A Metanoia Anniversary pt 17

 

The News of my death is greatly exaggerated"

- Mark Twain

meta -naoia

: a transformative change of heart, a new perspective, turning point, 

"He not busy being born is busy dying"

- Bob Dylan, It's Alright Ma

"Where your treasure is , there is your heart also."

- Matt 6:212

"Since the invention of the kiss, there have been five kisses

that were rated the most passionate, the most pure. This one

left them all behind."

- The Princess Bride

Inspiration :

The ride had been mostly a mostly gentle sail.

Many days of letting wind and waves carry this

vessel availing this sailor to the ascent to peace.

Moments of fierce storms soon arrived shifting

me of course and the task of getting back 

was almost impossible. Faith and courage waned as

the journey seemed out of control .Then the big knock

down arrived.The cardiologist said "You need heart surgery."

On Thursday July 31, 2008 , the Feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola, I 

found myself at a noon mass at a local Jesuit Retreat House.

Spartan attendance was the norm for these liturgies but on

this day the small chapel was filled to leaving many in attendance

standing. Fr. Gerry , the celebrant, informed the gathered believers

that I was scheduled to have open heart surgery on Monday August 4 . 

A great gasp echoed throughout. Gerry then invited everyone to 

participate in the Sacrament of  Healing for me by laying hands 

on me in prayer. Humility and gratitude grew. 

The blessings began. My tears flowed like an underserved

prodigal.

While departing the chapel the Jesuit guru of the house,Fr. Tom,

 satat the exit-way grabbing me gently whispering into my ear

"You know, I heard that this works."

The following Monday waiting with palms perspiring 

in pre-surgery the surgeon invited Ginny for one more visit . 

My attempt at being the strong positive one was a poor mask. 

Ginny saw right through me and gave me a kiss

that I can still feel seventeen years later.It was the blessing I had not expected.

It was the kiss that exceeded the kiss of the Princess Bride. 

I was unaware just how much everything was about to change again. 

---------

The Writing:

A Metanoia Anniversary pt 17

"To Every thing there is a season, and 

a time for every purpose under heaven "

- Eccl. 3:2

Seventeen years ago today

The sacred heart band taught this troubadour 

What it means... to be.

Burned out working within the ivy walls

The student led the teacher..as it should be..

Fateful Ash Wednesday with nothing to lose

The collegial pastor marks the spot.

The retreating sun that day continued to mark a turn in 

The wandering pilgrim's road .

A late night phone call, an interview,

a cosmic intervention.

The sojourner introduced to a new world

where faith and work overlapped.

Ying and yang.

Time and the journey never stands still.

Pieces of the puzzle falling perfectly into place.

Another accidental encounter leads 

To a new invitation , a silent retreat.

The paralyzed prodigal was about to 

lowered into the holy presence.

The seeker then is recommended 

to a place of holy ground

within a stone's throw from his home.

There a guide to the spiritual realm continued to nourish

the prodigal's thirst and slow return.

The deep dive began as his worldly passage

begins spinning faster and faster.

Dizzied and heartache brings him to 

the expert in matters of the heart . 

The grand physician informs the lost soul

of his broken heart. A repair is urgent.

Hours before the chest being cracked open

the half hearted lost wanderer landed in the upper room

at the grace-filled place where those convened

placed there  their hands in Sacrament on the pilgrim. 

The healing, the transformation, the butterfly about

to break free into flight.

The heart repaired , ribs wired together.

The weak spark rekindled into flame-

Heart on fire , a metanoia being born.

Eyes are opened to see truth, purpose, compassion,

selflessness , peace , love  and faith.

Every thing , every moment , every encounter ,

every place , the words of inspiration and encouragement

through both the calm and stormy seas

was all that broken hungry heart  really needed.

Finisterre ... an ending - a beginning.

- JF Sobecki

--------

Poetry: some words and ideas to contemplate

(Please click on links underneath the video)

St. Ignatius' Day (8/2008)

Wel,it was St. Ignatius' Day

The presiding prelate put his hands on me

No words needed as the paralytic was lowered

Into the sanctified presence.

