April 23rd

5 days later spring is finally here. And my herbs are up and running! This is my first spring in this apartment. No balcony but at least some space for my greens.

April 18th

In this case the pictures will tell all about April 18th.

With an open heart

Once again I am wearing my heart so very close to the skin.

For every sadness it cries a river of tears,

for every happiness it is about to burst from joy.

It is clearly, too close to the world around me, too open.

But yet I will enjoy, while it lasts,

the feelings that are, in fact, too strong to survive,

the feeling of being overwhelmed by life,

seeing the true beauty to it.

I will be pushed over by storms and caressed by the sun.

With my heart wide open.

Soul-mates and people passing by

"Having the courage to take the steps we always wanted to take is the only way of showing we trust God.
As soon as we accept this, life takes on a sacred meaning, and we experience the same emotion the Virgin must have felt when, one afternoon in her otherwise very ordinary existance, a stranger appeared to her and made her an offer. 'Be it unto me according to thy word,' said the Virgin. Because she had understood that the greatest thing a human being can do is to accept the Mystery."

Brida by Paulo Coelho

These lines caught my eye today and they inspired my thoughts as I enjoyed my double espresso this morning. A beautiful thought. Taking the step into the unknown as a sign of trust. I adore that way of thinking.

Another thought that forced its way - yes, forced - into my mind this morning was one about soul-mates and people in our lives, passing through or staying. Two different kinds of important people. I believe soul-mates will always be drawn to each other. Their paths will cross time and time again, physical or emotional paths. They will be the kind of people we fall back to, in good times and bad. Those that will keep us standing when we're about to fall, those that will share our joy when we celebrate. Those are the kind of people that will leave a great feeling of loss, if separated from us.

Then there will be people who come into our lives baring a task. They are there to teach us something, to make us see beyond the obvious. After that, they will be free to go, to move on, without leaving a feeling of loss. For the first time in my life, half a year ago, I spotted that kind of person in my life. It was loud and clear, when it hit me. I learned a great deal about myself from that person, who did not know his task.

It is always a joy to pinpoint a remarkable thing in your life. Yet bigger is the joy to see oneself change and the things leading to it.

Horizon

Today I heard for the first time the song Horizon by Rachael Yamagata. It is pure beauty. It is poetry in its own way, both in the lyrics and the mood that it creates, spreading blue rain, letting it enter the soul. It is in no hurry to get to the end, it takes its space and it fills it, witout apologizing. It's beautiful.

Listen to Horizon or enjoy another favourite below, Sunday Afternoon.

Forgiveness

The late post is due to a sadness in my heart and soul. Someone I love very much offended me badly tonight. Sometimes we seem to say things that sound like our heart and soul when they come out, but that turn into disgust when reflected over. I think that's what happened tonight. A hurt soul spit out words that seemed so right at the moment. I believe, although the pain I feel in my heart for being utterly hurt (pain can only be caused by the people we care for), probably does not compare to the pain the other person feels right now.

I thought I'd find something that would help me understand on the paulocoelhoblog.com and I did. There it was, loud and clear: Forgiveness.

During his pilgrimage to Mecca, a holy man was suddenly aware of God’s presence beside him. He fell into a trance, knelt down, hid his face and prayed:

‘Lord, I ask only one thing in my life, that You give me the grace never to offend You.’

‘I cannot give you that grace,’ replied the Almighty.

Surprised, the man asked why.

‘If you never offend me, I will have no reason to forgive you,’ he heard the Lord say. ‘And if I have no need to forgive you, you will soon forget the importance of being merciful to others. Therefore, continue on your way with Love, and allow me to forgive you now and then, so that you do not forget this virtue either.’

From paulocoelhoblog.com, March 5th 2009

Last beauty of winter

Morning of March 1st, 2009.

These pictures are probably showing one of the last days of the beautiful winter of this year. Spring is on its way and that makes me happy, but it cannot stop me from enjoying the beauty that revealed itself outside the window when I opened my eyes this morning.