A place where you can be human.
Life without love is like a tree without blossoms or fruit.
Khalil Gibran
I like the word love but I like to use other words that make up the word love. Words like compassion, acceptance forgiveness… When I read quote like this I will initially scroll through my words and fit all the others I can into these quotes. What do you think about the word love? What other words come to mind when you read this quote?
Faith consists in believing when it is beyond the power of reason to believe.
Voltaire
This quote itself is a test of faith. It’s feels like such a bold statement and I needed it!
Beyond the power of reason to believe. Wow. It’s interesting because reason can only bring you so far in this life. There comes a point when you must suspend reason to truly understand our universe. Like in Kafka’s bug story, when we refuse to accept things outside of reason, we leave behind things that are valuable to us, whether we’re willing to admit their value or not. (This analogy only works if you’ve read Kafka’s, The Metamorphosis. Thank you Project Gutenberg for providing access to free ebooks) I won’t give away too much of the story but the point is, faith is a part of this journey called life.
“And he said: ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.'”
Matthew 18:3
This weekend I had such an inspiring message sent through my little one. Let me tell you, I saw this woman’s conference and I had to go. I signed up, followed all the directions, and followed up through emails to make sure I was involved because I wanted to be there. For some reason, no matter what I planned, plans kept changing all around me and eventually I had to end up bringing my little one to church. I wasn’t upset at all. I was happy to bring her because she came to help set up and was very helpful. So it was no big deal and thankfully the ladies around me were very understanding. When we get there, she’s so involved: singing, chatting with the other ladies, enjoying breakfast, and all the treats they had to share. So when it came time to listen to the speaker, I brought her into the playroom. She decided she’d rather color at the table with us. So between my mother and I we pulled out every pen we owned and let her do her thing. She’s quite the little creator. At this point the speaker is speaking about how different times are now from the old testament and asks “Isn’t this a great time to be alive?” My little one lifts her head with no hesitation and says, “yes!!” A smile grows across my face and I’m fighting back tears. This is why I was there with her.
Let me explain, I was furious when I got pregnant because I had been trying for 5 years and finally made peace with the fact that I wasn’t going to get pregnant. Decided that was it. I was going to focus on making myself happy. Gym, school, whatever made my little heart happy was going to be done. I was getting fit, connecting with other ladies in the workout classes (I sort of isolated for a while so this was exciting for me) I was all signed up for school. (ANd SO EXCITED TO BE THERE) AND BAM Pregnent! Ohh when I tell you, I was mad at God, that doesn’t even begin to describe it.
Fast forward 4 years later, I’m happy as a pig in poop. Living my best life with my two girls and my husband. And this little girl is conscious of how happy she is to be born at this time. The timing I was so furious about. She shined her light right in my wound and lit me up just by being her creative little self.
Do whatever your big ole loving heart is calling you to do. Trust yourself. Trust the Good Lord (Universe, Highest Being whatever you call it) Know yourself and your values. Write down things that call you and let them be for you even when the world doesn’t understand. Let your mere existence be the light.
I imagine that yes is the only living thing.
e. e. cummings
E E Cummings was one of my favs for a short bit. I thought of him as a bold writer. His work reminds me of contemporary art. A reminder that the message gets across in poetry even when you use words informally. He was a light in the darkness for me. I think intention matters and I need that reminder everyday before I write. So here’s your reminder too. Your thoughts and intentions matter in the world and art.
The true secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life.
William Morris
There’s a few ways to do this. Journal all day. Take moments a gratitude and a deep breath. But what’s the most important thing that makes this ork? Take a genuine interest in yourself. What makes you smile? What gets under you skin? Why? Such a great quote for this week because spring is the best season to start being intentional since flowers are blooming everywhere!
What do you already take a genuine interest in?
It is not sufficient to see and to know the beauty of a work. We must feel and be affected by it.
Voltaire
What’s worth feeling? What work of art is worth feeling? Did you grow up seeing images of a great work of art and then one day you got to see the work of art in person? For me, Jackson Pollock’s was the first piece of art I saw in real life that I had only ever seen in pictures. I loved it. And it was actually much bigger than I had realized. On the other hand, Van Gogh’s Starry Night was not as eventful as I thought it’d be. I did feel proud to see it but it didn’t move me the same way Pollocks piece did. Art is so interesting that way. One person may feel a strong to connection to a work of art while another doesn’t understand why the artist wasted their time. It can be frustrating when one tries to convince the other of it’s value. Then there’s those pieces that universally move audiences. Timing and delivery matter, yes. But some artists can connect with multiple markets in some way. Maybe I’ll learn how someday. Anyways, I like to feel works of art. It really inspires me.
It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.
Marcus Aurelius
What does it mean to live? How do we even begin to live?
What makes me feel alive is:
I want to be here on this blog. I want to write thought provoking posts. In order to do that, I have to provoke my own thoughts. In order to provoke my own thoughts, I have to set aside time when I have enough energy to think so that I can be intentional about my thinking. Not just free flow (though I need time for that too), I’m talking inspired thought that makes me open a million tabs.
Confession: It is hard for me right now to stay focused long enough or to have free time long enough to even begin exploring.
How can I make sure there’s time in my day to inspire myself? Side note: It really should be everyday.
Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Here’s the scoop, faith doesn’t have to be scary. It can be but it doesn’t have to be. As a kid, I’d go with the flow with everything. I’d let it all flow to me. I’d leave the worrying to my mother. That’s how it’s supposed to be. As an adult we are not only taught but expected to be worried about everything. I think a little worry is important. And I also think it’s important to be proactive. The difference is constant worry about everything literally destroys our health. High levels of anxiety can have a negative effect on basic decision making skills.
I think we should focus less on worry and more on faith. Faith in God the universe a higher power and faith in humanity. Faith is sharing your burdens.
Imagine being the person someone had faith in by showing up and doing your best. You lifted their burden by showing up.
So faith, what do you think about it?
Our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children’s future. And we are all mortal.
John F. Kennedy
Connecting with others is great. It’s something that’s important to me for many reasons. One that comes to mind first is that I remember how alone I felt. I had a great job with an amazing baby girl. I had my own place and dreams for the future. But even with all those things, I felt so alone. I felt sad and ashamed even though I had amazing accomplishments. When I felt alone, conversations with strangers that cared about how I really felt were rare. Even so, every time these positive conversations happened, my hope for the future grew. I felt inspired. I felt like maybe I could make it a bit longer. They way that you connect with those around is more valuable than you will ever know. So if you’re ever wondering how you can connect to others, start with basics. It’s always more valuable than you think.
Jayne.press