Up front, I want to be clear. I truly enjoy a juicy blueberry, strawberry , or a raspberry. I frequent my local liberry, and I own many pieces of art by Gilberry. However, I do not own a BlackBerry. How have I survived organizing my daily commitments in order to write this?

I am now quite enthralled with my little iPod, but do not own an iPhone or an iPad. The only Facebook I see is if I am looking at a tome on make-up tricks. The only Twitter I really enjoy is the one the birds make when Max goes out to feed them.

Today, too often the only communication we seem capable of is with our thumbs. On that note I would like to give a" thumbs up" to Charles Dickens, who penned this thought over 150 years ago. Could this be the ghost of Communication Present reminding us of Communication Past and cautioning us to be wary of Communication Future?

"Electric communication will never be a substitute for the face of someone, who with their soul, encourages another person to be brave and true."

I do recognize the value in personal electronic communication. Otherwise you would not be reading this. However, would you agree that, given a choice, you would rather share time with a person than with a qwerty?

A Revelation for Your Resolution

As we begin a new year it seems we are inundated with media calls to make the dreaded New Year's Resolution. The problem I have with this is that it assumes that we are somehow not right the way we are. Now, I do realize that we all have room for improvement in our lives but I wonder if it is necessary to make the major changes that are trumpeted from the rooftops.

I will offer for your consideration this option. We are each totally unique human beings and this is stamped most effectively in our DNA. At one time I did look up the scientific meaning for this acronym and my eyesight as well as my mind boggled at the actual word. How about this possibility? Our DNA allows us to Discover New Attitudes. Great! Now, watch what happens when we change one small letter. Simply change the first "t" in attitudes to a "p" and we now are able to Discover New Aptitudes. Wait, it gets better. Now change the "p" to an "l" and we can now Discover New Altitudes. The sky can be the limit, one small letter and one small step at a time. What do you think?

Ho! Ho! Hold the Thought

I wanted something a little more lighthearted and festive in this Musing so I have this Christmas Wish to offer you. (Hum along to the tune of "Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas")

Have yourself a Max and Mary Christmas

May your Yule be Cool(e)

Joy and fellowship is the Christmas Golden Rule.

Have yourself a Max and Mary Christmas

May your hearts be light

Our feelings of gratitude burn long and bright.

Here we are not in olden days but in wiser ways I'm sure.

Having known treasured friends like you

Makes the road we tread safe and secure.

Have yourself a Max and Mary Christmas

A last thought for you:

May magic and miracles bless you the whole year through

And every hope and dream you have come true!

The Deepest Valley on the Highest Mountain

I am humbled and inspired by the moments of grace that touch my life. It is a source of awe to me that so often a person, a book, a song, or a passing comment will open up a new way of thinking or dealing with an issue that is stressing my life. The following passage was part of a recent daily meditation and it struck a very deep cord, especially when combined with the message of a book that I had just finished. I will let you judge for yourself if it has meaning for you.
Your blessings have your name on them; so do your lessons! Your greatest blessing appears before you cleverly disguised as your most difficult challenge, as your greatest obstacle, or as an extremely negative experience you are forced to handle all by yourself. What a blessing! What a blessed opportunity to face the truth, forgive yourself and others, practise faith, develop trust, be still, and know," Right where I am, God is!"

This passage from a recent reading in my most coveted spiritual guide, Faith in the Valley, was made all the more poignant and relevant as its message was echoed in another thought altering book that was recommended by my stalwart friend, Sonja. This book, Miracle in the Andes, gives a first-person account of what transpired following the crash of the plane carrying the Uruguayan rugby team into a desolate and brutal glacier in the Andes. The details are harrowing and the experiences are beyond anything we can imagine. Yet the overriding message is totally life affirming in the face of devastating loss. That message is that what truly matters is love: love of family, love of friends, love of God. These young men faced almost insurmountable obstacles and when they realized that help would not be coming and that outside rescue was not possible, they banded together and scaled this highest mountain from the depths of this deepest valley. In this spiritual and emotional valley they did indeed have to face the truth of their situation and themselves. They had to forgive themselves and others. They had to practise faith, develop trust, be still and truly know that where they were, God was with them as the source of the love which kept them alive as they sought to find a way home. They learned to take each day one breath and one step at a time. We each deal with valleys in our lives and we should be ever grateful that we will never have to endure what these young men had to. Yet, for what ever our valley experiences, may the lessons of their struggle and the resulting awareness be a guiding light as we travel out of our valley into the light of the absolute love that awaits.

Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

I really appreciate the responses I am receiving from those who are reading these Musings and taking the trouble to post a comment. At this point it is just two very stalwart friends but this is to formally let you know that you both are an example of the kind of connection I was referring to in the previous Blog. This is also sent as an opportunity for me to practise uploading a new graphic on my own. I think it is a most appropriate image for the way I feel when I read your comments. Thank-you so much!

The Joy of Christmas Presence

No, it is not a spelling mistake and, yes, I love to give and get the actual presents as much as anyone. This Blessed time of year is indeed a time to rejoice in the blessings that fill our lives as well as our closets and cupboards. The first Christmas was the ultimate gift from God to his children on earth and has been represented by loving offerings ever since. Sometimes though, I wonder if the gift of ourselves is the one that can mean the most. It is very easy to shop the malls (well not if you hate crowds) but the act of making ourselves available to those we love and care for can open us to a joy that cannot be purchased with the swipe of a card. Maybe this year we can wrap up: time to talk, time to remember, time to plan, time to dream, time to forgive, and time to reconnect with those, whose lives like ours, can be so consumed with the daily minutiae of modern living. Samuel Johnson noted that " To improve the golden moment of opportunity and to catch the good that is within our reach, is the great art of life." May we open ourselves to this golden moment and may its light illuminate not just our Christmas but the whole year to come. Do you think it's possible?

Phantom Fantasy ?

As we are approaching the time of year when ghosts and goblins and all thing unworldly seem to be in evidence and actually quite celebrated, my mind is drawn to how we allow the unreal to so influence the real in our lives. I suppose it is easy to dismiss much of the gory and gruesome as truly beyond the realm of possibility, but what of the equally destructive fear based behaviours that we allow to govern our thoughts and actions.We can shrug off the ghouls we see on our doorstep on Halloween night but what of the monsters that invade our waking hours and keep us from accepting and embracing the opportunities that come our way. I once read that fear is False Expectations Appearing Real! How easy to acknowledge this acronym and how difficult to consider separating the letters into another possibility....... Fervent Energy Abolishing Restrictions!! As the light of day casts aside the phantoms of the night, maybe the light of a different outlook can cast aside the phantoms in our mind. Is it worth a try?