14 May 2022 Make Better Choices

Hello to you. How are you? It’s overcast. Gray and wet here but I’m not complaining! I am so grateful we are experiencing this type of weather and not the kind so many are experiencing lately! Yesterday I found out the Midwest, where I am originally from, has been experiencing wild dust storms: https://www.argusleader.com/story/weather/2022/05/13/south-dakota-storm-met-definition-derecho-what-haboob-severe-weather/9759725002/ – this is from my hometown newspaper. They do a good job of explaining two weather terms I hadn’t heard of before. A derecho and a haboob:

It’s really strange to have noticed this type of stuff going on in the Middle East a few posts ago and then to see this show up at my parents doorsteps!

The title of this blog today is a message for me and I think for others. On the small scale for myself is health related. I had a couple blemishes show up on my face and I messed with them and I know better! I was laying in bed and noticed how much belly fat was there and at the same time was feeling pain in my lower back which is one of the main parts of my body that carries that belly! I went to the mirror and the message that came to me about all of my meager issues was, “This is your fault! Make better choices!” Thinking of all that is going on in our world in all the principalities I don’t think that message is just for me. Bad choices can come from initial well meaning intentions and then they just compound on themselves making new problems on top of old ones. A good example is Roundup or weed killers. We use poison that ends up in our bodies through various means and we wonder why cancer shows up.

https://youtu.be/ZQYPlEoU9ko – Life is a Walking from Good Buffalo Eagle

ho’oponopono mantra

The next images are kind of random but may be something is for you:

With the pain I’ve been experiencing, I’m very grateful to George!
My Aunt and Uncle gave me this electric blanket and it really has been helping me manage pain
One of my neighbors lovely Iris’s
Sometimes it’s good to just stop and appreciate the world around you. Link likes to walk really slow so he really helps me slow down.
These make me smile to see each walk
This little trees leaves look like they were painted on
I was happy to see this little one again. The last time I saw them they were running off with a hurt foot! Reminds me of a cat I had, loved and miss named Amber.
One of my favorite spots – isn’t the sun amazing?!
The blooming trees on the walk transitioning to leaves and berries
My favorite pic of the day – as I stood here I was thinking of my Grandma Carol and how much she loved streams like this too. The sound and just watching it glisten in the sun is balm for my soul.
A little deja vu seeing this happening in our times. I can remember my Grandma Schmidt talking about actually living through this. What kind of choices have been made to have this sort of thing happening again?

12 May 2022 Travels of the Mind

Hello to you. How does today find you? I hope for your very best! My thanks to all who have been praying for me. I want you to know I’m praying for you too. We got this! At least I hope so. I did have a mild spooky experience last night – sensing a presence walking in the room – but I was able to go back to sleep. I dreamt about going to this place that was like an attraction of some sort and it was scary. There were energies I was trying to keep out. I couldn’t find the exit and strangest of all was being in this place with a morbidly obese Lady Gaga! Dreams like this aren’t very restful. It’s probably related to all those paranormal investigations I’ve watched.

Yesterday was a day of traveling in my mind. I found myself watching videos talking about how science is proving that the Shroud of Turin is genuine – it is Jesus Christ.

The Shroud of Turin – face of a bruised and battered Christ Source: Internet

I spent some time with musicians who have passed on and their families. One in particular was David Bowie. He’s been on my mind lately. His voice helped me survive my teenage years! I watched a cool video done by Vogue of his wife Iman sharing treasures from her home with David. She is a pretty amazing woman.

https://youtu.be/fk9cq3gRCP0 – Inside Iman and David Bowie Scenic Home Filled With Wonderful Objects

Another was Chris Cornell from Sound Garden and his daughter Toni. Yet another was actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers and his little family. The internet makes travels like this so easy! When I connect with a person they become part of me and I care about them. Famous people are no better than anyone else….. at the end of it all they are just people.

