Names written on my heart

Alberta and Patricia (surnames withheld) are two names that were written on my heart during childhood. I hadn't seen either of them in years and with the 25th Reunion (that the 3 of us were not invited to but no offense taken....they probably couldn't handle the possibility of the 3 of us showing up together) I thought it would be great to see them again.

We met for lunch this past Wednesday, the day after the historic MA Senate Race and in our 2 hour plus meeting we managed to escape talking politics and religion. How do 3 thoughtful, caring American women manage that? I have thought about it and I have come up with some ideas and a conclusion.

The three of us are strong personalities and I think it would be safe to say that all of us are opinionated. Differing opinions were not on the menu. On my count, I had a thought or two cross my mind, after all I had bought 4 papers that morning and friends from across the country were inquiring about the Senate Race. It wasn't just local but national news. However, I wanted to just enjoy these dear friends, so I let the thoughts come and go. It wasn't even a restraint. My focus was on the two dear hearts that I had the honor of breaking bread with on this winter afternoon in the greater Boston area. I didn't want to break this circle of friendship. It was just the start of catching up. May I be so bold to say that each of us has grown in wisdom and each of us value one another more than our opinions and beliefs. Although, our opinions and beliefs matter to each of us and I was curious about what Patricia and Alberta think about all kinds of things, nobody brought up either subject.

As I have continued on this pilgrimage called life, I realize more and more how much people matter. These days I am more of a student than teacher for my children. These young adults place a high value on people. People matter. It is true. So, my conclusion is that we were conquered by something greater than ourselves, Love. Love conquers all and I was able to bask in it for the rest of the day.

There is something curious and wonderful about the people who etched their names on your heart when you are young. Some names fade away but others may only gather dust, it just takes one to make direct contact with the other for the name to become visible again. When the faces meet the hearts though now filled with more names burns bright with love for one another. I love you, Alberta. I love you, Patricia.

Pax Vobiscum,

CM

Originally drafted the morning of the 14th day of January 2010

(Today the sky is shades of pinks, grays and blues)

A NEW DAY

The birds, the earth, the trees, the mountains and the sea wait with expectation. We all see her coming those who arise before she arrives. She sends burst of colors oranges and grays today and the oranges have turned into soft purples with the dark gray covering clouds.

EXPECTATION

ANTICIPATION

NEEDS NO PREPARATION

OURS is to simply welcome the new day. The Dawn she is the one who is greeted or ignored or cursed. The One who set the Sun in the sky and gave the Earth its axel is the Giver of each new day. Do we arise to Praise Him? Do we arise to just meet our own agenda? Are we looking at the clock and thinking, there really are not enough hours in this day? Or do we look at The Clock and count it as the Master of the Day?

Purple turning pink with a brightness that shouts "She is coming! Be ready! Ready to be kissed and hugged. Awoken with the brilliance of a new day. Will you stand to greet her? Any moment now, she will burst forth over the horizon and mesmerize you as a restrained ball of fire, reminding you that you do not rule the day. The day is a gift to be received with gratitude and we are to make the most of it for Another.

Dawn still comes if you are in the midst of a personal tragedy, a natural disaster, a terrorist attack or anything that we may not wish to contend with. There is an opportunity to recover, restore, rise up. Meet this day! Go through with it! Greet it in spite of the pain, the work, and the heart ache.

Backing off the Edge but gaining ground on the road

For years I have said that I would rather drive in a blizzard than rain. That was until I was run off the road by a sander the day after Christmas. Taking in the elements is still something I relish. The wild is not just the weather. It is also the other drivers and road equipment. When you make it through the storm to yours destination the old feeling of "conquering the Nor'eastah" gives way to "gratitude for traveling mercies granted."

2010 = the continuation of lots of changes for our family. The one constant in life is change. However, some changes pack more of a punch than others. With determination, rolling with those punches is the key to coming out on top. Fighting the changes results in sure defeat and causes the greatest pain. There is always a degree of pain in change. As a somewhat demented teenager I had some favorite sayings. One from a movie, "Life is pain, pain is everything, you will learn."

I am still making my way to "Life is beautiful" - the snow covered branches of the bare trees is beautiful and can be dangerous. Perhaps I am coming into a balanced view of life. Life according to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary states in its first 15 definitions for the noun:

1 a : the quality that distinguishes a vital and functional being from a dead body b : a principle or force that is considered to underlie the distinctive quality of animate beings c : an organismic state characterized by capacity for metabolism, growth, reaction to stimuli, and reproduction
2 a : the sequence of physical and mental experiences that make up the existence of an individual b : one or more aspects of the process of living <sex life of the frog>
3 : biography 1
4 : spiritual existence transcending physical death
5 a : the period from birth to death b : a specific phase of earthly existence c : the period from an event until death d : a sentence of imprisonment for the remainder of a convict's life
6 : a way or manner of living
7 : livelihood
8 : a vital or living being; specifically : person lives were lost in the disaster>
9 : an animating and shaping force or principle
10 : spirit, animation
11 : the form or pattern of something existing in reality
12 : the period of duration, usefulness, or popularity of something
13 : the period of existence (as of a subatomic particle) — compare half-life
14 : a property (as resilience or elasticity) of an inanimate substance or object resembling the animate quality of a living being

15 : living beings (as of a particular kind or environment)

I've italicized number 11 and embolden the word reality. So 2010 I will embrace all that life with dish out joy, sorrow, peace, pain, death, suffering, strength, challenges, success and struggle.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mullaney Notes from the Journey (possibly coming soon)

The last Christmas letter I wrote and sent out in the regular US Post was in December of 2006 and I am not sure if I even sent it out. A whole lot has happened in the last 3 years and young adults have grown, our address has changed 6 times since then and I am considering writing one. If I do write one perhaps I will put an excerpt or 2 here on my blog.

New Template

for the New Year

2010

New post coming soon