Monday Mindfulness

Cultivating Strength, Joy, Calm & Resilience


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Chosen

Dark and heavy clouds fill the sky.

There is a moist, chilling feel in the air.

Worry, doubt, and greed swirl on the wind.

At the center of it all,

like an eye opening timidly from a long slumber,

a small space opens.

Unleashed absent effort,

unconditional,

unassuming,

extending unrestrainably outward,

an ancient healing balm,

a penetrating and permiating force,

stirs and

rises up.

It moves and shifts,

overcoming,

discerning,

dissolving,

and shifting.

Without seeking,

or striving,

it appears,

almost effervescently,

greeting all of the

anguish,

pain,

and

suffering

with gentle kindness,

patience,

humility,

and peace.

Love moves from within,

chosen

to be

seen,

felt,

and heard.

.


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Allow Me

Root my grounding cord deep into the earth.

Open my mind to the wisdom of the universe.

Flow endless love and joy through the river of my heart.

Fuel me with confidence and clarity.

Allow me to be a humble reservoir of harmony and balance,

in the space between earth and sky,

in this space of being human.


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Walking in the light

Feet to the earth,

Surrounded by air.

Sounds of rustling leaves, branches, and brush accompany every step.

The whispers and shadows of the forest

offer glimpses of light and dark,

solemn quiet and crashing thunder,

scents of decay and signs of new birth.

Never alone, the choice always exists.

To walk with the

doubting self,

the fearful heart,

the closed mind.

Or to soften into

the grace,

the power,

the love,

and

the joy

of choosing

to walk alone

through these woods.


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Showing up

I can.

I will.

I am.

Because someone needs it.

My voice,

my intellect,

my pulchritude,

my courage,

my strength,

my kindness,

my grace,

deserve to be

seen,

heard,

felt,

held.

I will make a big, beautiful, bold, magnificent mark on the world…

Because I already have.

Flock to my greatness.

Celebrate me.

Show me pure,

authentic,

loyal,

sweet,

daring,

unconditional love,

the same way I am showing up for you in this world.


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Flowering

It’s exhausting,

this blooming all the time.

Extracting every nutrient from my veins,

drawing and expending all the energy from my roots.

In my weakest and most depleted state,

this is when I am celebrated and noticed most,

colorful, exotic, intricate, beautiful.

Please stop seeking and suggesting my flowering as a sign of my flourishing.

Please applaud me as I hibernate, drop my leaves, and recoil into my quiet greening.

Please see my faded and dying petals as a sign of my capacity to grow.

Allow me to impress you not by blossoming,

but by being.


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Standing At The Gate

Loss and grief are proof that you have loved.

Love is the gateway to joy,

joy to peace.

You have loved and

known the essence of being loved.

Let the suffering move through you.

Rip yourself open with this grief.

Purify yourself with tears.

Beat your fists on the ground.

Pound your aching heart.

Take and give every punch with gratitude.

Shatter the barrier to feeling it all.

In the shallows of this darkness that accompany the pain,

Let every pain pour out.

Drop for a moment into the stillness,

this vast emptiness your refuge.

And, just as suddenly as the suffering began, a small space,

cleansed by your tears,

and broken open through your courage,

will begin to fill with sweetness, softness, kindness.

A slow, gradual unfolding will take place

as joy reveals itself

shyly,

purely,

authentically,

and more richly

than ever before,

because you have loved

and are willing to love and be loved again.


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Song of Triumph

Embrace this new beginning.

You are protected and guided by love.

There is no need to pretend to be something you are not.

Lay down the sword you hold against your own heart.

Be who you are.

Allow your memories to sing like sweet songs of triumph and strength,

Of your courage and vitality everlasting.

Have faith that what is yet to come will nourish and comfort your soul.

Move forward with humbled confidence,

A vigilant warrior armed with a quiver of compassion and sensitivity.

Find power, stability, and strength in the quiet and stillness of the winter,

Knowing that you are never truly alone,

And will forever and always be loved.


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Unchanged

At the heart of all is love.

At the heart of me is love.

It’s ok to be skeptical.

No need to be clear or believe it,

And it’s still true.

Everything is working for me.

I need not soften into the knowing.

I can breathe and stand in this,

or I can struggle and resist,

and it will still happen – I am being.

I occupy this space, knowing that no one occupies this space like me.

Big or small,

tall or coiled,

heavy or light,

bold or shy,

free or bound.

The heart of me remains unchanged.

The heart of you remains unchanged.

The heart of all remains of love.


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Healing Salve

I hold your broken heart,

recognizing the worn and chipped pieces

of injury, loss, humiliation, and dejection

and the pains of long ago never repaired or attended to,

grown over with patchwork scars and gaping cracks and holes.

I am sorry for picking at and reopening those wounds.

I am sorry for creating new fissures and further weakening your heart’s integrity and your ability to feel whole.

I only ever meant to hold your heart gently and sweetly,

but at times my fear of losing it made me grip so hard

and cling so forcefully

that I only added to its brokenness.

I never lost sight of its beauty and worth.

I never lost touch with its essence.

But as I began to doubt the essence of my own heart, I chipped away at yours.

I only hope now to heal my heart

and send ripples of unconditional love across the void of brokenness,

applying a healing salve and restoring integrity.

With the deepest love of my heart, I render this prayer for forgiveness.


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Havier’s Heart

I know not how

to befriend you.

There are no words or actions that I have learned

to guide me in this seemingly simple endeavor.

Yet I sense

it is crucial to my survival.

I long to connect

and belong.

It is not for a lack of love

or desire

that I appear

so unwilling or unable

to conduct myself as

a friend.

I simply do not know how.

I do know my capacity to love and the kind space that exists

within me

so ready to receive and serve you.

All I can do right now is

breathe in,

expanding and opening myself

just a little more,

building trust in my inner knowing

that I am part of the unseen bond that exists between us all,

and that your care and patience will help me find my way.

With each exhale, I extend myself

slowly and courageously

Into the edges and folds of you

in hopes that my melding

feels as gentle

and loving

as I intend it to be.