18 June 2022 Anywhere

Hello to you. How are you today? I hope wherever you are that you are doing well today or on a road to wellness and recovery in mind, body and soul. I hope you have all the resources you need for all the ways you are trying to make yourself the best person you can be and this world a better place for your being in it.

Ever since the first time I saw The Chosen episode with the Samaritan woman at the well, there was a part that made me curious. It was at the end of Jesus’s exchange with the woman and the disciples offer Jesus food and he refuses saying he has a food they don’t know about. I wondered what was this food?!

When you stop to think about it, the last time you were in the flow….truly happy doing something were you hungry? Thirsty? Tired? Or did you feel “full?” All the empty spaces within you filled up. Happiness is an energy….like a food. For me a energy food that goes beyond just happiness is hearing and singing beautiful songs and going on walks to interact with the other beings I share this life with. There is an energy exchange when you stop to appreciate a rose and smile! Not all food is food you chew and swallow. I am wondering if this is what Jesus meant. Matters of the Spirit create energies that feed a soul…fill us up and quench our thirst when we are in the midst of the experience. That spiritual experience doesn’t have to be in a temple…it can be anywhere….the Spirit, to me, is the very air that gives us life:

https://youtu.be/ordhsDeAt60 – Jesus and the outcast woman at the well

John 4:27-32
New International
Version
The Disciples Rejoin Jesus
27 Just then his disciples returned(A) and were
surprised to find him talking with a woman. But
no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are
you talking with her?”
28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went
back to the town and said to the people,
29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I
ever did. B) Could this be the Messiah?”(C)
30 They came out of the town and made their
way toward him.
31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, 0)
eat something.”
32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat(E) that
you know nothing about.”

Read full chapter
Cross references
A. John 4:27 : ver 8
B. John 4:29 : ver 17, 18
C. John 4:29 : M+ 12•22- In 7-26 31

Yesterday I was thinking about something called a path to success. It is a path I imagine for the children. There is a time when we know why we are here and have great enthusiasm to do it but then comes the world, for many, with obstacles. So many dreams crushed by negative money, greed and power structures we’ve built for ourselves. I was imagining a generation of children being encouraged, doors opened and opportunities presented for them to have a path to success from their very beginning. Imagine a world of people doing what they have been sent here to do? Imagine all the “ happy” energy….food for the entire body these children would have to eat? I truly believe God didn’t send us here to spend all of our days in misery.

I encourage you to learn to see yourself, others and the beings we share life with using the eyes of our hearts.

17 June 2022 Agreements

Hello to you today. How are you? I’m doing ok. A little sad and disappointed after glancing at the headlines. It seems like it’s so much easier to look outwards for solutions to what ails us. So many really smart people engaged in petty energy exchanges from local things to the world stage. Oh to harness all that energy and ambition to looking within and attempting to find common ground, meaningful and sustainable solutions. All these brain trusts of people and we are still barely beyond being a primitive civilization.

Something we can all agree on is we need energy for our homes, schools, businesses and transportation and the current status quo is not sustainable and doing irreparable damage to our shared home:

https://www.ventureradar.com/keyword/Wireless%20power%20transfer – top wireless energy providers: Airbus, Astrobotic Technology, Rolls Royce, Integrated, Colorado Engineering, Lynntech Inc, WiTricity, Leitat Technological, MaXentric, Creare Inc, Pathfinder Electronics, Indigo Technologies, Ossia, Crossfield Technology, Voltserver, Indiana, Eggtronic, Swiss Center for, Sigfox, snapTonic, Space Power, EXIT: Optimos Apto

Yesterday, on a spiritual level I experienced what it’s like when many countries can agree on something. In this case it was a song and a powerful being who I feel would love it if we did more collaborations and cooperations in all these small and large issues facing all of us:

https://youtu.be/JM5MDFgPnBU – 50 Countries sing Amazing Grace

For some reason these two songs came to mind last night and this morning. The first is an old song about coal miners and the other a wacky song about the ease of time travel:

https://youtu.be/RRh0QiXyZSk – Tennessee Ernie Ford 16 Tons

https://youtu.be/-w0WPkB3XJ4 – Rocky Horror Picture Show Time Warp

And this song brought me to tears last night remembering one of our countries treasures and the man who wrote the song Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails:

https://youtu.be/8AHCfZTRGiI – Johnny Cash- Hurt

lyrics that speak to the pain we all experience in one way or another…..turn it out……turn it in….. another thing we have in common is there is no escaping ourselves. For me the only peace comes from God and our relationship together.