Immersed in the desire to be free

A proclaimed consecrated "exercise" 

was suggested by the advocate.

Slowly silently slipping away

When the the community gathered

That had filled the upper room 

Laid their hands on this frail worn creation.

A smudge of oil , spirit lifting higher and higher

Oh gentle intercessory prayers

It was St. Ignatius' Day

Fear need a dose.of love and

a confession of faith

Many demons to be slayed

No doubt they were real

Two standards recalled and contemplated

Simple choice 

Hold me, hold me don't let me fall

Within the deepest silence

a voice sings out for love echoes

falling into grace

Would this suffice?

Was my desire to please be

satisfactory for hope

I fell to my weakened knees

It was St. Ignatius' Day

Leading by being led

A lighthouse above the breaking waves

From the storms

Shining the great beacon on 

this fragile essence to 

the safety of the shoreline.

Disappointed with my doubt

Tears of joy - 

Pouring like eternal wine from a chalice

The prodigal pilgrim sanctified

From the abundant unconditional benevolence.

The lost vessel with filled with cosmic mercy,

consolations of peace while the 

fear washed away with the withdrawing tide.

Nourished by the solemn invocation,

Humbled and grateful

This wounded bird took to flight.

- JF Sobecki

For What Binds Us - J. Hirshfield

https://youtu.be/MQb5g5CISn4?si=W5FXRHS9RRe8p9xA

Life is a Walking - Good Buffalo Eagle

https://youtu.be/ZQYPlEoU9ko?si=5E8i-DZmhCzsS2Yl

----

Music: and such for your listening inspiration

Second Chances - G. A. Isakov

https://youtu.be/makCY8JSqgE?si=7OcM3izuwd1zUtGg

A Promise of Living - A. Copeland

https://youtu.be/bLM_YTnmLto?si=P1-W1B25CndmwjVk

One Fine Day - D. Byrne

https://youtu.be/JvlT5fBIi4U?si=alyDyJIDZQxWs5oK

-----

Coda: Some extras for your reflection

Field of Dreams - "Is there a  heaven?'

https://youtu.be/b_wnD6jxREU?si=pWu2d8CGnWr3e6ZW

(I'm not crying are you crying?)

Prayer- Beach Boys

https://youtu.be/X76ejh4EIV4?si=65-4YAWLRpejPaI4

A prayer of gratitude to all my "companions" I met

and continue to meet along the way.

!7 years since this Second Chance Dance Blog began to pour out.

AMDG

Copyright 2025 All Rights Reserved JF Sobecki LLC

    

The Walk of Life : A Revival

 Meliorism -

a   (noun) /'melya,rizam/ :

the belief that we can contribute to positive change

and improve the world through acts of love,

creativity , compassion and kindness

thalaophile:

a person who is magnetically drawn to the ocean

because of its calming and healing nature

The Inspiration:

There was that time when the youthful prodigal pilgrim

was asked to write about an aspirational future.

He saw himself as a cowboy or truck driver. 

He believed that either. path would take him to the 

open road and see things he never dreamed

he would see and meet other interesting pilgrims 

on their own Camino.

Somehow the constructs and promises that 

attachments would fulfill

every fiber of his being got him off track 

from the sanctified passageway . 

Then without warning a perfect storm

almost imploded everything.

Suddenly the seas calmed and a great light

illuminated his spirit and the dream of 

going with the flow by just  "being" returned

and the revival was born again.

The Writing:

The Walk of Life : A Revival

A baby's first breath leads to cries of freedom

as  growing anxiety is mitigated by the comfort , consolation

and nurturing of unconditional love.

Exploration , inquisitiveness and unbridled imagination

rue the hours, days months and years.

Almost emancipated the now child is confronted

by constructs and controls that lock step his spirit

to abiding to the constraints and barriers.

The flock of companion seeking sheep are also led by the assurance

of security and serenity while winning some type of brass ring ,

a reward for staying on the insisted path 

perpetually promulgated by the lords of the manor.

