Reflections

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  1. Robin Ann
    Robin Ann
    2 weeks ago

    My daughter and I experienced sightings of many manatees and fish at a place called “Manatee Lagoon “in West palm beach Florida. It is an area where the manatees come in this time of year to bask in warmer waters. We saw a mom nursing their calf. I have been there once before and only saw one or two. It is a mystery to me to watch them come up for air or stay under for a long long time. Very neat! My daughter has been there two times and never saw them. They have 2 cams, one underwater and it is fun to watch on their website.

    1. Michele
      Michele
      2 weeks ago

      We also have a Manatee Viewing Ctr in Tampa – https://www.tampaelectric.com/manatee/

    2. Mary
      Mary
      2 weeks ago

      Thanks Robin Ann.
      I will look at their website!

  2. Ose
    Ose
    2 weeks ago

    I will have to think about this question more. Thank you all.

  3. sparrow51014
    sparrow
    2 weeks ago

    It’s in the wonder I experience
    when I draw back from the world
    and open myself up to the bigger picture,
    How can we not
    just gape,
    open-mouthed
    at the absolute miracle we are . . .
    at the miracle of everything that exists in the universe?
    Many people
    think that it is all random chaos,
    but I cannot believe it
    when I look,
    wide awake to the intricate threads
    that hold us all together.
    Nothing about this space where we live
    is random chaos . . .
    it is all too perfectly imperfect.
    Birth and death,
    joy and sorrow
    always connect me to life’s mystery.
    Kahlil Gibran’s poem on joy and sorrow
    completely fills me
    with the mystery . . .
    thank you,
    dear Carol,
    for posting it.

    I can laugh in the midst of grief,
    and weep in the midst of joy . . .
    when this happens
    I am as close as I can be
    to touching the great mystery

    It’s also in the wonder I experience
    when I close in on the world
    and see how intimately we are designed,
    right down to the last detail . . .
    how does a seed
    grow into a plant?
    It’s in the sad horror
    of finding a nest
    and in that nest,
    discovering three little phoebes,
    all dead…
    abandoned by their parents for some reason.
    Life and death are cycles in the natural world . . .
    they are all meant to be.
    They are not opposites . . .
    they sit side by side on the couch.
    I don’t know what will happen when I die,
    but because I trust Nature,
    I think I will be all right,
    whatever happens. ♥

    1. Joseph
      Joseph McCann
      2 weeks ago

      This world in which we are a part of certainly is a big show of things appearing and disappearing, dear Sparrow. Thank you for your eloquent way of stating it.

      1. sparrow51014
        sparrow
        2 weeks ago

        It really is ,
        dear Joseph,
        isn’t it ? ♥

    2. Mary
      Mary
      2 weeks ago

      Thank you Sparrow.
      This is so beautiful!

      1. sparrow51014
        sparrow
        2 weeks ago

        Thank you,
        dear Mary…
        I hope it resonates with you. ♥

    3. Patti
      sunnypatti
      2 weeks ago

      Thank you, Sparrow. I wish I could have read your words many years ago, but there is a time for everything. I trust Nature, too 🙂

      1. sparrow51014
        sparrow
        2 weeks ago

        Nature is my anchor too,
        dear Sunnypatti . . . ♥

  4. S
    Suzanne S
    2 weeks ago

    Spending time with my dogs and the stream near my home helps me feel connected. It often increases my sense of wonder and allows me to reflect deeply on the mysteries of the world. In honor of Black History Month, I have been listening to audiobooks by Black authors, including Neil deGrasse Tyson, the renowned astrophysicist. His discussions on relativity, black holes, the formation of universes, and the nature of time have deepened my interest and sense of wonder.

    Over the past several years, I have experienced many deaths of people I know. Tyson’s exploration of time has made me reflect on the people I have lost and how time weaves through memory and presence. I often find myself in familiar places in my community, recalling moments when those I’ve lost were there with me. The mysteries of time—its fluidity, its echoes, its vastness—continue to shape the way I process both grief and wonder.

