Morning Walk #1

 Today was not my first morning walk,

but this is the first time I am posting pics from my morning walk on this blog.

These magnolia blossoms were irresistible!

This front yard is in beautiful bloom.

The slanting ray through the palm tree was not visible with the naked eye.

All photos taken by me on 3 March 2021, Fresno, CA, USA

Home Alone

 

Loneliness

All those moth-bitten cliches

about being alone

and being lonely.

Like,

"the last word in lonesome

is me..."

And the equally moth-mangled

conventional wisdom

about never being alone.

"When you walk through the storm,

hold your head up high..."

...and all that.

Which is true?

Are we ever alone?

Are we never alone?

They can't both be true.

It is objectively true

that you are never alone.

Even when there are

no other humans around

with whom you can interact,

there is nature

and your own thoughts

and music,

books,

television,

the ever-lovin' internet...

to name a few

ready companions.

But sometimes

the sense and sensations

of being alone

and bereft

are subjectively

overwhelming.

When you are lonely,

there is scant comfort

in cliches

and conventional wisdom,

and hungry moths

are no company.

We must learn

to be at home

with ourselves,

with our thoughts,

with our memories,

with our imagination,

with our faith.

We are not alone,

but we must learn

to be at home

alone.

A Toast

Here’s a toast

to life and living

to love and laughter

to seeing, to hearing

to giving and receiving

Lift a glass

to family and friends

to acceptance and belonging

to gifts, to talents

to harmony and understanding

Cheers! and Hear, Hear!

for joy and happiness

for peace and inspiration

for creativity, for passion

for positivity and optimism

This toast we raise

while counting out the frailties of our years

while listening to the music of the spheres

while measuring the value of our tears

while facing down the spectres of our fears

Here’s to us, to all of us,

the scattered and the gathered

family of creation

and to the persistent checkers

of our past, present, and future

Follow the Wandering Clock

The world

is both

topsy and turvy;

spinning in every direction

at once.

We cannot tell

if we are

clock- or counterclock-

wise,

but it sure feels

like all the clock

has been spun

dry

and all the wise

has been abandoned

and all we are left with

is loose change

on the counter.

Yes,

change is loose

and

there may not be

enough cope

left in our mechanisms.

The shock

has bid farewell to

the awe.

The doctors

may have the final spin

in the worldwide

wheel of forsakenness.

Inevitable

the sad repeating refrain

of our dull haiku.

Forest For The Trees

Dense thicket

Can't see

Eyes wide

Twisting

Turning

Lost

Wondering

Fame's Swipe

What is fame?

A fleeting dab from history’s brush;

a jolting jab from the public’s fickle attentions;

a startling stab from the dagger-crusted eyes of time.

We all bear some fame

among the momentary circle of our societies.

Then the days swoop in and carry us away like cornered rats.

An echo;

a ripple;

a whisper;

then eternity.

In This Moment

Our lives are sliced thin

moment by moment

memorable or not

some are wild and bombastic

some are calm and serene

many moments are mundane

others are life-changing

there will be celebrations

and there will be long stretches of routine

but

every moment counts

it all adds up to who you are

you are

a walking collection of moments

a human museum of experiences

you are

a concert hall filled with stirring strains

a theater echoing with laughter

a library of autobiographical anecdotes

you are

still under construction

but you have a design

and a destiny

and the stacks of moments

the slices of life

that are you

will just keep building

and who you are

in this moment

counts the most.

Emotion

Are humans actually capable

of being emotionless?

Perhaps

we can maintain

a modicum of control

of our outward appearances.

But

inside

the engine

keeps running,

the pistons

keep churning,

the fuel

keeps burning.

Our faces

usually

betray us.

The internal struggle,

the secret strain,

the pressing stress

become too much;

and

outward expressions

inevitably expose

the inward

swirl

of

emotion.

We are

emotion-full.

Emotion

is our

constant

companion.

The best

we can hope

is to learn

to recognize

and channel

our emotions

for the sake of

truth

and

inner peace.

So it is.

So may it ever be.

The Lamp of the Body

Matthew 6:22-34

The eye is the lamp of the body. 
If your vision is clear,

your whole body will be full of light.

But if your vision is poor, your whole body will be full of darkness. 

If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

No one can serve two masters:

Either he will hate the one and love the other,

or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

You cannot serve both God and money.

