comfortable

by

THOUGHT LEADER

Thought Leaders

are especially

important

during times of

Disruptive Innovation,

a concept

used in

this time

when things

aren’t working

and ways of thinking and doing

must be changed.

Since Pope Francis was chosen,

he has become a

powerful

THOUGHT LEADER.

From his first moments

Pope Francis

showed his

humility

asking for us

to pray for him.

He chose

simple garments,

comfortable black shoes,

paid his own hotel bill,

moved into a

simple apartment.

During Holy Week,

he washed the feet of the poor,

not all Catholics.

He told priests

to be merciful and compassionate

 towards those who are divorced

women who have had

abortions.

When asked about homosexuals,

he replied,

“Who am I to judge?”

Smiling,

he loves everyone

and in return,

he is loved.

The rules have not necessarily changed,

but the

TONE

has completely.

This change in tone is

Francis’

greatest achievement,

and it is HUGE!

In this

political season,

candidates

could learn

because Pope Francis

is an astute politician

in the best sense of the word.

As a South American

he sees the entrenched Vatican

as needing to be cleaned up,

finances and favoritism,

swept out.

Reflecting

compassion.

the tone,

the message

is that God is a God

of LOVE,

not JUDGMENT.

The Church’s role

is to make God

accessible.

Coming to the United States,

his first trip to North America,

he will speak

at the United Nations,

address Congress,

say Mass in Madison Square Garden.

Popular entertainers will

engage people,

using their words and music

to

open up people’s senses

to the music of their hearts.

Disruptive Innovation.

Bring it on!

by

Active Awareness

Perhaps

you have heard the expression

“If you want to hear God laugh

tell him your plans!”

Lives spent

multi-tasking,

making calendars for

planning ahead,

electronic devices

tracking our whereabouts

through

satellite GPS,

may call

for some TIMEOUT.

There can be so much

to do

in a day,

a week,

a month,

I realized

I needed

to find a perspective.

This is now

my mantra:

“I no longer

make a plan

for myself,

but respond

to the things in my life

that are part of

a pattern

or a plan

I cannot see.”

On the surface,

these words may sound

passive,

but they remind me

to strive for

active awareness.

While I may not

be

in control of events,

I can be ready

to respond.

by

Synchroncity and Opportunity

I see

synchronicity

In

the shocking murder of

nine people

in a Bible class

at the AME Emmanuel Church

in Atlanta

by a young white supremacist ,

many retailers no longer

selling Confederate flags,

the decision in Georgia

and other states

to remove the

Confederate flag

from public display.

President Obama’s

moving eulogy,

words moving into

singing

Amazing Grace with

all joining in.

Conjecture, publicity

To Kill a Mockingbird

 Harper Lee’s beloved book and movie

told by young Scout

seeing her father Atticus

through a child’s eyes.

The much anticipated

release of the

old, discovered

first book

taking place twenty years later.

Go Set A Watchman,

portraying Atticus

in a segregated  town,

challenged by a

climate, calling, demanding

equal rights for blacks and white.

An Off Broadway show

Hamilton

moves to Broadway

full of hip hop

historical characters played by

multi-racial cast.

Another play

Amazing Grace 

opens on

Broadway,

its writer, leaving his job

compelled to write this story

and produce it.

Publisher of Between the World and Me

by Ta-Nehisi Coates

moves up release date

so we can read

his words written to

his fifteen year old son.

Growing up in Baltimore,

he feels the same

fear for his son

as week by week

there are

unnecessary murders

by police of young black men

barely adults.

Whatever events, words, books, musicals

might stir you,

move me,

the convergence

is an opportunity.

In the words of Amazing Grace

that forgiveness and redemption

are possible

regardless of sins committed,

“Amazing grace!

How sweet the sound

That saved a wretch like me!

I once was lost,

but now am found,

Was blind,

but now I see.”

What can I see now

that I did not see before?

What do you see

that you did not see before?

“‘Twas grace that taught

my heart to fear,

And grace my fears

reliev’d;

How precious did that grace appear

The hour I first believed!”

by

Where To Begin

You

do not

convince

people

with arguments,

strategies,

or tactics.

You

convince them

by learning

how to

welcome

them.

For that,

it is

necessary

to keep

doors

open,

above all

the doors

to the heart.

Pope Francis, South America, July, 2015

Let there be peace

on Earth.

