Second Chance Dance: December 2021

Friday, December 31, 2021

The Seeker's Way :The Tale of a Dark Horse

"Ring out the old

Ring in the new

Ring out the false

Ring in the true"

- G. Harrison

"I think of trees and how simply

they let go, let fall the riches of a season,

how without grief it seems they can let go

deep into their roots for renewal..."

M. Carton

"When we find true love, the trying disappears.

- S. Skillman

"You're out there. Doing what you would die for

Believing , till there is no turning back."

-J. Farrar

_________

The Seeker's Way

The teacher posed the observation on the last day

Of the year that it would give birth to a new day

And the hope-filled anticipated new year,

"The beginning started with endings and

The ending a garden is ready for new beginnings."

Panta rhei (everything flows)

Impermanence is , change is , no thing lasts,

That which is will pass making room for the next.

Inhaling leads to exhaling , acorns feeding hungry critters

And those fallen nuggets left behind sprouting into trees.

Waking not knowing if what is lived or what is is a dream

All the defenses slowly fade into the morning mist

Clouds slowly burning away by the birthing holy light

Bathing everything in the ocean of love and mercy.

Every encounter , every breath, every thought , query and conviction

The great formation unending -

Sherpa companions guided him through the maze

Where now new Friends welcome him with opened hearts

Delivering the seeker to the now ,

Another unforeseen portal to pass through on the way.

Baggage unloading ready to receive and listen

To the sacred voice within.

Wind blown chimes seem to sing sweetly Neruda's lament

"I want to feel the gentleness that changed my destiny."

What is next is ambiguous at its best.

Truth always present as a choice and yet some wayward pilgrims

Select contentment with ignorance.

The solitudinal sojourning seeker is living proof of how

Prodigals are loved regardless of their distractions and meanderings..

No benefit of surveyors , maps or navigational tools

No direction , no goal needed except to let go and let

The wind and waves carry willing souls

To be where they need to be.

Some making this passage awake to the present

Savoring with gratitude for the sanctification.

Late starts , slow progress do not hinder or restrict

Dark horse seekers from being authentic spirits.

It is how one is mindful and bathes in the light

Loving , working for peace and serving those in need

That matters. Isn't it?.

- JF Sobecki

_____________________

Setlist for a New Year

Nee Of Solitude - Mary Chapin Carpenter

https://youtu.be/S3ZMq24XnLk

(In gratitude for my new "Friends")

On The way to Find Out - C. Stevens

https://youtu.be/Pjd4DYwTgW8

Ripple - Grateful Dead

https://youtu.be/MHo1fNnXFVU

Learn To Be Still - The Eagles

https://youtu.be/qj3H9CJCrY8

No Turning Back - Son Volt

https://youtu.be/JCzgsCBHN7M

Morning Phase - Beck

https://youtu.be/jArhfBVbYL0

Windfall- J. Farrar (Son Volt)

https://youtu.be/f1XrTzVzbJY

Heaven, I go Where True Love Goes - C. Stevens(Yusuf)

https://youtu.be/gpXAlZhCHCA

"Music exists when there is the gift of silence in-between the notes"

AMDG

https://lehmm.org

Wednesday, December 1, 2021

My Shibboleth ( December 2021)

This Quaker cross stitch has been hanging in our home for years

"He who is not busy being born is busy dying"

-B. Dylan

"Let not your heart be troubledLet mourning sobbing ceaseLearn to help one anotherAnd live in perfect peace…

….That's the way God planned it

That's the way God wants it to be, for you and me….

I hope you get this messageAnd where you won't others willYou don't understand meBut I'll love you still..."

- B. Preston

"...Confronted by the ghost of Jacob Marley ,his former business partner,

Scrooge observed Marley wearing weights and chains. The ghost said

he earned them in his life. Scrooge said “But, you were a good man of business.

The ghost replied “Business!Business! Mankind was my business.

The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance,

and benevolence, were all my business. The dealings of my trade

were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”

- A Christmas Carole, C. Dickens

For RELIGIOUS FANATICS ONLY -A Charlie Brown Story.....

