surprise, the magic of Christmas was present in his joyous face.
I am so grateful I have this wonderful little boy to remind me of a simpler time; when small things had a huge impact on your life, when magic and wonder are part of the celebration of this holiday season.
As we quickly approach the beginning of another year, I pray that you are able to find less stress and more wonder in 2011.
Namaste’
Christmas trees, decorations, gift cards, baking, cooking, Santa Claus, traveling, and the money to pay for it all, are you getting overwhelmed yet? If you’re like me, you have “miles to go before you sleep” (that’s a quote from somewhere, but I don’t have enough time to “Google” it).
The answer, take each day as it comes, live in the moment and remember its not about the decorations nor shopping for presents (that will be returned during the next shopping day). Try moving away from the “woulda” and “shoulda” and do what makes your heart sing. Try spending time with the family preparing food or presents together. Let your young ones know they can’t get everything they see on TV, and instead, give to the homeless, that are in desperate need of items to keep them warm and/or in need of food. They would appreciate anything relating to the holidays. They are someones, father/mother, son/daughter, they too need to belong to a family, to a community. Why not make them a part of your community, all you have to do is care. If you choose to take the path of giving instead of getting, you just may have the the best holiday ever!
Namaste’
“Kindness is not to be found in anything but that it adds to its beauty and it is not withdrawn from anything but it makes it defective. ” – PROPHET MUHAMMAD -
