Dancing With Dancer

Whenever I'm with my pony, Dancer, I feel like we're dancing on air.  He's so light and bright.  Just right!  What a little love.  So patient, kind and gentle.  He's the best pony any gal could ask for.  So, when I read this quote, I knew it belonged on my blog.  For, dancing with Dancer is heavenly even after the music stops.

The purpose of dancing isn't to end up at a particular spot on the floor. The purpose of dancing and of life is to enjoy every moment and every step, regardless of where you are when the music ends.

Dr. Wayne Dyer

American Author and Inspirational Speaker

 

Success

Success is liking yourself,
  liking what you do,
    and liking how you do it.

Maya Angelou

American Author, Poet and Actress

Whenever I'm in the country with my pony, Dancer, I'm happy.

And, whenever I'm happy, I'm successful.

Happiness is a rare commodity that only happens when you're

in alignment with your true Nature.

And, when I'm with Dancer, or any of my pets, I truly

am in alignment and, therefore, happy.

He did so well our first day driving on the farm.

Anita (my instructor) drove while I hopped in for the ride.

It was so smooth, like floating on air.

And the sound of Dancer's hoofs, clippity-clopping along,

made me feel inspired, hopeful, grateful and abundantly joyful!

First Day Driving Dancer on the Farm

The adventure of life is to learn.
The purpose of life is to grow.
The nature of life is to change.
The challenge of life is to overcome.
The essence of life is to care.
The opportunity of life is to serve.
The secret of life is to dare.
The spice of life is to befriend.
The beauty of life is to give.
The joy of life is to love.

William Arthur Ward, 1921-1994

American Author and Poet

Romance Leads the Way

It's the anniversary of the day that poets Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Browning eloped in 1846. She was the better-known poet; he had come across her poems two years before and wrote her a fan letter. Over the next 20 months, Elizabeth and Robert exchanged 574 letters. They met for the first time in 1845.

Elizabeth (books by this author) was a semi-invalid under the care of a very overprotective father, and he didn't want her to marry, so they courted in secret and eloped to Florence the following year, where they spent the rest of their married life. Elizabeth's father never spoke to her again.

Robert and Elizabeth read and critiqued one another's poetry, and they both began writing the best poetry of their lives after their marriage. Robert (books by this author) often called Elizabeth "my little Portuguese" because of her dark complexion. In 1850, she published her most famous work, a collection of poems called Sonnets from the Portuguese. It contains the famous line, "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways." Elizabeth's health continued to decline and in 1861 she died in Robert's arms.

Be of Good Heart

It's not enough to have lived.
We should be determined to live for something.
May I suggest that it be creating joy for others,
sharing what we have for the betterment of personkind,
bringing hope to the lost and love to the lonely.

Dr. Leo Buscaglia, 1924-1998

American Author, Professor and Inspirational Speaker

Silence is Golden

“To Know we must begin with Solitude”

(Krishnamurti)


True love is a sacred flame
That burns eternally,
And none can dim its special glow
Or change its destiny.
True love speaks in tender tones
And hears with gentle ear,
True love gives with open heart
And true love conquers fear.
True love makes no harsh demands
It neither rules nor binds,
And true love holds with gentle hands
The hearts that it entwines.

by : Helen Steiner Rice

Appreciate the Moment

September 13, 2010

At Your Own Pace

The Tortoise and the Hare

People take life at different speeds and one way is not necessarily superior to another.

The classic tale of the tortoise and the hare reminds us that different people take life at different speeds and that one way is not necessarily superior to another. In fact, in the story it is the slower animal that ends up arriving at the destination first. In the same way, some of us seem to move very quickly through the issues and obstacles we all face in our lives. Others need long periods of time to process their feelings and move into new states of awareness. For those of us who perceive ourselves as moving quickly, it can be painful and exasperating to deal with someone else’s slower pace. Yet, just like the tortoise and the hare, we all arrive at the same destination, together, eventually.

People who take their time with things are probably in the minority in most of the world today. We live in a time when speed and productivity are valued above almost anything else. Therefore, people who flow at a slower pace are out of sync with the world and are often pestered and prodded to go faster and do more. This can be not only frustrating but also counterproductive because the stress of being pushed to move faster than one is able to move actually slows progress. On the other hand, if a person’s style is honored and supported, they will find their way in their own time and, just like the tortoise, they might just beat the speedier, more easily distracted person to the finish line.

It’s important to remember that we are not actually in a race to get somewhere ahead of someone else, and it is difficult to judge by appearances whether one person has made more progress than another. Whether you count yourself among the fast movers or as one of the slower folks, we can all benefit from respecting the pace that those around us choose for themselves. This way, we can keep our eyes on our own journey, knowing that we will all end up together in the end.

.... Perfect love is rare indeed - for to be a lover will require that you continually have the subtlety of the very wise, the flexibility of the child, the sensitivity of the artist, the understanding of the philosopher, the acceptance of the saint, the tolerance of the scholar and the fortitude of the certain".

Leo Buscaglia

 

"Love the heart that hurts you, but never hurt the heart that loves you."

Vipin Sharma

"If you have love, you don't need to have anything else, and if you don't have it, it doesn't matter much what else you have."

Sir James M. Barrie

Fall in Love

What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything. It will decide what gets you out of bed in the mornings, what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything.

Father Pedro Arrupe, 1907-1991

Spanish Priest, Doctor and Social Activist

When Christ said that man does not live by bread alone, he spoke of a hunger. This hunger was not the hunger of the body. It was not the hunger for bread. He spoke of a hunger that begins deep down in the very depths of our being. He spoke of a need as vital as breath. He spoke of our hunger for love.

