Monday, December 28, 2009

I'll see you next year....

... and next year is only, what, 4 days away?!  It should still be July by my calendar...
 
My "calendar" is waaaay off these days.   Oh, I'm doing my very best to correct that.   And day by day it gets better.   I do a little something every day to make it better.  Things that I know I can do, slowly, steadily, one thing at a time.   Some days it is very difficult to do.  Some days this body of mine doesn't want to get out of bed when I have to.  Damn Fibromyalgia anyway!   (Of course, staying up until all hours of the night playing School of Wizardry and School of Magic on Facebook doesn't help, but that's my own fault, my own choice, so I can't blame anybody but me for those days.)    I think I'm about due for one of those "I'm not doing anything" days here shortly, which I really haven't had since I moved in November this year.  
 
I am really looking forward to the end of 2009, and the beginning of 2010.  I am planning a real little "celebration" for myself on 12/31 at midnite.   Not that this past year was horrible, some of my friends had it a lot worse than me.  It was, however, a year of "transformation" for me, to take the steps that I needed to take to be able to step fully into who I am, to do what I'm supposed to be doing.    It was difficult to do, because it meant walking away from an over four year relationship with a man who I loved dearly.   The reason?   To be as succinct as possible without causing him any additional pain, I will simply say that our life paths decided to head in different directions.   To stay in our handfasted relationship would be inappropriate, and we probably would have wound up hurting each other a whole lot more in the long run.   So the handfasting is untied, dissolved, and we've parted, both having learned some lessons along the way, to go on our separate paths. 
 
I'm okay with it, now.   I'm in my own space, with my three cats, most everything is settled where it's supposed to be here in my new place.  (I swear I will hire movers the next time, even if I have to save for an additional six months to pay them, if that's what it takes.)  I'm enjoying being able to do what I want, how I want, when I want (with the only restriction on that being what time I have to go to work the next day).   And so I'm looking forward to the New Year (on the calendar).   It holds lots of promise for me, for my life, for my spiritual path, for my "work".   
 
I do want to take a couple of moments here to say thank you to those friends and heartfamily who helped me with my moving:  Ben, Lori, Linda, Jean, Larry, Ameya, boB, who helped load everything into trucks and cars and bring it all here, and then unload it too; and again to Linda, who put up with me and my cats in her home for a month between when I moved out of my former home and when I could move into my new one.  I could not have done it without all of you, and I am so very, very grateful for your help, love, and support. 
 
Anyway, before I start blubbering here...  it's all good, you see?   It all happens for a reason, even if we don't know what the reason is for a long time after.  It's all a result of choices we make, even if the choices leave us feeling bruised and battered, wondering why (or why not).  We still somehow manage to get to where we are supposed to be, as long as our intentions are good, and our hearts are in the right place.   Throwing the "what's next?" question out to the Universe with a positive mindset usually winds up with a positive result, even if we're not too sure we're headed in the right direction along the way.  Our internal soul compass knows the right way, and will get us there. 
 
So I say to you now, I'll see you next year, and I will close with what I've posted here (and sent out to people I know) over the past couple of years.   Happy New Year!
 
~Myriah
 
To Everyone,
My personal Best Wishes to you and Yours for a Happy, Healthy, Prosperous New Year in 2010!
 
May you find positive ways to be happy.  
May you do what is necessary to achieve and maintain personal health and well-being.  
May you know peace and contentment within yourself.  
May you know the joys of family connections, be they biological or heart-chosen.  
Every day may you experience....
something to smile about
something to giggle about
something to belly-laugh about
something to make you say "awwww"
a hug from a friend
a kiss from someone you love
a "thank you", heartfelt, both given and received
a compliment
doing something positive for someone, with no strings attached, without them knowing it was you who did it.
hearing a song on the radio that touches your heart with a smile
learning something new every day
joy
understanding
compassion
the knowledge that guilt and anger are both useless and harmful emotions
the ability to let go of guilt and anger
strength
courage
faith in yourself
serenity
gratitude
friendship
love

 
And finally, the words of a song that I will probably consider to be my all-time favorite...
 
My Wish - Rascal Flatts

I hope the days come easy and the moments pass slow
And each road leads you where you want to go
And if you're faced with the choice and you have to choose
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you
And if one door opens to another door closed
I hope you keep on walkin' 'til you find the window
If it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile
But more than anything, more than anything

My wish for you
Is that this life becomes all that you want it to
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small
You never need to carry more than you can hold
And while you're out there gettin' where you're gettin' to
I hope you know somebody loves you
And wants the same things too
Yeah, this is my wish

I hope you never look back but you never forget
All the ones who love you
And the place you left
I hope you always forgive and you never regret
And you help somebody every chance you get
Oh, you find God's grace in every mistake
And always give more than you take
But more than anything, yeah more than anything

My wish for you
Is that this life becomes all that you want it to
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small
You never need to carry more than you can hold
And while you're out there gettin' where you're gettin' to
I hope you know somebody loves you
And wants the same things too
Yeah, this is my wish

 
 

Saturday, October 03, 2009

Don't know what to title this...

