Brazil to Have First Indigenous Woman Chief in Key Position
Brazil’s President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will appoint Sônia Guajajara to head a new Ministry of Indigenous Peoples. She was elected to congress in October and included in Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people. Read more from AP.
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Over Nine Billion Dollars Pledged for Pakistan
Dozens of countries and international institutions pledged more than $9 billion to help Pakistan recover from devastating floods. The pledges came at a recent UN conference. AP has details here.
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Four Survive Plunge Off 250 Foot Cliff
Last week, I mentioned an emerging story about a family of four who survived going over a 250-foot cliff in their car. In a disturbing twist, police took the driver into custody after determining he intentionally drove off the cliff. Still, it’s miraculous that all four passengers, including two children, survived. Here’s more from NBC News.
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Kayaker Rescues Bald Eagle
Volunteer Jim Tibensky used his kayak to rescue a young bald eagle from the ice near Chicago
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New York Residents Rescue Birds Stuck in the Ice
Buffalo residents Seamus Gallivan and Alex McArthur helped free 16 birds stuck in ice after the recent winter storm. They used a hammer, chisels, and screwdrivers. One had ice stuck to it, so they took it home in a box to warm up by their fireplace. “After a few hours … the bird looked more alert, so they took the bird outside and it flew away. That inspired them to keep looking for more birds to save.” ABC News has the details.
Today’s prompt: “start with who/whom” Begin your post with either “who” or “whom” and go from there. Have fun!
“Who but you
could breathe and leave a trail of galaxies
and dream of me?
What kind of love
is writing my story until the end
with mercy’s pen?
That’s how the song starts that I will be singing Sunday morning in church, God willing. The song is “Alive,” as recorded by Natalie Grant. I hope I can do it some kind of justice and not get lost in the feeling, because I love this song. I love the words and the music, the rhythm and how it crescendos and softens.
Tomorrow will be the first time since Christmas that we’ve been inside the church for a regular service. We’ll be wearing masks and keeping safe distance, though I will not be wearing a mask when I sing. I’ve tried, and it’s too hard to get enough air on the inhale. But I’ll be tucked away in a corner behind the altar, at least 10 to 20 feet from anyone, I hope. All the rest of our music will be instrumental on the organ. I am honored, but mostly I hope people can feel the song.
Imagine the deep sadness, the agony Mary Magdalene felt watching Jesus die. Whether you believe Jesus was and is the divine son of God, or just a man who lived and was killed for his revolutionary ideas about love and equality, it was painful for those who loved him to watch him die. Imagine Mary Magdalene going to take care of his body in the tomb, wanting so badly to see him, but knowing he his dead since that dark day, the darkest day she has ever known.
Then, she sees him, and he is alive! I love how this video with the song shows her joy and the awe of the men she goes to tell about this miracle, that Jesus is alive!
I’m sure I’ve shared this song before, but this is where the stream has taken me today. May you feel joy and awe at this story and being alive!
Death has lost and love has won.
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For more streams of consciousness and SoCS rules, visit our host, Linda Hill at:
Today’s SoCS prompt is to find a word that starts with the letter, M, and base our post on it. At least that’s what I remember.
The word I’m going with is, Miracle.
I looked it up before I started typing this, because I was curious. The word comes from Latin among other languages of origin meaning “wonderful.” Some people think “wonderful” is overused. It’s one of my favorite words, and I’m going to use it whenever I feel like it.
We need some miracles in the United States and across the globe. Miracles seems to have to do with divine intervention, but there can also be an element or factor of manifestation, another M word.
It felt like a miracle when my high school sweetheart found me 39 years later when the timing was perfect. But I also worked hard to manifest a partner who would be compatible, while taking into account God might want me to stay single, and the compatible partner could have ended up being my dog.
I believe we will be successful in at least quieting Covid 19 and maybe even squashing it. Will that take a miracle? Maybe to get people to take precautions like distancing and wearing masks. But that brings me to a bigger concern: the political divide in the US.
