Keeping it Real...

Keeping it Real with the lovely

Monica over at Ink and Chai

Every Friday 

Monica invites her readers to

"Share your own ups-downs, lows-highs, hits-misses, dark-light,
peaks-valleys, plus-minuses,
as we keep the blogosphere real."

The Ebb and The Flow

this past week these two entities have intertwined

such a thin delicate thread separated them

it was difficult to tell them apart

*

a week of commune as friends stayed with us

as there new home underwent renovations

they brought the pitter patter of little feet

 a little girl voice

sweet smiles and shy looks

and I was reminded, once again,

 of how 

though I love the solitude

I equally love and embrace a full house

a reminder of a life gone by

a childhood home full of noise and activity

an open door where visitors and lodgers where welcome
were ebb and flow lived out loud

*

a day with a soul sister did my heart good

speaking of deep things

life and death

communications with God

hopes & dreams

laughter & tears

personal reflections

wine down by the river

a visit to a most peculiar village

(more images found here)

and the freedom to express with no thought of judgment
as the ebb and flow danced in the grass
and sparkled in the sun

*

bear cubs in the trees
there has been a mama living in the ravine with her 3 cubs
for the most part they have kept
to themselves
but as the cubs grew
so did their perimeter
so when they all found themselves
trapped up a tree
by a busy road side
precautions had to be taken
for the wild and civilization
have their own unique version
of ebb and flow...
a delicate dance
between the two
(they were tranquilized and moved to a safer location in the mountians)
*
more work was done on my tattoo
(before)

(after)
colour and snowflakes 
will be put in  sometime in August
it was another 3 hours of being under the needle
this was a moving session
I went into a deep meditative state
this tattoo is changing me
growing me
I am unable to put to words
at this time
what it all means to me...
the ebb takes me
as the flow leads the way
*

I have found myself in a deep place of spiritual reflections
a deep contentment in the path I am on
Gods hands unfolding truths within
as I watch in wonderment
embracing this time of break
break from school
break from the norm
break from schedule
this is quiet now in this space
as I enjoy the month to come

we are parking our little travel trailer
for the month
by a creek in the forest 
right off the beaten path
we will be commuting back and forth
working
while we enjoy the presence of summer
I look forward to this time with my youngest
and letting the summer sun warm my bones
and freckle my body
*
something awaits me there
I am not sure what
perhaps the completion of my book
perhaps the birth of something new
perhaps more unveiling of my life purpose
whatever it is
the flow carries me
and I feel a deep peace
within
*
I end with this quote
posted by a dear soul
and sister-friend
Amy


"Come, come, whoever you are. 
Wanderer, worshipper, lover of living, it doesn’t matter 
Ours is not a caravan of despair. 
Come even if you have broken your vow a thousand times, 
Come, yet again, come, come."

 ~ Rumi and His Sufi Path of Love

Indeed
"Ours is not a caravan of despair"
Ours, 
my Lovelies,
is the caravan of Life






Love and Light 


linking up here

The Late Night Journal

we still have our company

writing time is short

so

I thought I would pull something 

from the late night journal...

*

 Death Mother

Let it die

I hear the words

I understand it is part

of the work I do

Great Work

The Creation Mother

The Death Mother

They live inside me
-both

And now

Now is the time of death

allowing what must die 

to die

and then in turn

Creation M0ther can create 
from which has died

The double sided archetype

a two edged sword

In this death

It is hard to see 

Creation Mother

In this darkness

it is difficult to see Her Light

I look but cannot find

I listen but I cannot hear

I don't know what lies ahead

The dark is thick with uncertainty

and yet I know

what needs to be done

I know beauty comes out of ashes

But I am unsure

of how to let something die

that means so much to me

How do I begin to let it go

watch it fall to the ground

broken pieces it becomes

Only You

Only You can help me 

great Spirit

Walk with me in this place

This place of darkness and death

Help me do what it is I must do

Help me see the Great Work

that is mine to do

Protect my Creator Mother heart

and give her peace as she must wait

Wait for her time to soar

Great Spirit

Open my eyes

Open my heart

Open my hands

So I am able to do the Great Work

that I too can be 
Death Mother

that I can be

Complete

~Catherine Beerda-Basso

copyright May 2012

*

There is a season to allow death

even to those things we hold dear

death does not mean loss of something

death means life renewed

transformation

as old things rot away

they fertilize that which is new...

To those who are letting go

know that new life always comes after death

hold fast to that truth.

Love and Light

*note: the death I speak of here is not just about the death of a loved one
but also about those things inside of us that se need to let die to move on in our lives
expectations, dreams,perspectives, thought patterns etc.
things that have woven themselves into our psyche 
and yet have no place being there for too long  
their purpose is to be transformed into something more
it can only come to be
when we are willing to allow that transformation happen*

Them's the brakes...A late Monday Offering

We drive until the gas is gone
And then walk until our feet are torn
Crawl until we feed the soil
Film the whole thing

It's all business in the left-hand lane
Drive there and then drive back again
Escape can't be the only way to escape
So I've gotten used to coffee sweats
Still getting used to road regrets
And hell I took you up on all your threats to leave

It's a shame
It's a crying shame
Them's the breaks
And ain't it always the way
That takes you back to from where it is you came

And Robbie likes his country tunes
It's never been the lens that I see through
But I guess driving for a week or two
Puts words in your mouth

So find ___ and then get out of it
It's about as country as I get
So you ain't living 'til you're living it
Not dead 'til you die

But watch out for the paraphrase
'Cause they will crown you and they will take your legs
See the gas is more than what you get paid
But do it anyway

It's a shame
It's a crying shame
Them's the breaks
And ain't it always the way
It takes you back to from where it is you came

It's a shame
It's a crying shame
Them's the breaks
And ain't it always the way
It takes you back to from where it is you came


Loving that song right now
it's been busy here
we have had company
so I have not had my usual writing time
but as the song says
them's the brakes.....


