August 20, 2010 OF TIME, TWEETS AND SOULS FLYING FREE
With all the Facebook, Tweets and Twits stuff going on, I sometimes feel like it's all too much. Just give me a real live human being with whom to converse while sitting in the shade of the redwood tree in my own front yard. No computers, no cell phones, nothing that needs rebooting or recharging! (Except me!)
Especially this week, I feel deep appreciation for the simple things in life....and for life itself.
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Earlier this week, I spent nearly 72 hours with a dear woman named Jean, a former client. I had the honor of playing the role of "spiritual midwife" as she transitioned from her body. She'd been valiantly dealing with cancer for several years, and at age 74, it was now time to let go, and move on.
After many long hours, during which her body and soul prepared themselves for this transition, I was gifted to be at her side at the moment of release. I was able to witness the look of indescribable joy and awe that shone through her barely opened eyelids in the instant before she left her body.
She'd been unconscious for the better part of three days, so for her to return to awareness just enough to reveal that beauty to me - and to her daughter, Sherrie, who was on her other side - was an unspeakably precious gift.
I don't know precisely what Jean experienced in that moment, but I do know she wanted us to know it was beautiful beyond imagining. A single tear rolled down her parched cheek, and then she was gone.
Sherrie and I sat wide-eyed, feeling an indescribable awe and Lightness of Being, as we both cried and laughed and hugged across her mom's now-uninhabited body. Then, I turned and softly played "Amazing Grace" on my crystal singing bowls, as Jean's soul flew free.
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So, although time marches on at an ever-increasing rate here on this earthly plane, I've been freshly reminded that what truly matters knows not the bounds of time, nor the confines of the body. Who we truly are could never be expressed in a tweet, a twit, a blog, or a book of any kind - Face or otherwise!
As the birds flutter amongst the branches above me, singing their songs with joyful abandon, I find myself joyfully reflecting that each of us has a unique song to sing... and wings with which to fly.
I am blessed with that knowing. I wish for you the same blessing.
Namaste.
Relax Into Healing...
December 19, 2007 LIKE RIPPLES IN A POND...
I had a rather frustrating day yesterday, full of computer snafus that culminated in wiping out many hours of work I’d spent all afternoon doing. It took a number of deep breaths, and reminders to myself about the relative importance of life’s little challenges, in order to retain my sense of inner harmony.
So by the time I got to the store to drop off the digital photo files I’d been working on, I was feeling a little brain-numbed. I was happy to see the name tag on the young man behind the counter – Eric was the one I’d spoken to earlier on the phone, and his calm, patient manner had already made a positive difference in my day.
Now, here I was, a week before Christmas in the photo department at Rite-Aid, amidst all sorts of harried customers who were demanding assistance with their last minute photo projects.
Eric managed to remain calm and focused as he attended to my needs, despite being interrupted about every ten seconds by another customer with “just a quick question”. And, true to the stereotype of an under-thirty male, he was able to solve my current technical dilemma with a few dozen lightning-speed clicks on my laptop keyboard.
I needed a CD to copy files for transfer. He could’ve just pointed me to the proper aisle. Instead, he walked me to aisle 7B, where he helped me choose the best and least expensive option. Back at the counter, he continued to walk me through the process of copying the files (including the little surprise techno-glitches that occurred in that process!), then offered to set my laptop behind the counter for the fifteen minutes or so it would take to finish copying, so I wouldn’t have to “babysit” it.
I played in the slippers aisle ‘til they were done, came back, filled out the envelopes (….yep, with his assistance….) and then when I told him I really needed it tonight, he volunteered to bump it ahead of other less critical orders. He also offered to call me on my cell as soon as they were done, saying he would do his best to finish it before his shift ended.
He did. And the crowning glory was that, when I returned to pay for them, Eric found a coupon for me that ended up saving me over $50 on my order!
Now the “ripples on a pond” part:
Obviously, Eric's positive energy and superior service made a big ripple in my pond. His good will affected me so deeply, I felt inspired to go next door to the market, and buy a thank-you card, on which I wrote a few sentences expressing my heartfelt gratitude. While in the checkout line, I ran into a friend I’d not seen in many months. I told him the Eric story, and he walked with me back to the drug store to deliver the card.
I gave it to his supervisor, telling her what great service Eric had provided, and asking her to please pass on the card to him tomorrow. She responded like a proud parent. Her night was brightened.
Then, as we left the store to head for our respective vehicles, my friend, Jason, said, “That’s what I love about you. I think of doing things like that, but you actually do them!” To this, I replied, “Thank-you, Jason, for that affirmation….sometimes I do, and sometimes I don’t take the time either. But to me, this is what this whole season is about……gratitude, service, love…..”
He hugged me, and said, with a catch in his throat, “Yeah… Sometimes with all the other stuff in my life, I forget. I just… forget! I’m so glad I ran into you tonight. You just changed my whole night.”
And his saying that further changed mine. And the ripples continue to spread….
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May the peace, love, joy and gratitude you create in your own heart create endless ripples of peace, love, joy and gratitude in the world during this most holy of seasons……….and always.
