Category Archives: inspiring

The good, the bad and the truth

7 Comments

How quickly we lose our tenuous grasp on the things that used to seem so simple.  How fleetly we relinquish our grip.  How easily we let go of the reins only to watch those reins get wrapped up in the wheels of the coach we struggle to maintain control of as we steer ourselves into our future.

stagecoach(image credit)

In those rare moments in our lives, in the moments when we think we can marginally and genuinely separate the good from the bad, the truth will always do its best to expedite that process.  We are fools to think that we can fool ourselves.  And although good and bad are formidable opponents, the truth will always come out the victor.

Knowing our truth may sometimes feel like nothing more than a burden.  We may carry it with us, hidden under a shroud of secrecy, hoping that it remains hidden.  But eventually that truth becomes transparent, if not to others at least, to ourselves.  And in that moment, in that split second when we realize we can no longer pull the wool over our own eyes, the pressure of that burden no longer holds any weight.

Suddenly the reins are back in our hands.  That feeling of losing control is replaced by a new calm and the knowledge that everything that seemed to be bad can be good again.  The truth did, indeed, give us a sense of freedom and the moment we began believing in that truth, our change was inevitable.

Dealing with the good and the bad in ourselves is human nature.  That concept evolved long before we began our journey through this lifetime.  But being able to recognize the truth, to embrace the strength and the weakness that brought us to our truth, is the genuine definition of our character.

True strength is not measured by physical endurance alone.  True strength does sweat, it does bleed.  But it also cries, accepts, forgives and heals.  True strength inspires us to be better and, somewhere along that rugged path, our truth can inspire others as well.  #mjs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I didn’t want to exhale

3 Comments

I missed you a lot yesterday.

Some days are so much worse.

Lots of funny little memories

flooded back and overwhelmed me.

I thought I could smell your perfume,

Lily of the Valley,

and though it was faint,

even in the earliest days of spring,

with no blossoms to be seen anywhere,

I knew it was you,

and I didn’t want to exhale.

lily-of-the-valley

And when the smell of Spearmint gum

overwhelmed my senses,

sometime later in the afternoon,

it was like sneaking into your purse again,

to get a piece of that very gum,

and I didn’t want to exhale.

Those smells keep us connected,

like two worlds coming together

if only for a brief moment.

And no matter how far away you may seem,

those lingering scents make me know that you are here,

standing close to me,

always here when I need you,

and I don’t ever want to exhale.

(image credit)

If you see me

2 Comments

reflection

If you see my reflection,

 if my eyes look at you from ethereal places,

know that I am by your side.

I don’t have to be near you

to be with you.

You see me,

at the moment you are in my thoughts,

in the precious seconds

I get to be closer to you.

 Your reflection is in my heart.

It is in the air around me

and in the divine breath that lets me stay in this place.

If you see me,

it is because I never let go of you.

~~

(image credit)

Just like an elephant

4 Comments

“Love is space and time measured by the heart.” ~ Marcel Proust

heart tree

(image credit)

The heart has a long memory.  It can quickly recall moments that have gradually faded into the past or people who have been taken away from us far too early.  It stores all of the things that our brains have long since forgotten, either by chance or by choice, and always makes room for more.  It lets us remember the things that mean the most to us and it creates more space every time we meet another soul who deserves a place there.

The heart can reach back into those abandoned stages in our lives when we least expect that trip down memory lane.  It can pull the emotion from the happiest times in our lives but it also never forgets the pain.  It uses that dull ache as a canvas, a backdrop to remind us of where we have been as we begin to paint the new picture of where we are going.

A heart that truly loves almost always forgives but it never forgets.  The scars of emotion are deeply etched in its tissue.  Time marches on but the heart will always carry the burden of every emotion that has brought it to the present.  It will be gracious.  It will be accepting.  And it will remember how it felt to be broken so it doesn’t willingly pass on that pain to another heart.

The heart does have a long memory.  And on the days that the images are still able to escape the brain, the heart will always be there with a gentle nudge to keep those sacred thoughts close.

(Thanks Lyn!)

