“And they lived happily ever after.”

I don’t know about you but some of my happiest times have been after I have vanquished a foe – either in real life or in my beliefs; when I finally defined the lines of my personal kingdom and shoved someone or some thought into the moat. But here’s the rub. All those nefarious creatures which engage you in thought, dream or reality all reside within the walls of your kingdom. They infiltrated before you knew you were royal. Before you discovered the only one who can defend your walls is your Self.

Your Personal Kingdom

And who are they? They are your parents beliefs about themselves as seen through you. They are the cultural and religious mores and doctrines of your time. They are the collective beliefs of nation or global village. And who are you? You are the spark from the brilliant flame of all that has ever been created and all that may ever be created. Your preciousness is not debatable. Your potential as the hands, eyes, voice of creation is limitless. Your value as a human being is beyond all imagined riches.

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It’s not polite to say you are truly happy.

I was raised to be ‘good’. Good meant humble, passive, helpful, respectful, and self effacing. I grew up ‘good’ very well. So well, in fact, that Life scared me to death. Anyone older, richer, more educated, socially superior or just louder was awarded my abeyance and deference. Life in our turbulent family constellation was fraught with its dramas and tragedies like manic depression and suicide and trussed up in the bonds of God’s will. So God being the ultimate authority was good and scary and for sure ruled a world of sadness and uncertainty. Suffering was inevitable and enduring suffering without complaint was nobility itself.

But like every good Christian (religion is interchangeable), I hoisted my burden – my imperfect self – and set out to make that truth true. I looked for the broken people who I could relate to. We shared a distrust of the world and the acceptance of a dysfunctional universe. It took me a few decades to discover that ‘thoughts become things’ in the words of Mike Dooley and I found exactly what I was looking for. Suffering. This ‘proof’ fed my belief in my own unworthiness and even when – or especially when – Read more…

The Elegance of Living Peace and Beauty

When I was a teenager, there was an army greatcoat that hung on a hook behind the heavy wooden door in the cottage. On rainy days I would shrug into it, wrap it ’round me and cinch the wide belt. It was khaki coloured with epaulettes. A real ‘trench’ coat from the war when my dad was ‘overseas’. It was full of deep pockets and folds and unexpected inner stashes. I would grab his old wide brimmed fedora, stained and much loved and pull it down over my eyes. Slipping into black rubber boots with the red trim around the top and toe, I would leave the cocoon of the fire warmed log cabin and slam the door behind me. Read more…

Happy Mother’s Day!

No chocolate chip pancakes with jelly beans in bed for me today. Nope. This evening I am assured of a very special menu – homemade pasta with a sauce or stuffing (not sure which) but I know it will be a culinary delight. I am to bring wine (we’re having Italian) and a brick of Parmesan (my treat because the good stuff is beyond the budget of two young men forging their way in the music business.

Part of the pleasure of the evening with my two princes will be to watch them cook. They are a choreographed team in a small apartment kitchen. The younger one will be in charge and the older one will act as sous chef. One will rinse a dish and without turning his back pass it over the shoulder where the other will scoop it and put it in the dishwasher. What the??! I don’t recall that at home! Read more…

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“I AM the Resurrection and the Life”

John: 11 25-26

What if the resurrection never happened? I mean, what if there was no Judas, no pieces of silver, no Pilate – no Crucifixion? What if Jesus worked it all out with hugs and left everyone in his wake feeling warm and bubbly as he flashed the peace sign while he repeated ‘Love is all there is’.

My question is how can we despise Judas when he fulfilled the prophesy of a new age dawning and served the peaceful warrior up on silver? He had to betray the Lamb of God in order for us to pay attention. It’s not human nature to go looking to change the status quo. So we paid attention but in the convoluted journey from then to now, we have betrayed that gentle message of love and compassion and awakening over and over and over again. Read more…

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Current strategies fail to eradicate the infestation of the
Asian Long-horned Beetle and the Emerald Ash Borer.
Why is this proven, environmentally responsible solution not being used?

Interview with Ray Morand

My guest today is Ray Morand who is with Verdant Technologies. Our discussion concerns the rampant infestation of our urban tree communities and rural forests caused by the Emerald Ash Borer and Asian Long-horned Beetle.

Any one who knows me knows some of my best friends are trees. I love trees. Not only for the obvious health benefits – they are the lungs of the earth – but because trees are a balm to us all, particularly those who live in our frenetic and hurried urban environments.

I had heard of the invasion of the Emerald Ash Borer and Asian Long-horned Beetle, but until recently was unaware of the extent of threat these foreign invaders posed. I have passed the signs on 400 highway for years showing the silhouette of the beetle and warning about taking wood beyond the boundaries. Not much is heard anymore so I assumed no news was good news. Nothing could be farther from the truth! Read more…

How to Experience Life as an Endless Act of Love

Taking the hand of “What Is” is to engage in the dance of life.  Sometimes we join in gladness and sometimes we join in sadness, but when we lean into the arms of surrender we experience life as an endless act of love.

