Wednesday Wish (10)

We are all individuals, but individuals as a part of a whole. If we could step back far enough to see the dance we are each a part of, we might see something like this:

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My Wednesday Wish for You?

To remember that you are a vital part of this dance we call life, that even if you can't feel it, you are an integral part of the whole. Like a symphony, every instrument plays its part and is needed to make the song beautiful. Not only are you never alone, but you make this world of ours more beautiful by playing your tune. Your decisions, matter. Your actions, matter. Your direction in life, matters. You, matter. And when you honor who you are and the tune you were meant to play, you make this dance of life more beautiful for us all.

The Prize is Life

Perhaps this spoke to my heart more than most because I love to write, but then again, we are all artists in our own way. Some of us may just have an easier time honoring that artist within. But regardless, as Alice Walker so beautifully says, 'the prize is life'. It's not something out there that the world gives us. It's something within. So let us all live our lives as fully, as richly, and with as much heartfelt emotion as we can. And if for no one else, then for ourSelves.

Wednesday Wish (9)

Her perfect life fell apart, ending in divorce.

‘How unlucky’ they all said.

Maybe yes, maybe no.

Because she was alone, it was easier for her to follow her heart. 

Her heart took her to Mexico.

‘How lucky’ they all said.

Maybe yes, maybe no.

Because she left her good paying job in the US, she didn’t have the money to buy many of the things she used to enjoy.

‘How unlucky’ they all said.

Maybe yes, maybe no.

Because she had fewer things, life became a lot more simple.

‘How lucky’ they all said.

Maybe yes, maybe no.

Perception. We think with discerning minds but sometimes we forget that we can train our minds to perceive what we want them to perceive. Lucky or unlucky….we can be either one in any situation, but depending on what we chose to perceive, we usually end up feeling just one or the other.

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My Wednesday Wish for you?

To chose lucky. Not when the world says you are lucky but right now, with whatever is going on in your life because you feel it. And if you don’t feel it, chose to feel it, make it so. Go ahead, say I'M LUCKY! Because you are lucky if you believe yourself to be. It’s as simple as that.

Mylina's photostream via Flickr

Just Me and My Sea

When the heavy of my days begins to weigh me down,

when the layers of gunk pile thick upon my skin,

when the hurry, the miscommunications, the forgetting and the remembering,

when the troubles and the worries and the sorrows and the pains,

when they reach that moment,

yes, you know it, too—

its time.

I reach for my bag, string my arms through its loops, slip my bare feet into my flip flops, and off I go.

What begins as cobblestone turns quickly to dirt. I rise up with the hill, turn a corner to pass a grove of mangoes and then, like a tunnel burrowing its way through a mountain, I enter the jungle. The air is rich, thick, heavy as steam. The glossy greens drip with moisture—ferns and philodendrons, coconut palms and strangler figs. Insects hum, a bird twitters its delicate, tropical tune, and if I am quiet enough, I can hear the breathing of the jungle itself. Soft and gentle, as regular as the tide, it breathes in and out with a deep-sleep innocence, with a careful, conscious peace all its own. My steps slow, my heart warms, even my knees loosen. How did I not know my knees were tight?

And just as my own consciousness begins to rise throughout my body like bubbles from the deep, I hear the distant crashing of the surf. A few more strides, just over the ridge, and there she is, the view with a gift—the scent of the sea.

My eyes soften, my lips smile, my body turns fluid even before I reach her shore. This is right, this is good, this is where I am meant to be. I drop my bag and leave my shoes and sundress in a heap upon the sand. They know I will return. I always do. But different. She comes back different, they like to say.

The water licks at my toes, teasing me, inviting me in to play. I slink in slowly, wanting to enjoy every second, every caress, every tender touch to my hungry body thick with heavy from the weight of my days. But soon, I have walked as far as I can; I am immersed, almost completely submerged, held with the soothing arms of the sea. I dive deep, my long hair tickling my back. It’s just me and my sea.

