practical ~ f a i t h ~

Thinking of friends in Santiago...

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 13:06:00 +0000

Promises for you...

-- Psalm 91:4 and 91:11-12

Spiritual direction(s)

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 14:05:00 +0000

It is interesting how life continues to shape us (as we shape life) and bring happy new possibilities and opportunities for growth. Not long ago a friend who is also a family therapist recommended a dear client to me for spiritual direction, and that sweet event planted a seed that is blossoming into a spiritual direction practice. This is a natural outgrowth of my time in seminary (with an MDiv in pastoral care and counseling), my years as an on-call chaplain for two Indianapolis hospitals, and the observing and living and writing I do here on this blog (as well as on my Narrative blog and Scribd publications).

Here is my practice statement
Here is my privacy policy

Fascinating, growing, wonderful things...blossoming in love. What is your heart whispering to you today? Take a minute to listen quietly...I'll bet whatever it is, it points you in the direction of Joy. :)

I heart Albert Einstein

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 18:47:00 +0000

Whether you interpret this quote through a Christian, Buddhist, Taoist, naturalist, environmentalist, genealogical, historical, or quantum physics lens, it whispers come out and play...

�A human being is part of a whole, called by us the Universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.� --Albert Einstein

Manifesting what we hope for

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 12:41:00 +0000

I've been thinking a lot lately (really, always) about our ability to create. A number of years ago, I heard someone say, "If you want to see what your own thought looks like, look around." This was a profound statement for me. Look at my relationships; look at my house; look at my work; look at my dreams. What did my thoughts look like? What was currently manifesting in my life? If it wasn't exactly what I was hoping for in my heart, did I have some blocks to break through in that area?

That idea has stayed with me all these years and I can look around today and see and know that I do in fact have great shaping power on my own life. I'm not saying there are no other influences, but perhaps the volume on those other influences can be turned down (or off) depending on how well I am able to lovingly manage and direct my creative thought. I can see how my own beliefs about certain things have created barriers (that could and can be dissolved) to some aspects of wholeness I am still opening to.

I've watched movies like The Secret and What the Bleep Do We Know? and I love the creative power they represent and the ideas they hold out to us--that perhaps the ability to create loving, harmonious, beautiful lives is truly within us. My own developing thoughts and beliefs need to put all that creative potential in the context of divine relationship--I want what I create in my life to be the expression of God; creations in line with truth, beauty, goodness, wholeness, kindness, and peace.

To get a clearer picture of both my intention to create and the result (I often skate right on by the result and move to the next thing, which keeps me feeling like I never reach any destination), I created this simple form yesterday to help me identify (1) the idea I want to manifest; (2) whether the environment is supportive for that idea right now or not; and (3) what actions I need to take to make it happen. Seems simple, right?

The big aha for me was in realizing that creating something doesn't just involve an idea and effort--it also needs a supportive environment, which I haven't always had for the things I wanted to create. I'd have the idea and dive right into the effort, working and working and working at something, without noticing that the right supports weren't present to support the idea's growth. Maybe others weren't cooperating. Perhaps I didn't really have the time. It could have been any number of things. But I recognize that my own pattern is to throw myself head-long into projects and then work really hard--maybe even harder--if the environment doesn't have the support I need to reach the goal.

Well, no more. This form helps me assess the supportiveness of the environment, as well as crystalize the idea, plan my action, and then name and celebrate the result. Let's see what happens! Here's the form in case you want to try something similar, too. If you use the form and find that it's helpful (or not, really), post a comment or write to me and let me know--I'd love to hear about your experience, too.

Happy Friday!

I am grateful to the earth

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 14:22:00 +0000

From "This Is Where We Live," by Pablo Neruda, in The Poetry of Pablo Neruda:

Responding to a crisis

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:45:00 +0000

The pastor of my Quaker meeting sent me a postcard after I first visited the church, ten years ago now. It says

I Am a Quaker.
In Case of Emergency
Please Be Quiet.

