To live Love. Play ingmusic, singing, meditation and reading related texts. Being in nature, accompaying kindred friends and people in need as well as sharing time with firends, and sharing with you here.
I started this little missive
with the words,
“I’ve always lived my life with joy”,
which is not true at all . . .
why would I say it then?
I guess perhaps I was thinking I have lived my life wholeheartedly,
which I briefly equated with ‘joy’,
I have not live my whole life with joy,
but I have lived it wholeheartedly.
I have experienced my life deeply . . .
loved deeply,
grieved deeply . . .
I’ve embraced both euphoria and suffering
with every part of my being,
and never thought of doing it
any other way.
I took the pleasure with the pain
because I didn’t want to sacrifice one for the other.
My heart was open to all of it,
although the sorrow almost killed me.
I remember sitting on my bed when I was in my mid-thirties
after a break up which felt more like abandonment
than any other break up in my life
clutching a pillow in my lap,
staring at a blank television . . .
I felt like I was at a crossroads in my journey
and a question came to me that it was time to answer . . .
“did I want to have an open heart,
or did I want to let bitterness in and take me over?”
Believe me when I say it was a difficult decision,
but I made it,
right then and there . . .
I wanted my open heart
more than I hated what was happening.
With that decision
I started to heal . . .
it would be several years,
but I came out of mourning
trembling and raw,
but ready to embrace the world wholeheartedly
again. ♥
I happened across a website of Mary Oliver poems with reflections on them and have been reading my way through that. Today’s poem fits the theme of this question.
I had a dog
Who loved flowers
Briskly she went
Through the fields,
Yet paused
For the honeysuckle
Or the rose,
Her dark head
And her wet nose
Touching
The face
Of every one
With its petals
Of silk,
With its fragrance
Rising
Into the air
Where the bees,
Their bodies
Heavy with pollen,
Hovered–and easily
She adored
Every blossom,
Not in the serious
Careful way
That we choose
This blossom or that blossom–
The way we praise or don’t praise–
The way we love
Or don’t love–
But the way
We long to be–
That happy
In the heaven of earth–
That wild, that loving.
I’ve been rushing around, but in a good way. Put out the (many) recyclables, watched a wake up show on TV, listened to radio show rebroadcast, texted with my sisters, requested library book, posted schoolwork. Dare I say I enjoyed it? I did, so I guess that’s wholeheartedly too!
To me living wholeheartedly means to be fully engaged in the present moment. It means to take it all in, embrace all of it. Surrender to the present moment.
Be an active participant in this life. Laugh, cry, sing, dance, give, take, share, care, be joyful, smile, observe Mother Nature in all her glory.
Rejoice.
🕊️♥️
Living wholeheartedly. Hmm.. Well for today, I will finish this reflection and do so with gratitude, looking forward to reading the responses of others later, as I am running late as of now. I will drive to the fitness center, enjoying the ride, and the beautiful weather. This living in the moment requires some discipline, and extra paying attention, but it sure beats being stuck in my head. I will enjoy meeting my husband there, and appreciate my body, and his as we take our daily walk. I will then drive across the river, admiring it as I always do, and appreciating the fact that I have a car and am able to drive the 15 miles to visit my sister. I will love her by being fully present as I sit outside with her. I will continue with my day making choices of what to do and when, appreciating my life, breathing it in, and exhaling thoughts of yesterday or possible scenarios of tomorrow.
My intention today is to live my life fully, by staying in the moment.
Sending love to all.
Living wholeheartedly means being open to how Spirit leads me each day, even through challenging events, like Annunciation shooting. It means being open to belly laughs and to not be afraid to cry. I’m reminded of a song Momma Cass would sing “You’ve got to—make your own kind of music, sing your own special song, Make your own kind of music-even if no one else sings along!” I hope I got the lyrics right :). I smile, as making occasional mistakes is also about living wholeheartedly! Celebrate today!☮️
To me, living whole heartedly means, trying to stay in the present moment, being a participant, being willing, and having some trust in this crazy world.
It also means trying to listen to my heart, as well as my head.
Charlie, my growing Christian faith has helped me with trust. Love and forgiveness are the pillers. Ultimately, we’re all cinners dating all the way back to when Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge.
