Let me be the greatness that I am
Let me revel in my human divinity
Let me be the being that you created in all aspects of myself
Nothing more
Nothing less
Categories
Affirmation
Category: inspiration
Categories
The Place To Be
I want to be there. It’s better over there.
Doing that.
Wait.
Take a breath.
If I’m not here now, it won’t be better over there.
I am here. Now. Doing what I’m doing.
If it’s not good enough, I will make it better.
Right here.
Right now.
Categories
A Prayer
Let Me Be a Conductor of Light and Energy rather than a Resistor
Everything will come to you in its due time. Do you want peace? It will come to you. Do you want love? It will come to you. Do you want joy? It will come to you. All you have to do is keep intending and act on your intentions. Then, reap the rewards of what you have sown. And then, keep intending and acting.
Categories
Effortless Effort
Whatever you are doing, relax. With an effortless effort and a well-directed intention, it will all work out.
Categories
Be The Light
If in our daily life, we can smile; if we can be peaceful and happy, not only we, but everyone will profit from it. This is the most basic kind of peace work.
Thich Nhat Hanh
Categories
Finding More Love
When you find more love within yourself, you will find more love for everyone and everything.
Cat Stevens rose to prominence as a folk and pop artist in the 1970s. I’ve always enjoyed the thread of childlike innocence and spontaneity that runs through his music. After a near-death experience, Stevens began a serious search for a deeper meaning in life. In 1977, he left his rock and roll lifestyle and converted to Islam adopting the name Yusuf Islam.
Stevens wrote “The Wind” five years before his conversion. The song has always been one of my favorites. It’s a simple song that speaks volumes. In a 2022 Rolling Stone interview, Stevens (Yusuf) shared these thoughts about The Wind:
“I’m talking to somebody; I think it’s the divine, but I’m not quite sure, and because I’m not sure, it’s universal. My goal was to be able to detach myself from my physical surroundings and material things. I was very earnestly searching. I would visit esoteric bookshops whenever I could, and pick up whatever new pathway to the truth I could find.”
Here’s my cover of the song played in Yusuf Islam’s unique guitar style.
When Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined Fleetwood Mac, the band had been in a state of constant turnover. Originally a blues band, the group was as famous for its revolving door of guitarists and vocalists as it was for its handful of hits. Because of its changing lineup, the band had no signature sound. Fortunately, the addition of Buckingham and Nicks was just what Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, and his then-wife Christine McVie needed to achieve the group’s long-overdue success. The duo gave the band new energy, a unique and recognizable vocal sound, and material that would become part of Fleetwood Mac’s identity, like the song“Landslide.”
A song about the changes and challenges of life, Stevie Nicks wrote “Landslide” in 1974 in Aspen’s snow country when her then-boyfriend, Lindsey Buckingham, was on tour. Nicks has said in interviews that the song is about her romance with Buckingham and their career struggles, as well as her relationship with her business-executive father. Her months in the mountains helped to inspire the song’s title contained in the lines:
And I saw my reflection in the snow-covered hills/‘Til the landslide brought me down.
Another verse contains questions that most of us ask ourselves at one time or another:
Oh, mirror in the sky, what is love?
Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?
While they may sound simple, the introspection of these words resonated with millions of record buyers and helped to make the debut album by this Fleetwood Mac cast one of the best-selling albums of the 1970s.
How great musicians like Lindsey Buckingham create original compositions like this one is beyond my understanding. His guitar accompaniment on this song is a testament to his extraordinary talent.
Here’s my cover of “Landslide.”
Love is the Truth of the Heart
This phrase came to me when I woke up this morning. I have no idea what it means, but it sounds interesting. So…let’s go exploring.
It could be someone telling me to recall the wrong turns I’ve made in life. To be honest, I haven’t made that many, but I’ve made enough. I’ve come perilously close to crashing and burning more than once.
I believe each one of us is walking a tightrope across a broad and deep chasm. Somehow, most of us are making it across. We are doing so by the hand of grace. Because we are loved. You might even say cherished. It’s easy to forget this love, but it is always there, like a gentle hand, guiding us on our way. I may often feel alone, but truly, I am not.
I hope these words help you on your journey. Have a wonderful day!
Heart Banter by David Gittlin 