In Truth and Kindness

Acting on what we know to be true shapes the words we say ~ only if we think first.

Acting on what we know to be true in kindness to others tempers our actions.

“Sometimes it takes only one act of kindness 

and caring to change a person’s life.”

~ Jackie Chan

Curb Cuts

Cemented history lies at our feet on the many corners of city streets. From the muddy foot paths of early days wooden sidewalks evolved, followed by cement sidewalks that only the able bodied could navigate with ease. This invisible history of creating curb cuts ~ the dip and slope of a curb ~ was pushed ahead in the 1960’s at U.C.Berkeley by a group of activists, The Rolling Quads, and especially one member Ed Roberts. Ed Roberts, a “pioneering leader and educator of disability rights and the Independent Living Movement, had quadriplegia resulting from polio when he was 14 in 1953. This short essay was inspired by the CBC Ideas episode from February 09, 2021 “Discovering the secret language of cities reveals delight” in an interview with Roman Mars podcast host of '99% Invisible'.

“There are only two kinds of people in the world: 

the disabled, and the yet-to-be-disabled.”

~ Ed Roberts

**Please get your vaccine.

What If? ~ 3

Overcoming odds

ignores probabilities ~

instead 

draws deeply on inner strengths 

for brilliant outward actions 

growing through rocks and rubble

in cramped confines of jumbled lives.

“Always listen to experts. They’ll tell you 

what can’t be done, and why. Then do it.”

~ Robert A.Heinlein

Through the Cracks ~ QUALITY 2 ~ Theme for May 2019

Quite necessary……

Usually a goal….

Acting from within…..

Listening to…

Integrity shines…..

Tip-Toeing through…..

Yesterday began…….

“Quality is not an act, it is a habit.”

~ Aristotle

Breath Work

fragile and ethereal

Hope suspended like

a flashy helium balloon

floats away on an errant breeze.

solid and energetic

Hope planted in

the ground at our feet

grows with the breath of our actions.

“I must do something or I shall wear my heart away.”

~ Charles Dickens

Community Action on the Prairies

So many of us forget where our food comes from. Most of us, especially those raised in urban areas, don’t know the people that grow our food. My dad was a farmer. Most of his friends were farmers and if they weren’t, they were working within our small farming community. Teaching us, running our grocery stores, selling farm machinery, creating active church communities, teaching figure skating, guiding the 4-H Club members and so very much more. Long freight trains stopped at our grain elevators to load and carry the grains grown to far flung markets after all the dirty dusty work that our farmers had done. As a child raised on one of those farms, I saw the green heavy headed wheat, blue flowered flax and yellow flowered canola grown in vast fields on either sides of dusty dirt roads. Our gardens grew most of our food as did the gardens of other community members.

Milestone was a community that pulled together to feed each family whether home or farther afield. At any time of extreme need at seeding or harvest time, whoever was available brought machinery and food to plant or to harvest the large fields waiting for the farmer’s hand. Yesterday on Facebook, I saw that same passion in action following the death of a long time community member. Milestone, Saskatchewan still is a community that pulls together. Twenty farmers with their combines, four giant grain carts cleared this man’s wheat fields to ease the burden on the family, along with as many friends and neighbours that could help. To the all farmers and their families, I salute you and thank you.

“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured 

by the compassionate actions of its members.”
~  Coretta Scott King

Action Figures

Action figures prominently

in any form of recovery

Longings for health ~

dormant and at rest

    ~ dreaming

         ~ waiting

Self-doubt

A wavy mirage of

     ~ holographic blocks

         ~ ghostly walls

            

Action figures prominently

     ~  without flowing capes 

        ~ without super powers

Self Worth

Grows slowly from a

      ~ solid belief in goodness

          ~ place of stillness and joy

        

Action figures prominently 

in recovery when there is 

      ~ courage

        ~ satisfaction

           ~ life.

“What would you do if you were courageous?”