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,

what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.

Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?

Look at the birds of the air:

They do not sow or reap or gather into barns—

and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them.

Are you not much more valuable than they?

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

And why do you worry about clothes?

Consider how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin.

Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory

was adorned like one of these.

If that is how God clothes the grass of the field,

which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace,

will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Therefore do not worry, saying, ’What shall we eat?’

or ’What shall we drink?’

or ’What shall we wear?’

These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, 

but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs.

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,

and all these things will be added unto you.

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow,

for tomorrow will worry about itself.

Today has enough trouble of its own.

We Always Hope

We always hope

behind the smile

there is

true joy

or

at least

honest amusement.

We hope

the smile

is

not hiding

fear,

or anger,

or hatred,

or conspiracy.

Hope

is what

we cling to

so that

we will not

be overtaken

by

conspiracy,

hatred,

anger,

or fear.

We always hope

the smile

is hiding

nothing.

Structure and Chaos

Most days I feel like I am walking

inside a kaleidoscope -

or maybe a collide-o-scope.

Stimuli are coming at me from every direction.

I am being squeezed,

bombarded,

circled,

hemmed in,

exhilarated,

intimidated.

Mind-bogglingly exciting!

Colors and numbers and shapes and faces,

sights and sounds and smells,

textures and sensations

and revelations.

New experiences

mingling with

every variety

of memory,

from the mundane

to the delicious.

It is a whirlwind

and a whirlpool;

tossing me about

and drawing me in.

Not all of it sticks,

but some it does.

Those are the parts

that become me.

A Series of Reruns

Life is a series of reruns;

a boundless gallery of deja vu,

been there done that,

and also rans.

Yet,

every moment is new,

each step forward

is a vast expanse

filled with infinite possibility.

The same face

in the mirror every morning

is facing

new challenges

and opportunities

every day.

Be open to the newness

while you are cherishing

the familiar.

Inclinations

Studies have shown…

According to the leading experts…

Prevailing opinion insists…

The latest polls indicate…

My father always said…

The evidence declares…

Indisputably…

Without doubt…

We all keep some of our inclinations to ourselves.

That is because some of our inclinations seem to us to be

socially unacceptable, to put it nicely.

But I’d be willing to bet that my inclinations

are enough like your inclinations

that we would be surprised,

and possibly relieved,

with a strong lingering chance of embarrassment,

if we somehow discovered

that we shared similar inclinations.

Common human tendencies are what they are.

We keep them private and secret

in order to preserve a semblance of

dignity, maturity, sanity, humanity, and civilization.

We still all put our pants on
one leg at a time.

This is the great equalizing image of how most humans clothe themselves.

It is clean and mundane and true.

Meanwhile, our inclinations linger in the dark.

Slippery

Are you looking at life straight on,

with determination, grit, and confidence?

Does life often seem to be splintering,

cracking, sliding, shifting, escaping?

Can life be grasped

like a sturdy branch or like a solid rock?

Fleeting

Short

Brutal

Fickle

Unpredictable

Serendipitous

Joy-filled

Peaceful

Is life what you “make it”?

Is life a smorgasbord that offers a taste of everything?

Look – and see – with both eyes.

Listen – and hear – with both ears.

Touch – and feel – with both hands.

Taste – and savor – with all of your taste buds.

Give. Receive. Enjoy. Laugh. Shout. Sing. Dance.

Rest.

True Colors

How do you see it?

“Black & White”

We say this phrase represents the idea of absolutes. 

We also say “cut and dried” or “open and shut” – 

meaning no further investigation is necessary. 

“It is what it is.”

Most of us freely acknowledge that there are nearly infinite shades of gray

as we advance toward or away from one extreme or the other – black or white.

The existence of all those shades of gray would seem to contradict the philosophical concept of absoluteness.

Nevertheless, absolute black and absolute white, in the realm of “color perception,” do exist,

and they are absolute in their representation of total blackness and total whiteness.

But are we misaligned in this interpretation?

I believe color itself is what testifies to the existence of absolutes.

And I believe the rainbow, with its unerring display of seven different colors from red to violet, 

is a natural witness to the existence of absolutes.

The stark and wondrous beauty of the multitude of colors in nature speaks more surely

to the assurance and confidence of absolute truth

than either the total absence of color (black) or the presence of all colors simultaneously (white).

