Building Bridges

Building Bridges

  There are people that will come in and out of our lives...and while we may notice there absence, it is my hope that we will not miss the lesson in the experience. We are often saddened by the loss, whether it is through death or people just moving forward. It is my hope that with this we can eventually rally around what they contributed to our lives...be it something profound...or something as simple as teaching us to laugh at the things that don’t kill us.

  Laughing at adversity allows us to own whatever the stimulus might be...it makes us pro-active instead of reactive. Most people consider reactions to mean we were caught off guard...where as being pro-active infers that we were always ready for anything that may come our way. It gives us strength in the eyes of others...and re-instills the ideas that we are blessed and highly favored. Who doesn’t feel more secure with the knowledge that we are not alone?

  Life can definitely send some jabs and upper cuts our way...but the question is simple...are we so busy trying to patch up the injury that we no longer are looking for the next blow? Did we learn the lesson? There are those people who just sit and wait for the opportunity to present itself...and the opportunity usually tends to be isolation.

  You may say that you aren’t isolated...but let’s re-examine that thought. You may be physically surrounded with numerous people...you have more contacts in your cell phone than most people get holiday cards from...but are you free of isolation? It’s is ironic that these people are called contacts...yet very few actually touch us.

  What is isolation? Generally speaking, isolation occurs when a person sets themselves apart or cuts themselves off from others. You might still think that you don’t do this...but do you? How many people on your contact list...are you truly touched by; keeping in mind that “contact” generally means the state or condition of touching?

  Do you isolate yourself from what happens around you? Do you turn off the news or ignore news articles about things that you find disturbing or negative? Many people do. It can be emotionally taxing to watch how others suffer everyday...perhaps looking the other way will allow us to go on with our day, at least. Who really wants to read or watch stories about homelessness, or crime? Who wants to hear day in and day out about the famine in Horn of Africa...and who can bear to see those poor children dying? We have our own problems...and I do not think for one moment that people who think this way are callous or uncaring. They are human. But they are humans who have chosen to isolate themselves.

  Why do you think that so many people rallied around the recently executed Troy Davis? After all, he was found guilty of killing Mark MacPhail...why did he deserve any support? My best guess is this; Troy Davis...showed us that people are not expendable. I don’t think that anyone was supporting a murderer...they were supporting a human being. People gathered together by the groves...to unite for a common cause...to love their fellow man. Troy Anthony Davis woke people up. He made us look at our justice system with clarity...as if we had been walking around in a daze for centuries. Even if for just that moment...we didn’t want to isolate people. We actually wanted contact. We wanted people to know us...and us them.

  From this...conversations started...not just angry debates...but calm intellectual conversations. We started talking about everything! We wanted to know more. If you had a situation that was causing your frustration...I wanted to know about it. Your life began to matter to me. Even if for just one moment...we started remembering that we are supposed to love each other. Inadvertently, we began to “Occupy our Hearts”. The ice around our veins began to slowly melt. It was beautiful.

  Troy Davis reminded us that true justice will only occur when balancement exists. When the scales are tilted...it does not solve anything. He reminded us that only when we live in a society where we are not prejudged for some physical, financial, or religious difference will true justice happen.

  Ultimately, if we were to try and say that these biases do not exist...we are only further proving the fact that we are living in isolation.

  When this world was created...it was populated with living organisms that were molded to our Creator’s liking. We were chosen to live here...and we were chosen because we are all compatible. We can all live here harmoniously...if we so choose. Our problem has never been that we are not being able to love each other; the only problem is our own pre-conceived notions that we are better than another being. We are highly evolved creatures...we have learned how to communicate...we have invented machines to make life simpler. We have sent man and woman into space. We have raised children who would become future diplomats and literal geniuses. Yet we are the only living organisms that refuse to live together...without trying to destroy each other. There are millions of species of animals...that get along better than we do. And we will be the ONLY group of living organisms...who place themselves on the endangered species list. We would rather kill each other off into distinction than to learn how to live harmoniously.

  This is not the end of our story...but if we don’t make changes...it very well could be. Love life...make changes...say hello to someone you have never met. Hold a door open for a complete stranger...get to know your neighbors. Embrace your differences...you might learn something that will enhance your life. You may touch another person by just smiling at them. Encourage the conversation; offer each other loving solutions to a world full of problems. Take the initiative; it is what God has been waiting for all along. If we spend more time building bridges...we can spend less time building prisons.

The Long and Winding Road

The Long and Winding Road

  Growing up I often heard the expression...not to choose is to choose. The meaning of which became much more clear as I aged and matured.

