Blogger Recognition Award

Okay, I so did not see this coming. It kind of blew me away actually. It gets better. Is that even possible?

It means the world to me that the person who nominated me for the award is someone I admire greatly: as a person of integrity who speaks her truth in such a way that I feel humbled and honoured to be included in her sharing, as an individual with a huge heart, so much so that I feel as though my own heart is opening wide even as I write these words, and as a writer whose words always touch me with their beauty. Oh, and did I mention that she is a poet too? Not infrequently I feel as though a tiny piece of heaven has just opened up as I bear witness to her poetic self unfolding on the page. Wow!

So, Carol Hopkins, thank you for your kindness in nominating me for this award. I am honoured to share the following link to your blog: https://chopkins2x3.wordpress.com/

AWARD RULES:

• Thank the nominator, and publish a post on your blog about receiving the Blogger Recognition Award. Make sure to provide a link to the nominator’s blog in your post.
• Give a brief story of how your blog started.
• Give two pieces of advice to new bloggers.
• Nominate 10-15 other bloggers for this award, and inform them of their nomination.

To blog or not to blog??

I knew, long before I actually did it, that I wanted to write a blog. Outside of that I didn’t have a clue. Not having a clue was actually kind of driving me crazy. Why couldn’t I just figure this out? What was my problem?

I am a meditator. One day when I was meditating, out of seemingly nowhere, the title and subject of this blog came into being. Poof! Just like that. I’m following my breathing and poof? So there it was. Is. The reason for this blog is simple really. I care. I care about others, all others, about our planet with all of its creatures, from the tiniest bug to the largest whale, about plant life everywhere in all its wonderful diversity, and that I have clean air to breathe. I, like all of us, want to be happy and peaceful, and to live a full life.

As you no doubt have figured out from the fact I am a meditator, I also care about the spiritual side of life. When I meditate or connect with nature on the long walks I often take, I find I sometimes have more clarity around the truth of how things really are. Of how we and this planet in all of its diversity are interconnected. 

Everything I do and say and think affects our world. How so? How can what I think possibly affect others and what’s around me, let alone the world? A simple example: Actually, this blog is a perfect example. I often find myself thinking about the goings on in my life, in the lives of others, and in our broader world. I think, I feel, I’m inspired to act. To write. To share through stories what little clarity I have touched as I make my way through the ups and downs on the roller coaster ride we call life.

My first story, “Imprints We Make”, came from me thinking about a young boy and his granddad, and from me thinking about encouraging that little boy to grow in compassion. I acted based on that thinking. I gave him five dollars. He then would have thought about what I’d said and done to help him and his teacher to raise money for a good cause. So he thought about it and acted. He sold his favourite toys. Okay, I’m still in awe of that one. So I thought and he thought. I acted and he acted. And somewhere in our world, there are some people whose lives are a little bit better because I thought and he thought. So yes. What I think does have an effect. We inter-are. We all make imprints on our world, and it on us.

I am grateful that, as a human being, I have the capacity and the ability to make choices as to what kind of imprint I make as I walk through my life. Our actions, thoughts, and  words have an effect on ourselves and on others. To speak, think, and act by stepping gently and wisely coming from a place of compassion, a place that we all hold within us, both for ourselves and for others, goes in the direction of spreading harmony and peace in our world.

I humbly suggest two points of advice for new bloggers:

1. Be true to yourself. Come from a place that is truly you, whatever that is for you. After all, this blog is your blog. Nobody else’s. Only you really know yourself. Others may think they know, but they are not inside your head or your heart. You are wonderfully unique.
2. Write frequently, daily if you can. Try keeping a journal. Either handwritten or on a computer. I have done both. For me they each have a different feel to them. When journaling don’t concern yourself with what to write. Just write. No filters. That means don’t edit what shows up on the page. Don’t worry about spelling, grammar, or mistakes. Not important. Whatever comes into your head goes down on the page. What I have discovered is that when I don’t filter what I journal and just write, even if what is going on the page seems silly, or pointless, or boring, or any number of things, is that all of a sudden some hidden part of me, call it the muse if you like, surfaces. When that occurs I almost can’t write fast enough to get down on the page what is surfacing. It is like when I finally get my thinking head out of the way the muse is freed. The thinking head wants to filter what goes down on the page. Just ignore it. Some of my best writing has come from writing this way. Not infrequently the ideas coming from the muse are the very ones that show up in a post on my blog. They are the seed. I have also noticed that some of the turns of phrase that show up from the muse in my journal have me in awe. It’s like: Where did that come from? It’s perfect! Of course they inevitably end up being incorporated into a blog post.

I am nominating the following bloggers whose posts I enjoy reading; so many ideas; so many ways of expressing them:

Vessels of Vision  https://vessels-of-vision.com/

Cavewoman A Creative Journey by Bernie Delaney  https://bernie.ie/blog/

NFOCUS4YO  https://nfocus4youblog.com

Akarsh Jain  https://akarshjain.wordpress.com/

In So Many Words by Dorothy Chiotti  https://dorothychiotti.com/

Meditatio Ephimera by Cate Terwilliger  https://zenofhen.wordpress.com

Sascha.Hjort A Spiritual Journey  https://www.saschahjort.com/

Scale it Simple by Steph  https://scaleitsimple.com/

The Renegade Press by Chris Nicholas   https://therenegadepress.com/

Jake Jacobik  https://jjacobik.wordpress.com/2019/06/15/chances-were/

SHLLYN  https://shllyn.com/2019/06/20/oh-to-grow-parallel-to-a-forest-of-trees/