Love Is

Emotions 12.17.11

EMOTIONS    12.17.11

My emotions.  A big change mine are there

just below the surface, ever present.

It’s not just that they are there.

The intensity of them is what I’m not used too.

I'm not talking about heavy grief here.

It’s feelings that flash through me.

A beautiful memory that brings tears to my eyes,

or a song that moves me so that my eyes well up.

Sunday in church the beautiful Christmas songs,

goose bumps (God bumps I call the now )and tears.

I closed my eyes so that I wouldn’t give my feelings away,

for they may be mistaken as sorrow.

I’ve cried so much this past year

and now when joy fills my heart, tears fill my eyes.

Does it make any sense?

No, I guess not.

But not much has for quite some time now,

at least by my old standards.

So appearances, judge not too quickly,

if I seem pensive or have watery eyes.

It just may be I’m filled with joy.

May you find that today.

Joy in a common thing that just wells up in you

and brings tears of joy to your eyes.

Then look around

and let that feeling soak in,

acknowledge it.

Realizing it came from deep within you

the spiritual essence of what you are.

The other day a dear friend told me

tears of joy are Holy Water.

All My Love Always, Keith

Your present circumstances

don’t determine where you can go;

they merely determine where you start.

Nido Qubein

It Is Not

Are Prayers Answered? 10.28.15

Are Prayers Answered?  10.28.15

A few weeks back a friend asked me to pray with her.

She told me I could use it for this message.

I sent her an email and told her I would pray for her.

I told her we would pray for her on Sunday,

and I would send it as a Prayer Request to Silent Unity.

I also told her about how Silent Unity prays over these for thirty days.

  Her response:

Sep 24

Dear Keith, this touches me deeply to know
that you took the time to do this for xxxxxxxxx.
The hardest part is the waiting and in addition to the unknowing.

It's been going on for so long now that it's always in the back of my head

and heart but as it gets into the homestretch

it seems to be a period of more anxiety for xxxxxxx and myself.

He's worked so hard to see the specialists he's supposed to see

and juggle that with work that it's frustrating and scary at the same time.

I'm trying to be a non-anxious presence and support for her

and knowing that you and others are praying for me enables me to do that,

so I thank you from the deepest recesses of my heart.

I sleep better knowing that she is on the prayer team.

Thank you, dear friend.

Oct 20

Keith, I rejoice in letting you and the prayer team know

that XXXXXXX does not need XXXX surgery!

Thank you so very much for being my prayer partners these days.

Your ministry is so vital.  With much loving kindness.

By the way, this glowing endorsement of the UOC Prayer Ministry

and Silent Unity comes from an Episcopal Priest.

The UOC Prayer Chaplains are available to you after each service,

and you can sign up for monthly prayer calls too.

Just respond to this Faith Lift message or call 423-766-7990.

Silent Unity is open 24 hours a day all year and will pray with you on the phone

at 1-800-NOW PRAY (800-669-7729).

I’ve used it and it is a wonderful just to hear them pray for you.

If you like, you can submit prayers through their website at

www.unity.org/prayer/request-prayer.

Any of these are available to everyone.  Try it I know you’ll be glad you did. 

God blesses you and yours this day and every day, Keith

If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough.

Meister Eckhart

Deep Peace

Full Moon 12.10.11

Full Moon      12.10.11

A brilliant full moon as I walk about.

Crisp and cold, there’s a heavy frost.

The moon glides along, the trees barren of leaves,

silhouettes they are.

Casting shadows about as Annie romps around.

Playful she is on these cold days.

The trees stand out revealing all their branches,

with the moon as the backdrop, illuminating the details.

A wispy cloud here and there, I see my breath in the cold air.  The moon ever present as we move along.  

It’s not night but not yet day an ending of yesterday

and a beginning of today.

Memories of yesterday and thoughts of today,

may yours be good ones, as you enter a new day.

All My Love Always, Keith

From the end spring new beginnings.

Pliny the Elder

You Think of Yourselves

Autumn Paints

The Veil 12.16.11

THE VEIL     12.16.11

I recall a kind comment I heard not long ago.

The veil with the other side is very thin she said.

So I think of this as I awake to record a dream,

another dream where I’m in conversation with my lost wife,

who meant so very much to me.

It matters not what it was about for it’s just another sign,

that I have not lost contact.

How to explain this to those who do not know.

Some things are not explainable.

That’s been my year, things I can relate but really can’t explain.

It helps to write, it helps to talk to those I know are receptive.