Passage that resonated yesterday

The other place my mind traveled was to Sacred Geometry. For those who have been visiting here awhile, you know I really like Metatrons Cube. Something funny with this is I found out yesterday that actor Alan Rickman was “the Metatron” in the movie Dogma!

https://youtu.be/LAn5Hwb7Y94 – Behold The Metatron (Dogma, Alan Rickman)

My orgonite Seed of Life Pendant : The basis of the Seed of Life is the circle, and in sacred geometry circles represent cycles, as well as encompassing things. In this case, the seven circles are often compared to the seven days of creation, with the different circles being ascribed to different points in the universe’s making.
https://lasertrees.com › blog › seed-…
SEED OF LIFE – LaserTrees

Let’s see what we have for a message in A Woman’s Spirit today:

I want to be loved, and for that to happen, I must love others and I must want love for them. – Betty MacDonald

Feeling love is so elusive. We savor the feeling when it comes, and we think if we hang on tightly, it won’t leave. But we must give love away if we want to keep feeling it. That is the paradox. It is also a principle we can rely on absolutely.

Feeling generous in spirit toward others gives us a powerful blessing in return. We quickly sense that whatever we feel toward the friends and associates in our lives we feel about ourselves. Carrying love for others in our hearts assured us of feeling loved too. It’s easier to understand once we begin utilizing this principle. What we give away, we get back.

I can influence whether or not I am loved by how I treat others today. What I sow I will reap.

—————————-

Song I found this morning that I didn’t know David had sung before:

https://youtu.be/hODALOTiH6A – David Gilmour, David Bowie, Richard Wright “Comfortably Numb”

Let’s go for a short walk:

My favorite of the day!
If you want to see beauty in this world you just need to make the choice to seek it.

11 May 2022 Let The Right Ones In

Hello to you. How are you in your today? I hope you are doing well. Last night it took a long time to fall asleep but I eventually did and the dreams were spooky-free! I did some research and found out a couple medications I take when mixed together can have a rare side effect of hallucinations. I also learned a bit about hypnagogic hallucinations that can include sleep paralysis and seeing scary things. Experiencing scary things. The other thing is remembering I am a very sensitive person that can’t watch or get involved in certain things. I had been watching a lot of those ghost and spirit videos on YouTube channels like Slapped Ham.

With the experiences I shared in the past couple of posts, it’s a reminder to myself to “let the right ones in.” I’m always preaching about “garbage in” and “garbage out” too! Our eyes are like doors and like the door to our homes, which our body is, we must be sure of who or what we allow in. After what I’ve been hearing, reading and seeing about the latest installment of Dr. Strange, I’m not going to watch it. There is so much real horror in our waking world I don’t see the value of adding to it via entertainment. That’s just me. I am officially reminded to mind my doors.

Something else that helped me last night was having my Aunt call me before bed and we prayed together. She prayed for my protection from the shadows and I prayed for her to keep healing from her knee surgery. As I lay in bed I talked to God and could feel his presence.

Messages from A Woman’s Spirit today:

Once conflict has arisen, we are kidding ourselves if we think it can be ignored. – Linda Rueben

Conflict is ordinary, some may even say necessary. And it generally makes us tense, but that’s primarily because we want to “win” every disagreement. Through our role models in this program, we learn that feelings should not be stuffed or ignored, but they don’t have to be resolved immediately either. Simply sharing with someone that we are angry about a situation is often enough. Doing more often escalates a minor conflict into a major confrontation.

Choosing to be peaceful, rather than right, isn’t copping out, even though it may seem so at first. Rather, it’s opting to put our energies into positive exchanges with others. Remembering that every relationship is given to us by design, not accident, gives us reason to pause before stepping on the toes of our “teachers.” Honoring them with love and acceptance diminishes our need to be right.

Letting go of my need to be right today will truly give me peace.

