OUR DEEPEST FEAR

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves,
Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not help the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are born to manifest the Glory of God that is within us.
It is not just in some of us ; it is in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear,
our presence automatically liberates others.

Nelson Mandela-Inauguration Speech 1994
also Marianne Williamson A Woman's Worth

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BLESSINGS

The little child whispered, "God, speak to me"
And a meadowlark sang.
But the child did not hear.

So the child yelled, "God, speak to me!"
And the thunder rolled across the sky
But the child did not listen.

The child looked around and said, "God let me see you"
And a star shone brightly
But the child did not notice.

And the child shouted, "God show me a miracle!"
And a life was born
But the child did not know.

So the child cried out in despair,
"Touch me God, and let me know you are here!"
Whereupon God reached down and touched the child.
But the child brushed the butterfly away
And walked away unknowingly.

Often times, the things we seek are right underneath our noses.
Don't miss out on your blessing because it isn't packaged the way you expect.

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THE LORD'S PRAYER

(Translated directly from the Aramaic into English (rather than from Aramaic to Greek to Latin to English)

O cosmic Birther of all radiance and vibration! Soften the ground of our being and carve out a space within us where your Presence can abide.

Fill us with your creativity so that we may be empowered to bear the fruit of your mission. Let each of our actions bear fruit in accordance with our desire.

Endow us with the wisdom to produce and share what each being needs to grow and flourish. Untie the tangled threads of destiny that bind us, as we release others from the entanglement of past mistakes.

Do not let us be seduced by that which would divert us from our true purpose, but illuminate the opportunities of the present moment.

For you are the ground and the fruitful vision, the birth-power and fulfillment, as all is gathered and made whole once again.

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THE INVITATION

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for,
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.

It doesn't interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love,
for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon.
I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow.
If you have been opened by life's betrayals or
have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain!

I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own,
without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own;
if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you
to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful,
be realistic, or to remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true,
I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul.

I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see beauty,
even when it is not pretty every day,
and if you can live with failure, yours or mine,
and still stand on the edge of a lake and shout to the
silver of the full moon, "Yes!".

It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up after a night of grief and despair,
weary and bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done for the children.
It doesn't interest me who you are, how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.

It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away.
I want to know if you have to be alone with yourself,
Can you truly like the company you keep, in the empty moments?

Oriah Mountain Dreamer, Indian Elder

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