Wednesday Wish (135); Find Your Horse

photo by waymarking.com via google images

He is always there. Waiting for you. Believing that you will remember again. His spirit, it never sags. His hope, it never wavers. And the wonder that he embodies will never, ever leave. For he holds the secrets in his form, in the way he gallops and leaps and rises above it all. His colors dance to the music, to the warm light and the bright smiles, and as his gifts start to swell inside of you, you begin to lose yourself, just a little bit, back to the magic that had begun to die, back to where you once belonged.

*          *          *

A few days ago I woke up another year older, my past behind me, my life fresh ahead. And because I'm a dreamer, when I was asked what I wished for on my special day, I already knew. For I had seen him as I slept. He danced a dance and shared his secrets and all the while I stood by waiting for an invitation, waiting for a ticket, a ticket I already held in the heart of my own hand.

            “I want to ride the carousel!” I said like a little girl, my eyes shiny with hope.

            “The one at the Mall?” he asked, with a tinge of disbelief.

            “Uh huh! I want to find my horse.”

So we went. To the Mall. On my special-est of special days, my birth day. To ride the carousel. To find my horse.

*          *          *

So now it’s you, looking wide-eyed for your horse, the only one meant just for you. Is he is chocolate colored or is he white? Is his mane wild and free? Is his head tossed back with energy or is he waiting patiently, elegantly, quiet as can be? Do you whisper his name? Do you hear his whinny? Does your heart feel a magic flutter when you finally spot him, when you touch his smooth skin, when you mount his strong and able-bodied back? And when the carousel finally begins, when your hands hold the golden post or the warm leather reins, is it then you begin to remember … the wonder of your childhood dreams?

The tragedy of life is not death

but what we let die inside of us while we live.

--Norman Cousins

Find your horse. He is always there. Waiting for you. Believing that you will remember again. Believing that you will come home to the magic of wonder again.

Wednesday Wish (134); So Says the Sea

photo by benjamin williamson via google images

In the early morning, before the mist has lifted its veil, I slip outside to drink in the whispers of my New England sea. She tells of far away places, of mysteries and wonders and jewels I cannot see. And she laps, laps up with her gentle, rhythmic voice, reminding me again and again that the beauty, yes the beauty, will never cease. So stay awhile, she says to me with her tender knowing heart, stay awhile and let me soothe you back to see …

*          *          *

Who were you before your mind snuffed out your dreams? Before the rules reigned supreme? What hidden place does that You live in now, where the birds sing answers to your mysteries and the ocean belts out hymns to your soul?

Were you once freer, with the wonders not tied to the gossips and the tragedies and the news but to the heavens and the spirals of your own sacred heart? Were the secrets of your tomorrows once unwrapped like riches, their paper and ribbons and stickies, all treasures revealed for touching your soul?

There there, little one, let me soothe you back to see …

When you led with your heart, when your soul held the reins, when what you did followed your fancy and what you said rang true to your deepest richest core. When you cried, when you laughed, when you spoke to be heard, and when you walked away when someone wasn’t nice, not pretending to tolerate the ugly, not pretending to accept the mean, not pretending to be anyone other than who your soul was born to be.

When, pray tell, did you stop believing in the mystery, in the wonder, in the jewels your mind forgets to see?

There there, little one, won’t you dare to dream again with me? To find the beauty that always, always, always, forever wants to be?

So says the sea, on this beautiful morning gifted to me.

*          *          *

Wednesday Wish (133); Peace Within Your Soul

photo by david talley via googleimages

Like a silent ray of sun, your warmth expands when you see her, when your eyes finally find her and rest upon her skin. You watch. And you tremble. Your hand reaches up to cover your mouth. For what else are you to do when your breath catches in your heart and your fingers fill with air and your body begins to fly …. ?

She walks, slowly now, slowly along the beach. Her hair long, long and wild and free and it dances in the puffs of wind, in the tiny gusts that rise up and across the sea. Sometimes she tries to tuck it back. Back behind her ears. But most of the time she lets it dance, in her eyes and upon her shoulders, yes long, long and wild and free.

Her feet are bare, her toes sink gently in the soft, wet sand. And when she finds a rock she likes, surely a smooth or shiny pebble, she picks it up, dries it just a bit, then places it, her little treasure, in the pocket of her flowered dress. And just like that, you think to yourself, she makes herself, she becomes her Self, a treasure of the sea.

She is quiet. She is present. She is tuned in to nature and to her Self. She is at peace with who she is. At peace with what surrounds her. And she lets it all be, whatever it is, finding treasure in the smallest, in the irrelevant, in the most neglected of them all. She Sees and lets it all, including her Self, Be.