That postcard is still hanging right here in my line of sight, just over my monitor. It hangs there in large part because it says something true about who I am and how I approach things. When life speeds up too much, when crises come, when friends struggle, my first instinct is to slow down, to pray, to listen carefully, to tune into my heart.

Here's what we know about crisis:

Crisis throws your normal way of doing things up in the air.
Crisis can bring panic.
Crisis interrupts what you know about your life or yourself and makes you scramble to figure out what to do next.
You feel out of control in a crisis.
It's hard to see clearly in a crisis.
Emotions are very loud in a crisis, and problem-solving (which comes more from the rational parts of our brains) has trouble being heard.
Crisis often involves others as well as you, so you are dealing with the chaotic feelings and fears of many people--not just your own.
Our sense of "shoulds" can get stirred up in a crisis ("I should be handling this better," or "I shouldn't cry," or "My dad would have known what to do about this--but I don't.")

So what constitutes a crisis? Often we think of a crisis as something horrible--a car wreck, a divorce, a lost job, a bankruptcy, an illness. Yes, crisis can be triggered by all of those things, but you can also get thrown into crisis in the middle of good or growth-inducing things as well:

you get married
you find that job you've been looking for
you have a baby
you start training for a new position
you buy a great new house
you take a major step toward a new dream

In short, any time you step boldly--or get thrown--into the unknown, you can feel lost, uncertain, and unsure of what to do next. You are out of your comfort zone, and that can potentially trigger a crisis response.

Some situations resolve all on their own--you get used to the new job, you fall in love with your baby, your dream gains momentum and you feel more confident about it. In those situations, some simple techniques can help us support ourselves while crisis situations are working themselves out:

take three deep breaths and exhale completely;
say a favorite prayer or mantra;
focus your eyes intentionally on one beautiful thing and really feel it;
use an old EMDR trick to look straight ahead and then move your eyes first as far left as you can and then far right. Doing this a few times gets each side of your brain talking to the other, which increases oxygen and helps you feel more able to problem solve;
recount the facts of the situation to yourself or others. This anchors the situation to what's really happening and turns down the volume on the fears, anxieties, and "what ifs";
begin naming everything you can think of to be grateful for. I know this one sounds difficult, especially if there's a lot of upset in the situation, but I'm convinced that there is always something to be grateful for--even if it's only that you don't have to face the circumstance alone (which is a major blessing).

When the crisis situation is too big or threatening--or you simply need or want some extra support--reach out to people around you. Your pastor or spiritual leader knows how to be with you in crisis; your doctor can recommend a counselor; various agencies can offer a collection of resources. Spiritual direction also helps us explore where we draw the resources to meet the crises in our lives. There is always another view--God's view--and being open to that view, even in the midst of a chaotic and scary time, can bring peace, and calm, and healing.

Many blessings--beauty, joy, peace, and light--right where you are today!

That peaceful easy feeling

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 15:40:00 +0000

This morning something strange happened. It was before dawn. The candle was burning. I slowly--mindfully--moved through the yoga-t'ai chi routine I've done for years. Somewhere around the warrior pose, I felt a sense of profound quiet--inside and out. I continued the slow movements, in time with that felt sense. Completing the yoga, I settled on the floor as usual for a few moments of meditation. I sat, said a prayer of blessing, and heard myself think, "I'm listening, God."

And then...nothing.

Quiet. Peace. Silence. Stillness.

Breath.

No fluttering thoughts. No straining muscles or awareness of my breath. No internal to-do list took shape. No thoughts about deadlines, or expectations, or plans.

Quiet. Peace. Silence. Stillness.

I raised my hands to my face slowly, and felt the contact of my fingers on my cheeks. I smiled in the darkness. No, I wasn't having a stroke. I was just non-anxious.

My cycling mind was at rest. My body was at rest. My spirit was listening.

Strange, wonderful, beautiful, nourishing.

I hope to do it again tomorrow. :)

Enjoy your day!

Everything present

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:11:00 +0000

I've been thinking a lot about our own personal influence in the way our days unfold. How much do we actually co-create, and how much (if anything) happens outside our control? I'm fascinated with the circumstances, situations, emotions, and interactions that seem to arise unbidden in our days. Where do they come from? Where do they go? What is being expressed? How am I contributing?