It will be a miracle when we learn to listen to each other and accept our disagreements with respect. I am not neutral on very many subjects, though there may be a couple. I have made it clear on my personal FB page, and maybe slightly less clear here on WP, who I support for president. But I try not to call people names, like “idiot.” Though I occasionally give descriptions and might make a comparison. Here’s a hint of what I was watching Thursday night along with the debate.
I won’t say who Smaug reminded me of.
But I also try to post positive stuff and good news more often.
We need a miracle to bring our country together. And I don’t want it to be an attack from outer space. Let’s NOT manifest that. We need a miracle of understanding, compassion, and willingness to consider other points of view.
I admit, that if my candidate loses, I will be devastated and afraid. Very afraid. But I would like to be understanding, of my neighbors at least – the ones with the TRUMP banner in their yard. I have often shied away from intense political debates, though not in the format of Braver Angels where respect and listening are key components.
Right before I sat down to write this post, I listened to a podcast on NPR about this guy who is riding a bicycle across the continental divide of the US. He’s a journalist and wants to talk to Americans in rural areas. It’s called Facing West by Nate Hegyi.
One thing that stuck with me from this podcast was that Nate said we have more in common than we think and need to pay more attention to our own backyards (or neighborhoods) rather than the national politics to see the common ground. What I’m thinking that means is having, cultivating, grace and acceptance for my neighbors, even the ones with the T…. banner.
I’m reminded that one of my former colleagues used to say, “acceptance doesn’t mean you have to like it.”
We must have some common ground, even if it’s sharing the same sidewalk and living on the same street. I know my T banner neighbors like (or at least tolerate) trees, because they have a big magnolia tree in their little front yard. They also have dogs. One thing I’ve noticed is that a love of dogs seems to transcend politics. I only have a cat for now, but I will always love dogs.
Maybe dogs are part of the miracle. They don’t care about politics. Certainly cats don’t care about politics. They teach us to be in the moment, here and now.
Stream of Consciousness Saturday is hosted by Linda G. Hill. For more streams and SoCS rules, visit:
Today’s prompt is xp. We’re to use it as a word. ???? Wait. I don’t know what xp means as a word. I asked my hubby and he doesn’t know either, so I’m going to use it in a word or two since that is also an option.
I’ve been SOOOO busy moving back in to the renovated house. The bathroom door is still not here. We could put up the old bathroom door, but it wouldn’t look right. And I EXPECTED they would’ve had it – the new door – put in a long time ago. The excuse was something about it being a special door to match the other doors in the hallway. This project was started back in SEPTEMBER! Anyway, not having a bathroom door has been interesting. When they were still working on the house, my friend had to stand guard. Crazy stuff. And when it’s just me and my hubby… I don’t know if I like the word hubby. When it’s just the two of us (and the dogs) there is a new level of intimacy with not having a bathroom door. Not with the dogs. They don’t care.
Tomorrow, which is Saturday, since I’m typing this Friday night, I’ll be priming the walls in the spare bedroom. Then Sunday, I hope to add color – elfin sage – like the bathroom. Poor door-less bathroom. The door is finally in (somewhere in this city), but the guy who puts in these special doors isn’t going to do it until Monday or Tuesday. Well, we’ve been this long…. Oh the things we take for granted. I won’t take this new bathroom door for granted for a long time.
Experience tells me things will eventually get back to something like normal. A lot of our stuff is still at my parents’ house. Why do I have so many books?! Books, books, and more books. I’ve gotten rid of some – donated mostly – but there are still so many. I love them. But where will they go? I will figure it out. Maybe by the end of the year, things will be organized, and I will have sold my parents’ house. That is what I expect.
Expect a miracle. That’s on a T shirt I inherited from my mom. I’m expecting a miracle in a nice way. Not in a “You better give me a miracle, God,” way. Gratitude. That will help. Gratitude always helps. I bet there are a lot of people in the world who don’t even have a bathroom. Probably more than we might think. So I will not complain that I only have one bathroom. That has been the case for most of my 63 years. I am thankful for my one elfin sage bathroom (with its earthy tiles) which will soon have a door. I’m also thankful for toilet paper.
An earlier stage, before the shower curtain, etc.
