Twas the night of the Solstice
And all through the town,
Not a creature was stirring,
All had bowed down,
To light the Yule log
To coax back the light,
On this dark winter Solstice,
The longest of nights.
Evergreens mean the renewal of life,
Holly, mistletoe and pine trees, too,
Decorated with bells to let you know
When forest sprites are there with you.
Candles and feasting bring this holly-day to life,
Oranges and cloves and all kinds of spice,
Celebrate, forget all your troubles and woes,
Dance round the bonfires, not once, but thrice.
Caroling, wassailing, and caraway cakes,
The 12 days of Christmas with gifts wrapped with love,
Eggnog, and cider, and even Kris Kringle,
All bask in the grace from heaven above.
© 2001, Tess Piontek
Monday, December 21, 2009
Monday, November 30, 2009
Decking the Halls
I LOVE the holidays. I love the music, the decorations and just the overall ambience of the time between November and January. I live in a climate that definately has all 4 seasons and trust me, when the snow starts flying and the temps are dropping seeing pretty holiday lights just perks ones mood up.
Money for gifts, I don't worry about it too much. Sure, I would love to fill my kids stockings to the top and have hordes of gifts under the tree for them. But they are at the age where they are starting to understand that the holidays is more about being very happy with what you already have or help others by giving.
We give all year. We donate clothes, shoes and whatever we can, when we can to various organizations and such.
So as I start putting up lights and becoming more obssessed with HGTV's holiday shows and breaking out the glitter to make my own holiday cards. I look at the past year in reflection. LOTS of changes and ups and downs. I don't believe in making resolutions. To me they are a clear set up for personal failure. Yes, set goals and challenges for yourself but don't make them so unrealistic that you beat yourself up over failing.
Life is rough enough why compound things by making some unrealistic list that can't/won't make or break you one way or the other.
Enjoy what life has for you one day at a time. Love those around you and be thankful for each day.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Love, Life and living
Well it's been awhile since I have blogged here. Don't get me wrong I like this site. I am just not an avid blogger. I am a freelance writer so therefore I tend to like the old fashioned method of pen/paper/journal etc.
Well love has found me and I became engaged June 2009. This person is not someone new in my life, he has been here for awhile. However, if you read my blog from about this time last year about finding love in your 40's, then you know that while I did mention looking I didn't say I was actively dating.
The important thing is, not only does he love me, he loves my kids and my kids adore him. He makes them laugh, but he isn't afraid to correct them if they step out of line. Which is ok. We are all still finding our way around in this new step in our relationship. But I think we will all be just fine.
On another topic, I have been dealt several nasty, wicked hands of fate if you will by my ex-husband. Nope he hasn't/isn't violent. But he has certainly caused his fair share of damage where our children are concerned. Normally I would just let it all go. But on this I can't right now. I am so mad or rather more frustrated than anything. He has hurt the girls more emotionally than I thought anyone could. As a parent kids look up to their parents divorced or not. My girls told their father what they wanted/NEEDED from him and he still sticks his head in the sand.
Well now months have passed. The girls of their own accord have said enough, they have not talked to nor seen their father in months. They know that they can call, or write or see him whenever they like. Their father also knows that if he would just take the initiative and at least call them that's a first step. But no, they get letters. Letters filled with, "I'm sorry", "I can't sleep", etc. The girls didn't make this mess so why try and guilt them into feeling sorry or guilt them into anything.
I had to remove myself overall from trying to maintain the relationship with my ex, the kids and his family overall. I didn't have the energy to keep everyone plugged in nor should I have had to at this stage of the game. I want my children to know their father and his family. Well his family is fine, they call and ask to see the kids all the time. The piece missing in that particular puzzle if my ex getting it together to keep up POSITIVE communication with his children.
I am beyond tired, weary and whatever else in dealing with him and this situation. IT's time to MAN - UP and be a father. But overall just stop the hurt.
I need to get back to that positive way of thinking. I need to stop letting these petty antics bring me down. it's affecting me in very negative ways and I don't like it.
So as we head into the holidays, and the new year. IT's time for a new beginning and that starts with me.
