Pacem. In Terris pt 3 / What Matters - the Art of Rediscovery

 "To objectify spirituality , to  make it the object of "study" 

is almost equally absurd : it is the very well spring of all

valid art, culture, science and all humanly valid political 

and economic structures."

- Frederick Franck

"Make your work your payer and your prayer your work."

- Pope John XXIII

"Art is neither a profession , nor a hobby,

It is a way of being."

- Frederick Franck 

The Inspiration:

It was 16 years ago today that sergeant taught the waiting desperado 

to play. "Courage", the "sarge" said. He added a story about an infamous humble

neighbor of his who listened to a deeper calling .That neighbor, a trained

oral surgeon, who assisted Albert Schweitzer on an African mission,

would become a. famous philosopher - artist and the only

lay person and artist invited by a Pope John XXIII to be 

invited to the inner sanctum of the Vatican Council . 

The result  of the council was the publishing of

the encyclical " Pacem In Terris." The dentist/artist/bridge-builder

philospher became so inspired he wrote 

about the journey and observations while creating a 

non profit transreligious ( any sacred philosophy or consideration that leads to

love, peace and a relationship with the holiness ) without desire for harm,

the subjugation and control of others,

space created for reflection and peace, "Pacem In Terris."

It is a living museum of nature and art for promoting peace,

contemplation and meditations.

frederickfranck.org

The desperado recently rediscovered books 

authored by Franck gifted to 

him by his sergeant. Suddenly the words , ideas and pictures

began to flourish - 

a new life , rekindling the flame.

The Writing:

Pacem In Terris pt 3/ What Matters- The Art of Rediscovery

Surmising and suppositions speculate the purpose of everything.

Do oceans exist for their own benefit?

What of the streams and rivers who disappear as they

converge with the lakes and the majestic oceans of mercy?

Do they care?

Are the blackbirds and their feathered family friends

aware of how their sweet songs deliver serenity

for all ears who dare to hear?

Why do artists paint? How can the sculptors

squeeze a most realistic presentation out of

solid hardened blocks of stone?

Many poets and authors mysteriously 

capture right words consoling lost pilgrim souls.

And the mystical music maker somehow rediscovers the 

the essence of tranquility and , when needed,

lifting up spirits to dance and wipe away tears.

Maybe the mystics , priests and monks need to retreat 

or retire to some isolated sanctuary for a few centuries

as many of their vocation often get out of control

or lost seemingly incapable of

herding the sheep down the right path.

It seems it is time to sing a new song.

- JF Sobecki

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

Poetry:

The Bell and The Blackbird (excerpt)

The Sound

of a bell

still reverberating

or a blackbird

calling

from a corner

of a

field

Asking you

to wake

into this life

or inviting you

deeper

to one that waits.

Either way

takes courage,

either way wants you

to be nothing

but that self at all,

wants. you to walk

to the place

where you fund

you already know

how to give

every last thing

away.

- David Whyte

Music:

A few pieces for your consideration and contemplation:

Click on links - below the picture

The Maker - D. Lanois

https://youtu.be/w-JtAcpKtYQ?si=TCfvRGQxSsZpWC-D

Change Myself - T. Rundgren

https://youtu.be/dCU4P5EQNFs?si=OBivrQY8W_oU6w1T

U2- Peace on Earth

https://youtu.be/fdXT7L7i880?si=eIj2XHddbnOS-YFX

Give Me Love ( Peace) - G. Harrison

https://youtu.be/8LqCMF-nr8s?si=46r5klMFoowsrZFI

Coda:

Some additional info for your contemplation:

The Art Of Being Human - Frederick Franck( Interview

https://youtu.be/X6mqVUbSpO4?si=G-s2zO7dg9txK9ya

Words of Buddha "Let Your Love Flow" : Chant

https://youtu.be/DFREqIr6aD0?si=iyu8Q5Rs-dGnBSqA

Think it's Going to Rain Today - R. Newman

https://youtu.be/7zDt8xyVKtw?si=4tTmQIexkcZafxte

40 - U2 ( Live at The Sphere)

https://youtu.be/wUSB3gdHHZE?si=7IKPXkaubLh1tzwe

Note Bene:

(150 million people are homeless worldwide,

1 in 10 , 828 million people , in world suffer from hunger,

8 million die annually from lack of quality health care,

100's of thousands die from organized violence (war)

worldwide annually,

infant mortality worldwide remains about 2 million/year and 

120 million people are forcibly displaced as a result of persecution,

conflict , violence or human rights violations.

