Slanting the view

photo by grassrootsmsw

“A couple of hundred years ago, Benjamin Franklin shared with the world the secret of his success. “Never leave that till tomorrow,” he said, “which you can do today.” This is the man who discovered electricity. You think more people would listen to what he had to say. I don't know why we put things off, but if I had to guess, I'd have to say it has a lot to do with fear. Fear of failure, fear of rejection, sometimes the fear is just of making a decision, because what if you're wrong? What if you're making a mistake you can't undo? The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. He who hesitates is lost. We can't pretend we hadn't been told. We've all heard the proverbs, heard the philosophers, heard our grandparents warning us about wasted time, heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day. Still sometimes we have to see for ourselves. We have to make our own mistakes. We have to learn our own lessons. We have to sweep today's possibility under tomorrow's rug until we can't anymore. Until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant. That knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beat the hell out of never trying.”

Meredith Grey, "Grey’s Anatomy"

Staggering chapters...

photo by grassrootsmsw

“Every truth passes through three stages before it is recognized. In the first, it is ridiculed, in the second it is opposed, in the third it is regarded as self-evident.”

Arthur Schopenhauer

"The Peaceful Warrior"

photo by grassrootsmsw

“When you begin your transcendental training, focusing your best efforts, without attachment to outcomes, you will understand the peaceful warrior's way.”

Dan Millman

Excavation

photo by grassrootsmsw

"I look at the Augusteum, and I think that perhaps my life has not actually been so chaotic, after all. It is merely this world that is chaotic, bringing changes to us all that nobody could have anticipated. The Augusteum warns me not to get attached to any obsolete ideas about who I am, what I represent, whom I belong to, or what function I may once have intended to serve. Yesterday I might have been a glorious monument to somebody, true enough - but tomorrow I could be a fireworks depository. Even in the Eternal City, says the silent Augusteum, one must always be prepared for riotous and endless waves of transformation."

Elizabeth Gilbert

Diffuse awareness

photo by grassrootsmsw

“Nothing is so strong as gentleness. Nothing is so gentle as real strength.”

Frances de Sales

"Flastered"

photo by grassrootsmsw

“If I die, it is true that there will be no more ongoing dialogue within
myself-within that inimitable pattern that arises from the combination
of all my past, all my awareness and experiences, all my relationships,
all my genetic material, all my bodily idiosyncrasies. In the language of
quantum physics, I will have no more "particle aspect." But the part of
myself which I have brought into relationship with you, my "wave aspect," the I-and-you, will continue as part of your dialogue with yourself and others.”

Danah Zohar

In Honor of Dr. H.F.

His kind, generous, and humorous soul

is remembered with echoing sorrow
in the Sacred Space.
The details of his unique authenticity
recollected;
with laughter, tears, and appreciation.

The stories of exchanges
and experiences with him,
embedded in memories...
forever changing
what is and what will be.

His "particle" aspect may be gone;
his integrity, convictions, and insights
deeply missed and leaving gaps.

It is his "wave" aspect,
which will continue on timelessly:
within us...
through us...
and, as a result...
long after us.

LeChaim, dear H.F.

-grassrootsmsw-

Stepping Stones

photo by grassrootsmsw
SB, CA

Can we be the hero/heroine of our own
story?
Do we step in or
stand at the edges?

Our bodies;
intuitive and sensitive
KNOW:
They respond to what is held inside…
what is secreted;
what is locked up;
what deserves to be free.

Can we slow down…
Long enough to feel?
Feel and breathe in,
our fears,
our sadness,
our loss,
our guilt,
our shame.

Can we stop and face
the skeletons we fight to hide,
even from our own hearts?
The internal whispers,
which are actually shouting,
yet,
seem easier to push away.

Stepping inwards and forwards…
Being our own hero/heroine in the story:
This requires stillness…
pausing…
not avoiding…
not waiting at the edges.

It demands going to the places
we fear are dark and daunting.

It also opens
our eyes,
our hearts,
our spirits,
and our life.

The contrast of our light and dark is
how the story started…
and the only way the story can continue,
and BEGIN.

-grassrootsmsw-

Profusion

photo by grassrootsmsw

"Your most precious, valued possessions and your greatest powers are invisible and intangible. No one can take them. You, and you alone, can give them. You will receive abundance for your giving."
W. Clement Stone

Beyond the Covert

photo by grassrootsmsw

"If you could get rid of yourself just once, the secret of secrets would open to you. The face of the unknown, hidden beyond the universe would appear on the mirror of your perception."
Rumi

Hendri's

photo by grassrootsmsw
SB, CA

“There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.”

