Believe It (or not)

It’s time for the 24th day of Just Jot it January. Thanks to our host Linda Hill for keeping us going and to Jill for today’s thought provoking prompt: “unbelievable.”

With the title of my blog being “Anything is Possible,” there aren’t many things that I find unbelievable. Unlikely maybe. Unimaginable, perhaps…. It is possible to believe in the possibility of most things. So how do we choose? Logic helps. We can look at our own experience which grows with the years. Sometimes it helps to ask people we trust what they believe. Sometimes we just feel it in our bones.

One thing I find difficult to believe is the possibility that there is no divine higher power. Call it what you will, experience leads me to believe in some kind of intelligent, benevolent power beyond this material world. I feel it in my bones. The easiest thing for me to call this power, is God, but that’s mostly out of habit and upbringing. When I see the word, “Father,” I tend to change it to Creator, Mother, or Great Spirit. Sometimes I change God to Goddess. “The Universe” works, because it’s all encompassing.

Like the blind men and the elephant, we may each perceive this divine higher power in different ways. We all have the right to believe what we want to believe. Or not. As long as we don’t hurt anyone. Karma steps in, sooner or later. We reap what we sow, though it might take a while. Perhaps Karma and angels are helpers or appendages of the Great One with many faces.

What do you believe?

Have your beliefs changed over the years?

For more Just Jot it January posts, rules, and a link to Jill’s blog, visit our host, Linda Hill by clicking HERE.

When I Call God, Mother

Sunday Morning Revelation:

Whenever I hear a church leader or reader refer to God or the Holy Spirit as Her or She, I think, YES!. Sometimes, I do the same or say “Mother” or “Creator” instead of “Father.” I do not do this to exclude men or masculinity. Men and masculinity are equally important with women and the feminine. My growing understanding of the Black Lives Matter movement has helped me realize a parallel. For a very long time, the Christian church has been dominated by a male hierarchy. At the time the Bible was written, women were considered property. Women have had to fight for the right to vote, own property, and make their own decisions. In some churches, women are still not allowed to be priests or ministers. Yes, men are important. Yes, all lives matter. But for much of history, black lives have not mattered. For much of human history, women’s lives have not mattered. When I refer to God as She, Her, Mother, or Creator, I am not trying to exclude men, I am trying to create my own sense of balance. God is bigger than gender or race. God is inclusive. God is all colors.

Gaia Talks with God

 

“I’m so tired.”

“You do look pale.” The Creator caressed her face as a tear fell into the hand of the One who loved her since her birth so long ago.

“When will they learn?”

“Some are becoming more aware.  The fires and floods have gotten their attention. They  are making progress.

“Yes, but too many are still blind. It’s got to be something bigger. I don’t know how much more of this I can take.”

The Creator sighed. “You know dear, Gaia, that I do not wish to cause suffering.”

“I know. I only ask that you allow natural consequences, that you do not intervene so readily. They need to understand that their actions have consequences. Yet so few are making the connection.”  Gaia coughed and felt her chest burn. The Creator felt her pain,  as she drew on her healing reserves and struggled to compose herself.

“I need respite, my Lord, time to build my strength.”

“I will consider it, my child. I know you have suffered much.”  The Creator wrapped loving arms around her. Her blues and greens became more vibrant and she was blessed with a moment of hope.

 

 

One-Liner Wednesday: Trust

“All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

…

 

Golden leaves let go

Leaving slender branches bare.

We know spring will come.

 

One-Liner Wednesday is brought to you by, Linda G. Hill. For more one-liners, visit:

https://lindaghill.com/2017/10/18/one-liner-wednesday-trouble/

One liner Wednesday rules go like this:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.

3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.

4. Add our very cool badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

 

A Gift

Have you ever fallen under nature’s spell

walking in the cathedral forest

with sunbeams streaming down from heaven?

It is a gift from the Creator

Maker of heaven and earth

Creator of the universe and willow bark

crystals and all that we need

for healing and nourishment.

When we fall under the spell of nature,

we honor the Creator, God, The Great Spirit, Yahweh, Allah, Goddess –

Creator of Gaia, her trees, flowers, rivers, oceans

and all kinds of beings that fly and crawl and swim and walk.

We were made to love this gift of love,

to protect and cherish the wonders of the earth.

Blessings to you on this Earth Day.

…

Today’s Stream of Consciousness prompt was the word, “spell,” brought to us by Linda at:

https://lindaghill.com/2017/04/21/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-apr-2217/

Here are the rules:

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. There will be a prompt every week. I will post the prompt here on my blog on 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 simply a single word to get your 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 everyone’s! 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 right 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.

8. Have fun!

God’s Perfect Grace

Lorrie taps into something powerful here – an awareness that comes when we open our hearts and minds to our loving Creator.

God’s Perfect Grace

Some of life’s best decisions

happen in an instant

that is stretched to eternity.

That moment when time slows

and swirls around your head,

distorting all,

and yet your thinking

never had such clarity!

In real time

you don’t skip a beat,

but in this disfigured warp-time

you sense all,

see all,

know all,

that ever was,

that ever is,

or ever will be.

