Sunday, January 29, 2017

"A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up  and make new trees." ~ Amelia Earhart
Barbara Doyle, thank you for sharing your book with me.
"Clear vision began to Coalesce." p. 206 Wild "Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved." ~ Helen Keller
Desultory p.207  lacking a plan, purpose, or enthusiasm.
"Everything that I am is born of everything that I gathered back to myself on that trip." ~ Cheryl Strayed
Forgiveness: “What if I forgave myself? I thought. What if I forgave myself even though I'd done something I shouldn't have? What if I was a liar and a cheat and there was no excuse for what I'd done other than because it was what I wanted and needed to do? ... What if yes was the right answer instead of no? What if what made me do all those things everyone thought I shouldn't have done was what also had got me here? What if I was never redeemed? What if I already was?” ~ Cheryl Strayed
 
Guilt can be a kind of motivator? a Gesture at responsiblity.
How wild it was, to let it be.” ~ last line of Wild by Cheryl Strayed
 "I walk until walking became unbearable, until I believed. I couldn't walk even one more step. and then I ran." p. 288 Wild by Cheryl Strayed
Jangled : to excite to tense irritation 
Living Waters; Or, Messages of Joy Jan 1, 1919 : "Miracles are the ways of God , unhampered by your ideas."
Miigwech : an Ojibwe word ... "It means thank you, but more - its meaning imbued with humility as well as gratitude." ~ Cheryl Strayed in her acknowledgements at the end of Wild

"Our bodies were created to be temporary vessels for souls, and we must treat them with as much love and respect as God created them to receive." ~ not from this book, but something sent to me while I was deep into reading it, so I feel it belongs here.

"Purpose of our lives is to connect with each other and through love we can create to become one with each other and with him." ~ again, not from this book, but well timed.
Quarrel verbally is another definition of jangle (above) Queasy realization that I didn't where I was." p. 214  Wild by Cheryl Strayed
Remember to breathe, remember to feel, remember to care, let us do this for our children. Let us practice for life’s sake.” ~ Inviting Silence by Gunilla Norris
"So very close, so very present , so very belonging to me. How wild it was to let it be." ~ last lines of Wild by Cheryl Strayed
Thich Nhat Hanh on mindfulness, harnessing compassion, and cherishing life. click here for essay 
Usurious - cool sounding word on Gilmore Girls : charging illegal or exorbitant rates of interest for the use of money
Vanquish: “Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story ... I decided I was safe. I was strong. I was brave. Nothing could vanquish me.”
eXquisitely conscious silence p. 299
Yearning for a way out, when actually what I'd wanted to find was a way in. I was there now, or close." p. 290 Wild by Cheryl Strayed
Zivah or Ziva is originally a Hebrew name. The meaning of the name Ziva, which is a variant of Ziv, is “radiance, brilliance, light, God, brightness”. Its pronunciation sounds like Zeeva.

Sunday, Jan 22, 2017 thru Thursday Jan 26, 2017

A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.” ~ Albert Einstein
"Be as generous to yourself as you are to other people." ~ John Kincheloe
C
Dreary Days like today (with and without rain) are simply Dreadful." ~ Michele Fana Fountain
"Eat a molasses ginger cookie from Whole Foods!" ~ JK
Focusing on the Positive, A-Z; Day 1: Adaptability
Gilmore Girls on Netflix is my Guilty[?] pleasure these days

"I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr
"Keep finding your Center and Keep the Balance: (Inner/outer, male/female, assertive/ receptive, Self/Other, life indoors/life outdoors, past/future, not past/not future, loving/being loved..." ~ JK

Newest podcast favorites: "Surprisingly Nice," and "On Being" with Krista Tippett
"Optical delusion of his consciousness." ~ Albert Einstein
Podcast favorites: Tara Brach, Urban Monk, and "The Way I Heard It" by Mike Rowe
Quote by Albert Schweitzer: “Eventually all things fall into place. Until then, laugh at the confusion, live for the moments, and know EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A 
REASON.”
 Thomason Edison said this:
https://www.facebook.com/129861503698507/photos/a.381112001906788.95428.129861503698507/1315525401798772/?type=1&theater

Whatever is happening, is the path to enlightenment. ~ Pema Chodron
Xylography: the art of making engravings on wood especially for printing
 thank you, Recovery Yoga
https://www.facebook.com/ZenToZany/photos/a.275264739252947.60804.275245392588215/1194587993987279/?type=3&theater Art by Anita



Mon-Sat am, Jan 16-21, 2017

Aliveness, space, energy, the region of the heart... Awakening People
Cheryl Strayed quoted Adrienne Rich’s poem “Power” in the book I am currently reading: Wild
"...Denying her wounds came from the same source as her power" and vice versa, I'd add
"Every woman is the Queen of her own heart. / She must decide how to govern her own domain. / She seeks friends and allies that honor / who she is now / and who she is becoming. / She has the power to create miracles. / Her prayers and intentions manifest in right order..." ~ Shiloh Sophia McCloud