The Taoist type dream of accommodating the universe's rhythm,

riding with the great river's flow dissipated.

Without anticipation or expectation while

in the deepest silence and stillness,

"Forget your perfect offering",

a great light has found its way 

through Cohen's crack in everything.

"The bells ring that still can ring again."

Just like that the flame that proclaimed the perpetual traveler's

initial arrival it is rekindled and a mystical  revival blossoms.

The authentic cosmic essence returns.

He is free once more

on the precipice - his true self reborn,  he sings .

- JF Sobecki

_____

Poetry and such:

Sometimes - Dr. Gilchrist ( David Whyte )

https://youtu.be/DlyfVzaox5M?si=cdAq-6Tn0ZKlUkPJ

The Open Road - W. Whitman

https://youtu.be/bCgbc_RcKF8?si=jjuvCzsySaYAku3b

A Seeming Stillness - D. Whyte

https://youtu.be/XRxrq6udIuc?si=w5HmztnSpyCVb0aB

Anthem - Leonard Cohen

https://youtu.be/c8-BT6y_wYg?si=qxETwmGHOyyh17mw

Music:

For your visual and listening pleasure.

The Walk of Life - Dire Straits

https://youtu.be/kd9TlGDZGkI?si=AvYvicshGuPN5I7e

A New Morning - Bob Dylan

https://youtu.be/99s-B9YoGPA?si=oeSKzDGNSyIPXCLF

Nowhere to Hide - Trampled by Turtles

https://youtu.be/2Yn9PqzBfJ4?si=ICiyB44yZ28z6W1L

Born Again - Tyler Childers

https://youtu.be/hXRmU2U2YBg?si=NaYE8eOvuBpTYeF_

Sing To the Mountain - Elephant Revival

https://youtu.be/-pxJe83McU8?si=FameK27ylOT5kNMP

Traveller - Chris Stapleton

https://youtu.be/_kBnFgLP8po?si=RawpHE5aMG6ozPMH

Some music to contemplate the light :

If I Needed You - Emmylou Harris?Don Williams ( T. Van Zandt)

https://youtu.be/ZrBjQ2ydlTQ?si=NqewKhgkeZhNR4d4

Earth Song - F. Tickle

https://youtu.be/JJewD4xdJ3c?si=ot9GS0HOeC13V-US

Cover me Up - J.Isbell

https://youtu.be/S-s3vuXopS4?si=iMTDc4EJgOT6s1LH

Ten Thousand Words - Avett Brothers

https://youtu.be/WDNQFiWRZnE?si=3vD4gLSL3q2U9JV0

Coda:

I am humbled and grateful to announce that an essay I have written

has been published in South Jersey's premier arts and culture magazine 

"Breaker" - Issue Nineteen May - Nov 2024.

Sample: 

EINSTEIN AND FROST WERE RIGHT

    I have come to believe Einstein was right when he said 

"Coincidences are God's way of remaking anonymous. Once the spirit 

 is awakened to that possibility , everything can change....

    Great truths can revel themselves in coincidental places, at unusual times.

    

    Watching this past April's full Worm Moon led me to recall 

a significant conversation, under the last harvest Moon , with a dear 

Quaker friend from Philadelphia. We spoke ofd life and purpose, 

and I revealed I had admired Quakers from a distance.

     I live just minutes from a historic wooden building situated at 

the very center of Tuckerton , long known as a Quaker meeting house.

When she asked me " Have you ever stopped by ?" I was embarrassed 

to admit I hadn't.

    "I was never invited ," I heard myself tell her.

    "Well, I invite you," my dear Quaker friend smiled.

"You know the Quakers say 'All Are Welcome'.".....

[ for more info visit www.Breakerzine.com or message me for

the complete essay through comments below.]

* Thank you to my inadvertent sherpas -  for 

helping me see the cracks and experience the light again . 

AMDG

Copyright 2024 All Rights Reserved JF Sobecki LLC 

The Ballad of the Piano Man and the Pirate: The Eternal Principle

The Sphere at Las Vegas

"Where your treasure is there is your heart also " - Matt: 6:21 

"Go into the the arts. I'm not kidding. The arts are not 

a way to make a living.They are a human way of 

making life more bearable. Practicing an art, no matter how

 well or badly , is a way to make your soul grow, for

 heaven's sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio.

Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. 

Do it as well as you possibly can. 

You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something."

- K. Vonnegut

"Are you willing to keep writing and telling stories knowing you 

will get nothing in return?"

- Whit Burnett to JD Salinger 

Do know where you are going and why?

The Inspiration :

The Eternal Principle - Bill Moyers with Joseph Campbell

 (In preparing this post the author "coincidentally" saw this video     

  confirming the original inspiration.

https://youtu.be/qX8j9TE7P38?si=uKDY83dzHjpC_l9D

"He who is not being born is busy dying" - B. Dylan                                     

"The River flows ,it flows to the sea. 

Wherever the river flows ,that's where I want to be " 

- R. McGuinn ( The Ballad of Easy Rider)

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

The Writing:

The Ballad of the Piano Man and The Pirate : The Eternal Principle

The Piano man and the pirate joined 50,000 souls in the 

Cathedral of the Field of Dreams as they were

Christened novices of the Sgt Pepper's Broken Hearts Club Band.

They never dreamed that within a half century they would

Become fully consecrated Jedi,

Thanks to the the holy order of the Supreme Surgeons 

Of the Sacred Heart.

They were one but not the same. 

Sometimes in those magical moments

The self proclaimed dynamic duo got to carry 

Each other from a distance.

The piano man tickled the ivories in between

Seconds of solemn solitary silence 

echoing sentiments in songs

Of Chaucer tales while the pirate strayed along

The rivers and roads in the rain somehow searching

For that promised hidden treasure.

The Pirate weaving in and out

Those un-forecasted storms in the arriving autumn.

Estragon's commentary "perhaps one could dance first and think 

Afterwards"  echoed constantly as they waited .

Selecting two separate roads less travelled, 

both leading to Emmaus,

The distracted two were not aware that maybe that secret

Treasure they had been seeking , just may be 

Everp-present in all aspects of creation.

The pirate perturbed by the possibility 

that the two reborn easy riders

Might come to the conclusion 

Of their predecessors , Wyatt and Billy.

In the end Wyatt solemnly reflected - "We blew it."

The piano man piously postulated how 

The circle would be unbroken,

Proposing that their Vegas venture would be a

Just another excursion on the way to Mandalay .

        - JF Sobecki

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

The Poems and Such:

"Poetry is a gateway into intuitive consciousness. It knocks on the doors

 of the heart and the heart opens" 

 - Mirabai Starr

"Poetry is an Act of Peace . Peace goes into the making of a poet

as flour goes into the making of bread."

- Pablo Neruda

" To see the world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wild flower.'

- Wm. Blake

When you are Old - WB Yeats as read by Cillian Murphy

https://youtu.be/dEHjBPS21A8?si=I4VV_dT3lbbVZb6Y

The Holy Longing - J W Goethe (Trans.R. Bly)

Tell a wise person, or else keep silent

because the mass man will mock it right away.

I praise what is truly alive,

what longs to be burned to death.

In the calm water of there love-nights

where you were begotten, where you have begotten

a strange feeling comes over you,

when you see the silent candle burning.

Now you are no longer caught in the obsession with the darkness

and desire for higher love-making sweeps you upward.

Distance does not make you falter.

Now, arriving in magic, flying,

and flying insane for the light,

you are a butterfly and you are gone.

And, so long as you haven't experienced this: to die and so to grow,

you are only a troubled guest on the dark earth.

______________

The Music:

(Musical reflections on the inspiration)

Roads and Rivers - Head and Heart

https://youtu.be/pop8pQlWwQo?si=TjqZohcWBivWRqki

Oh Las Vegas -  Emmy Lou Harris (G Parsons)

https://youtu.be/ANcF-PUNL4o?si=4ZsOvx-Lrt-oA5Vw

There's No Mountain - G Hansard

https://youtu.be/NMz-AxuMvsA?si=DRtJ-Pjf7h9FOrvq

Our Town - Trampled By Turtles

https://youtu.be/ch0J8FtMSA0?si=1MgNiHgTy6_doUMz

Some Musical Pieces/Videos for Meditation For Readers:

Queries: Remember those you met along the way -

those who touched you, those you may have 

touched, the accidental encounters and the life

long relationships... how all in this experience and universe

 is interconnected.