————————-

Messages and pictures from yesterday:

Who or what do you allow access to your soul…your “home” in this life?
Indoor flowers – the carnations from Mothers Day opened!
Cloud wings for the sun
Lots of pretty in the sky yesterday
Yesterday I was exploring Asherah: What is the meaning of the name asherah?

Asherah — known across the ancient Near East by various other names, such as Astarte and Istar — was “an important deity, one who was both mighty and nurturing,” Wright continued. “Many English translations prefer to translate ‘Asherah’ as ‘Sacred Tree,'” Wright said.Mar 18, 2011
https://www.nbcnews.com › wbna42…
God’s Wife Edited Out of the Bible — Almost – NBC News






This little bear got left out in the rain
A little flower that caught my eyes
When the clouds were like they were yesterday it makes me imagine heaven on earth

https://youtu.be/48V1GRrwhd8 – Opening Doors (Temple Grandin)

I Am In Everything – Mei- lan

https://youtu.be/KtlJ-28AxH8 – emotional music – I Am In Everything – Mei-lan

Hello to you. How has your day been? My day has been pretty good aside from being kind of grumpy from poor sleep and leg pain. I am posting this tonight as I will be busy tomorrow with church and family festivities. Happy Mother’s Day!

I have been exploring Mei-lan’s music today and thought this was a lovely song and title for celebrating our moms to include this earth. It’s also a beautiful understanding between my Dad and I that God is in everything. My Dad had to be both a Mom and a Dad for me when I was young. It’s important to acknowledge so many men like my Dad – put in the position having to fill both roles in a child’s life. Being a single parent can be so challenging!

This song brought tears to my eyes today. So lovely to hear the masculine and feminine harmonizing without words just sounds:

https://youtu.be/CafKRUvwQ2E – Mei-lan- Eternal Soul – with Ali Pervez Mehdi

A short walk:

Lots of activity in the skies today
A resting place for me
The neighbor this tree belongs to was out working today and we got to visit. He said this is his moms tree and she was actually able to celebrate her birthday and pose for a photo with the tree this year! It’s a crab apple tree he said. What a lovely Moms Day memory to have!
The flowers from my neighbor in the sun
Cheerful yellows
There was some wind when we were out and I just had to stand and listen to the music of these trees
I noticed these on a small tree we passed. Not sure what kind of tree it is. Look like little beans!
Some hallelujah on the way home. My cell phone camera doesn’t do what I see justice sometimes lol
“Happy Mom’s Day !”

A message that is often taught by mothers to their children. It’s easy to pray for, care and love those that give it back to us. We learn from both friend and foe:

6 April 2022 Shadows in Dreams and Divinely Loved

Hello to you. How are you doing in your world? I’m sitting here in mine with some coffee, Link and a beautiful day. We had another rough night with pain but did manage to get some sleep. A dream that woke me up was of looking at something dark and not being able to say anything but with my thoughts. Whatever I was looking at said without words but with thoughts, “how is it your here?” Then my mouth was free and I said “Jesus!” Then I woke up. The dark being was gone. Stuff of a spiritual nature happens to me mostly when I dream.

Yesterday I had something beautiful happen. A prayer of mine has been gradually getting answered – getting to know my neighbors. What happened is I was sitting on the porch enjoying various types of music. I was listening to the song We Are Stars by the Pierces and the chorus has the phrase, “I just want to be loved by you…” As I heard this my neighbor came up and offered me a pot of wild flowers that had found their way into her yard! In that moment and those of her showing me her gorgeous little Eden of a yard I felt divinely loved. God does stuff like this! If we are willing we become his body here on earth to do loving things both great and small. So now I have some beautiful flowers amidst all the gravel! It may not seem like it some days. When times are tough it can beg the question, “if you love me God why is this happening?!” The closer you stay with your heart to God the more you will see you are loved no matter what is happening.

