GB-2 (subject: Ownership) To Make You Feel My Love

It was at this time of year, many years ago, my mother came home with bundles of cardboard and announced she had decided what I was going to be for Halloween. I was intrigued by her annoucement and like any 9 year old, I stood in her shadows as she cut, measured, painted and glued sheets of cardboard together with stips of fabric.

This process took quite some time and I was impressed at her attention to detail. "There!" she exclaimed , now lets try this costume on. I stared and studied her handiworkand then broke out in a smile "wow, The Planters Peanut Man!"  All the detail was there, monacle, top hat and cane! With the exception of wearing my sisters tights, I was thrilled!

Halloween Night arrived and off I went with the neighboorhood troup of 30.  There we were, Lords of the night, knocking on strangers doors, compelling them to surrender their treats into our our  buckets! It didn't take long before we had gone into a frenzy, streaming into apartment buildings, up the steps, down the elevators, stopping just long enough to take a bite of one our treats!

Two hours later, I walked through the door, barely able to hold the pillowcase filled with the nights rewards.
"Look at you!" shrieked my mother, "you are a mess! and look at my costume, its ruined!"
Yes, the costume was shredded and decorated with chocolate, the hat and monacle gone, my sisters tights had holes in the knees.
"Your Costume?" I asked,  "Didn't you make this for me?"

When we make something with love and give it to another, we still feel as if we are the owner.

Step outside, birds sing, the flowers paint the ground with their brillant colors, the morning sunrise that takes your breath away, a moonlight night with a thousand stars to gaze upon, the scent of an ocean breeze, the gentle warmth of the sun......These are just a few of the things that were made for us, each precisely created with Love. While man feels he rules this world and can  run it the way he pleases, no doubt,the Owner had something else in mind! (and who can deny his sense of ownership!)

Make You Feel My Love

When the rain is blowing in your face
And the whole world is on your case
I could offer you a warm embrace
To make you feel my love.

When the evening shadows and the stars appear
And there is no one there to dry your tears
I could hold you for a million years
To make you feel my love.

I know you haven’t made your mind up yet
But I would never do you wrong
I’ve known it from the moment that we met
No doubt in my mind where you belong.

I’d go hungry, I’d go black and blue
I’d go crawling down the avenue
There’s nothing that I wouldn’t do
To make you feel my love.

The storms are raging on the rollin’ sea
And on the highway of regret
The winds of change are blowing wild and free
You ain’t seen nothing like me yet.
I could make you happy, make your dreams come true
Nothing that I wouldn’t do
Go to the ends of the earth for you
To make you feel my love -  Bob Dylan

Yes, when something is made with Love, the ownership remains with the maker,long after its given away!

GB-2 (Subject : Safe Haven) "The Babys Room"

                                   The Babys Room

Being the father of 3 boys, I can still recall their infant cries in the middle of night. Half awake, I would stumble down the hall and retrieve them from their crib.

By the time my third son came along, I had the 3 A.M. drill down to a routine. Then, on one such night, I awoke,not from his cry, but from the sound of silence. I glanced at alarm clock 3:15 A.M. "Any moment now" I murmered to myself. Minutes passed, still no cry. "Is he alright?" I asked myself....as anxiety began to pour in. I waited a few minutes more, til my nervous imagination and fear got the better part of me,I ejected myself from the mattress and I moved quickly down the hall to his room.

With my heartbeat racing, I aproached the crib, leaned over and observed. I gently lifted him up and held his tiny face to my mouth..there they were..the tinest but sweetest breaths one could possibly imagine! As I held my precious son to my chest,simultaneously, my heightened fears were put to rest. In that quiet moment  I could not help but wonder about our Creator. Why doesn't he come to our cries in the middle of the night? What could possibly be preventing him from wanting to pick us up and hold us close? Reasure us that we are safe?  How could he resist such a pleasure in comforting us?

I cannot speak for our Creator, but on that night I did realize that he has selected a wonderful nursemaid to attend to us. This nursemaid is is at our sides at all times, and never fails to pick us up during our darkest moments. The nursemaid that our Creator has selected is called HOPE.

