Simplicity

Today was simple, quiet and peaceful - very pleasant. I went to our new but still vacant house by myself today. I walked down to the lake to eat my lunch while also watching and greeting people as they strolled by. There is a path around the lake that people use for exercise. There were also three deer, one male and two females, that accompanied me as I walked. I then came back to do some weeding of our yard and gardening. All during the day I had feelings of gratitude and connection to everything and everybody. This was a good day.

Dealing With Pain

In a recovery meeting today I found myself talking about the fact that when I go deeply enough into meditation or working with another all of my pain or disability "vanish", as I also mentioned yesterday. Early in my recovery process my mentor showed me that as Kopp says "The decisive step toward God consists of letting go of all worries, that is, all fears and attachments. This step requires a foundation of complete and unreserved trust. We can only release our fears in proportion to how much our trust in God has grown, deepened, and ripened into an unshakable faith. The more we abide in living faith, the more we abide in divine love. And where this is, there is no room for fear." or pain.

Healing

I did a healing for someone today and the feeling of heat and energy exchange was intense, causing me to sweat and breath heavily. I especially took note of the fact that whenever I do such an exchange, while working with someone else, all other concerns vanish from my thoughts and my focus is complete. It is an ability, a gift, for which I am extremely grateful. It feels like I am being a channel for a higher level source of energy. I choose to call that force God.

Remaining Peaceful

I have largely avoided the rancor, chaos and accusations of this election season since most of it is word-play and non of my business. However, I cannot and do not wish to avoid knowing something of what is going on since some knowledge is required for awareness. I keep in mind two quotes from St. John of the Cross; "He should learn to remain in God’s presence with a loving attention and a tranquil intellect, even though this seems like idleness to him. Soon he will find little by little that a divine calm and peace with a wondrous, sublime knowledge of God, enveloped in divine love, will be infused into his soul" and "Immersion in God entails a being filled with Him, a divine inflowing. Biblical men knew well enough that this self-communication of God is the sole destiny of men." I find both to be true and important at this time.

Balance

Lately I have been very distracted and involved in moving and setting up a dwelling in MD, having moved from AZ, worldly concerns. That is what is on my plate right now and I wish to stay in the present. I also continue to write, contemplate and meditate several hours each day. I continue to attend recovery meetings and other spiritually oriented meetings several times a week. My balance point has shifted but I continue to focus on love, peace forgiveness, gratitude and connection. Life is good.

I Am A Dreamer

I believe very strongly in the ultimate goodness of humanity, knowing that love is stronger than hate and that right is stronger than corruption. I support very passionately actions born of love, connection, respect, honor, etc. I see these actions every day in the people around me, neighbors or on the news - actions that fill me with emotion. These ideas and actions are supported by my book (Three Simple Questions: Being in the World, But Not of It), a book I self published as part of my effort to change the world. If they were universal these ideas and way of life could change the way we treat each other and this earth.

Feeling the Love

All the questions are still out there. I have no idea if I am following the right path, making the right decisions or know where the path will lead but I am acting out of love and doing my best so I suspect everything is fine. Today I feel good and figure that the force I call God is on my side. I feel the love and will go with that. I look at my life with a sense of wonder.

Difficult Decisions

A day of contemplation, meditation and assessment of our current situation. I wonder if we should consider doing things differently, like modifying our plans to own and maintain our own home in light of my disability and inability to do the required maintenance. Difficult decisions! Meanwhile I planted some bulbs today and continue to do my best with what is presented to me each day. Life goes on.

Spreading the Love

Maria and I just returned from a few days of traveling up to visit in Pennsylvania, an intense few days. We took the opportunity to spread the message of love, peace and harmony to the spirits and people we encountered. That felt important and the least we could do. I am, of course, aware of my physical limitations, but, particularly during this trip, the limitations did not seem as important as my gifts and abilities. I am reminded of the comments of St. John of the Cross from some years ago "Speaking of touches, the delights they engender more than compensate for all the trials suffered in life, even though innumerable".

The Importance and Power of Love

Maria and I attended a half day Friend’s workshop on spiritual development today in which the subject of childhood came up numerous times. I was reminded of two things, the first being how difficult my childhood was and the second being that we are not our stories. I have learned about and now promote the power and importance of love, in spite of my difficulties and miss-direction in those early years. Several times, I found myself saying "What better way to learn about the importance and power of love than through the total absence of it".