Category: Posts

City Boy by Keb’ Mo’

I Still Pray

I still cry for Baby Jesus
And I still pray when I’m alone
And when I’m lost
He’ll come to find me
Because he died to save my soul

When I can’t walk he’s there to carry
When I speak he hears my words
When I wake and I have nothing
He sends me gold, francencene and mer

When I cry my tears of sorrow
When my heart will only ache
And if I’m troubled when I’m sleeping
He will hold me until I wake

Just because I may seem quiet…doesn’t mean I don’t have a lot to say.
Just because I appear happy…doesn’t mean everything is okay.
Just because I laugh…doesn’t mean I don’t take things seriously.
Just because I don’t keep in touch all the time…doesn’t mean I don’t care.
Just because I may appear gullible…doesn’t mean I’m naive.
Just because I forgive…doesn’t mean you can take me for granted.
Just because I am who I am…doesn’t mean I would ever expect for you to change for me.
Just because you don’t see all of my feelings…doesn’t mean they aren’t there.
Just because I smile…does mean I have no fear for giving in.

(Thanks for sharing Gail Savage)

Rum Shop Ryan

I walk alone
on an Island far away
on long endless white beaches
where treasure abound
putting each foot down in the sand
mindfully, knowingly …
that the earth in which I walk is wondrous.
In such moments, God’s existence
is a strangely obvious
and mysterious reality.

I sometime have the feeling
I’m walking on water or in thin air.
Of course, that would be a miracle.
But is it not a miracle as well
to walk on earth
Each day we are allowed miracles.
Miracles we miss so easily.
A sunset, a sunrise, the clear blue sky,
white clouds, green leaves,
the blues eyes of a guy at the next table —
are they not miracles as well?

How easily it is to take these
daily miracles for granted!
Floating through life
oblivious, unknowingly, and ungrateful.
Each day doesn’t just happen
It is something we are given, a gift!
As is the turning of day into night,
The water provided by the rain,
The food that comes from the soil.
Self-absorbed, we miss it.
Life just is.
Oh, but it isn’t!
Is is possible I was born for a reason:
to grow, love, feel, breathe, think, play, dance, sing,
work, create, make love, appreciate … for a lifetime.
I am thankful for life, even if just today!

— ME

I am reading Steven Pressfield’s, “The War of Art” for the second time… It is definitely a must read and what I need right now.  So most of what is written here comes from his brain not mine.  I have thrown a few of my thoughts, valid or not, into the mix.  Read on…

Resistance’s Greatest Hits:

1.  The Pursuit of any calling.  (writing, painting, music, film, tennis …. you get the idea)

2.  The Launching of any entrepreneurial venture.

3.  Any Diet or Health Program (this does NOT apply to me)

4.  Any program of spiritual advancement.

5.  Any activity whose aim is tighter abs.

6.  Any program designed to overcome a habit or addiction.

7.  Education.

8.  Any act of political, moral, ethical courage including a decision to change for the better.

9.  The undertaking of any endeavor to help others

10.  Any act that entails commitment of the heart.

11.  The taking of any stand.

Resistance is in other words, any act that rejects immediate gratification in favor of long-term growth, health or integrity.

Reading that list along enticed me to read this book.  I fight resistance on a daily basis and usually lose.  I don’t like losing.

The problem is that resistance is invisible.  It can not be seen, touched, heard, or smelled.  It can definitely be felt.  It’s a negative force.  It’s

entire aim is to send us in another direction, preventing us from doing our work.

Resistance is internal.  We think it comes from outside ourselves, we tend to blame spouses, jobs, friends, situations, anyone… but it actually

arises from within.  It is self-generated and self-perpetuated.  Resistance is the enemy within.

Resistance is insidious.  (OK, you know I didn’t come up with that word).  It will do anything, tell you anything to keep you from doing your

work.  Resistance has no conscience.   It will make deals and double cross you in a minute.  Resistance lies.

Resistance is implacable.  (There he goes again making me look bad)  It can not be reasoned with.  It loves the power it has, or I should say

that you give it.

Resistance is impersonal.  It doesn’t care who you are.  It acts objectively.

Resistance is infallible.  The more important a call or action is to our soul, the more resistance we will feel pushing toward it.

Resistance is universal.  We are NOT the only ones struggling with resistance.  (Really?  I thought I was the only one).

Resistance never sleeps.  This warrior won’t stop so the battle must be fought daily.