Nelson Mandela

Re-inventing Fables

photo by grassrootsmsw

“Perhaps all the dragons in our lives are princesses who are only waiting to see us act, just once, with beauty and courage. Perhaps everything that frightens us is, in its deepest essence, something helpless that wants our love.”

M.R. Rilke

The Other Side...

photo by grassrootsmsw
Santa Barbara, CA

“Ultimately we know deeply that the other side of every fear is a freedom.”

Marilyn Ferguson

There is meaning, beauty, and significance
in why, when and how
barriers of fear are created.

Dig, crawl, search;
behind, beneath, below, and between,
the crevices.

Once understood, seen, and acknowledged,
healing can begin...
creating an open vista,
beyond what was ever imagined.

Welcome to the other side...

-grassrootsmsw

Meaning in mystery

photo by grassrootsmsw
Del Mar, CA

“Behold, I show you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye...”

Corinthians

Awakened

photo by grassrootsmsw
Del Mar, CA

"The eyes of my eyes are opened."
E.E. Cummings

Undestined

Apeldoorn, NL 1960

“A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.”

Lao Tzu

Starting tomorrow, I will retreat to the place where the unknown seedlings of my social work, rooted, sprouted and began.

It is strange to be returning to what you imagine to be familiar and known, while at the same time knowing that time will have changed so much.

I remember running from this place, after 6 years of living there, and hoping to never look back...it had lost it's adventure and novelty to me. Now, 16 years later, I yearn to return as a new explorer.

My curiosity and sense of adventure is ready...a getaway to the unknown and known. A chance to be a gypsy, again.

Chakras

photo by grassrootsmsw

“The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence. When mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers.”

Thich Nhat Hanh

Thank you my chosen and dear brother, D. The beach walk reshifted all the chakras and colors. May we both continue to have appreciation for the rainbow of chakra colors that keep us awake, and continue to teach new lessons.

The other D.

Social Worker's Day

photo by grassrootsmsw

“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.”

Thornton Wilder

My dear team mates...thank you for making today special...
I am filled with
gratitude,
laughter,
appreciation,
and abundance.
I am fuller
and more alive
than ever...
more so,
because of each of you.

And, yes, the tx doll will be used with utmost responsibility and clear intent!

In the Fray

photo by grassrootsmsw

“Every Warrior of the Light has felt afraid of going into battle.

Every Warrior of the Light has, at some time in the past, lied or betrayed someone.

Every Warrior of the Light has trodden a path that was not his.

Every Warrior of the Light has suffered for the most trivial of reasons. Every Warrior of the Light has, at least once, believed he was not a Warrior of the Light.

Every Warrior of the Light has failed in his spiritual duties.

Every Warrior of the Light has said 'yes' when he wanted to say 'no.'

Every Warrior of the Light has hurt someone he loved.

That is why he is a Warrior of the Light, because he has been through all this and yet has never lost hope of being better than he is.”

Paulo Coelho

"Warriors of the Light."

Battles within and without...
testing integrity
and internal moral codes.

Trying to bend the "rules" and
change the mold of the system;
believing in the need
to bring humanity and compassion,
where it has been lost and forgotten.

Making positive and creative changes
for the needy and vulnerable;
Easing suffering...
Attempting to slowly erode
the sterile and rigid system.

The consequences of which,
threaten the long standing personnel
of the system.

"The Warrior of Light,"
in their pioneering efforts
has accentuated
the gaps and voids of the system.

The Warrior's honorable skills
shakes, rattles, and challenges
the long termers of the system.

Instead of aiming for the same heights of truth as the Warrior,
the long termers' worn down capacity
kicks against the unfamiliar...
finding any means possible
to make the need for change and progress
invisible.

The Warrior wears and carries
the scars of controversy and resistance...
still owning their mission and purpose.

Regardless of the final outcome,
the Warrior has effected CHANGE...
If only,
for waking up,
and bringing light
to that which was asleep and anesthetized.

-grassrootsmsw

Blossom

photo by grassrootsmsw

“There came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”

Anais Nin

Trust in what lies beyond

photo by J.A.S.
1969

“Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained.”

Marie Curie

Flashes

photo by grassrootsmsw
Amsterdam, NL

"In the gloom and darkness of the night, when there is a sudden flash of light, a person will recognize objects; in the same way, the one with a flash of insight sees according to reality--"This is how sorrow works; this is how it arises; this is how it can come to an end; this is the path leading to that end."

