Tuesday, December 15, 2009

The Art of Conversation

One-sided, shallow conversation...showcasing the person who talks at you - not to you...the kind of person who is so busy thinking about what they want to say next, they're not really listening to what you have to say...they don't respond to the words you've spoken...they just move forward so the show doesn't end before they have the opportunity to say their lines.





The Art of Conversation?

What’s the point…
you don’t listen

What’s the point…
you don’t engage

What’s the point…
It’s not that easy

What’s the point…
It’s just your stage

If you’re funny enough
If you’re serious enough
If it makes you feel good...You think it’s real

What’s the point…
More explanation

What’s the point…
More of the same

What’s the point…
Not really interesting

What’s the point…
It is your stage


If it looks like you’re trying
If it makes you feel good
If it sells you to you...Conversation?



Today's Silver Lining: Listen anyway...perhaps they need that moment...seek fulfilling conversation elsewhere.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

The Hunter

It is said that, "Two heads are better than one." While I believe that is true, it is truer still that two souls are better than one.

Recently, I was told by someone that while his vocabulary may be quite large, he didn't have the ability to affect the soul of another with his words. Of course I knew this to be untrue.

I often borrow the beauty of other's words for my poetry. It isn't that his words weren't beautiful...he just wasn't hearing them from my perspective. You see, I listen with a sense of wonder. I hear the beauty and visualize the depth of his words... affecting the soul of another:

The Hunter

Lagging behind
Soaking up scenery

Sitting motionless
Consuming God's creation

Quietly watching

Deer
Playing in the rain

Raccoons
Frolicking in tall grass

Hunting,
Hunting for beauty
Soothing his soul

Today's Silver Lining: Your words, my perspective...two souls, better than one.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Shattered

My room in high school was once a living area. The door was a sliding glass door. For privacy, my mom lined the inside of the glass with black contact paper and hung curtains on the outside of the door that was viewed from the rest of the house.

One day as I entered my room there was a very strange sound. It was as if tiny pebbles were falling gently upon a solid surface. I looked around and saw nothing.

It was not until much later that the mystery of the falling pebbles was solved....one day I finally looked behind the curtain of my sliding glass door and saw that the glass was shattered...but held together by the contact paper. It was a beautiful sight...a brilliant pattern of shattered glass backed by darkness.

Once upon a time I had a vision of "shattered" that was beautiful...recently I've experienced a new version of shattered. This is not the place to discuss the cause...But I will say that never could I have imagined hearts more shattered...shattered hearts backed with darkness...

However, I have since remembered how amazed we were that the broken pieces of the sliding glass door hadn't collapsed. Somehow it all stayed in place and we were able to make repairs without the shattered glass being scattered about. Somehow this gives me hope...

My contact paper lives within my heart. I invited him there when I was a child...he holds me together when I remember to let him...I pray each morning to remember...

I am broken...but not scattered. I am beautiful in my current condition...I will not hide. I will let the light shine upon me and hopefully through me.

Today's silver lining: When light strikes shattered glass...the result is magnificent. Let the light shine. Face the light. Remember beauty.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Authentically Me

Written when I was 17


Oceanic

Angrily, the white-capped waves crashed onto the sand.


He approached the shimmering blue-green ocean with outstretched trembling hands.


The enticing undertow cuddled him as he entered Death's rippling door.


Is this, to you, insanity?


To him it is serenity...





This poem was written as a classroom assignment. I won a small award for it and had my picture in the paper with other "winners". It was the 1st time I ever really considered myself a poet. I started with a list of words and it eventually became what you read above. I'd love to say that I've been writing ever since... I can't. Somewhere a long the way, this piece of me vanished. Then one day I bumped into an old friend who unintentionally reminded me of who I once was...I have been writing ever since that day. Thanks, old friend.





Today's Silver Lining: You really can be who your truly are...but it takes risk and bravery to be authentic.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Don't Rain on my Parade

I love the movie Funny Girl....chasing a dream, living without fear, embracing who you are...one of the greatest songs of all time:




"...At least I didn't fake it...I simply gotta march, my heart's a drummer...nobody's gonna rain on my parade...

Oooo, life is juicy..."

Some people lift their face to the sun...others simply squint and run to the darkness.

Today's Silver Lining: I will always lift my face toward the sun.

Monday, August 24, 2009

I Didn't Need You

I need you
Your ability to expose me lights me from within


I need you
Your thoughts are my truth


I need you
Your rhythm is my heartbeat


I need you
It's your name I speak while I sleep

I need you
It's the cadence of your voice I long to hear

I need you
I long to simply brush against you

You share, you question, you push, you challenge, you reveal

I didn’t need you
I have no desire to need you

But I do...

And you can't find me.