~ Julie Connor, Dreams to Action TrailBlazer’s Guide

Apathetic or Not

I was going to write some little piece of poetry tonight. However after listening to CBC this afternoon and again this evening, I decided some opinion would suit. I am not of a political bent, but am interested in the political discussions that I hear on the media, on social network and of course in coffee shops. Mr. Trudeau, our Prime Minister, made announcements today that have rattled many, many groups and have pleased others. I listened to his presentation approving the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Pipeline, Line 3 pipeline and rejecting Northern Gateway pipelines. I read and heard some of the responses later. I heard rage, anger and immense disappointment on one side and careful optimism on the other side. My side? Confusion.

Not so much confusion that my day was upset and I hid in my bed. But enough so that I was troubled that I have taken no side, have no belief in which action of our government was right or wrong. I am confident, however, that the government made the most financially beneficial decision based on short term gain. 

I am not an activist and often feel guilty that I just can’t be that person. I really don’t want to be in the middle of all the noise and angst. Does that make me the person that sits back on the sidelines while others get their hands dirty? Am I the person that does not get angry or passionate about the big environmental issues that our country faces? And yet I don’t feel that I am apathetic either. I care about how things are done to save this planet. In my home, I take care of the little environmental issues in the amount of water I use, reducing use of disposables and many small things that we are all encouraged to do. What do each of us do that are not the 'real' activists?

My ideas and my chosen actions are relatively small in the grand scheme of things. However my belief in the greatness and value of the environment are the basis for these actions.

“This world is not here for you; you are here for it.”

~ Shannon L. Alder

Author's note: Edited February 01, 2024

Taking A Leap

Responsible forward actions
Actions propelling us forward ~
The Power of Determination creates the energy to keep on walking.

Responsible forward actions are …..
This is far too serious.
Too thoughtful!
How can one be responsible in these shady gray days?
What’s the point?
grayness sends responsibility right off the planet ~
and denial is quite good at blocking the sunshine!

Responsible forward actions should be 
thoughtful, 
well chosen 
After all, we all like a good sleep at night.

Responsible forward actions are
moral and ethical choices!
How boring.
I’ll just leave those two alone.

“Each of us has an undeniable responsiblity 

to ourself and the rest of the world 

to be our personal best on any given day.”

~ Laurie Buchanan, Phd.

Author's note: Edited January 27, 2024

Ideas

Ideas, like fire flies on warm summer night, flit and flare to only disappear in dawn’s light to return with the next evening's gloaming.

Ideas, like smoldering embers tucked away in the mind,
lie quietly, waiting for a breath of fresh air ~ to change from flit and flare to real and solid.

“Ideas are easy. It’s the execution of ideas

 that really separates the sheep from the goats.”

~ Sue Grafton

Tricks and Disguises ~ SELF-DOUBT ~ Theme for June 2014

It’s all very well and good to set one’s intention.
It is pretty important to make preparations,
but somewhere along the line,
not always in the same place for everyone,
there is a gremlin hiding ~ a trickster ~ 
waiting to pull taut a trip wire
dump a balloon of cold water on your head
Throwing things ~ chattering away nasty character assassinations.
“You’re not good enough.”
‘What makes you think you’ll ever get there?”
“Who do you think you are?”

I’ve met with that trickster more than a time or two
always with a different face ~ a different voice
And it’s always when I’m in a low spot of mood or energy,
or so distracted by other things that the trickster can slip in
change my attitude, 
question my beliefs,
or worse yet ~ question me about me.
Of course we all know that the different voices 
all come from within, 
memories attached to chatter or to the cold water, the trip wire or the chants ~
so that I don’t have to be responsible,
so I can blame someone else ~ who may only be miles away
or who may no longer walk this earth.

Is there any value to self-doubt?
Well, I suppose self-doubt slows me down ~ sometimes too slow,
gives me a chance to examine what my actions are,
tweak them or change them completely,
look at the other side of the coin.

