Breath

Failing;
is not falling down,
it is staying down.
(anon)

Don't let this breed hate (tarley)

I want this to stop (anon)

One solution : evolution (anon)

The quotes above were written on the boarded up windows of the Debenhams in Clapham Junction, (London) after the rioting and looting of the last few weeks. Most of the messages were of love, but some were also of anger and hate. It saddened me to watch the young people (our children) destroy and pillage their own community. But through these events, we were awakened to the desperation and hopelessness that some of these young people feel. Out of these tragic events, a sense of community was born, whereby people came together in love and support to clean up their towns.

Russell Brand wrote a poignant and candid article (The Guardian, Aug 11) exploring the reasons why these young people would destroy their own community and his words came from a time in his own personal experience, as a teenager when he too felt a sense of hopelessness and frustration. He finished the article with the following message: 'If we want to live in a society where people feel included, we must include them, where they feel represented, we must represent them and where they feel love and compassion for their communities then we, the members of that community, must find love and compassion for them.'

And that brings me to my next point: Neal Donald Walsh talks about 'touch'. He says that we touch around 120,000 people in our lifetime, through every single person we encounter, from our family, friends, colleagues to the local tramp we give money to, or the shop assistant we see daily at our local shop. This gives us an opportunity day by day, moment to moment whether those encounters are inspiring, uplifting and positive or not?!

People want to be seen. By looking directly into their eyes you are saying 'I see the wonder and magnificence that is you.' Eyes are the windows to the soul.

Smile at people. It says I agree with what I am seeing.

Touch. Make a connection - recreate the connection between you and all of life.

This makes a difference to the people you encounter every day and creates a flowering, permission for people to be themselves. Being is doing!


Breath

Amongst a time of overwhelming,
despair and outrage -
A flowering must come;
Fragility and beauty revealing,
the wisdom within.
A whisper of its promise,
The gentlest of breath;
And breath unites us in our
humanity,
We are -
but one breath.

LB






The following poem was inspired by riots

Depth

 'Nothing is as beautiful as your heart's surrender and the radiant offering of your devotion. Your love opens my heart endlessly, even when I would otherwise forget love's depth.'
(David Deida)

Love means different things to different people. But usually it is an emotion given in part, alongside a set of conditions or expectations. True love is meant to be unconditional, but it takes a very brave and courageous person to put themselves out there, without barriers or guards. But unless you are prepared to fully give yourself, to the expansiveness of love; you will never achieve it's true depth and will always feel a sense of frustration and unfulfilment. Loving unconditionally is not a normal state, but a natural one. We become so accustomed to living within the perimeters of fear, that we forget the incredible sweetness and expansion one feels when you step away and freefall into the abyss of bliss.

Describe it to me!

Describe it to me!
It is the butterflies in my tummy, when you walk in the door.
It is the assurances you give, when you're not even sure.
It is the touch I reach out for, without being aware.
It is the nearness I feel, when you're not even there.
It is the stab in my heart, when I contemplate its loss.
It is the compliments that sing out, that are never forgot.
It is the way that you say aloud my name, with such care.
It is the greatness you see, that I'm longing to bear.
It is the gravity that exerts, it's pull on our cells.
It is the yearning of the soul, to be completely fulfilled.
It is the mass of the water, flowing across seabeds and rocks.
It is the playful ripples on the surface, circles from shocks.
It is the vibrational hum, the connectivity of all.
It is the warmth and the fuzziness, that makes me freefall.
It is the seasons, the tides and the cycles of the moon.
It is both pain and immense joy, that flips over so soon.
It is a knowingness, a faith, an energy that lives on.
An eternity of feeling, even when we're both gone.

LB

Time

 'Time is a sequence of happenings'

Without time, there would be no order to our life and everything in our life would happen simultaneously in a blink of an eye. And that would make our time on Earth very brief indeed! So time is a concept of the mind which spaces out the events or milestones in our life, so that each journey of growth can evolve naturally and progressively. When every personal milestone is reached 'at the right time' we have a sense of unity, a fitting in with the status quo. But if we are late to finish education, get married or have a baby (supposing that this be your personal choice to do these things!) then we can feel that we are failing in some way.

I have never been so aware of time as I am now! When a majority of friends and acquaintances are meeting their partners and getting married and those people are starting families, one is aware of certain milestones in life and those social pressures that come along with it. As a wife and mother, it can become a lot harder to realise and focus on achieving personal goals and dreams. There are other people to think about and usually they come first. But our goals, hopes and dreams are always there waiting to be realised, regardless of our responsibilities.


It's a Serious Word

When all is said and done -
How will you think of me?
Each and every moment,
A sequence of my life in time.

How will it be judged?
I have done what I have done.
Why, my memories;
They are like puddles in the rain,
Sometimes as clear as a photograph,
And other times hazy! Like peering through wet glass.
I fill in the gaps.

Ask me about my emotions.
I remember those intricately,
But I suppose you have no need for those!
They are like clouds passing through my sunshine.
We have to be reminded - that they always pass.

Am I just a cloud myself?
Here today, gone tomorrow.
Everything an illusion;
Along with my puddle of memories,
A mirror, in the looking glass.
Time -
It's a serious word
With weighty expectation.
Time...