As my boys grew, I observed them carefully. Whether catching butterflies, baseballs or a fish. Whether they were blowing out candles on a birthday cake,loving their pets, or studying for a test, I have seen their nursemaid,HOPE, standing in their shadows, providing that "safe haven" for their dreams and sometimes I could even see the Nursemaid bringing their dreams a little closer to them!

Now I know, when I step outside at night, and gaze into the night sky, musing upon the stars and moon, their beauty and precision.....that little spark of eternal energy that runs through my nerves, is merely a confirmation that my nuresemaid, HOPE is standing nearby!

Peace and Blessings.....Marc :)

GB-2 (subject: Clarity) "The Meditation"

                   The  Meditation     My friend told me about the amazing day he had in Key West. He paid a visit to a meditition teacher who resided in a small house off the beach. The teachers ' house had the most spectactular  view of the ocean and the infamous "Key West Sunset!" I asked my friend to allow me to join him on his next vist.
     That day came, and we arrived at the teachers house in the mid afternoon. While he greeted us warmly, I could not help but being overcome with a  feeling of disappointment when noticing that all the shades in house had been drawn down.
I spent my first moments debating with myself if I should ask him why he closes off his house to a breathtaking view of the ocean!
    The meditation teacher was a marvelous host, engaging us in a lively conversation and then serving us some delightful green jasmine tea.
    Every few moments, my mind would wander to the fact that I had not yet seen the spectacular view of the ocean. As I sat in a chair in the dark room I could hear the gentle rolling waves of the ocean teasing me.
   It was now past eight o clock, I knew the sun was about to reach the shoreline, I began to stir. The meditation teacher annouced it was now time to perform our meditation. "This will be impossible" I said to myself as I could not get over the fact he witheld us from a breathtaking view.
    He led us into a room that only had mats on the floor and shades on the walls, which were rolled down."Get into position" he gently commanded. I squatted down, folded my legs, outstreched my hands. "Take a deep breath...and hold it" he instructed.
Just as I filled my  lungs with a deep breath,I noticed this very fine beacon of liight streaming right in my eye! Directly ahead of me was a small separation in the windowshade, there was a tear in it! I could see the sun taking its bow into the horizon. I could make out its magnificant reflection across the flattened ocean! Through this tiny opening, firey hues of orange and purple came pouring in.
   There I was, filled with this one breath, and in a direct view of this intense stream of pure beauty. I was alone with this one lost ray of light.
  Suddenly, I felt connected to something far greater than anything here on earth. I could feel my connection to the universe! And this connection was sustained by this one breath I was holding.
In a flash of second, I realized that just as this sun lights up and nourishes this world, I too am given a very similar power. Just as the sun transfers its light to me, I can transfer light to my world! I too just need to find an openeing, a "crack in shade."
    I  mused  about the  beauty that lies within nature, it resonates too sharply to be random or accidental. Light and darkness....life and death ...are both given great distances between them, but the line they cross from one realm to another, is so very fine, and unavoidable.
   We must make the most of who we are, inbetween those lines, and with each breath!
   I wish for you to be able to have that moment when you can see through the crack in the shade.
  Peace~~~   Marc :)

GB-2 (subject: Balance) "Confessions Of A Tightrope Walker"

                                  Confessions Of A Tightrope Walker

"Hey Look Up!........ Up here....   I'm up here on the highwire!"

No need to be fascinated by my talent, afterall, we are all tightrope walkers!  Yes, with this one heart we have and the 24 sets of emotions it must balance makes us bonafide tightrope walkers!  Imagine, one heart that must balance Love & Hate, Joy & Sorrow, Courage & Fear, Selflessness & Greed, Confidence & Doubt.
---Imagine, one heart balancing a mixture of those emotions at any one time!  No wonder so many fall off the highwire, that is just too much to keep balanced!

There is no shame in falling off the highwire, there is only shame in not getting back up!

Now, I've been up here for quite sometime and I am often asked "what's the trick?"  I smile and gently reply....."gratitude". 

  I am deeply grateful for every minute I breathe, and once I am fully grateful for each minute, yes, I can be grateful for the moments where I deal with my own emotions of hate, greed, fear, sorrow, etc.  I know these are the emotions that are so heavy that they will weigh me down to one side. They will cause me to lose my balance and hit the floor hard.  But I am well aware, once down, a hand of kindness will come along, ask if I am alright, and will even help me back on that highwire!