Well love has found me and I became engaged June 2009. This person is not someone new in my life, he has been here for awhile. However, if you read my blog from about this time last year about finding love in your 40's, then you know that while I did mention looking I didn't say I was actively dating.
The important thing is, not only does he love me, he loves my kids and my kids adore him. He makes them laugh, but he isn't afraid to correct them if they step out of line. Which is ok. We are all still finding our way around in this new step in our relationship. But I think we will all be just fine.
On another topic, I have been dealt several nasty, wicked hands of fate if you will by my ex-husband. Nope he hasn't/isn't violent. But he has certainly caused his fair share of damage where our children are concerned. Normally I would just let it all go. But on this I can't right now. I am so mad or rather more frustrated than anything. He has hurt the girls more emotionally than I thought anyone could. As a parent kids look up to their parents divorced or not. My girls told their father what they wanted/NEEDED from him and he still sticks his head in the sand.
Well now months have passed. The girls of their own accord have said enough, they have not talked to nor seen their father in months. They know that they can call, or write or see him whenever they like. Their father also knows that if he would just take the initiative and at least call them that's a first step. But no, they get letters. Letters filled with, "I'm sorry", "I can't sleep", etc. The girls didn't make this mess so why try and guilt them into feeling sorry or guilt them into anything.
I had to remove myself overall from trying to maintain the relationship with my ex, the kids and his family overall. I didn't have the energy to keep everyone plugged in nor should I have had to at this stage of the game. I want my children to know their father and his family. Well his family is fine, they call and ask to see the kids all the time. The piece missing in that particular puzzle if my ex getting it together to keep up POSITIVE communication with his children.
I am beyond tired, weary and whatever else in dealing with him and this situation. IT's time to MAN - UP and be a father. But overall just stop the hurt.
I need to get back to that positive way of thinking. I need to stop letting these petty antics bring me down. it's affecting me in very negative ways and I don't like it.
So as we head into the holidays, and the new year. IT's time for a new beginning and that starts with me.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Thursday musings
Be understanding to your enemies.
Be loyal to your friends.
Be strong enough to face the world each day.
Be weak enough to know you cannot do everything alone.
Be generous to those who need your help.
Be frugal with what you need yourself.
Be wise enough to know that you do not know everything.
Be foolish enough to believe in miracles.
Be willing to share your joys.
Be willing to share the sorrows of others.
Be a leader when you see a path others have missed.
Be a follower when you are shrouded by the mists of uncertainty.
Be the first to congratulate an opponent who succeeds.
Be the last to criticize a colleague who fails.
Be sure where your next step will fall, so that you will not tumble.
Be sure of your final destination, in case you are going the wrong way.
Be loving to those who love you.
Be loving to those who do not love you, and they may change.
Above all, be yourself.
Author Unknown
It's done
You made a mistake. Or someone else did. Or perhaps something didn't work out the way it should have. Whatever it was, it has been done. No amount of agonizing or criticizing will change that. To wish that it had never happened, or to pretend that it didn't,
would be a waste of good experience.
Find a way to make the best of it. You can't go backward in time, only forward. And as you go forward, you always have the opportunity to move yourself ahead, regardless of what has happened before.
Make the best of what you have and stop worrying about how you got it. Accept that what's done is done, and focus on the future. Put your energy and effort where they can make a difference, and they will.
Be loyal to your friends.
Be strong enough to face the world each day.
Be weak enough to know you cannot do everything alone.
Be generous to those who need your help.
Be frugal with what you need yourself.
Be wise enough to know that you do not know everything.
Be foolish enough to believe in miracles.
Be willing to share your joys.
Be willing to share the sorrows of others.
Be a leader when you see a path others have missed.
Be a follower when you are shrouded by the mists of uncertainty.
Be the first to congratulate an opponent who succeeds.
Be the last to criticize a colleague who fails.
Be sure where your next step will fall, so that you will not tumble.
Be sure of your final destination, in case you are going the wrong way.
Be loving to those who love you.
Be loving to those who do not love you, and they may change.