A tragedy is that the world has the resources and technology

to end all of this with compassion.)

AMDG

Copyright 2024 All Rights Reserved JF Sobecki LLC

Impermanence and the Eternal Now

"(Schopenhauer suggests)Just as you have met those in your life by 

chance became agents of the structure of your life, so you have 

become an agent to help

in the structuring of the lives of others....

.... follow your bliss - there is something inside you 

that knows if you are on the beam or

when your off the beam ... 

('this moment now is the heavenly moment')"

    - J.Campbell

 "If a problem is fixable, if the situations is such that

 you can do something about

there is no need to worry. If the problem is not fixable ,then there is

no help in worrying. There is no benefit in worry at all."

- Dalai Lama

"Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans"

      - John lennon

The Inspiration:

So, there the pilgrim pirate stood as the plan he had conjured

seemed to be ready to have the specified grains of multi-colored

sand fall into place into a yet to be designed great mystical Mandala.

Before he could exhale a sacred wind swept in dispersing the sand

in the blink of an eye changing everything

He was stuck in the moment.

Slowly the reality of his attachment evaporated.

The voice of his master sherpa echoed in the distance

" Not to decide is to decide.All things change, you know "

The pilgrim chose to be awake to the present and let go.

The Writing:

Impermanence and the Eternal Now

The words loop into an infinite mantra,

"Let it be simple and let it be ."

There is no need to choose between Simon of Cyrene,

Dismas or even Trina's caterpillar.

Mary wrote that the final instruction

from Buddha was "Make yourself a light."

Students of Siddartha suggest that the teacher's

last word was simple - "Care." 

Do any of the discrepancies really matter in the end?

Does not the universe experience

the comings and goings of every star?

Does the recent trimmed blade of grass

refuse to grow again?

Do trees mourn autumn

or over-celebrate spring?

Whatever this moment is -

Whatever state you are in -

Mindfulness , presence and being 

the authentic compassionate creation 

is what matters -  isn't it?

- JF Sobecki

Poetry:

"Poetry is the window to the soul"

"For us there is only the trying. The rest is not our business."

 - T.S. Eliot

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

as flower goes into the making of bread."

 - P. Neruda

 O Me! O Life!

Oh me! Oh life! of the questions of these recurring

Of the endless trains of the faithless of cities fill'd with

   rage foolish,

Of myself forever reproaching myself, (for who more

   foolish than I , and who more faithless?)

Of eyes that vainly crave the light , of the objects mean,

   of the struggle ever renew'd ,

Of the poor results of all , of all the plodding and sordid

   crowds I see around,

Of the empty and useless years of the rest, with the rest

   me intertwined.

The question , O me! so sad recurring---What good

   amid these , O me O life?

                Answer.

That you are here ---that life exists and identity

That the powerful play goes on, and you may

   contribute a verse.

- W. Whitman

Music:

Did you ever hear a song or musical piece that seems

to speak to you and the light becomes more than you ever imagined

and for that moment you find peace?

Be Here Now - G. Harrison

https://youtu.be/B5MwgMKcHdI?si=_pvhxYLufHyPopAV

My Cousin Caterpillar - Incredible String Band

https://youtu.be/B_gZu1xK29s?si=j9srzgke7BcFA1ba

Across the Universe - The Beatles

https://youtu.be/iotagMCkJRE?si=t8HIumceaPiQy2yS

Coda:

Some additional pieces or grains sand to consider:

The Eternal Principle - J. Campbell

https://youtu.be/qX8j9TE7P38?si=_dWWuUOknV-SkeH4

Eternity is The Ever Present Now

https://youtu.be/vuMTVLvAzak?si=Qug-JBR5-oC3mAM9

One more - Just Because

The Rescue Blues - R. Adams

https://youtu.be/zJz9fzgENgg?si=HTWwmeyP19RHA_WQ

amdg

Copyright 2024 - 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 Continuing Contemplations on Cosmic Coincidences Part 2

The Inspiration:

What is it that  plants a secret seed

that is quietly nourished with love

as it begins to flourish

becoming what one is intended to be?

