ContemplativeJourney

Sometimes I read things that are so deeply inspirational, I simply have to share the information with someone else...last week, I picked up a Joel Osteen book ("It's Your Time") to read on a plane trip to Atlanta. While browsing through books and magazines, I knew that I wanted something fairly light to read, but encouraging and positive. I have been delighted by the encouragement found in Joel's book, and read something last night that struck a deep chord... The passage talks about the fact that we all face major challenges in our lives - the loss of a job, a broken relationship, an illness, death of a loved one - and these circumstances could easily bury us in despair. Negative and painful thinking can become overpowering, creating a downward spiral that pulls us ever deeper into feelings of hopelessness. Here's what Joel says about it: "Yet there is a difference between being buried and being planted. That difference boils down to the expectation of what h...

So...I took a trip to Stone Mountain Park outside of Atlanta this past weekend...with us was a good friend's 11 year-old daughter. Wanting always to see the 'kid' have a good time, I enthusiastically suggested that we take the "Sky Hike." The 3-story ropes course wasn't too bad at first...safely harnessed of course, we were offered 2 options at each stage of the hike...a challenging option, and a less challenging one. I took the road less challenged... Until, we came upon a section with no less challenging option...you see it pictured here. While the angled boards might look less challenging, they are not...mostly due to the fact that they move back and forth, and the swinging makes balance difficult. The other option...? A single tight-rope. Safety harness or no, I was terrified. I tried to step onto the tightrope, but couldn't go through with it...pulling back onto the platform, I was frozen. There was no stairway down from the platform...and people com...

A couple of weeks ago, I was in a meeting where folks were talking about how to handle those moments in life when the answer is "no." The "no" might be about a new job, a raise, a relationship, an answer to your prayers, physical healing from illness...or anything that might be meaningful to you. "No" can be a very difficult word to hear, especially if the subject involved is something of deep importance to you. How do you handle the "no"s in your life? If we were to ask my parents (let's don't)...I'm afraid they would confirm what I already know about myself, which is that I don't usually handle "No" very well. I don't "roll over" easily when someone tells me "no." In certain situations, this can be a terrific character trait...other times...not so much. So...back to the discussion group...a guy was talking about the loss of a relationship in his life, and how poorly he handled his grief...how he...

Are you the kind of person who is kind and gentle with puppies and kittens? If you are not, and would find it easy to be harsh and cruel to these adorable little furballs, read no further, because the ideas shared here will not resonate for you... I want to talk about self-care today, and what it means to be gentle with ourselves...as well as with others. Sometimes we need visual aids in order to really "get it"...and I think the image of these sweet and vulnerable babies can help... Not too long ago, I wrote a blog about being a "high maintenance" person, and what it means to take care of ourselves. While the idea may seem a selfish one, I continue to believe that good self-care inevitably leads us toward better relationships with other people (and animals), and that a failure to take good care of ourselves also has an inevitable ending...a bad one. Some of us grew up in nurturing homes and with loving and encouraging families. Others of us grew up in broken homes,...

I'm continuing to ponder some things I heard in a conversation on Saturday morning. The topic of discussion was "change." Some folks really enjoy change...they look for change...create change when things become stagnant...they thrive on change. I've never been one of those folks. I enjoy routine. That isn't to say that I don't enjoy some amount of change, because I do. But in general, change isn't one of my favorite things. Routine...more often than not, feels secure to me, and stable...and I like security and stability. I heard someone tell a story on Saturday morning about working with her elderly parents to re-locate to an assisted living facility. The elderly couple committed to move...then backed out...then re-committed to move...then backed out again...and the cycle of indecisive decision-making continued. The reason given by the elderly Mom? Change. She didn't like it, and didn't want it...and she thought that staying in her home of many ye...

I wrote a few days ago about the wind...today is one of those days! The wind is blowing my windchimes, and blowing the leaves...and it is spectacular in the shade! If I had to sit in the direct sun, I would probably have a different assessment of the weather, but I'm sitting in the breezy shade, and loving what is! Earlier today I participated in a conversation about the subject of change, and how it effects us. I heard some things that made an impression on me, and that reminded me of tornado survivors from Joplin, Missouri who have been interviewed on TV this week. I'll start with the tornado victims...amazing people, really. I wonder how I would respond in similar circumstances...? Truly, I cannot see myself being as positive and resilient as some of the people I've seen interviewed. There was a woman interviewed last night who had on a pink "Life is Good" t-shirt...I couldn't help but notice the shirt. I love the "Life is Good" brand, and own num...

I love windchimes. How 'bout you? I'd buy more of them, if they weren't so expensive...the nices ones, I mean...they are expensive. I bought a new set just this last Saturday...longer pipes, deeper tones...beautiful sound! Last night we had severe thunderstorms in the Dallas area, and several tornadoes touched down, though I haven't yet heard about any major damage or casualities (thankfully). My windchimes weathered the storm, and were hanging quietly from the back of the house when I left for work this morning. Wind can be a fickle thing...gentle and quiet one moment, ferocious and threatening the next... I've always been fascinated by the wind...I love it actually. It can be bothersome to your hairdo, blow away your paper plates during a picnic, throw cars and boats around like tinker toys, or gently kiss your face on a quiet spring day. It's mysterious and wondrous, and for me, carries with it the sense of our Creator's presence. Sometimes I sit outside ...