So while the heart struggles to balance , I can remain forever grateful knowing that each negative emotion will be met with a counterweight!   Now, don't  me down, let me see your smiles and who knows, I may be doing this with my unicycle!

Wishing all a safe and balanced week!     Marc :)

GB-2 (subject: Judgement) "MIRROR MIRROR ON THE WALL"

         "MIRROR MIRROR ON THE WALL"

 Each day we stand before the mirror, we check our hair, face,skin,and teeth. We are quick to notice any blemish and judge our well being on what we see in the mirror, sadly in our "sight oriented world" we rarely spend a moment checking what is on the inside of us, our spirit, our soul.

 Who amongst us is not familar with that famous line in Snow White,  "mirror, mirror on the wall, whose the fairest of them all?" 
  The mirrors response of Snow White was a reference to both her beauty and her heart. For Snow White was as kind to others as her beauty was to the world.  Forced to flee deep into the forest, she touched each and every creature that lived there. She took residence with 7 dwarfs, each with its own  personality (Grumpy, Sneezy, Dopey etc) that required a higher level of understanding and acceptance. Despite their shortcomings (no pun intended) their open hearts, and selfless ways allowed their fondness and mutual adoration of each other thrive!

There is another type of Beauty that is so spectacular it blinds us with an explosion of joyful living. When one brings Joy, Hope & Encouragement into someones elses day , a mirror can only reflect a soul that is simply "the fairest of all".

 Aside from revealing the Beauty of Snow White, the magic mirror revealed one of lifes greatest lessons, which is, True Joy is most often found just beyond the point of "knowing to Judge"!

Wishing a non judgemental and joyful day to all!        Marc :)

GB-2 "Loyality" Thanks For Nothing (A lesson in loyalty)

      “THANKS FOR NOTHING”  (A Lesson in Loyalty)

         One day we were home from school and after having a boring catch outside, Alex invited Ray and me back to his house. No one was at his home. He opened the door and walked straight into the living room! The livingroom was decorated with hundreds of glass figurines and small statues.

 "C’mon, don't be scared, you guys can sit in here" he cajoled. Reluctantly, we sat down, and looked around us, stunned by the massive collection of figurines that seemed to be staring at us. Alex removed the tennis ball from his pocket, and began tossing it in the air. "Hey Alex , not a good idea" we cautioned him. He laughed, and then tossed the ball over to Ray.."catch!" he said (implying a dare to drop the ball). Ray caught the ball, and then tossed it to me. Call it pre adolescent Bravado, but we began tossing that ball around...faster...and faster...till, my toss to Alex sailed over his outstretched hands and made a direct hit on the end table! The figurines were scattered about, and one slid off the table and onto the floor! We jumped up and ran over to asses the damage. Alex leaning over the figurine exclaimed, "My Mom is gonna kill me!....This is her favorite horse and its all busted up!"I tried to mitigate the circumstance with "favorite horse? There must be 100 little horses here, and THIS ONE is her favorite?"   "You better believe it" said Alex..."She paid 200 bucks for this one...it's her favorite!"

     My stomach collapsed, I broke a 200 dollar horse! My Mom was gonna kill me too!...... "Hold on" I said as I tried to gain control of a situation that was going out of control. I began rearranging the animals that were on the table, trying to compensate for the empty space . "There!, Now she will never know her horse is missing..the display looks the same as when we first walked in here."   Ray nodded his head in agreement and we decided to bury the broken horse figurine in the backyard.

    The next day at school, Ray and I met up with Alex. "Boy is my Mom mad!" He exclaimed. As soon as she walked into the living room she cried out, "who messed up my end table?....and then  that is when she noticed her favorite horse was missing!" "What did you tell her?" I asked with panic in my heart. "I told her that I didn't know a thing...that maybe my sister and her friends did something to it".  "You won't ever tell her that it was us, will you?" I asked. "Nope" said Alex..."I don't squeal on my friends"

"Alex" I said with a sigh of relief, "you are the best friend that someone could have" I saias I placed my arm around Alex..."I really owe you"......

     Time passed, my gratefulness for Alex not exposing me played into our friendship. I would loan him nickels for candy and let him use my bike whenever he needed. 