This morning – four years ago – I looked into my husband and best friend’s eyes for the last time. It was a magical moment of grace – free of fear or sadness. It began with the absolute knowing. In that clarity, there became nothing to do but to follow the lead of the moment. The handful of moments from first waking to last breath became a ritual of sorts. I had slept in a chair by the bed where he could easily see me when he woke. George had wakened fitful and perspiring.

I fetched the nurse to hurry up the meds and grabbed a fresh gown from the rack in the hall. To calm him, I filled a basin with warm water scented with lavender oil, aromatherapy, and began to bathe him; his face, his hands, legs, feet. The nurse helped me put on a fresh gown. Waiting for the clock to strike 7 and the pain pill to arrive, I did Therapeutic Touch to offer whatever relief or comfort I could. I knew he was slipping away quickly and by the time I had finished the treatment, he was gone. I climbed into the bed and fit my body into the familiar contour of his back and held him. He was without pain and I was at peace. Read more…

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Willing the Peace and Being the Joy of the Season

From Christmas 2009

Reading time: 10 minutes + -

My Sweetheart came looking for me last Sunday morning to bring me  a cup of coffee.  He found me in the living room washing the floor on my hands and knees.  “Why are you doing that?” he asked.  Anyone who knows me knows that housekeeping is not my usual thing.  In fact anyone who comes to my house without warning is witness to that.

“I just wanted to clean in the corners and behind the tree.” (as if that made sense).  It wasn’t a moment before that I confided I was a little bit sad about Christmas.  It was Christmas Eve three years ago that my beloved husband, George, began his final decent to his death in early February.  Little wonder that my sons weren’t all fired up about the holiday.  Of course, the tears that threatened just eased the flow of the other woes that didn’t quite fit with the tree sparkling with lights in the corner.

Then I just dumped out the whole gunny sack of emotions:  It was five days until  Christmas and I didn’t have the money to shop.  A business venture was turning sour and a friend I trusted had abused that trust.  I had neglected what was most important to me to ‘do’ other things and I was left with the emptiness of time wasted.  My house had been for sale for a year and a half and I had no idea what the spring held.  I had dreams and wishes – but right then I had a floor to wash.

Christmas has a way of shining a Klieg light on life.  Where’s the promised joy?  Where is the peace?  We can blame commercialism.  We can blame religiosity.  We can blame the market, the kids, our job.  But it isn’t Christmas that is wrong.  It’s that we are looking in the wrong place for its meaning.  It is not in the words of “Oh Come All Ye Faithful”.  It’s not in the lineup for Tiffany’s.  It’s not in a cup of eggnog – rum or no rum.  It is not in a Norman Rockwell painting.  It isn’t even at midnight mass.  Peace and joy start on the inside and work their way out.  Christmas symbols are the map to find those twin twinkling lights within. Read more…

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One day my beloved Yoga teacher, G, sent me a A Note from the Universe. It was authored by Mike Dooley and was a sweet uplifting message. Here it is,

The things that are common to you, beloved, like windy mornings, starry skies, and old trees; rain, bees, strawberries, and doorbells; coffee, blue jeans, flowers, water, clouds and summertime… are not common to us.

Enjoy every single magnificent moment on Earth. . . W O W ! ! !

~ The Universe ~

PS. Believe me, time and space to us is like the ultimate theme park.

And there is always a long line up to get in there… lucky you!

I only had to get a couple more before I subscribed to the daily message. I was hooked but it wasn’t until the 10th message that I went to Mike’s site and signed up.  By the magic of the internet, I was able to put in personal goals and information and presto – the  messages from the Universe were just for me!  It’s a trick of technology but it feels so good that I am willing to overlook it and accept and look forward the happy thoughts each day.

I was delighted when I heard about this new book.  I read it cover to cover and have handed it off already.  I urge anyone seeking understanding of the simplicity and joy of life to buy it and read it.

Before we can find our Self.

There are early morning sounds in the street below me. I have just returned upstairs from the first day at my ‘nano’ office. It is a display window in the lane that runs between Cumberland and Yorkville in the trendy heart of Toronto. I used green painters’ tape to fix a piece of paper with the word INSPIRATION in orange lettering on the back wall. I also placed three smooth stones – two black and one white – on the floor and traced the word again in the dirt and footprints of the last ‘tenant’.

Why did I do that? I’m not entirely sure. Its the first gesture of a new beginning.

It’s my birthday today. And it seems as good a day as any to ask myself such questions. The window will emerge from this one word to eventually display vibrant and joyful works of art by painters I know, respect, love, and admire. They are friends of mine and over the next year we will make the world more beautiful through works of art and more inspired through labours of love. Right here in the middle of the city.

I have not only surprised myself, but I have dumbfounded most of my friends.

Here’s another question: “What the heck am I doing here?” I have not only surprised myself, but I have dumbfounded most of my friends who would have thought they knew me well. Being here, now, was beyond anyone’s expectation a few short months ago. This time last year I was likely sitting on my back deck with a creamy cup of coffee loving how the early morning sun glimpsed through the trees. Read more…

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