That opens the door, for them to relate things they know.

Things they have experienced.

And for me to know that I am not alone

in these things I have experienced.

All My Love Always, Keith 

Change your thoughts and you change your world.

Norman Vincent Peale

Fall

Rings 12.14.11

RINGS    12.14.11

As I wander out the back door.

I notice a few stars and light fog.

The moon glows on the side yard.

Ahhhh it’s out again.

As I round the corner of the house 

I look up for I know it’s there.

The moon glows with multiple rings surrounding it.

Soft changes in the color of them, this is truly a treat.

To see it, in such a different way.

Then I notice the light fog it’s getting heavier.

As we turn very heavy, it has become.

The fog changes the whole look of things.

The moons multiple rings are now down to one.

Further on it’s back to where we started.

The fog has become light again.

The multiple rings are back.

As we close our walk the heavy fog sets in once again.

The moon is down to two rings.

But such a beautiful morning walk it has been.

May you find that today.

The pure beauty in how life changes before your very eyes.

All My Love Always, Keith

The more I wonder,

the more I love

Alice Walker

Not Only

Unsure 12.15.11

Unsure 12.15.11

I walk along new Music in my ears, Spirit Trance, wonderful it is.

I look to the sky, the beautiful moon, the stars, a thin layer of clouds.

The dogs are alert and sniffing along the bank of a pond.

I am lost as I gaze up at the sky, noticing a long thin cloud.

I watch it grow from a wisp to a broad swath.

The moon glides through the clouds, and a feeling wells in me.

My eyes fill with tears, my mouth quivers with sobs.

Tears stream down my face, this though is not grief.

Unsure I am but is this rapture?

The thought crosses my mind, I am in this world but not of it.

There is a far greater presence today. 

This essence of being is so very with me, consuming me.

As if I am here but not here, part of something so much more.

I write this not knowing what will come next.

Tears stream from my eyes, that music still mystifies my ears.

I look around, even the dogs are giving me quizzical looks.

As if they sense it too.

I’ve been up since three, meditation, Qigong,

and some exercises I’ve done

My, what a glorious start to the day.

I’ve been in a quandary of late; things just seem out of place.

Then this morning moves me so,

back to my essence, our essence.

I remember the service Christmas in Song.

Nine people on stage giving their all and I sat there watching.

I envisioned them as nine luminous lights, glowing across the stage.

Radiating love through song.

So I leave you today with a thought I think

and often mentally verbalize during each day.

Radiate an aura of unconditional love and compassion

for all life in all it's expressions.

For in the end, if God has created everything.

We are all part of everything, 

and we are all one with everything.

All My Love Alwyas, Keith

It's difficult to believe in yourself

because the idea of self is an artificial construction.

You are, in fact, part of the glorious oneness of the universe.

Everything beautiful in the world is within you.

Russell Brand

St. Theresa's Prayer

All My Love Always, Keith

Faith is not something to grasp, it is a state to grow into.

Mohandas Gandhi

Be A Lamp

Out Of Place 12.13.11

OUT OF PLACE  12.13.11

A social butterfly I am not,

feel awkward making small talk.

Always have.

I put myself in situations that require it,

only to realize, yet again, it’s just not me.

Or is it?

I’d like to change but don’t know how.

It’s not new; it’s been around a long time.

It’s not because of where I am.

But I thought the second pass through the holidays

would be much easier.

But grief lingers in yet another variation.

The intensity is so much less.

But the emptiness, the loneliness,

well, let’s just say they don’t go away.

And the trip to New York the walk back through time

still lingers and reminds.

As the holidays do too, how to be cheerful, suck it up,

and put on a good face too.

Guess I’ve never been real good at that either

tend to be one who wears his emotions on his sleeve.

Some days feel heavy, some feel light.

May yours be light today and full of warm smiles

Give them away to make others smile.

It may just be the gift they need.

All My Love Always, Keith

If instead of a gem,

or even a flower,

we should cast the gift

of a loving thought

into the heart of a friend,

that would be giving

as the angels give.

George MacDonald

Today Is Your Day

The Window 12.12.11

THE WINDOW      12.12.11

I recall making a new friend not long ago,

trying to explain a bit of who I am.

I'm not very good at talking

but I seem to have a knack for writing,

or is it just a willingness to share what most people wouldn't?

It's like a window into the soul of a man trying to figure life out.

For my life's been turned upside down by the events of the past year!

The very core of how I view life has taken such a dramatic shift.