Yesterday it occurred to me that perhaps all emotions are present in any given situation, much light all light waves are present and all audio waves are present. I've heard it said that sound waves are all around us all the time, but we need to be tuned to them--or have the right receiver--before we will be able to hear them. I've heard something similar about colors and light--all colors are present in all light, but we have to have the right objects and the right amount of light in order to see the colors clearly.

What if all our emotions are already present in our surroundings, like light and sound? If emotions are simply energies, with a personal twist, or coming through a personal receiver, it isn't such a farout thought to imagine that we might be expressing certain emotions for somebody else or simply as a mouthpiece for our environment. Have you ever felt "mad" for someone else? Have you caught someone else's tiredness? Do you feel your spirit lift when you hear someone else laugh? Perhaps our emotions are not our "own" but part of the expression of life that is happening within us and around us in any given moment.

Pray to God and row to shore

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:15:00 +0000

This quote appeared in a newsletter I received this morning, and it occurred to me that I understood it differently than I did the last time I heard it, which was years ago. The question of our agency--how much do I do, and how much does God do?--has always been a struggle for me. As an independent, self-employed writer, I tend to conceptualize, plan, and produce something on my own. I work well that way, when it comes to books and articles and web content. But for the larger, life-impacting things, for organic life-blossoming possibilities, for love and healing and grace and unfolding, the lines of agency seem much fuzzier to me.

When I first heard "Pray to God and row to shore" years ago, it meant to me that the action was really all up to me. God wanted things to turn out well for me, of course, and was there for me to talk to (and listen to) when I needed the support and encouragement. But when push came to shove, it all depended on my choices and actions. So I continued to live that way, trying real hard, working real hard, taking everything pretty seriously with all the earnestness a stoic work ethic requires.

But today I heard this phrase differently. I'm glad to say there must be a lot more grace within and around me. It's certainly present in my thinking. Today "Pray to God and row to shore" means simply that my actions need to blossom naturally from my beliefs. They need to be in alignment with the beliefs so the beliefs can manifest in my life. When I believe God is good, that God is caring for me, that God is at work in my situation, I can act with gentleness, confidence, peace, patience. When I say I believe God is good, caring for me, and at work in my situation and then feel burdened and overwhelmed and work myself half to death trying to solve something, my actions are not in line with my beliefs. It's not all up to me. That's the opposite of my inner beliefs.

That's worth at least one hallelujah. Thank God for growth in grace and understanding! May your own discoveries today help you relax into these Loving Arms that uphold us all.

Kinship with all life

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 13:25:00 +0000

�Look at the animals roaming the forest: God�s spirit dwells within them. Look at the birds flying across the sky: God�s spirit dwells within them. Look at the tiny insects crawling in the grass: God�s spirit dwells within them. Look at the fish in the river and the sea: God�s spirit dwells within them. There is no creature on earth in whom God is absent. ..When God pronounced that his creation was good, it was not only that his hand had fashioned every creature; it was that his breath had brought every creature to life. Look too at the great trees of the forest; look at the wild flowers and the grass in the fields; look even at your crops. God�s spirit is present within all plants as well. The presence of God in all living things is what makes them beautiful; and if we look with God�s eyes, nothing on earth is ugly.�

Beautiful! From Pelagius, in Listening for the Heartbeat of God: A Celtic Spirituality, by J. Philip Newell

What redemption looks like

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:52:00 +0000

This morning Ruby (age 3), Henry (10 months), and I were playing ball in the music room. We sat on the rug and rolled the ball to each other in different ways, laughing and having fun. Suddenly Ruby looked at me with a startled look on her face. Her eyes were sad.

"I am so so sorry," she said. "This morning I hit mama. Mama said it is not okay to hit."

I nodded and smiled. "I can hear that you're really sorry," I said. "And mama is right--hitting isn't good." I asked her whether she wanted to call mama and say sorry, and at first she said yes. But then, just as suddenly, the cloud of contrition was gone and she wanted to play roll-the-ball some more.

