full (egg) moon

http://marieelisabethsrum.blogspot.com/

i began my day with my usual, eggs. 
filling up with protein, beginning with the beginning of life. 


eggs: the balance. 
          a hard shell, so easily broken... 
          appearing clear, until cooked...
          the symbol of spring. 


what came first, the chicken or the egg? 

margaret macdonald

there's a centering when eating eggs. an awareness of taking in the possibility of birth... birth that feeds your morning, that breaks your fast. 

i crack the eggs. 

the children come running:

 "what are you doing?" "what are you making?"  

breakfast, of course. 

unknown source

i finished my day with another orb, brilliant and balanced. full and rising. tangled in trees, swirled with clouds... the sky stained with just enough color to indicate days getting longer, sap stirring. 

a moon that waxes and wanes~ that remembers cycles, that renews itself each mo(o)nth, that pulls at the ocean, that creates tides. a moon that never rushes. a moon that sees us through our most romantic evenings and through our darkest nights. 

this moon stains the snow with shadows, and lights the sea with direction and hope.  

this full moon finds me on a balancing point. full of light. full of love.

full of eggs and the moon.  

open to everything~

 kay nielson

"all the seeds beneath the snow start to grow, all the seeds that lie below are the ones we sowed...."

                              ~the wailin' jennys

i've been wishing for snow this winter in a way i haven't since days of dreaming of snow days and the thrill of snow forts and wet snowsuits hanging in the tub to dry. this has not been a winter (so far...) of snowstorm after snowstorm dumping inches and feet of the glittering white, not the winter of shoveling callouses. there have been days when i couldn't see the earth hiding under snow and ice, but not weeks. in fact, when i got home from the grocery store yesterday, my feet sunk into the mud of our driveway, and i felt that slurpy suck, and, yes! smelled the earth. my wishes for snow this year are for different reasons than my wishes as a child. this year i've been wishing for deep snow for protection for the precious seeds i planted in the fall, for the seeds buried deep in my spirit and my soul.

i've been a little worried~ worried that the spring is coming before the winter does its work, that the leaves haven't had time to blend into earth, that the ground hasn't had enough time to rest and restore. sometimes i worry that way. 

From piccsy.com

"i hear a bird chirping up in the sky. 
i'd like to be free like that, spread my wings so high.
i see the river flowing, water running by. i'd like to be that river, see what i might find. 
i feel that wind that blowing slowly changing time. i'd like to be that wind i'd swirl and shape the sky.
i smell the flowers blooming, opening for spring.  i'd like to be those flowers, open to everything. "
              ~the wailin' jennys

and then i remember about being like those flowers, "open to everything". after all, those seeds that we planted deep in the soil in the fall have been resting in the dark. and those seeds that are meant to sprout in strength will. and those that need a hard winter to usher them into spring will wait until the next one of those winters happens. 

Photo by FlynetPictures.com

i saw the movie 'extremely loud and incredibly close" this weekend, and loved the "lesson of the swing". the young boy in the film is scared of going on swings because they "aren't safe." his father (tom hanks) urges him to just try it. here's another one of those images that reassures me when i start to worry if things are going "as they should". sure, it's safe to stand on the ground, and wait for the time to be "just right", but then what about the thrill and TRUST of simply sitting down on the swing, and beginning to feel the swing, the pull, the lift. the flight. the courage to get on and swing in the movie came after a "harsh winter".... perhaps the seeds i planted in the fall won't need that. perhaps they're already stirring, and feeling the impatience of 'when will spring arrive?' perhaps they're ready to feel the warmth and wonder of spring, and light, and new life. 

From ucmoons.tumblr.com

From cargocollective.com

so, i'm climbing on this swing, and i'm feeling the pull of spring coming... even if it is early, even if the winter hasn't been what i thought it might. because i don't need to decide how it should be. i need to decide how i will be. and my seeds? i believe in them and all that is within them. i can't wait to see them peak their heads above the earth and see what an amazing place it is. 

"swing low. sail high!"

        ~the wailin' jennys

"hope puts the color in the sky..."

