Journal of Surrender

Each day, I rise

in a body that’s not mine,

with a mind upset

by the despair of mankind.

 

Each day, I rise

looking for myself

in the eyes of others,

in the arms of others.

 

Each day, I rise

with the hope to die,

with the hope to find,

in death, the soul that never dies.

 

Each day, I rise

troubled and sad,

waiting to return

to the light of my kind.

 

Marù

 

 

 

Come my friends,

‘Tis not too late to seek a newer world,

For my purpose holds to sail beyond the sunset.

And though we are not now that strength which in old days moved earth and heaven,

That which we are, we are! One equal temper of heroic hearts.

Made weak by time and fate, but strong, in will, to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

– Alfred Lord Tennyson –

“In the beginning, we have nothing but questions, in the end, we have nothing but gratitude.”

– Matt Kahn –

Happy Thanksgiving y’all!!

Really, it is about focus.

It is about what our mind focuses on, be it a thought, a picture, a situation, a person…

What is your mind focusing on, now? The day job that you hate? The cute guy that just broke your heart?

Really, really, just for a moment, let’s realize and acknowledge what is our point of focus, now. And, from there, ask ourselves : HOW DOES FOCUSING ON THIS PARTICULAR THING MAKE ME FEEL?

Do I feel motivated and energized? Do I feel inspired and confident? Do I feel worry and lost? Do I feel angry and abandoned?

Really, think about this : we have the choice, the freedom to put our attention, our focus, where it will best serve us, in each and every moment. Let’s not let ourselves drift away into the fog of our daily life, preys of suggestions and conditioning coming from our environment. Let’s put an end to the autopilot version of ourselves. Let’s enjoy and be grateful for the gift, the honor, of being in charge of steering the boat of our life.

Let’s choose who we are. Now.

My Dear Sven,

Although I am writing you this letter, I will keep it for myself since you’ve forbidden me to send you “heartfelt messages”.

Really, to love you or, better, finding beauty in loving you still, means for me to lay down my life for you. It means letting go of all egoic sense of myself, it means forgetting about all painful memories, it means to die as the person I once thought I was.

It means also to be born again. “To be born again of the Spirit”, as the Master would say; a Spirit strong, joyful, beautiful and flawless.

That is the true blessing. That is the meaning of the words of Christ Jesus when he says, “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”

This is the meaning of his answer to Peter asking, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?”

Jesus says to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.”

He meant, “Forgive as long as there is something to forgive”. For there will come a time when there is nothing left to forgive, when all that is behold is God (Good), perfection.

I wanted to thank you because, perhaps, unknowingly, you’ve taught me selfless love (or forgiveness). This has brought peace and joy to my heart and I feel grateful for that. I feel really grateful to live and to grow.

Some may think that to forgive means to become a doormat, accepting the intolerable while remaining the witness of someone’s seeming wrongs and flaws. Some believe that to forgive is to be weak.

Truly. It is not so.

To forgive is not to remain passive. To forgive implies a giving; to “give-for” what seems to be, something else.

It is to give for hate, love.
It is to give for indifference, care.
It is to give for lack, abundance.
It is to give for sadness, joy.
It is to give for doubt, certainty.

Indeed, for-giveness is the most powerful “weapon” in the world. The person that can forgive “seventy times seven” has no fear. That person lives in a complete state of acceptance. Herein lies true power.

I really believe that the teachings of Christ Jesus are showing us the way to peace and harmony. We need not be afraid of what others may think of us. Just hearing the words “God”, “Bible” and “Jesus” makes people run away, for some reason.  They would not run away, I am sure, if they knew that in those teachings lies the answer to all of their apparent problems and challenges.

One cannot live a life of joy and fulfillment without knowing the meaning of for-giveness because, at some point in our lives, we will all need to for-give someone and, above all, we will all need to find someone to for-give us.

With love,

Christina

Place me as a seal upon your heart,
Like a seal on your arm;
For love is as strong as death,
Its ardor endures to the grave.
It burns with blazing flame,
A raging fire.
Torrents of rain cannot quench love;
Nor floods sweep it away.

Song of Songs 8:6-7

Waiting – by John Burroughs

Serene, I fold my hands and wait,
Nor care for wind, nor tide, nor sea;
I rave no more ‘gainst time or fate,
For lo! my own shall come to me.

I stay my haste, I make delays,
For what avails this eager pace?
I stand amid the eternal ways,
And what is mine shall know my face.

Asleep, awake, by night or day,
The friends I seek are seeking me;
No wind can drive my bark astray,
Nor change the tide of destiny.

What matter if I stand alone?
I wait with joy the coming years;
My heart shall reap where it hath sown,
And garner up its fruit of tears.

The waters know their own and draw
The brook that springs in yonder height;
So flows the good with equal law
Unto the soul of pure delight.

The stars come nightly to the sky;
The tidal wave unto the sea;
Nor time, nor space, nor deep, nor high,
Can keep my own away from me.