Gunilla Norris' Shared Silence "...Sharing silence is, in fact, a political act. When we can stand aside from the usual and perceive the fundamental, change begins to happen."
Homeland, according to Nikola Tesla: the Earth's interior, the energy of Joy, Peace and Love. Their expressions are a flower that grows from the Earth, the food we get out of her and everything that makes man's Homeland. click here for Tesla's last interview
"In and out. Up and down. Over and over. She wove the strands of her life together. Patching hole after hole. Eventually she saw it was much more than the threads that gave her strength, it was in the very act of weaving itself, that she became strong." ~ Terri St. Cloud 


 "Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad." ~ Miles Kington
"Love is not a result; it is the very ground of being. ~ Nisargadatta Maharaj 
 ~ Art by Lise Meijer
"Meditation: Quieting the Mind. Soften, and soften again" ~ Tara Brach
Netflix instead of Network television? you betcha!
"Our lives align with deeper values and the lives of others are touched and influenced. Silence brings us back to basics, to our senses, to our selves. It locates us. Without that return we can go so far away from our true natures that we end up, quite literally, beside ourselves. We live blindly and act thoughtlessly. We endanger the delicate balance which sustains our lives, our communities, and our planet. Each of us can make a difference." ~ Gunilla Norris
 "Politicians and visionaries will not return us to the sacredness of life. That will be done by ordinary men and women who together or alone can say,
[Quite importantly and emphatically...]
 'Remember to breathe, remember to feel, remember to care, let us do this for our children and ourselves and our children's children. Let us practice for life's sake." ~ Gunilla Norris
TESLA: One issue is food. What a stellar or terrestrial energy to feed the hungry on Earth? With what wine watered all thirsty, so that they can cheer in their heart and ...
Understand that they are Gods?  click here for Tesla's last interview
Valentines from Sue, February 2012, were also "found"
"... to eXist in the silence that is man's greatest power." ~ Nikola Tesa
Zoroaster also known as Zarathushtra, was the prophet of Ancient Iran, whose transformation of his inherited religion, Zoroastrianism, inaugurated a movement that eventually became the dominant religion in Ancient Persia. Wikipedia

The ABCs of old scrapbooks - Jan 15, 2017

Acceptance: A new point of view:  

"Breathe easy" ~ the start of a new scrapbook and a new life, Sept, 2005

Contemplative: expressing or involving prolonged thought, as in the look on the face while reading this book pictured in "X" below. A sign to keep doing my blog this way, at least for now :)
December 2012: I love this picture of two of my favorite people

Enjoying two favorite things, reading and Kendall
Finding treasures in assortment of scrapbooks from 2001, 2005, 2012, and 2013. 
George Santayana: "In each person I catch the fleeting suggestion of something beautiful and swear eternal friendship with that."
"Home is a place where serenity and sweet dreams are connected by a flight of stairs" ~ the start of a new scrapbook Sept 1, 2005
"I/woman give birth: and this time to/ myself." ~ Alma Villanueva, again from "new" scrapbook
"...Joy - powerfully - strengthened my back. Joy - tremendously - took off the pressure. Joy - gloriously - warmed my heart. I raised like a bird from my shackles and flew peacefully over the sea of my troubles." ~ Ingrid Kiehl-Krau 1998

Letting go Lets the fun shine in
More purging revealed this gem : "My job was to figure out how to live my life in a new way."
"Nugget" from Sept 2005 O Magazine: "Loving ourselves opens us to truly knowing ourselves as part of a matrix of existence, inextricably connected to the boundlessness of life. When we keep oping past any version of who we are that is crafted by others, when we see that we are far bigger than the person that is delineated by family or cultural expectations, we realize that we are capable of so much more than we usually darn to imagine. In this spirit the poet Walt Whitman wrote, 'I am larger, better than I thought; I did not know I held so much goodness.'" from The Force of Kindness by Sharon Salzberg

"Our theory of relativity : Everyone has a link in the family chain tucked away in drawers and scrapbooks." ~ ironic in that it was a magazine clipping added to enhance the page commemorating Mom and Dad's 50th Anniversary celebration 
Purging of bits and pieces of old scrapbooks is something I never thought I'd do, but actually, it is...
Quite satisfying to see pictures of Quiet times
 Aug 21, 2001
"Relax, Refresh and reward Yourself." ~ always a good reminder
"So many people need you in so many ways, and no one can take your place. No one else can play your role. No one else knows your lines. You are uniquely created to fit in the special you-shaped space God formed in His world. Never wonder if you are needed. The fact that you are here proves it!" ~ from hugs for Women 12 Nov 2001
Thanksgiving 2001
silence honors and invites the Unknown, the Untamed, the wild, the shy, the Unfathomable — that which rarely has a chance to surface within Us" ~ Gunilla Norris
"Verve" in 2013 scrapbook near photo of getting ready for Momocon. yep! We drove to Atlanta, Georgia for the weekend for an Anime Convention
 "We are all children in the kindergarten of God." ~ Elbert Hubbard, 13 Nov 2001 calendar page
Yes, as you can see, this kid has always loved to read, and I have many, many, many photos.
Zen Proverbs on twitter: The truth you believe and cling to makes you unavailable to hear anything new. — Pema Chödrön

