life: acoustic & amplified

poetry, quotes & thoughts about life

Archive for the category “Gratitude”

17 Jul 2013

living in eternity

Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity. –Henry Van Dyke

there is grace on ground like this
we can say that every step we take
of every day we live
Wherever we are is sacred ground
every bush we see burning with holy
every rock singing glory
every bird testament of abundance
every flower testament to extravagant love
every waterfall
every rainbow
and moonbow
and drop of the summer rain
shimmers with promise
rocks standing firm in the faith
glittering in sunshine
we are made of stars
held together with mud
breathing the very same breath as our creator
the anti matter of the universe swirls around our feet
life and death our greatest gifts
the space between can be our brilliantly colored heaven
or the darkest shades of hell
we choose our path with every decision
free will is our constant companion
choices are most important
we keep rising from the ashes of our choices
better or bitter
we become the words we speak
wake up and guard them well
how well and often we give thanks
determines our joy
until we cross the portal
into the next adventurous chapter

al 7/16/13

Posted in Adventure, attitude, awareness, Change, Choice, find art at pinterest, Glory, Gospel, Gratitude, Joy, kindness, Life, Love, soul and spirit | Leave a comment

12 Jul 2013

1 Comment

unexpected miracles

Robbed and wounded on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho,
you lie in life’s rough ditch, unable.
Your strength and your treasure pass you by.

Your shadow sees you and is moved with compassion.
Your pain comes to you.
Your failure bends over you.

Your need for forgiveness bathes your wounds.
Your weakness wraps you in clean bands.
Your unworthiness gathers you in knowing arms.

Your brokenness carries you to safe shelter.
Your poverty says, “Treat this one as my Beloved.
I will return, and pay the cost.”

There is no other grace.
There is no less dangerous life.
There is no other salvation.

Who can tell what stranger will be chosen
without knowledge
as your innkeeper, your care giver?

Who can know what dark Samaritan,
pushed away, will come
back to you in your need?
_________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

Posted in Adventure, awareness, compassion, dark, Death, Encouragement, Faith, find art at pinterest, friendship, grace, Gratitude, Letting Go, Love, Miracles, mystery, perceptions, Poetry, soul and spirit

06 Jul 2013

the painter

these clouds of
pink and blue cotton candy
all mixed and fluffy
the sky is
breathtaking
grand
heart stopping
I lose my ability to concentrate on driving
pull my car over so I can stare
breathe it in
this full bloom
colors so
intense across the massive sky
extravagantly piled onto
this extreme canvas
this moving masterpiece
with oranges and burgundies
moving into a living pallet
night slowly absorbing the colors
leaving diamonds in
the shifting colors of blue
leaving me full
even wordless for a while
absorbing this masterpiece
in awe of this painter
of the world
the glory so displayed
for our moments
if we will just take a moment in return
to receive
to breathe
to give thanks
to feel glory
for the extravagant and luscious gifts
from the painter of the sky
so beyond our scope
the one who creates beauty
of such magnitude
it drives to my knees
in gratitude for being able to see it
on a July evening
as I pay tribute with a few
of these words
I have been given
to that something so magical
the miracle
which we have named
in our language:
sunset

AL 7/5/13
photo by Matt Halverson aka The Storm, Cincinnati, OH

And then I woke up to this from Ann Voskamp at A Holy Experience http://www.aholyexperience.com/

New newsletter posted on my website www.songsfromthevalley.com

Posted in beauty, Glory, Gratitude, Miracles, Newsletter, Songs from the Valley, soul and spirit, Stars and Moonlight | Leave a comment

30 Jun 2013

2 Comments

then sings my soul

There are things that make my soul sing –
Like hay bales in a newly mowed field.
Corn with tassels as far as the eye can see.
Tobacco hanging straight on rods drying high in a barn.
Farms fenced with white wood, their pastures dotted
with cows, horses and John Deer green.
Coming down a hill to see
city skyline soft in rainy mist,
or night-time lights.
Fog draping anything.
Crossing a body of water on a brilliantly engineered bridge.
All make me hold my breath with the sight of so much beauty.
The lines and shades of green from the tree farm pine trees looking like Christmas all year.
Small deli’s with homemade sausage and hand cut meats,
where the owner takes care of getting your order,
then comes out to ring you up.
All of these are miracles of extraordinary proportion.
These have fed my soul today.
So much more in store for me tomorrow.
The lavish gifts life brings are many and varied.
I am blessed to be awed by a few on my way.

AL 6/28/13

Posted in Adventure, America, art, attitude, awareness, find art at pinterest, Gratitude, Miracles

29 Jun 2013

1 Comment

faith allows for grace in everything

Little Summer Poem Touching the Subject of Faith

by Mary Oliver

Every summer
I listen and look
under the sun’s brass and even
in the moonlight, but I can’t hear

anything, I can’t see anything—
not the pale roots digging down, nor the green stalks muscling up,
nor the leaves
deepening their damp pleats,

nor the tassels making,
nor the shucks, nor the cobs.
And still,
every day,

the leafy fields
grow taller and thicker—
green gowns lifting up in the night,
showered with silk.

And so, every summer,
I fail as a witness, seeing nothing—
I am deaf too
to the tick of the leaves,

the tapping of downwardness from the banyan feet—
all of it
happening
beyond all seeable proof, or hearable hum.

And, therefore, let the immeasurable come.
Let the unknowable touch the buckle of my spine.
Let the wind turn in the trees,
and the mystery hidden in dirt

swing through the air.
How could I look at anything in this world
and tremble, and grip my hands over my heart?
What should I fear?

One morning
in the leafy green ocean
the honeycomb of the corn’s beautiful body
is sure to be there.

Posted in awareness, courage, Death, Encouragement, Faith, find art at pinterest, grace, Gratitude, Letting Go, Life, Love, Miracles, mystery, nature

24 Jun 2013

making the day yellow…with a little orange & a splash of pink thrown in

Words that do not become flesh in us remain “just words.” They have no power to affect our lives. If someone says, “I love you,” without any deep emotion, the words do more harm than good. But if these same words are spoken from the heart, they can create new life.

It is important that we keep in touch with the source of our words. Our great temptation is to become “pleasers,” people who say the right words to please others but whose words have no roots in their interior lives. We have to keep making sure our words are rooted in our hearts. The best way to do that is in prayerful silence.

– Henri Nouwen
http://www.henrinouwen.org