"Simple like an uncarved block."
Tao te Ching


"Like an acorn that holds the promise of a thousand forests."

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

GRACE NOTES

I love mornings. Maybe I just love new beginnings. A fresh new day, filled with all possibilities. As soon as you start making decisions about anything you begin to limit those possibilities. I put off choosing for as long as I can. I meditate, drink coffee and step outside to breath deeply. Oh, alright those were all choices. We can't not make choices, it is what we were born to do.
So my underlying choice is always to enjoy the moment, not take myself too seriously and extend kindness at all times. Today I'm drawing from my Grace Notes things that I have started my mornings with over the years. In meditation I often draw on my book of sayings to get myself going of a morning.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is the day the Lord hath made,
Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalm 118:24
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Your life is shaped by the end you live for;
you are made in the imagine of what you desire.
Thomas Merton
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We have only this moment sparkling like a star in our hand---
and melting like a snowflake. Let us use it,
before it is to late.
Marie Edith Beynon
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn
Look well to this day,
for it is life. The very life of life. In it's
brief course lie all the verities and all
the realities of your existence.
The bliss of growth.
The glory of action.
the splendor of beauty.
Yesterday is but a dream;
and tomorrow is only a vision.
But a day well lived makes of every
yesterday a dream of happiness and
every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well, therefore, to This Day.
Such is the salutation to the Dawn.
from the Sanskrit
Kalidasa, Indian poet and dramatist. c 400 c.e.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Prayer of Protection
The Light of God surrounds me.
The Love of God enfolds me.
The Power of God protects me and
The Presence of God watches over me.
Wherever I am God is
and all is well.
James Dillet Freman
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am not afraid of tomorrow.
I have seen yesterday
and
I love today!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The photo of our Rose of Sharon show the glory and bane of the trees. Glorious flowers all summer and the spent flowers littering the ground.

8 comments:

Gilly said...

The roses are beautiful - I love white roses, but they so often get spoiled by rain!

And Thomas Merton speaks a lot of sense. A lot of people resemble £'s on legs!

Nina said...

"Maybe I just love new beginnings. A fresh new day, filled with all possibilities" How true this is! Like a package waitning to be opened... we don't yet know what wonders are in store for us. Have a Blessed and Glorious Day! Love and Light, Nina P.

Cloudhands said...

Gilly,
These Rose of Sharon are not true roses. They are a shrub or tree with hollyhock type flowers. My variety has a very large bloom. Must be an American bush.
I have seem some folks who love the idea of more money so much they might end up looking like cartoon money walking around.

Cloudhands said...

Well, Hello Nina,
Welcome to my world. Thanks for stopping by to join in the conversation. I hope your day was equally blessed and filled with joy.

Wendy said...

I love mornings too. I think your rose of sharon might just be a variety of hibiscus.
I enjoyed this nice, peaceful post.
Hugs

Cloudhands said...

Wendy,
You may well be right. The big white flower is lovely and was a disapointment to my Dad who bought them labled at the nursery as Rose of Sharon. But he was hoping for a pretty colored flower with a deep color in the throat of the bloom. We now own the property and enjoy the plants whatever they are. I'll research the web and see what difference there might be or if they are both actually the same family of plants. Thanks for the insight.

Christy said...

Thank you for your kind and wise words. You would be one I would miss, you have helped me by your kindness more than you will ever know.

Cloudhands said...

Christy,
I once read-- "Would you rather be right or would you rather be kind." I have always tried to choose KIND. Obviously we have to stand up for ourselves, but I have found you can even do that in a gentle fashion.