    1. sparrow51014
      sparrow
      2 weeks ago

      ”The mysteries of time—its fluidity, its echoes, its vastness—continue to shape the way I process both grief and wonder.”
      This speaks to me,
      dear Suzanne…
      so many people here
      are sincerely seeking to grow. ♥

  5. Carol Ann Conner
    Carol
    2 weeks ago

    I’m not sure I even understand the question. Look forward to reading others answers.

  6. Charlie T
    Charlie T
    2 weeks ago

    Nothing big, lately. No lightning strikes.
    But a scattering of little things.
    The crisp and bright night sky. The hooting of an owl. The serendipity of a received text or phone call. The synchronicity of a shared thought.
    I guess the mystery is always out there, the question is, am I tuned in to receive it.

    1. sparrow51014
      sparrow
      2 weeks ago

      I think perhaps you are,
      dear Charlie…♥

  7. Jenifer
    Jenifer
    2 weeks ago

    I’ve met someone, about a month ago. We met dancing (aka my favorite thing) and exchanged numbers. We’ve gotten to know each other and have hung out several times since. We recently confessed to having feelings for each other, and although it’s nice to know the feeling is mutual, my anxious mind can’t help but tell me that it’s all going to end badly. I have a habit of thinking about the future, “what if they stop liking me later on? What if they’re just messing with my emotions? What if they see the real me and feel repulsed?” I also find myself almost like grieving the relationship, knowing it will end, in one way or another. Nonetheless, I’ve been trying really hard to allow myself to feel good in this moment with them, because truthfully, that is all I have. I can either get caught up in my head with all this future tripping or I can be present with myself and in my body while I allow life’s mystery to take its course. And for that, I am grateful. 🧡

    1. sparrow51014
      sparrow
      2 weeks ago

      I’m with Charlie on this,
      dear Jenifer…
      one day at a time.
      In the meantime,
      don’t catastrophize. 🙂

    2. Carol Ann Conner
      Carol
      2 weeks ago

      I find myself agreeing with Charlie…One day at a time, dear Jenifer.

    3. Charlie T
      Charlie T
      2 weeks ago

      Jennifer, thanks for sharing this.
      It helps me to remember, this is all just practice. You can try it out. Take it for a test ride. Nothing is permanent anyway, so ya might as well have the experience. Good, bad, or otherwise. Good luck and enjoy.

  8. c
    Carol Ann
    2 weeks ago

    well, This one has brought me pause. I thought first of some time yesterday spent on a hike in the rain where there were beautiful rushing little waterfalls and streams and washed pale lichen on tree bark and dripping fine delicate mosses….. I was with a group of fine people out studying animal scat and looking at wildlife trails and markings….and respecting the animals’ world…. all was beautiful, none more than another…. but I feel that the natural beauty of this world is a known constant for me, if I get to take my time in it or not….. and then I thought of the day before when I was able to say “yes” to a dear family with a sick child who needed care – the parents weren’t able to get her to the clinic and I could and it was important and so sweet to be with the little one who needed some loving reassurance -(and treatment)- and that felt like real grace, to be able to just help that all get better and see the trust of the child, to be with her like that….. but I’m also sitting here at just pre-dawn and can see the sky change from night to daybreak with the beautiful naked massive oak tree silhouette beginning to define itself as she does every dawn….. and I thought, “Well?…. What IS Life’s Mystery????”… and I feel I can’t begin to know! It seems such a gift to be able to spend time in this place of wondering. Today I will hope to be on a treasure hunt, looking for clues to point me in the direction of feeling more connected to life’s mystery….. thank you, Community…. good luck to all today.🙏

    1. Carol Ann Conner
      Carol
      2 weeks ago

      Carol Ann, Love this!

