Dear Reader:

Last Friday when I took random photos of the “Fall Trees of Miler” for the blog… I looked at my Bradford Pear, in the front yard, and it just didn’t stand up to all the other beauties in the neighborhood…It still had a lot of green leaves and some almost black-looking ones. It must have been the drought I thought….not its prettiest Fall, by a long shot.

And then yesterday as I came up the street from the other side of the neighborhood… I caught a vision of a bright, large red tree and it was mine…I was so startled at the changes in just two days…it went from blah to beautiful right in front of me and I didn’t see it changing.

It made me think that this happenstance is a metaphor for most of life isn’t it? We don’t see ourselves growing older (on a daily basis) until we accidentally see ourselves in a picture or reflection in a store glass front or mirror and then don’t recognize us in that spontaneous moment.

It is the same with children, ours and others we taught. One moment we are lamenting that they will never grow up and the chaos of small children and/or pre-teens/teens (within our daily lives) will keep us in some kind of crazy purgatory forever. But then suddenly we see the children one day and we are startled to realize that they aren’t children any more but adults and it happened so quickly.

As Gretchen Rubin once said when it comes to parenting (and teaching): “The days are long, but the years are short.”

Yesterday I shared an epiphany author Laura Bradbury experienced upon discovering she had a serious liver disease that could only be cured with a transplant. (But was told that the odds of getting one that matched in time was a long shot.)

If you remember that observation was to let go of our fears and instead “walk confidently through the early morning fog.”

The observation today really touched me and brought back memories of when I realized the one great truth of the universe….”WE ARE ALL ONE.” Mankind can not be separated spiritually and compartmentalized into colors, races, genders, or socieo-economic levels. Deep down we are all equally a part of Creation and as such unconditionally loved by our Creator.

Bradbury had this  epiphany following her diagnosis of a life-altering and potentially terminal disease. I love her deep insights in this short summation. In this case it was/is the truth setting her and all of us free…to live life fully!

There is no “US” and “THEM” 

“There is no “us” and “them”- I need a person to voluntarily donate part of their liver to save my life. Incredible people have stepped forward and are now undergoing testing to see if they are, indeed, a match for me. 

In this age of political divisiveness, xenophobia, and poorly concealed racism, I think more than ever we need to remember that we are all interconnected. If everything goes well, I will be walking around for the rest of my life with a part of someone else inside of me, keeping me alive. How could I ever believe that I am separate from any any other human being after such a gesture?

How could I ever look at someone else as competition or a threat? The answer is I can not. That certainty is, perhaps, the greatest gift of all. We all sleep under the same sky.”

Laura concludes her last observation with these poignant thoughts:

“Never put off living, no matter the age. For God’s Sakes, take that dream trip, smile at a stranger, chat with your kids, eat that delicious slice of cheese, paint that picture, write that book. Whatever you dream of try and find a way to do it. 

Being alive IS a terminal condition so don’t delude yourself into thinking you have unlimited time. None of us do, not even the macrobiotic raw-food vegans.” 

So until tomorrow…Take time to watch the process of life unfold like fall leaves on a tree and then savor the results of your observations in your memory…or like me, write it down and share it with others.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

I got some new solar lights and they actually work…so pretty out in the garden last night.