Living life

Every day spend some time in reflection. In the morning, prepare for the day. Pray to be of service. In the evening, reflect on the lessons and learnings of your day. What touched my heart and soul today? What fueled my passion? How did I serve the greater good today?

We are partners with life. We are in an ongoing relationship with life and life invites us to show up and be present, be aware, be responsible. How will we respond? How will we serve life?

We must reclaim our inheritance of resilience and endurance. We are designed, as our ancient ancestors, to survive any trauma.

We tap back into our wellspring of story. Our story that brings meaning and purpose to our life. We are not what has happened to us. We are our story and we can recreate our story and our life.

"If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you." - Gospel of Thomas

We must recover our sense of responsibility and accountability. We must shift from focusing on what has happened to us, to what wants to be born in us. Giving birth to our spirit requires courage. I have always found "the still, small voice" knows what is right for me. It nudges me forward, like the blade of grass that grows through the concrete. There is no barrier that spirit cannot move through.

"...not my will, but thine, be done." - Jesus of Nazareth

A life of meaning

I have always sought to live a life of meaning. I have always felt that "meaning" is the secret of life. A meaningful life brings us joy and health. 

Embedded in my life of meaning are my values. I believe it is essential to reflect on your values and be aware of how your value system dictates your choices and behaviors. A deeper exploration and sharing of our core values can bring us closer together. Happiness and health are the result of living by our core values. 

My growth process has been cultivated by disappointments, losses, and some degree of trauma. I have also been blessed to be surrounded by great love. I have grown through the death of my best friend at 18 years old. I was witness to his slow and painful death from pancreatic cancer. I was traumatized by a football injury to my kidneys as a college freshman. Away from home, in a strange hospital, sedated by morphine, I lost around 30 days of my life. The love of my new friend Joe became a lifetime friendship. He told me he visited daily. I don't remember. 

The birth and life of our special needs daughter Ashley has brought me through multiple life and death experiences. It has also brought me to unconditional love. God's love, Sandra's love, and Ashley's unconditional loving presence. It has always been my core values of love and commitment that carried me through. 

Today I notice that some folks say they would like to go back to the way it was. I imagine that means the 1950s. The nostalgia is remembering that the life experience of our parents and our childhood was somehow better than today. What we fail to remember, life, "in those days" didn't give women a voice, minorities were struggling to have a voice, and on many occasions, struggling to stay alive. In our fantasy of the past, it is easy to look the other way. To not see the poverty, racism, and sexism. 

In our climate of cultural unrest, we must reflect on the following:

- Who you are is essentially your core values and how you put into action those core values. 

- We are not defined by the judgments of the outer world; we are not our degrees, bank accounts, cars, or homes. 

- Life has always depended on good people doing what is right for the greater good of all humanity. 

So we all have a job to do. Find your place, find your role, and take compassionate action. Educate, counsel, and heal our children, support the healthcare workers, police, fireman, teachers, and all those on the front lines of caring. 

Our future is asking of us to show up. Show up physically, emotionally, mentally, socially, and spiritually. The goal of life is not happiness. Happiness comes and goes like the weather. Meaning is the key to a fullfilling life. 

Ashley

You were and can continue to be the soul of our family. 

You did not join this life easily and you left us much too soon. 

I hear your voice in my silent prayers and you whisper "I love you" in the gentle breeze. You brought the quiet joy of unconditional love into our home, and you brought the light of Divine wisdom.

I still see God's footprints on your bedroom floor.

Your essence is at the heart of my life's greatest mystery. Where you came from, and where you went, I don't really know. But I know the universe is a better place with you in it. Your love left a piece of divinity in each of us. You were always home with God. 

You changed the world, not by what you said and did, but by the quality of your soul. You served the world by pulsating unconditional love. You were joined with Divinity and brought peace to each and every day.