      1. c
        Carol Ann
        2 weeks ago

        thank you for being here, Carol🙏

  9. Patti
    sunnypatti
    2 weeks ago

    There is so much mystery in life that I feel like there are daily experiences that connect me to them. I always look at a few particular dead trees that lay on a path to the park. These trunks are really big, and I’m always looking for new mushroom growth. Before we got snow recently, one of the trunks had these beautiful blue turkey tail mushrooms. The way they grew together made for this great display of art and the blue stripes were so vibrant and perfect. A masterpiece of Mother Nature that I felt so fortunate to see.

    And then sometimes there are these moments when I’m looking up at the sky, daytime or nighttime, and I get this feeling of connectedness, of awe. It just sweeps over me like WOAH! I feel that sometimes in meditation, while sitting in church, or while reading the Yoga Sutras. Like a tap on the shoulder from God, reminding me that I am part of something so much bigger than myself. Just typing it out right now gives me that feeling. It’s very peaceful and loving.

    1. sparrow51014
      sparrow
      2 weeks ago

      I had to google this,
      dear Sunnypatti…
      turkey tail mushrooms–
      beautiful. ♥

  10. Yram
    Yram
    2 weeks ago

    I will have to sit with this for awhile. I read the replies and now many topics surface. I agree with all. Life itself is a great mystery. How does this physical body co-ordinate all these functions and then??? It is often said to live with the questions. I, for sure, have not figured it out.

    1. Carol Ann Conner
      Carol
      2 weeks ago

      YRAM, Your reply resonates with me. Makes me think of Kahlil Gibran’s poem on joy and sorrow. Both are life’s mysteries.
      Then a woman said, Speak to us of Joy and Sorrow.
      And he answered:
      Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.
      And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears.
      And how else can it be?
      The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.
      Is not the cup that holds your wine the very cup that was burned in the potter’s oven?
      And is not the lute that soothes your spirit, the very wood that was hollowed with knives?
      When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy.
      When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight.
      Some of you say, “Joy is greater than sorrow,” and others say, “Nay, sorrow is the greater.”
      But I say unto you, they are inseparable.
      Together they come, and when one sits alone with you at your board, remember that the other is asleep upon your bed.
      Verily you are suspended like scales between your sorrow and your joy.
      Only when you are empty are you at standstill and balanced.
      When the treasure-keeper lifts you to weigh his gold and his silver, needs must your joy or your sorrow rise or fall.
      Kahlil Gibran The Prophet pp. 22-23

      1. Yram
        Yram
        2 weeks ago

        Thank you! It is a mystery of co-existing.

      2. Michele
        Michele
        2 weeks ago

        love this poem – speaks so much truth, thank you

      3. sparrow51014
        sparrow
        2 weeks ago

        This poem
        so resonates with me,
        dear Carol. ♥

  11. D
    Dawn Elaine Bowie
    2 weeks ago

    Ahh … mystery! I participated in the Eucharistic celebration yesterday. That’s my most recent experience of mystery.
    I’m a convert to Catholicism and one of the two reasons I was drawn to this faith was mystery. The biggest, most important one being whatever it is that happens in the Eucharistic celebration. It’s the one thing Catholics have that I didn’t find anywhere else. For years, I argued about it: what it means, what happens.
    The thing that helped be in right relation to it (for me anyway) was my contemplation practice. There’s a short video by Richard Rohr about the Yahweh prayer that blew my mind. After I saw it years ago, my practice became real and rich. After I did that for awhile I made a decision to stop arguing and trying to figure out what is the meaning of Eucharist. Just ask God to quiet my mind and help me to remember that I am in God’s presence. That’s what I start with every day anyway.
    By the time I get to mass, I’ve been doing that all week. I stop trying to figure it out and just be there in the mystery. Once I had a pretty profound experience that I savor, but usually there’s no white light or music or often any external results or validation. I’m learning to allow myself not to have those expectations.

    1. Robin Ann
      Robin Ann
      2 weeks ago

      Love this. Each church is very different. I enjoy a church with a significant music program and pastor. Last night I went to a different church due to my flight time. The pastor was awesome to listen too and i enjoyed the music too. At the end of mass they offered blessed candles to take home!

