Determination: Theme for October 2016

Daring to try one more time
Enthusiasm for ideas
Tolerance toward each other
Excitement for onward movement
Responsible forward actions
Magical belief in story
Illumination of nuggets of truth
Natural next steps
Anticipation of success
Thoughts of kindness and respect
Intimidation of circumstance
Opportunity to advance self
Never giving up.

“The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance. 

The wise grows it under his feet.”

~ James Oppenheim

The Reality of Being a Mom

The reality of being a mom
comes when that new life is in your hands

The reality of being a mom
shows up spontaneously when watching your child grow

The reality of being a mom
shows it’s hard edge when letting go is the only solution

The reality of being a mom
comes with gratitude, pride and longing

The reality of being a mom
is forever changing over time.

“nothing in this world was more difficult than love.”

~ Gabriel Garcia Márquez

Author’s note: Edited January 26, 2024

Cocoon

Curling into the cocoon of

safety and rest ~

A spontaneous desire for health.

“Snuggle down in my cocoon, be a butterfly soon.”

~ Dean Koontz

Nap Times

Naps
Spontaneous close of eyes
Merely to lighten heaviness
Time of day irrelevant.

“There’s never enough time for all the naps you want.”

~ Carolyn V. Hamilton

Space and Time

Spaces ~ the pauses that draw breath from the universe
opening the sky and letting wind stir the leaves of trees

Spaces ~ the places where flow is hidden within the noise of words and challenges

Spaces ~ Precious rests and pauses we each create
spontaneously, with or without thought or care.

Spaces ~ Our opportunities every day
to rest in the safety of space and time.

“In the space between chaos and shape there was another chance.”

~ Jeanette Winterson, The  World and Other Places: Stories

Autumn's Joy

Bright soft petals
melting in autumn sunshine
open their seed to the sky ~
Spontaneous joy of nature.

Autumn….the year’s last, loveliest smile.”

~ William Cullen Bryant

Movie Review - Sully directed by Clint Eastwood

When there is an airline tragedy anywhere in the world, there is usually a detailed investigation. ‘Sully’ Sullenberger, played by Tom Hanks, was at the centre of one such investigation. The National Transportation Safety Board investigation targeted Captain Sullenberger, using simulations of two available airports rather than what was an unplanned, but controlled, water landing on the Hudson River. Captain Sullenberger’s self confidence was badly shaken during the hearings. His entire forty year aviation career, and his personal integrity, was called into question based solely on the simulations. Clint Eastwood directed this movie, based on the autobiography, Highest Duty, showing not just the water landing but the hearings and the assault by the press insisting on writing the story of the controlled water landing. 

At an approximate altitude of 2800 feet, Airbus A320 hit a flock of Canada Geese. Both engines were disabled. On January 15, 2009, Captain Sullenberger brought US Airways Flight 1549 down on the Hudson River with 155 people on board, including himself, his co-pilot, Jeff Skiles, played by Aaron Eckhart and two flight attendants. All one hundred and fifty people survived the dramatic water landing. Within 24 minutes, ferries, NYPD and the Coast Guard arrived and removed all passengers and crew to safety. Red Cross was on shore waiting to assist them.  

The general populace believed ‘Sully’ to be a hero. Charles Porter (Mike O’Malley) and his team at the National Transportation Safety Board seemed certain that he was not a hero but had made an error in judgement. Clint Eastwood directed the back and forth dynamic between two courageous men, Captain Sullenberger and Co-Pilot Jeff Skiles, and the National Transportation Safety Board. In this movie, the human factor, requiring spontaneous responses to sudden devastating events, is the turning point that restores some sanity.

“There’s simply no substitute for experience in terms of aviation safety.”

~ Chesley Sullenberger

Partial Cast
Tom Hanks - Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberg
Aaron Eckhart - Jeff Skiles
Valerie Mahafy - Diane Higgins
Delphi Harrington - Lucille Palmer
Laura Linney - Lorraine Sullenberger
Mike O’Malley - Charles Porter
Jamey Sheridan - Ben Edwards
Anna Gunn - Elizabeth Davis
Holt McCallany - Mike Cleary
Katie Couric - Katie Couric
David Letterman - David Letterman

Conditions for Growth

Creating space for growth is not necessary ~
planting seed can be
from above, around or by hand.
Spontaneous sprouting may be
shooting up or cautiously reaching for light, moisture and nourishment ~
unconditional love offers safety.

“Do you not see how necessary a world of pains and troubles

 is to school an intelligence and make it a soul?”

~ John Keats, Letters of John Keats