Finally, I am spending some time with Spirit now after a challenging day. I didn’t spend a lot of time alone with Spirit this morning, and I haven’t taken much additional time until now, except for a little bit of praying here and there. Writing Valentine’s Day greetings this evening was a somewhat unique way to connect with Spirit, one that I appreciate. [That’s another method to add to the list I jotted down a number of weeks ago…] With the celebration of love and friendship, for me Valentine’s Day is kind of like Thanksgiving and Christmas and Disneyland: I just have to smile and be filled with joy and gratitude! It is one of those concentrated times when I reflect upon the people who are dear to me and then express how I feel directly to them. It sure is sweet. And, tonight it was an extra special time since doing so got me back to focusing on the many blessings in my life – and, subsequently, Spirit.

I just came back from driving my dear friend, Karen to the airport. She was visiting us here in Phoenix from Baltimore – just for the weekend. That’s quite a schlep for a two-night stay but we pack a lot of love and laughter into such short times together. You know, quality not quantity. We last saw each other about 10 months ago, but when I picked her up at the airport on Friday afternoon, it was like we’d just seen one another the day before. That’s just how it is with some friends. Karen and I will celebrate our 25th anniversary of friendship next month. We first met in New York on my very first day of a job at an international banking corporation – her laughter across the entire 18th floor of the building announced her presence. We’ve shared wonderful U.S. and European travel adventures together, and supported one another in times of joy, grief, sadness, frustration, denial, etc. – especially where men were concerned! She stood by my side when, as an atheist, I at times ranted about the lack of proof of the existence of God; she would gently comment that she thought “the lady hath … Continue reading →

Amidst the excitement and preparation for dear friends visiting this weekend, I asked Spirit this morning in meditation for any messages. What I received was “Enjoy the day!” Coupled with a reading “Our primary purpose today is to know and give love” (In God’s Care, February 6), I expect to have a pretty nifty day!

Over breakfast this morning, Rog likened Life to a puzzle. You work on a little section here, then move on to putting a little section together there. Sometimes you have to remove a piece as it seems like it’d fit better in another place. But you keep working on sections, and eventually all the pieces fit together correctly, revealing a beautiful picture. I thought of how I used to work on jigsaw puzzles with my elderly father – I’d simply form the small, irregularly cut but straight-edge pieces in the outer frame first and then the rest of the puzzle pieces seemed to fit pretty easily. I realized that we played with only 50 or 100 pieces but Rog had been thinking more in the 5 million range – after all, this is Life we’re talking about! Perhaps Life is like a tapestry, “a heavy hand-woven reversible textile used for hangings, curtains, and upholstery and characterized by complicated pictorial designs.” Weaving one might be intricate and complicated, but in the end, a beautiful design is revealed. And, what about Life being like a quilt, “a bed coverlet of two layers of cloth filled with padding (as down or batting) held … Continue reading →

In asking God to remove my blocks (yesterday’s blog), I realized that Nature abhors a vacuum. Florence Scovel Shinn talks about a person bringing into his life, through his every thought and word, “”every righteous desire of his heart” – the square of life: health, wealth, love and perfect self-expression.” So, following my prayer asking for the removal of all that blocks me from God and my good, here’s my next prayer: Dear God –Please fill any empty spaces within my soul with health, wealth, love, and perfect self-expression. And, when my thoughts, words, and deeds need correction, please give me clear direction and strength to do so with Your Love. Thank You. So it is.