    2. Mary
      Mary
      2 weeks ago

      “Just ask God to quiet my mind and help me to remember that I am in God’s presence”
      This is beautiful Dawn Elaine.
      I can identify with realizing that I can’t do it all on my own,
      but rather asking God to work within me.
      And sitting, with no expectations
      in God’s presence.
      Thank you for this reminder.
      This brings a sense of gentleness and security
      and helps to free me from anxiety.
      ♥️

    3. Mary
      Mary Mantei
      2 weeks ago

      If you understood it, Dawn Elaine, the mystery would be gone.❤️

  12. L
    Loc Tran
    2 weeks ago

    I play fantasy basketball with my group of high school buddies. We have our own teams to promote healthy rivalries like back in the good old 80s and 90s. Countless teams and stars ruled the league back then from: Magic’s Lakers, the bad boys Pistons, Larry Bird’s Celtics, Michael Jordan’s Bulls…My team is called the “Loc Angeles Soldiers.” The Lakers are my root. I’m the executive for my team. My high school buddy, Sean Thayer, is the head coach for his team, the “Soon to be” Sean Antonio Farraris starting in the 2025-26 season lead by upcoming icon, Victor Wembanyama. We have our own systems and the right staff to execute our visions. The Lakers traded Anthony Davis for Luka Doncic in a stunner yesterday.
    The AD for Luka swop was 1 for the ages. I already have the father and son dual of LeBron and Bronny and Ant on my team. The luxury tax is $170.8mil. The 1st and 2nd aprons, which are the new rules that just came into effect starting this year, are $178.1 and $188.9mil respectively. I’m more concerned about the aprons. Going over them results into harsh penalties.
    I wouldn’t be penalized at all. I’ve always committed to honesty. Winning with integrity is the greatest form of victory. As the old saying goes, “Winners never cheat, and cheaters never win.” Therefore, 1 of LeBron or Anthony Edwards had to go.
    I had LeBron and his son as the odd ones out. I got Luka in return to honor my roots and grow alongside with a young rising superstar in Anthony Edwards for years to come. We don’t know how good Bronny will be. LeBron’s 40 years old. Ant’s 23, and Luka’s 25. That’s at least 15yrs younger.
    With that being said, doing this sports business as a hobby has taught me to embrace the unpredictability of life and adapt to my circumstances. I always start out with a solid plan to lay out a foundation. Mystery comes. I deviate from my plans. The original base always remains.
    Sean Thayer and his Farraris end up with the father and son dual. It’s 2 people drinking from the same well. It’s why they say “Opposites attract, likes repel.”
    I can see Executive Lauryn building her team along with Steph Curry as her franchise player. A Steph vs Luka battle is interesting. It happened in the 2022 Western Conference Finals. Steph won in a gentlemen sweep.

    1. L
      Lauryn
      2 weeks ago

      It’s too perfect to mention the LeBron -Luca trade in response to this question! Indeed a shocker… a plot twist to this season for sure! I think you’ve made a good executive decision letting LeBron go over Ant. 🙂

      I’ve been watching basketball closely for about 4 years now, and before that, I didn’t pay attention to sports at all, and just now watching teams evolve, change, improve, fall apart, has all been really interesting.

      I’m thinking I should maybe try fantasy basketball next season…

      1. L
        Loc Tran
        2 weeks ago

        Thanks, Lauryn. The concept of letting go reminds me of Antoinette’s answer. The sports landscape changes within a blink of an eye.

  13. Mary
    Mary
    2 weeks ago

    My father, my sister, and my godmother passing away.
    Their passing away brought me face to face with the greatest mystery in life.
    To me the greatest mystery is death.
    My lack of clarity on death makes losing those I have deeply loved especially difficult.
    I don’t feel comfortable with any explanations I have heard
    in answer to the question -What happens to a person when they die?
    Do they cease to exist?
    Is there an afterlife?
    I would like to have faith
    or take comfort in some answers,
    but at this time, I have no answers.

