Uphill idealist

The following reading was w ritten by Henry Scott Holland (27 January 1847 – 17 March 1918) was Regius Professor of Divinity at the University of Oxford... My friend Sarah shared this reading with me earlier today and I can't quite articulate why it cut me to the quick, but it did. Death is something that we often want to separate from daily life. We remove ourselves - or try to - from grief. But death and life are married. Death and life can't be separated. While I don't know the ways that death or loss have impacted you life,  I do know that death has impacted and continues to impact me. But death is a part of life that I can't live without - like the quote states... "death is nothing at all...All is well."

On Sunday morning I shared one of my favorite quotes in my sermon. The quote comes from a book written by Parker Palmer called, Let your life speak . I've written about this book and even this specific quote many times before, as this phrase came into my own life at a time I was wrestling with my own calling or vocational purpose. When I'm in the midst of confusion and worry over the course of where my vocational process may or may not be heading, I find myself returning to this well loved phrase in order to help find a center space where I cans see progress and hope in the process that is vocational discernment “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” (Note: This quote was not originate with Mr. Palmer, but he uses the statement that originates with Fredrick Buechner's little book Wishful thinking: A Seeker's ABC's   as a means of telling his own story concerning vocational wrestling.) ...

Words sometimes seem difficult to put together in a way to express all one needs to say. Sometimes words are partially effective in getting a point across, but pictures sometimes "are worth a thousand words". Optimism is the higher functioning sibling of idealism. Optimism is more likely to experiment, to try, to be open. Idealism sometimes is so married to meeting a goal, to attaining perfection, that an effort goes undone. So in word and picture, Uphill Idealist returns, with a a try - a test - imperfect, but present; because optimism is like having the courage to try the cha cha.... Image found at Facebook page for Inspire

Earlier today I stumbled across a quote concerning the coming new year that filled me with hope instead of a desire to reach for a mountain of impossible resolutions - "Tomorrow is the first blank page in a 365 page book. Write a good one." Brad Paisley. We all have an ideal that we strive for - even this uphill idealist. But what if we looked at each day as writing ONE page instead trying to write ALL PAGES in one day? One day = one page.  Each day we have one page to celebrate, struggle, hope, strive, aspire, dream and wrestle with our ideals - and then in joy write them down. Write your own story, you are the only one with that unique perspective. Each day, each page - write a good one. Even in what seems impossible and unchangeable. In hope and joy this is the kind of story that I resolve to write and live in 2014. Happy New Year to all! What story do you want to write in the new year? One day = one page - with hope and joy. Shalom - Tara 

Image of my painting, "Ripples" . When taking classes at my local college a few years ago, I noticed a sign on my mentor's wall with the sketch of a rolling river on it. The quote on it was in Polish, so I had to ask him what it said. He would smile and say, "You can't push the river." This phrase has stuck with me since then. There are currents in life that can help progress move along or halt it; depending on if you work with the flow or fight against it. It's not that this quote is calling for us to flow aimlessly with whatever current you happen to be swimming in; but to think creatively about how to work with what you've got to get where you want to be. Earlier today, a friend shared another quote with me. She said, "You can always turn over the stones." If you put these two quotes together, I think you find a statement to live by. "You can't push the river, but you can always turn over the stones." Move with creativity a...

"Where some see weeds, some find beauty." (Me) Where do you find beauty, that is missed by others? Where do you miss beauty, and others find it? What do the commonalities and differences say about us as individuals and as groups of people? Here are some quotes to help you ponder these ideas more from, the 'Quote garden'. Which one is your favorite? : A weed is a plant that has mastered every survival skill except for learning how to grow in rows. ~Doug Larson A weed is but an unloved flower. ~Ella Wheeler Wilcox But a weed is simply a plant that wants to grow where people want something else. In blaming nature, people mistake the culprit. Weeds are people's idea, not nature's. ~Author Unknown Weeds are nature's graffiti. ~Janice Maeditere (I like this one!)