An observation. Coming in from feeding the barn cats and turning Pooch out, the waning crescent moon and a myriad of stars shining through a clear sky, scrubbed by rain. We received an additional .25″ of rain last night. The moon’s position is catching water not spilling water. Picture a bowl upright (catching water) and a bowl on its side (spilling water). Another saying I have gleaned from old timers when I was young. I am now passing that on as I have become a ‘long’ timer, even though a not always correct method of weather prediction! Namaste
Thank you Joseph for your description of the moon’s current position. Love it. 😊
Keep the “old timers” sayings coming. I love their wisdom & simplicity. ♥️
Judith, emotions are like clouds in the sky. It comes and goes. I value expression for as long as it doesn’t harm which is an entirely another subject to get into for another day.
It means truly living my life, loving this vessel I am in, nurturing it with love, good food, movement, and mindfulness. It means having fun and finding joy. Going to the concerts. Burning the fancy candles. Really letting my light shine no matter what. Following my heart. Doing hard things. And also pausing. basking in the sun or the moonlight, feeling the now and being grateful for it all.
We have a set of vintage Irish dinnerware that my husband found at a thrift store years ago. He was going to sell it, but kind of forgot we had it. Those dishes sat on the top shelf at our old house, never getting used. When we moved, I donated our “everyday” dinnerware, and we use that gorgeous Irish set every day now 🙂
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To live Love. Play ingmusic, singing, meditation and reading related texts. Being in nature, accompaying kindred friends and people in need as well as sharing time with firends, and sharing with you here.
To me it is being sincere, genuine, handling sensitive situations in a delicate way.
Hmm living wholeheartedly… taking risks and making decisions that leave no regrets – that is what living wholeheartedly means to me.
I started this little missive
with the words,
“I’ve always lived my life with joy”,
which is not true at all . . .
why would I say it then?
I guess perhaps I was thinking I have lived my life wholeheartedly,
which I briefly equated with ‘joy’,
I have not live my whole life with joy,
but I have lived it wholeheartedly.
I have experienced my life deeply . . .
loved deeply,
grieved deeply . . .
I’ve embraced both euphoria and suffering
with every part of my being,
and never thought of doing it
any other way.
I took the pleasure with the pain
because I didn’t want to sacrifice one for the other.
My heart was open to all of it,
although the sorrow almost killed me.
I remember sitting on my bed when I was in my mid-thirties
after a break up which felt more like abandonment
than any other break up in my life
clutching a pillow in my lap,
staring at a blank television . . .
I felt like I was at a crossroads in my journey
and a question came to me that it was time to answer . . .
“did I want to have an open heart,
or did I want to let bitterness in and take me over?”
Believe me when I say it was a difficult decision,
but I made it,
right then and there . . .
I wanted my open heart
more than I hated what was happening.
With that decision
I started to heal . . .
it would be several years,
but I came out of mourning
trembling and raw,
but ready to embrace the world wholeheartedly
again. ♥
I happened across a website of Mary Oliver poems with reflections on them and have been reading my way through that. Today’s poem fits the theme of this question.
https://yearsrisingmaryoliver.blogspot.com/2010/10/luke.html
“Luke”
I had a dog
Who loved flowers
Briskly she went
Through the fields,
Yet paused
For the honeysuckle
Or the rose,
Her dark head
And her wet nose
Touching
The face
Of every one
With its petals
Of silk,
With its fragrance
Rising
Into the air
Where the bees,
Their bodies
Heavy with pollen,
Hovered–and easily
She adored
Every blossom,
Not in the serious
Careful way
That we choose
This blossom or that blossom–
The way we praise or don’t praise–
The way we love
Or don’t love–
But the way
We long to be–
That happy
In the heaven of earth–
That wild, that loving.
Oh, I’ve never read that one before. It’s lovely! Thank you, Barb!
Very nice read. Thank you Barb.
Mary Oliver’s poetry
reaches down into my heart
and touches my soul . . .
thank you for posting this,
dear Barb . . . ♥
I’ve been rushing around, but in a good way. Put out the (many) recyclables, watched a wake up show on TV, listened to radio show rebroadcast, texted with my sisters, requested library book, posted schoolwork. Dare I say I enjoyed it? I did, so I guess that’s wholeheartedly too!