    This is my not particularly spiritual,
    but completely honest answer to todays question.
    I would be grateful to hear anyone’s thoughts on this topic.
    How do you make sense of death, and what beliefs or understandings comfort you?
    Thank you to all for being here.

    1. Joseph
      Joseph McCann
      2 weeks ago

      I have heard it stated as such Mary: Do you recall what it was like before you were Born? That is what it what be like after you Pass.

      1. Mary
        Mary
        2 weeks ago

        Thanks Joseph.
        If there is no afterlife, it makes sense that it would be as simple as that.
        I’ve never thought of it in this way, so again, thank you.

    2. Robin Ann
      Robin Ann
      2 weeks ago

      For me I like to believe in Heaven and seeing signs of our loved ones near by. My Mother sang in the church choir so that is a great comfort to me to hear a church choir. Some songs do make me feel emotional at times.

    3. Patti
      sunnypatti
      2 weeks ago

      Death has always been difficult for me. I was never taught how to deal with it. Growing up in church, we’d be singing about how we’d be rejoicing when we get to heaven (I can hear my Mamaw & Papaw singing next to me now!), but then when people died, everyone was so overcome with grief. I remember being so confused when I was a kid. I think part of me knew people were sad because they couldn’t physically be around the person anymore, but I didn’t understand why there was no celebrating since it seemed like heaven was the ultimate goal.

      One of the greatest griefs of my life was when my Papaw died (I was 21). My Papaw was the BEST. He was not my grandpa until my mom married my (step) dad when I was 7. I loved that man so very much. And then he got cancer, but I got to witness a miracle before he died. He always walked with a cane, as he was disabled from WWII. Well, we went to see him after they let him go home from the hospital, and he walked into the living room with no cane and no limp. He was so happy to walk again! And then he was gone. I hated seeing his dead body in the coffin (I haven’t looked at one since). I cried for a week straight, having to miss classes because I couldn’t get a grip on the loss and my sadness. And then he came to me in a dream. I was sitting on our porch crying, and there he was, riding a bicycle up the street. He stopped in front of our house and told me to “stop all that crying,” that he was fine and everything was okay. And then he peddled away. I was overcome by this experience, and I know in my heart it was him.

      I don’t really know if heaven is the way it’s described in churches, but I do believe that spirit lasts forever and that energy never dies. I also believe that the energy can be felt by those of us still in this realm if we quiet our minds. I also love finding ways to honor our loved ones (as you & Drea mentioned) which tends to keeping that energy alive with us.

      1. Mary
        Mary
        2 weeks ago

        What you’ve written here is so beautiful, SunnyPatti.
        Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences
        with death so generously and authentically.
        I appreciate you so much!♥️♥️♥️
        Sending love

      2. sparrow51014
        sparrow
        2 weeks ago

        What a beautiful image of your Pawpa,
        dear Sunnypattie…
        tears filled my eyes
        when I read this. ♥

        1. Patti
          sunnypatti
          2 weeks ago

          I still get teary-eyed thinking about him, but then a smile takes over as I think about the love and the memories. He was truly a wonderful man.

    4. D
      Drea
      2 weeks ago

      Mary, I’m so sorry to hear about your sister and your godmother. Please accept my heartfelt condolences. It must be so difficult to go through this. After someone dies, a small way I comfort myself by knowing they live on inside of my memories. They are not gone because tiny pieces of them live on, and I try to take inspiration from what, of theirs, I carry. For example, my husband’s grandmother recently died. She was always reaching out to so many people, never forgetting a birthday greeting or Christmas card, always welcoming, always remembering. I carry the aspiration to be like her within, and so I think she lives on.