From ucmoons.tumblr.com

"when did we get so careful? when did we lose ourselves? afraid, we fade out."

~matt nathanson

i've been drawn to that anias nin quote for years... the one when the "day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." and i keep finding it in my consciousness again these days. obviously, this is the new year, and i'm talking about revolutions here, so i've been thinking about what is the revolution that is honestly happening inside. for years, i've been drawn to this quote... for now, i'm feeling like i'm beginning to live it.

 i'm loving the stretch, the making room, the opening wide... i have to slow down a bit to let it all sink in. 

the past few days i've been sitting with books in my lap, and remembering what it feels like to turn pages, feel one side of the book go from thin to thick as i move through it. and that's what the greater part of my life is feeling like too... going from thin to thick as i move through it. when i'm sliding through my days, not paying attention, the ice feels thin, and ready to crack at any moment. but when i slow down and notice, my footing (even if it is ice), becomes thick and ready for anything.  

ucmoons.tumblr.com

i've been "tight in the bud" for about the right amount of time, i'd say. i've let myself grow into that space, and i've loved being there, and now i'm ready to surprise myself with whatever comes by peeking my head out of this handy little bud that has sheltered and nourished me. 

 ucmoons.tumblr.com  

the risk to blossom. it can feel like jumping into choppy seas. fragmented. it can feel like going backwards, to when you were young and tender and innocent, and naive. but it can also feel quite "grownup". i have a crowd of people around me like lifeboats filled with cheerleaders (how lucky am i!?!?). i have a love of salty water, and an innate ability to float. i have vision and verve, and know when i need to simply breathe. 

ready to risk the blossoming. ready to burst into a beautiful new day. 

you?

a revolution

From nadafarmlife.blogspot.com  

when it's cold outside, and there's a new blanket of snow on the ground, everything is frosted with glittering light and appears to be a blank slate... 

kind of like new year's day. today. 

and there's a part of me, on new year's day, that wants to hold this moment of perfect silvery clarity, and not touch it.

in the end, though, that's not my nature. my truth is to get out there and get into it. 

and of course, when you go out walking in the snow, what is just beneath it is revealed: smells of wet earth, crunch of dead leaves, color of anything but white. 

this is the revolution. 

no new year's reSOLutions this year. no, ma'am, i'll take the power of a reVOLution. i'll take the reigns of this beautiful year ahead, and ride it hard and happy!!

this year, i will walk out onto that white canvas, and enjoy the steps, enjoy the footprints i will make. finding the beauty laid out before me, finding the freshness that is every day. when i walk out into each day, i'll find all that is waiting for me. i'll dig in, and explore, and dare to be me. for although the footsteps may seem to mar the image of the freshly fallen and undisturbed snow, once they're there, they imply search, enjoyment, movement, appreciation. 

From tangiebaxter.typepad.com  

listening to our hearts can be challenged in the noise and abundance of december, but january~ oh sweet january is stark and simple. sitting in an empty room with nothing but light to keep you company; light and your heart beating gratitude, beating hot blood living, beating a rhythm that makes sense to your soul. and now you can actually hear it. oh, hear it!!! 


step out into this year with me. find that earthly musty muck from which we come, and where we will return, under your feet. feel it sucking you in. and remember it's from that mud that comes the spring growth... but for now, digest and enjoy the cold snap of reality that is present in the first day of the year. 

From abluekindofgreen.tumblr.com  

abundance in balance

From images.search.yahoo.com

the year is ending. 
culminating. 


these are the moments of peak, of most, of all. 


and it's the time of putting all of our experiences from this entire past year into our hearts~ packing them away like fragile and textured decorations from the tree~ letting them fill spaces that were empty before. letting them influence the other treasures in the box of the soul. letting them give deeper meanings to precious experiences that we've been carrying for many years. 


it's a time of abundance, family and finger food. the time for cheer, sadness, sleeping in other spaces, and waking up on christmas morning with giddy hearts and leaping children. 