Resistance plays for keeps.  Resistance is out for the kill, not to wound or disable.  It’s target is the epicenter of our being:  our genius, our soul, the unique and priceless gift we were put on the earth to give and that no one else has but us.  We are in a war to the death.

Resistance is fueled by fear.  Every ounce of power resistance has comes from us.  We feed it with power by our fear of it.

Resistance is by definition self-sabotage, by procrastination, self-dramatization, self-medication, victimhood, choice of mate, unhappiness,

fundamentalism, criticism, fear, self-doubt, isolation, …. shall I go on.

So… in Steven’s words… If you’re in Calcutta working with Mother Teresa Foundation and you’re thinking of bolting to launch a career in

telemarketing.. relax.  Resistance will give you a free pass.

WOW!!! I am so glad I am not fueling the fire of resistance.  BUSTED!!!

There are plans of attack.  Not that this book has all the answers, it doesn’t and if I remember from the first reading the last chapter is a little

out there.  I am about to conquer the reading again (It will take one day to read by the way), not because I need it of course.

Go get the book or download it … just read or listen to it.  Take the good out of it.

Soul Shine – Listen Here

When you can’t find the light
That guides you through a cloudy day
When the stars ain’t shining bright
And it feels like you’ve lost your way
When those candle light of home
Burn so very far away
Well you got to let your soul shine
Just like my daddy used to say

Chorus
He used to say the soulshine
It’s better than sunshine
It’s better than moonshine
Damn sure better than rain
Hey now people don’t mind
We all get this way sometimes
Got to let your soul shine
Shine ’til the break of day

I grew up thinkin’ that i had it made
Gonna make it on my own
Life can take the strongest man
And make him feel so alone
Now and then i feel a cold wind
Blowin’ through my aching bones
I think back to what my daddy said
He said, boy, in the darkness before the dawn

[chorus]

Sometimes a man can feel this emptiness
Like a woman has robbed him of his very soul
A woman too, god knows, she can feel like this
But hey, when your world seems cold
You got to let your spirit take control

[chorus]

[chorus]

Not sure why it took me all of my life to realize this but… not everyone is going to like me!  As recently as yesterday, that bothered me.  There is absolutely nothing I can do about that.  If I haven’t hurt the person directly and they don’t really know me, but don’t like me… why should it matter to me.  It’s been my nature to find out why.  Most of the time, it’s unjustified… it’s from a judgement made on the part of the other party.  There is absolutely nothing I can do about that, so why lose sleep over it?  I’m not gonna – any more!  It’s ok!  Only I really know who I am anyway, everybody else just knows who they think I am!  So There!

I had been to the candy striped lighthouse in Hope Town. But guess what, there are two others, The Lighthouse at Little Harbour, which is non- functional, and I can see every day if I like.  But there is a considerably more important one, the Hole in the Wall Lighthouse.  Marie and West, Joe and Tammy and I struck out on our trip at 9 am.  It is on the baron Southeast Coast of Great Abaco.  It’s name comes literally from a hole in the wall of a rocky tidal outcropping by the sea shown below. It is an out of the way location which is in fact a lonely but beautiful spot all alone and 15 miles from the nearest paved road. It’s access is through a single lane unpaved, rock strewn and bumpy road taking you through the pine barons of the Bahamas National Trust where you can find the endangered Bahamian Parrot.  It took us over an hour with no civilization to be found in case of an emergency or breakdown. Along the way there are several caves to explore.  Which we did.  I am not a big cave fan, but I experienced it.  Each one connecting in some fashion.  

The Hole in the Wall Lighthouse was built in conjunction with the Hope Town Lighthouse in 1838. This was despite the objections of the local residents as a good portion of their lively hood came from salvaging of the wrecks of the Abaco reefs. Sabotage of the building process commenced. However maritime interests prevailed and the commerce of wrecking diminished in the Abacos. The Hole in the Wall Light became automated in 1995 and serves as a beacon for Maritime traffic from the Bahama Bank, Nassau the the Communities on northern Eleuthera. Today the lighthouse is run down and beat up by the hurricanes of 1999 & 2004, but it still operates. Folks still climb to the top albeit a bit rickety. The views from the top are spectacular as you will see below. On occasion you might run into a naturalist group, dolphin researchers or whale watchers that go there to observe the Beaked Whale that frequent the region. (We once passes a pair of beaked whales when trolling off Hope Town, written about in My Solo Trip report. (info gathered from www.abacoescape.com. 

We walked the secluded path along the sea to get to the quiet barren beach, and did some beach combing.  We also took a lunch, which we enjoyed under a shade tree.  It was a fun experience.