meditating with metal

this week was all about making pieces, small and large... getting into zen mode... 

'move and the way will open.'

 ~ zen proverb

'only from the heart can you touch the sky.'
~ rumi

(obvious)

'fall down seven times
stand up eight.'
~ japanese proverb

'actions send out ripples
karma brings them back.'

working in this way can be so relaxing - trying to grab a hold of thoughts and feelings and bringing them to life... 

lights, camera

ACTION ~ 

karma - beth hemmila (hint jewelry)

in a recent post, beth posed the question - does karma wait for you?  while understanding that karma has to do with actions that are involved in the cycle of cause and effect, she presented the thought so very succinctly and with a sense of immediacy... beth has an incredible gift for doing this - and i admire it tremendously... in fact, i have been thinking on this for almost a week now... 

perhaps because it has been on my mind i have been open to seeing other writing that builds upon the concept... 

in an article called 'neverisms' printed in the huffington post, a story is told of ernest hemingway giving advice to marlene dietrich:

'never confuse movement with action.'

is there intention behind what you are doing? and of what kind?

last night i was reading an interview stephen hawking gave to the guardian... when asked 'so here we are. what should we do?' he replied:

'we should seek the greatest value of our action.'

living lives of intention through good, bad, and ugly... living our karma... being mindful of how our words and actions affect others... making the most of every opportunity... 

this is your life... 

when the sun, the earth, the moon and the stars align...

as you probably already know, a lunar eclipse occurred on the same night as the winter solstice early this morning...   i believe i read that this hadn't occurred in over 300 years... so we got up a couple of times to take a look... 

there really is nothing like a winter sky to begin with, but this was spectacular... the moon was aligned over orion... the universe was vast and welcoming... it once again made me feel ever so comfortably a part of something much bigger...

'sic itur ad astra'

'thus you shall go to the stars'

these are going out today to female relatives in remembrance of my grandmother and aunt - we lost them, the universe gained them... and they are missed... sapphires hang for their birthstone and for faith... 

another of those we loved joined the dance last night... the energy wrapped up in brown fur and named chuck returned to the eternal source... what a fabulous night he chose... 

here's wishing you a step up the karmic ladder - you certainly brought joy to the humans in the house... and kept the felines on their toes... 

'i died a  mineral and became a plant,

i died a plant and rose an animal, 

i died an animal and i was a man.

why should i fear?

when was i less by dying?'

~ rumi

to the bittersweet...