Second Chance Dance: Caroline's Letter

Friday, January 2, 2015

Caroline's Letter

On December 27, 2014 Caroline Olivia Malone was born to Lindsay and Joseph Malone.

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Sweet Caroline,

Welcome to the universe. I wish you could tell us what is it that makes you smile . Your lips gently move puckering up and down and in and out as if to tell me about the secret of your origin and the first moments or your development in your mother’s womb. It seems obvious what new sights and sounds delight your innocent spirit.

Is it really hunger or is it just the unusual smelly mess in your diaper that causes you to cry out? Is it feeling your mother’s heart beat again next to your body and the firm and gentle protective loving caress of your father that brings you comfort of unconditional love?

Somehow I think you sense that it was love that caused the spark bringing you life and that it is love that brought you into this world . I wonder if you know that you are a gift of the divine and that your life is proof of the sacred as it is sacrament. I think your “GG” is convinced you are a special angel.

What is it that I can tell you? Here are a few things I tried to teach your mother and your zia. I am not sure how successful I was but I hope they know I tried.

Though there will be days of fair weather of warmth and sunshine there may be nights when some storms will seem endless. You are never alone and you are loved more than you will know. Listen to the wisdom of your mom and dad. Be present and live each moment in gratitude as it is a gift. Be mindful of the wonders of the universe .Be authentic and never be afraid of being precisely who you are meant to be. Mistakes happen as they are proof of our humanity. What really matters is how you live and not what you do to “make” a living. In order to respect and love others completely you need to respect and love yourself. Tell the truth and live in truth. Success is living with integrity , compassion, hopefulness and mercy. Accumulating things might delight you but they don’t really bring you peace or happiness. Don’t forget that there are those in this world who need your help, your love and your prayers. Never take one moment or one thing or person for granted. Cherish all of nature…the sky, clouds, the sun, rain, snow , trees, flowers, river, lakes, all creatures, oceans , sunrises and sunsets as they too are of God . If your faith is ever challenged just remember the love you have felt and been given as that love is God. What we call heaven is ever present as it is in your heart. Prayer works.

If you are to be serious about anything be serious about being yourself and living life with passion and joy. Music is a unique gift and let it bring joy , share the joy, let it console you when you are sad don’t ever be afraid to let go and dance! If you play a musical instrument just let the music flow . Sing always, it is freeing! Play with abandon and if you play a sport play with all the joy of your spirit.

Read as much as you can. There are so many good books with so much wisdom and fun and there is so little time. Write whenever and whatever you can and remember that writing is knowing . Art and the creative spirit in all the arts is the sacred being exposed to the world .

Trust your intuition.

Be amazed by life and know that you will amaze others.

Te voglio bene assai

Nonno

xox

Dance ( smart phones click on link)

http://youtu.be/RV-Z1YwaOiw

Love and Happiness ( smart phones click on link)

http://youtu.be/Gn9nTvjbTDE

Sweet Caroline ( smart phones click on link)

http://youtu.be/NsLyI1_R01M

amdg

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New Blog - Rain and Rivers Revisited: A Journey of a Lost Weekend

Well you may recall I have been working on a piece of fiction for a while now. It is still a work in progress. However, I decided

to release drafts of the first few episodes ( chapters.) Much of the work is completed but I am always cutting and editing.

http://rainandriversrevisited.blogspot.com/

It is difficult to release just pieces at a time as they are created as independent episodes they are also all parts of a larger piece (and picture .) I could share more but I am curious to read or hear your feedback.

I want to thank those friends and supporters who have already provided feedback ...and of course all the folks who have been following my Second Chance Dance Blog ( by the way that will continue.)

The material in the Blog is all copyrighted and cannot be reproduced in any form. Though, I welcome you to share the link and this blog with others .So please when you have a few minutes take a read and let me know what you think. I expect to be posting a series of subsequent episodes shortly.

Thanks....

News of Death

(This is for Coach)

Last night they came with news of death
not knowing what I would say.
I wanted to say,"The green wind is running through the fields making the grass lie flat."
I wanted to say,"The apple blossom flakes like ash covering the orchard wall."
I wanted to say,"the fish float belly up in the slow stream,stepping stones to the dead."

They asked if I would sleep that night,
I said I did not know.
For this loss I could not speak,the tongue lay idle in a great darkness,the heart was strangely open,the moon had gone,and it was then when I said, "He is no longer here"
that the night put its arms around me
and all the white stars turned bitter with grief.
- David Whyte

What Work is

We stand in the rain in a long line

waiting at Ford Highland Park. For work.

You know what work is--if you're

old enough to read this you know what

work is, although you may not do it.

Forget you. This is about waiting,

shifting from one foot to another.

Feeling the light rain falling like mist

into your hair, blurring your vision

until you think you see your own brother

ahead of you, maybe ten places.

You rub your glasses with your fingers,

and of course it's someone else's brother,

narrower across the shoulders than

yours but with the same sad slouch, the grin

that does not hide the stubbornness,

the sad refusal to give in to

rain, to the hours wasted waiting,

to the knowledge that somewhere ahead

a man is waiting who will say, "No,

we're not hiring today," for any

reason he wants. You love your brother,

now suddenly you can hardly stand

the love flooding you for your brother,

who's not beside you or behind or

ahead because he's home trying to

sleep off a miserable night shift

at Cadillac so he can get up

before noon to study his German.

Works eight hours a night so he can sing

Wagner, the opera you hate most,

the worst music ever invented.

How long has it been since you told him

you loved him, held his wide shoulders,

opened your eyes wide and said those words,

and maybe kissed his cheek? You've never

done something so simple, so obvious,

not because you're too young or too dumb,

not because you're jealous or even mean

or incapable of crying in

the presence of another man, no,

just because you don't know what work is.

Philip Levine

On Marriage - Kahil Gibran

You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days.Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.

But let there be spaces in your togetherness,And let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another, but make not a bond of love:Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.

Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loafSing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.

Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping.For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.And stand together yet not too near together:For the pillars of the temple stand apart,And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.

A favorite "Journey" poem from a favorite poet

The Journey

One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice--
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
"Mend my life!"
each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do--
determined to save
the only life you could save.
-- Mary Oliver

Send or post one of your favorites! They can be lyrics to a song!

Playing For Change

Please see the current music video from "Playing for Change" at the bottom of this page. It is a movement. Enjoy!

"Playing for Change" is a multimedia movement created to inspire, connect, and bring peace to the world through music. The idea for this project arose from a common belief that music has the power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people. No matter whether people come from different geographic, political, economic, spiritual or ideological backgrounds, music has the universal power to transcend and unite us as one human race. And with this truth firmly fixed in our minds, we set out to share it with the world

Fall in Love

“Nothing is more practical than finding God, that is, than falling in a love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the mornings, what you will do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything.” --- Pedro Arrupe SJ

Friday, January 2, 2015

Caroline's Letter

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