Above all, be yourself.
Author Unknown
It's done
You made a mistake. Or someone else did. Or perhaps something didn't work out the way it should have. Whatever it was, it has been done. No amount of agonizing or criticizing will change that. To wish that it had never happened, or to pretend that it didn't,
would be a waste of good experience.
Find a way to make the best of it. You can't go backward in time, only forward. And as you go forward, you always have the opportunity to move yourself ahead, regardless of what has happened before.
Make the best of what you have and stop worrying about how you got it. Accept that what's done is done, and focus on the future. Put your energy and effort where they can make a difference, and they will.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Maiden, Mother, Crone
Maiden, Mother, Crone
A woman's life is filled with stages, milestones ushering in wondrous experiential apexes like the coming of fertility, motherhood, and wisdom. Three aspects, maiden, mother, and crone, have traditionally represented the bounties and new beginnings represented by each stage. The maiden is the aspect of new beginnings, youth, playfulness, spontaneity, and learning. A woman in the prime of her life can be said to be living under the aspect of the mother, who personifies fertility, strength, and stability. She is the gentle nurturer as well as the fierce lioness. Lastly, and by far the most misunderstood and yet in many ways the most deserving of reverence, is the crone, who holds within her all of the wisdom of the journeys of womanhood within her.
The word crone once meant simply 'wise woman' and, in antiquity, was a term of respect. The crone was a voice of wisdom, an elder, a healer, a counselor, and a teacher, who had traveled the paths of maiden and mother and possessed the accumulated wisdom of youth, adulthood, and old age. She represented the fulfillment of maturity and the knowledge that could only be obtained through a life well lived. The transition to cronehood was a rich and empowering experience, and an important rite of passage, though not one associated with a specific age. Today, though it seems eternal youth has become an obsession, women are reclaiming the status once associated with cronehood by recognizing their evolution and acting upon it. In awakening the crone, as she once was, women are acknowledging the extraordinary wisdom, grace, dignity, and beauty that comes with age.
In embracing the aspect of the crone, it is important to be aware of the fact that age, experience, knowledge, and power are profound gifts that can never be taken from you. Each stage in life is yours and yours alone, and should be embraced as a vital part of life's journey. As you pass lovingly through each stage, coming finally to the remarkable crone, you will gradually be awakened to the mysteries of each, until you hold within you the keys to them all.
Author Unknown
A woman's life is filled with stages, milestones ushering in wondrous experiential apexes like the coming of fertility, motherhood, and wisdom. Three aspects, maiden, mother, and crone, have traditionally represented the bounties and new beginnings represented by each stage. The maiden is the aspect of new beginnings, youth, playfulness, spontaneity, and learning. A woman in the prime of her life can be said to be living under the aspect of the mother, who personifies fertility, strength, and stability. She is the gentle nurturer as well as the fierce lioness. Lastly, and by far the most misunderstood and yet in many ways the most deserving of reverence, is the crone, who holds within her all of the wisdom of the journeys of womanhood within her.
The word crone once meant simply 'wise woman' and, in antiquity, was a term of respect. The crone was a voice of wisdom, an elder, a healer, a counselor, and a teacher, who had traveled the paths of maiden and mother and possessed the accumulated wisdom of youth, adulthood, and old age. She represented the fulfillment of maturity and the knowledge that could only be obtained through a life well lived. The transition to cronehood was a rich and empowering experience, and an important rite of passage, though not one associated with a specific age. Today, though it seems eternal youth has become an obsession, women are reclaiming the status once associated with cronehood by recognizing their evolution and acting upon it. In awakening the crone, as she once was, women are acknowledging the extraordinary wisdom, grace, dignity, and beauty that comes with age.
In embracing the aspect of the crone, it is important to be aware of the fact that age, experience, knowledge, and power are profound gifts that can never be taken from you. Each stage in life is yours and yours alone, and should be embraced as a vital part of life's journey. As you pass lovingly through each stage, coming finally to the remarkable crone, you will gradually be awakened to the mysteries of each, until you hold within you the keys to them all.
