you can do anything

"Every failure, obstacle or hardship is an opportunity in disguise. Success in many cases is failure turned inside out. The greatest pollution problem we face today is negativity. Eliminate the negative attitude and believe you can do anything. Replace 'if I can, I hope, maybe' - with - 'I can, I will, I must.' "

- Mary Kay (1918-2001)

I CAN
I WILL
I MUST
BELIEVE it...and it shall be so...

shift relationship with time through forgiveness

forgiveness keeps us young, forgiveness keeps us light, forgiveness keeps us in love with life

who do we need to forgive?
who needs to forgive us?

"The act of forgiveness is the act of returning to present time. And that's why when one has become a forgiving person, and has managed to let go of the past, what they've really done is they've shifted their relationship with time. Forgive and call back the energy wasted on past events."
- Carolyn Myss

divine mother goddess - ocean of compassion

"Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother."

- Oprah Winfrey

I believe there is a mother within every woman.

She is the divine mother goddess who is an ocean of compassion...

How can we mother ourselves today?

awake

universe breathed LIFE,

wind whispered CHANGE,

spirit signaled FREEDOM,

I sense it all...I am awake...

birthday girl

 "be grateful to have been given one more day, let alone one more year. remember to dance in your nightgown, sing in the shower, ride a bike, fly a kite, and take an occasional "wind bath" in your bare skin. give those you love big kisses, huge hugs, and the words "i love you" often and always. nurture your body rather than starve your soul with fad dieting. spend time with the old and the weary to better appreciate your life. on your birthday, call your mother and father wherever they are to thank them for all that they have done for you. watch the movie "life is beautiful" at least once a year. remember that you are not guaranteed tomorrow and that today is as good as it gets. thank god for every thing, every day, every moment." - from a cosmetic bag that a dear friend gave me years ago

renewal

"Teach this triple truth to all:

a generous heart,

kind speech,

and a life of service and compassion are the things which renew humanity."

- Buddha

Humanity renewed...I believe it happens one person at a time, one thought at a time, one action at a time.

las lluvias de mi tierra me enseñaron lecciones

"Desde que era muy niño, saltaba de alegría,
cuando la fresca lluvia de los cielos caía.

Chorros de los tejados, vuestro rumor tenía
el divino silencio de la melancolía.

Los niños con las manos tapaban sus oídos,
y oyendo con asombro los profundos sonidos

del corazón que suena como si fuera el mar,
sentían un deseo supremo de llorar.

Y como por la lluvia, todo era interrumpido,
se bañaban las cosas en un color de olvido.

Y vagaban las mentes en un ocio divino,
muy propicio a los cuentos de Simbad el Marino.

Las lluvias de mi tierra me enseñaron lecciones... ...
con Alí Baba, pasan los cuarenta ladrones.

Y cantaban mis sueños en la noche lluviosa:
¡Lámpara de Aladino, lámpara milagrosa!

Y al caer de la lluvia, la criada más antigua
desgranaba sus cuentos en una forma ambigua.

Otro de los milagros que en la lluvia, yo canto,
es, que al caer sus linfas, se pone un nuevo manto

mi ciudad que al lavarse... ...yo pienso en una de esas
austeras e impecables ciudades holandesas:

Una ciudad lavada, sin polvo, nuevecita,
donde reza el aseo su plegaria bendita.

Como, “pulvère procul” se lee en los pergaminos
de un noble de otros tiempos, por todos los caminos,

Cuando pasan las lluvias, se alegra y se extasía,
lejos, lejos del polvo, la profunda alegría:

La de andar sin pecado, por silencios de amor,
como un dulce ojo de agua de inocente rumor.

Si se libra el camino, del polvo –su pecado-
se vuelve como el santo de Asís, enamorado

de todas las criaturas, de todas las criaturas,
y a todas les ofrece sus blancas aventuras.

Son todos los caminos como flor de aventura
para el dulce Quijote de la Triste Figura."

- Azarías H. Pallais (1884-1954)

traveler's prayer

"May it be Your will, Eternal One, My God and God of my ancestors, to lead me, to direct my steps, and to support me in peace. Lead me in life, tranquil and serene, until I arrive at where I am going. Deliver me from every enemy, ambush and hurt that I might encounter on the way and from all afflictions that visit and trouble the world. Bless the work of my hands. Let me receive divine grace and those loving acts of kindness and mercy in Your eyes and in the eyes of all those I encounter. Listen to the voice of my appeal, for you are a God who responds to prayerful supplication. Praised are you, Lord, who responds to prayer."

- The Traveler’s Prayer

found amongst my journals this morning as I prepare for a trip...

con luna llena y sol fuerte

remembering my Papa-Coco on his birthday



nació un 12 de octubre

entre cielos azules

y mares morados



los pájaros cantaban

las mariposas bailaban


amado abuelo


con luna llena

y sol fuerte

hoy te pinto de celeste

full moon

what do you thirst for?


take in tonight's full moon and tell her your dreams.

"Thirst drove me down to the water where I drank the moon's reflection."
 - RUMI

blessing

Hold on to what is good even if it is a handful of earth.


Hold on to what you believe even if it is a tree which stands by itself.


Hold on to what you must do even if it is a long way from here.


Hold on to life even when it is easier letting go.


Hold on to my hand even when I have gone away from you.


~Pueblo Blessing ~

happy 71st

"Imagine all the people living for today...

You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one

I hope someday you'll join us

and the world will be as one..."

-John Lennon (1940-1980)

Happy 71st Birthday!!!

she is a tree

whispers of her sensual song...mother nature...

PHOTOGRAPH: from an ongoing series I began years ago and which I am being encouraged to publish in print...

she who heals

what needs to be healed in your life?


who do you need to forgive?

who needs to forgive you?



"She Who Heals:

Mother, sing me a song

That will ease my pain,

Mend broken bones,

Bring wholeness again.



Catch my babies

When they are born,

Sing my death song,

Teach me how to mourn.



Show me the Medicine

Of the healing herbs,

The value of spirit,

The way I can serve.



Mother, heal my heart

So that I can see

The gifts of yours

That can live through me."

- Jamie Sams

healing truth

"Truth, that fair goddess who comes always with healing in her wings."

- Anne Shannon Monroe (1877-1942)

beautiful

"Beautiful is how a woman lives.  Beauty is in the mind, not the mirror...What do you want to do with your life?  That is beautiful..." - Frederic Fekkai

mystery & miracle

"The entire being of a woman is a secret which should be kept."
- Isak Dinesen (1885-1962)

We all have secrets.

Secret recipes...
Secret fantasies...
Secret talents...
Secret places...
Secret dreams and longings...

I constantly discover secret aspects of myself...it is part of the mystery and miracle of life...

beauty & dreams

As the music started, the sun began to blush while the wind continued to breathe. One by one, they slowly emerged from the depths of the earth. Moving with rhythms of nature, the goddesses created a sacred circle and danced in beauty and dreams.

originally published in 2007, from my journals

hunting

"You wander from room to room hunting for the diamond necklace that is already around your neck!"
- RUMI

casimira on stage

I was in Seattle, at a party of actors - intellectual theatre performers. One blue-eyed professor recited RUMI to me and concluded that I was born to be on stage.

from my journals