It's all about The Dirt:

“To really ask is to open the door to the whirlwind. The answer may annihilate the question and the questioner.”
~ Anne Rice

Inner depth and movement trigger the questions of asking, like a springboard of life. Then the questions lead to answers that are even beyond our realm of imagination. We ask, we ask again, then ask some more… but until we are ready to really ACT on answers is when “ah ha” truly happens.

What is the answer? What truly happens?

Inner freedom is peace within ourselves. No one else leads our solo journey of life when we allow ourselves to choose what to do with the lessons we are given. We can accept wisdom from all the divine places and people that bless our lives… if we listen. Those pearls of wisdom come from everywhere: The earth, words, eyes, touch, a book, a ride, a simple ritual; all moments in time that suspend us for a seconds or longer in true bliss.

What are some paths to the answers?

Stop talking and listen. Look at someone, deeply. Smile to brighten a spirit or send love. Think about kindness, gentleness, compassion and wear it every day like a badge of honor. Breathe IN the solid air that sends your legs running up a mountain full of bounding energy. Breathe OUT knowing you expand your consciousness in living each time. We are interconnected with substance; we all have hearts, souls and love to give. Every one of us is fully equipped to get all the answers we need for our inner freedom if we let… it… in.

“What am I supposed to learn today?”

My first sign was on my sunset trail run in town, I came across some deer making their way down a cliff to graze on the sparse grass that wasn’t covered in snow. I went one way on the trail, and they went the other. I came around a switchback to find another doe and a big buck with his big rack. I almost ran into them as they were coming onto the trail. We were all surprised, but there was little fear in us. It was as if I ran into a friend and we waved hi as we crossed paths. There was no intention of harm. I sent them love and went on my way running into the freshly fallen snow.

My second sign was watching “The Secret Life of Bees” snuggled up my daughter Elle. It came to the part where Lily meets the bees for the first time. August lifts the tray loaded with bees, and Lily closes her eyes and waves her hand over the bees to send them love… love.

My ASK of the day was given, my purpose of the moment was uncovered in the most apparent way because I listened. So I did… I sent love to myself, my family, my friends, my strangers, my buck, my feet for getting me to run. I sent love to my heart and fingers for writing this.

What’s next, I ask? I guess I’ll find out tomorrow… and intentionally act upon it!!

“The man (woman) never feels the want of what it never occurs to him to ask for.” ~Arthur Schopenhauer

Photo credit

We can all do our share to redeem the world in spite of all absurdities and all frustrations and all disappointments.
~ Abraham Heshel

There is no way to peace. Peace is the way.
~ A.J. Muste

Imagine all the people
Living life in peace.
You may say I’m a dreamer,
But I’m not the only one.
I hope someday you’ll join us,
And the world will be as one.
~ John Lennon

Hot off the press from Sixwise:

Worry and Anxiety May Harm Your Brain and Body,
Increase Dementia Risks

A study by researchers from the Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center at Chicago’s Rush University found that people who are prone to “psychological distress” — negative emotions like worry and anxiety — are more likely to develop memory problems than those who adopt a more carefree existence, according to an analysis of two studies on aging that together included over 1,200 people.

In fact, study participants who experienced negative emotions most often were 40 percent more likely to develop mild cognitive impairment than those who experienced the least negativity.

Cognitive impairment involves mild memory or cognitive problems, and can be a stepping-stone to dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. A past study by the same researchers also indicated that people who are easily distressed are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than those who are not.

Further, researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center have found a striking link between your nervous system and your immune system, revealing just how chronic stress may kill you.

The researchers found that the same part of your nervous system that is responsible for the fight-or-flight stress response (the sympathetic nervous system (SNS)) also controls regulatory T cells, which are used by your body to end an immune response once the threatening foreign invader has been destroyed.

Their new research on mice revealed that the sympathetic nervous system can negatively impact your immune system, and also shed some light on why stress often exacerbates autoimmune disorders like lupus, arthritis and eczema.

Chronic stress is known to actually intensify inflammation, according to the American Psychological Association (APA), which makes you more vulnerable to inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases like multiple sclerosis.

You may also not have known that stress can actually accelerate aging. According to a 2006 study presented at the 114th Annual Convention of the APA, people with chronic stress are more likely to suffer from age-related diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, major depression, mental decline, osteoporosis and metabolic syndrome.

(photo credit)

Last night, my son Devin handed me some acrostic poems he wrote. Although his math skills are challenged, I’m floored and adored by these words. His spirit is light, his heart big and wide, and that’s what matters most. Enjoy these words from a soul with only 11 years of life:

       Small and smart
       Yearning for a meaning
       Made for a marking
       Branded for a definition
       Oiled for history
       Learning its self
                          Wonderingly, Self Explanatory, Symbol
                          One or more lines fit perfectly together,
                          Reading thousands at a time,
                          Doing its job explaining the world

Slithering, moving mass of power,
Not scared of anything,
Always alert,
Kind and gentle,
Earning the trust of millions

Love on your kids, read what they write, look into their eyes, see their spirit…

(Symbol photo)
(Word photo)
(Snake photo)