" Time it was , and what a time it was , it was...a time of innocence,

 a time of confidences. Long ago it must be , I have a 

 photograph. Preserve your memories they're all that's left you."  

 - P. Simon

Old Friends- Simon and Garfunkel

https://youtu.be/Ul2hSba5pOs?si=SWp_ZbrtQTURbCCB

" And the seasons go round and round,

the painted ponies go up and down.

We're captive on the carousel of time.

We can't return , we can only look behind from where we came.

And, go round and round in the circle game"

Circle Game - Tom Rush ( J Mitchell)

https://youtu.be/dURdp9tXa6k?si=Y9oY-ayMa2wS7cOa

And a post script:

Beatles at Shea Stadium 1965

https://youtu.be/M6DfG7sml-Q?si=Bd75aPXlZhHk4hWv

Still Haven't Found What I am looking For - U2 (video made in Las Vegas)

https://youtu.be/e3-5YC_oHjE?si=HCWgWuXvDvbJ_XZl

         

"One day I will find the right words , and they will be simple."

- Jack Kerouac

"The most important thing is not why we write but how we write.

Write dangerously , Beckett.." 

- James Joyce ( From the new biopic on S. Beckett " Dance First.")

Remembering : Doc Sullivan , Jim B , Irving  and all

 those who's souls have moved on their journey..

AMDG

Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved JF Sobecki LLC

 

Sanctuary and Sacred Spaces

 

"We are not human beings having a spiritual experience.

We are spiritual beings having a human experience."

- Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

        "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them 

will fall to the ground apart from your Father"

- Matt 10:29

"He not busy being born is busy dying"

- Bob Dylan

The Inspiration :

In 2023 from the ending of March to the second week of April 

many of the wayward sentient pilgrims celebrated the holy days of Ramadan , 

Passover , Good Friday and Easter . These mystical consecrated days

included the celebration and onset of mother earth's own resurrection 

season . One particular sign of the oncoming transformation for one pilgrim

was the appearance of a Sparrow's nest with eggs comfortably 

sitting in a wreath on the front door of his home.( pictured above)

As he silently slipped secretly to secure a picture of the sanctified moment 

the mother Sparrow caught the pilgrim's eye staring him down as if

 to say "This is 'sacred space.This is my home" and she took flight

diverting the human away from her nest and chicks waiting to hatch. 

Within three days of that holy event visiting the front door nest the seeker 

dutifully wandered to the local Quaker Meeting House. After a a short 

period of sitting in sinful silence his spirit felt compelled 

to witness about the incident with the Sparrow .

Without notice another spirit filled member of the congregation

spoke softly how her heart was open to the fact that everything everywhere

is a sacred space - a Holy Home. Surprises sometimes spark a rekindling

of that dormant flame within.

The pilgrim was wakened to how amnesia and being tethered 

to the world can be quite distracting from the truth.

The Writing:

Sanctuary and Sacred Spaces

How is it that you fall with clown-like ease from the present

To the next moment , the here and now , 

In the blink on an eye?

These waves you sail, the paths you walk, with

The birds that sing in hallelujah 

 - all trying to proclaim that

The promised land , just might be the hallowed safe harbor

You have been screaming for in the dark of the night.

The proverbial insane sea sickness consumes some

Solo sojourning sailors seeking solace.

Yet, in the distant horizon shines a light 

Becoming brighter and brighter as

Breaths are counted and the cold

Sweat meanders down your weary worn face.

Hands dip deeper into the frayed

Lint filled holed pockets

Grabbing for one last smoke 

While magically a parting shot of sacramental bourbon

Reaches your parched lips.

Your soul wonders why 

You are not holding one

Who loves without demand.

