We have, if we are lucky, about thirty thousand days to play the game of life. How we play it will be determined by what we value. If we worship money, we'll never feel truly abundant. If we worship power and recognition, and fame, we'll never feel we have enough. And if we live our lives madly rushing around, trying to find and save time, we'll always find ourselves living in a time famine, frazzled and stressed. So find your place to stand, your place of wisdom and peace and strength. From that place remake the world in your own image, according to your own definition of success.
Those are the words on the back of the book jacket for Thrive..written by Adrianna Huggington...those are the things I have been seeking for a while now..It is starting to fall into place for me...finally...this book is a book I recommend for everyone and I don't say that about a lot of books...it is probably my most underlined book and I'm also not sharing it..you all need to get your own copies and underline what fills your soul.
Be Still, a new class by Kim Klassen and Thrive are ringing true for me now. Be Still is a practice that I'm learning more about after a year of a few serious health issues..at my age I can remember a slower, more relaxed pace. I'm searching that again. In the meantime, my Friday Finds...a few Be Still moments.
Image my surprise when we found this baby bunny underneath my sons kayak. It was stored in a section of our yard that we don't use...I felt so bad that the bunny was by himself but he knew enough to be Still, to rest and hope that we didn't see him. I checked him later and he was gone. I'm hoping his Mom came back and took him back to the nest or else he found himself another hiding place to Be Still in...he reminds me in this photo or how I like to feel sometimes...all tucked in, with a small patch of sun...resting.
This week I was so blessed with meaningful gifts from friends that I don't get to see often..Gifts for the heart that remind me that life should be a soft place to fall...simple and timeless. This pottery was made, in the shape of a heart, by my friend Nancy...the flowers were from her husband. Gifts that go beyond the everyday. I was overwhelmed by the time, energy and thought that Nancy poured into this gift, made with the soothing motion of a wheel, with her hands. I see her in my minds eye, slowing down during this process. Another friend from far-away...sent me the most beautiful book. That also is a slowing down gift. For me to take the time to sit down and savor the beautiful still life photography that we both love....a gift we share together even though we are not close in distance...a knowing that someone understands my love and my need for some quiet time. I thank them both for these gifts from the heart.
Finally, another gift. A most special gift from a most special man...my son. For Mother's day...he made me this meditation table for my bedroom...a small table made with his hands of fine wood, sanded slowly and deliberately to a smooth finish, stained to match my furniture and polished. A slow process to bring me to a place of quiet and calmness. It waits for a Buddha that I saw at a shop that I love. He also gifted me the vase, with the birds and the brass bowl with beach sand (did I tell you how much I loved the ocean) and the sand will hold the incense sticks called "joy" that he choose for me. The prayer beads remind me that I am never alone and the rock in back came from the ocean in St. Maarten that reminded a bit of a little fat Buddha...My son owns his own Yoga Studio and I take meditation classes with him...He is a kind and gentle spirit and he knows me well...He also knows how to "live in the moment"...I am thankful for him.
All of these gifts came to me this week....a connection and a sign for me...that I am headed in the right direction...one never reaches a destination on their own. It is always a road paved with help from family and friends and kindred spirits...I am excited for all lies ahead...breaking some old habits and moving slowly into the new. Finding my way again..as I have so many times over the years...change happens and we have to be ready and willing to look at it...so for me to Thrive I must live with more Grace, more joy, more compassion, more gratitude, and more love and more Breathing. Onward, Upward and Inward...BE STILL...
Last sentence was also taken from the jacket of the book Thrive...but it's perfect, don't you think.
Linking up to Friday Finds with Kim