Putting Words Around the Unfolding
Create some wind.
No matter what swirls around you,
add some air to it.
Whether it is a sigh
or a deep gulp,
get it going.
Don’t get caught in the holding of your inner breezes.
This only creates pain…
Life is born in and through us
and it is only on the wing of our precious breath
that we can unfold and float
among the mountains and valleys.
This is what breathing is –
working with life.
And working with life,
is why we are here.
Copyright@Cynthia Cady Stanton, April 2022
This heart is a strong muscle.
It never disappoints.
When put to work,
there is always strength,
there is always strength.
This heart is a deep well.
When the bucket is lowered
and dips into its depths,
there is always refreshment,
there is always refreshment.
This heart is a vista.
When the journey tires,
I can sit and rest.
I see it all.
There is always a vision,
there is always a vision.
This heart is a blanket.
When the chill arrives,
I reach for warmth.
There is always an embrace,
there is always an embrace.
This heart is home.
When the moments
add up to years,
I can look back and within.
There is always love,
there is always love.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2020
With an abundance of time,
I can get a bit lost.
I am used to being driven
by duty,
with all its necessary tasks
keeping me busy.
But I am not so needed
right now –
or so it seems.
Reluctantly, I learn to be grateful
for the quiet,
the stillness that is always underneath.
I sit and open to it.
Once rested and
pretty soon,
my eyes begin to catch a vision
while my heart bubbles forth
with an effervescent song.
Its music is an invitation to grow –
to gather all the pieces
and moments
of wisdom, pain, and insight that
have been stacking in the corners –
to sit with them
and to honor their sacredness.
As I look back to review them,
the melody of their song
begins to weave together.
It travels in and through me,
bringing lightness and energy
to my searching heart.
The music floats up into my awareness
and sings to me:
You know how to knit all this together.
Trust what has been given to you.
The words form into a melody
only I can hear.
I can see now that
there is a song to be born, and
I have been invited
to sing it.
My feet become light
as I learn dance
to a new tune.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, May 2020
“To love someone is to learn the song in their heart and to sing it to them when they have forgotten.” – Arne Garbing
Lately, the weight of the world
seems to hold me to my bed
upon waking.
Entering the day requires
an unfamiliar courage.
But even as I lay under
the comfort of my covers,
trying not to face the universal worry,
I know how to be lifted…
I remember to pause.
I look out the window and
my eyes gaze in wonder
at the trees in the morning sky.
I bow inwardly to the beauty of their sparkle.
If the grip in my chest still remains –
threatening to take away wonder and joy,
I place my hands on my heart
and breathe.
I remember to offer myself
love and care.
This anxiety is not about me.
I can let it go.
Then, I look to my right and smile.
My love is at rest and peaceful.
I am reminded to celebrate all the love in my life.
My heart is soothed and
begins to open to the morning.
This is how to start the day
when the world is in pain.
If we practice the art of
transcendance,
and remind ourselves
of what is true and real,
we can step into the Presence
that we are.
So today, I set my intention to
continue in this way
moment by moment,
mindful of what I choose to see.
As I take the covers off,
and step onto the floor,
I lift up my voice and say,
“thank you.”
I gratefully move forward.
Later, if I catch myself
again in the grip of worry,
veering off track,
I lift up a prayer.
I give voice to what is good.
I deepen my gaze and do the work.
This way, darkness and fear
don’t win.
And I am free to love generously.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, April 2020, during the Covid 19 Pandemic.
Regardless of the subject matter, this is the only thing worth teaching; how to uncover the original center and live from there once restored. – Mark Nepo
I lift up my eyes
and I look around.
There is blessedness here…
and it was there, too.
I see differently now –
my distorted vision finally giving way to clarity.
The work of letting go
has been harder than expected.
But now I can see that
the grip is the giver of pain
and its loosening,
is grace received.
So here I stand
at the bank of the river of gladness.
I am finally ready to move toward yes.
I let go again, and
surrender to the divine flow.
All is well as I learn
the nature of floating.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2019
Be watchful in the weather
of life,
for as your experiences show up,
their effect can either dampen and chill you,
or bless you with warm peace.
So much depends
on where you stand at the time
and if you are awake
or not.
Your life can be a challenge –
that is true.
And also the point.
For the challenges teach
and also preach
if we are present in the pew
and looking upward and inward
for understanding.
Be watchful for the weather of truth
which will come and go
like the wind which
gives us waves to ride
until we learn
how to balance on them.
And when we are ready to ride,
having built up our core,
the rain of grace
will shower down upon us,
gently cleansing us
with new realizations
of what is true.
And in this baptism of insight,
we are made new again
by the healing that
has finally arrived.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2019
Sometimes I feel as if
I am in a favorite pocket of yours.
Once and a while,
you reach in and touch me –
and I am remembered again.
You may adjust me a bit,
smoothing my edges and
moving me about inside the pocket,
your touch comforting
as you bring me to new places
for my learning.
When the moment is right,
you lift me up and out
and I feel the rush of freedom knitted with
the warmth of grace
as you hold me in your hand.
You look at me,
and I look at you.
And I remember again
what home feels like.
Then you place me back
into your pocket
for easy reaching later.
I am your treasure
and in your keeping –
you keep me safe from harm.
One day, I know
your lift up
and into the light
will mean I get to stay.
My vision will be clear then
and so will my reflection
of you.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2019
You see, to live
one must do these things:
like a bird about to take flight,
one must believe it is possible –
that our wings can be trusted.
When happy, allow it to be!
Share your happy face and glow
as created to do so.
When sad, embrace being seen as sad –
and surrender to the hug of compassion
packaged in sweet understanding and growth.
The struggles will come and go.
The secret is to surf the highs and lows
and learn to fall gracefully
and repeatedly.
There will always follow
chances to rise up again courageously.
We are here to love.
It is that simple –
and, also that complicated.
For most of us have learned
to turn away from the divine imprint
which shows us how to love
and accept our differences.
Remember that the journey of grace
is more inward
than outward.
We lose our layers of skin
and find peace in the presence
of this one moment.
We discover a deeper belonging.
We understand that we already have it all.
This is the amazing glimpse that,
when captured,
enables us to be the beautiful souls we are.
We can let go.
We can be free.
We can choose joy.
Copyright©Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2019
“Strange as it may seem today to say, the aim of life is to live, and to live means to be aware, joyously, drunkenly, serenely, divinely aware.” – Henry Miller
I saw some unusual flowers yesterday
which bloomed in unexpected ways.
Their beauty ignited my heart
and blessed me with renewed vision.
Witnessing a perfect glow can do that –
it connects us to what is real
and true.
We color the world with so many hues –
the seasons directing the light
and filling the wide spectrum perfectly.
Sometimes the necessary germination before
the the colors can be expressed
takes time –
and that is by design.
For a full bloom
cannot be forced prematurely.
To be a flower
means being present to
the light being born in you
in its own time.
Your bloom will arrive in its fullness,
according to the Gardener’s plan.
Therefore, rest in the truth of the sunrise
and be soothed by the rain.
Wait your turn.
Your job is to allow the glow to be born in you
and to trust in the promised opening.
For part of the beauty of it all
is that the timing of your full flowering is not up to you…
It is perfectly fine and beautiful still
to be a late bloomer.
Copyright©Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2019
Photo credit by Gary Stanton, taken at Heritage Museums and Gardens in Sandwich, MA.
Becoming and Beholding 