Today's Silver Lining: I'm installing a GPS. :)

Friday, July 3, 2009

Altruism

The soft light that dimly flickers
illuminating the true beauty of handcrafted paper

The morning dew that delicately clings
drawing attention to the web's complicated design

The unexpected breeze that gently stirs
revealing the leaves' silvery loveliness of the under side

The springtime sun that splendidly shines
coaxing the flower to turn its head and bask in the warmth


Unselfishly revealing gifts otherwise ignored
Benefactors of a serendipitous encounter


Today's Silver Lining: Beauty revealed through serendipity.

Saturday, June 20, 2009

With My Heart Wide Open

Today I share with you one of my favorite poems. It's sad and raw... as emotions can be...

Many days of darkness
Have shone upon my face
A broken heart, wounded pride
Not mine, but his disgrace

With my heart wide open
He shouldered his way in
Only then, to slam the door
Because he let Her in

It isn’t me, it never was
He needs Another’s love
It isn’t me, it never was

Even with my heart wide open

Belittled, broken, dark within
i begged him to come home
And so we journeyed once again,
A broken, hollow home

my goal: to be the picture of good faith and gratitude
Now i'm sadly broken in a new and different way…

It isn’t me, it never was
He needs Another’s love
It isn’t me, it never was

Even with my heart wide open

Believing him, This second chance:
my gift - beyond all grace!
Impossible to see the truth
While looking at his face

my goal: to be the picture of good faith and gratitude
Now I'm sadly broken in a new and different way…

It isn’t me, it never was
He needs Another’s love
It isn’t me, it never was

Even with my heart wide open

Today's silver lining: Live with your heart wide open anyway!

Monday, June 1, 2009

My life is Not Like a Box of Chocolates

"Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get."

We've all heard Forest speak those words and we've all repeated that line time and time again. The first time I heard it, I thought it was amazing ...and well, it still is.

The thing is, I don't really believe it.

I believe life is actually like a bag of Oreos: fabulous, sweet and messy (especially if you hold them in the milk long enough)! Peel back that easy open pull tab and you get exactly what you expected....Oreos!

Sometimes I open the bag only to discover that the Oreos are broken...and that can be disappointing. It sure makes it hard to dunk them in the milk without having to fish around for the broken pieces! That can be messy, but it sure is worth the effort. They taste a bit better when I have to work for them.

Sometimes I discover that someone has taken all but one of the Oreos. That is frustrating...I suppose I can't always have what I want. But you know what, it beats an empty bag any day!

The truly devastating moment is when you look up on top of the fridge and see NOTHING! I had my palette set! I already had a glass of milk poured and ready for dunking! Now what? I guess some things are just not meant to be. Perhaps I'm meant to choose another option.

Now, I could ignore Oreos altogether...just leave the bag sitting there, unopened and never experience the joy of consuming such treats! That's just sad and well, it's Oreo abuse!

I choose to grab that bag, rip it open and chow down! Bring on the flavor and the mess! I've got napkins...a paper towel?....okay, I do have a sleeve! The mess will not deter me from the experience!

Eating Oreos is a very personal experience:
  • Eat them right out of the bag.
  • Twist off the top, eat the frosting and throw away the cookie.
  • Twist off the top, eat the frosting and then eat the cookie.
  • Twist off the top, eat the top, eat the frosting and then eat the other cookie.
  • Dunk the cookie quickly into the milk and eat while still crisp.
  • ...okay, I think you get the picture.

My personal Oreo experience includes a very cold short glass of milk, a few Oreos and a napkin.

  1. Dunk the entire Oreo in the milk.
  2. Hold the Oreo in the milk until the bubbles stop.
  3. Put the entire Oreo in my mouth and let the cookie melt and enjoy the chocolaty Double Stuf!
  4. Repeat as necessary!
Life is like a bag of Oreos...fabulous, sweet, and messy! Are you going to ignore the bag or rip back that easy open pull tab and enjoy?

Today's silver lining: Double Stuf!

Thursday, May 28, 2009

The Expedition: Join Me

ex⋅pedition
–noun
1.
an excursion, journey, or voyage made for some specific purpose, as of war or exploration.
expedition. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Retrieved May 28, 2009, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.classic.reference.com/browse/expedition

I'm on a personal expedition.

A very good friend recently wrote, "...the tension of the “unknown element”, that is always part of the lure of an expedition." So very true...I begin this expedition with the very specific purpose of exploring the "unknown element(s)" of my faith, life and love.

As I see it, an expedition is initiated by questions. Those a part of the journey are propelled forward by the questions revealed along the way. At the expedition's conclusion, those questions left unanswered are the catalyst for the next excursion.

As storm clouds pass overhead, they block the sun. But look more closely at the edge of every cloud and you can see the sun shining just beyond...like a silver lining.

I am above the storm...claiming my silver lining.

Journey with me as I claim my silver lining.