I’m grabbing hold of imminent possibilities.. By way of God’s grace & friendship as action not simply sentiment, it seems I may actually have a laptop soon! Not only will this resolve the current sharing of a computer with my hunny, which has proven to be all but impossible, it solves the vast discrepancy between my mental abilities & physical ones. Just last night, I’d intended to write this very post yet could not sit at the desk. With that coveted laptop, I can once again be online as my health allows & stay online through whatever my obstinate body throws at me.
A steady connection to the world, renewed & new – not to mention needed – friendships as well as the potential for income makes for anticipation enough but we all know the real excitement is the attention I’ll finally be able to give this blog. Aside from not being limited to posting weeklyish, I can venture instead into the wonderful world of weekly posts; allowing for recurring themes & creating posts throughout the week. Intermingled with those deeper thoughts that emerge a few times a month, I can also share the moments found along the way; both within & online..
As I look forward to offering further “Found Fridays,” I even envision them being written in time for Friday rather than on Friday. Having a consistent means of being online along with the ability to take full advantage of it according to my own schedule seems too good to be true no matter how far down this tunnel I travel. Rather than being the light at the end though, which was rudely turned off for a time, the impending laptop is a lamp to light my way. Were I to imagine what’s obscured in the actual light’s new-found brightness, I picture bookshelves as they’ve become my holy grail.
A more accurate description of what lays just beyond the bend is summed up in one simple word: furniture. No, I’m not prioritizing creature comforts over basic necessities for, after three years without furniture, I can attest some comforts are necessities. Granted, I’ve also proven they’re not by damnably surviving so long with none. We did get a table & two chairs upon our recent move so this is no pity-fest; it’s a reality-check. The reality that has caught up with me, undoing a lot of yoga in the process, is that no bed or decent seating & chronic pain do not mix.
It’s in this context that our access to a hotel suite now & again takes on a whole new, ahem, light. [The future's so bright, I've gotta wear 
] Our forced mini-vacation this past Sunday left me wanting to express the experience. That need for expression met with one of my fun online finds & the rest, as they say, is history; well, maybe not but it is below:
seemingly simple
missed comfort and convenience
found in a sofa
to sit, to stretch out
wonderful enough but add
pillows all about
amazing feeling
softness I had forgotten
lying on a bed
so encompassing
body pillow put to shame
surrounded by down
sitting up in bed
more than a luxury now
a rare treat it is
as I’m lying here
so soon again to lie there
painfully aware
not that time’s finite
nor how short a time it’s been
but that this must end
It’s fair to say those aren’t true haiku but I’ll surely be sharing more of these simplistic 5-7-5 verses on Fridays to come though I’m not yet sure how often. What I will continue to share every Friday are those found items from the web (or within) that made me smile or prompted interaction. Along those lines, I’ll wrap up this introduction to a new weekly event with one of my favorite LOLCats that purrfectly sums up our mini-vaca. =^@.@^=
Created by Real Rocky
(|_| *cheers* |_|)
Could be!
Who knows?
There’s something due any day;
I will know right away,
Soon as it shows.
It may come cannonballing down through the sky,
Gleam in its eye,
Bright as a rose!
Who knows?
It’s only just out of reach,
Down the block, on a beach,
Under a tree.
I got a feeling there’s a miracle due,
Gonna come true,
Coming to me!
~ West Side Story ~
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The calendar convergences just keep coming this year.. Easter is observed in the West on the first Sunday following the first full moon as of the Equinox & can fall anywhere from 22 March to 25 April. In the rare years it does land in March, it’s typically not this early. Since Easter then dictates Palm Sunday & Good Friday, it’s been back to back celebrations for over a week now. Starting with Palm Sunday a week ago & St. Patrick’s Day the day after, right through the Equinox with its “equal night” & Good Friday with its full moon the next day into night to Easter itself; this has been a week rich with history & potentially conflicting traditions.
It’s certainly not coincidental that Easter occurs as of Spring since it embodies rebirth in both its proposed history & its overall intent. An ancient word for spring is “eastre” so it’s a partnership that predates its (relatively) modern significance. Many find the timing of the Christian miracle being celebrated today a bit too convenient but it’s more likely that God simply timed it that way. Aside from crosses & empty tomb references, rabbits, eggs & Lilies are equally prevalent today. The many reasons for their mutual appearance are far-reaching in time & meaning. Various histories even help tie unlikely elements together:
An Anglo-Saxon legend tells how the Saxon goddess Eostre found a wounded bird and transformed it into a hare, so that it could survive the Winter. The hare found it could lay eggs, so it decorated these each Spring and left them as offering to the goddess.