“Black & White” gives us the temerity to argue against truth

because our eyes tell us all day every day that life is much more colorful than black and white.

The truth is colorful.

“Black & White” obscures the truth.

It is when we see in full color that we see the truth.

Life Is a Jumble

Life is a jumble of thises and that’s

(or “these” and “those,” if you insist)

Of cinnamon crumbles and baseballs and bats

It ebbs and it flows

It rises and falls

To the highest of highs

And the lowest of lows

Stuffed full with the corniest rhyming and rhythms

With splashes of horns and sparkling of cymbals

Tinkling of bells, explosive percussions

Music fills life in all its mutations

Moment by moment

The colors remain

Bright as the sun

Then gray as the rain

All of it is LIFE

LIFE in all-caps

From the first lullabye

To the sounding of taps

One bite at a time

Savored, enjoyed

The power of living

Of life

And of love

Smiles!

Our faces were made to smile.

Our hearts were made to shine.

Our hands were made for many things –

Hard work, helping others, creating beauty.

And our eyes were made to give us light.

The (seemingly) smallest thing

Can move us

A sight, a sound, a smell

And our face responds by shifting

Eyes sparkle, lips turn up, dimples deepen

…but…

Sometimes the smiles disappear.

Broken hearts and grieving faces hurt.

Eyes weep bitterly, and hands are wrung in despair.

Whether it is a slow trickle of persistent tragedy

Or an unrelenting avalanche of pulverizing trauma,

Sometimes our defenses crumble

And we are paralyzed by grief and pain.

…and…

These are the times

When we need “the best medicine”

In any sized dose

As often,

 as boisterously,

or as gently as possible.

The “smallest thing”

Can be the “biggest thing”

When it ignites a smile

That starts on our face,

reaches into our heart

draws our hands into the air

and sets our feet to dancing.

Life Is Messy

Besides the proverbial

blood, sweat, and tears,

there's mud

and slime and filth,

worries, fears,

bugs and rodents,

dashed hopes,

unfulfilled dreams,

betrayals,

disappointments,

sorrow, pain,

unhappy times,

embarrassments,

humiliations,

and thwarted expectations,

and a seemingly endless litany

of grief and loss.

Yet through the blinding mist

and darkness of the mess

shines a light,

which draws us onward

toward joy and peace

and love

and laughter - 

to Life!

All the ugliness

prepares our eyes

to see the beauty;

and 

the beauty

strikes us deeply,

lifts us up,

gives us a song,

and air to breathe.

Incongruity

The moments speeding by

Touch us

Surround us

Change us

They stamp upon us an eternal impression

Of perpetual incongruity

A distinct sensation

Of having seen and felt and experienced something

Achingly profound yet so fleeting

A whisper disguised as a shout

An affirmation that sounds like an insult

A pat on the back that feels like a slap across the face

Like a newsreel jittering through the pressure roller

Confusing my flicker fusion threshold

Fits and jumps and false starts

Perceiving things without truly seeing them

Bits and pieces

A slashed up mashup

Vision interrupted

Senses on hold

As the world speeds by

Trailing a jangling crowd of incongruous shrapnel

Bouncing and ricocheting on the path before me

Leaving me stunned, amazed, and mute

With unrequited expectation

Oblivion

Woke.

A fresh moniker for all who see themselves as newly enlightened;

As if our enlightenment is somehow more profound, historic, and disruptive

than any previous individual or collective recognition of life and reality.

Revelations abound, seemingly without limit.

Insights are being born into our consciousness every day.

Wisdom, no longer hidden, is coming to light.

We see it!

A New Age is dawning!

Again.

“There is nothing new under the sun.”

Yet every day, every moment,  is a clean slate, a fresh start, a new beginning.

“Today is the first day of the rest of your life.”

You can choose to come near to life while others choose to remain distant.

The planet is shrinking.

The planet is dying.

The planet is long overdue for immeasurable cataclysmic events.

You can choose.

Freak out about the possibilities of death and disaster,

Or

Stop and smell the roses,

Or

Put all your senses on full alert

to inhale, absorb, learn, find, consume, enjoy

every infinitesimal detail of life at its fullest.

What do you already know?

What do you want to know?

Will knowing be enough?

Are you happy being oblivious?