LB

Faith

Much has changed in me since my last post. I have reflected on a lot of things in my life and taken steps to change those things that are no longer helpful to me. As a result of this; relationships have been strengthened, other relationships have fallen to the side and naturally gone their own way. My work has expanded into new areas, my health, fitness and motivation has improved and most importantly I have gained perspective, set some goals and become inspired to work on my positivity. Whilst doing all this I have travelled to two countries and been inspired to be better in lots of different ways. The following poem is about faith and being able to let go of those things that no longer serve your purpose. Remember that when something leaves your life, something else always moves into that space!

Let it Be

Let it fall-
As sand seeps quietly through
the fingertips,
I cling fast;
Yet quicker still it grabs it's freedom.

Let the sun set-
For I cannot desire it's light,
It will shine yet another day;
But for now it rests above a
quilt of cloud.
It's secret kingdom.

Let the moon hide-
It's silver only tarnishes my
hopes,
Better to not bear witness to
it's metallic hue;
For melancholy thrives in greys
of shade.

Let me be-
For stillness speaks,
And this voice will carry me past
these troubled waters;
Moulded from faith,
All is well,
And this is - but a dream.

LB

Driftwood

There comes a time in life where everything starts to feel very comfortable; work is good, relationships are built, one has become adept at managing every aspect of their life. And we are happy with the constancy of it all. But! There is always a 'but'. This 'but' comes before a nagging sense of frustration or dissatisfaction that one is not excelling in life, and has become accustomed to compromise. If our life suddenly brings forth some challenge, we are distracted by this for a while and forget these nagging feelings of frustration until everything is once again in a place of peace. Then those feelings once more appear. The answer to this, would of course be to stay in the present moment - always! remain non-judgemental towards yourself and others, stay true to your self, appreciate everything, find sources of inspiration, stay connected to your true desires and action your intentions! Easier said than done, but we have a lifetime to practice!



Driftwood

Like a piece of driftwood,
I am afloat.
Still - upon the river,
The canvas changes before my eyes.
Hypnotised - by the moving picture,
Seasons pass by; from shade to shade
not stormy eye, nor summer's glade
Can make me reign,
My life drawn in
Until I am nudged - to wake again.

LB

,

Change

 'Without fear, then courage doesn't exist.'

Change can be difficult, because the unknown is scary! And some of us would rather stay in a negative and draining life situation (a job we don't like, an injury that prevents us living life fully etc) rather than allow and action new opportunities that present themselves, to bring colour and regeneration into our lives. And those new opportunities are always there waiting in the wings, if only we would open our eyes to them! But change represents a personal growth in ourselves; which in turn has an indirect effect on those around us. We can become masters or experts in resisting change, creating imaginative and intricate justifications within ourselves, that can become as powerful as to make us ill or fatigued. And sometimes the people closest to us can unconsciously challenge any change within you, because indirectly they are nudged into their own reflections. Be aware of the resistance within yourself and lovingly let this state of awareness lead to a softening, which will in turn allow things to flow.


The Shedding of The Skin

The shedding of the skin;
Begins when one is ready -
It requires a humble space
Where time is made available -
For it's desiderata.

Shifting and squirming,
Can be done with dignity -
In the quiet of the cocoon, but;
Do not despair - for I am but all
and the same,
With the shedding of a layer,
No longer required.

Should people proffer help,
One can get stuck between the
Old and the new;
Unable to take courage and drive
It's momentum.
We are half in and half out;
The added burden of -
transformation unfulfilled.

LB

Fear

'to fear or not to fear'

'Kent Davidsson' explores the concept of fear in some detail in his articles published on the net. He considers how society encourages us to heavily judge, ignore or deny our fears and this in turn creates more fear. Where there is fear, there is no love! This is an interesting concept, for if light and darkness cannot co-exist in the same energy space of an individual's emotional body, neither can fear and love. The dark, dense energy space of fear blocks our loving potential and the only way through it, is to get into that space fully (as uncomfortable as that might be!) and embrace our fear. Like a loving parent who loves unconditionally and non-judgementally; by doing this we are coming from a place of self acceptance.

'that is the paradox of fear. It negates love, yet will persist until it is loved'

So the path to handling fear is to come from a state of unconditional, loving self acceptance. This might sound easy, but we have been conditioned throughout our life to dump huge amounts of negative feelings onto ourselves when feeling fearful (guilt, blame, shame etc) and it takes careful awareness and persistency at mastering this skill. But it is worth doing, because when fear is handled in this way, then the fear is healed and released and not contained in the body.

We must love our fear unconditionally as we do the emotion of love, and then we are not controlled by the state of fear. We have the choice to face and overcome our painful emotions and not avoid them. This is the path of growth, and growth is necessary throughout our journey in life. The greater the resistance, the more intense the desire that it creates.

Beautifully put:

'it is nearly impossible to imagine our fully healed states - just as a caterpillar can't imagine itself as a butterfly'

Below is a poem by Hart Crane:

Fear

The host, he says that all is well
And the fire-wood glow is bright;
The food has a warm and tempting smell, -
But on the window licks the night.

Pile on the logs...Give me your hands,
Friends! No, - it is not fright...
But hold me...somewhere I heard demands...
And on the window licks the night.

Hart Crane


Don't Open the Door!

Don't open the door,
You know who it is.
Slide it open an inch,
And it will slime it's way in.
Thick, oppressive black smoke,
Shrouded in doubts.
It'll push you to the corner,
And never let you out!


Don't open the door,
For you won't like your guest.
He'll eat all your food,
And sleep in your bed.
He'll fatten on doubts,
And breathe through your fears.
He'll grow into a monster,
That'll live inside you for years!

LB