Stay willing….surrender. A friend I made on Twitch called me out of the blue this week and she was calling to tell me I was loved! She has been going through an amazing awakening with God. What she has realized is that the harder you fight against God the harder it is for you. That has been my experience too. Lately as I’ve been hobbling around taking pictures, I feel like a spirit with feet. God giving me the strength to be his boots on the ground here.

Remember, no matter what you are facing in your world it’s not about all the things you can’t do….focus on what you can do. Sometimes that might be just one small thing for the entire day! That’s ok! You did something you thought you couldn’t. Be proud of that! Sending you love and hugs through the wires and the winds that connect all of us!

Let’s go for a walk…..

This tree has the energy of a smiling and happy person!
I noticed this neighbor got more flowers! Aren’t they pretty?!
I love seeing the progress my neighbor is making on their massive garden!
Hello beauty! Long locks blowing in the wind
The neighbor who gave me the pot of flowers is an amazing gardener. This Iris of hers just bloomed yesterday!
I think this is a marigold – Orange!!
This is the pot of flowers she gave me! Soooo pretty and they weren’t planted in this pot on purpose she said!
Pansies? Found more Orange!!
Her water feature where she sits and listens to the water and her chimes. Beautiful!
Something going on with the ants here

Last thoughts yesterday:

The closer you get to God the more you see this in the world.
Most of the day was cloudy but the sun did peek out in the evening

https://youtu.be/IWD8b9eIROI – We Are Stars The Pierces

4 May 2022 Not Alone

Hello to you. How is your today? I hope this finds you doing well and if not, if you are having a rough time mentally, physically and or spiritually I want you to know your not alone. Whether it be good times or difficult times….things will change. With our personal power of perception we are empowered to influence the direction of that change.

I have said and heard other people say “I feel so alone!” This morning I am reminded that No matter how it feels sometimes, I’m not alone. God doesn’t just see through human eyes but through all creation. For example the other day I was walking Link and felt like I was being watched. I look up and there was a dove on a power line looking at me. Lots of birds, small animals, dogs, cats….flies, bees and wasps! Let’s not forget trees and plants that don’t have eyes in the way we do but they do sense and emit energy like that of feelings. It’s in all this, even the sun, moon, clouds and gentle winds! The drops of rain that fall….each drop full of life. If you start to experience life from an energy perspective, to me one of the universal languages of God and creation, you quickly will realize you are never alone. In some way, some how, God is always letting you know this. Least that’s how it is for me!

I wanted to share a couple things today for those experiencing pain in all it’s forms. I’ve been listening to this and though it’s short, it really helps. This is just one of a bunch of these I have found – if you enjoy Bible scripture they have those too on the Abide channel on You tube:

https://youtu.be/L3-SlMJHrms – Chronic pain meditation – Natural pain relief – Relaxation for pain (Generation Calm)

https://youtu.be/TVLMeKPhoXc – I will be with you – Bible sleep talk down (Abide)

Something that I often see that’s missing is Hope – hope in God can help fill the voids in spirit

Again Link and I were able to get out in the neighborhood real slow and these are some of what we saw….God through so much beauty taking away pain and loneliness. Another thing is sharing with my parents and others who can’t get out much some beauty:

My neighbor a couple doors down has been busy! Looks so good!
This tree is literally a birdie high rise apartment! I stand, listen and watch and so many little birds love this tree!
I saw these lovely hydrangeas across the street and just had to take a look!
This picture doesn’t quite do justice to what my eyes were seeing. The light was just right on the flowers.
Hello sun!
After walk happy Link face “I’m literally pooped out Mom!”
Poofy clouds and afternoon sunlight
I had been God to see orange flowers and these are close. I’m wondering if there are any orange wild flowers that grow here
It’s hard to tell from this picture but I was trying to show you three different wild grasses growing in the same spot
We had to go over and see this purple princess!
So much going on in just one pine cone: You can grow pine trees using seed in pine cone scales that are harvested from female cones. Female pine cones are considerably larger than their male counterparts. Mature pine cones are woody and brown in appearance. One cone produces about two seeds beneath each scale.Jul 26, 2021
A view of all things, Arbor street. As a tree lover, I think that’s a cool name for a street!

