Monthly Archives: October 2016

Dreams Are A Part Of Life. One Of My Favorite Poems: “A Dream Within A Dream.”

17 Monday Oct 2016

Posted by in Article., Poetry, Psychology, quote, spirituality

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Dreams Are A Part Of Life

” Dreams are the very fabric of our being. As soon as we can speak and communicate with others, we are sharing what we want to be, what we want to do, and who we want to be. These are wishes that come from the heart that we feel passionate about. When I was ten, I wanted to be Babe Ruth, the baseball player that hit the most home runs ever. It never occurred to me that being a girl would influence it. I ended up being the home run king of our school. When I was 14 years old, I wanted to be a Social Worker and help others overcome obstacles in life and encourage them to live their dreams. It never occurred to me that it was impossible because I had no money, was struggling in school, and was told I would never make it to college. Yet, I did go to college and graduated second in my class. I became a teacher and made money to keep taking classes so I would be ready for Graduate School. I eventually made that dream a reality.

When I was ten, I wanted to write poetry and articles. I started writing at the age of 10. Today I am living out that dream. I dreamed of being married, having a child, and that  came to be. Our dreams are the hopes we have. It is what excites us, motivates us, and keeps us going. Our dreams often sustain us in the hard times.

Our dreams can bring disappointments and pain in to our lives, and much suffering. Some dreams have more negatives than positives attached to them, or they become so over time through losses.  Edgar Allen Poe wrote about this in the following poem:”

Yu/stan/kema

 

A DREAM WITHIN A DREAM

Take this kiss upon thy brow!

And, in parting from you now,

This much let me avow–

You are not wrong, to deem

That my days have been a dream;

Yet if Hope has flown away

In a night, or in a day,

In a vision, or in none,

Is it therefore the less gone?

All that we see or seem

Is but a dream within a dream.

 

I stand amid the roar

Of a surf-tormented shore,

And I hold within my hand

Grains of the golden sand–

How few! yet how they creep

Through my fingers to the deep,

While I weep-while I weep!

O God! can I not grasp

Them with a tighter clasp? 

O God! can I not save

One from the pitiless wave?

Is all that we see or seem

But a dream within a dream?

EDGAR ALLAN POE

 

 

We Risk And We Try.

16 Sunday Oct 2016

Posted by in Photos, Poetry, Psychology, spirituality

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Slowly flows the river of Life,

And years go flashing by.

We grab for the big brass ring,

Right before we die.

We seem so sure it’s worth a try,

And when we fail, we cry.

Found on Pinterest on 10-15-16. Orange County Great Park carousel. By Jesse Childers. Flickr.

Found on Pinterest on 10-15-16. Orange County Great Park carousel. By Jesse Childers. Flickr.

The rising of Hope sends us astray,

As we enter in to the fray.

We work to keep our doubts at bay,

Despite what others say.

We’ll even take the time to pray.

We believe it will turn out OK.

 

But when we reach the end of the road,

And it all seems to explode,

We retreat to our safe abode,

Crushed by the heavy load:

Disappointments Life’s  bestowed.

It’s a tough row we’ve hoed.

Yu/stan/kema.

Found on Pinterest on 10-15-16. Farm Grants For Women from eHow.com.

Found on Pinterest on 10-15-16. Farm Grants For Women from eHow.com.

 

Focusing On The Night Sounds Brings Peace.

12 Wednesday Oct 2016

Posted by in Photos, Poetry, Psychology, spirituality, Uncategorized

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The velvet cloak of night

Wraps itself around me                              

Like a light caress.  

Found on Pinterest on 10-11-16. Forest

Found on Pinterest on 10-11-16. Forest

Raindrops drift downward

From trees in silhouette.

My lonely tears fall

And land on my cheek.

I smell the rain-swept sea

In the summer breeze.

 

I no longer feel my distress,

Nor do I feel, in this moment, regret

For losses that leave me feeling weak

And cause a trembling in my knees.

I strive to Center my Self within,

By focusing on the pale moonlight

Brightening the shrubs nearby;

And hearing the sound of waves breaking

Against the rock-lined shore.

Found on Pinterest on 10-11-16. Michael Botkins. Moonlight Nights. Saved from Kamyab. lr.

Found on Pinterest on 10-11-16. Michael Botkins. Moonlight Nights. Saved from Kamyab. lr.

 

My sad soul craves peace tonight.

I turn from that which makes me sigh.

I breathe deep and hear the awakening

Of the night’s magic that I can’t ignore.

With each breath I take and release,

I move with the tide in and out.

I feel the moon’s effect on my Spiritual Self,

And find a pathway that leads to peace.

With the night sounds, I find a greater wealth.

Yu/stan/kema

 

Autumn’s Arrival.

09 Sunday Oct 2016

Posted by in photo, Poetry

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Autumn arrives with a blast of cold air

On our arms and face.

Soon the warmth of summer will go,

Leaving hardly a trace.

 

Magical days of baseball games

And eating steak on the grill

Fade in the hallways of memory

When fierce comes the chill  

Found on Pinterest on 10-8-16. Chris Bartnik, photographer. Cantigny Park. Wheaton,Il/Flickr.com.