Author Unknown
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Spring Cleaning
The cover on the April Issue of Body & Soul states, Spring Clean your life; clear the clutter and find yourself" That really got me thinking about things in my life.
Maybe it's just the time in my life, I am clearing out the clutter. Extra stuff, getting rid of clothes that I haven't worn. Handbags, I LOVE handbags but I have given away a few precious ones...Even my red Prada that was a thrift store find is going to a new home soon. Why? I am not using it, someone I know wants it so off it goes.
Clearing out not only clutter of stuff....but clearing out of the mind, emotional baggage. I have also said and told others it's ok to clear out your house of friendship. You know folks who you call friends although they contribute nothing to life. They don't call, email, nothing...there is just the fact that you use to contact and communicate with said person then for some reason, nothing. No contact, no calls.
Well I have cleaned out my house of so-called friends, but what about family? Can you clean out family? Can you cut ties with family no matter what their role if any in your life? YES.
Family, first and foremost are people. And lets face it, just like those so-called friends of yours, family can take up unwanted space in your life and contribute nothing.
I have been contributing to several family relationships with my ex-husbands family since my divorce several years ago. Well yesterday was it for me. I am cutting those familial ties once and for all. Now dont get me wrong the ex's family has been for the most part pretty decent...to my kids. I have maintained those ties for my kids. Well it has really dawned on me that certain members of his family are really not worth my time and valueable energy anymore. My girls are being treated as cannon fodder in a war they have no business being a part of.
Oh sure, it's family someone is always getting hurt or stepped on, or mistreated. Well maybe in other families, but not in mine. My children's piece of mind, self esteem and outright look on life is very important to me. Yes, family is very important to me, which why cutting ties hurts but it's needed. My children especially my oldest has suffered some serious emotional damage because folks chose to put themselves first before said child.
Well with all this being said, it's ok. My girls will be fine. Yes, they will miss the interaction I have for so many years kept up for them. I will no longer make calls, arrange visits, and so forth. IT's past time for me to let go.
Friday, April 3, 2009
The Muse in me
Do you feel like the wind in your sail is gone?
You know you are in the doldrums when:
Your life and your work cease to be exciting or even interesting
You're spent, dried up and worn out
You seek distraction to feel better
You're tired but can't cut back or slow down
You need to be constantly busy to feel alive
Every creative project seems beyond your ability
Do you want wind in your sail again?
Look closely at what might be causing your energy deficit
Ask yourself
Is my muse well fed? What nourishes it?
Am I getting enough rest?
Is my creativity well appreciated and rewarded by others and me?
Am I working in a hospitable setting?
Is there enough variety in my work?
Too much? Are the demands and deadlines and workload daunting?
Am I working on at least one thing that energizes me?
Am I bored?
Is the rest of my life sapping my energy?
Have I taken on too many commitments?
Do frequent distractions derail my creative thoughts?
Do I plan for and insist upon time for myself?
Questions can help you determine if your creative life is in balance or seriously skewed.
Usually we are too busy putting out fires to worry about the water supply!!
Three things to remember
Conserve energy
Create energy
Focus energy
Today's life force resides in YOU
what will you do to fill your sails with wind
How creative can you be this weekend, Feed your spirit!
May the long time sun shine upon you, and the pure light within you guide you on your way
Bless this Earth with Peace
Ezevia Rose
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Let it Go
It really does take a while to wrap your mind around a certain belief or a way of thinking. But once you accept it, things in life tend to flow a bit easier.
Folks are in your life for a reason or a season. If you can't think of one good reason why someone is in your life then it's time to cut them loose. In the last 6 yrs or so I have taken a good look at the folks in my life. Some I did call friends, but alas I was mistaken.
I have done my best to be as positive as possible. Learn from whatever life lesson is crossing my path if possible. Sure, I have bad days and bad experiences. But to dwell on them and to wish bad upon others is a waste of energy. Energy that I do not have to waste.
The following piece if from the minister T.D. Jakes. He speaks alot of truth in this piece. I don't care if you are Pagan/Christian/Druid whatever path you may follow, we all have to learn to let go at some point. Or we will stagnate and become bitter.