I've had those moments of self-realization when a regret for a word, an action, an intention washes over me like a wave. Being able to confess it and put it in context--out loud with another person or silently, in my heart, with God--is one of the instant, saving graces I'm so grateful for. Whether we go to confession, pray, or simply share our feelings with a friend, something lightens, a little light shines in, and we are released from that which had us bound just moments before. Nice.

Being named

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:43:00 +0000

Hello! I hope you're enjoying the changing seasons wherever in the world you find yourself. Just a little while ago I ran across this simple but profound verse:

Watching gardeners label their plants

I vow with all beings

to practce the old horticulture

and let the plants identify me.

Loving the Earth

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 11:45:00 +0000

Happy 83rd birthday, Thich Nhat Hahn! A favorite quote:

Thich Nhat Hanh
Source: Kiss The Earth
Found here: http://www.gaia.com/quotes/Thich_Nhat_Hanh

The art of giving

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 12:24:00 +0000

I just read this on the side of a box of Celestial Seasonings tea...but I love it. :) It's from Letters to My Son, by Kent Nerburn. Wisdom pops up everywhere:

"Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance, and none can say why some fields blossom and others lay brown beneath the August sun. Care for those around you. Look past your differences. Their dreams are no less than yours, their choices in life no more easily made. And give. Give in any way you can, of whatever you possess. To give is to love. To withhold is to wither. Care less for your harvest than how it is shared, and your life will have meaning and your heart wil have peace."Beautiful! May our harvest joy be multipled through great sharing today. :)

Unearthing the seeds of stress

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 15:47:00 +0000

On Friday, I was talking to a friend about the way we externalize stress in our lives. She wiped her eyes and said, "I just had a good cry. For some reason whenever I feel really stressed, the tears start flowing. That's frowned on in business because people think I'm weak. I'm not--I'm just stressed!" She asked me how stress shows up for me and I thought about it a minute and said, "Appreciation is the first thing to go for me. When I get stressed, I stop noticing the little things around me."

Our conversation has been popping into my head all weekend. As I push hard to get chapters completed on my current project, I realize that I am continually choosing whether I notice the little things around me right now--the candle burning, the quiet in the house, the breeze from the open window--or let the pressure from the deadline rush me toward some future goal. When I let my awareness be controlled by my worry of that eventual time, my eyes stop seeing and my ears stop hearing what's right here, right now. My edges get harder. I push myself to move through things quickly, not valuing the moment, which requires open hands and eyes and ears, and a soft heart. Losing touch with appreciation means the volume on my heart gets turned down while my brain barks orders. No wonder I feel stress!

I wonder whether there's a way to get things done, to honor commitments, to work from love and fullness and awareness, without letting stress be the controlling factor. If stress makes me leave the gentleness at the core of being, it's not helping me. It's worth thinking about today, at any rate.

And I say, if you need to cry, cry. Let it all out and reconnect with your life right now. It loves you.

The simple power of plain speech

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:01:00 +0000

I have always loved language, and languages. Words carry power. They really are creative little packets of energy that can cause things to happen. The more I learn about my own words and phrases--and the intentions behind them--the more I understand what I am creating in my life. This is happening slowly, over decades, but I can see it (alleluia). :)

The more I notice the power of speech, the more I want to use it clearly, simply, effectively. This is a good desire for a writer, but it's also more than that. It's a need to manifest what's true--to use words to bring about good for all, as much as possible. To be congruent in feelings and actions--and to be able to speak about it in a framework of language that flows naturally from the essence of the desire and hope. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

This learning about words draws me inward and down--inward into my own heart and mind and spirit and down to the clearest possible denominator of meaning. You and I will be closer when we can speak plainly, truthfully to each other. When we spiral up and out--mostly because of fear of judgment or of being misunderstood--we pad our language, we make it sound high-brow, we work on eloquent turns of phrase.

