Happy All Hallow's Eve! A brief blog and a time of prayer.

Dear Family of Love,

I almost didn't write a blog tonight but I felt that with Halloween or All Hallows Eve it was and is important. This is the first Halloween since my dad's passing and the first where I am not at home to greet the trick or treaters! I feel a mixture of  sadness and joy. Sadness that Dad didn't ask me to go get candy and joy that I don't have to be keeping vigil at the door. This night many of us will take time to begin to remember all those who have been precious in our lives and give thanks  for them.
Sometimes this can be easy and sometimes not. Remember how on Friday's we put our worries, fears, and anxieties in the Worry/Sabbath box? Tonight, I would like everyone to try to write down all the family members and those of whom we have had trouble appreciating and getting along with who are in both our past and our present. We all need to find a way to stop hating, be un-accepting, and above all disinterested and aloof when it comes to our family members who have gone before us. Being negative and any other emotion tied to our ancient sages and family members makes it difficult to let go and let God. We need to let go of all that stops us from being united as a family and in some sense  preparing ourselves to enter the Thin Places where we will meet those of whom we have these petty resentments. So tonight dear ones lets get to writing down our family member's names both past and present and offer them to God and pray to let go of what ever is keeping  us from being the truly united family members of God.

Tonight's meditation music isAnoushka Shankar

Gracious God as we await All Saint's Day and All Soul's day let us remember all of our family members who reside in the Thin Places.  May we name those who remain special to us and pray for those whom we didn't get along with.


Gracious and God we give thanks for the rain and may there be more rains to heal and cleanse your drought parched lands throughout the world and in our state.

Gracious God we pray for all of our family members who are in need of healing remembering especially____________

Gracious God we pray for peace in your fragile and broken world.  Give to us the means whereby we may become peacemakers.

Gracious God take away all bitterness, hatred, and  divisiveness that we may be united as your children O God.

Gracious God  give the the leaders of all the nations strength to do justly, love mercy and walk humbly with you.

Gracious God give us the courage to see you in our family members who are the least of these eyes and never forget that when we serve and love them we are serving and loving you.

Gracious God we add our additional prayer requests for ourselves and on behalf of others remembering especially_______________________

Gracious God challenge us to do what is right and be beacons of love, joy, hope, and peace in your holy world.

Gracious God help us to remember wherever we walk, look, taste, touch, or feel  we are living in a place of holiness Help us to lead holy and gracious lives and see the holy in everything.

Gracious God we lift up these our prayers in the name of your son Jesus the Christ. Amen.

____++++____++++______+++++

Good Night Family of Love, may you have a blessed Triduum (Three Days) remembering all those who were and are precious to you I love you and you are precious and dear to me. I give God Thanks for you this night and always.


Love, blessings, and  peace be always yours,

Sara

Pavane for a Dead Princess

Tavener Song for Athene

Barber Adagio for Strings

Lakme the Flower duet

Out of Africa Sound Track Suite - John Barry

The light at the end of chemo's tunnel and so a new life begins!

Dear Family of Love,

Well today we finally got to see the light at the end of Chemo's tunnel and the beginning of  survivorship and a new life after cancer treatment. Today the nurses sang to me "Happy Last Chemo To You!: I nearly lost it. I didn't because God was with me and helped me get this party started. It can be a sad time when one completes this kind of odyssey but when I look at all the cumulative experiences these past several months I see only God and you uplifting me as my family of Love.
I see much, much more that is truly heartfelt and all good. Do you realize how blessed we are to have each other on this journey? I hope you do. We are here to uplift and support one another ! No this is not an advertisement for The 18 hour Bra or Girdle or Spanx for that matter. Uplifting and supporting is what a family does everyday without counting the cost and expecting something in return. That is the supreme act of unconditional love and what my friend Sister Janet calls heartitude. I hope everyone today remembered that it is Being Thoughtful and Thankful Thursday. Being thoughtful and thankful requires love and heartitude. It's that time of the week where we make out our gratitude list and pray it. Let's do both a gratitude list and a celebration list. Alternate between Gratitude and Celebration. Take your time. If you desire you may use your timers, mindfulness apps, and  music. Tonight's meditation music is  A Loreena McKennitt Mix

Tonight I'm grateful for and celebrate these many things.

I'm grateful for God's healing, loving, and embracing presence.
I'celebrate new life with all of its promises and newness.

I'm Grateful for family members who uplift and support me by their love, presence, and prayers.
I celebrate the power of prayer and it's amazing miraculous qualities.

I'm Grateful for Times of rest and renewal.
I celebrate all the refreshing life giving properties of rest.

I'm grateful for having a loving and grateful heart.
I celebrate living, loving, and laughing.