And let it

begin

with me!

by

My Weather Report

Global warming,

Heat waves

Ten feet of snow in the Northeast

still melting in July

in “snow farms”.

Grit and lost cars and smaller things appear

as the snow melts

to reveal

what plows picked up

unseen to the drivers

in the sculptured hills on the roads.

Weather extremes

Tornado watches

Homes blown to the ground.

Treasures lost.

Hurricanes

named now for

men and women.

Seas rising.

Homes and businesses

flooded out,

destroyed beyond repair.

This week

temperatures and humidity

have ranged.

My weather report

is measured by

the four nighties

hanging,

each worn

on nights where

long sleeves brought comfort,

sleeveless for mid-range,

short sleeveless,

and last night

the thinest strapped

 short blue flowered.

Waking up

this morning,

the storm had blown

out the high heat and humidity

 and

I pulled up the

covers

and took a warm shower,

then dressed for a mid-temperature day.

The pretty weather forecasters

might reveal

their forecast

this way

and

bring a smile

as we listen

to the forecast

which is often

unpredictable

and unreliable.

by

Seesaw

Did you play

on a seesaw

as a child

or maybe be lured to a

big one in a park?

Balancing

back and forth is

made easier

if the other rider

is about

the same size.

If a different

height or weight

the back and forth

requires closer

attention.

Imagine the momentary,

usually fleeting moment

when the riders

are evenly balanced

on the triangle stand

in the middle.

Three lines

visualized

in my mind

remind me

of the seesaw.

An upside down V

two lines,

and one line

evenly placed at the top of the

upside down

V.

Life

is usually more of the

back and forth,

sometimes

smoothly exchanging

the upper

with the lower.

Fleeting

stillness

when both sides

are

just

paused

in balance.

I try

to notice

the moment of stillness.

Grateful.

I am also aware

that the

seesaw of my life

can be going

back and forth,

abruptly.

I need

to adjust

my balance.

Sometimes

the weight on

the other side of the

seesaw

disappears

and

I am thrown

off balance

and realize

I must

re-establish

my

inner

gyroscope

on my own.

There are times

when

I am unaware

of how little

can upset

my sense of

being

in

balance.

by

Too Much in Your Pack?

Are you carrying a lot on your shoulders?

Assume a quiet state of mind.

Visualize.

Think of a pack on your back.

What is in the pack?

What is making it too heavy to carry?

See yourself

removing the weight from the pack.

How does it feel now?

Do you need to remove more weights from your pack

so that you can carry it?

How do you feel now?

Sometimes we don’t know

how much we are carrying

until we lighten the load.

LivingLines p. 235

by

More Than a Cliche?

Spiritual but not religious.

What does that mean

to you

or to others?

Pew Research Center

polls

these trends.

Their findings

show

the number of people

unaffiliated

with any religious body

is continuing

to grow

at a rapid pace.

The number is

about one-fifth

of the U.S. public

and

one-third

of adults under thirty.

However,

two-thirds

of this

unaffiliated group

say they

believe in God.

Churches and places

of worship

are being sold

and re-purposed.

One denomination

buys and forms

a  new congregation,

a community

with another way

for worship.

Empty churches

can be

discouraging.

Some people and families

are coming together in

different places,

some in homes

where

as the Bible

says,

“Wherever there are more

than two people gathered,

there am I

in their midst.”

Spiritual but not religious.

Is that how you feel?

Are you seeking

others

to create

new rituals

which express

and become

community

for you?

by

Pruning

Pruning. . .

not only speaks of

cutting back

but also of the

ultimate blossoming

that takes place

when it is done properly.

-Henri Nouwen

In horticultural, pruning encourages growth. But knowing where to cut to maximize growth requires expertise. The image of pruning has become increasingly important to me. One place I’ve tried to prune is my natural impulse to solve someone else’s problems rather than support that person’s own decisions.

by

Friends

One thought

my Mother

shared with me-

if you have one real friend in your lifetime

you are very fortunate.

I am

blessed

with a

bouquet of friends.

Each is like a different flower.

Our reciprocal  relationships

have brought out

our many

interests, talents

and ways of being.

When a family member

is also a friend,

the splendor

of each of us

grows.

The special depth

with some friends

makes them

Soul Friends,

Anam Cara

in Gaelic.

My Mother

would be so

pleased

to know

how many really

wonderful friends

fill my life

with love.