Echo

She was mislaid in the creases of my heart

Lost as I wandered the paths of my life

Tears cried were misunderstood from the start

It completely tore my life apart

Unbalanced and teetering on the edge of confusion

How long could I stumble before I would fall

She was the echo that would vibrate my illusion

I needed her voice to end the delusion

Falling into the darkness of night

She found a crack in the prison I built

She swam to the surface to breath in the light

Completing my being and awakening delight

 She shines in my presence and gives me life back

Plays in the sunlight and not in my shadow

Keeping the magic alive and wonder intact

And teaches me, there is nothing I lack

Raven

Deja vu

My heart is open to the flow of song

But hears not the symphony that it requires

It surrenders to the notes that drift on the wind

And searches for the harmony deep within

Knowing not the emotions from the songs that come

But filled with their sorrow that does not belong

Each of the notes that sound the lead

Are followed by others that cannot plant the seed

Perhaps the season is too cold for growth

Lost are the chances of Spring's magic

But I feel the deja vu of an uncomfortable dance

And the staccato of a need that breaks any chance

I know that my melody spins in my heart

And waits for the words to realize its passion

Fulfilled in itself by suffering what it gained

Watching too carefully the stanza to create blame

I feel the sadness of an incomplete song

Knowing my mind plays with the rhythm

So I'll sing my own song and dance to its beat

And find within myself the love I will meet

Raven

Spaces

The words floated in the air

In between your smiles and sadness

I heard each one and felt its sting

They pulled the threads of my own past

I've slipped on those shoes before

And felt the discomfort of familiar pain

Wondering if it was my fault that

They didn't fit

Wanting someone to hear

What I was really trying to say

The truth lived in the silent spaces

Between the inadequate symbols

The right choice lives in your heart

But the heart needs a place of solace

Where it can be heard by you

Away from the storms, and the thunder

I heard your words today

I listened to your quiet prayer 

I saw the truth in the spaces

I care

Raven

The Sound

The sound carried with it a prophecy and a warning

I didn't say it out loud, it came on its own

I can hear its whisper as I sleep at night

The possibilities bring unfamiliar lost emotions

I stand on the edge of a cliff like the Fool

And question the validity of my quest

I worked so hard to feel whole

Do I want the answer to this query

It dances in my head like a whirling dervish

Until I silence the storm within my breath

If I take this leap I will begin a journey

Into my heart

This all crushes me before I open my eyes to see

It's just a fantasy that creeped into my reality

I pulled it in with wanting

And now face its green gaze

Who am I now, as I look over the edge of fear

Do I have the strength to keep myself intact

Do I have the vision to see the truth

Do I love myself enough...to open my heart again

Raven



Forgotten

I found the place where the river falls

It drops into a pool of clear water

As it falls the mist that forms

Create the most beautiful rainbows

The path I took to find it

Cut through my shoes

Until my feet touched the earth again

I had forgotten

I began with borrowed clothes

That never seemed to fit right

I removed each piece one by one

Until I felt the wind on my skin, I had forgotten

As I walked along the rivers edge

The path gave way and I plunged into the water

I sank until my feet hit the bottom

The water was cool and awakening, I had forgotten

Now I stand at the rock edge and

Feel the heat of the sun warmed stone beneath my feet

My name no longer matters

I am here to see what I had forgotten

Raven

Unloved by Rumi

Have you seen the kind

Who settle for less?

Who creep into corners

Just big enough for one?

They are unopened letters

Whose message is this:

Live! Live! Live!

Another quote

"If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies"  - Author unknown

Friends

Friends are like bras: close to your heart and there for support!

Kalu Rinpoche quote

"We live in illusion and the appearance of things.  There is a reality.  We are that reality.  When you understand this, you see that you are nothing, and being nothing, you are everything.  That is all."

Waiting

I turned and saw the hands shift across the face of the clock

Words held in the soul were set free

They spilled out into the light

My silence was broken... Everything changed

My hand rose and covered my mouth

I was left wondering who's voice had spoken

It was my truth... My jail, my tomb, my sins

That saw the lies of my life, the illusion of my identity

My heart stopped in that moment

And when the beat revived, the rhythm was not the same

Tangled in the thread that was unraveling my life

I was slammed to the cold floor of...  "What have I done"

I was left standing...  Alone

Unable to return to the discomfort of my dying soul

I looked into the night and saw the stars

I began to breathe again

I had lost everything of what I thought I was

My jail, my tomb, my sins

I saw a void in all directions...  Waiting

There, I heard my soul

Raven

Quote by Groucho Marx

"Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself:  I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today.  I can choose which it shall be, yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn't arrived.  I have just one day, today, and I'm going to be happy in it."

