the light that keeps shining

Spiritual resource to share: comfort

Days after the thrill of a surprising victory at a recent competition my son was in, we heard the tragic news. One of his schoolmates passed on after a short illness. This had us all running for comfort, trying to find ways to make sense of this.

Comfort is a gift. And, like a gift, it has to be accepted. This may be hard after shocking news, but after the anger and questions calm down, we can reach out for and receive comfort.

There is a song about comfort:

Like as a mother, God comforteth Her children,

comfort is calm, that bids all tumult cease.

Comfort is hope and courage for endeavor,

comfort is love, whose home abides in peace.*

Comfort as calm, as hope, as courage, as love. This is a gift for each of us. This is a gift that helps to clear our head so we can see what is true and lasting about life.

Some say that time will heal the hard headache of grief. But perhaps that is only the time it takes

• to let go of the disorientation and welcome a new re-orientation to life.
• to stop looking at the lost opportunities and find the opportunities that exist right now to love each other, to help each other, to enjoy each other.
• to replace the shame of past unkindnesses with the affirmation of the life (the love, the goodness, the joy) that was shared
• to replace the guilt of forgetting with the balm of forgiveness. It is not too late.
• and finally, to exchange the fear of loss and change with an understanding of what is changeless.

Sooner or later, we recognize the integral part each friend, each family member and even each acquaintance has in the fabric of our lives. We weave into one another's lives like the threads that weave over and under and cross each other in a taut fabric ..... and there is no unraveling.

Love is spiritual and good - like light. We can no more lose what is good than we can lose light. Consider that the absence of a loved one brings their gifts into sharp focus and demands recognition!

My son and his classmates are celebrating their friend's life. They are preparing a memorial service with his pictures, his stories and all that he brought to this startlingly connected school community. This action - shared by the whole school - was quickly becoming an affirmation of life and the continuity of community. His friend's life's connections showed them what their life connections were.

"Mom, I want to stay here with my friends" my son explained to me when I asked if he wanted to come home for a while, "you can feel the healing going on."

It becomes more obvious than ever before that we are all important to one another. The light that we bring to others keeps shining. And the light of this friend goes on in all the lives of all the people he touched.

* Christian Science Hymnal Hymn #174


To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

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Lessons from the Dogslayer

Spiritual resource to share: eternal life

In thinking about life and death, I go back to a pretty simple explanation I gave my sons a number of years ago. This was written a while ago........

(Micah with his first hamster, Cinnamon)
Dogslayer was our last hamster, having been named for the curious effect he had from our Rottweiler - Mocha. At their first introduction, the hamster stretched forward to smell Mocha's nose, which sent Mocha cowering back. No amount of coaxing could get Mocha to at least touch the hamster. Hence the name, Dogslayer.

Both sons are teenagers now, so when when Dogslayer died, it was not a very big deal. We put his body in a nice padded gift box and lovingly placed it in the garbage. That was it.

The first time the boys experienced the death of their first hamster was when they were about 6 and 9. It was a big deal. My younger son cried, which made my older son upset because it was his pet, and both of them didn't understand why the pet died.

In praying about how to explain immortality, death, life, I came up with something that I think helped them both. We talked about what a loving home we gave to the hamster and this home probably made the hamster feel very loved and cared for. But the clincher was to understand that life goes on and all the spiritual qualities of this hamster - being adorable, satisfied, friendly, funny - go on as well.

Then, I asked my sons to think of a number. One gave me the number 8. I wrote "8" on our chalkboard. We could all see that written number. Then I erased the number "8" on the chalkboard. "Where did the 8 go?" I asked. "Is there no longer the number 8 because we can't see it anymore?" Well, of course, the answer is that the eight always exists because it is an idea.

From here, it was an easy analogy to help us see that the wonderful qualities of the hamster are still with us even if we can't see the hamster anymore. I think they got it. Enough so, that soon after, we got ourselves another hamster.

Mary Baker Eddy often refers to death as a transition or a phase:

In the illusion of death, mortals wake to the knowledge of two facts: (1) that they are not dead; (2) that they have but passed the portals of a new belief.

Death is but another phase of the dream that existence can be material. Nothing can interfere with the harmony of being nor end the existence of man in Science. ... God, Life, Truth, and Love make man undying..

I have often looked back at that lesson with my sons, illustrating that life is eternal. When we understand who we are spiritually - as an idea or child of God - we can never lose one another. God, Life, Truth and Love make us undying, continuing on to grow, learn, progress. And understanding this, we can find peace in our own eternal and infinite nature.