And afterward when the sun begins to set and my casita calls me home, my body emerges with a lighter step upon the sand. I don’t use my wings. I didn’t leave anything behind. I don’t even remember what it was that once worried me. But it was something, I am sure. Yes, something. I run my fingers up and down my sea happy skin. It’s clean and alive, shiny and smooth, and it breathes with a fresh, unhurried pace, a pace I now remember and reclaim as my own.

And as she looked down

with a clearer eye

and a wiser heart

she couldn't help but see

the butter

the butter

The Butter 

as it puddled at her feet.

Wednesday Wish (8)

In the north of Denmark, far from the biggest cities but not far from the sea, lies an enchanted place deep within the Rold Skov called Troll Forest. But Troll Forest is not enchanted for everyone. It has been said that those who go there to hunt for trolls will never find what they are looking for. You see, trolls do not let themselves be seen until they are sure the seeker is looking with a kind man’s heart.

It’s the same thing that happens to Robin Williams (grown up Peter Pan) when he tries to see the food the Lost Boys are eating in the movie Hook. There is nothing for him to eat until he stops the thinking and judging in his head and begins to ‘see’ with a softer part of himself, the same place imagination dwells.

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My Wednesday Wish for you?

To find (and enjoy!) that happy, imaginative part deep within yourself, that part that makes you say ‘ahhh’ and sometimes even makes you want to cry because you are completely safe there, completely understood there, completely loved whenever you go there. And if you haven’t been there in a while? Then here, let me gently remind you how to find your way:

1.  Take that invisible hand of yours and with closed eyes, let it journey inside yourself to that place where you feel most safe, most understood, and most loved. It is soft and squishy in this place, like your favorite grandma used to be, and while it’s the same inside everyone, each person’s special place has its own particular flavor. Yours might have a color or a scent or even a real flavor that you taste with your tongue. Use your senses (not your thinking mind) to discover all the feelings of your own special place.

2.  Once you have introduced yourself to your special place inside, take a deep breath into that space letting the air you take in stay as long as it wants, slowly letting it seep out your nose when it feels ready. Do this three times, each time watching your body relax more and more into yourself and into this special place. Inhabit it, know it as your home.

3.  Next time you are in traffic, in your boss’s office, or at home with the kids screaming, the dogs barking, and with no idea what to cook for dinner, go to your special place. Recall those first sensory impressions, remember your feelings of safety and love, and when you are ready, breathe in, filling that space with air, with life once again. Leave your head, soften your mind’s eye, and watch the gentle magic of life reappear--trolls, imaginary treats, giggles and all!

*For more information about the Rold Skov, the enchanted Troll Forest in Denmark, please read my dear friend Ole Wolf's wonderfully brilliant post here. The photo of the Troll Forest above was also taken by Ole.

Presence of Magic Awards

Presence of Magic started as a way for me to share a perspective of the world, one that I wanted to continue to grow in my own life in a more public way. It has become something more than I ever envisioned and for the most part, I owe it to a few loyal and supportive people, fellow bloggers, who have been running alongside me, their shoes now as worn in as my own. So today, I’d like to introduce you to a few of the beautiful people who have helped transform Presence of Magic into something much greater than it could have ever been on its own. Please see what they are all about by clicking on their names which will take you to their blogs.

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Bella has a beautifully natural way of bring out the happy in any day, of making you feel like you are sitting right beside her, drinking something delicious and having a heart-to-heart with one of your dearest, most favorite, childhood friends.

Brenda’s gifts start at a soft and unassuming whisper but when you look away, when you close your computer screen, those whispers turn into nods and smiles and before you know it, the irresistible urges begin to play. Brenda has one of the deepest, most caring hearts on the planet and yet she never boasts or brags, but gently nudges you to see her findings, to enjoy her life’s treasures and yes, you will. You will.

Muriel feeds the European in me with a style and wit all her own. She is incredibly bright, eats up her surroundings in a single bite and somehow manages to write about it in a way that always makes me smile. Lovely and spirited, Muriel’s blog will never bore you and will always give you something to think about.






When I met Samantha she was the most encouraging, supportive writer in the blog-o-sphere that I had ever met. And still now, with a bestseller under her belt, she remains the same. Heart-centered, genuine, and so bright and filled with life, Samantha is the friend you meet mid-life that you feel you have known and loved your whole life.