  How often had I heard some one say that they were angered or frustrated with a situation and yet did nothing? Often we decide to sit the fence about issues...so to speak. We may feel a certain way about something, yet we take no stand. It is unfortunate that we don’t understand...when we fail to take a stand...we already did.

  We may say that we are against slavery...yet if we do nothing to stop the enslavement...we are silently approving the action. True, it may not be easy to stand up against those who are seemingly in the majority...but what are we REALLY saying...by saying nothing...by taking no stand?

  We are saying...it is okay. We are lending our support to those that we may very well be opposed to. We may say that we do not support the destruction of our planet...but unless we are willing to stand up for the world around us...our well wishes...will always fall upon deaf ears.

  It takes bravery to speak openly against those that oppress us...and often those people are targeted as troublemakers. I almost laugh at those statements...because I personally know one of those troublemakers. I have watched and heard her young heart standing up for what she believes is right or wrong in this life. I have seen people try to muffle her cries for justice...with laughter or jokes, hoping to discourage her candor. But I promise you that this angel is only fueled by any opposition. She is never deterred by society’s criticisms...she keeps her head held high and marches on. She is strong and vigilant...she will stand up even when she feels she is under attack. She always makes her position known...regardless of the viewpoint or perception of others. I have seen her defend the life of a tree more passionately than I have seen men or women defend their fellow man.

  In mid conversation, she will say that it is wrong for the state to kill someone...to prove that killing is wrong. The act in itself emphasizes the “do as I say and not as I do” idea. Even before Troy Davis, the Georgia man who was executed Sept 21, 2011...for the death of an off duty police officer; as a fifteen year old girl...my daughter was debating the death penalty with educators. Did she have some information that we didn’t? No, she simply didn’t need anyone to tell her that killing is wrong. She didn’t seek or desire direction on this matter...she just always knew that loving our fellow man was our primary objective. To put it in her own words...how can our parents teach us that we are not supposed to fight...and that turning the other cheek is what God wants from us. Yet...we send our nation to war. It may seem like an over simplification to some...but again, in her words...wrong is wrong...no matter how many words you dress it up with.

  This young woman is one of my personal heroes. She has won no awards...there have been no stories written about her...outside of my own efforts. She has no National Holiday...but she sings her song of justice loudly...to anyone who will listen. She hasn’t prevented a war...she hasn’t stopped famine or the ongoing problems that we have created for ourselves. But everyday she will tell people openly that the man in the mirror is the change needed. For our reflection is who we are...not who we may think we are. We have a voice...we choose when and where to use it.

  As a society, we have chosen to be led. Growing up; we are told how to behave. Where to sit or stand...who to be nice to...what to wear; the problem is that we are now conditioned. We are conditioned to believe that we need permission to do what we already know is right. It is this conditioning that causes us to allow the destructive actions and decisions of others. No one is dictating to us what we should be doing...so we do nothing. As if we need permission to carry out the work of God.

  What I am saying is that the truths we were taught as children...theses still are true today. The fact is that the TRUTH....always will be TRUE. It is the one constant in our lives. Life can be like a long and winding road...seemingly endless; but the path is the one we have always known.

  We were created to love one another...and with love, comes peace. There can be no negative in that...for the basis of love and peace...comes from our Creator.

  Taking a stand can be hard...but masking who we really are in our silence...is a crime against our nature. Stand up for those that have no voice...be the voice of reason and justice...like our fore fathers before us. Be what we teach our children to be...every day. Lead by example...love by choice...be the humanity we seek in others.

Apples

                                           APPLES

When I was 15 or so I remember coming home to my grandmother and I was crying. She, of course, was comforting and wanted me to tell her all about it. So I go on to tell her that no boys in my class liked me, and I remember that she softly laughed at me. She pulls me to her chair and said she has something she wanted to tell me, and that she hoped it would make sense to me. She said Women are like apples hanging on a tree...she said and all the best apples...shiny, red, full of flavor...sit at the very top of the tree. Now men, of course, want the apples...and this is the most important part. Most men will walk to the tree and see that they have to jump to get the apples at the bottom of the tree...but they don't want to put in any real effort so they are content to picking up the apples whose stems were so weak that they had fallen to the ground. Now other men will be willing to jump and pluck the apples on the lower branches...because they are easy to get...and very little effort has to be exerted. But then she said...there are those...very rare men who will be willing to climb up the tree, sometimes falling down, with scratches and scrapes...yet still climbing....to get to the very best apples. She said and those men are the ones who are willing to look past the obvious, go beyond the easiest....and settle for no less than the very best that you have to offer. These are the men that you want to wait for...because they will hold you high and love you deeply.