To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

saving Rocket J. Squirrel

Spiritual resource to share: choosing life

I saved a life last week. And it felt so good. The whole incident was a reminder of another one of life's lessons to choose life.

I was taking a little hike when I saw a little life form on the ground. Black, with a long tail and large disproportionate feet, this little guy must have fallen about 2-1/2 stories from above and landed in the gravelly path. He was struggling to take a breath every 5 seconds or so.

As I ran back to my car, the thought came that this little animal was not going to make it. Even when I got back to him, he seemed to have stopped breathing. Right then, I knew I had a choice --- and I chose to see life. Regardless of what the physical picture looked like, I decided that I was going to help.

I scooped him up and placed him in the warm folds of my towel. He wasn't larger than my hand. I decided to take him to our local wildlife hospital where he would be appropriately cared for. During the trip I sang songs about life, old tried and true hymns that have been sung for generations, like "Oh Life that maketh all things new...." and "I know no life divided ....from Thee..."

When I got to the wildlife hospital, the little guy looked the same. The staff took him and immediately identified him as a 2 week old baby black squirrel. They poked him and he reacted. They poked again. Another reaction. They looked for injury and finding none, put him in an incubator. They felt he would come around. They assured me that they would simply keep him warm, clean and hydrated. A few days later, I called back and learned that he was doing great and would be weaned and running in the wild in about 5 weeks.

What strikes me about this incident is that even though I didn't know that recuperation from a major fall was likely, I did know that I had a choice in how I could view the matter. I did know that life is indestructible. MBEddy's comment was particularly helpful:

All of God's creatures, moving in the harmony of Science, are harmless, useful, indestructible.

For another sweet story on the healing of a hummingbird, visit buddy blogger Kate's site.














To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

we are spiritually defined

Spiritual resource to share: knowing each other spiritually

If you know someone spiritually, you will never lose them.

I picked up this bit of wisdom somewhere along my spiritual journey. Not sure where. But I sure was thinking a lot about this idea the last couple of weeks after a person I loved passed on.

A couple of days ago, we had a very inspiring memorial service for him. At the end of the service, I joined two of the young grandsons and others to do a balloon launch. We had balloons on which we had put lots of qualities of this loved grandpa: "Gentle", "peace-maker", "kind", and so on. One grandson wanted to put "smart." The other younger grandson wanted to say "very smart" and both suggested to write: "we love you " on the balloon.

As we cut each balloon free of its ribbon and watched them soar up and away, the oldest grandson said, "I know what we are doing, we are sending up all of what my grandpa is so God will recognize him."

He understood quite well that spiritual qualities make up who we are. That's how we recognize each other. That's how God recognizes us. And I have found, time and time again that we never can lose that which is spiritual. Mary Baker Eddy explains this so well:

The material body and mind are temporal, but the real man is spiritual and eternal. The identity of the real man is not lost, but found through this explanation; for the conscious infinitude of existence and of all identity is thereby discerned and remains unchanged. It is impossible that man should lose aught that is real, when God is all and eternally his.

To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Comfort on every side

Spiritual resource to share: comfort


In this Valentine's Day, saturated with poems of love, I thought I would write about comfort.

Anyway, an old favorite German movie "Wings of Desire" by Wim Wenders depicts angels as men in trenchcoats giving comfort and companionship to the mortals they are assigned to. The moodiness and tender beauty of this movie left me with the tangible feeling of angels among us.

In Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy defines angels as "God's thoughts passing to man." We can feel, right now, that we have angels - Love's messages - surrounding us as we go about our day. And these angels are never more close than when we are grieving.

I had an amazing weekend with an amazing friend. She had experienced three major losses in her life recently and was working through this. It was heartening to hear her speak of these "angels" that came to her in different ways: as a friend to spend time with, memories of wonderful times and the deep lessons learned from those who had gone on, poems, getting out in the fresh air, fun movies, etc.

Other angels included recognizing the wisdom of forgiveness and the strength of the spiritual growth she garnered from those she loves. In each moment, her needs were being met. When she needed quiet, it was there, or distraction, or release from sadness, there was complete love and complete comfort.

I was most touched by how gentle all of this was. This was in the middle of a busy weekend that included training for the Birkebeiner, attending a conference about the proposed Department of Peace, lunch at Sara's Table with its owner, a remarkeable former state senator and other earnest and articulate women, attending church and having a birthday celebration.

Life is always full, and the people we love (and the people we leave) are indelibly woven into the fabric of our lives, leaving their unique reflection of divine Love's goodness, grace and spontaneity.

