Deep within Gaia, mother of creation, existence is defined as it unfolds.
Every moment is evolution with disturbances here and there, within countries and powers— misunderstandings.
Then consciousness rises within the earth and human, bubbles over, and rocks the peoples of the land.
Powers shift in the skies and in the soil and it is the trees that inform us— show us who they are in their agency with hundreds of years standing tall and firm.
We allow them to teach us that which is true power, as we move our life into wholeness, beauty, and peace.
Rather than rules of engagement or proper etiquette: not stealing, not harming, nor hurting, we search within for that which guides us.
Found within our own hearts, we allow wisdom to usher us. We trust and know— we are one with the mother of creation, in kindness, in caring, and in love.
I write today from my experience of living in the United States and with sensitivity and awareness that I am at a distance from war and those who are in the middle do not have the same luxury of choice for all that my poem portrays. In the words of Martin Luther King, we are all “tied in a single garment of destiny”. My heart goes out to all, wherever we find ourselves in this global dilemma as we teeter on the edge.
Movements in Change by Janis Dehler
Our president declared
Armageddon is close.
How is this different
from what we already know?
What do we think?
What do we do?
Feeling anger at bloodshed
with no control over this war,
I breathe it through,
go where the answer lies,
center there and listen now
for what I can do.
With a threat to tear down,
I move to build,
eat lunch with a friend,
talk to my grandson,
text my daughter about birthdays,
kiss my husband goodnight.
Choosing love over fear,
I feel my power grow,
find how it is to be used,
paint a landscape,
look at the full moon,
loose myself in beauty.
I smile, laugh, listen to another,
feel the other’s sorrow as well as the joy,
express gratitude, rejoice in the day,
sing a song, write a poem,
care for another who comes my way.
It is what we do.
We look fear in the eye,
we feel alive,
we gather round
all that is dear,
we spread our love
and know we have more.
We embrace our moments
We live them with care.
“Don’t be afraid of your fears. They’re not there to scare you. They’re there to let you know that something is worth it.”
C. JoyBell C.
“There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance.
John Lennon
“Fear doesn’t shut you down; it wakes you up”
Veronica Roth, Divergent
Ongoing Resource List: Reading for Heart and Mind
The Gene Keys: Emracing Your Higher Purpose by Riuchard Rudd
Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Inform Us by Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross
A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle
Energy Speaks: Messages from Spirit on Living, Loving, and Awakening by Lee Harris
Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself: How to Lose Your Mind and Create an New One by Dr. Joe Dispenza
The Women by Kristin Hannah
Cosmogenesis: An Unveiling of the Expanding Universe by Brian Thomas Swimme
The Mastery of Love, Don Miguel Ruiz
Change Your Thoughts—Change Your Life: Living the Wisdom of the Tao, by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
God of Love: A Guide to the Heart of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, by Mirabai Starr
The Four Agreements: A Toltec Book of Wisdom by Don Miguel Ruiz
Mindfulness and Grief by Heather Stang
How We Live Is How We Die by Pema Chödron
The Bhagavad Gita, Translated by Eknath Easwaran
St Francis of Assisi: Brother of Creation by Mirabai Starr
Wild Wisdom Edited by Neil Douglas-Klotz
Earth Prayers From Around The World, Ed by Elizabeth Roberts & Elias Amidon
The Tao of Relationships by Ray Grigg
Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom by John O’Donohue
Unconditional Love and Forgiveness by Edith R. Stauffer, Ph.D.
Keep Going: The Art of Perseverance by Joseph M. Marshall III
Art & Fear by David Bayless & Ted Orland
Quantum-Touch by Richard Gordon
The Van Gogh Blues: The Creative Persons Path Through Depression by Eric Maisel, PhD
The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit
Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith by Kathleen Norris
Forever Ours: Real Stories of Immortality and Living by Janis Amatuzio
Personal Power Through Awareness by Sanaya Roman
Violence & Compassion by His Holiness the Dahlai Lama
Teachings on Love by Thich Nhat Hanh
Devotions by Mary Oliver
To Bless the Space Between Us by John O’Donohue
Meditations From the Mat by Rolf Gates and Katrina Kenison
The House of Belonging: poems by David Whyte
Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain and Illness, by Jon Kabat-Zinn
The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit
Soul an Archaeology Edited by Phil Cousineau
A Path With Heart by Jack Kornfield
Listening Point by Sigurd Olson
I Sit Listening to the Wind by Judith Duerk
Dancing Moons by Nancy Wood
The Soul of Rumi, Translations by Coleman Barks
Keep Going by Joseph M. Marshall III
Arriving at your own Door by Jon Kabat-Zinn
The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer
The Hidden Secrets of Water by Paolo Consigli
Conquest of Mind by Eknath Easwaran
Color: A Natural History of the Palette by Victoria Finlay
Peace is Every Step by Thich Nhat Hanh
I Thought It Was Just Me (But It Isn’t) by Brene Brown
Practicing Peace in Times of War by Pema Chodron
When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chodron
On Death and Dying by Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
Unattended Sorrow by Stephen Levine
Joy in Loving, Mother Theresa
The Joy of Living by Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche
Let Your LIfe Speak by Parker Palmer
Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Essence of the Upanishads by Eknath Easwaran
Welcoming the Unwelcome by Pema Chodron
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Medicine Cards: The Discovery of Power Through The Ways Of Animals by Jamie Sams and David Carson