*


I also wanted to share this beautiful poem
posted by my sister friend
you can find her
and more of her beautiful words here
this is her heart song:

gather

gather yourselves around the fires of your hearts

gather together

a shared lineage

of woman’s work

of birth

and death

gather in the morning

and in the mourning

gather in the dark

and in the darkness

gather

fingers intertwined

dreams dancing

secret dreams

spill them onto the earth

and run your toes through them

as the dust flies around your flowing hair

then fall… spent

emptied of all your wishes

your hopes

your pain

fall face first

lips to ground

feel the winds fingers caress your back

gather close to the roots of the trees

and take your nourishment there

and then gather

palm to palm

eye to eye

breath to breath

and go back into the world , united but separate once again

written by Nyssa

seer of the unseen

knower of the unknown

sacred woman

vulnerable soul

mother, daughter,sister, friend

seeker, journeyer, artist

whole

As you go out into your week

my lovelies

remember to gather

remember to come together

with sisters and friends

feed your spirit

wake your soul

 and be

Love and Light

Summer Soulstice....

I am a little late in this post
but I wanted to honour the entry of Summer
and Summer Soulstice

A day for gratitude
A day for celebrating the Light
that is within us all.
A day to dance
A day to sing
A day to rejoice
*

I have to be honest
things have been unsettled here as of late
transition brings such thimes
and so
because of this
I was intentional about my gratitude
voicing it as I moved through my day...
*
a few thingsI was grateful for was:


~for the rocky road of Break Through
~the Challenge of growth
~for a beautiful back deck to journal and enjoy
a delicious cup of coffee while looking upon our 
beautiful back yard
~for the sun that shone as the rains have been plenty this month

~for my steadfast and faithful companion
oh how I love this creature
~for family-in all it's ups and downs-I am grateful for mine
~for Mother Natures Beauty in my back yard

~for the abundance I live in
both physically and spiritually
~for the understanding of that abundance

~for a beautiful card from a beautiful sister
...ah, yes, how I need those words right now...
grateful grateful grateful
and that was just in the morning of my day
*
Yesterday I did not dance
but I moved
and rocked
I stayed close to home
 just to be
*

On the back yard bench swing I started a new book
given to me by a friend
(gail you are gonna wanna check this one out!)
I love reading about others who live out their faith
who walk their talk
who live their truth and calling
so inspiring.
This woman
Corrie Ten Boom
lived a fascinating life
from a prison camp in germany
to "the world is your stage".
She went around, where she felt she was needed
and shared her Story, her Faith, her God
I am enjoying the book already
(thanks Sofia, will have it back to you soon)
Reading her story made me grateful,
made me rejoice in her light
gave me continued courage to shine my own light...
*
When others shine their light,
celebrate their spirit
it gives us the courage to do the same
and when we shine our light
and celebrate our spirit
we give those around us
the courage to do the same...
and so on.

It is a reflection of how intertwined
we really are
how connected and affected by one another
*
I celebrated the Light with in me
acknowledging how it saved my life...
and now
giving Gratitude in how
it IS my life


But my favourite things of this day came from one of you, 
my lovelies
in the form of a comment
that held a question
the comment was made on this post
it was made by
Janae
she wrote
"I wonder after your heart when I read this.
Out of curiosity,
are you speaking from your overflow of joy 
or in an effort to claim
that which you hope is true?"

(one of the "baby" robins
trying out his new wings)


I loved this question
questions allow me 
to speak
to offer
to be an active vessel
to fully fill my purpose


my answer


Truly
the words of that post
is what I know to be True
those words are a reflection of my Journey
I have discovered that "The Journey"
is not one of external
but one of internal
as we navigate through ourselves
unfolding our truth
scaling over conditioning
and sifting through cellular memories
because my belief is
The Journey
is not so much about journeying back to
Light
Heaven
God
Love
 Source
because these things are always with us
my belief is our Journey
is the one back to ourselves
back to the Soul of our existence
back to the core of our being
back to the perfect creation
we started out as.


The Creator knew what we would face
in our life time
so with Love
stitched all we would need
inside of ourselves
and because of 
The Great Love
The Creator gives us freedom to find those things
on our own
there are placed many helpers in our path
and Spirit walks freely with us
but the Journey is ours
the choice is ours
because 
The Great Love
is just that big.


*


As you enter your weekend
my hope is you ponder these words
pour them upon yourselves 
and
marinate in them
they come from a sacred place within myself
fuelled by The Spirit that walks with me
and thank you
to the lovely Janae
weaver of words
creator of imagery
Sister of the Deep
for following your heart and prompting my voice
you are a treasure.


Happy Weekend my Lovelies


Love and Light


(all images take on the morning of Summer Soulstice)