Jan 9 thru early am 15th 2017

"Aligning with what is here is a way of practicing presence. It allows us to respond to our world with creativity and compassion." ~ Tara Brach blog post "Absolute Cooperation with the Inevitable"
Be in this moment
Come back... Cooperate with the Inevitable
Discover the light and warmth og presence itself
Everything turns in circles and spirals with the cosmic heart until infinity. Everything has a vibration that spirals inward or outward .. and Everything turns together in the same direction at the same time. This vibration keeps going: it becomes born and expands or closes and destructs , only to repeat the cycle again in opposite current. Like a lotus, it opens or closes, dies and is born again. Such is also the story of the sun and moon, of me and you. " ~ Suzy Kassem
Foods for Your Brain by Matthew Kadey, R.D. ie, "natural nitrates in beets can increase blood flow to the brain, thereby improving mental performance

Grounding makes us whole - Joe Biden said so too, when thank President Obama

He is the epitome of Humility

Infinity symbol in this Image reminded me of my friend Jess. "And as the first light of the new tomorrow shined her greatest strength...blessing all with her presence on the newly birthed day...love had won every battle even if no one had noticed...yet... " Words: Angelica Perman Intuitive Guide Image: Emily Balivet


Kristen had a very special birthday this week, but this picture was taken by Paula in August


LENTILS build your iron stores - how have I missed this for so long?





Nothing truly dies. All energy simply transforms." ~ Suzy Kassem
Obama Awards Joe Biden Presidential Medal of Freedom click here for the video
Perfect! "Pain is impermanent. Pleasure is impermanent. It's amazing when you realize impermanence and start to live with that." --overheard conversations at Kripalu ❣ Justine
"Question about lunawings.blogspot.com" it was fun and exciting to see this subject line in my email in November, even though I am just now getting back to it.
"Rise Up and Salute the Sun"https://www.facebook.com/serendipitycorner62/photos/pcb.1390587684296096/1390586804296184/?type=3&theater ~ Suzy Kassem

Serendipty Corner Spirals 
Urling Sylvia, a hometown friend, shared this bit of whimsy: 

Vascular Effects of Caffeine click here for more info
Why and how coffee has been helping me heal 
Xanthine : crystalline compound found in blood and urine which is an intermediate in the metabolic breakdown of nucleic acids to uric acid. source acts in the body’s cells by different mechanisms of action and on a wide range of molecular targets. source 
Zen like Talmudic saying: "...What comes from the heart, enters the heart. Mr. President, you have creeped into our heart…and you occupy it.” ~ qtd. by vice President, Joe Biden click here

Happy New Year, again... Jan 8, 2017

https://saxtonstudio.wordpress.com/2016/12/23/love-peace-and-santa/
Art, Blog, Peace, Beauty... "Love, Peace, and Santa" by Patricia Saxton 
"Be present in all things and thankful for all things." ~ Maya Angelou
Chicken soup is, indeed, good for the soul.
Dining with the Gilmore Girls
 ~ Art by Jill Lambert 

 "Give yourself time to make a prayer that will become the prayer of your soul...Give attention to the unexpected that lives around the rim of your life. " ~ John O'Donohue Eternal Echoes

Honoring the place and space in which I find myself at this very moment.
"It's always now. It's the now that's eternal - actually." ~ David Hockney
James Joyce's epiphany was the sudden 'revelation of the whatness of a thing,' the moment in which 'the soul of the commonest object...seems to us radiant.' 
Kendall stole the best seat in the house, again: 
"Listen to the voices of longing in your soul. Listen to your hungers...Listen to your memory and to the inrush of your future, to the voices of those near you and those you have lost." ~ John O'Donohue Eternal Echoes 

"Make a prayer that is big enough for your wild soul, yet tender enough for your shy and awkward vulnerability; that has enough healing to gain the ointment of divine forgiveness for your wounds; enough truth and vigour to challenge your blindness and complacency; enough graciousness and vision to mirror your immortal beauty."  ~ John O'Donohue Eternal Echoes
Novel Matters  Nice reading spot

https://saxtonstudio.wordpress.com/outrageous-happiness/


Q: What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? A: Living in fear.” ~ David Bowie would've been 70 today. Here are his wonderful answers to the Proust Questionnaire:

"Rooted, they grip down and begin to awaken" ~ William Carlos Williams qtd. by Jean Jackson,
 April 28, 2005 Academic and Leadership Awards Ceremony. posted to Facebook by me Jan 8, 2012

Stand guard at the door of your mind.” ~ Jim Rohn

"Through our eyes, the Universe is perceiving itself. Through our ears, the Universe is listening to its harmonies. We are the witnesses through which the Universe becomes conscious of its glory, of its magnificence. ~ Alan W. Watts
Video from YouTube: The Mind - Alan Watts
"Write a prayer that is worthy of the destiny to which you have been called." ~ John O'Donohue Eternal Echoes
Zest Bakery's Facebook status : "In the bakery today till the snowflakes tell us otherwise...❄️"