Seventeen thousand, five hundred and forty four hours

2 Comments

Butterflyinthesky1

You left us in the early hours,

so peacefully your spirit would roam.

Through a gentle wind and the rising sun,

He called to take you home.

A ladder was built for your journey to light,

each rung meant to make you content.

While bathed in the glowing light of rebirth,

you gracefully began your ascent.

Loving arms awaited  you there,

curling you into their embrace.

Heaven welcomed an angel back home,

 rejoicing her love and her grace.

You leave behind your spirit and joy,

in those who loved you each day.

While our days will be saddened by the emptiness we feel,

we know we will see you again someday.

~

Jane Eleanore Nairn – May 21, 1940 – March 7, 2014

Smile and the world smiles with you

10 Comments

IMG_2695[1]

I have the benefit of generally waking up “on the right side of the bed”, as my mother used to say.  It is a rare day that I wake up in anything other than a good mood.

The sun usually shines in through my curtainless window.  I am greeted by the face of my loving dog and the world feels like it is waiting to greet me with the same happy mood.

When I looked across my front lawn yesterday morning, I was greeted by these two smiling faces.  Randomly created by the snowfall, these faces adorned the back of the Muskoka chair that sits on the edge of my lawn anxiously awaiting the appearance of Spring.

How can you not smile back when the world smiles at you first?

 

They usually mean well…..

5 Comments

People do strange things when they are under stress.  In the worst case scenario, their judgement is clouded and their choices are made without the benefit of having time to weigh the pros and cons to be able to formulate an informed decision.

On the odd occasion, people have very good intentions but they have terrible execution.  Although they may have a reasonable amount of time to assess a situation, their emotions cloud their abilities to think clearly and they make bad choices.  Their objective becomes distorted and they lose sight of the most important part of the predicament with which they are faced.  It is a simple human error and one that could be so easily avoided.

Conversation is the backbone of any relationship and honesty is the tissue that protects that backbone.  With neither of those things, human affinities will never have the strength to stand on their own.  There is much to be said for direct communication.  And, even if the exchange of information is uncomfortable, it is a necessary tool to build a strong foundation of trust and understanding.

breathe

For the most part, people do mean well.  There are moments when they lose themselves in trying desperately to find a solution without first understanding the entirety of the situation.  Their concern impairs their objectivity and they believe that they are acting in the best way possible.  But sometimes, they just need to take a moment to breathe – to step back and think to themselves “how would I want  someone to react if I were in that situation?”.   And just maybe that one small step backwards will take them leaps and bounds ahead of where they were.

 

 

 

 

 

Holding on to strength

4 Comments

worry-zdralea-ioana

“Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength.”
― Corrie Ten Boom

~~

It is easy to tell someone not to worry.  I am guilty of doing that very thing on an extremely frequent basis and in many different circumstances.  Recently, I have become much more aware of how redundant that statement can be and how little it does to alleviate the concern of the person doing the worrying.

Worry is a big part of the human condition.  We spend countless hours stressing about the things we cannot foresee, cannot control and cannot change.  We are designed to be thinkers, to be problem-solvers, and in those brief moments that we are left without an answer or a contingency plan we submerge under the waves of the unknown.

For as much as I try to not unsettle myself with things out of my control, today was a glaring reminder of how quickly worry can overtake us and truly drain us of our strength.  There is a small path in the carpet in my office where I paced back and forth.  There is an emptiness in my stomach where nourishment should have found its place, but didn’t.  And there is a dull ache in my temple from the inescapable habit of clenching my jaw when I am apprehensive.

Today worry was the cat and I was the feeble mouse.  I was victim to its cunning and could do nothing more than to hide in the metaphorical corner and play dead, hoping that the insidious predator would leave me alone.

Now I sit, writing this post with a slightly more peaceful feeling than I had earlier today.  Worry still beckons, the concerns of tomorrow still evident, but it holds much less power now than it did earlier today.  I have regained some of my tenacity so I can face tomorrow with a new courage.

Worry may be strong but I am stronger.

~~

image credit: Worry by Zdralea Ioana – http://www.fineartamerica.com