NOT AN ILLUSION

 

May we be blessed to understand true love

need not be an illusion…a fantasy…a myth…

It’s as simple as knowing that forever is a long time

and finding someone to spend that forever with!

A SIMPLE RECIPE

 

Year’s ago I was reading through Deborah’s mom’s old recipe book…

I hadn’t read very far when I realized…if it was a recipe she loved…

next to it…she’d place a star.

On one of the pages near the end of the book…in the margin up above

printed in her own hand was…A RECIPE FOR LOVE.

Deborah’s mom and dad were happily in love…

as anyone who knew them could see.

which made me very interested in knowing her recipe.

 

‘Find someone who loves you for who you are.’ She wrote.

‘Who encourages your happiness and helps you overcome your fears.’

‘Someone who is always close enough to share all your joy…

while absorbing half your tears.’

And here the recipe stopped…

I searched the other margins for more wisdom…perhaps a quote

but these two lines on the top of the page were the only words she wrote.

I read them over and over again…

her message was clear, succinct…concise…

I imagine Deborah’s mom thought these two lines would suffice.

As any seasoned chef knows…when you are on a recipe quest…

sometimes in cooking…as in life…the simplest recipes are the best.

As Deborah and I begin our 37th year together…

We are happily in love…as anyone who knows us can see

and I am grateful every day I discovered her mom’s recipe

Since this is the best recipe for love I’ve ever found…

the best recipe by far!

in the margin of her recipe book…

right next her A RECIPE FOR LOVE…

I have also placed a star.

IDA B. WELLS AND TRUTH

  Today's Juneteenth blessing comes from Ida B. Wells

and is meant to correct the lies being told about slavery

and all the ones who continue spawn them…

‘The way to right wrongs…she said 

is to turn the light of truth upon them

A JUNETEENTH PRAYER

Closing our eyes is easy…it’s probably the best way

to think, to hope, to dream…to make a wish…to kiss…to pray.

The quiet darkness behind our eyes is where we start

to heed the teachings of our soul and listen to our heart.

When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray

when we open them we’ll listen as our hearts tell us something we’ve known all along

that any kind of slavery…always was…always is…and always will be…wrong.

When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray

when we open them we’ll remember human rights should never have to be won…

they should be universal and apply to each and everyone.

When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray

when we open them I hope we’ll understand everyone…no matter who or where

should receive the same education, same compassion, same acceptance

same health care.

When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray

when we open them we’ll remember how discrimination tried to break their spirit

how it tried to crush their pride…

We’ll remember those who savagely and needlessly suffered at the hands of prejudice

we’ll remember those who died.

When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray

when we open them…those whose minds have become twisted

will stop acting as if slavery was ever a good thing…

or that it never existed.

When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray

We look deep into our hearts, our souls…our essence too…

so when we open them this Juneteenth…

we will know exactly what we have to do.

What follows is a short history…

from The National Museum of African American History and Culture

A history of a people who were mistreated and misbegotten…

A history that must be taught to every generation

A history that should never be erased…expunged…forgotten

The Historical Legacy of Juneteenth

On “Freedom’s Eve,” or the eve of January 1, 1863, the first Watch Night services took place. On that night, enslaved and free African Americans gathered in churches and private homes all across the country awaiting news that the Emancipation Proclamation had taken effect. At the stroke of midnight, prayers were answered as all enslaved people in Confederate States were declared legally free. Union soldiers, many of whom were black, marched onto plantations and across cities in the south reading small copies of the Emancipation Proclamation spreading the news of freedom in Confederate States. Only through the Thirteenth Amendment did emancipation slavery throughout the United States.

But not everyone in Confederate territory would immediately be free. Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. As a result, in the westernmost Confederate state of Texas, enslaved people would not be free until much later. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state, were free by executive decree. This day came to be known as "Juneteenth," by the newly freed people in Texas. 

The post-emancipation period known as Reconstruction (1865-1877) marked an era of great hope, uncertainty, and struggle for the nation as a whole. Formerly enslaved people immediately sought to reunify families, establish schools, run for political office, push radical legislation and even sue slaveholders for compensation. Given the 200+ years of enslavement, such changes were nothing short of amazing. Not even a generation out of slavery, African Americans were inspired and empowered to transform their lives and their country.

Juneteenth marks our country’s second independence day. Although it has long celebrated in the African American community, this monumental event remains largely unknown to most Americans.