The Chain of Hope

The Chain of Hope

 I know that life can seem unfair. We often are faced with situations and circumstances that we are not prepared for. It can seem overwhelming at times. We can come to cross roads...where it can appear that we are left to our own devices. Sometimes we might feel like we have made poor decisions and now we feel trapped or snared...like a hunted animal.

  But what if we really aren’t trapped? What if the poor decision wasn’t really as negative as it appeared? What would you say if I told you that in the times that you feel at your weakest...it is then that God is at His strongest within you? When we are weakened...it is then when we submit to God’s will...so often those times are used to guide us down our true path.

  You might suggest that for me to even make such a suggestion that I probably had never been faced with such adversity. You would, of course be incorrect, but I can understand how you could be led to that assumption. There have been many times when I have come face to face with traumatic events. I have been forced to make decisions that I would later believe were mistakes. I have suffered considerable loss in my lifetime. I have known pain deeper than most people can imagine. I, too have the scars that abuse and life choices can leave. I have even had moments where I felt completely alone and isolated.

  But just as surely as the troubles appeared...they would eventually disappear. There are times when we are faced with terrible life altering circumstances that would appear to make us feel victimized or helpless. Everyone experiences this...in one way or another. The importance is not in what happened...but how you rose above it. What happened in that moment when you felt like all hope was lost? How did you get past that ordeal?

  Often we are tested and it seems unfair or cruel...as if we are left all alone...but we really aren’t. We should use these experiences as spring boards to uplift others. I have found ways of taking my hurtful experiences to help others who have been in the same or similar situation. The whole idea behind this is to continue the chain of HOPE. Hope is a wondrous thing...it can make us decide to get up every single time we fall down. All we really need is for someone to tell us that there is light at the end of the tunnel. We really only need to feel like we are not left alone...someone understands.

  I am here to let you know...hope springs eternal. It doesn’t have an expiration date. Hope is recyclable...once you have hope...then you can pass it on to someone else. It never leaves us...we just have to remember that we have it. NO one can take hope away from us...all they can do is make us pack it away. But when you remember that you have it...it will be there for you.

  Hope is a gift from God...it is that thing that gives us drive. Hope is what gives victims of abuse the strength to survive. Hope is the feeling we give others with the knowledge that they do not have to walk through life alone. It is reassurance...that we also know what they are feeling and coping with. It is important for all of us to know that...adversity is not the end of our story...it’s just the action in the middle. And I know this because all things begin and end with God.

  Do you ever wonder what makes people cry when something good happens? Or why people cry during a romantic or suspenseful movie with a loving ending? Why do we cry when we watch a baby smile or say their first word? Why do we cry when we see a loved one after an extended period of time?

  We cry during these times because it is our proof that God is all around us. We aren’t alone. We are so loved that we get to experience a baby’s smile and laughter. We have hope...for the future of ourselves and our loved ones. It gives us reason to go on.

  Having hope gives us peace...peace of mind. It fills our hearts with the hope that one day we won’t be at war...one day we won’t have children starving...one day we will be accepted for who we are and not what we look like. It gives the hope to believe that one day our fellow man will love us...as we love him. It gives us the hope to believe that people will stop killing...killing our neighbors....killing our friends...killing our families...that man will stop killing our hope...for the future.

 

Bent But Not Broken

Bent But Not Broken

  I can recall having conversations with people where the language or tone that they used seemed to hang in the air…like jagged glass. You could almost feel yourself ducking and diving from the impending injury that the words were intended to cause. There are certain words…demeaning…insulting…degrading words that are used like weapons. And there is no mistaking that these weapons are intended to destroy. They may not destroy us, in the literal sense, but they can chip a way at our inner being. Unfortunately what tends to happen is that we direct our anger or frustration of these words, comments or conversations on unsuspecting individuals, who are undeserving of such treatment. This like most things can be a vicious cycle.

  People can impede our progress by creating a wave of negativity which can become extremely destructive…to us or others. When such things are said to us…it is similar to inhaling small doses of poison over an extended period of time. The primary use of any poison is to kill. Verbal poison does not only make us feel bad, but can literally destroy our spirit. I can think of no reason that such behavior should be acceptable. It is only our loving nature that allows us to sit still when others say things that are obviously malicious in intent.

