Feeling antsy, impatient, or fearful while being cooped up during this pandemic? Personal contact and the ability to participate in gratifying activities like dining with friends or attending concerts are two pleasures I’ve missed the most.
Thankfully, though, it’s spring which means hours and hours of yard work assuaged with bird song, the warming sun, and dirt sifting through my fingers.Savoring nature’s gifts in the moment helps restrict thoughts of the coronavirus — even as cases escalate in my county. Of course following Rule #1 enriches tranquility:Ā do not succumb to the media’s monotonous alarms. Choose instead to augment this extra time with uplifting activities. Here’s a few that I hope will help fortify your self-quarantine time too:
ā„ Poetry Exchange ā„
Dear Friends,
We’re starting a collective, constructive, and hopefully uplifting exchange. It’s a one-time thing and we hope you will participate.
Please send a poem or comforting thought/verse/text/meditation to the person whose name is in position #1 below (even if you don’t know them), with the email subject Uplifting Exchange. It should be a favorite text/verse/meditation that has affected you in difficult times. Don’t agonize over it. If you’d like to send a poem in your own language and provide a translation, please do so!
-
- path4joy@ptd.net
- blog@ptd.net
After you’ve sent the short poem/verse/quote/etc. to the person in position 1, and only that person, copy this letter into a new email. Move the second name to position 1, and put your name in position 2. Only the name you move up and your name should show in the new email. Send it to 20ish friends BCC (blind copy).(Sidenote, some friends found it daunting to select 20ish friends…I’d think 10ish would suffice.)
Seldom does anyone drop out because we all need new pleasures.The turnaround is fast, as there are only two names on the list, and you only have to do it once.
Here’s the lovely poem I received:
AND PEOPLE STAYED HOME
And people stayed home
and read books and listened
and rested and exercised
and made art and played
and learned new ways of being
and stopped
and listened deeper
someone meditated
someone prayed
someone danced
someone met their shadow
and people began to think differently
and people healed
and in the absence of people who lived in ignorant ways,
dangerous, meaningless and heartless,
even the earth began to heal
and when the danger ended
and people found each other
grieved for the dead people
and they made new choices
and dreamed of new visions
and created new ways of life
and healed the earth completely
just as they were healed themselves.
Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ė Kathleen O’Meara
ā„ Sharing Prayers ā„
Hi Folks,
Here is a prayer that we can pray as ONE:
The very energies that course through the Universe also course through us. May we look within, trusting Divine energies to guide the steps that we must take NOW. Let us pay attention to earth’s call for healing, and recognize we are the ones who hold the power to restore earth to her original glory. Hold us in healing peace and light as we journey through these transitional times.
ā„ Helping with Humor ā„
- Original image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
I was in a long line at 7:45AM today at the grocery store that opened at 8:00 for seniors only. A young man came from the parking lot and tried to cut in at the front of the line, but an old lady beat him back into the parking lot with her cane.
He returned and tried to cut in again but an old man punched him in the gut, then kicked him to the ground and rolled him away.
As he approached the line for the 3rd time he said, “If you don’t let me unlock the door, you’ll never get in there.”
š š š
Ā Day 3 without sports:Ā Found a lady sitting on my couch. Apparently she’s my wife. She seems nice.
ā„ Connecting Spiritually ā„
The first announcement indicated that the monthly Tao discussion meeting would be on hold until the shelter in place ceased. But, a second e-mail announced that the monthly meeting would be held via Zoom.
Two weeks later I received another announcement:
I sent you an invitation to be part of the creation of a new group that I am beginning. It is a virtual spiritual community that is inclusion of world religions and New Thought. A few other members of the Taoist group were interested so I wanted to let you know that you are more than welcome to try it out. Please do not feel obligated. I wanted to include everyone in the group and there are no hard feelings if you select not to attend.
While uncertain if this was the group for me, accepting this opportunity to fill my head with something inspirited rather than thoughts of the corona virus was the better choice.
ā„ Positive Thinking ā„
Wordket’s blog post mentioned The Little Book of Lykke. If the government supplied all residents with a copy of this book, perhaps people would be faring better…in the pandemic and otherwise.
Likewise, I find comfort and acceptance in all situations through the Tao’s explanation of life. Two books that set the course for my day are The Tao of Joy Every Day – 365 Days of Tao Living by Derek Lin and Change Your thoughts – Change your Life – Living the Wisdom of the Tao by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer.
ā„ Mandala Meditation ā„
This one I’m saving for later. While I enjoyed blue skies and 60 degree temps a few days ago, it’s grey and blustering 45 mph winds now.The perfect time for coloring my thoughts with a mandala meditation.
Has something new come to you to cope with the shelter in place? How do you stave off boredom? What is your resolve to not falling prey to fear?
I agree with Stephen King and love this quote: “If you think artists are useless, try to spend your quarantine without music, books, poems, movies and paintings.” Or without positive thought, I’d like to add.
wRighTing My Life 
Thank you…. Always a Dreamer!!! š
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Keep dreaming Sue. That is the vision of our future!
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You only have to look at the difference Nature has felt since the planes have stopped flying… If we all respected Gaia.. and learnt to live in harmony nurturing her and ourselves, we could turn our world around.. I live in hope… But then I am a ‘Dreamer’ lol.. ā¤
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Totally agreed — there is nothing like sinking your hands into Mother Earth and then feeling a sense of mutual nurturing as seedlings sprout to become veggies or flowers. How much more Mother Nature would be revered if the masses consciously connected with her.
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Beautiful exchange of thoughts and ideas.. I too have been concentrating on our plot… And enjoying the freedom to sink my hands into mother earth..
Sending Love and well wishes… š
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Oh no, itās not too hot here. We have had the most beautiful spring, weatherwise. Most every day is sunny, not humid, not hot at all, windy, with the perfect amount of rain. Temps in 50s, 60s, and 70s. Just gorgeous. And yes, we are all well.
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Sounds like you are answering your calling, Cheryl. š I think we are fortunate to be gardeners (Even though it may be too hot in NC right now?) and having the ability to use this time as an opportunity rather than a hardship. Agreed, so many are hurting right now. But, I also think we each have the power to hurt less. What a time for creativity and growth throughout the Universe.
I am happy to hear from you today and trust you and your family are well. š
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Lots of good suggestions in this post. I think humor is a big one that we tend to push aside during serious times. But I believe humor strengthens our immune system and can bring some calming, too. I’ve also explored some new paths of spirituality and I’m finding myself learning so much more about subjects that fascinate me. And I am finally reading through many, many, many of the books that have sat on my shelves for years. Not saying this is a great time in our history. It’s not. It’s sad and exhausting and devastating for many. But here we are, and I believe I am called to make the best of it.
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