      1. Mary
        Mary
        2 weeks ago

        Thank you Drea.
        As many have said, it’s not so much what happens,
        but rather how you deal with it that makes the difference.
        I have thought about taking inspiration from what was important to my Sister.
        I will think about this more, and also think of this in regard to my Dad and Godmother.
        And then act on it. This will be comforting to me, and be a way to honor them.

        PS to Drea I edited my post to include my Dad after you had responded to me.

        1. D
          Drea
          2 weeks ago

          Oh Mary, I’m so sorry to hear about your dad, too. That is so much. You seem to be getting through this with great awareness and heart. Thank you for sharing here.

          1. Mary
            Mary
            2 weeks ago

            Thanks Drea.
            ♥️♥️♥️

  14. Howie Geib97277
    Howie Geib
    2 weeks ago

    The concept of memory. Last night I read about the mind, and the knee jerk mechanistic view that assumes everything is stored in our cranium. Somehow packed in the chemical firings of neural tissues and nodules or what have you like an ant colony or a bee hive..which may be inaccurate. The mind may simply act like a transistor radio receiver. When I listened to a baseball game on the radio in the backyard as a kid, there was never a sense that the players, the announcer, the crowds I could hear cheering or booing in the background not to mention the organ player, were actually ‘in’ the small plastic box with the dials and the antenna. Which leaves me with the pretty mysterious question: “where is this coming from?”. Not that some entity or ‘other’ is piping it into my head (no need to get out the aluminum foil hat). No, the premise of the book is that we are sooooooo much other than our physical bodies. We are not separate from our bodies, and yet we are perhaps spiritual beings that have the capacity of manifesting corporeally here and now. And my great mistake is to think I am alone. The actuality of my physical limitations in the present moment in my kitchen would lead me to the conclusion that I am, well my bamboo plant and I. But the chorus that surrounds me and the life forces that I can intuit are as real perhaps. An outside observer would see me sitting on a stool at the counter no other humans in the condo. And yet, here you all are. So experiencing that sense of mystery, was alarming and also exciting. Yeah, there’s more here folks than meets the eye.

    1. c
      Carol Ann
      2 weeks ago

      It’s true, Howie!…. “and yet, here we all are!” ……. You are right! more to ponder!!!!!!!!! I think my approach today will be to see how blank and open I can keep my “mind”/”neural tissues”/”cranium” /”transistor” today and see what comes in to that space instead. good luck, all.

  15. Michele
    Michele
    2 weeks ago

    This is such a great interesting question although nothing comes to mind for me. I look forward to reading everyone reflections.
    I wonder if anyone had a NDE?

    1. Michele
      Michele
      2 weeks ago

      Thank you everyone for your responses 🙂

    2. Robin Ann
      Robin Ann
      2 weeks ago

      My daughter did. We haven’t talked in detail about it but she will say “Nana visited her” her when she smells something that reminds her of my Mom

    3. Charlie T
      Charlie T
      2 weeks ago

      Michelle, I personally have not had a near death experience myself, at least not anything other than thinking about the people that I cared about in my life, but I met an old man at a Veterans home one time, and besides deeply connecting with him, he told me about an experience he had when he was young. He remembered it vividly. It was an “out of body experience”. As he was nearing death, he left his body and was looking down from a distance, as his father drove him frantically to the hospital through the farmlands and fields. Obviously he survived, fought in WWll, worked, and raised a family.
      His experience carried weight with me, because of his no nonsense demeanor and vivid description.

      1. Robin Ann
        Robin Ann
        2 weeks ago

        wow i have read about these

    4. c
      Carol Ann
      2 weeks ago

      I have certainly read the books and articles and published accounts of people who have had NDE’s (near death experiences), and in my profession, had opportunity to meet many people who had had cardiac events that lead to successful resuscitation. Occasionally, it was acceptable for me to ask them if there had been an NDE, and I have been told first hand accounts from some people who have had them. I also know of people in similar situations who did not experience anything during the resuscitation. I don’t think that is particularly contributory to your question, Michele, but I offer it as some tiny input just because of your interest. thank you for putting out the question –

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