I hurt myself today
To see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
The only thing that’s real

The needle tears a hole
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything

What have I become?
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end

And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

I wear this crown of thorns
Upon my liar’s chair
Full of broken thoughts
I cannot repair

Beneath the stains of time
The feelings disappear
You are someone else
I’m still right here

What have I become?
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end

And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

If I could start again
A million miles away
I would keep myself
I would find a way

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Michael Trent Reznor

Hurt lyrics © Leaving Hope Music Inc

6 June 2022 Thinking

Hello to you today. How are you? I hope this finds you well. As I look out the windows this morning you would never know we had thunder and lightening yesterday! Beautiful blue skies out there!

Whenever I experience thunder and lightening – especially the lightening part- a word comes to mind: thinking. Seeing all those bands of light flashing about makes me imagine what’s going on inside my own brain….my body. The phrase “as above so below” comes to mind too. Where did the concept of making beings like us come from? What was God’s inspiration to fashion us brains running with electricity? All those flashes of light from one neural path to another right in our own heads! It makes sense to me that before there was science that our ancestors saw thunder and lightening as God speaking to them. Last night I just sat and listened….watched. I could almost hear God saying, “I am God! You are guests here! Everything belongs to me!”

To me the earth is a sentient creation of God…..not just some mere blue marble. Look around you and listen beyond our human activities….despite it all the earth can make a beautiful flower grow in a tiny crack in a driveway. So much meaningful intelligence going on just to keep us all alive even as we continue to harm ourselves, each other and the rest of creation we share life with. What a merciful God! Sometimes the weather patterns seem like expression of emotion. One storm will be gentle and yet another like rage.

A couple messages from A Woman’s Spirit today – sometimes all you can do is laugh at how ridiculous life can be:

“I will not take myself so seriously. I will let laughter heal.” Jan Pishok

“Laughter promotes personal growth and health. I will practice this prescription today. “

One of my favorite comedians is Gabriel Iglesias:

https://youtu.be/uPc5X4BSltw – Gabriel Iglesias Aloha Fluffy 2013 Hawaii full show

Some pictures from yesterdays walks:

Your brain is made up of networks of small cells called neurons that communicate electrochemically to enable you to think, feel, and interact with the world around you. Because electrical charges are responsible for brain activity, electrical stimulation can in turn be used to change the brain’s functioning.May 15, 2019

https://kids.frontiersin.org › articles

Wake Up, Brain!: Using Electricity to Think and Feel Differently

5 June 2022 Who Is It?

Hello to you. How are you doing today? I’m doing better. Just getting sleep, singing and praying more has been helping me. This morning I glanced at the news on my phone and after being mortified at someone suggesting the answer to ending gun violence in American schools is to arm children, I found a message that resonated with me from Pope Francis about discerning the voice of the Holy Spirit:

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/amp/news/251454/on-pentecost-pope-francis-explained-how-to-distinguish-the-holy-spirit-s-voice

“The Holy Spirit will never tell you that on your journey everything is going just fine. … No, he corrects you; he makes you weep for your sins; he pushes you to change, to fight against your lies and deceptions, even when that calls for hard work, interior struggle and sacrifice,” Pope Francis said in his homily on June 5.

“Whereas the evil spirit, on the contrary, pushes you to always do what you think and you find pleasing. He makes you think that you have the right to use your freedom any way you want. Then, once you are left feeling empty inside – it is bad, this feeling of emptiness inside, many of us have felt it – and when you are left feeling empty inside, he blames you, becomes the accuser, and throws you down, destroys you.”