Like the wind blowing in from an unknown source,

It is the nourishing unconditional arrival of April rain that

Quenches those most parched and present 

With that thirst for sanctuary and sacred space;

The ever persistent mystical consolation.

"Now" is resurrected , the exalted awakening

Of the sweetest concord , the great consecration,

In every aspect of creation and experience.

                       - JF Sobecki

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

The Poems and Such:

"Poetry is a gateway into intuitive consciousness. It knocks on the doors

 of the heart and the heart opens" - Mirabai Starr

" To see the world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wild flower.'

- Wm. Blake

-------

Gratitude

- Gary Snyder ( After a Mohawk Prayer)

[Read by a member the same day 

as the witness was made about sacred spaces]

Gratitude to Mother Earth, sailing through night and day

   and to her soil, rich , rare, and sweet

    in our minds so be it

Gratitude plants, the sun-facing light-changing leaf

   the fine root hairs, standing still through wind

   and rain , their dance is in the flowing grain

   in our minds so be it

Gratitude to Air, bearing the Swift and the silent

   Owl at dawn, breath of our song

   clear spirit breeze

   in our minds so be it

Gratitude to Wild Beings, our brothers and sisters

   teaching secrets, freedoms and ways

   self-complete , brave, and aware

   in our minds so be it

Gratitude to Water, clouds, lakes, rivers, glaciers

   holding or releasing, streaming through all

   our bodies salty seas

   in our minds so be it

Gratitude to the Sun, blinding pulsing light through

   trunks of trees, through mists, warming caves where

   bears and snakes sleep -- he who wakes us ---

   in our minds so be it

Gratitude to the Great Sky

   who holds billions of stars--and goes yet beyond that

   beyond all powers and thoughts and yet is within us ---

   Grandfather space

   The Mind is his Wife

   so be it

----

Carrying The Songs

for Triona and Maighread Ni Domhnail

"Those in power write the history , those who suffer write the songs. "

(Frank Harte)

It was always those with little else to carry

who carried the songs

to Babylon

to the Mississippi ---

some of these last possessed less than nothing

did not own their own bodies

yet, three centuries later,

deep rhythms from Africa,

store in their hearts, their bones,

carry the world's songs.

For those who left my country,

girls from Downings and the Rosses

who followed herring boats north to Shetland

gutting the sea's silver as they went

or boys from Ranafast and Horn Head

who took the Derry boat,

who slept over a rope in a bothy

songs were their soul's currency

the pure metal of their hearts,

to be exchanged for other gold,

other songs which rang out true and bright

when flung down

upon the deal boards of their days

- Moya Cannon

The Music:

(Musical reflections on the inspiration)

Invisible - Bono and The Edge from U2 with friends

(" I'm more than you know ...my body and my soul...

There is no them - there's only us...")

https://youtu.be/HqqDExc8TF4

Learn to Be Still - The Eagles

(.. There are many contradictions 

In these messages we send

Maybe you've forgotten

Heaven lying at your feet

...learn to be still)

https://youtu.be/qj3H9CJCrY8

Sailing - Christopher Cross

(...Well, it's not far down to paradise

At least not for me

And if the wind is right you can sail away

and find tranquility...)

The Pilgrim's sailboats have been named

Bown Eyed Lady , Muzyka and The Ascent

https://youtu.be/3KG74xOhXHI

Bonus tracks for your listening pleasure if you desire:

Just The Motion - Linda and Richard Thompson

(Oh the motion won't leave you,

won't let you remain don't worry

It's a restless wind and a sleepless rain, don't worry

'Cause under the ocean at the bottom of the sea

You can't hear the storm, it's as peaceful as can be

It's just the motion, it's just the motion.)

https://youtu.be/3KvIHJ_vzVw

The Parting Glass - Glen Hansard ( Trad Irish Folk song)

( Of all the money I have spent in good company...

and to all the comrades I have had...

fill and raise a glass ...good night and joy be with you all.)

https://youtu.be/sCZcJHAcAZ4

amdg

Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved JF Sobecki LLC