Quote by Martin Buxbaum

"Some people, no matter how old they get never lose their beauty, they merely move it from their faces into their hearts."

Trying

I kept trying to sew it together

But the fabric was old and fell apart

One day I just quit trying

I was tired, my fingers were bleeding, I was dying

I really don't have an answer of why I stopped

It was as if something disconnected

For many years it was all that possessed me

Then, that morning, when I woke up, I was free

I looked at the rags of what was left

And I didn't care anymore

I started to pack to leave

realizing nothing fit, I began to grieve

It was wrong, after so long

Was the echo that rocked my mind

Belief of childhood rules

Brought the verdict chiseled by fine tools

There had to be a reason for the heart

To feel that empty

Afraid of what was calling

Clinging to the discomfort and stalling

I walked away,

It was the hardest thing I have ever done

I could not stay

The understanding of its love I have today

Raven

A Thomas Merton quote

"The beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves and not to twist them to fit our own image.  Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them."

Counting a Blessing

A blessing of his silent strength

The golden thread unites

Across the miles he calls to me

To fall asleep at night

His voice sings of a child

But his wisdom tells of years

His understanding of the heart

Brings me close to tears

His gentle nature holds the truth

Of the things that he already knows

Observing everything within his world

In his silence it already shows

I count the blessings of his love

Because it lacks any strings

It is the gift that it was meant to be

Freely given, it gives me wings

This I thank the heavens for

A child of pure delight

Who asks to hear my stories

When he calls me in the night

Raven



Growing

Breathing in the morning air

Tells of a brand new day

Grateful for the allowance

Of this extended stay

I've again pulled myself back

From the darkness of night

Carrying inside a new

Lantern of light

One can not linger

In a house of the past

Without being caught

In what Death has cast

I am thankful for

Forgiveness and letting go

Grieving the loss of false comfort

Opens a place for something new to grow

Raven

Love

Still lies the waters of the mind

It is the foundation of the truth of being

Storms come within a single drop

Which ripples affect what we are seeing

We create our own stories

Telling of the ecstasy of false love

Inventing the disaccorded music

Which then serves to be our dove

We have lost the truth of it

Attaching strings to the word

Symbols of the shadow

Hide the song which can't be heard

We talk so much of it

Hold it like a possession

Binding it to ourselves

Crying it in our silent confessions

It carries not what we demand of it

 Expectations grind it into dust

Changing the very life of it

Into tears of shadow's lust

When its false demons are destroyed

We are left grieving

For something we never possessed

It is ourselves we are deceiving

When the moment of clarity appears

And ego has been captured

The truth of this single word

Sends the soul to rapture

It does not possess a single need

And is given without any weight

Its freedom has wings

That creates its own fate

Raven

To Breathe

What fell upon the silence of my thoughts

That brought the words of this confusion

Do my feet linger here upon this land or

Do I walk away to create a new illusion

That is the truth that cuts the deep furrow in my brow

That lends itself to the wickedness of night

Not the hole of someone missing

But the misunderstanding of my own sight

It is the self that has lost its presence

Not someone who might wonder through my life

Turning to the ground for comfort and connection

Searching for the medicine to cure this strife



Holding out my hands for some unseen antidote

Pours the poison that causes the pain

I turn to myself and rip the cloth of my heart

To awaken and become sane

It is to feel again the passion of my being

To pull the uncomfortable shivers from my spine

To breathe life into my soul's presence

To myself being unquestionably kind

Raven

The Storm

This storm has pulled

me apart

Conjured up by

my heart

Winds shift at

violent speeds

Lightening strikes

with each plead

Finally, as I fall

the rain comes down

Broken by the truth

that is unbound

The simplest request

unleashes a prayer

With the answer

"no longer linger there"