To me living wholeheartedly means to be fully engaged in the present moment. It means to take it all in, embrace all of it. Surrender to the present moment.
Be an active participant in this life. Laugh, cry, sing, dance, give, take, share, care, be joyful, smile, observe Mother Nature in all her glory.
Rejoice.
🕊️♥️
Living wholeheartedly. Hmm.. Well for today, I will finish this reflection and do so with gratitude, looking forward to reading the responses of others later, as I am running late as of now. I will drive to the fitness center, enjoying the ride, and the beautiful weather. This living in the moment requires some discipline, and extra paying attention, but it sure beats being stuck in my head. I will enjoy meeting my husband there, and appreciate my body, and his as we take our daily walk. I will then drive across the river, admiring it as I always do, and appreciating the fact that I have a car and am able to drive the 15 miles to visit my sister. I will love her by being fully present as I sit outside with her. I will continue with my day making choices of what to do and when, appreciating my life, breathing it in, and exhaling thoughts of yesterday or possible scenarios of tomorrow.
My intention today is to live my life fully, by staying in the moment.
Sending love to all.
Beautiful!
Thank you, Yram.
Living wholeheartedly means being open to how Spirit leads me each day, even through challenging events, like Annunciation shooting. It means being open to belly laughs and to not be afraid to cry. I’m reminded of a song Momma Cass would sing “You’ve got to—make your own kind of music, sing your own special song, Make your own kind of music-even if no one else sings along!” I hope I got the lyrics right :). I smile, as making occasional mistakes is also about living wholeheartedly! Celebrate today!☮️
I guess that is like: loving life. Or living life to the fullest. Embracing it all intentionally.
Living wholeheartedly to me comes down to the slogan “Be real; not reluctant.”
To me, living whole heartedly means, trying to stay in the present moment, being a participant, being willing, and having some trust in this crazy world.
It also means trying to listen to my heart, as well as my head.
Charlie, my growing Christian faith has helped me with trust. Love and forgiveness are the pillers. Ultimately, we’re all cinners dating all the way back to when Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge.
An observation. Coming in from feeding the barn cats and turning Pooch out, the waning crescent moon and a myriad of stars shining through a clear sky, scrubbed by rain. We received an additional .25″ of rain last night. The moon’s position is catching water not spilling water. Picture a bowl upright (catching water) and a bowl on its side (spilling water). Another saying I have gleaned from old timers when I was young. I am now passing that on as I have become a ‘long’ timer, even though a not always correct method of weather prediction! Namaste
Namaste,
and thank you,
dear Joseph . . . ♥
Thank you Joseph for your description of the moon’s current position. Love it. 😊
Keep the “old timers” sayings coming. I love their wisdom & simplicity. ♥️
Thanks for the visual.
To let emotions be (within me and others), to be honest and to go where I feel alive and expanded.
Love “alive and expanded.” Yes!
Judith, emotions are like clouds in the sky. It comes and goes. I value expression for as long as it doesn’t harm which is an entirely another subject to get into for another day.
It means truly living my life, loving this vessel I am in, nurturing it with love, good food, movement, and mindfulness. It means having fun and finding joy. Going to the concerts. Burning the fancy candles. Really letting my light shine no matter what. Following my heart. Doing hard things. And also pausing. basking in the sun or the moonlight, feeling the now and being grateful for it all.
I do not have any ‘fancy candles’ Sunnypatti, but we have a long haired black cat with very unique white markings that I call the “Fancy Cat”! 😊
I love a good Fancy Cat! Better than a fancy candle!
I use my mom’s food silver for everyday eating. That’s like burning the fancy candles. Vivid image!
We have a set of vintage Irish dinnerware that my husband found at a thrift store years ago. He was going to sell it, but kind of forgot we had it. Those dishes sat on the top shelf at our old house, never getting used. When we moved, I donated our “everyday” dinnerware, and we use that gorgeous Irish set every day now 🙂
Love it!☘️
Yes, Sunnypatti. After all, we only have one life to live.
Only one that we know of!
So true.