Sometimes it is just a wink of the universe

allowing you to let go - recognizing this is not a coincidence or accident.

The Writing:

The Continuing Contemplations on Cosmic Coincidences P 2

(in gratitude to a friend and JDS's Catcher)

Waiting desperados benefit from mystical interventions

if they open the doors that have been placed before them

or trust in the mystical hickory wind that fuels the flame

quietly burning within waiting to be gifted somehow

someday , somewhere by someone or some thing.

Who is really ever awake and completely mindful,

letting go and trusting that what is , the answer and

the sacred grail , the serenity and what is 

one's true essence and purpose? 

Who would have surmised that fateful moment

when a member of a the refugee's entourage

slipped him a brown paper bag...

with a torn covered dog eared volume

carefully and securely wrapped in newspaper.

This book filled with, what would become ,

the sacred seeds influencing everything

the vagabond pilgrim would become.

Anyways , there was that black robed phony pedagogue,

playing the part of the unwilling catalyst,

catching the youthful  outlaw reading his new treasure

as this teacher attempted to communicate

what makes literature great, applying

the infamous scale of Dr. J. Evans Prichard ,PH.D.

for understanding poetry to literature.

The silent postulants dutifully scribbled illegible notes

as the second tier inquisitor wrestled the book

from the lost boy believing 

the youthful soul would be rescued

from the fires of eternal inferno. 

As the last school bell rang louder than

the aged cathedral  down the road ,

the book returned by the teacher instructing

the lost young man to

"Find a good book to read." 

The young desperado's

deliberate forever formation finally

opened his spirit to accepting

how his journey was an attempt 

to become a "catcher" saving 

cliff jumping children of all sizes and ages.

A teacher , counselor , consultant , coach ,

spiritual guide , part time poet and writer

were a few roles where he immersed 

what would become his authentic self.

Who knew? Who would have guessed

that book's pages would flourish like an Easter flower?

The oft absent minded seeker would never give

a second thought to sitting down 

scribbling ideas and thought dreams

in spiral notebooks. Some of the words

took the shape of what he labeled poems.

There were letters upon letters unsent

to a friends, a lover and ghosts .

"I'll be locked away if anyone discovers these

notebooks and journals ," he worried, but kept writing

because he could . The worry evaporated

about concern for acceptance .

He would write because he could.

However, this perpetual iconoclast concern

continued  about 

"telling anybody anything" afraid he

might start missing everybody.

"It's worth the risk...isn't it?", he reflected.

Illuminations arrive when they choose,

at the least expected time - don't they?

On the new dawn for a new day a metamorphosis 

blossomed that last day of a class in literature,

with the pilgrim now as teacher, as he

caught the eye of a wandering apprentice

standing with folded hands as if in prayer

 over his heart  - smiling.

- JF Sobecki 

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

Poems and such:

"Poetry is an act of peace.

Peace goes into the making of a poet

as flour goes into the making of bread."

- Pablo Neruda

"Dear Whit (W.Burnett),

So to answer your question you asked years ago.

Yes, I am willing to write the rest of my life

and get nothing in return.

Sincerely yours, JD Salinger"

Poem

"Geese appear high over us, pass and the sky closes.

Abandon, as in love or sleep , holds them to their

way, clear in the ancient faith: what we need is here. 

And we pray , not for new earth or heaven, but to be 

quiet in heart , and in eye, clear. 

