+ Today is the last day of September in 2025. Tomorrow marks the last and final quarter of the year. It’s not lost on me that I woke up this morning recalling a strange and terrible dream. In my dream, a serious looking, bearded young man, dressed in black, was standing at our glass doors holding a large gun and a precious baby. I let him in and he sat on the couch and started an unknown conversation with my husband. I proceeded to call 911, but the dispatchers were distracted in their own conversation. They were laughing with each other and they were not taking me seriously. I was watching this young man cautiously, not sure what his next move would be. And then I woke up.
I haven’t sorted out what this dream means to me personally, but I do believe that it speaks to choice. And our choices are ultimately what makes us who we are, right? We can choose destruction or we can choose innocence. We can choose darkness and hate, or we can choose new life. We can choose the hope of new beginnings, or we can choose the despair of a dark ending. And sometimes these are the consequential decisions which we make, even sitting in the living rooms of our own homes.
+ I was introduced this morning to this wonderful new musical “band.” Various musicians play parts of a beautiful song, from all different places in the world. They call it “Playing for Change.” The link above is Playing for Change performing “Soulshine.” The link below is Playing for Change performing “Waiting for the World to Change.”
I am a huge mix of utterly grateful and completely envious of those of you musicians (unfortunately no musical bones appear in my body, sigh.) and all of your wonderful talent. There is no greater connection to the divine on Earth than music. Music is the universal language of the world. Music is how the divine communicates to all of us on Earth, because we all can understand it and we can all feel it and we can all vibrate with it and we all can connect with each other through music. I absolutely adore watching musicians perform, whether on big stages or on street corners. It’s witnessing someone plugged into our universal soul. And it is beautiful. Musicians, thank you for sharing your gifts. Thank you for dedication, passion and vulnerability in sharing. Your gift is our gift. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
+ We were boating over the weekend with our son and one of his friends. His friend was talking about seeing some old family friends in the town that we were in. He said something profound. My son’s friend said, “It’s good to know people who knew me before I knew me.” I thought that was a beautiful thought. It takes a while to “know ourselves” and the people in our lives are often the mirrors to ourselves. They are often the way-showers. Their perceptions of us, and their reactions to us help us to discover and “find ourselves”. The people in our lives help us down the path as to what actually resonates and aligns with whom we really are, deep in our cores. Recently, along these lines, a dear friend asked me to pray for her to get “unstuck.” I told her that instead I would pray that she sees herself, the clear way that I see her, “Beautiful. Kind. Authentic. Accomplished. And not stuck at all.”
+ Finally, here are some new exhibits, in this thought museum which we call, Adulting-Second Half:
“Y’all ever wonder what life would be like if you didn’t overthink everything? I think about it all the time.”
“Anger is an emotion of justice.”
“Some people are so poor, all they have is money.” – Sherrie Campbell
“Your feelings are always valid, but your behavior is not.”
“Blood isn’t always thicker than water, though it is often stickier.”
“You have to be odd to be number one.” – Dr. Seuss
Let’s all meditate a little bit today, before we walk into the final quarter of the year. Let’s meditate on our choices going forward. Let’s feel grateful for musicians and the people who knew us before we knew us. Let’s meditate on what makes our own souls shine and let’s let them shine – brightly. That is how the world will change.
Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.