We are left with angels of comfort, moving us from one stage of experience to the next, making sure that we see higher, deeper and wider views of the Life and Love that is given to us from God.


So, for this Valentine's Day, I wish you all love and the rich knowledge that we are never alone, but are comforted on every side as we live and grow.







To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

The death (and life) of Dogslayer

Spiritual resource to share: understanding eternal life

Dogslayer was our last hamster, having been named for the curious effect he had from our Rottweiler - Mocha. At their first introduction, the hamster stretched forward to smell Mocha's nose, which sent Mocha cowering back. No amount of coaxing could get Mocha to at least touch the hamster. Hence the name, Dogslayer.

Both sons are teenagers now, so when when Dogslayer died, it was not a very big deal. We put his body in a nice padded gift box and lovingly placed it in the garbage. That was it.

The first time the boys experienced the death of their first hamster was when they were about 6 and 9. It was a big deal. My younger son cried, which made my older son upset because it was his pet, and both of them didn't understand why the pet died.

In praying about how to explain immortality, death, life, I came up with something that I think helped them both. We talked about what a loving home we gave to the hamster and this home probably made the hamster feel very loved and cared for. But the clincher was to understand that life goes on and all the spiritual qualities of this hamster - being adorable, satisfied, friendly, funny - go on as well.

Then, I asked my sons to think of a number. One gave me the number 8. I wrote "8" on our chalkboard. We could all see that written number. Then I erased the number "8" on the chalkboard. "Where did the 8 go?" I asked. "Is there no longer the number 8 because we can't see it anymore?" Well, of course, the answer is that the eight always exists because it is an idea. From here, it was an easy analogy to help us see that the wonderful qualities of the hamster are still with us even if we can't see the hamster anymore. I think they got it. Enough so, that soon after, we got ourselves another hamster.

Mary Baker Eddy often refers to death as a transition or a phase:

In the illusion of death, mortals wake to the knowledge of two facts: (1) that they are not dead; (2) that they have but passed the portals of a new belief.

Death is but another phase of the dream that existence can be material. Nothing can interfere with the harmony of being nor end the existence of man in Science. ... God, Life, Truth, and Love make man undying.

I have often looked back at that lesson with my sons, illustrating that life is eternal. When we understand who we are spiritually - as an idea or child of God - we can never lose one another. God, Life, Truth and Love make us undying, continuing on to grow, learn, progress. And understanding this, we can find peace in our own eternal and infinite nature.






To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Always plugged in

My son came home with the news that there had been a car accident with some kids from school. He did not know the boy who had died, but he had friends that knew him. The following days, school officials called in counselors, ministers and priests to be there for the students at any time to help comfort and support.

Hard stuff at any age. This was big news and I had the opportunity to talk to my kids and Sunday School students about the major questions this always brings up: What is death? What is life? Why does this happen?

Death ends things. Life continues and creates. It is for this simple definition that Life wins. Always. If you were to take any person, strip them of all of their labels: son, wife, niece, godparent, employer, student, provider, etc. what you would have left is the emobidiment of their spiritual qualities. Spiritual qualities are from Spirit, who is God. This is what gives our lives meaning, purpose and gives us our legacy. A spiritual quality cannot be stopped, cannot die. It would be impossible to make this happen - as impossible, say, if one were to take the number eight and try to cause it to melt. A spiritual quality cannot take on a physical quality.

Why do things like this happen? I don't know. But I do feel strongly that it is NOT God's will that there be suffering and dying. It makes no sense to me that God ( synonymous with Life) would end life; or that God (synonymous with Love) would test His beloved children to see if they really, really believed in Him. It is my belief that this boy's life (who died in the accident) is embodying the same spiritual qualities he did when we saw him everyday, and that the embodiment of his special qualities are still moving forward, alive and active.

In explaining this to my Sunday School class, it made sense to liken life to a computer. There are different things that come on the screen, like our different experiences, but we are always plugged in. We are plugged in when there are many things on the computer and plugged in when there is nothing on the computer.

We, who are left behind, grieve when we feel that death has had the final answer. Grief is healed when we catch that glimpse that Life and the lives of those we love are continuing, always plugged in and moving forward. Love takes over and we are welcomed to feel the power and embrace of pure Love, the intimate and unbroken understanding of our relationship to Him and restored hope in everpresent Life.

For those who are grieving, it has always helped me to know that the Christ is right where you are, going deeper than pity and sorrow and able to lift you, love you and restore your hope. You are not alone, and those whom you love are not alone and can feel your love.


Peace,

Kim

Feel free to share your thoughts below.