A Friend Knows the Song in Your Heart

A FRIEND IS SOMEONE WHO KNOWS
THE SONG IN YOUR HEART,
AND CAN SING IT BACK TO YOU WHEN
YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN THE WORDS.

~Donna Roberto

Of Note: This is a family portrait of my mom with her grandkids and great-grandkids. My whole family represents all that is good in the world. When functioning well like this one, families stand as a collective friend to its members. No matter what happens, someone is there to pick the other up. That's a guarantee. Statistics show that America is in the midst of a compassion and volunteering boom. A full 94% of Americans believe it is "important to be personally involved in supporting a cause we believe in" in our communities while 91% extrapolate that to the whole world. Could it be that Americans are awakening to the fact that we are all one family globally? That it is our universal responsibility to pick the another up as a family member not as an act of charity? If this is the case, it could be the start of a transformational wave that could bring in the new era of peace. That's a guarantee.

Today's weather Report: Although it was 65 degrees Fahrenheit earlier in the week, now it's in the 30's. Bright and sunny, but cold. With the help of the two dogs, I cleaned out the garden beds when it was warm and reveled in the sun's rays beating on my face. The canes created a "mountain" several feet tall. In my mind's eye, I can already picture the July garden bursting with color, although now only a tiny bit of daffodil leaves are showing. When the grass begins it trek skyward, my garden tractor will be ready having had it tune-up yesterday. Bring it on!

We Are Each Other

We are each others harvest.
We are each others business.

We are each others
magnitude and bond.

~Gwendolyn Brooks

Of Note: Quite literally, we are all connected like the seeds of these sunflowers. Great spirals of life in ordered pattern. Magical really if we only knew.

Today's Weather Report: Oh, my. It was actually 52 degrees Fahrenheit in the late afternoon. We haven't seen temperatures in the fifties since last fall! Snow is melting all around and great puddles are forming on the still frozen ground. Soon the road to the house will be next to impossible to navigate. What a wonderful problem to have as spring approaches. The puppies found the partial remains of a deer in the woods today and brought a leg home. Thankfully, they left it in the driveway. Gives a new meaning to dog kisses.

The Great Day That Dawns

I THINK OVER AGAIN MY SMALL ADVENTURES,
MY FEARS, THOSE SMALL ONES THAT SEEMED SO BIG,
ALL THOSE VITAL THINGS I HAD TO GET AND REACH,
AND YET THERE IS ONLY ONE GREAT THING:

TO LIVE AND SEE THE GREAT DAY THAT DAWNS,
AND THE LIGHT THAT FILLS THE WORLD.

~ Old Inuit Song

Of Note: Light is a topic that few really contemplate for long. It is ubiquitous and therefore ordinary. What more could be said about light than has already been said? The Inuits seem to know something the rest of us don't. Apparently, they see a day in the future where a different light fills the world than what is already here. I would imagine that they mean this in a literal rather than figurative sense. Many may not give credence to native beliefs, but the aboriginal people might be on to something.

Today's Weather Report: Old Man Winter is making his yearly decision whether it is time to go. With temps in the high 30's all week, it would appear he is packing his bags....though he usually has a snow storm or two to throw at us on his way out. According to my sister, Marie, the tulips are already coming up in Texas. The plants on my southern windowsill must know this because 4 different kinds are in bloom. Even the maple I am attempting to bonsai has sent up a shoot with two little leaves! It is my reward for watering two leaf-less maple "sticks" all winter.

My Philosophy is Kindness

There is no need for temples;
no need for complicated philosophy.

Our own brain, our own heart, is our temple;
my philosophy is kindness.

~ His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Of Note: This blog marks the 500th since I began this series in December 2007. These blogs have only scratched the surface of the remarkable knowledge contained in ageless wisdom that is available to humanity. Actually, not even the first molecular layer of the surface. I stand in awe at what humanity has before it. The darkness is very heavy at the moment, but the dawn approacheth. The horizon is ablaze with the first glow of light. The Dalai Lama stands as an example of a current world savior who leads by example. He obviously has seen the first rays as well and adds his quota through kindness, compassion, and criticism where appropriate. Watching men and women like him, we know that humanity is well served.

Today's Weather Report: The day opened with partly cloudy skies and will end with the same, most likely. Temps started in the teens and will rise to the 30's Fahrenheit. March often brings winds that blow winter out and bring in a glorious spring. Spring, it's getting close now.

