November 7--Worthiness is Irrelevant

In yourself right now is all the place you've got.  --Flannery O'Connor

    I have spent a lot of time in life trying to get over the hump of feeling unworthy. It is a constant challenge, and recently I've been realizing that "worthy" is irrelevant. We are all beloved children of Spirit. I read the following from Richard Rohr in his Daily Mediation of November 6: 

Who among us is worthy? We’re all just varying degrees of fallible and unworthy, but when we surrender to that knowing, the fountain of grace begins to flow. We stop seeking our own worthiness and we begin to know the gift of God. We begin to realize that it’s all gift, and it’s all free, and we already have it, and all we can do is learn to enjoy it. That changes everything.

    The gig is not to make myself feel worthy, but simply to know that I am not worthy, and it doesn't matter. I am loved anyway, anyhow, anywhere, always, and I accept and delight in that. 

    Our beautiful Mother Earth with all her bounty is proof that we don't have to be worthy to enjoy. 

        Leta

Another sunrise work of art 
by Mother Gaia

November 6--It's All in Your Head

You have power over your mind--not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.  --Marcus Aurelius

    Practicing this has been the journey of my lifetime. I am grateful for 12-step programs, Centers for Spiritual Living, practitioner training, Ernest Holmes, yoga teacher training, monthly coaching sessions, and lots of friends who have supported my efforts. Everything begins in thought. Negative thinking leads to low energy; positive, to high vibrations. I believe it is an excellent practice to talk regularly with someone who is not living inside one's own head. As always in this life, we have a choice. 

    I'm back home again and prepping for my next trip. I'm driving to Ohio in a few days to spend a couple of weeks with my brother and my niece. My brother's health is declining and he no longer drives. Besides just hanging out with him, I'll take him to meetings, appointments and (the dreaded) Walmart. It gives my niece a break and me precious time with my brother. 

    One day at a time,

        Leta

My sweet brother,
ready for the game!

November 5--Whimsical

You must not ever stop being whimsical. And you must not, ever, give anyone else the responsibility for your life.  --Mary Oliver

    I fell in love with Wales as soon as I saw that the flag of the country has a dragon. There's some whimsical for you. I bought a hoodie with the dragon--it was a double bonus because the dragon is red, my favorite color. Also, at the shop where I bought the hoodie, the ladies bathroom stalls look like this:

I would say that the folks in Wales have "whimsical" nailed. 

    I hit a milestone this past Friday--the 100-mile-swim mark for 2023. This is my 26th year in a row of swimming over 100 miles. I do take responsibility for my health and keeping my body moving. It makes life much more fun!

        Leta

My favorite clothing brand!

November 4--Celebrating a Rare Milestone

Take pride in your pain... you are stronger than those who have none. 
--Lois Lowry

    Here's some strength for you... we are in Missouri celebrating my in-laws 70th wedding anniversary, which is officially on November 7. One might think they were married as teenagers, but they were not. They married just before their 24th birthdays. Their three sons have produced five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, so far. 

    CONGRATULATIONS, and thank you for all the good you have created in the world!

        Daughter-in-law Leta

A family shot from 4 yrs ago
when we celebrated their
90th birthdays

November 3--Free to Be Happy

We are each responsible for our own life. If you're holding anyone else accountable for your happiness, you're wasting your time. You must be fearless enough to give yourself the love you didn't receive.  --Oprah Winfrey

    My husband and I have very different interests. He has a collection of musical instruments and bicycles and uses all of them. He's an active musician. His idea of a great vacation is riding his bike many miles with lots of other folks, then sleeping in a tent, and repeating that for a week. I have minimal musical skill and his vacation idea is too much "roughing it" for me. My idea of a good time is having one or more trips upcoming on my calendar. I travel often with girlfriends, as we are similar in our enjoyment of being pampered. I would not be a pleasant companion on a bike trip, and my husband would die of boredom on the beach, where I could relax forever.

    It works for my spouse and me. We do what makes each of us happy, and with our different interests and adventures, we have plenty to talk about. I am very grateful for the freedom we each enjoy. 

        Leta

One of the many beautiful murals in 
an English village

November 2--The Body, A Miracle

In order for us to liberate the energy of our strength, our weakness must first have a chance to reveal itself.  --Paulo Coelho

    Let us take on the idea of strength by looking at the human body, an absolute miracle. Here are words by Nadia Bolz-Weber:

I do not know the designations that the world has given you, or the things that have been said about your body or done to your body. I do not know what binds you. But … how amazing is it that a human body is also what God chose to take on to be with us?… That God would, as we say, slip into skin and walk among us … that God would choose to make God’s home in an actual human body—in the person of Jesus of Nazareth….

All of this is to say, that God saves you IN your body, not FROM your body. Your body is in the same form and substance as that which God chose to put on and walk among us as Jesus. Your body is holy and beautiful to God—your young, old, fit, fat, cis, queer, disabled, strong body. For after all, it is the human body in which God placed God’s image, the imago dei. God could have chosen to place the image of God in the mountains, but instead she put it in our bodies. We might experience the awesomeness of God in the mountains … but we see the image of God in the human body in all its perfectly glorious diversity.

    Many folks don't care for their body. This is a weakness that must be overcome in order to live a strong and healthy life. 

        Leta

DNA, the same building block in every human.

November 1--Strength

Don't find fault; find a remedy.  --Henry Ford

    We move into November wherein our theme is STRENGTH.

    The last year plus has been difficult, with depression and anxiety on the scene quite a bit, lots of uncertainty, disappointment and grief. I've muddled through it, and I think things are on the upswing. I have become less and less motivated in teaching, and then this came across my radar:

In A Daily Dose of Sanity by Alan Cohen, he said: "When you work with full passion, you create huge success for yourself and your clients. When you act with less than a whole heart, everyone remains hungry. Be honest about where your energy is streaming, and go there. Then you will wow everyone around you, along with yourself." (From Rev. Suellen Miller's Wednesday "Thought")

    I have not been operating with "a whole heart." So a break is in order. I'm taking off all of November and December to travel, celebrate holidays and figure out if and how I want teaching to be a part of my life in 2024. It feels like implementing this decision is allowing some clarity to shine through, and I am grateful for that. 

    The million dollar question---what do I want?

        Leta