I will remind myself that God makes no junk each time I doubt my value to those around me. – A Woman’s Spirit –

Tanpura – 1 hour meditation music – https://youtu.be/GUPHaaVG_zo

3 May 2022 Who Is Your Boss?

Hello to you. How are you today? I’m writing to you from my bed. My lower body is still not happy with me. Mornings are the toughest part of the day but through the course of the day things loosen and warm up. Yesterday was a really good day. The gravel install went really well and the men did a wonderful job. I’m so grateful to them. Such hard working people that I could even hear whistling as they worked! Doing that kind of work has to take a toll on the body. I prayed for them and their bodies.

This will make things a lot easier for me!
My neighbors thought the crew did a great job too. My neighbor works 40-60 hrs a week and has a child. She doesn’t have much free time or energy for yard maintenance. She’s thinking about having these guys fix her yard too. With drought conditions also it’s a good move.
These words really resonated thinking specifically about the men working here yesterday and others I see splashed over headlines. Generated a question as I observe much of the world and what it’s going through – who do you work for? Who is your boss? Ultimately who do you answer to with the work and other things you do? For me, God is my boss. God gets the glory not me.

Yesterday my cousin and I got a chance to talk on the phone and she mentioned my other cousins husbands mom had a stroke. My cousin and I are about the same age (50’s) and we are noticing that there is a whole generation of people, for us in their 70’s that are going through a lot of “body stuff” all at once. I felt sad when I heard about Naomi Judd and her battle with and ultimately succumbing to mental health issues. She was in her 70’s. I know from my own journey that mental health can be a potentially fatal condition. Suicide being the big part of it. What happens with our mind affects our entire existence. What I see in the news about all this doesn’t talk about what I see in the dis-eases of the mind and body. For all the proclamations of faith we are a very sick country spiritually. You can’t put tangibles…things of a material world in the soul. That space is just for God. All the pills, self help modalities, treatments and spa days in the world aren’t going to help a broken soul. This is what I have had to learn and relearn for most of my life.

https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/mental-health/3474366-naomi-judds-death-spotlights-a-national-mental-health-crisis-worsened-by-covid-19/amp/

Millions of Americans struggled with their mental health well before COVID-19, but the pandemic hasn’t made shouldering mental illness any easier – an issue brought to light over the weekend after the death of country music star Naomi Judd.

Who is your boss? Do you even really know? When I was in the military I had a boss all the way to the President! A lot of different people telling me, ordering, what to do each day. Through all the voices, expectations and demands I had to understand that ultimately I answer to God. When all is said and done in this life no one here on earth is going to matter to you. Who are you allowing to feed your soul?

Time for a walk, Link and I have been going even if it hurts! We just go really slow!

Another princess….
Purples
I looked this up and I think it’s going to be an Iris!
This place gives me a rest – love the running water
So vibrant! Had to stop and admire this!
One of these walks I’m going to remember to bring money so I can try food from this little food truck!
Hello sun!
Doesn’t the sun look huge lol?! These are shops when we take the longer walk – pizza, tanning and s laundromat
This is a musician I spent time listening to yesterday – mentioned him here before – Astravert aka Justin Carter. I realized yesterday when he smiles he reminds me of my younger dad when he would smile and laugh! He’s back in Omaha Nebraska with his parents for a couple months to save money. Some times trying to live off of A Twitch salary is rough! Watch https://twitch.tv/astravert with me on Twitch! astravert

I was exploring yesterday. I had been hearing an instrument in some music lately and discovered it was the Tanpura! You can really sing with this instrument – so soothing! It’s a very distinctive sound in music from India:

https://youtube.com/shorts/t-Tf-YP5Ttk?feature=share

https://youtu.be/Qh67dka7a5I – Drone Music, Briefly, All you need to know about Drones

https://youtu.be/DGhN2O6Eh6g – Dead Can Dance The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove

I noticed music from The Chosen has the sound of the Tanpura in it also!