What we need is here,"

- Wendell Berry

As the rain and the snow

come down from heaven

and do not return to it

without watering the earth

and making it bud and flourish,

so that it yields seed for the sower and

bread for the eater

so is my word that goes out from my mouth

it will not return to me empty,

but will accomplish what I desire

and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

IS 55: 10 - 11

"We have a choice of two identities: the

external mask which seems to be real ...and

the hidden , inner person who seems to us to

be nothing, but who can give hinself

externally to the truth which he subsists,,,

A tree gives glory to the divine by being a tree. For

in being what the Divine means it to be it is obeying 

( the Divine). It 'consents',so to speak, to

(the Divine's) creative love. It is expressing

an idea this is in the Divine and which

is not distinct from the Divine essence, and therefore

a tree imitates the divine by being a tree."

 - Thomas Merton,  New Seeds on Contemplation

Understanding Poetry (?) - Dead Poets Society

https://youtu.be/8x0COtH4Vrw?si=FurYBMTiDroNNSSn

The Music:

For your listening pleasure and reflection:

( What is that incident , event , person , place , book 

poem , movie or song that quietly planted a secret seed that,

in retrospect , has inspired

and guided you on your journey ?) 

Free As A Bird - The Beatles

https://youtu.be/ODIvONHPqpk?si=MKCbFhaibBfO6nJj

Love Rescue Me - U2 ( Dylan and U2)

https://youtu.be/ZDZEqr5LR_g?si=hILI_g-lRmaoO0-S

Desperado - L. Ronstadt ( Frey/Henley)

https://youtu.be/yUg10CPelvo?si=fNzGIiCjJBgAzPju

Last of My Kind - Jason Isabel

https://youtu.be/mtFav19_UhE?si=Ax0Jn2Xw6VEt7g0W

Hello In There - John Prine

https://youtu.be/RfwGkplB_sY?si=Ik02lzJlS33LruT2

Coda:

Something for personal reflection

Southside of Heaven - Ryan Bingham

https://youtu.be/jHnSj9Ls6pU?si=QNB3lp2sixwQ9UaN

Before The Deluge - J. Browne

https://youtu.be/vAwhD9rKxog?si=aWebF9--2Jd4PQw4

Salinger - The Documentary

https://youtu.be/23Imj-riRyg?si=hatLVgf4toKBbAUY

Rebel In The Rye - (Salinger movie)

https://youtu.be/VWRhXMMb7CY?si=0un-YKUf_VLEgQvk

Beautiful Day - U2 ( 2023 Songs of Surrender)

https://youtu.be/Rs_khkPBnDk?si=PeZOGHbmrGhY9Dxo

AMDG

Copyright 2024 All Rights Reserved JF Sobecki LLC

A Triumphant Journey - An April Fool's Lamentation

 " The two most important dayin your life : 

The day you were born  and 

the day you discover why."

                                        "All that was East is West of me now" - G. Hansard

 

----

The Inspiration

Minutes, hours, days, weeks, months , seasons and years continue

 to flow without

ceasing. Some cosmic philosopher once proclaimed 

how when he wakes in the morning

that light at the end of the tunnel is get brighter. 

Yogi's breathe "here and now" while

some self appointed motivational speakers promote

 "success" by filling the silos and

other grandiose propositions concerning ego and

 accumulating things and people.

Sometimes illumination about our Odyssey occurs 

with the sound of a singing 

blackbird or a distant ringing bell or chimes . 

Their sounds carried by that mystical

wind of a mysterious source. Sometimes these 

inspirations are rare surprises and sometimes

they come like the ocean of mercy's rolling 

waves washing wandering souls leaving

no footprints on our beach.

A recent medical procedure that required a general 

anesthetic for the seeker who woke

from a dream where his essence was lifted by a 

magnificent force gently taking him 

traversing the universe . Before he knew it the 

solar system that he believed was 

everything had disappeared . Bypassing solar 

systems he was immersed in a light

bathing and consoling his spirit. And, just like 

that he was launched back to from

where he came. In his waking everything was 

the same as before but somehow 

new and transformed. 

