What if...

Enjoying an early morning labyrinth walk, I found myself accompanied by a meandering Pete, frolicking Annie and meowing Orange. Once I found my seat in its center, only Pete remained to join me in quiet contemplation. Annie’s mischievous ways had long-since caused Orange to head for higher ground and so Pete and I communed with nature’s beauty and God’s creative spirit. Eventually the following question appeared in my consciousness: “What if God is a big black dog?” Go ahead and chuckle and think I’m a bit sacrilegious, if you must…but really! Pete was there with me in the beauty and quiet of my labyrinth…not licking or breathing on me…just perfectly content to share that time and space. A companion, who quietly hangs out and unconditionally loves.

Enjoy the Sunshine

I can hear my mama's voice saying, "get outside and enjoy this beautiful sunsine...and don't slam the door on your way out!" It's been decades since my pony-tailed,freckled-face self followed my mama's urging to head outdoors to play with Thais, Becky, Susan and Steve; but sunny days like we've experience lately always bring my mother's admonition to mind. It's okay to work at the computer or watch television or read on cold or rainy days, but remaining inside on days of bright sunshine and warming temps is just unacceptable. So outside for me, it has been...spiffing up my potager, pruning my roses and wandering around Miller Hill to discover another new daffodil brightening the earth's brownness with its vivid yellow self. My daddy loved to pick the first daffodils for Mama and put them on the kitchen table. Mama always commented that Munny, my maternal grandmother, called daffodils the harbinger of spring. My mother said that when she saw the first daffodils, she knew there was hope for another year of living. so get outside and soak up the sunshine, pick a handful of daffodils and focus on the beauty and promise of another spring...another season of living.

February's Sad Drizzling Gray Skies...

Sometimes I feel as if it is raining in my heart & soul...a slow, silent drizzle that is imperceptible to those around me but seeks to draw my spirit into its damp lonely sadness. For far too many years this sadness overshadowed my living and I struggled to survive its suffocating power; but gradually my spirit began the process of healing and the the showers of sadness began to appear less frequently. At first I was fearful of celebrating its absense, lest the sadness return with redoubled fury...which I must confess, happened for more seasons than I care to remember. These days, "life is good" and so much more fulfilling and happy than I could ever have imagined; The silent sadness creeps into my heart very rarely now; but today brings one of those moments when I find myself recognizing the emotions of that slow silent drizzle. Taking another deep breath, I know that it will not remain with me or me within its grasp forever; That is reason for rejoicing amid the drizzling sadness.