Looking at my own personal journey, it has been a struggle at times. It can be very alluring to think about things like revenge and power. It can be easy to try and do and be everything of this life thinking it’s just your own power and attributes propelling you forward. Where does your life force come from? It’s not just eating, drinking, exercising, making love, socializing with family, pets and friends, going to church and praying, meditating, experiencing entertainments the world offers, having a career, doing hobbies, going to school, reading books and going to seminars – least not for me. Underneath all that I am and ever hope to be is a force greater than myself – God. Whatever label, whatever name the inner force is for you I caution you to it’s motives…..the “why.” Why comes before all the what’s!

Some lovely flowers from the walks yesterday- they smell so good!

Christianity. In Christianity, the word may have several meanings. Discernment can describe the process of determining God’s desire in a situation or for one’s life or identifying the true nature of a thing, such as discerning whether a thing is good, evil, or may even transcend the limiting notion of duality.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org › wiki

Discernment – Wikipedia

3 June 2022 The Consoling and Healing Power of Music

Hello to you. How are you? This morning I’m feeling grateful for so many things – I don’t want to be sad again today! These past couple of weeks have been so heavy! When I’m feeling low it’s gratitude that is my life preserver. With thoughts of gratitude comes my love for God and music. What an amazing thing for God to inspire us to create. Even if all you can do is hum a few bars! To me expressing ourselves in music is a fantastic form of praise to God and this earth.

https://youtu.be/TTXBLspw_Z0 – Paul Baloche God of Wonders

Music in it’s many forms has always been something I could turn to for every facet of life experience. Whether it be a happy, sad or confusing moment, there has been some sort of song. This morning I wanted to remember happier, sillier times in my life and the B-52’s came to mind. I think it’s so wonderful that after all these years they still perform together:

https://youtu.be/9SOryJvTAGs – B-52’s Love Shack

https://youtu.be/d1Nq82S7_0Q – Rock Lobster – B52’s

This psalm, 147, has a little bit of everything in it. God mending the hearts of the broken hearted and giving praise in song. I thought it was beautiful that there was music to honor the victims at Uvalde:

Psalm 147

Praise the Lord.[a]

How good it is to sing praises to our God,
how pleasant and fitting to praise him!2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
he gathers the exiles of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
4 He determines the number of the stars
and calls them each by name.
5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
his understanding has no limit.
6 The Lord sustains the humble
but casts the wicked to the ground.7 Sing to the Lord with grateful praise;
make music to our God on the harp.8 He covers the sky with clouds;
he supplies the earth with rain
and makes grass grow on the hills.
9 He provides food for the cattle
and for the young ravens when they call.10 His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse,
nor his delight in the legs of the warrior;
11 the Lord delights in those who fear him,
who put their hope in his unfailing love.12 Extol the Lord, Jerusalem;
praise your God, Zion.13 He strengthens the bars of your gates
and blesses your people within you.
14 He grants peace to your borders
and satisfies you with the finest of wheat.15 He sends his command to the earth;
his word runs swiftly.
16 He spreads the snow like wool
and scatters the frost like ashes.
17 He hurls down his hail like pebbles.
Who can withstand his icy blast?
18 He sends his word and melts them;
he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow.19 He has revealed his word to Jacob,
his laws and decrees to Israel.
20 He has done this for no other nation;
they do not know his laws.[b]Praise the Lord.

Voices and talents shared to help console a broken hearted Texas community:

https://youtu.be/lwmitxvM0LE – Light of the world church choir at memorial site of Uvalde shooting victims

https://youtu.be/FA1cupxYaKM – Mariachis honor victims of Uvalde school shooting with musical performance

https://youtu.be/ZjUE07zDtEA – 11-year old songs sings in honor of friend killed in Uvalde shooting

31 May 2022 Seventy-nine

Hello to you. How are you today? I hope you are doing ok. It’s been rough here but I’m doing better. Last night I tried to sleep without extra meds and was doing pretty good until I woke up after a weird dream. It started with seeing my phone and an image on it like from the group Anonymous. Then I was sitting with someone watching tv. The tv flickered and that same image appeared on the tv screen! What woke me up was hearing a scary voice saying, “no need to alert the authorities.” My brain doing weird stuff again lol!