As I'm getting ready to go to sleep tonight, I find that I can't.  My mind won't stop turning, my thoughts won't quiet down, I'm wide awake.   I feel the urge to write something, but the thoughts are jumbled, disconnected, tangled.   Might have something to do with having watched FlashForward tonight, or with the preview of 2012 that's been running on TV....
 
It bothers me that the focus of a lot of shows that are coming on TV and in the movies now concerning 2012 is major disaster.   So many people seem to have this view of it being the end of the world, that our planet will be destroyed, and life as we have known it will end.  
 
I have to say that I'm tired of that angle, that point of view.   I need to express what I see coming, what I've seen happening.  
 
Yes, I used the word "seen", and yes, that means a vision of what the future might hold.   I don't get visions very often, I only hear voices in my head occasionally.   I am a witch, and I follow an eclectic pagan spiritual path.  As I get older, I am getting a little eccentric about some things, but I think we all do.  I am finding more of the freedom that comes with growing older, and I really wouldn't want to go back to when I was younger.  As the saying goes, been there, done that.   Some of my life has been rough, most of it has been wonderful.  There are days when I would have liked to have made different choices along the road that I've traveled, but I don't think I'd be where I'm at now if I had.  So it's all been part of the process, so to speak.  
 
Anyway...
 
I believe that 2012, the end of the Mayan Calendar, will be a turning point for humanity on this planet.   The decisions that we make, as the human race here, will determine the result and the rest of our future.   Part of it depends on what we do in the coming few years, part on what we believe.   We have the choice, the power to affect our future in a positive way.   We can choose to raise ourselves up and become all that we can possibly be, to become truly one people, to regain all the knowledge that has been lost, or I should say hidden away.  Or we can choose to tear ourselves apart, and destroy everything.  
 
What difference does skin color make?  None whatsoever.  Take off the skin and we are all identical underneath.  Same bone, same muscle, same blood, same organs.  Absolutely no difference. 
 
What difference does religion make?  None whatsoever.  All paths lead to the Universal Divine, regardless of the name used.  The ideology is the same.  The core values are the same.  
 
What difference does age make?  None, unless you're wine or cheese.   Okay, that was silly... 
 
Love is truly the key to happiness.   Being kind, and helping someone who needs help is paramount to being connected to the Divine.  We are all part of the Divine, after all. 
 
And now I'm rambling.... so it's time for sleep....
 
Namaste,
Myriah
 
 
 

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Text of Inaugural Address by President Barack Obama

Text of President Barack Obama's inaugural address on Tuesday, as prepared for delivery and released by the Presidential Inaugural Committee.

OBAMA: My fellow citizens:

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we the people have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America — they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment — a moment that will define a generation — it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

"Let it be told to the future world ... that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet (it)."

America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thursday, January 01, 2009

Happy New Year 2009!

The happiest of the New Year to each and every one of you 
Lee and I would like to share our wishes for the New Year for each and every one of you...
 
May you find positive ways to be happy.  
May you do what is necessary to achieve and maintain personal health and well-being.  
May you know peace and contentment within yourself.  
May you know the joys of family connections, be they biological or heart-chosen.  
Every day may you experience....
something to smile about
something to giggle about
something to belly-laugh about
something to make you say "awwww"
a hug from a friend
a kiss from someone you love
a "thank you", heartfelt, both given and received
a compliment
doing something positive for someone, with no strings attached, without them knowing it was you who did it.
      
hearing a song on the radio that touches your heart with a smile
learning something new every day
joy
understanding
compassion
the knowledge that guilt and anger are both useless and harmful emotions
the ability to let go of guilt and anger
strength
courage
faith in yourself
serenity
gratitude
friendship
love
And, to quote Rascal Flatts...
 

I hope the days come easy and the moments pass slow
And each road leads you where you want to go
And if you're faced with the choice and you have to choose
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you
And if one door opens to another door closed
I hope you keep on walkin' 'til you find the window
If it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile
But more than anything, more than anything

My wish for you
Is that this life becomes all that you want it to
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small
You never need to carry more than you can hold
And while you're out there gettin' where you're gettin' to
I hope you know somebody loves you
And wants the same things too
Yeah, this is my wish

I hope you never look back but you never forget
All the ones who love you
And the place you left
I hope you always forgive and you never regret
And you help somebody every chance you get
Oh, you find God's grace in every mistake
And always give more than you take
But more than anything, yeah more than anything

This is my wish
I hope you know somebody loves you
May all your dreams stay big

Much Love,
Myriah & Lee