“Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.” (Interpretive translation of Talmudic texts)
I’ve been called to be part of the music team for pilgrims attending Cursillio, a four day course in apostolic movement. We convene at Trinity Center, an Episcopal retreat center by the Atlantic Ocean. But I wouldn’t call Cursillio a retreat. Its intensity has been known to stretch the boundaries of this introvert’s comfort zone. Maybe that’s not a bad thing – for a few days, anyway. I’ll be taking my guitar and the new drum I bought. My goal is to have fun while serving, singing, and spending some time in nature.
Trinity Center pond
I’ll be leaving tomorrow and will have limited internet access. Don’t know if I’ll have time to dip my toe in the stream of Consciousness on Saturday, but maybe I’ll get to dip my toe in the ocean.
As they say at Cursillio,
De Colores!
I know this is a little long for a one-liner, but I’ll be gone for a few days. Go visit Linda for lots of great one-liner’s at:
It had been a year or more since my last acupuncture session. It gives me good energy and made a headache go away once, but nothing especially dramatic. In October, I ran into the healer at a potluck. I’ve known her for years as a casual friend but had never had an acupuncture session with her until last week – after my body told me to make an appointment. But this was not a typical session. I must have been ready. The time was right. This was my experience:
∞
November 10, 2016,
two days after the sky fell,
Interrupted cries still lingered in my solar plexus
like mucus bogging down muffled screams
waiting to be flushed free.
Then the drunk guy threw a key at me
when I was only trying to help.
Who needs this?
But that cop wasn’t following me after all
as I pulled into the space
to visit the healer with magic hands
and the skill to find the stuck places.
She began with my old friend,
Lavender,
to settle my nerves.
The first needle only hurt for a moment
as the door opened and sparks flew.
The others didn’t hurt at all.
When qi started to flow,
I almost giggled
then followed her humming
with my own breath –
Inhale, sooooew. Exhale, Haaaaaah,
like the song of the ocean.
Cardamom opened the doors wider.
Right after I turned over onto my back
is when it happened.
My cold hands finally got warm.
Then, I started to cry. And laugh. And cry.
Mama. Mama? Mama!
Is it really you?
Hold me, Mama.
My fingers can’t reach you!
Daddy is hurting. He misses you so much.
You want me to tell him you’re okay?
Mama’s okay, Daddy.
She’s okay.
Tears.
But wait.
Am I supposed to be
learning how to talk to other ghosts?
Or just my own?
Sandalwood brought me back.
Shaking, I drank from the cup of water
and called my father to give him the message
he already knew.
_________________________________________
My mother died November 14, 2008. She collected angels. Dozens of them still decorate my father’s house. He hasn’t moved any of them. And he won’t move out of that house because he feels her presence there.
The second I saw his message on Facebook, my heart beat like a drum. A happy, excited drum. I had to remind myself constantly to keep my feet on the ground. But we knew something important was going on from our second first date in July of 2011.
Now, he is my second husband, my first love and my last love.
I hope you’re not tired of hearing about this.
But here’s something I’ve never revealed: He (my second husband) sort of reminds me of my first crush. When I was about 11 years old I had a crush on a TV character. It was a time of chaos and inconsistency with my father in Vietnam and my mother’s nervous break downs. Consistency and order was offered by the second in command of the USS Enterprise, the logical science officer, Mr. Spock. Yes, he was my first crush.
My second husband is not a Vulcan, but he can be pretty serious when he’s absorbed in something. He has a certain arch in his eyebrow that can be endearingly familiar. My first husband told me I needed to “lighten up.” But my second husband told me, when we first started dating for the second time, that he was “allergic to fun.” I didn’t believe him. He hadn’t been allergic to fun when we dated in the early 1970s. Back then, he was a gentleman. Back then he only got as far as second base. (We were 15 and 16.) But he had a sense of humor. He still has a sense of humor and a nice smile. He has a tendency to work too hard, but he’s learning to relax. The ocean helps. He likes to go put his feet in the water. I don’t think he’s allergic to fun. I think he’s just not used to it, having worked hard for so many years. But we’re nearing retirement age, not that we’ll ever retire completely, and he’s going to have to get used to fun.
Even Mr. Spock mellowed with age, and with the help of those spores from those funny flowers, he had fun. I wonder where I can find something like that.
I don’t know how the captain wasn’t affected at all by the spores. They should have let him have just a little fun before coming back to his responsible self.
We all need a little fun. Or a lot.
Today’s Stream of Consciousness prompt was the word, “second.” If you have a second, visit Linda’s blog at the link below:
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.
Those who prosper by keeping orcas (aka, killer whales) as prisoners may tell you they live 25 to 30 years in the wild, and that living in captivity is better for them.
Granny, a 103 year old orca recently spotted near British Columbia, would disagree, if you could understand her language, that is.
The following article states, “According to the Whale and Dolphin Conservation project, whales born in captivity only live to 4.5 years old on average. Perhaps it is because the whales are forced to breed continuously and at perilously young ages that they experience such reduced lifespans.
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.
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.
Rain kept us from seeing Friday night’s blue moon, but Saturday night was clear. My humble photos do not do her justice. But I had to try. I truly did not want to leave the divine magic, the natural high, of moon-bathing. I felt physically drawn to stay, perhaps by some interaction between the moonlight and ionization in the ocean air.
Anything is Possible! 