Anyhew…. today is my Dad’s 79th birthday! Wow! It’s hard to believe but he and I used to joke that he was going to live as long as Moses! That’s like 120! If he and I were together today we would be dueling with our forks over Mom’s chocolate pudding dessert. The past couple of years have been hard on him but he is a survivor – something he and Mom always taught me to be! I’m missing him today. I miss his hugs! There is something about a hug from your Dad. I just felt so loved and safe when we hugged….the worlds noise and cares couldn’t reach me for a little bit. I love you Dad! ❤️

Many years ago, when I was still in Junior High, I was in an advanced writing program . They liked analogies I wrote. This one I wrote thinking of my Dad:

“An open window in spring is like the loving arms of a father.”

John 15:9New International Version

9 “As the Father has loved me,(A) so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.

https://youtu.be/oCE4VWKY5YI – happy birthday from alfalfa (little rascals)

28 May 2022 Insanity

Hello to you. How are you today? It’s Saturday here as I write to you and I’m still struggling to climb out of the valley I’m in. Last night everything was going good for sleeping and then I woke up to a violent crash. Link either fell or jumped off the opposite side of the bed. It was hard for both of us to get back to sleep. The way he was acting was like the whole thing scared him. Certainly freaked me out. He’s never done that before.

I have been sitting here trying to find positive and uplifting words to share with you. It’s hard. So I will simply say something I wish the whole world could feel and hear as we struggle together: I love you

The title of my post today is from looking for a message and just not feeling any of them are right for today. It is indeed insanity to keep doing the same things and expect anything to change. That is my message to Ted Cruz, Greg Abbott, Dan Patrick, Ken Paxton and leaders like them in the United States of America. It is my sincere hope that God has a better plan than any I’ve seen or heard from you.

27 May 2022 Times in the Valley

Hello to you. Another week has come and gone. Today doesn’t find me on top of a mountain but down in a valley. I’m just finding it difficult to right myself after the latest goings on. Last night I was falling asleep and heard a loud noise inside and outside of my head and it startled me. Then I felt this presence fill the room and seem to be standing right next to me. There was a cold chill and I felt like I was being touched. Whatever was happening was not comforting and made me feel really anxious! When I asked if Jesus was there whatever it was went away. This kind of stuff happens to me and it’s so hard to understand.

As I write to you, I’m not feeling very rested but I can’t go back to sleep. What is my mind and body doing or is it something else? Someone else? I just don’t know! Praying and hoping Jesus will reveal some answers!

https://youtu.be/o5OnF3sg0cY – The Chosen Scene Jesus Gives The Beatitudes

Matthew 5New International Version

Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount

5 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them.

The Beatitudes(A)

He said:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.(B)
Blessed are those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.(C)
Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.(D)
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    for they will be filled.(E)
Blessed are the merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.(F)
Blessed are the pure in heart,(G)
    for they will see God.(H)
Blessed are the peacemakers,(I)
    for they will be called children of God.(J)
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,(K)
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.(L)

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you,(M)persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.(N) 12 Rejoice and be glad,(O) because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.(P)

26 May 2022 Walter and Being Grumpy

https://youtu.be/R7t0Ol6RtRY – Grumpy and Snow White

https://youtu.be/xmQfoAvlIQc – Frenchie arguing with his owner – Walter Geoffrey the French Bulldog

Hello. For the past couple days I have been feeling really grumpy. Sleep has been weird and my body has been hurting. I don’t like being grumpy or being pessimistic about my life so I’ve been trying to find ways to restore “happy Jackie.” One way I found was watching and listening to Walter Geoffrey who is a very vocal French Bulldog. Hearing and watching Walter’s meltdowns has been great therapy! Ohhhh how this boy tells how it is! Sometimes his rants sound like singing to me he just needs some brothers and a drum. What I hear from him is what I’m feeling lately. There aren’t words for it and that’s why Walters behavior resonates with me. There is an energy I’ve been sensing, especially when I go outside, that is just really tense and uncomfortable. I know part of it is myself and the frustration I’m feeling with my body but part of it is just the world I think! All of creation is going through some stuff!