The birds' songs seemed sweet, clear and purposeful 

and the trees and flowers began to 

show the buds of their forthcoming 

explosion of beauty and serenity. For a

micro second he questioned, 

" What is this place? What am I doing here and why?"

"Moksha...nirvana , serenity, enlightenment , 

impermanence and being "  the 

sound of the transformative mesmerizing 

majestic sanctified song of the cosmos

filled him up.

The metanoia broke through the walls that had 

kept him at bay from becoming complete.

----

The Writing:

The Triumphant Journey : An April Fool's Lamentation

A sweet soft serenade of every bird singing at the first light

as that blue virgin canopy 

redeemed all things as the cold rains of yesterday are forgotten.

Generous beneficent beauty bursts forth as the daffodils

hide the secret of their healing human diseasse as they effortlessly

provide nutrients in the earth where they reside

for such a short lifetime and just like that 

they are gone until next spring.

"Everything dies someday one back" sings the boss.

Was the mystic Rohr right in his observation?

"The universal spiritual pattern is death and resurrection, or loss and 

renewal , if you prefer."

A few believe that that these nano specks of the cosmos are 

merely microcosms of coincidence and accidents that make up the

universe . Do the one of the million names of God provide the answer?

Contemplation of the now reveals the truth - illumination 

of the sacred is revealed in the present .

- JF Sobecki

-----

Poetry and such:

"Poetry is an Act of Peace . 

Peace goes into the making of a poet

as flour goes into the making of bread."

- Pablo Neruda

"Ring the bells that can still ring 

Forget your perfect offering

There is a crack , a crack in everything

That's How the light gets in"

- Anthem, L. Cohen

Poem 

I know know you never intended to be in this world

But in it all the same .

So why not get started immediately.

I mean belonging to it .

There is do much to admire, to weep over.

And to write music or poems about.

Bless the feet to take you to and fro.

Bless the eyes and the listening ears.

Bless the tongue, the marvelous taste.Bless the touching

You could live a hundred years , it's happened

or not.

I am speaking of the fortunate platform

of many years.

none of which , I think , I ever wasted.

Do you need a prod?

Do you need a little darkness to get you going?

Let me be urgent as a knife, then,

remind you of Keats 

so single of purpose and thinking, for a while,

he had a lifetime.

- Mary Oliver

The Blackbird and the bell - David Whyte

https://youtu.be/rEDAh4lQLfc?si=iicuSONntSnP6UK4

------

The Music :   

Some tunes to help for reflection:

Enlightenment - Van Morrison

https://youtu.be/pOUilsuZj1E?si=z1ae3iGqXMZ5ZwFX

A Human Touch - J. Browne/L. Mendelsohn

https://youtu.be/T9azpvOHBgo?si=sJ-sA-DgjBY6UFn3

Sometime - D. Lanes

https://youtu.be/UG8ZrwCChpM?si=3hwvXg4ieFeg6USK

Forgiveness- P. Simon

https://youtu.be/kj9gCGl53xs?si=U2iVRwWqIFoL4F_i

One - E.Vedder (U2 Cover)

https://youtu.be/pl-bdTXxbx8?si=FrWinGv_hqcmOBIu

Some additional pieces to help a reflection:

Belief = trust

The Feast of St. John - G. Hansard

https://youtu.be/0-njPXSlpF8?si=U8mK0ZnzWAueNVh3

Wasted Days - Mellencamp and Springsteen

https://youtu.be/hHLGZxlBpLA?si=dyLci1ezbFDmtU1d

Beautiful Day - U2

https://youtu.be/1mdDFyrGkCE?si=HrfPq08jAaWvKYus

AMDG

Copyright JF Sobecki LLC 

For Eugene

                                                                        

Leap Day Humble Intentions

"No Mud , No Lotus"

The Inspiration

Does having an extra calendar day

in a Leap year make a substantive difference in a day in a life?

Sometimes it rains and sometimes it seems that the frozen

wild whipping wind of winter will never cease.

Just as the darkest hour appears to be infinite

a sweet sounding song of the solo thrush who 

journeyed in advance  in community

to welcome in celebration the crack in from 

the heavens letting in the light.