Charlie Brown asked Lucy why she was so happy. Lucy

explained how it was "Christmas" and explained further

that this was the time of year to "spread joy, caring,

compassion, giving, peace and love." Charlie Brown

wondered to Lucy "Why do we do these things at

"Christmastime" and why can't we do these things and

be that way all year round?"Lucy yelled at Charlie Brown ,

"What are you some type of religious fanatic?"

------

The Pilgrimage

As the scoundrel pilgrim was inspired somehow that it was time,

Time to set out to find that earthly mystical paradise

Some had labeled as Shangri- La

Where peace and compassion reigned in all simplicity.

Sherpas and servants attended to the yearning seeker.

When the pilgrim hungered for food... he was prepared

precisely what was needed to keep him moving forward.

When he wandered off, as he would sometimes do ,

He realized he was lost and a group of sherpas

Found him dazed by the sudden storm

Returning him safely to camp.

One particular sherpa seemed to be most attentive

To the wearied traveler , setting up and taking down the cohort's tents,

Laying out furs and blankets for sleep,

Keeping fires lit , preparing all with fresh hot tea,

reading Poems , prayers and singing songs before

The pilgrim postulant and dedicated community would retire after

A day of arduous trekking through unpredicted storms.

The unthinkable occurred without warning

As a blizzard that would most likely bring a drastic end

To the once holy pilgrimage.

Suddenly the pilgrim found himself alone,

Lost, cold , frightened , hungry and on the verge

Of a desperation that would obviously lead to his own demise.

Without notice that one special solo sherpa appeared through

The blowing frigid snow rescuing the desperate pilgrim.

He carried him over the mountains into a most serene valley

Where it is said that the "Great Teacher" resided in a modest

Yet most sanctifying monastery.

The pilgrim was left by the rescuer in the entryway.

A group of monks swiftly gathered around the pilgrim.

After being warmed, clothed and fed he was told

He would have an audience with the one magnificent teacher,

The most holy of the holy ones.

The monastics ushered him to a great hall

Where a solo figure sat in silence inviting the pilgrim

To sit at his side....

Lifting his eyes towards this blessed figure

The anxious ,yet grateful pilgrim , wondered in awe

As he believed he recognized the great one.

The confraternity of contemplatives smiled in love and satisfaction

Noting how the pilgrim realized that this great teacher

Was the one sherpa who had been the servant to all.

The one who nourished , comforted , loved and served the travelers

During their odyssey .

The pilgrim bowing his head in humility and gratitude when

The wonderful teacher reached out his hand to the pilgrim saying

"Welcome home , tell me what have you learned on your pilgrimage?"

( Inspired from an ancient Zen fable)

- JF Sobecki

-----------------

All days are holy and yet we seem to set aside only a few to celebrate.

(A topic for another day)

Here is a setlist for this season--- sit back be present and and be filled.

Getting Ready For Christmas Day - P. Simon

https://youtu.be/5Q_y4IqeQe8

Peace Divine- J. Browne

https://youtu.be/otGe9hmFDpU

The Wexford Carol - A. Kraus/Yo Yo Ma

https://youtu.be/yxDZjg_Igoc

Travelers Prayer - M.C. Carpenter

https://youtu.be/EHE5kqmKQ8Q

Now the Time Has Come - R. Star

https://youtu.be/5GcVgqE-NRA

Do they Know Its Christmas

https://youtu.be/bjQzJAKxTrE

So This is Christmas - J. Groban ( J. Lennon)

https://youtu.be/FaJmopuuhZE

And for your viewing pleasure

Scooge - Complete Film Based on a C. Dickens' A Christmas Carol

https://youtu.be/dgqVlNvTTpU

That's The Way God Planned it - B. Preston

https://youtu.be/dSL5eYhsDEg

----------------------

Have a wonder- filled safe and healthy Christmas and Holiday Season

AMDG

CODA:

The Speech that Broke the Internet - J. Phoenix

https://youtu.be/LUllIT8rCj4

A fictional Portrayal but a nice lesson

Shibboleth - The West Wing

https://youtu.be/fqkaBEWPH18

Man By The River - The West Wing

(I first heard this story years ago... hmm)

https://youtu.be/06dQaOZIcH0

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