Found on Pinterest on 10-8-16. Chris Bartnik, photographer. Cantigny Park. Wheaton,Il/Flickr.com.

Of Autumn winds rattling the trees

And turning green leaves  to color,

Rich hues of red, orange, and gold,

That end up raked in a cluster.

 

A walk in the trees in Fall,

Reminds us life can change.

With every day that passes,

Something gets rearranged.

Yu/stan/kema

The Meaning Of Fear

08 Saturday Oct 2016

Posted by in photo, Poetry, Psychology, quote, spirituality, Uncategorized

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Fear comes creeping up

From the corridors of time

And whacks me on my back.

The blow is so hard my teeth rattle,

And my heart feels dislodged.

Fear roams inside my chest cavity,

Causing my pulse to quicken and

My breath to stop inside  these

paralyzed muscles covering my rib cage.

.

Fear is triggered by circumstances

Beyond my control as a human being.

Things can happen that I can’t predict,

And so I struggle to hold on to what

Dignity and courage I might still posses,

In an aging body that has been ravaged

By the cruel hands of time.

Will I face pain or death bravely,

Or cry and hide in the shadows like a child?

Found on Facebook Timeline on 10-5-16. Mountain Wisdom@facebook.com.

Found on Facebook Timeline on 10-5-16. Mountain Wisdom@facebook.com.

Do I fight to survive, or let go of a life

I have already lived and lost so much in?

Have I achieved my reasons for being

In this world, and  have I lived according

To the tenets of my God and my Creator?

Or is there still something God requires

Of me, something still left undone,

Some song I still have left unsung?

If so, I’ll need God’s help to survive this.

            Yu/stan/kema

A Father’s Love.

04 Tuesday Oct 2016

Posted by in photo, Poetry, Psychology, Uncategorized

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“I’m on my own,”

Said the young man

To his aging Father,

Who stood at the door,

Blinking his tears away.

“You don’t understand

“I’m going to set on fire

This world, wait and see.”

“You’d just be a bother,

In getting what I desire.

I want to fly free.”

 

The old man bent over,

And picked up his heart

From the clean-swept floor.

His thoughts took him back

When he would  snow track

The deer with his only Son.

He knew from the start,

He would love and adore

His Son until he died.

He wished him well, and

Over the years, he cried.

Found on Pinterest on 2-21-16

Found on Pinterest on 2-21-16

 

The Son had forgotten

That he had a Dad;

Spent years making money,

And became a success.

He’d be the first to confess,

He knew that his Dad felt bad,

Because he hadn’t visited him,

Once in all these years.

He woke up one morning,

And his Dad was dead,

And he wept, about words unsaid.

Yu/stan/kema

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Meaning Of Forgiveness.

03 Monday Oct 2016

Posted by in Article., photo, Psychology, quote, spirituality, Uncategorized

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                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               As human beings, we experience hurt on a regular basis. Life is filled with good days and days that are difficult to get through. We experience hurt when we are betrayed; when entities and people do not live up to our expectations; when we rely on others who fail to meet our needs; and when we feel disrespected by others. We feel pain, and we hurt.

When we are not appreciated for what we accomplish, or what we are as a person, the pain can be overwhelming. When our families do not support us, or the Church we belong to does not, or when we feel God has abandoned us, or our bodies and intellect fail us, and we lack self-acceptance, we can feel our world  imploding before our very eyes. We can be hurt by the actions and words of others, but we can feel unbearable pain when we do not accept ourselves as fallible human beings and  become our worst critic.

Forgiveness, I believe is a process. There is no time limit attached to it when forgiveness reaches a point where we can recognize it as finding closure. Children who grew up in an abusive situation carry a great deal of shame and guilt for not being able to feel closure about what happened to them. Some of this is due to the trauma of what happened and the denial they may feel about what occurred. We all want to have wonderful parents, but some of us did not have them. It is unfair to judge those who have not found closure yet. We did not endure what they lived through.

I believe there are levels of forgiveness. I also believe that God wants us to work on it. In the Bible, it talks about forgiving over and over someone who has sinned against us. God understood it to be a mindset, this thing called forgiveness. We must be willing to try to forgive. God knew it required processing emotions, thoughts, actions, self-examination, and making an attempt to understand what was happening in the mind and heart of those who hurt us. That takes time. It requires courage, compassion, self-reflection, and acceptance of what we did or did not do. Sometimes,  we must accept our own human weaknesses and limitations in order to forgive them in others.

Forgiveness not only helps those who have hurt us to move on with their lives, but it also enables us to be able to find peace again and get on with our lives. Forgiveness can mean being willing to wish the other well, but let them go. It can mean staying in a relationship and setting limits, and still interact with that person. It can also mean being committed to the process of working on it, so one day you can let go, but keeping space between you so you can work on it.

There will be times when God’s help and support will be needed in order for you to work on forgiveness. The reason forgiveness is so important is, it sets us free from resentment, hatred, anger, and revenge. It frees us up to embrace joy, peace, love, compassion, and express gratitude and hope.

Yu/stan/kema

Found on Pinterest on 10-01-16. Majortomsbluejeans. tumblr.com.

Found on Pinterest on 10-01-16. Majortomsbluejeans. tumblr.com.