So I undress and leave

my clothes behind

Naked I walk towards

the quieting of my mind

Raven

The Request

The presences of

A deep rooted tree

Holds in its leaves

A sound that is me

Notes that are played

Dance from within

Effortless music

Make everything spin

The scent that lingers

Drawn in by my breath

Creates a picture

All else vanishes, it's whats left

Both following a journey

Spiraling in

Finding the oneness

Of Spiritual kin

Using the word

As a sacred being

Flows from the heart

The truth in seeing

Key fits the lock

Frees that which was kept

Remembers the waves

Where the animal slept

Seeing dreams which

Beckon the soul

Kindling the embers

Bring lives into whole

Tending the Earth

Loving the Spirit

Each to the other

Sing the same lyric

The windows of vision

Clear with intent

Show the contentment

Of dreams well spent

Free from all need

It becomes clear

Fitting together, like comfort

Blessings so dear

Not tangled

In the cords of the past

Releases the spirit

With the spell that is cast

Seeing into the seed

Where true gifts lie

New lives begin

When allowed to fly

Raven

The Cloth

Pieces of time

Tarnished silver and gold

Found in the dust

Polished now, can be sold

Still in the darkness

Holding an empty cup

Waiting for the rain

To fill it up

The cloth that polished

The others so clear

Never was used

On what was so near

Pulled to the center

By silent devotion

Echoed the depth

Of this loving commotion

From the core

Came the sound

Voice of the soul

That which was found

A request of love

Directed within

Would sooth the burns

And heal the wounds of the sins

Drinking the herbs

From a cup made of glass

Was the prayer

For this holy Mass

Raven

Unraveling

There along the hemline

One missed silken thread

Looking for the weakness

Your attention there was lead

Unraveling the seam

Came unexpected rain

Pounding into chaos

your own pain

Brought into daylight

Something held so near

Threads of your garment

Began to break as was your fear

Salted waves stung

Washed my wounds clean

Tearing off the shreading

Naked it was seen

Running from the light

Hiding back in the dark

Again you tormented

Stitching back that which you did mark

A fledgling at this flight

Bleeding from the moon

The blessing of the seed

Was not awakened soon

Not needing any answers

Opening my eyes

Feeling the winter's frost

Understanding your lies

Raven

New Lenses

Some twist of fate

Covered in time

Inside the forest

Could be hidden a crime

Unable to speak

Unable to see

Never my thought

Misuse of a plea

What a coil

Of distilled spirit

Holding the lid

On the unsung lyric

The purest of nectar

Never to be told

Possibility of truth

fits in the same mold

Silken cord around

The throat of the past

Hands burn from

The tension at last

The same follies

Of childhood dreams

Could have a twin

of muffled screams

One doesn't always

Travel Alone

Sometimes fog

Sings the same tone

So I release the noose

new lenses conspire

Seeing what was

Singed by the same fire

Raven

The Kiss

Top of the mountain

Wind, sky and sight

Dried of the ocean

Drowned by the night

Breath of open windows

Breeze against my skin

Broken false dreams

Covered with sharp sin

It was your mirror

Fear and unwilling to see

It was not in vain

I left just to be

Sharp were the edges

Cuts to save me

Suitcases full of illusion

Taken outside to see

Seclusion of the winter

Sleeping in my bed

Seeing the damage

Clearing of my head

A shard of your mirror

Looking at my reflection

Given a blessing

Understanding without deception

Bruised and battered

I saw you fall

Now on the mountain

The gift I recall

Your sacred ghosts

Plunged me into the abyss

Never would I have leaped

If not for your kiss

Raven

Tea Pots

My morning was beautiful

On the cover of the book

Dust covered pages, no one would look

Tea pot on the stove

Polished stainless steel

Waiting for fire to heal

Encounters were proof

Of the unworthy prayer

No one can care, no one can care

Shoved in their faces

Damage was done

By the self loaded gun

Perfection of nothing

An unholy quest

Gift from someone else's mess

Kneeling to the naked ground

dried flowers fall from the pages

demons let out of cages

Darkness covered the water

Fear began to decay

Leaving only the way

Broken damaged goods

A holy Bible's page

Turned to dust in the truth of rage

No longer part of your shadow

I dance in the sunlight

In the darkness of night

I dance in the sunlight, In the darkness of night

Raven

Woman of a New Season Workshop

The Woman of a New Season Workshop will be held at Spirit Wind West on September 13, 15, 20 & 22, 2010. The time is 6:00pm to 8:30pm.  Contact for information Barb Matteri @ 360-731-1331.  Tell a friend.

Graditude

Each day our lives seem to be overwhelmed with everything that is happening around us.  We filter out most of the input so we can deal with it but what we don't realize is that it still goes in and effects our subconscious mind.  Thousands of bits of information enters our subconscious every second of the day.  No wonder it is hard for us to find the peace we need.  There are several things we can do to turn the volume of the chaos down and give ourselves a break.  One is to quiet our mind and be still.  Doing this slows the chatter of our thoughts and our body to a point where we can hear our soul talk to us.  This way we can know what we truly need.  Another thing is to be grateful for what is truly important in our lives.  This is another way of quieting the mind and focusing on the gifts that have been given to us that we take for granted.  It is important to stop the chatter, bring yourself back to stillness and be present, so that you don't miss the magic and the miracles that the universe has placed in our world. 