We "dialogue" instead of "talk." I'd rather laugh, love, fall on my face, and get up and do it all over again--joyfully, sloppily, imperfectly. Maybe we'll laugh together--I hope so. But let's not use our words to create things we don't want or--heaven forbid--separate us. Today Love beckons. Let's accept. :)

A daily guide for Ramadan

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 10:02:00 +0000

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to pass along this link to a gentle site called Existensis.com, now offering daily reflections throughout Ramadan. The author also has made available a downloadable e-book that is very clear and centered. These reflections are for people of all traditions and bring me into a feeling of celebrating spirit in harmony with others throughout the world. Beautiful!

The vital space of doubt

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 13:42:00 +0000

Today is Alfred Lord Tennyson's 200th birthday. Reading about him this morning, I discovered this quote:

There lives more faith in honest doubt, believe me, than in half the creeds.

I find beauty in all traditions and practices of faith, but the point Tennyson makes here strikes me as integral to a real, growing, embodied living out of an alive, aware, and owned faith. If we are just parrotting the views of our parents, our tradition, our region, our particular demographic, we are only participating in response to an external framework. We haven't owned it; the living out of our faith is not coming from within us, from a seed of transformation we plant and nurture. In my own life Love has grown greatly through doubt--pushing and prodding, asking "why?" and "why not?", and listening, discerning, and testing over time. For some reason I was willing to risk shaking my fist at the ceiling and yelling at God (literally...I know that's not a pretty picture), and even today continue to risk leaving groupthink, again and again, in spite of the sense of belonging the journey might cost me.

Knowing what I believe and in what and whom I believe and how that belief frames my life has always been important to me...and doubt opens up the vital space for me to explore, push, create, and show up as part of Life's arising. I, for one, need that.

Happy Tennyson's birthday!

How will you see today?

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 12:17:00 +0000

This morning I felt a need for refreshment and I picked up John O'Donohue's Anam Cara, a beautiful, spacious, and deeply kind book of Celtic spirituality. In the chapter where he writes about the senses as being the thresholds of soul, he says

Vision is central to your presence and creativity.

He describes--in a tenderly gentle way--the different kinds of eyes we may use to engage (or not engage) the world:

The fearful eye, which sees all as threatening;
The greedy eye, which sees everything as something to be possessed;
The judgmental eye, which separates and compares;
The resentful eye, which begrudges others what they have;
The indifferent eye, which holds control and distance;
The inferior eye, which sees everyone else as greater;
The loving eye, to which everything is real.

May we know today that our seeing is a sacred, creative act and that as we look upon the world with love we are blessing it, and it, us. :)

One more today...

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 20:38:00 +0000

Hi again, I'm not sure why this popped into my head today, but I decided to prepare a book I wrote back in 1992 (during the heartbreaking L.A. riots) and post it on Scribd as a free download. I was still a "baby" writer in those days, but it's interesting to me that the thought--on Oneness, the light within, overcoming differences, and a desire to dissolve separation--is the sweet essence of the way I live today. Wonderful to see! If you feel so moved, please take a look and let me know what you think. Namaste. :)
Getting Over the Rainbow

Healing the Space

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 14:56:00 +0000

Hi everyone! I hope you're having a beautiful day in your part of the world. I just posted a new meditation on Scribd called Healing the Space. It is a gentle meditation with a blessing for the physical places we encounter. You can use it anywhere--in your house, in the country, in the forest...wherever it occurs to you. :) Peace.

Healing the Space

Seeing it all

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 10:49:00 +0000

Last night I took my older son to the immediate care clinic in the middle of a severe allergy attack. His eyes were swollen almost shut; he had hives and splotches everywhere; he looked like the losing prizefighter in a 12-round match; and most upsetting of all--he was suffering.

Immediate care centers being what they are, you are asked right away if you consider anything you're experiencing to be life-threatening; and if not, you wait. And wait. And wait. We sat with a dozen other people--all equally discouraged, hurting, upset, and worried--waiting for our turn to see the doctor. After a little more than two hours, we were ushered into a small room where we waited another 30 minutes. By this time, the Benadryl had begun to work and the cold wet towel my son had been holding to his face all evening had helped; the swelling had gone down and what was left was a still splotchy face and neck, bright red eyes, heavy fatigue (due at least in part to the medicine), and stopped-upedness.