PS. I regret being absent for Thursday Tree Love and WATWB, and being slow to read and respond. But I’ve had to put some things on hold or just skip a few things to work on the house. I do appreciate your patience and friendship here in Bloglandia. I expect to be back more regularly in the future. May your Saturday be full of peace, joy, and wonderful things!
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To learn more about SoCS, visit Linda Hill’s blog:
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
There’s a lot of good news happening in the world, and I’m grateful to have found these examples. Thank you to professionals in media who cover and share these stories. Now if we could just have more balance for healthier minds and a healthier world.
Scott Came Back!
Scott Marr was in a coma, completely unresponsive, and was not expected to live. His family made the difficult decision to have his breathing tube removed. They started making funeral plans and prepared to say their goodbyes. Then, a miracle happened.
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11 Year old Boy Saves Grown Man from Drowning
Advaik Nandikotkur was the only one at the apartment pool who knew how to swim. When they saw the man at the bottom of the pool with arms raised and eyes wide, his mother knew her son had taken swimming lessons and urged Adviaik to help.
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Grocery Store Cashier Offers to Donate her Kidney
Cashier Leilani Aguirre asked her customer Mr. Drummond why he was looking so sad. He told her his wife Donnie needed a kidney transplant. Leilani offered her kidney which turned out to be a perfect match. This newscast does a good job showing their heartwarming story.
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California Banned the Sale of Cosmetics Tested on Animals
With alternatives readily available it’s time to phase out testing on animals, particularly with cosmetics. I know this is a process that will take time, but kudos to California and other places where progress is happening.
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10 Stories of Good News and Kindness from 2018
These highlights are quick and easy to read, and you can click on each story for details, compliments of The Good News Network. Click the link below and enjoy!
It sure is good to be back in the Stream of Consciousness! We still have a lot of clean up to do at the house in Wilmington, but mostly big branches and the back fence. The house is mostly okay. Mostly. The house we’re staying in an hour north belonged to my parents and now belongs to me. I’m typing that because sometimes it’s hard to remember that the house and all this stuff I have to, get to, go through now belong to me. I can do whatever I want with it. I’ve been going through hundreds and hundreds of old photos. Being here at the house my parents lived in for so long brings me to the miracle flower pictured above. It is one thing I will not throw away.
The story that I included in Trust the Timing as well as a chicken soup story I just submitted goes something like this:
My mother was getting foggier and more confused in her late 70s. I had always wanted my mother to be clearer in her thinking. I’d been reading a lot about mental health and zeroed in on this quote my Scott Peck about mental health being a dedication to reality at all costs. This was about 15 to 20 years ago, and I no longer believe that now. Not the “at all costs” part.
But when my mom showed me this artificial red flower in a clay pot and went on and on about what a miracle it was because she hadn’t watered it in weeks and it was still alive and so beautiful, I said something like, “Mom, I think that flower might be plastic.”
“No it’s not! It’s a miracle!” Mom said and then she changed the subject.
I still beat myself up for not going along with her miracle flower and joining her journey as my husband says. Now I know better that miracles are in the believing. And reality is subjective. Maybe this flower which is actually made of silk, has taken on a life in some ways. I’m writing about it, so maybe I’m giving it immortality.
Do you think “inanimate” objects have something like life. An energy maybe? Do we give our cars or computers energy when we talk to them? Well, that’s getting a bit deep, so I guess I better back off and come back to earth. At least long enough to move the laundry along. We just got electricity back yesterday after a week of candlelit nights, so I’m washing towels. Thank God! We were almost out of towels. But really, I am very thankful. It could have been much worse and was for some people.
Thank you for all the prayers and good energy during the hurricane!
PS. I just thought about my childhood stuffed animals, supposedly inanimate objects who I thought of as real, and remembered this part of The Veleveteen Rabbit.
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Today’s Stream of Consciousness prompt was: flower/flour
For more information on Saturday Stream of Consciousness, visit Linda at:
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
Three days after Jesus died on the cross, Mary Magdalene saw him alive.
….Then the disciples returned to their homes. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.
John 20: 10-18
You can see Mary’s joy in this video perfectly aligned with Natalie Grant’s song, “Alive.” It gives me chills, or “Godbumps,” every time.