Sometimes the universe just nudges those

who worry or forget .

If seekers listen closely ,with eyes closed , their souls

know that song , that illumination, that hopefulness and faith.

Sadness comes and goes. Tides come in and out.

Creatures of all sizes have no say in their arrival.

Yet, there is a secret awakening to  how all

creation is of an abundant unconditional love

and how all things do pass.

In between the the falling sands of time

there is a positive power in how 

the universe responds to intentions

of the desire to let go , just being , hopeful , 

humble and grateful.

Many mystical traditions understand the interconnectedness

of everything . Is it a coincidence that one seeker discovered

the commonality of how the gleam responds to humble intentions?

One practice that has helped wandering spirits....

is known as " Metta Meditiations."

(The author has been practicing forms of Metta meditation for years

in his daily journals and contemplations)

(Loving Kindness Metta Meditation

https://www.ekhartyoga.com/articles/meditation/loving-

kindness-meditation-script-and-7-reasons-to-use-it  )

The Writing

Leap Day Humble Intentions: A Metta Meditation

(For myself , you , our families, friends, neighbors , mentors,

those who suffer and those in need , those we met and will meet)

May this space, this moment , this time, this day , this journey -

Be joyous , filled with  - love - peace - hope - mercy - selflessness

- holiness -  good health - mindfulness - gratitude - humility and

authenticity , free from worry , pain , suffering and harm.

May we have the strength , wisdom , courage and faith 

to stay the course that we are meant to be on - letting go .

May we all love one another without judgment about 

our own worthiness and the worthiness of others.

- JF Sobecki

---------

______ 

"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

"Ring the bells that can still ring 

Forget your perfect offering

There is a crack , a crack in everything

That's How the light gets in"

- Anthem, L. Cohen

Spring

In the north country now it is spring and there 
Is a certain celebration. The thrush 
Has come home. He is shy and likes the 
Evening best, also the hour just before 
Morning; in that blue and gritty light he 
Climbs to his branch, or smoothly 
Sails there. It is okay to know only 
One song if it is this one. Hear it 
Rise and fall; the very elements of you should 
Shiver nicely. What would spring be 
Without it? Mostly frogs. But don’t worry, he

Arrives, year after year, humble and obedient 
And gorgeous. You listen and you know 
You could live a better life than you do, be 
Softer, kinder. And maybe this year you will 
Be able to do it. Hear how his voice 
Rises and falls. There is no way to be 
Sufficiently grateful for the gifts we are 
Given, no way to speak the Lord’s name 
Often enough, though we do try, and

Especially now, as that dappled breast 
Breathes in the pines and heaven’s 
Windows in the north country, 
Now spring has come, 
Are opened wide.

- Mary Oliver

The Music 

Anthem - L. Cohen

https://youtu.be/c8-BT6y_wYg?si=QLyTHexF3RoLs79B

Your Got the Love - Retrosettes Sister Band

https://youtu.be/vANd9o22j5Y?si=HcB4GQ-rDTaAJ-Hz

Love and Happiness - E.Harris/M. Knopfler

https://youtu.be/qlPR11Ke2II?si=Osi9OOV7vfV39vAb

Happy - P. Williams

https://youtu.be/ZbZSe6N_BXs?si=kGtIi--NTPCXqllp

Peace on Earth - U2 Live at the Sphere

https://youtu.be/MWwOK5p1ArQ?si=J-DaFHo0j6JVYFtN

Love and mercy - Brian Wilson

https://youtu.be/PISkFEzC5XE?si=56gKU8mTyM8QtmAu

Meditation time:

Sit Listen/Watch

Being Here - B. Murray

https://youtu.be/o9TvFkiLLMo?si=iTUsPzUS7GZZkG7t

Gabriel's Oboe - The Mission

https://youtu.be/fiCX4w1BCVQ?si=WLv_jJNIVtZgi10a

"Everything that we preach is what we

 need to hear."

         - Bono

"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.")

AMDG

Copyright 2024 All Rights Reserved JF Sobecki LLC