But if I let a landslide of self-doubt bury me ~
well there’s a long hard dig to get footing back on solid ground.
Can I always look at the gremlin as a trickster?
Shake hands and stride forward to write another day?
I can certainly try ..............

“I am the one constant obstacle to my own momentum.”

~ Pete Vellucci, Jr.

Intention Fills each Day

Intention leans into mind, body and soul
reflexive, original intention drifting and lost,
distantly birthed and born, 
parented, planted and taught ~
voices echo from the past.

If outcome unfavourable, don’t blame past lessons.
If outcome successful, share crédit with past teachers.

There are many intentions in each day ~
specific and desired outcomes sought
Set goals short or long
time and tide set the pace
individual will begins the action.

“It is not good enough for things to be planned ~ 

they still have to be done; for the intention to become

a reality, energy has to be launched into operation.’

~ Walt Kelly

Intentional Action

This next bit of study on intention is about the action that grows and realizes a dream, that grows and manifests a goal, that expresses the energy of intention. Action means participation, hands on development of a project, building pieces of a dream. Kind of like building a tractor or combine from a Meccano set, if some are old enough to remember Meccano sets. (Meccano sets are still on the market!) Or for the younger crowd, Lego.

While intention comes from a secret place in the heart and from thinking about ‘what if’, and ‘I want to’, action comes from the executive, the mind’s chairman of the board who directs motor movements, delegating tasks or ordering coffee - or tea, or putting pen to paper, fingers to keyboard.

One would think that because many are doers of deeds that action wouldn’t be a problem. However,the action that needs to accompany an intention lit dream is self directed. In fact, each of us are the chairman of the board, prepared to hire and fire at will - and go for lunch whenever the urge arises. Self directed with no critical issue or need attached to it, only a dream and a ‘want to’. No policy or procedure, law, regulations or guidelines. No paycheque attached to the quality or quantity of work. Only personal judgment and an individual heartfelt need to create, to write, to paint, to express what is nesting in heart and soul.

So, it’s onward and upward. Setting intention, outlining actions for each day and moving forward. Structure and function is individual and tailored to home and hearth. As long as the dream, the goal and the plan, shaped by intention and driven home by action, are present, personal success just may be acheived. What that personal success looks like is also individual.

These are ordinary words and big ideas that can be realized in small steps or large.

“When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, 

don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.”

~ Confucius

Therapeutic Crochet

Hand towels
Crocheted prettily
Special buttons chosen for each one
Hung on the stove handle
Easy access for fingers damp from dishwater
A quick wipe before moving on to another kitchen fête accompli
“They” say that they are dirty and full of germs but, many made takes care of that issue!

When one is to ‘rest’ ~ ‘take it easy’
crocheting is an activity of great value!

“Crochet is an accessible art that 

comes with a license to be prolific.”

~ Francine Toukou

Action Figures

Leaping into spaces

between....

Jumping from one state

to another

Crossing over a path

against the grain

Stepping lightly on stones 

in a babbling brook

Swimming through

clear or muddied waters.

Pulling oars smoothly

against deep lake water

Swinging high on a trapeze

through space without net beneath

Changing long held attitudes with

new information

Transition ~ fluid movement

of thought, idea and action.

“When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached,

don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.”

~ Confucius

Talk about Money

Don’t talk about money

unless it’s The Economy.

Don’t talk about money

when it’s personal economy.

Debt ~ definitely a conversation dud.

Getting out of debt ~ secrecy is a must.

Debt ~ should not exist except in statistics

Getting out of debt ~ paying for bills and life attitudes.

Don’t talk about money management

Some think it’s as personal as underwear.

Don’t talk about money management

Should it be aired in public?

Opinions and attitudes about The Economy serve 

within a political cause to benefit the future.

Opinions and actions about personal economy serve

within a household to benefit individuals.

“Money is only a tool.  It will take you where ever you wish,

but it will not replace you as the driver.”

~ Ayn Rand