“Alive”
By Natalie Grant
Who but You, could breathe and leave a trail of galaxies and dream of me?
What kind of Love is writing my story till the end with Mercy’s pen? Only You.
What kind of king would choose to wear a crown that bleeds and scars to win my heart?
What kind of Love tells me I’m the reason He can’t stay inside the grave?
You. Is it You? Standing here before my eyes, every part of my heart cries
Alive! Alive! Look what Mercy’s overcome; Death has lost and Love has won Alive! Alive!
Hallelujah, Risen Lord, the only One I fall before I am His because He is alive.
Who could speak, and send the demons back from where they came with just one Name?
What other heart would let itself be broken every time till He healed mine?
You. Only You could turn my darkness into dawn; running right into Your arms
Alive! Alive! Look what Mercy’s overcome; Death has lost and Love has won Alive! Alive!
Hallelujah, Risen Lord, the only One I fall before I am His because He is
Emmanuel, the promised King the baby who made angels sing Son of Man who walked with us, healing, breathing in our dust
The author of all history, the answer to all mysteries The Lamb of God who rolled away, the stone in front of every grave
Alive! Alive! Look what Mercy’s overcome;
Death has lost and Love has won.
First, a story of miraculous healing. It may be a little hard to watch at the very beginning, but it soon gets better and has a happy ending. I love how people didn’t give up on Thor and how he never gave up on himself.
This next story is about saving the abandoned dogs of Chernobyl. Some were hunted and killed by government officials. The survivors have been on their own for multiple generations, yet many are still friendly to humans. I’m so thankful that the people of the Clean Futures Fund are stepping up to take care of these dogs.
Got good news? Feel free to share in the comments!
This story is about a teacher who asked questions. The student’s mom needed a kidney transplant, but due to her rare blood type, the odds were slim. A perfect match would be a miracle.
Think of what you’d like to have happen in your life… then surrender to God every aspect of your personality that keeps it from happening. Infinite opportunity is built into the nature of the universe; it’s not lack of opportunity, but the way we chronically deflect these opportunities, that obstructs the otherwise constant flow of …miracles into our lives. We’ve all been wounded; the issue is whether we act from the wound. Ask God to take away all your personality characteristics that arose from the wound, and to replace them with the characteristics of your immortal Self…..
This quote by Marianne Williamson has been waiting among my drafts for a long time. It drew my attention last night because Christmas is the traditional time for miracles. There was the virgin birth of the savior, the brilliant star seen by wise men and shepherds… Miracles.
Reading the quote again, it hit me that I’ve been acting, or rather thinking and imagining, from the wound, from my history of woundedness when things went wrong. It’s certainly not a conscious decision. It’s a habit that developed over many years, because I want to be prepared in case things go wrong again.
But I don’t have to prepare by rehearsing my responses to the catastrophes I imagine. How many times have we imagined a conversation and our responses only to find out the conversation didn’t go anything like we rehearsed?
I can prepare by being grounded in my Creator’s love and in my own healing.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. And when we bring what is within us out into the world, miracles happen.
__Ralph Waldo Emerson
I always say that we need to give at least as much time to the good possibilities as the bad ones. But it’s easy to slip into the old anxiety, like someone’s going to steal my joy, but it’s me stealing my own joy. Sometimes it takes a conscious effort to pull myself out of the negativity that comes from fear, to focus on the miracles I want in my life. So here goes:
I see myself working through challenges with love and kindness. I will not let fear block the kindness. I will be kind to the fear and gentle to the old wounds.
I see my loved ones standing in light, facing life with courage and kindness. I envision them successful, aware that they have their own ideas about success and their own paths to walk. I must release them to God’s love, as I focus on my own healing.
Some of my fear is for my country and this beautiful planet Earth. I envision us working though challenges and finding more peace, using Earth’s gifts with more care, wisdom and compassion, helping the planet heal. I continue to do my part in this healing process while taking care of myself.
I release my fear, and all the personality characteristics from my wounds to God and ask that they be replaced with characteristics of my immortal self, the self that knows for certain that everything works out for the best. I will trust the timing.
Anything is Possible! 