Madeleine L’Engle Nov. 29, 1918 - Sept. 6, 2007 Madeline L'Engle has been a hero of mine for many years now.It was not till the age of 40 something that her now well-know book "A Wrinkle in Time" was published, and after many, many rejections. It seems to me that Ms. L'Engle was the kind of person that did not shy away from the difficulties in life, but that did not stop her from living it to the full or pursuing her dreams... In this regard epically, I wish I could have met or traded places with her for a day to gain greater insight and wisdom. "If it can be verified, we don't need faith.... Faith is for that which lies on the other side of reason. Faith is what makes life bearable, with all its tragedies and ambiguities and sudden, startling joys." M. L'Engle

Image found at Colorpictures.net I received this as an email from a friend of mine the other day. Isn't it wonderful when your receive the 'word' you needed to hear, just when you needed to hear it the most. :) Thanks friend. "The person who follows the crowd will usually gets no further than the crowd. The person who walks alone is likely to discover places no one has ever been before. Creativity in living is not without its attendant difficulties. For peculiarity breeds contempt. And the unfortunate thing about being ahead of your time is that when people finally realize you were right, they’ll say it was obvious all along. You have two choices in life. You can dissolve into the mainstream, or you can be distinct. To be distinct, you must be different. To be different, you must be what no one else can be…. – Anonymous"

It's not the shaking that people will notice, as long as you are speaking the truth.

Here's just a couple quotes I really love. If you want to find many more quotes of great quality, go to Quotable .

"Everything is a miracle; it's a miracle that one does not dissolve in one's bath like a lump of sugar." There are days that it's feels you would or could melt away in the bubbles and heat of a long soak in the tub. Even when you say, "Calgon, take me away!", and disappear for 30 minutes of bubbly solitude - you still don't really melt away. In spite of the intensity of what draws you to the tub, there you are soaking and with wrinkled fingers and toes... but there you are. Still in one piece. Resting in bubbles and warm water provide rest and recoup - what the bubbles take away are the worries, not you. At the end of the bath, there you are - clean and wet and still here. That is a miracle indeed. Girl Before a Mirror - Picasso.

"Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are." Kurt Cobain On talking with at youth group tonight, we discussed ways in which God has helped people grow. One person commented on how they were able to better be themselves in relationship to growing closer to God. I think when we truly begin to understand God's love for us, we realize the person we are is something very unique and worthy of being. Popeye spoke the truth and Kurt didn't do so bad either. Don't waste who you are, you were designed to be good to the last drop.

Image from A year from Oak Cottage . A few weeks ago, my office was repainted in some welcoming and cheery colors: Spice, Plum and Realm. I found my paint at True Value from a color swatch card. "Wow - that's it!" is what I stated when I opened the envelope at the color swatch card inside. Now this is what I'm looking for - only in a quote. At the top of the wall I have a large blank section that I'd like to place a thoughtful quote upon. This is the one I was considering: "And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8 How would you respond walking into a space with that painted upon the wall? Would it feel welcoming? What is your first impression of that quote? If you have any quote suggestions for this project, let me know. My goal is for the space to make those who enter feel welcome and safe. Let's see what we can discover together. When the work is done I'll post the pict...

"To be a poet is a condition, not a profession." — Robert Frost This explains SOOOOOOOOOOO much! I wish I could have met him. I think we'd have a lot to chat about. "A poem . . . begins as a lump in the throat, a sense of wrong, a homesickness, a lovesickness. . . . It finds the thought and the thought finds the words." Robert Lee Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963) was an American poet. He is highly regarded for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American colloquial speech.[1] His work frequently employed themes from the early 1900s rural life in New England, using the setting to examine complex social and philosophical themes. A popular and often-quoted poet, Frost was honored frequently during his lifetime, receiving four Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry. Mending Wall Something there is that doesn't love a wall, That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it, And spills the upper boulders in the sun; And makes gaps even two can pass a...

You bet you life DVD The other day my husband Ian and I were watching old episodes of "You bet your life!" with Groucho Marx. The show really held up in humor over all the years since it originally piloted on television in 1949. The premise of the show is rather simple. Groucho interviews his contestants and eventually asks them quiz questions where they can win varied amounts of prize money. When a couple wins the greatest amount of prize money, they have the choice to spin a wheel for a chance to greatly increase their winnings. In most cases, the couples that win the quiz part decide to keep what they have already won, instead of trying for the big money. In contrast to the game shows of current day, if a contestant won $500.00, they would eagerly go after any opportunity to win more money. Today, the $500.00 dollars simply wouldn't be enough. One other thing I noticed was the willingness to share that was displayed by the contestants on "You bet your life"....

"See everything; overlook a great deal; correct a little." ~Pope John XXIII Funny how if we'd follow through with this approach to relationships, we'd have more opportunity to be in relationships with those around us. It's important to be aware of reality, but not be defeated or limited by it. Often I've heard the statement that in relationships we should sharpen each other by the contact we have, like steel on steel. Last I noticed, people weren't made of metal. We're made of flesh and blood. I'll opt for a hug any day. Sculpture by Briony Marshall