The historical legacy of Juneteenth shows the value of never giving up hope in uncertain times. The National Museum of African American History and Culture is a community space where this spirit of hope lives on. A place where historical events like Juneteenth are shared and new stories with equal urgency are told.

ARE WE LUCKY OR WHAT

 

May you be blessed

when life is getting you down and your patience is wearing thin

to look back on the myriad of wonderful memories you’ve had

and be able say with heartfelt gratitude…

How lucky I have been!

GRANDMA'S OLD BLACK BELL

 

 When we’re about to leave our cabin in North Carolina

I always feel compelled 

to take a moment…pull the cord…and ring Grandma’s old black bell.

This bell hangs next to the cabin steps

where it’s hung for how long…I really couldn’t say.

The story is Deborah’s mom convinced Deborah’s dad to buy it

and against his better judgement…he bought it anyway.

When our children were still children and Deborah’s parents were still alive

her mom would ring that bell to call us in for supper…usually around five.

And wherever we were at that moment…we all felt compelled 

to come running to the cabin when we heard Grandma ring her bell.

Even though Grandma hasn’t been here to ring that bell…in oh so many years

the memories attached to her bell…still ring within my ears.

It’s the reason before we leave the cabin…before we say farewell

I take a moment to pull the cord and ring Grandma’s old black bell.

For a moment something wonderful happens…

to which I’m no longer surprised…

The memories attached to that bell begin to materialize.

I see Grandma standing there ringing her bell…

I can’t think of any sound that’s sweeter…

and I see our children with smiles on their faces, hands waving in the air

running up to greet her.

I enjoy these memories for a while…

let them linger as long as they want to dwell 

before those wonderful memories are absorbed back into the bell..

To many who visit our cabin…I imagine

that weathered bell looks like nothing more than a rusty old tin hat

but to me…every time I pull her cord…

she is so much more than that.

RIGHT UNDER MY FEET

 

Whenever I am blessed to spend any time in nature

I feel alive, mindful …complete….

And instead of thinking of heaven as a place up in the sky

I begin to wonder 

if it hasn’t always been 

right under my feet.

FATHER'S DAY

 

Yesterday was Father’s day…a day father is the star… 

a day we celebrate his role in helping to make us who we are.

Father’s ride with us on the roller coaster that is our life

It’s nice to know they’re there. 

We look to them to show us when to hold on tight

and when to ride with our hands up in the air.

When it comes to their children I imagine

every father has felt every emotion from the great to the good to the bad…

Which they know was totally worth it

when they hear…I love you Dad.

And when we hear those words…

we know fatherhood was not a hoax

despite the mistake we’ve made along the way…

and our repertoire of Dad jokes. 

I heard from all my children yesterday…

and it always makes me smile

when they call to say I love you…

or just to talk a while.

But I am lucky for this is not an isolated incident

my children have found a multitude of ways

to make every day I’ve been a father

feel like Father’s Day.

IT'S ALL IN HOW WE SEE OURSELVES

 

May we all be blessed to think like the turkey we met today

who spent some time with us a little before dawn….

We said to her…”You are beautiful for a turkey.”

“What do you mean turkey?” she smiled…

“I think of myself as a swan.”

one turkey

 

The final count is in…as I sit down to write these words

In 2 weeks at our cabin…we’ve heard 52 different birds!

 

Of these 52 different kinds of birds…we’ve only seen a few

Because most of them have just sung to us while keeping out of view.

One turkey, however, paid us a visit…he sat down among the wildflowers

And while we were working around the cabin…he stayed a couple hours.

Every now and then he’d look at us…give us that turkey stare

but he never seemed to be bothered that we were even there.

I asked him as he sat there…in the middle of the day

“Why when he saw us here…didn’t he run away?

He looked quizzically at me…as if my question made no sense

then chuckled as he said, “I’m surprised by your arrogance." 

“I’ve always found some peace and comfort when visiting this space.

Besides…my ancestors walked this land long before your ancestors built this place.” 

“The fact you think I should run away…well I find that thinking limiting…

because this has always been our land…and you’re the one who’s visiting.”

“And I’m not worried about you two…oftentimes I’ve heard you repeat…

that you are vegetarians…so I know you don’t eat meat.”

“So neither of us need to be afraid”, he said, “because we both know this is true.

I know you will not eat me…and you know I won’t eat you.”

‘Of course your right.” I smiled. “I apologize for my ego and my vanity

and I thank you for your kindness and your hospitality.”

And so we spent a quiet afternoon together…with this turkey we befriended….

Sharing the land and conversation with one another…

the way, I imagine, our creators had intended.