18 April 2022 It Will Be Enough

Hello to you. How are you doing in your where and when? I’m getting a really late start. It took a lot of coaxing to get up today. Last night was another battle of trying to sleep. The lower part of my body has been experiencing a lot of pain and trying to sleep through that pain can be difficult.

What came to me is thinking about old dogs like my Sam and older people in my life both living and passed on. They didn’t complain about their aches and pains. The message of “it’s not what you can’t do but what you can do” came to my mind. I realized I could do some cleaning up this morning – it hurt but I did it!

When Sam and I used to go for walks without Kyle in Delaware he did something with me that he didn’t do when the three of us would walk. He occasionally would just stop, sit down and look at me with those eyes…”can we stop for a minute? I need a rest…” he seemed to say. Getting older in all our forms kind of forces us to slow down even though inside we want to go like we are still 20 year olds! Today I will remind myself that it’s ok when I am hurting. I will focus on the things I am capable of still doing even though I’m feeling this way – not focus on all the things I can’t do.

Matthew 26:41New International Version

41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.(A) The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Todays message from A Woman’s Spirit is about approaching life with gentleness:

Our own gentleness is a powerful force in our lives. It is like the gentle flower that grows through granite. – Patricia Hoolihan

We are attracted to women and men who have cultivated a gentle spirit. Their softness nurtured all of us who come into their space. We are soothed and made whole by their caring spirit. Let’s allow our caring spirit to develop too.

The aggression we may have grown accustomed to in our families and neighborhoods need not claim us for all time. We have the power within us to chart a new course. We have examples of gentleness all around us; they are our guides and are here by divine appointment.

Whatever task we are destined to perform in this clean and sober life can best be accomplished if directed by a heart that cares. Being gentle promises each of us the same comfort it offers others. Each gentle act heals our heart and lovingly nurtured the future.

Being gentle today is much easier than being mean-spirited. My gentle side will nurture my inner child and remove my fears.

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Pictures from yesterdays adventures:

A bouquet

16 April 2022 Saturday Request

Hello to you. How are you? My thoughts this morning are all over the place to be honest! There is just so much going on in this world. The news isn’t good but I am trying to remain conscious that good things are happening. There are so many good people. For all of the awful we are being bombarded with at every turn, there is good. I remind myself that even though I am powerless to stop and change so much of what is going on, God is not. There will be justice….there is justice we can’t see with our eyes but know with our spirits. My request is God’s justice for atrocities such as this:

https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-kyiv-business-black-sea-22d7279f32c15d4a7037a2195113fb57 – 900 souls

Philippians 4:6-7New International Version

6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Todays message from A Woman’s Spirit is a great reminder about the power of time….it passes. Whatever the trial or tribulation we are experiencing we can trust it won’t last. We wish we could hold on to the good stuff that happens as much as we want to let go and forget the bad stuff….the length either stays is where we are empowered outside the rules of time:

Everything passes, as I flow with this river of highs and lows, I become calm. I trust my experience and the life force guiding me. – Ruthie Albert

Everything passes. There is perhaps no greater comfort when we’re caught in the throes of trauma than the knowledge that this too shall pass. We lived many years without this knowledge as we struggled to change the i changeable. Unfortunately, the only thing that changed was our level of frustration: it got higher. Now we know that we can patiently wait for a situation to pass. Nothing lasts forever.

The good times pass too, of course. We hope to hold on to them, but the same principle applies. The minutes tick by, carrying is to new experiences. What we need to learn will become known to us through both the good times and the struggles. They all will pass, having prepared us for the high and lows that wait to serve us.

I am at peace with the knowledge that everything passes. My needs will be met today.