Anguttara Nikaya

Riptides

L.F./1950

"Woman must come of age by herself. She must find her true center alone."
Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Pausing...

photo by grassrootsmsw
Amsterdam, NL

“When you begin to touch your heart or let your heart be touched, you begin to discover that it's bottomless, that it doesn't have any resolution, that this heart is huge, vast, and limitless. You begin to discover how much warmth and gentleness is there, as well as how much space.”

Pema Chodron

I will be on a blogger break for a few weeks...I hold and pass on Pema's wise words...

The Unknown

photo by grassrootsmsw
Schiermonikoog, NL

“And remember, no matter where you go, there you are.

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.

To be wronged is nothing, unless you continue to remember it.

To know, is to know that you know nothing.

That is the meaning of true knowledge.”

Author Unknown

Inside the moment...

photo by J.A.S.

“Self-respect cannot be hunted. It cannot be purchased. It is never for sale. It cannot be fabricated out of public relations. It comes to us when we are alone, in quiet moments, in quiet places, when we suddenly realize that, knowing the good, we have done it; knowing the beautiful, we have served it; knowing the truth we have spoken it.”

Whitney Griswold

Beyond the Peter Pan lens...

photo by grassroootsmsw

Captain Hook: She was leaving you. Your Wendy was leaving you. Why should she stay? What have you to offer? You are incomplete. Let's take a look into the future, shall we? You fly to Wendy's nursery and... what's this? The window's closed.

Peter: I'll open it.

Captain Hook: I'm afraid the windows barred.

Peter: I'll call out her name.

Captain Hook: She can't hear you.

Peter: No.

Captain Hook: She can't see you.

Peter: Wendy...

Captain Hook: She's forgotten all about you.

Peter: Stop it. Please. Stop it.

True Friends

photo by J.A.S.
Bank and Greenwich, NYC

" A friend is one to whom one may pour out all the contents of one's heart, chaff and grain together, knowing that the gentlest of hands will take and sift it, keep what is worth keeping and with a breath of kindness blow the rest away."
Arabian Proverb

I have been gifted
with the truest,
most sincere,
REAL
friendships
throughout my life.

The kind of friendships
that are cemented
beyond
circumstance
time, or
distance.

The kind of friendships
that hold
an unspoken
moral code...
A secret language
that is understood
and
given freely.

There is
a tender rarity
when discovering
a 'true friend.'

They may live
on another continent,
and two years have passed
since you have seen one another...

You each run
different life courses;
with different
outcomes,
objectives,
or goals.

All of this fades;
as both of you
connect and
reconnect
to the intimate
bond of friendship...
eager to explore more
of the known and unknown,
together.

For all the mistakes,
failures,
triumphs,
successes,
and life changes...
the friendship
calls to
it's authentic essence,
effortlessly.

As you laugh,
at an old memory,
or
the opposing life choices
made,
you also feel
a warm blanket
of safety.
A safety that is
silent,
but deeply felt...
never needing verbal
acknowledgement.

It just is.
It is the ongoing
blossoming of kinship;
requiring nothing,
other than one's
individual presence.

The ease of this gift
can bring one to tears...
tears of gratitude and hope.

The greatest beauty
is in realizing
the base of the friendship is
rooted in kindness,
love,
acceptance,
and understanding...
unconditionally.
There is NO set agenda.

It is sad
for those
who do not know
of this level of friendship...
Fear or distrust,
ruling their life choices...
ultimately,
limiting those very life choices.


And so it is...
we are all made
from different cloth.
I guess I prefer
the complication
and uniqueness of quilts,
rather than
the strict
exactness
of only one fabric.

The calling...

photo by grassrootsmsw
NYC, Central Park

“I remembered the rose bush that had reached a thorny branch out through the ragged fence, and caught my dress, detaining me when I would have passed on. And again the symbolism of it all came over me. These memories and visions of the poor—they were the clutch of the thorns. Social workers have all felt it. It holds them to their work, because the thorns curve backward, and one cannot pull away.”

Albion Fellows Bacon

Above and below the cloud line

photo by grassrootsmsw
Fiesch, Switzerland

“A further sign of health is that we don't become undone by fear and trembling, but we take it as a message that it's time to stop struggling and look directly at what's threatening us.”

Pema Chodron

Effecting with fervent trust...

photo by J.A.S.
Santa Cruz, CA

“The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths offered by the present, but a place that is created--created first in the mind and will, created next in activity. The future is not some place we are going to, but one we are creating. The paths are not to be found, but made, and the activity of making them, changes both the maker and the destination.”

John Schaar

Kaleidoscopes

photo by J.A.S.