From mariapacewynters.wordpress.com 

it is the time when wishes are granted and gathered under a tree, when families are found again (smells remembered, memories and spice tea stirred), when eyes brighten in candlelight, 

and it's when time slows to almost timeless.

vibrant and deep colors abound. 

music and food is rich and layered. 

friends fill mailboxes with photos. 

the countdown is on!!! 

shoulders rub in shops. 

chocolate and mint marry merrily. 

wrapping paper waits to reveal the questions.  

 wreaths warm doors with the ever green.

then, it happens. 

the narcissus bulbs reach the point of no return. they burst open, sending their scent as a reminder that it's time to simply stop. their white petals glitter with the magic of this moment. for the pinnacle has passed. the denouement has arrived. 

denouement:

The final part of a play, movie, or narrative in which the strands of the plot are drawn together and matters are resolved. The climax of a chain of events, usually when something is decided or made clear.

sweet relief. 

what is being made clear to you now? 

what's clear to me, is that it's good to be back at the blog. it's good to have this release. 

what a lovely year it has been. 

i'm ready for the new, though... are you? 

it is in the giving that we receive

in the prayer of st. francis of assisi, it is said,

"make me an instrument of thy peace.

where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

where there is sadness, joy.

grant that i may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console,

to be understood as to understand,

to be loved as to love;

for it is in giving that we receive,

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

it is in dying [to self] that we are born to eternal life."

these are the days of thanksgiving. these are the days when we make lists of things and people for whom we're thankful. these are days of giving and receiving. 

today, i'm feeling thankful for a little book i found in goodwill this weekend called your life is your message by eknath easwaran. a book that is clearly "right up my alley": full of little gems to accompany anyone on a journey of transformation, hoping for harmony within. the quote above is suggested as a mantra, one of those sayings you repeat over and over throughout your day... a saying that helps get space between all the endless chatter of your mind. 

in this time of thanksgiving, is it easier to sow love instead of hatred? are you more likely to pardon? does your faith feel stronger? can you hope, notice the light, shout for joy? are you an instrument of peace? 

OR... is it harder to take~ all this love and light.

From flickr.com

at this point of this year, i'm on a journey of transformation... i'm looking for deeper harmony within... i'm looking to understand and i'm loving to love. 

it is in the giving that we receive

so what are we giving these days, this time of year? what are we offering of ourselves? when you give, what do you receive? 

your life is your message. 

your life. 

your message. 

what is it? 

will you give your message to us? what will you receive by giving it to us? 

you never know. 

neither do i, but i'm excited to begin. 

 

roots of a smile

From sisterhimalaya.tumblr.com

for some, a smile is lingering just beneath the surface~ just behind the color of the eyes. it's there, but quietly there. 




today i'm wondering where your smile begins, 
and where your smile finds the light.
today i'm wondering what makes it too hard to hold the smile in? what pulls your lips apart, and your eyes to twinkle? 

for some, eye contact is easy. relaxed. 

some don't look away, some can rest in your eyes, 

From feefeern.wordpress.com

are open for what you have to offer.

how do you feel about eye contact? 

who in your life allows you to rest in their gaze?

with whom do you see "eye to eye"? 

From icp.org

From blog.epicedits.com

are you feeling comfortable in your skin today? are you smiling with confidence knowing that you're doing just what you should be doing? just what you're meant to be doing?

From fanpop.com

From mariahinafrica.blogspot.com

is your smile "off to the side"? what do you know that is lighting you from the inside? is a giggle brewing? is that light inside you relaxing your heart or making it flutter with joy? 

From vanessajackman.blogspot.com

i see a lot of quiet and subtle smiles coming from the adults in my life. occasionally, i will see an adult guffaw! blast! explode with laughter. occasionally. and i'm wondering about that tonight. wondering what it would be like if we all walked around like the kids with whom i spend my days.

From elpais.com

the kids who laugh because they can't help themselves. the kids who laugh because, 

why not!?!?

peals of laughter. ripples and tidal waves of laughter. 

all day long. 

how would your day be different if you smiled and laughed like that (again)? 

remember, you too, used to laugh like that. 

nothing quiet about it. 

just pure and loud joy.  

thanks to http://pinterest.com/ucmoons/ for so many of the photos found here... it's a light and bunch of smiles for me most days!!