I'm grateful for a home.
I celebrate having a home and a heart that is is my soul's home.

I'm grateful for being a live!
I celebrate Life every minute of the day and may every moment holy.

I'm grateful for all the ancient wisdom that our elders imparted to us while they were living among us.
I celebrate the gifts of all of our elderly family members brought into our lives.

+++

God of all goodness we pray this night in gratitude and in celebration for all the many blessings you bestowed up on us this day.

God of all healing we pray for all who are in need of healing of any kind.  We name those in need of healing now before you___________________

God of all comfort, bring comfort to those who mourn the losses of any kind. We remember the many plane crashes and senseless acts of violence that caused loss of life today.

God of all mercy, keep watch over all the least of these this night that are in need of food, clothing, shelter, and loving comfort.

God of  Peace, we pray for peace int his troubled world. May the leaders of all these fragile and broken hot spots  do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you.

God and Creator of  your Cathedral of life we pray for rain that it may heal and cleanse your drought parched areas of the world.

God of all Joy, may we celebrate with joy our lives, our loves, our many blessings, our healings of body, mind, and spirits. 

God we lay all of our prayers and thanksgivings that we name now _________________ and in the name of your only Son Jesus. Amen.

++++++

A time for celebration has begun! Put on your favorite party music and celebration tunes. This is your choice. 
Find some of your favorite fizzy and bubbly drinks to raise a glass to anyone or anything you'd like to celebrate.
Put on your dancing shoes and join in the festival  and celebration of new life.
Get out your favorite celebration eats remembering it is okay to feast and celebrate all that is good in our lives even during hard times.
Take time to enjoy life and celebrate with gladness that God is Good. that I'm well and that we are now on the  journey of survivorship.
Raise a Glass and give thanks to God for God's healing.
Rejoice, be glad,, dance and sing for a new day has come.
+++++

Good Night Family of Love! I love you all and give thanks to God for you this night and always. May God Bless you, keep you, and may you feel God's loving presence in your hearts and surrounding you this night. Remember tomorrow is Keeping the Faith Friday Fearlessly without fretting.  Do not be afraid for God is with you!


Love, prayers, peace, and joy be always yours,

Sara

Yo Yo Ma

Secret Garden Full

Pomerium - Ave Maris Stella

Bumps along the road and backing into neighbor's truck on a dark street Calm is our key word tonight!

Good evening Dear Family of Love.


I hope everyone had a wonderful and wonder-filled Wednesday. Mine was a mixture and everything was going well until a little while ago when I backed in to my neighbor's truck that was parked across the street. The streets are getting dark and my depth perception due to the chemo and chemo fatigue is a challenge. No one was hurt.. So dear ones we all need to do our due diligence and look behind us and when we open the garage door to see what's parked across the street. I have already called the insurance company and was happy to start the processes. How does this relate to what we meditate on and talk about in our nightly blog? I think it is this , we are all going to have bumps on our journey and it will be all right. We all must take care on our journey and keep watch as God is keeping watch over us. Being vigilant is very important. Don't let it consume you and don't let things like this paralyze you into not driving and doing things. God wants us to have courage and face things head on. So let us be at peace and meet the next few minutes with peaceful hearts and calm nerves. Let's meditate on being calm. No need to do anything fancy but let us be calm and quiet before God. 
Tonight let's do this in silence. 

God we pray this night for all who are restless and their nerves that are shaken. 
Calm our nerves, minds, and spirits God.

God we pray for peace in this your broken world.
Calm our fears, banish hate and let us sew seeds of love and mercy to those whom we fear and hate.

God we pray for all those who have entered into hospice care and are in transition.
Calm their fears and those of their loved ones as they vigil and sit at bedside. We pray for a gentle and peaceful transitioning.

God  we pray for all who are ill and in need of healing.
Give us a sense of calm while we wait for your healing O God.

God give us courage when we make mistakes and admit our wrong doing.
Calm our fears and make us strong as we meet the bumps in the road and along our life's journey.

God we pray for our nation as it goes through many trials and tribulations.
Calm our unnecessary fears and banish all of our phobias, hate, and mistrust.

God we pray for a restful and peaceful night and that we may be rested, relaxed, renewed, and refreshed. 
Give us Calm bodies, minds, and spirits as we rest.

God we pray for all those who ask us for prayer remembering especially__________________ and for ourselves._____________.
Give us calm while we pray.

God we  pray for rain in the drought parched lands. Help us to conserve water and be diligent in conservation of our environment. 

God we pray for all the leaders of the nations around the world that need to feel the power of your love and remember they are ambassadors for peace and that they do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you O god and that they may turn their swords into ploughshares and spears into pruning  hooks and that they may never learn war anymore. 
Calm all this extremism and warring madness. 