“A portrait is not a likeness. The moment an emotion or fact is transformed into a photograph it is no longer a fact but an opinion. There is no such thing as inaccuracy in a photograph. All photographs are accurate. None of them is the truth.”

Richard Avedon

Open sailing...

"Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead…
I'm not afraid of storms, for I'm learning how to sail my ship."

Louisa May Alcott

Through the Path of Thorns

photo by grassrootsmsw
Venice, CA

"The real questions are the ones that obtrude upon your consciousness whether you like it or not, the ones that make your mind start vibrating like a jackhammer, the ones that you 'come to terms with' only to discover that they are still there. The real questions refuse to be placated. They barge into your life at the times when it seems most important for them to stay away. They are the questions asked most frequently and answered most inadequately, the ones that reveal their true natures slowly, reluctantly, most often against your will."

Ingrid Bengis

Glimpses...

photo by J.A.S.

“If you're photographing in color you show the color of their clothes - if you use black and white, you will show the color of their soul.”

Author Unknown

Our Collages'

photo by grassrootsmsw
NL

“I was never one to patiently pick up broken fragments and glue them together again and tell myself that the mended whole was as good as new. What is broken is broken -- and I'd rather remember it as it was at its best, than mend it and see the broken places as long as I lived.”

Margaret Mitchell

Unconventional Paths

photo by J.A.S.

“It is impossible to imagine a more complete fusion with nature than that of the Gypsy.”
Franz Liszt

Choice and Vision

photo by E.F.S.
Colorado

"In our ordinary life situation,
we have to open ourselves
and investigate and see,
and then make a committment.

Without choice,
there would be no leap
and no moment
of letting go at all.

Because of choice,
there is a moment of leap,
and letting go happens.

So it seems
that is not particulary
comforting, blissful and easy.

On the other hand,
it could be inspiring."

From: "Glimpses of Abhidharm"
Chogyam Trungpa

Animal Etiquette

collage by grassrootsmsw

"Animals are reliable, many full of love, true in their affections, predictable in their actions, grateful and loyal. Difficult standards for people to live up to."

Alfred A. Montapert

Own "the NOW"

photo by grassrootsmsw
Haren, NL

“Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle.
The world you desired can be won. It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours.”

Ayn Rand

The Wisdom of Trees

photo by grassrootsmsw
Amsterdam, NL

“As I started to picture the trees in the storm, the answer began to dawn on me. The trees in the storm don't try to stand up straight and tall and erect. They allow themselves to bend and be blown with the wind. They understand the power of letting go. Those trees and those branches that try too hard to stand up strong and straight are the ones that break. Now is not the time for you to be strong, or you, too, may break.”

Julia Butterfly Hill

Surrender to the Unknown...

J.A.S.
photo by Mark Beattie

“To 'let go' does not mean to stop caring;
it means I can't do it for someone else.

To 'let go' is not to cut myself off;
it is the realization that I must not control another.

To 'let go' is not to fix;
but to be supportive.

To 'let go' is not to be in the middle
arranging all the outcomes;
but to allow others to effect their destinies.

To 'let go' is not to be protective;
it is to permit another to face reality.

To 'let go' is not to regret the past;
but to grow and live for the future.

To 'let go' is to fear less and love more.”

~~ Author Unknown ~~

We all have fear, resistance and hesitation in
travelling unknown paths...

In our logical minds,
it is like having a map,
with no navigation plan...

A map with no distance markers.
A map that does not reveal
the mileage and terrain involved.

Maybe,
letting go of
the familiar
and releasing the need for a plan,
is where we can connect with
our own bravery and authenticity.

Often,
We may not feel sturdy or strong enough
to face untested ground.

Sometimes,
it is our built-in survival skills
that remove choice.

These skills kick in,
drumming up courage and fortitude
that we forgot we had.

An old, yet new,
VOICE
comes forth within us.
We can see and remember
the freedom and liberation
in letting go.

Suddenly,
we covet the unknown path...
we prepare to step forward,
with no feet.

Only then,
do we know
and feel the experience
of SOARING and
deep connection to self.

-grassrootsmsw

Bring on the boiling water...

E.C.M. Fabery de Jonge
NL, 1961

“A woman is like a tea bag- you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water.”

Eleanor Roosevelt

The Power of Scars

KOCO, NYC, 2006

“Do you know what happens to scar tissue?
It's the strongest part of the skin.”

Michael R. Mantell

Own the pain,
let it fill you,
completely.
Let it cycle
it's course...
all the way through.

Ripping, tearing, scarring.
Aching tenderly,
as it heals.