It's such a wonderful time everything seems so new,

yet so perplexing too,

for all I thought I knew seems so misguided now.

That's how we grow we push the boundaries of our knowledge,

and in so doing sometimes we step far beyond where we were.

Only to find we have stepped into a new world as it were.

Where we initially feel so out of place but as we grow into it

the old world is the one that seems so out of place.

All My Love Always, Keith

I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think,

all the walks I want to take,

all the books I want to read,

and all the friends I want to see.

John Burroughs

Infinity

The Meeting 12.09.11

THE MEETING    12.09.11

It’s just after 3 am I awake to record a dream.

Then I remember yesterday.

I had a meeting a fellow I respect.

Told me how important my writings were.

Told me I knew not how many people were affected,

the ripple that they caused.

He took time with it.

As if he knew how sometimes I question why I do this.

As I left and drove away I was filled with these incredible feelings.

I just wish I could give them away to all of you.

My body filled with wonderful emotions.

My mind swimming with ideas on how to convey this,

how to give them away.

So here I sit and I write yet again for you who receive this directly

and those who receive some benefit from it indirectly.

I lost sight of that.  How a kind act not only impacts the direct recipient

but has an impact on those they meet, or how they deal with their day.

So I ask you take the time to do something kind today.

You know the random act of kindness.

Share a kind word or help someone out.

Take a moment to cause a ripple of love in the universe.

All My Love Always, Keith

The idea that everything is purposeful really changes the way you live.

To think that everything that you do has a ripple effect,

that every word that you speak,

every action that you make affects other people and the planet.

Victoria Moran

The Soul of the Soul

Just As Ripples Spread

Pursuit 12.08.11

PURSUIT    12.08.11

First good walk in three days.

Three inches of rain over the last two days and

six inches early last week.

Tis a bit soggy as we walk about, crunchy in spots,

since we’ve had a freeze.

But the dogs love it as they sniff about.

So many times they stop to sniff.

I wonder what it’s all about, so engrossed they are.

Competing to find the next treasured scent upon the ground.

Then my thoughts, turn to life, and how many times

I’ve wondered what it’s all about.

I smile for I’m not unlike the dogs I’m engrossed,

in but a different pursuit.

All My Love Always, Keith

A man sooner or later discovers

that he is the master-gardener of his soul,

the director of his life.

James Allen

The Simplest Thought

Treat 12.07.11

TREAT    12.07.11

Yesterday morning noticed a plant that looked a little droopy.

So I got the watering jug and made my rounds.

Hit that plant and then off to the Peace Lilies and the rest.

Headed for the corner the orchid was just beautiful, as always.

Then I saw it!

The Christmas cactus bright red blooms everywhere.

It was just putting on a show red blooms so vibrant.

I hadn’t had any luck with them been watering them for16 months.

Nothing, but now, WOW!

 Last night as I headed upstairs I mentioned it to Erin, Alex got interested too.

So there we were the three of us marvelling at the beauty of it.

The both of them!

The orchid that hadn’t bloomed in six years and now has bloomed all year.

The Christmas cactus that decided to put on a show.

What a treat it was for us, to just take a minute

and just marvel at it all.

All My Love Always, Keith

The fact that I can plant a seed and it becomes a flower,

share a bit of knowledge and it becomes another’s,

smile at someone and receive a smile in return,

are to me continual spiritual exercises.

Leo Buscaglia

We're Fascinated

Mind Games 12.05.11

Mind Games  12.05.11

I glance up, a trail.  It looks like a falling star trail.

But it’s just a long thin cloud, there are no others.

If that were a falling star 911 would be ringing all over.

It’s long and broad for a falling star trail.

It just looks odd.

As I walk along it fans out and looks like a comet’s tail.

Funny how the mind works, wanting to categorize things.

Make them into something familiar.

Why can’t I just see an odd shaped cloud.

As I near the end of my walk it’s nearly gone

It just kept on fanning out and thinning out until it disappeared.

So the mind games are over, for now, I know they’ll be back.

I’ll glance at something else and an immediate recognition I’ll get.

But it’s not always the right one.

Sometimes things are just not what they seem.

For sometimes life is not what it seems.

You dig into something only to find out you’ve got to readjust

to what you’ve found out.

Seems I’ve done a lot of that of late.

I guess that’s why the quote below caught my eye.

All My Love Always, Keith

“The mind, once expanded to the dimensions of larger ideas, never returns to its original size.”

— Oliver Wendell Holmes

I Am One With Spirit

Let Us Be Grateful