The doctor walked in with lots of swirling energy, took a look at my son, noticed his eyes, and said, "looks like pinkeye" all in about 10 seconds. From that misdiagnosis, we worked backward, trying to push toward her the details of living with this allergy (from my view, as the mom, and his view, as the experiencer); what we thought about it; what we wondered; what we hoped.

She wasn't really listening. She adjusted her initial diagnosis a bit--it was an allergy-related conjunctivitis, she decided. But she was completely missing the point. He was suffering He was hoping someone would give him some indication that this suffering could end. He didn't want another drop for his eyes--he wanted this not to happen anymore.

The doctor had walked into the room, summed up the situation based purely on what she saw--which was simply what stood out to her most in that moment--and never listened to the full story in the room or the past or possible future of this story. We were never real whole living beings to her (even though she was friendly enough) and her mind never opened enough to let her heart suggest a couple of things that might have really helped.

I write this hoping that when I am called to make quick judgments--professionally or just in my daily life--that I can remember to take a deep breath and listen and receive what is present, to understand the story that is arising to be heard, before I diagnose the situation and act. There is a soul to be honored. There is a need to be met. And the answer isn't just to prescribe eyedrops to make the red go away--it's a need of the heart, the mind, the spirit.

An earth meditation

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0000

I've just returned from a weekend at Grace's House, the solar home on 40 acres beside the Abbey of Gethsemani in New Haven, Kentucky. The house is one of the retreat properties of the Merton Institute's Bethany Spring--nestled between hills, forest, and lake in a perfect, peaceful spot. I created the following earth meditation one night while I was there...these photos don't really capture the awe-inspiring beauty of the land, but they do help you glimpse at least the doorway in to the experience. :)

Let Your Longing Guide You

May the light of your soul guide you

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 10:59:00 +0000

Peace...
peace....
peace....

From John O'Donohue (1954-2008)...may the light of your soul guide you, dear:

Walking Two Dogs

kmurray230@sbcglobal.net (Katherine) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:27:00 +0000

I just had an interesting object lesson a few minutes ago. For years now, I've had Georgie and Edgar. Georgie is an 8-year-old Newfoundland, and Edgar is an almost 14-year-old Bichon. When I take them outside on their leashes, whether we're just going out to the backyard or going for a walk in the neighborhood, they almost never want to go the same direction. Invariably I am pulled in two directions, or trying to compensate for one sniffing or squatting while the other pulls ahead. Always it seems I am the tension point between two desires--Georgie wants to go one direction, and Edgar the other.

Tonight it occurred to me that it's not fun to be that point of tension, trying to manage everyone else's wishes. How do you decide whose desires are more important? Is it more important to drag Edgar along to keep up with George or to hold George back so Edgar can take his sweet time? Either answer produces inner tension because I'm aware that one dog isn't getting what he or she wants. One has to be pushed somehow to meet the other's need. In a peer-to-peer relationship, they might be able to work that out themselves. But as the one trying to coordinate it all, I am responsible, so I have to choose. And I'm never comfortable because I am busy trying to keep it all balanced and as even as possible.

Of course, unseen in this push-me-pull-you dynamic is my own desires, which are probably acting the loudest of all without me noticing. Am I rushing them both because I've got other things I'd rather be doing? Am I letting them have their sniffy doggy moments, finding out which bunny has been in the yard today? What if I directly admitted how I felt about being pushed and pulled this way and just led them in the way I wanted to according to my desires? Wow, there's an interesting thought. And perhaps a key insight into some other puzzles in my past. LOL!

So tonight, seeing now a thousand stars shining in through the open window, I offer you this little flicker of light. The next time you feel torn between two choices, people, events, or priorities, ask yourself about the unspoken third voice that is waiting to be heard. It's the voice of your own desire that will clearly tell you what feels right for you in the moment. Then you have the choice to act on it or not, but at least you won't be unconsciously yanked along at the end of anybody's leash. :)