The Empty Chair

If we have experienced loss, we carry that with us daily. It becomes part of our breath and as each day passes, the strain is a little less and our heavy hearts grow a bit lighter. During the holidays, however, our lost loved ones occupy the space at the forefront of our beings. They pop up there, with their warm smiles and memories of contagious laughter. They sit there, as a reminder of the love they had for us and the unique connection we shared.

People maintain different theories and beliefs about what happens to us, once we leave this earthly body. Some say we become part of the earth and creation; while others are sure we will return, to complete our unfinished work. Whatever your understanding is, I think that we can all agree that the energy of a person who has passed, a person who we spent a lifetime loving, still remains with us, long after the physical body is gone.

Love's energy is enormous and has no end. It can fill many spaces and is always with us. As we prepare for holiday festivities and find our hearts heavy anew, processing loss once more, wishing for one more embrace, one more glimpse of our dearly departed...

Breathe and remember that the empty chair at your table,  is not at all empty, rather it contains a vast energy that will never be gone. That kind of love is too grand to dissipate. Our hearts are capable of so much and hold close the memories of times before, cherish family and friends, and intrinsically know, we are never alone.

A Season for Miracles

This is the time to dig deep into ourselves and give from the very space that giving was created; our hearts.

A season of thanks is upon us. We all can have something to be thankful for. Some are thankful for food on their tables so that their family and loved ones do not have to go to sleep hungry. Some are happy to have jobs in these uncertain economic times. Others are grateful to have a solid, stable roof over their heads and warm beds to support sweet dreams while they slumber. Thanks are felt towards family members who are there when needed and on standby always. Thanks are offered up to pets who love unconditionally; who sleep on our feet at night and wait by the door, excited for us to come home whether we have been gone five minutes or a week!

We are thankful for troops everywhere, who give us protection without second thought. We thank teachers and mentors and gurus and yogis for unwavering support in our endeavors of self development and growth. We thank our bosses and colleagues, with whom we spend many hours a day, days on end, each year. We give thanks to our children, nieces and nephews, who keep us young at heart. We appreciate kind words when we hear them and try our best to remember to speak them daily. We learn from experience and gain knowledge by watching the goodness that goes on in the world around us.

The miracle that happens each day, is that despite the dark times that plague our society...evil doers, meanness, and acts of hate, despite all of these harsh things, we still feel love and see goodness in people. We still reach a helping hand out when our hands are already full. We dig deep in our coin purse to give our last nickel  to one we know whose need is greater than our own. We allow negative talk to be muffled and let in only sweet words that compliment and raise us higher. We open our ears and hearts and embrace others into our lives. In doing such things, we create community and friendships where before we were separate and strangers.

Miracles are often not as rare as we think, we only have to start recognizing that miracles often masquerade as small kindnesses and they are all around us! I give thanks to you all for the miracles in my life, which you are responsible.

Dia De Los Muertos

A poem about dem bones...

Henry and Lotte haven't their bodies

Simply bare boned are they.

Brittle and White, a frightening sight

With no beating heart, Til Death do us part

Together forever in bliss

Chantilly lace veil, mothers' before her have worn

With hauntingly sweet, deep set sockets

His top hat is dusty , he shuffles his feet

Nervous, hands shoved in  his pockets
In their fanciest dress clothes set to party with zest
Arm linked with arm, they walked the aisle
That would forever seal their fate
How exactly they died, this groom and his bride

Is a mystery we may never know

What, though, is clear and what we see here

Is the bond that secures their union

Eternally joined in true love they've sworn

Echoing faint and gentle sounds of laughter

A hollow eyed gent walks next to his lady

Mischievous and not short of shady

But kind and giving, though just a bit living

These bones, dem old rattly bones

Have found they have Vida, in spite of being muerto

And do not have to fly solo here-after...