TEACH US LOVE

 

Today’s blessing is from an old Ojibwa prayer…

that can be prayed to any God

as it relates to all our human sisters and brothers:

Teach us love, compassion and honor

that we may heal the Earth

and help each other.

IF WE COULD ONLY CONCENTRATE ON THE LOVE

 

I wish when it comes to love…each person would concern themself

less with who people love each other… and more on the love itself.

Everyone falls in love the same way…

and this new sensation they are feeling

can be a little frightening while at the same time

joyous and appealing.

The more time they spend together

they find how effortlessly their love expands….

and as they become more comfortable with one another

the more then understand….

where once they only had love for themselves

(something all of us are meant to do!)

since they found each other…they now have love enough for two.

Soon the principles of math and physics they learned in school

unravel and become undone

when they realize two hearts joined together

can somehow add up to one.

How sometime in the midst of a conversation

the two of them find a way

to finish each others sentence…

knowing exactly what the other is about to say.

How, when they’re holding hands

fingers clasped, palms together…skin to skin

it’s hard to know where one hand ends…and the other hand begins.

And they find no matter how many years may pass

mo matter how many songs of theirs have been sung….

their hearts…strengthened by each other’s love

keep them…forever young.

And I like to think…what a wonderful world this would be

If of every one of us…this could be said….

that we are able to look past the people falling in love

and rejoice in the love we see instead.

DAILY GRATITUDE CHOOSING LOVE

 

I am grateful 

(heeding the words of Martin Luther King)

when it comes to this life

knowing, exactly, what to choose

exactly what I can bring

To try no matter what happens…

no matter when or how…or where…

to choose love

because hate 

is much too hard a burden to bear.

KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING

 

May we be blessed to know

how important it is 

to learn as much about each other as we can

to try to get to know and understand

every child, every woman…every man.

Because where there is knowledge and understanding

It is easier to be compassionate and kind…

But where there is ignorance we often find

Fear, prejudice and hatred are not very far behind.

SOMETHING I DO NOT UNDERSTAND

 

I should begin by saying there are many things in life I do not understand…

so many things under the sun…

Today, however, because of what I see happening around me

I’m concentrating on just one.

The moment we learn we will be be parents…as partners as husband and wife…

we feel blessed to have been chosen…to be the ones creating a life.

And for 9 months we do our best

to keep our baby safe, healthy and happy

Before they become part of this world and enter our family.

For all those months we spend celebrating little milestones

excitedly welcoming each day

without ever thinking about the color of our baby’s skin

If they will be bi, transgender, straight…or gay

We are wishing…praying…for a baby with all their body parts

that they are breathing on their own…and come to us with healthy hearts. 

And we rejoice when they finally arrive

It’s hard to express the joy we feel that day…

Without ever giving a thought to the color of their skin

if they are bi, transgender, straight…or gay

As they grow we care that they are close to us…

that in their lives…we play a part….

that they have gentle souls and spirits… and kindness in their hearts.

Now here’s where we get to the part I find difficult to understand…

when I see prejudice toward LGBTQ+ people…spreading out across the land…

To all you parents who cared only that your children were healthy and happy…

when they first came your way…

who didn’t give a thought to the color of their skin

if they were bi, transgender, straight or gay….

That same child you created…why would you now disavow….

If you didn’t care about this when they were born…

please tell me…why do you care now?

DAILY GRATITUDE ABILITY TO COUNT

 

I am grateful for the teacher in grade school

who, when this lesson arose,

taught me how to count…

well past my fingers and my toes

I never guessed how important

that skill would turn out to be…

for each day it helps me keep a count

of all the miracles I see. 

MIRACLES

 

Since most of them are unplanned

there are things about miracles people do not understand…

For instance: many people think seeing miracles

is not the rule…but the exception…

However…if we want to see more miracles in life

all we have to do is alter our perception.