Eventually and surely,
there is healing...
you are
transformed, different, new.

Who are you now?
What have you learned?
How have you grown?

Whether chosen or not,
there is transformation.
The battle scars;
deepening, strengthening, and altering.

Smile proudly
at all that you find
and see with new vision.
Own and honor
your well earned alterations.

-grassrootsmsw

Reframing and Seizing

photo by grassrootsmsw
Amsterdam, NL

“Truly it is in the darkness that one finds the light,
so when we are in sorrow,
then this light is nearest of all to us.”
Meister Eckhart

Retrieving the Protagonist

photo by Dennis Konijnenburg, NL

For my mom, the sincerest hero I know:

“It is not the critic who counts; Not the person who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the person who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; Who strives valiantly; Who errs, and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; But who does actually strive to do the deeds; Who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; Who spends him/herself in a worthy cause; Who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worse, if he/she fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his/her place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

Theodore Roosevelt

For my fellow Blushers...

Santoro Graphics, U.K.

“Blushing is the color of virtue.”

Diogenes

For all my naughty teasing...please...do blush!
It reminds me how lucky I am to be surrounded by wholesome authenticity.
Happy weekend to all!

The Loyal

photo by Elliott Erwitt
NJ, 1971

“If everyone were clothed with integrity, if every heart were just, frank, kindly, the other virtues would be well-nigh useless, since their chief purpose is to make us bear with patience the injustice of our fellows.”

Jean Baptiste Molière

Trustworthy and faithful;
Committed and honorable;
those individuals who
believe and trust in the
sincerity and integrity of all people.

They are, 'The Loyal.'

With purity and a child like charm,
they instill and trigger
HOPE
in those of us who have become
cynical and skeptical.

Their glass is
half full,
not
half empty.

They find beauty and value,
where others may only see
yesterday's forgotten debris.

Their amiable and gentle nature
never anticipates
the danger and risk
of vulnerability.

Sadly,
it is their specific nature
which attracts
the pitiless and merciless;
those bereft souls,
who ambush and assault
with spite and vindictiveness...

The deprived,
thrust
their buried
pain and anguish
outwards...
aiming for
those they imagine
to be free of scars.

Is there conscience
in these callous,
and hurtful acts?

There is hope,
that 'the loyal'
will still believe
there is no
malicious intent...

There is hope,
that the tenderness
and benevolence
in 'the loyal'
will still exist.

There is hope,
that 'the loyal'
will not build a
suit of hard armor
to protect and guard
their authentic spirits...

Instead of armor,
maybe,
a soft veil.

A soft veil,
through which
learned clarity can be found
and foreseen.

Let there be watchfulness
and attentiveness,
while still allowing the
purity and virtue of
the soul to breathe and persevere.

-grassrootsmsw

Duplicity

photo by J.A.S.
Webb School, CA

“The hardest thing to learn in life is which bridge to cross and which to burn.”

David Russell

Two parts…
co-existing in ONE.

There is a part which is staunchly autonomous,
and yearns to live life with reckless abandon.
There is also the part
which relishes in the comforts of home,
and needs the well known and predictable.

There is a part which is gentle and accepting.
There is another part which is swiftly abrupt;
with opinion and judgment.

There is a part with rough edges and sharp words,
and also a part,
too forgiving and soft for this world.

One part believes in the integrity of humanity,
another part is cynical and skeptical.

One part honors and practices loyalty to others;
beyond reason or logic.
Another part can harshly sever ties,
if betrayed or deceived.

One part, wide open;
Another part, shut tight.

One part courageous and bold;
another part, timid and cautious.

One part needing connection and sharing with others;
another part which requires the sanctity of isolation.

One part, curly haired liberal,
One part, manicured conventionalist.

One part Dutch;
One part American.

Splits and divisions;
wide contradictions and irony.

All parts seeking,
truth,
purpose,
meaning.

All parts on a quest for DEFINITION.

-grassrootsmsw

Impromptu maps

photo by grassrootsmsw
Haren, NL

“I am destined to move at night on the secondary
roads of the American dream. I took my first off ramp
after traveling under someone
else's direction and now I draw my own roads.
My life does not cadence to traffics or crowds.
Its rhythm swings on the porch with the firelies.
I travel at the speed the wind blows...stopping at
the magical places. Singing the one clearest note.
Cracking open an awareness of things more
beautiful than once thought possible.”

Gladys the Brave

Take heed...

photo by grassrootsmsw
Groningen, NL

“Take care of all your memories…For you cannot relive them.”

Bob Dylan