She sees the beauty, you see her beauty, and you grow. Grow your heart, grow your mind, grow the peace you used to know, deep within your soul. 

*          *          *

Did you forget what it is to be present? Did you forget what it is to slow down? Did you forget what it is to … love?

The shallow life, the rush and fake and pretending it doesn’t hurt, does HURT. The absent actions, the checklist mentality, the looking but not seeing, is not SEEING.

But the deep, the richly flavored, the slow down and sip, the breathe in and out, returns you to PEACE. The listening, the connecting, the energy shared from eyes to eyes, from soul to soul, returns you to LOVE.

And remembering to love?

To give and to share?

Is the only thing that can ever really save you.

Because without it,

you forget what really matters,

who you really are,

what you were really born to be.

You forget

that all along

you had wings.

Wednesday Wish (132); Be What You Need

photo from southernliving.com via google images

Crape Myrtles and sweet tea, cheese grits and hush puppies and a fresh Fall breeze. I took in a deep breath and watched as the golden leaves began to flutter to the ground. It was a lovely evening, the kind I used to like best in my sleepy North Carolina town. There wasn’t much going on, most folks were winding down. There was no traffic, no reason to hustle, just an invitation to be for a while.

So I sat on my porch with a few neighbors that evening. We were four total, each one of us enjoying the night in our own little way. Knowing me, I’m pretty sure I lost myself in the trees. Dan, he probably lost himself in his micro-brew. And the other couple (forgive me for I can’t remember their names), I think they were talking about their new eco-washing machine from New Zealand or maybe it was something else eco-conscious, something that miraculously reeled both Dan and I in like willing fish. And somehow that dynamic worked so well that each of us was smiling. Yep, I remember our smiles that evening almost as clearly as what would happen next.

He didn’t announce himself, he just appeared out of nowhere and the sight of him as much as his energy, caught each of us off guard. He was big. And he was tough. The lines on his face and the rugged in his hands told no lie. He was both lost and determined. Determined to get what he wanted. From us.

            “Gotta light?” he said, with a deep dark voice as rich as molasses.

Was he homeless? Was he violent? Was he mean and were we in danger? Would he hurt us if we said the wrong thing? My neighbors fumbled, their eyes staring back in fear, their mouths, mum.

            “Hey,” I said, as if he were an old friend. “What’s your name? I’m Brynne. Nice to meet you,” and I outstretched my hand.

He looked at me like I was crazy but I kept my hand outstretched, staring him right in the eye, reassuring him that I was for real.

            “You gonna shake it, or leave me hanging?” I said, pure friendly again.

So he shook it, but not before his eyes softened and his energy quieted into something like a puppy after being reassured that his owner wasn’t going to hit him.

            “Name is Alonso.”

            “Nice to meet you, Alonso. Now here’s the thing.” And I took in another deep breath, my heart beating out of my skin. “None of us here smokes. So I’m afraid we don’t have a light for you. And I gotta be honest with you, Alonso. Next time, don’t sneak up on us like that. When you sneak up on people you give them the wrong idea. And you don’t want to be giving folks the wrong idea. You’re not a scary guy. You’re a nice guy. A nice guy with a big heart that you think no one can see. But guess what?” And I looked at him straight on so he knew I was talking truth. “I can. I know you’re a good man.  So be that good man. I know you can.”

And for a moment, no one said a thing, the air heavy with anticipation.

             “That’s right. I am,” he finally said, in a voice that sounded a little bit shocked. “Thank you, Ms. Brynne. You have a good night, now, ok?” And as he walked away, I’m sure I saw that puppy inside him wag his tail something fierce.

*          *          *

What kind of world do you want to live in?

What kind of people do you want to be surrounded by?

What kinds of feelings do you want to have every day of your life?

*If you want to live in a world filled with kindness, then be kind.

*If you want to be surrounded by caring people, then be caring.

*If you want to feel things in your heart every day of your life, things that feel good, then listen to your heart, honor your heart, live a heart-centered life.

If someone scares you, find a way to befriend them.

Look for the beauty.

Look for the kindness.

Look for the love.

For I promise you … the beauty and the kindness and the love is always there. It lives in each one of us. In some it may be buried very deeply. Maybe it’s lost behind walls of pain. But I promise you, with the right timing and a truly open heart, you will find it. If I can find it in a probable ex-con who could have snapped me in two like a twig, you can find it in anyone. Yep, even in that man on the playground who refuses to let his child use the word love.:)