Precious moments

Lost, yesterday, somewhere between sunrise and sunset, two golden hours, each set with sixty diamond minutes. No reward is offered, for they are gone forever. -Horace Mann-

Ego

I was reading "Still Here"  by Ram Dass this morning and came across this section about Ego.  I think that the ego has gotten a bad rap because we just don't understand it.  To me it is part of what makes us a complete person.  It is when it is untamed and controling that creates the problem.  See what you think.
"The wisdom of age is more a matter of being than of role playing.  It's not a matter of trying to fulfill a social role; it's a matter of becoming wisdom itself.  Yes, it is a role for the Ego to play, but here we need a deeper understanding of the Ego. The Ego is the program that runs personality, the body, and interactions with others on the physical plane.  It can be a very useful tool.  The Ego only becomes destructive when a person identifies the Ego as her or his whole being.  That brings tremendous suffering, because the Ego is full of desires the fulfillment of which will never bring lasting happiness.  Such a person becomes trapped in time and desires.  If you take the perspective of the Ego, then there is suffering as the Ego struggles to preserve its identity in the face of the Soul's desire to merge with God.  I tried to go the renunciate's way, to forget the needs of the body in order to avoid the suffering of the Ego.  But the Soul depends on the Ego's drama for its teachings.  We have to be in the world to learn from it."  (Still Here by Ram Dass)

Opportunity

Age is opportunity no less

Than youth itself, though in another dress,

And as the evening twilight fades away

The sky is filled with stars invisible by day.

-Longfellow

Quieting

Candle is lit

Spark becomes light

Body surrenders

Finds a place

Silence is wanted

Rain settles in

Shade covered windows

Cats left outside

Breath Finds wave

We become I

Expectation lost

Nothing dances

Let it be

Already is

                                                                                        Raven

Oneness

Manifesting is a interesting thing.  It starts with you, inside you.  It is planted into the mind, where it gestates and grows until it is ready to be born.  Then when the time is right you bring it out of your mind into the world.  It is you going from the inside to the outside.  Everything that you manifest is you.  Now take this one step further.  The Divine Consciousness manifesting.  It starts with the Divine, inside the Divine.  Where it gestates and grows until it is ready to be born. Then when the time is right the Divine brings it out of the consciousness into the world. It is the Divine going from the inside to the outside.  Everything that is created is the Divine.  Now ponder this, you, everyone else and everything else, including your manifestations are actually a manifestation of the Divine.  Which in turn means that it is all the Divine.  That is the Oneness.

Today

Today is a beautiful day.  I wake up each morning grateful for the abundance in my life.  The prayers and thoughts that I am giving to the universe this morning are for lifting my vibration of light higher, so that it will lift the vibrations of many, many others.  Love, Peace and Bliss be with you this beautiful day.

The Shadow Effect

I am reading the "Shadow Effect" by Deepak Chopra, Debbie Ford and Marianne Williamson.  It is one of the best I've read on the shadow.  Here is a part of the book written by Debbie Ford, it will make you think about how you see yourself and others for that matter.

"We possess every human characteristic and emotion, whether active or dormat, whether conscious or unconscious.  There is nothing we can conceive of that we are not.  We are everything - that which we consider good and that which we consider bad.  How could we know courage if we have never known fear?  How could we know happiness if we never experienced sadness?  How could we know light if we never knew dark?

All these pairs of opposites exist within us because we are dualistic beings made up of opposing forces.  This means that every quality we can see in another exists within ourselves.  We are the microcosm of the macrocosm, meaning within our DNA structure we have the imprint of every characteristic.  We are capable of both the greatest acts of selflessness and the most destructive, self-punishing crimes.  When viewed in the full light of our awareness, our shadow exposes the duality and the truth of both our human self and our divine self, as they both prove to be essential ingredients of a whole authentic human being."

East West Bookstore

I recently had the pleasure to go to the East West book store in Seattle to listen to Don Jose Ruiz talk about his new book,"The Fifth Agreement. What an inspiring young man. I find the Tolec wisdom very interesting. It shines a light on what we have come to believe is true and what really is the truth.