Love is something you and I must have. We must have it because our spirit feeds upon it. We must have it because without it we become weak and faint. Without love our self-esteem weakens. Without it our courage fails. Without love we can no longer look out confidently at the world...

But with love, we are creative. With it, we march tirelessly. With it, and with it alone, we are able to sacrifice for others.

Chief Dan George, 1899-1981

Native Canadian Indian Tribal Leader

 

Have Fun, Life is Short

Life is like the waves it has its ups and downs

Life is like a roller coaster it has its twists and turns

Life is like a sport it just depends on what we play

Life is like a game of poker it just depends on what we are dealt

Life can be given life can be taken

Life can be a curse life can be a blessing

Life can be a pain life can be in sain

Life has its ways life has its days

Life has its love life has its hate

Life has its gentler touch but it has its harder punch

Life brings you your knees when you feel in need

Life brings you a lot of things

but in the end it depends on what we do

By Tom Le Guilcher

Forward Moving - In Carriage and in Life

Be of good cheer. Do not think of today's failures, but of the success that may come tomorrow. You have set yourselves a difficult task, but you will succeed if you persevere; and you will find joy in overcoming obstacles. Remember, no effort that we make to attain something beautiful is ever lost.

Helen Keller, 1880-1968

American Author and Social Activist

Look to the Light

At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.”

Albert Schweitzer

From every human being there rises a light that reaches straight to heaven. And when two souls that are destined to be together find each other, their streams of light flow together, and a single brighter light goes forth from their united being.

Reflections

Thirty years ago today my divorce was final.  Not my choice.  Still hurts.  Always will.  For, loss is hard.  Losing my soulmate, a killer.  Of hopes and dreams.  Spirit and sensual pleasures.  All gone.  Forever.

Today I had a hard time getting it in gear.  Getting up, getting going, keeping it going, finding interest in anything I tried to do.  Inertia set in.  Big time.  Went to a few garage sales.  Picked up a few odds and ends, little thngs, not much to talk about, really.  Scotch tape, tiny gold safety pins, scissors, a ball of twine, nothing fascinating, romantic or enticing.  Kinda like how I feel.  After 30 years of being alone. . .and counting.

It's ironic, but I borrowed 4 DVD's from the library produced by, Spiritual Cinema, an outlet that offers films that are about spiritual issues in the way of life choices, dilemmas, and other conflicts about the human spirit.  Of the four flicks I borrowed, I chose one (randomly) to watch this evening called, Tara Road. 

It was about two women who decide to swap houses after meeting crises head-on.  The first woman, "Marilyn", played by Andie MacDowell, who lives in a posh house in Connecticut, watches her son crash his motorcycle into their swimming pool and drown.  The second lady,
Ria, lives in Dublin, Ireland and is told by her husband that he's having an affair and got the woman pregnant and loves her and is leaving.

They swap houses and have adventures in respective countries with each other's friends and colleagues.  They learn life lessons about forgiving, moving on and growing as humn beings through crises.  Ria learns what a schmuck her husband is, even though she loved, trusted and had two children with him, and Marilyn learns that life goes on after losing a child.  Both women are transformed in important ways.

At the end of the film there's a discussion and 5 questions designed to stimulate self-reflection and growth.  Two of the questions really resonated with me. 

1)  How have you healed from painful, "non-negotiable" events in your life?

2)  How important  is it to simply have a witness for one's healing?  Who has played the witness in you own life?

In all honesty, I haven't fully recovered from my divorce and doubt I will, totally.  I suppose I've "healed" just by the passage of time.  Like wounds that scar over, mine are old but still there.  And, as far as having someone "witness" my healing, that hasn't really happened.  Although I've been to therapy, no one has really connected in a meaningful way for witnessing, resolving and moving on.  Hopefully, that'll still happen and maybe, then, I can move on better than I have limping along on my own.

I found it very synchonistic that, of all the films to borrow and watch, I picked the one where one woman's husband left her for another.  And, of course, losing a child is the worst loss one can experience.  Both losses, any such deep losses, are traumatic and take a long time to get over--if ever. 

Another irony is that my dark Calico kitty, Sweetie Pie, was in bed snuggled close to me, during the whole film and for some time afterward.  She never left my side and was curled up and cuddling with me as if she knew Mommy was upset or sad.  Animals have a sixth sense of knowing such things, and I believe that's why Sweetie Pie was by my side for hours this evening.  Perhaps my best "witness."

For, in order to heal, I believe the witness needs to be someone who truly cares not just som hired gun--therapists included.  Rather, someone who likes me, is sincerely concerned about my happiness and welfare and who wants to be involved.  A dispassionate ear doesn't count
nor does a gratuituous one.  It has to be from someone who cares and wants to be involved.

And, that hasn't happened.  I haven't been privileged enough to meet anyone who cares enough to really connect and want to be that witness or sympathetic shoulder to lean on, talk to about my divorce and start to heal deeply.  I keep hoping but, in the 30 years, my closest confidantes have been my pets.  I am grateful for each and every one of them and, somehow,
they seem to know my ups and downs even though we speak different languages.

For, the heart knows, and two hearts in love always connect.  Such is life with my animals.
Although they can't respond back verbally, the closeness and connection I felt from Sweetie Pie tonight said it all.  She was my witness.  She is my rock.  They are all my healers and helpers, my light and my loves.