Playing It Grand! - 08/08/2008

Playing It Grand!

 “Your playing small doesn’t serve the world.  . . . We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone.”        (Nelson Mandela)

      Every life is full of possibilities, and consequently we are presented with endless opportunities to choose. We are not only making the obvious external choices—what to do on any given day, what to wear, what to eat, etc—we are also making internal choices. It is those internal choices—what thoughts to allow in, what vision of ourselves and others to adopt, how we view our position in the universe, in time, in relation to our Creator, etc—that actually shape the quality of our day.

     Mandela’s comments encourage us to see ourselves as powerful. Why? Because we are children of God. He says,“We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.” He is encouraging us not to settle for the least we can be or accomplish. He is asking us to pause and consider our origins. When we do that, we understand that we are not here on earth merely to further our own existence. We are all part of a large community called the human race.

     Regardless of our faith basis, we know that the human race is important; it is the pinnacle of creation. As an individual member of that “pinnacle of creation,” it is vastly important that we make choices that create peace in us so that we can extend support to others. Mandela is right when he calls us to service of others, when he exhorts us not to play our lives small, because in the final analysis no life is small. Every choice we make creates a ripple effect in our society and thus impacts many people.

     So I choose to play it grand.  Won’t you join me?

      Kay 

 

 

A Visit with Great Aunt Kathleen - 08/08/2008

 

 Oh, You have come at last, my dear! I'm Caroline's Great Aunt Kathleen.

       Please, do come in.....just push open the gate and come on into the garden. Oh, I just knew something wonderful was going to happen today, and here you are!  Why, I told Betsy just this morning that we would most assuredly be having special company for tea, and she’s been baking up a storm. Now, stop that fretting right this minute, my dear. Of course you don’t need a formal invitation; you’re always welcome. Why, any friend of Caroline’s is a coveted addition here. You just come on over here and give me a hug.     

 

          What a joy it is to have you in my garden at last!  You cannot imagine how excited I have been all day waiting for you. Oh no, my dear, you are not a bit late.  In fact, we have time to gather a bouquet of roses for our tea table. What color shall we choose? You know how I love my pink roses, but I noticed this morning that the creamy yellow ones with the strawberry edges are just glorious right now. Come, let me show you! Oh, don’t worry about stepping on the alyssum; it just tumbles all over the brick walk by late summer, and I simply don’t have the heart to cut back those darling little white flowers. Besides, it smells so fragrant at dusk.

       Oh look! Betsy has placed my clippers and a pail of water on this little garden table. She knows me too well, I fear.  Oh, go ahead and laugh. I know just what you’re thinking.....everyone knows I cannot abide a tea table that is not graced with fresh roses. Ah me, what a dreadful reputation I have!  Well, that being the case, I might as well live up to the scandal attached to my name, so you just follow me, and I’ll guide you through this maze of rose bushes. Perhaps we’ll get lost, and it will be days before they find us. Wouldn’t that be a trial! Forced to endure days in a forest of roses with no companions except song birds and each other. We could lie down under a different color every day and stare up at the drifting clouds, and at night we could sleep immersed in that magnificent fragrance with a gentle breeze drifting—oh dear me! I seem to have lost touch with reality, as those psychologists are so fond of saying. Poor dears! What do they know about reality?

       Here we are! Mercy me, have you ever seen anything more glorious than these roses. Just look at the size of this blossom; why I do believe it is as large as my hand. Yes, look, it certainly is.

       Now you do know the proper way to cut a rose, I’m sure. You don’t? Well, I’ll be delighted to show you. You hold the pail of water, and I shall just find the very best blossom for the center of our bouquet. Ah, here it is. Watch carefully now as I snip it from the bush, quickly thrust it into the pail of water and clip one inch off the stem while I hold it under the water. Yes, my dear, now you see, don’t you? We must not let any air into the stem from this point on.     

 

              You know, roses are not a bit different from people, my dear. Any time a person’s nutrients, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual are interrupted, there is bound to be damage to that person. If we are each and every one of us to become the flower that God intended us to be, we must work very hard not to interrupt the flow of nutrients that He has given us.  

 

            And all that said, I think we best get these beauties arranged and prepare ourselves for a scrumptious tea. Now, you won’t forget to make special mention of Betsy’s scones, will you? She created a new recipe just for you, and we’ll enjoy them with fresh strawberries. Oh, my dear, I believe we’ve chosen the perfect roses. Just look at this bouquet full of billowing creamy blossoms with strawberry edges. How grand they will look with Betsy’s scones surrounded by strawberries. Aren’t we clever?  

 

          Come along now, dear. You carry the pail of roses and follow me into the house, and I’ll show you the view from the upper piazza. Oh, you’ll just love it! There’s the sea stretching to the horizon and the garden directly below. Aren’t we going to have the grandest time!