God we pray for all who lead the various faith communities and the people with whom they minister. Calm our fears when we meet other family members of God  from other faiths that we may show our love and compassion to them.

God we pray this night for all the least of  these. Keep them safe from harm. 
Calm their fears in the night hours and may they feel your loving and protective arms around them.

God we lift up these prayers in the name of your only Son Jesus the Christ. Amen.

++++

Good Night my dearly loved ones. I love you and give thanks to God for you this night and always. May we feel God's calming presence this night and always.


With love and a newly calmed spirit.

Sara


Some of my favorite pix !

Can you see in the above picture faces kissing and or a chalice?

Hildegard von Bingen - Voice of the Living Light

Pomerium mix

Let's celebrate the end of Chemo and the new journey called survivorship. We are now called to be courageous, resilient, loving, tender-hearted, and compassionate now more than ever.

Dear Family of Love !

It's time to celebrate! Click this link for our celebration overture  Sound the Bells John Williams !
Today we completed our last chemo cycle ! Even though I still have the pump Dr. Vara considers it as  a completion of all 12 cycles. Yippee, Hurray, Happy dance time. I told many of you who are on Facebook that I feel like dancing ans and singing in the universe. I do  with a few tears and emotions put together. As we finish this leg of the Can the Cancer Journey we begin the next leg called survivorship and finding balance with a new and blessed normal. Survivorship is an important part of  helping us get on to a new path with more sure footing on this leg of the journey. We are now called to be courageous, resilient, loving, tender-hearted, and compassionate now more than ever. Sometimes chemo can make us selfish but in my case it has helped me become self-less. We need to become balanced between self care and selflessness. I invite everyone to meditate on those two concepts this week. Speaking of meditation look what is on the cover of "Scientific American"  I haven't read the peace but it looks inviting.

Tonight let's make a celebration list to meditate on give thanks to God for all these things we have to celebrate. Tonight's celebration  and meditation music is this: Vivaldi Gloria Mix or Coronation Te Deum- Walton.

Here is my celebration list!

I celebrate being a beloved Child of God.

I celebrate being a redeemed person under Christ.

I celebrate new life and the newness I have each moment of the day and in the days to come.

I celebrate Love and the love I have for all of you each moment that I live and breathe.

I celebrate each of you my dear family,

I celebrate the end of chemo and the beginning of survivorship!

I celebrate our times as God calls us to "Walk With Me On Our Journey"

I celebrate all of our family members who make us better people.

I celebrate all the little things in life. 

I celebrate humor and the joy it brings.

I celebrate most of all my Faith in God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.

I celebrate all things that make me resilient and give me courage to as in St.Paul's letter to the Philippians "I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

I celebrate many more things that make me have an attitude of gratitude and thanksgiving.

++++++

Jesus we thank you for times of celebration that remind us to have joy in our lives. We remember all the times you celebrated with your family members who you chose and loved unconditionally and inclusively. 

Jesus we thank you for redeeming us and making us wholly whole once and for all and not some.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for the least of these and help us always to recognize you  in them.

Jesus, we pray for all those who are in need of healing may they be healed according to your will and in God's time.

Jesus, we give thanks for you and all that you do for us daily.

God of Love  we pray for peace in the world and that we may be given the task to help make peace in the world not only with our words but in our deeds.

God of Love continue to take us on journeys that demand the best of us and that we may not fear where you are calling us and leading us.

God of Love, May we shine your love light to the world and to each other even our enemies and those who hate us.

God of Love, help us always to be resilient and have an attitude of gratitude and never take the abundance you give us for granted.

Spirit of Love empower us to love unconditionally with joy in our ever expanding hearts.

Spirit of love  send us joyfully to serve one another in God's fragile and broken world.

Spirit of Love steady our feet when we begin to feel doubt or unsure where God is leading us.

Spirit of Love may we be the hands, feet, voices, eyes, to serve , love, and show mercy to all.

We offer our own prayers and those on behalf of others remembering especially___________

We  pray our own  celebration list now with loving , joyful, humble, and grateful hearts. (Take time to do this slowly)

We lift up these our prayers, celebrations, remembrances, and thanksgivings in the name of Jesus the Christ. Amen.

Good Night Dear Family of Love ! I love you and give thanks to God for you this day and always.

As the Maurice Sendak said in WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE "LET THE WILD RUMPUS BEGIN! " maybe not so wild due to the time of day!

With love,joy,hope, peace, and thanksgiving abounding!

Sara

All people tha on Earth do Dwell

Hallelujah Chorus - A Soulful Celebration

Earth and All Stars

All my hope On God is founded