There’s a common context linking myriad beliefs through these shared symbols. Whatever their individual connotations have become societally or personally, they connect to renewal throughout history. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, the world is tangibly coming back to life all around us. As we watch the old, dying & seemingly dead made new again, it’s human nature to want to take part. Not as readily designed for redemption, we may have to get creative in the process. Whether applying the tradition of spring cleaning within by seeking to rid our dank corners of the hidden agendas & fears that took refuge in Winter or hoping to start fresh with the hopes & desires that have been awaiting the sun’s nourishment, we need only begin.
The most complicated concern when it comes to self-renewal tends to be how. Seldom do we have to wonder what we’d like for ourselves nor do we typically have any doubt what we’d like to be rid of. We’re usually working on practical goals along these lines, in fact. Then there are those goals that don’t have an obvious course of action as well as intentions that are proving more difficult to honor than expected. It’s the very things without a clearcut approach that may well impact our practical issues, too. In order to move forward, we need to own whatever’s been holding us back. Understanding what has the potential to defeat us or what negativity we’re (hopefully) keeping at bay allows acceptance &, ideally, even the acceptance that we can’t help going through it.
Clearly, the more conscious we can be of thoughts & feelings that could undermine us, the better equipped we are to fight back. However, thought processes tend to be just as inescapable as feelings are unbidden. Rather than fight our own internal workings, leaving us entangled by them, it’s time to embrace them. We can’t work through that which we’re caught up in thus the need to truly own what we’re thinking & feeling. In claiming it as our own, proclaiming our right to go through it & reclaiming the process itself; we begin anew. Some ranting, venting &/or wallowing may will be required along the way but, when we’re done, we really are! Only then can we move on – having once again come to terms with what it is to be human & had our say to boot – either with a clean slate or the know-how to defeat what would otherwise keep defeating us.
(|_|*cheers*|_|)
“To the dim and bewildered vision of humanity, God’s care is more evident in some instances than in others; and upon such instances men seize, and call them providences. It is well that they can; but it would be gloriously better if they could believe that the whole matter is one grand providence.”
~ George Macdonald ~
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Their traditions may be at odds, given the fasting of Palm Sunday & feasting of St. Patrick’s Day, but they’ve shared important themes. Although inspired by freedom of religion, they each led to social change. Whatever your opinion of the man who triumphantly rode into Jerusalem one Passover, history shows that he was not only a rabbi but a rebel. Jesus not only questioned the organized religion of the time but encouraged regular people to take a stand. Whether you agree with His teachings about God, the lessons we can hopefully agree on are that we each matter & all have the ability — as well as the right — to impact our society.
Also met with extreme opposition, St. Patrick affected social reform in his time too by building schools, not just churches. His legacy continued when mistreated Irish refugees to America united in defiance, becoming known as “the green machine.” A hundred years after the first St. Patrick’s Day Parade simply reminded soldiers of home, Irish Americans changed how they were perceived. Another century later, in 1948, President Truman attended New York City’s St. Patrick’s Day parade. Ultimately, the shamrock connects the two holidays best as it symbolizes the Trinity; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit expressible in its three leaves as separate elements of the same entity.
It’s the spirit of the individual that triumphs in both histories. Palm fronds have long symbolized triumph & the shamrock was worn during the 19th century Irish rebellion against England. Jesus, His followers, St. Patrick & those shamrock-wearing Irish rebels were all facing death for their actions yet stuck to their convictions in the long run. Most of us risk far less, whatever our choices may be, so should never hesitate to take what action we can. Each palm frond & shamrock worn make a statement, one of individualism as well as shared pride. Every simple act & honest word lend to the shaping of our society in the process of shaping us.
Grab hold of inspiration where possible & you’ll prove inspirational in turn. By considering other cultures, exploring their traditions & staying open-minded, we effect our own ability to change thus become forces of change. Even if you’re happy with your own life, surely there’s room for improvement & the lives around us deserve our attention too. We don’t need to look for ways to give but need only watch for opportunities to help. Any form of social injustice can be impacted in the simplest ways & all social change is born of individuals working together. Whether we’re creating new traditions or indulging in old ones, may we enhance each other’s lives through our exploration.
(|_|*cheers*|_|)
“There is an Irish way of paying compliments as though they were irresistible truths which makes what would otherwise be an impertinence delightful.”
~ Katherine Tynan ~
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