Americans’ levels of stress are among the highest in the world. Our national ethic of incessant striving with no measureable way to say, “I’m at the peak”, strains our bodies, hearts and minds. Our media reinforces constant dissatisfaction, a necessity in a consumer based economy. While there are worlds written about it, here are the four major ways that I have gleaned from most of the material out there over the years I have been reading about it. Feel free to let me know if any of this has worked for you or enlighten us on other ways you’ve come down from being stuck on a red alert button.
God is as Invisible
As the air against my cheek
As the breeze against my arm                         Â
Breathing in my lungs
As the green in the leaf
And the blue filter of the sky
The sound in the bee’s buzz
The bubble of water over rock
Feel of moss
And tart of peach
The light in my eyes
Your hand on my face
Night petunia musk
Breath in, close my eyes and
See
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Unhealthy Housework
There were three things my ex-husband did well, one of which was housework. Of course that was in his self-interest, as were the other two. Let me explain.
It’s not that I don’t want to clean. It’s just that I can’t afford to. The medical bills are too high. Along with replacement costs.Continue reading “Unhealthy Housework”
Writing for Tragedy
I am posting some of Shiloh Sophia’s words here to encourage those of us who write or create in any form. We never know when a creation will speak so powerfully that it can turn the tide. We affirm that our pens can be more powerful than assault rifles, especially if writing can get them banned.
“The world is violent and mercurial – it will have its way with you. We are saved only by love – love for each other and the love that we pour into the art we feel compelled to share: being a parent; being a writer; being a painter; being a friend. We live in a perpetually burning building and what we must save from it, all the time, is love”. Tennessee Williams
 
Shiloh Sophia Painting in response to Orlando
Processing grief in the wake of the Orlando losses
Dear Ones, Continue reading “Writing for Tragedy”
Turning Resentments into Gratitude
Last week we looked at some common sources of resentments: expectations, pride and loss. Recently I saw an entry on HuffPost the related to the topic. They looked at how negatives could be turned into positives. Although they did mention gratitude, they didn’t list resentment specifically. Here is their list: Continue reading “Turning Resentments into Gratitude”
The Sources of Resentments
“Why did she do that to me? I’ve never done anything to her!â€
“No one crosses me and doesn’t pay for it.â€
“He may think he can do that to me, but just let him try it again.â€
Resentments are often called frozen rage or “drinking poison and hoping the other person will dieâ€.Continue reading “The Sources of Resentments”
No Other Way
This is one of the most comforting poems I know and I wanted to share it with you today!
NO OTHER WAY by Martha Smock
Could we but see the pattern of our days,
We should discern how devious were the ways
By which we came to this, the present time,
This place in life; and we should see the climb
Our soul has made up through the years.
We should forget the hurts, the wanderings, the fears,
The wastelands of our life, and know
That we could come no other way or grow
Into our good without these steps our feet
Found hard to take, our faith found hard to meet.
The road of life winds on, and we like travelers go
From turn to turn until we come to know
The truth that life is endless and that we
Forever are inhabitants of all eternity.