And your soul knows the answer,

because IT IS THE ONLY ANSWER!

And any arguments to the contrary,

just fall to the wayside,

fall out of this other worldly,

time depressed,

image warped place.

And in that instant you know,

where you want to be,

where you were meant to go,

and how you are supposed to get there.

Yes, in that moment,

that is stretched to eternity,

the truth of your soul speaks

in the language of your mind.

And your heart,

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Breathing Earth

When you watch the waves of the ocean or listen to the leaves rustling in the trees, do you ever feel like the earth is breathing?

A short video I originally found on “Good,” a cool magazine/Facebook page with the tagline: “Live Well, Do Good,” gives a visual perspective  of the earth breathing.

If you were as old as the earth, time would pass differently. A year might feel like a second, or a century might be like a minute. Someone better at math than me can figure that one out.

The possibility of the earth being a living, breathing being, who some call Gaia, does not diminish the role of the Creator, who I call God. For me, the awareness that God could create such a being reinforces the awesome and infinite power of God. That we are privileged to call this planet home tells us how much we are loved. When we cherish the earth, we honor the Creator.

I hope you enjoy the song “Gaia” by my favorite singer/songwriter:

To My Wayward Children

Fiercely agnostic in my twenties,
Haunted by dreams of abduction
By conservative Christians,
I’d pretend to play along
Whilst planning my escape.
They could not brainwash me!

As the years passed,
I met the Good Shepherd,
Saint Francis of Assisi,
Hildegarde of Bingen,
Teresa of Avila…

And I learned that all Christians aren’t the same
Some have minds
Gently open
Curiously listening
Loving without an agenda.

And all Buddhists aren’t the same
And all Muslims aren’t the same.
And all Pagans aren’t the same

I see the rebellious pathways
In my twenty something offspring,
Understanding, now
The fear of my mother,
The faith of my father.

I want to be a bridge.
Not a barrier.
I want you to know,
My indigo children:

I believe the Creator
Planted miracles
In this paradise planet,
Medicine in the plants,
Life in the water,
Magic in the rocks.

And all is a gift
From the Creator,
Who you may call
God
Goddess
Great Spirit
Mother
Father
Source

We may not agree, exactly
But we are more alike than different.

And I will love you forever.

 

 

Love Letters from a Sycamore Tree

The sycamore that grows in my backyard, near the house, has been leaning (away from the house) ever since a major hurricane years ago. I think it was Bertha in 1996. With each hurricane since, I go outside and give the tree a hug before things get dicey. “Hang in there,” I murmur. I think it was during Floyd in ’99 that I watched the roots heave upward a few inches with each powerful gust tugging at the branches. “Hold on,” I whispered from the back door.

The sycamore held on through the storms, through my divorce and through the raising of two teenagers. Now, a smaller trunk grows from the base of mother sycamore, leaning in the opposite direction, providing balance. The mother tree seems to be leaning less, like  maybe at a 5 degree angle instead of 20 degrees.

Some people would have cut this tree down as soon as the lean was discovered.

But not this tree hugger.

Each year the leaning tree sheds it’s bark as sycamores are known to do. This past summer, I noticed natural heart shaped holes in bark offerings. Maybe they were there before, and I just didn’t notice. I don’t know. Life is what you make it, and I like to think that maybe my old friend sent me summer valentines.

    

The wide leaves are just starting to turn brown. Soon they will begin to fall.

Trees give us shade in the summer as their leaves soak up the sun’s energy.  If you have as many trees in your yard as I do, you can save a lot of money on air conditioning.

As the weather cools, some trees let go of their leaves, letting the sun shine through to warm us in winter.

Is it a coincidence that trees benefit us this way?  Are we just lucky? Or are we blessed?

Then there’s the whole oxygen/carbon dioxide exchange thing.  Trees make the stuff we need to breathe in, and we breath out the stuff they need.

Do you ever stop and think about how amazing and wonderful this planet is?

This poem is from Earth Prayers 1991, Edited by Elizabeth Roberts and Elias Amidon:

Few things that grow here poison us.

Most of the animals are small.

Those big enough to kill, do it in a way

Easy to understand, easy to defend against.

The air here is just what the blood needs.

We don’t use helmets or special suits.

The star here doesn’t burn you if you

Stay outside as much as you should.

The worst of our winters is bearable.

Water, both salt and sweet, is everywhere.

The things that live in it are easily gathered.

Mostly, you can eat them raw with safety and pleasure.

Yesterday, my wife and I brought back

Shells, driftwood, stones and other curiosities

Found on the beach of the immense

Fresh-water Sea we live by.

She was all excited by a slender white stone which

“Exactly fits the hand.”

I couldn’t share her wonder.

Here, almost everything does.

                                  Lew Welch

Whether it’s luck, or the grand design of a generous Creator, we need to be more thankful for our planet, and particularly thankful for trees. If a tree’s growing in an inconvenient place, try to move it while it’s still small. Put small seedlings in  pots and give them away. Give them a chance.

What have you learned from trees or from nature?