  To say that it is anything other than our good nature that allows us to participate…actively or inactively…in such conversations…would mean that our intent was also poisonous in nature. It is not…no matter what anyone may contend…our nature to be destructive to one another. We have simply for gotten the other part of us. We have forgotten how good it feels when someone is saying nice, kind and loving things to us. If you ever want to test the theory…hold a door open to a stranger...look at the response. Loving behavior begets loving responses.

  I am not suggesting that you hand out money on a street corner…but I am saying use simple loving statements to people. A simple “thank you” and Good Morning” statement can change the course of some one’s day. With this knowledge…it is also true that being intentionally rude or cruel to people also creates the same behavior. So now can we really sit and judge people for not being kind and good to each other without looking at ourselves and actions more carefully?

  I promise you, the next time someone tries to create a negative conversation with you…concerning you or another human being…if you walk away…they will eventually realize that the behavior is unacceptable to you. Not only this but, to engage in a negative conversation with anyone…just creates more negativity…poison. Walking away is a form of preserving our environment…ridding our atmosphere of hate pollution.

  Even walking away does not have to be negative…just politely let the speaker know that you don’t engage in gossip, or slanderous behavior. Perhaps you will help to show them that what they are doing is not productive. However, even if they do not see it that way…they will know where you stand as an individual.

  I think that we have all been victim of negativity…either directly or indirectly. So this next statement is very important to remember. You are bent…not broken. What does this mean? Simply put…some of the strongest materials have to bend to a forces that appears stronger than them …temporarily. Steel can bow to a stronger wind…an aged oak tree moves when the forces of nature will it to be so…but very seldom do they break. Have you ever thought that you couldn’t take any more…of whatever you are being faced with? Yet…here you are today…bent but not broken. You have learned and adapted. But please understand something…you were allowed to survive. Our Creator had bigger plans for you…and those plans did not include retaliation. We were meant to be forgiving…loving and peace minded souls. We were created to persevere. We will always come up against those who want to challenge our God-given nature. We will meet and be touched by those that only want to cause harm and hurt. But we control what effect they have within us. No one can disrupt my peace unless I allow it to happen. This is very important, because it is a public service announcement…you may throw me off balance…but I will steady myself and I will walk away unscathed…because I was created of peace.

  Everyday when I wake up…I have already decided who I am going to be that day. I have already decided that I am going to remain positive…in the wake of war. I have decided to be peaceful…while our world is killing just for the sake of the kill. I will be loving even in a world that hates just because of the tone of my skin. And I will stand up for those who can not stand up for themselves…because I am of God.

  Why is Bent but not Broken such an important statement to me? Well, it was a lesson my sister taught me a long time ago. And the lesson was simple…you may have bumps and bruises and even scars from life…but it didn’t kill you…you lived to tell the story. It is about giving thanks…divinely.

 

  

Forgive Us

Forgive Us

 Often, myself included, we will drop to our knees when we are in need of something which we feel would be unattainable without your assistance. We remember to reach toward heaven when we feel weak or desperate…with no place to rest our weary hearts. I want to thank you and acknowledge all of the bountiful gifts that you send our way, and apologize for those we don’t seem to be grateful for.

 But today, I want to ask your forgiveness…for all that we don’t say and for all the things we do or fail to do. Please forgive us for not falling to our knees, humbling ourselves, every given moment possible. Forgive us for not only creating wars, but for breeding hate…among our fellow man. We make excuses for the reasons we say war is necessary…but is the cost of a tank of gas really worth the innocent lives of men, women and children? Forgive us for being so self indulgent that we believe, that we are better than anyone or anything else…on your earth. How dare we belittle another person for not being exactly like we are…when did we become so arrogant? I humbly apologize for mankind believing that we have the right to take another life…for whatever reason. Our justifications for murder, on any level, are just created to absolve us for any feelings of guilt…and we should feel guilty…because how can we believe we have the right to destroy life when it was created by you? Forgive us for standing by and watching, as innocent children are abused and murdered everyday…by the very parents that were supposed to guard and protect them. How lazy we have gotten, when did parenting become a chore…and not the gift that you bestowed upon us? Forgive us for preaching about how much we love our fellow man…while selling poison to him on the very streets our children play on. Who are we to glorify, and make excuses for men and women who sell drugs to every man, woman or child who have their hand out? What kind of people create petitions to force a homeless person to vacate a bridge…because it bothers us to see some one in that state? I suppose it would be too much to try and help him/her find housing or a job…after all everyone just loves having no place to call their own. Forgive us for using televisions, computers and gaming systems as replacements for active parenting. When did we stop caring what happened in our children’s classes? Why do we no longer question what our children are taught? Forgive the absent fathers and mothers, who fool themselves into believing that their absence doesn’t matter. If for one moment the absent parent had to listen to a child cry themselves to sleep because they hold themselves responsible for the abandonment…maybe they would see things differently. Forgive us for not taking the time to spread love and joy to our neighbors…regardless of race, creed, and religion. I’m not sure why we are of the belief that we are superior to anyone or anything.