    Several months passed, it was now Spring and just when that incident was as deeply buried as that horse, my Mother confronted me. "I just got off the phone with Alex's mom, and while she was working in her garden she found a broken horse figurine buried there. She says that you, Alex and Ray were playing one day and broke it....is that true?"..........  I was caught!  .... In shame and for Mercy I put my head down and   put my best puppy dog eyes on...."yes Mom....we broke it". 

 "Well, you will be grounded for the next month and I told her that I would share in the cost of replacing that horse..so you will be losing 5 weeks of your allowance money."   My head was spinning....I can't believe that Alex caved in and confessed...especially 5 months after we broke that horse!.....Grounded and no allowance for....  Five weeks? That's it? I got 75 cents a week.....how does that add up to 200 dollars?

      The next day came and at first, I did not want to even look at Alex.. Over the past 5 months,I had thanked him a million times, bought him candy, loaned him my bike...all that "Thanks" and gratitude..and what does he do?  Rat me out!  But I was curious about why I was only losing 5 weeks of allowance...so.... "Hey Alex!   Thanks for Nothing!...you couldn't deny it?"...... "No I couldn't" he said with his head in shame...."Besides, I'm the one that has to face her everyday...I am the one who hears her..I am one who is paying for this"... Then I asked about the cost of the horse...."oh, I made a mistake, the horse was only a few bucks..."  He put out his hand to me..."still friends?" he asked.....I slowly put my hand out there.."yeah...we're still friends"

   And so I learned....no matter how thankful you are and how grateful and loyal you might be to a friend, it is not a guarantee that they will always perform in a manner that is to your liking...there will be a time when they let you down.

 A  Loyal friendship is not one that is based on being grateful and thankful only  as long as the "thanks" are being repaid.....

The years passed, and Alex and I remained loyal friends. As we entered adolesence we shared the gossip and secrets of who had a crush on who. He was the first to know about a girl I had a crush on, and like a good loyal friend, he made sure that she learned of this which  had led me to a sweet kiss!

GB2 : subject: Longing "Mountain Of Knowledge"

  Its a simple lifelong longing, my thirst for knowledge. I must be careful as it comes in many forms ... here is one example..

Mountain Of Knowledge

One day I climbed to a plateau on this mountain, and as I was inhaling the soft breezes, I could hear cries coming from the side of the mountain. I went to the edge, looked down and saw two damsels were stranded on a ledge just 12 feet below!

 “Please help us” they sobbed. I rubbed my eyes, for these damsels in distress were no ordinary damsels, they were Wisdom and Peace!  I assumed that if I could rescue them, they would share their inner most secrets with me! “Help is on the way” I called out. I turned to a nearby tree and broke off branches and leaves and fashioned a vine. I secured the vine around a rock and lowered myself down to the ledge.

I held one arm open to Wisdom and said “come, place your arm around my waist and I will carry you up”. Wisdom approached and as she took the vine from my hand, gave me a nudge. “Do you really think that Wisdom doesn’t know how to climb?” she asked with a smile. In the blink of an eye, she climbed up to the plateau. I held my arm open to Peace, and said “come Peace, hold on to my waist and I will carry you up”. Peace approached me, and also nudged me to the side and placed the vine around her waist. “When you have Wisdom as a friend, you don’t need more”. In the blink of an eye, Peace was lifted up to the plateau. I looked up to see the pair looking down at me,”ok, very nicely done, please toss me the vine”. I said with a tone of defeat in my voice.   Their smiling faces disappeared and their laughter began to fade away. “The Vine!” I called out. Wisdom called back, “you don’t need a vine, you will figure out how to get back up, and when you do, you will be Wiser and at Peace with yourself!” As their laughter faded, I mused, yes, one must be very careful in what they wish for as it manifests itself in ways we cannot imagine! 

  How foolish to think that Wisdom and Peace would need me to rescue them!

It was  a lesson well learned!

Despite the years that have passed, the many lessons learned and the knowledge gained, I long for more! Yes, I still find my way back to that and  despite the bumps and those "sprites" that inhabit it, each lesson learned bears the taste of fruit I so long for!

Have an enlightened Week...towards the light......Marc :)