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Here are pictures from yesterday’s adventures:

Morning light trying to happen- “dwell in me Lord, be strong when I am weak…”
Setting up for Good Friday service at Millcreek Elementary School
I took this going in to help set up. In the evening one of our parishioners children handed me a flower just like this from the same tree. Children and trees…….
Lots of extra chairs in anticipation of Easter. The Good Friday service really meant a lot to me. There was a good turn out.
Something that reminds us of the pain Jesus endured
Memories new and old in a moment
When I saw this moment I wanted to capture it for their Mom. I also thought of my Grandpa and what it must have been like for my Mom and her family to help Grandpa prepare for such occasions. These moments are so fleeting, thank goodness for cameras!
Gorgeous flower on our walk that I hadn’t seen before
Sweet beautiful boy we encountered on the walk. He wanted to come to me so bad but Link wasn’t having it! I hope he is home safe and loved.
My little bear Link getting my attention!
Found out yesterday that my brother Jerry is a Grandpa again!
This is one of the red tulips I shared the other day. More of them have appeared and I was able to get a closer look! I love the fringes on the edges!
Vanity….you would laugh at how many tries it took me to get this! Sometimes it’s nice to see a face that goes with words. I hope the best for you – no matter what things seem like now it’s all going to keep moving on. Stay focused on the helpers….do what you can to be a helper. Remember that no act of kindness is too small for God.

14 April 2022 Comfort

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1455782752

Was this the mother of the baby I found? She was climbing all over the Willow tree like she was looking for something.
This passage helped me after my encounter with the squirrel. Tomorrow is Good Friday…I think of Jesus’s mother Mary – where is my son? Can you imagine her torment seeing what happened to Jesus? I think of Parents all over the world who have lost their children for one reason or another – especially suicide. I think at the core of what ails our children and us is how disconnected so many are from Spirit. It’s not just going to church or scripture…words! It’s action – intangible things as simple as a smile or hugs! There are alot of starving spirits in our world!

Hello to you. How are you? I hope this finds you well. As you can see from the picture of the squirrel that I had another experience at my favorite willow tree. I feel most certain that a squirrel can experience what we know as loss and grief. I could go home to my Bible but that squirrel has to find her own way to be comforted. There have been times in my life that I couldn’t find comfort or consolation. Nothing of this world….anything of the flesh could fill the void in me. Only time and things of the spirit could give me peace. The “stuff” of this world is meaningless if you don’t have the certainty of a relationship with the Spirit. Any comfort we find in material things is fleeting – it never lasts.

Matthew 6:19-21New International Version

Treasures in Heaven(A)

19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,(B) where moths and vermin destroy,(C) and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,(D) where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.(E) 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

As I see more and more about the mental health crisis going on I have come to believe it’s not just mental….at the core it is a spiritual crisis…..an emotional crisis. The crisis is an “inside crisis.” Start healing at the core of a person and the rest will gradually heal too….at least that’s been my own experience.

The message in A Woman’s Spirit today talks about letting go of our painful pasts to make room for joy:

Letting go of old hurts makes room for new joys. -Sefra Kobrin Pitzele

Dwelling on the painful past gets tiresome eventually, but some of us hang on to it longer than others do. However, seeing women move from the bondage of the past to the freedom of living in the present gives us hope. Once we let go of the pain, we discover far more joy in even ordinary experiences. That’s the real surprise.

We have heard sponsors say that when old doors close, new doors open. Letting go of old hurts in order to appreciate new joys falls into the same category. Why not fill our voids with joys rather than recollections of pain?

None of us know how long a life we’ll be blessed with. Accepting how tentative life is helps us decide to seek more joy and less pain. The decision is only the first step, however. Taking control of how we think is the necessary action.

I will experience more joy if I give less thought to old hurts today. The decision is mine, and I can make it and remake it if necessary.

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Some pictures from the walks yesterday:

I didn’t do this justice but seeing the little tricycle near a sapling just seemed to go together in my mind!