The Mracle of a Single Flower

IF WE COULD SEE THE MIRACLE
OF A SINGLE FLOWER,
OUR WHOLE LIFE WOULD CHANGE.

~ The Buddha

Of Note: What do you think the Buddha knew that we don't? Could He have meant something more than merely looking at a flower and appreciating its readily apparent beauty? It would seem so because that's so obvious--and nothing about what the Buddha or Jesus the Christ said was obvious. Could it be the He was asking us to look past the physicality of the flower to its essence, its life, its connection to the Divine? Could it be that before us in the flower is the whole universe in miniature? Contemplation on such thoughts could bring us closer to our essence, and it is guaranteed that constant meditative practice such as this would change our lives forever. Could be that's what the Buddha knew.

Today's Weather Report: Yesterday on my birthday it was sunny and almost 40 degrees Fahrenheit! The Birkie cross country ski race was in town with 10,000 participants. The conditions were perfect for spectators although it was a bit warm for the racers. The time capsule with George W. Bush memorabilia has 23 more years to go before we see how history views his time in office. Two years ago it seemed certain that history would judge the former President harshly. But as I've said the past two years on my birthday, I am not so sure. I plan to be around in 2033 and will go to my sock drawer, draw the time capsule out and re-read all the material I've saved there. Should be quite enlightening. Anyone around at the time has an open invitation to join me.

Plutocracy

I'm not a Republican
I'm not a Democrat...
For years I've been a
Plutocrat.

~ Clyde Tombaugh

Of Note: Clyde Tombaugh "discovered" Pluto in 1930. At that point, no one argued that Pluto was the ninth planet and congratulated the young Kansan for his astronomical observation. Pluto is 3.67 billion miles away which made it impossible to closely observe. It wasn't until the 1970's and 1980's that Pluto's size was downgraded to smaller than the smallest planet, Mercury. As a matter of fact, it was only half the diameter. In the 1990's a belt of objects past Neptune were discovered, and astronomer's realized that Pluto was merely a part of that large belt of asteroids. Thus, in 2006, a new definition for planets was created by the powers that be, and Pluto was stripped of it's planetary regalia. It is not surprising that many did not agree with the ruling, and the controversy has raged ever since. As a matter of fact, a majority of Americans overwhelmingly sided with Pluto's planethood in a 2009 CNN.com poll. The ancients might agree. Astrologically, 12 planets are known to exist, and Pluto has not been been removed from its planetary list. Thanks to Ken Croswell, an astronomer, for his insighful editorial in the Wall Street Journal about this timely subject.

Today's Weather Report: What can I say? Another sunny day mixed with a cloudy day. Pretty typical for winter in the northwoods. This is a picture of the moon from my backyard last year, not Pluto obviously. What I had in mind was a little exercise in using the "As If" technique to imagine Pluto all those billions of miles away. It is so far away it orbits the sun only once every 248 years. What's more, sunlight requires several hours to reach it. Strangely, during the years 1979 to 1999, Pluto was inside the orbit of Neptune so was the eighth planet from the sun rather than the ninth. Now that's it's been stripped of its credentials as a bona fide planet, Pluto makes a perfect underdog for Americans to champion. My prediction? I wouldn't be surprised if one day, Pluto isn't recognized as a planet once more.

A Candle in Your Heart

There is a candle in your heart,
ready to be kindled.
There is a void in your soul,
ready to be filled.

You feel it, don't you?

~Rumi

Of Note: Rumi was a mystic poet who lived in the 1300's. His poems are often used between lovers because he apparently had an insight into the mystery shared by two people in love. His writings exude an intimacy at a level that is almost uncomfortable in the mundane world. One of his pieces was even center stage on the invitation to Jim's and my wedding. It might surprise some that Rumi was not talking about earthly love at all. Rather universal love was his focus--the final union that the soul is awaiting with its Higher Self. Yes, what we call our Higher Self has itself a Higher Self. It is the union of these two that finally put an end to the earthly cycle of evolution for most. A mystic gets the first glimpse of this Reality and is overcome, although it will take many lifetimes before the final union is achieved. However, having seen the vision, the mystic's subsequent lives are never the same.

Today's Weather Report: What a lovely day in the neighborhood! The sun is shining brightly and no clouds mar the scene. I just saw one drip off the roof; so,the day will be warm. Every warm day like this gets us one day closer to spring.