Tracey is a mountain flower blooming in all her splendor even if no one ever dared see her. She walks quietly with a gentle step and yet her path is deep, no, its profound. Her world is colored with a richness, painted with a flavor, etched with a soul that spans lifetimes. I have clutched my heart many times while reading Tracey and every time I thank the heavens she has allowed us in.

Jo is one of my two most loyal supporters. She wades in deep even if she forgets her Wellingtons and every time, without fail, she is able to see something beautiful and to share her joy. Her loves are so varied and so genuinely felt that even things I would normally avoid, inevitably turn into treasures. With a heart as open as Jo's, I can do nothing less than thank her from my own.

Sara is the other of my two most loyal supporters. She twirls with me in the moonlight and giggles with me in my blanket forts. She and I, we tell secrets until late at night and when I have a nightmare, I wake her up to eat cookies. Her spirit is wide open and sparkling, her heart a bundle of joy and her blog is just as she is, pure magical delight. And did I tell you about her imagination…?

I thank you all from my heart and

with love and appreciation I present to you:

*The Presence of Magic Award*

Your Heart, Is Mine Too

Come with me, take my hand,

there’s something

I’ve been meaning to show you….

Somewhere along the riverbed where the water tumbles the loudest and the birds rest their wings. Up in the mountains at the end of the day, when the hillside exhales and blows my breath away. Is you.

It’s pleasant up here at this altitude, that’s why you chose it here. I got the invitation and even though you forgot to sign it, I knew it was yours. I remembered your scent, your lovely scent and anyway, the door was open.

You looked away when I felt the first wave, its weighted emotion trembling thru my body, thru my heart and then my soul. I tasted the colors, felt the sounds, quivered under the heavy and soared beyond the joy. I was right there beside you, your silent partner, your invisible friend, your invited glimpser that not even you could see.

But I did, see. You were not alone.

You are not alone.

When your heart is open,

I promise you, 

I can see.

Wednesday Wish (7)

Every morning before I wake, when the rich blackness of night begins to give way to the golden-grey hues of tomorrow, when the earth begins to hum with its new and hopeful promise, a little bird, who’s name I do not yet know, comes to the bougainvillea bush outside my open window to sing his morning song. He is tiny. I’ve seen him jump from twig to twig between the thorns and fuschia blossoms, his little beak piping a cheerful tropical tune. He sings and he chirps and he varies his song and every morning, without fail, he gives my heart a smile.

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My Wednesday Wish for you?

I wish you connection with nature this week. No matter where you live or how much cement colors your world, you are always connected to our grand and gracious earth. And while we forget, we must also remember, to sow her seeds of love, to birth them as our own. 

 

1. Find a patch of grass, no matter how small. Take your shoes off, nylons or socks, too. And walk barefoot on the green. Feel the earth humming beneath you. Let her take your negative emotions, your fears, your tight and painful spots. Watch the ugly flow from your feet, the earth absorbing it all, giving you back your natural state of peace.

2. Find a tree. Sit beside it, your back against hers. Imagine what she would say if you could hear her talk. Would she give you advice? Would she tell you a story? Be the tree. Love the tree. Hug her if you have the courage. Feel your connection to the earth through your new friend, the tree.

3. Find a bird. Let your eyes fly with her as far as you can. Imagine what she feels, the wind, the joy, the freedom that she is able to express with her wings. What does she wish for you? What gifts does she give you without saying a word? Where do you feel her presence? In your heart? In your mind? In your wings, tucked too tightly against your back? Feel a sadness emerge and its urge to be colored back to hope. Let the bird show you how. Look to its wisdom.

Nature is always available to share her wise and loving gifts. If we look with soft eyes and an open heart, her magic can become our own.

p.s. see the biggest rock in the picture above? It's a wishing rock. See its white ring? I took the picture for you. I thought you might need a wish of your own this week:) If you can't see it well, click on it to make it larger.

From My Heart to Yours

An invitation to see the bigger picture this week, to reconnect with your loving emotions, with the depth inside yourSelf that knows all the magic you ever need awaits you, within…