I’ve been trying to do movement to music each day and singing which helps alleviate discomfort. I’m just really out of shape and have gained weight which puts more pressure on the spine and joints. I also listen to the chakra opening meditations and sing tones along with healing focused music like I shared by Mei-lan. I talk to God most of the day and sometimes I bet I sound a bit like Walter to him lol! I’m trying to eat better and drink more water. I’m trying not to be a grump! Sometimes mending pains in the body includes mending the mind and soul too. Intangible pain, the pain we feel emotionally and spiritually, can manifest tangibly in the body. Grief is a big one for that! If you are grieving it’s important to allow yourself to feel it….work through it. I try to remember that everything is a form of energy to include pain.

How are you doing? I hope something I’ve shared resonates with you… I hope it helps. I think a lot of us are experiencing some kind of pain these days. You are not alone! Like my neighbor and I talked about the other day, the only way we are going to get through these times is together. One of the mottos for Grace Bible Church is “Better Together.” When we are in pain and grumpy the tendency many of us have is to isolate ourselves.

God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world. C.S Lewis

22 May 2022 A Healthy Body Is A Guest Chamber A Sick Body Is A Prison – Sir Francis Bacon

Hello to you. I hope this finds you well in your today. If your not well…..I understand and hope you have love and support for whatever you are going through. You might feel alone in these moments but I assure you your not. A stranger, somewhere in this world is praying for you even as I write this.

Quote I found from Sir Francis Bacon that articulates this so well!
Another quote from Sir Bacon is “knowledge is power”

The title of my blog is in honor of a recent death in our family. Much like another friend I loved and loss when I was in Texas, her body became a prison. Things would be going well and then something else would not be working right….systematic system failure. So many people in the world in all levels of our worlds strata are in prison in their bodies. People get sick…..people get old….people get broken and so many artificial and often expensive treatments and methods are employed to extend their lives. Those who love them hold on so tight and make things very complicated. What is the quality of those final years before death finally wins out? We pray for those we love to be cured…to get well and the conversation that person may be having with God both in mind and spirit is to be set free. The “body stuff” can become a burden too much to carry. I am happy she is free of the burden of her body.

I watched this video yesterday from an interview with Master Shi and it makes me think of all this. Our creator God has a plan for each of us and when we deviate from this plan, no matter what we do, we will not succeed:

https://youtu.be/1mbPjucxYoI – Shi Heng Yi The Creator of the Universe

Talk about a body that became a prison! Jesus endured so much and then was free!

Yesterday I was thinking about a few musicians that in their lifetimes made such a mark on my life in so many ways. Each of them, in their own public and private ways suffered. Behind the glamor, glory and fame they had struggles they, with their courage, hardly let us see:

When he smiled he lit up the place he was in – smiling through the hurts of a very public life and career
There are a bazillion pictures. I got to see David in California in 1991 – my first and only rock concert to date. From what I have read, this wasn’t a great time for him personally in his career.
I looked all over to find this picture – so beautiful. I can’t count how many times I’ve seen Purple Rain! I sense this creative genius got lonely and was hard on himself. He gave his all.
As I was thinking of musicians Luciano popped in. His voice evokes so many emotions! When I think of him I think of a white canary I had named Gabriel….that little birds could trill! Trilling or vocal trilling is defined technically as a rapid alternation between two notes, most often in a high register sung by a soprano or tenor and should not be confused with lip trills.Sep 20, 2019
https://www.30daysinger.com › blog
Trilling Ins and Outs – 30 Day Singer Blog



I was with my Aunt and Uncle yesterday so not much for walk pictures! Here are a few images from yesterday:

This message from A Woman’s Spirit made me think of people I know and love that use humor to help them navigate through the pain, struggles and sorrows they are facing. Sometimes things are so ridiculous all you can do is laugh! My cousin Laura and I laugh together and one of our favorite phrases…”shit happens!”
I saw this at my Aunt and Uncles when I got out of my car. Just a little earth in a crack in a driveway and then this grows! So pretty! This earth and beings like this are so intelligent. They find a way to be under even the most undesirable conditions!