 I ask that you forgive us for destroying the very forests that took hundreds of years to grow…and for destroying the communities of living organisms that depended on that growth for survival….and shame on us for believing that replanting a tree would make up for that act. Forgive us for being so thoughtless that we throw trash into a body of water…where marine life is trying to survive. I guess if some one threw trash into a glass of water we were trying to drink…we might feel differently. Forgive us for all the people we have enslaved, killed, raped, tortured, and demeaned…for our own greedy purposes. And please help us learn from this huge error in judgment…so that we can stop making the same mistakes over and over again.

 I ask that you forgive us…so that with your guidance we can learn to appreciate all that you have given us. And with this knowledge we can teach, by example, our children to love all that you created for us. Help us to stop making excuses and start making amends. Please allow us the opportunity to learn how to love without bias, and show us how important it is to not only reach out…but lift up.

Rays of light

Rays of Light

I wanted to take a moment to share God’s Rays of Light with you, so maybe it will show the divine way in which God gives us HIS unwavering love.

 I have always known that all that happens has a greater purpose or reason…even though we may not fully understand why it was/is necessary. How many of us have met some one and we were certain that he/she was “THE ONE”? And in time the relationship would fall apart, for whatever reason. I can remember, personally, feeling lost…not understanding why God would allow that to happen. It would take years before I could see that the relationship was not as perfect as I may have convinced myself that it was. In time I came to realize that God would use many people to help me see what I needed in my life…by showing me what I didn’t need. However I had to experience the things I didn’t need to see what they were. Maturity helped me realize that if the relationship had continued…I would have missed out on what HE had been preparing me for my entire life.

 I have noticed that often people have used an illness to try and dispel the fact that we are loved highly. After all why would a God who loves us allow us or others to suffer? I always try to keep in mind that there is a lesson in everything, so I always ask myself what I can learn from this experience. Perhaps I needed to slow down, because I was losing sight of what was really important, and I had not been using the gifts God had given me. It is, of course, always harder to watch others suffer…so in my attempt to understand the lesson in that…I had to search deeply within myself. I couldn’t imagine what lesson a child who is starving, would need to learn. I certainly couldn’t believe that the child had done anything wrong…or deserving of the affliction or circumstance. Was God overlooking that child’s prayers? Then one day, I saw the larger picture. The TRUE LESSON in having to watch a child starve to death…was in the fact that…we WATCHED. We didn’t take any responsibility for trying to help. Perhaps when the child prayed to God for help…God responded by bringing the child to our attention. So given that perspective…it wasn’t God that failed the starving child…it was us.

 Do we ever consider the fact that people are brought into our sight, for a very specific reason? How do we drive past a homeless person on the street, who is asking for help, as if we don’t see them? Almost ironically, we will shake our heads in disbelief when we hear of a man beating his wife or child to death…yet sit idly while they are being verbally abused. How many times have you heard some one say…some one should have done something? Next time, be completely honest with yourself…why didn’t you do something? What if you were the life line that God threw to that person…and you acted like it wasn’t your place? What is your place? Are our heads and hearts in the right place? After all it is our hearts which tell us what we should care about…and heads which tell us to take action. Does your head listen to your heart?

 God is loving…but the window of opportunity to do the right thing…can be brief. We blindly go about our days, as if it isn’t our job to look out for other people, especially if they don’t play a major part in our daily lives; I just can’t imagine there being a more important job than to love one another. Its like leaving something laying in the middle of the floor…and walking over top of it, waiting for some one else to take the initiative to pick it up. The problem being…everyone is waiting on some one else to pick it up. Doing the right thing is easy…we make it hard.

 The beauty of God is all around us, we see it daily. Have you ever seen a flower grow in the middle of a sidewalk? It is God’s way of showing us that even amidst mans destruction of this earth…He will allow a flower to grow…in an unexpected place. The question is will we appreciate the blessing of the flower or plow it down?

 What are God’s RAYS of LIGHT? God’s way of showing us a negative situation…which man has allowed to occur…and giving us the opportunity to make it better, through love and peace.