Let it Go - TD Jakes
There are people who can walk away from you. And hear me when I tell you this! When people can walk away from you: let them walk.
I don't want you to try to talk another person into staying with you, loving you, calling you, caring about you, coming to see you, staying attached to you. I mean hang up the phone. When people can walk away from you let them walk. Your destiny is never tied to anybody that left.
The Bible said that, they came out from us that it might be made manifest that they were not for us. For had they been of us, no doubt they would have continued with us. [1 John 2:19]
People leave you because they are not joined to you. And if they are not joined to you, you can't make them stay.
Let them go.
And it doesn't mean that they are a bad person it just means that their part in the story is over. And you've got to know when people's part in your story is over so that you don't keep trying to raise the dead.
You've got to know when it's dead.
You've got to know when it's over. Let me tell you something. I've got the gift of good-bye. It's the tenth spiritual gift, I believe in good-bye. It's not that I'm hateful, it's that I'm faithful, and I know whatever God means for me to have He'll give it to me. And if it takes too much sweat I don't need it. Stop begging people to stay.
Let them go!!
If you are holding on to something that doesn't belong to you and was never intended for your life, then you need to . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you are holding on to past hurts and pains . . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If someone can't treat you right, love you back, and see your worth . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If someone has angered you . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you are holding on to some thoughts of evil and revenge . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you are involved in a wrong relationship or addiction . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you are holding on to a job that no longer meets your needs or talents . . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you have a bad attitude . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you keep judging others to make yourself feel better . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you're stuck in the past and God is trying to take you to a new level in Him . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you are struggling with the healing of a broken relationship . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you keep trying to help someone who won't even try to help themselves . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If you're feeling depressed and stressed . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
If there is a particular situation that you are so used to handling yourself and God is saying "take your hands off of it," then you need to . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
Let the past be the past Forget the former things. GOD is doing a new thing for 2007!!!
LET IT GO!!!
Get Right or Get Left. think about it, and then . . . . . . . .
LET IT GO!!!
"The Battle is the Lord's!"
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Fascinating world of Wicca
I haven't posted in awhile. But I rec'd a really good post from my sister, Satori and I had to pass it on.
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1241095
Bewitching World of Wicca Mumbai:
Twentysix-year- old Sangeeta Krishnan is a part time editor of a scientific firm by profession but a wiccan by choice. She is as adept at using the computer as she is at using the crystal ball, wand, spells and magical charms for her wicca workshops. "I have been into this as long as I can remember. I used to have a lot of mystical experiences in my school days," says Krishnan, who has been practicing wicca for the last 10 years.
Rafique Pirani is a Math professor and a follower of wicca. "I employ minimal use of the magical tools. Instead I use angel and energy healing," he says. Pirani was inclined towards occult since his childhood and he finally took the plunge 15 years back and today is an expert in this field. People come to him with various issues -- health, prosperity or sheer peace of mind.
Welcome the new age wiccans and witches. They have jobs but also practice magic, albeit to spread positivity and goodness. For them, magic is not to harm but to benefit. Wicca, a nature based neo pagan religion is making its presence across the world and Mumbai is not untouched either. Swati Prakash, a self-confessed wiccan has been following wicca for the last six to seven years. Swati refers to magic as magick (spelt with a k). "The k here is to differentiate it from ordinary sleigh of hand or stage magic which is also called magic but is not real magic." She refuses to categorise magic into black or white. To her, magic involves creating an outer change through a change in one's inner consciousness. Nandini Hate-Mane, who is still learning more about wicca, incorporates Reiki and Aromatherapy along with magic depending upon the client's need. People approach them, having learnt about their healing powers, by word of mouth. The wiccans are healers and treat every individual by channelising their positive energies and the latent power hidden within. The wiccan community comes together when the planetary positions are rightly aligned and energise their power and spread positive vibes for the world around. While the community is doing its bit for the betterment of people's lives, many look upon it with scepticism.
While Krishnan's family supports her wiccan practices, she counters strange reactions too. "People find it hard to digest when I say I am a witch."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)