When you change the way you look at things

The things you look at change.

-Wayne Dyer

My life has taught me that you can't control

what life dishes out.

You can only choose how you deal with it

and who stands up with you.

-Adele Frances (adapted)

To live in hearts we leave behind

Is not to die.

Thomas Campbell
"Hallowed Ground"

"Forgiveness is not condoning. Nor is it even repairing what has been broken, though often that is possible. Forgiveness isn't really about the other person. Forgiveness is deciding that you need to make peace with a personal situation. You forgive so you can get on with your life."

-R. Scott Colglazier

Ever since "the cloud picture" revealed itself, I find myself looking to the Heavens with a new and exciting passion. I examine them closely hoping to discover yet another miracle from above, yet all the while conscientiously expanding my vision to include the entire skyscape in order to breathe in all of the glorious beauty and life that surrounds me. But lately, some of that beauty has brandished it's fearful energy with thunderous rain and bellowing winds...

The powerfulness of these events makes me realize how often life does mimic Mother Earth. The persistent veil of darkness casts its shadow upon many, making us feel as though Hope has abandoned her only child. Hurt and despair are entwined with the gloom that cloaks your soul as you drown in the tears that flood the capsule which imprisons you. But then you stop...and you think. And you know that better days are coming...because you Believe...

And as the allure of Tod beckons my heart with eagerness of late, I have come to realize just how these transformations are truly one in the same: out of the darkness...comes light, after the rain...the sunshine. The storm rages on as the birds seek refuge, but then the heaviness of the clouds are lifted as the skies expand into a brilliant warmth revealing the celebrated rainbow as they reappear - to sing and to play and to remind us all that as much as life changes, it truly does stay the same. Cliche? Yes - but with truth. The orbs of Life and Death (Grief) each carry segments honoring our individual passages as they are painstakingly placed alongside one another. Some are but a glimpse in the arc while others dominate their scope; still, they must be placed as our Maker has chosen in order to become a complete entity...but we are given the choice of who walks beside us and the pace of the steps that are taken.

"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain"

"It would be so nice if something would make sense for a change."

-Alice in Wonderland

Comforting Thoughts....

What if the brilliant, twinkling stars

that bring the dark night sky to life

are windows looking out of heaven?

And at the very moment

when we're wishing on those stars,

hoping that the loved ones we have lost are happy,

safe and free...

maybe they are looking

at those same stars from the other side,

making the same wish for us...

sending us all their love...

-Sharon Valleau (Hallmark)

"Each soul is a beautiful flower that passes from this earth...

only to bloom again in heaven's garden"

Courage is doing what you must when doing what you must is the hardest thing of all.
- Taken from "The Spirit of Hope"

A wise man once said "Learn to write your hurts in sand and carve your blessings in stone."

"Life begins when a person first realizes how soon it will end." - Marcelene Cox

I found this to be a very thought provoking quote that perhaps we could all learn from. I believe that we all, especially now, realize how fragile life is and how quickly it can be taken away. One of Jessica's favorite quotes sums it all up:

"Dance like no one is watching. Sing like no one is listening. Love like you've never been hurt and live like it's Heaven on Earth." -Mark Twain

So go ahead. Fall down. The world looks different from the ground. -Oprah Winfrey

"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it is about learning to dance in the rain."
-Anonymous