Merry Christmas to all of my great friends in the blogging community! Your names are too numerous to mention individually, but you know who you are. Throughout this year, you have lifted my spirits and enriched my life with your words, your images, your ideas, and your creativity. Staying connected with you has been nothing less that soul-work for me, and I am deeply grateful for your stabilizing presence is a world that often seems to be imploding.
I extend my heartfelt wishes that you and your families will find great love, peace, and joy during the holiday season. May you reap the abundant treasures envisioned by John O'Donohue in his fine blessing, For Equilibrium:
Like the joy of the sea coming home to shore,
May the relief of laughter rinse through your soul.
As the wind loves to call things to dance,
May your gravity be lightened by grace.
Like the dignity of moonlight restoring the earth,
May your thoughts incline with reverence and respect.
As water takes whatever shape it is in,
So free may you be about who you become.
As silence smiles on the other side of what's said,
May your sense of irony bring perspective.
As time remains free of all that it frames,
May your mind stay clear of all it names.
May your prayer of listening deepen enough
To hear in the depths the laughter of God.
PEACE AND JOY,
HERE AND NOW!
Whenever I ask myself, Why blog? I answer, Because there are wonderful folks out there…and you my friend, are one of the real treasures. These lines by O'Donohue are beautifully written—as are your own words which precede them. But then, I always find beauty here—in images and words and thoughts. You seek out beauty in your life because you understand its value as a vital panacea to the wearing away of the soul; that you carry beauty in your heart and are always willing to share is exemplified by your posts and comments. I'm blessed by that—by you!—every time I visit. You are a gentleman in the classic sense of the word. I'm honored by the privilege of your friendship. Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your good wishes, dear George, which I would like to return with all my heart.
ReplyDeleteI love the blogging community; like you, I have found many friends and learnt much, enjoyed much and taken to heart much that I would otherwise never have known.
May this community of ours continue to prosper and bring us all much joy. Perhaps our connections will help to make the world a more peaceful place.
Thank you dear George, and the same to you multiplied.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, GRIZZ, for your very kind and generous comments. Like you, I do indeed love this little blogging community of ours. I find a great deal of beauty in the words, ideas, and experiences of those who have come forward to share their lives with the rest of us. This beauty, as you so eloquently state, clearly serves as "a vital panacea to the wearing away of the soul." I am truly blessed and honored to have such friendships. Your, too, are a treasured friend, Grizz, and i wish you and your family the very best during the holidays and the year to come.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your lovely comments and good wishes, FRIKO. Yes, I think our little blogging community will continue to prosper, and I feel very strongly that these conversations we have with one another can have a "butterfly effect," hopefully making the world a more peaceful place. Merry Christmas, Friko. I wish you and your family the very best!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comments and good wishes, BONNIE. I greatly value your friendship and look forward to the ongoing conversations in the year ahead. May you and your family have a lovely Christmas!
ReplyDeleteI see you do have a John O'Donohue poem here too.. so apt for this time of year. have a wonderful new year as well. donna
ReplyDeleteA Very Happy and Peaceful Festive Season to you and your family George.
ReplyDeleteGeorge, thanks for your seasonal good wishes, and a very merry Christmas to you too! I have such good memories of our walk together along Hadrian's Wall; it was a real highlight of my year! Your blog is a constant source of joy and inspiration, for me and many others. Let's hope the 'butterfly effect' ripples out ever further...
ReplyDeleteGeorge, there have been times lately that I have considered giving up blogging, for reasons you know, and some you may not. But you have reminded me why I want to continue: in big part because of you. I echo what Bonnie, Friko and Grizz said (theirs are the only comments visible so far), and want you to know (I think you do already) how very much you mean to me. And your blog is full of so much beauty and light, always, I fear I don't say so often enough. The O'Donohue poem is tremendous and encompassing. Thank you for being you, and for bleeding so much rich truth and beauty into this space. Merry Christmas.
ReplyDeleteThank you, DONNA, not only for your comments, but also for the many lovely postings you made this year on your own site. Yes, I think many of O'Donohue's blessings capture the spirit of Christmas, even if they were not written for that specific purpose. Have a wonderful Christmas!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the warm wishes, ROWAN, and may you and your family also have a lovely and memorable Christmas.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, ROBERT. To simply echo what you have said, the time we spent together on the Hadrian's Wall walk was also a high point in my year. Seldom have I had such a great inspiring time with such fine company. You are a dear friend and I look forward to the continuation of our conversation as our respective journeys continue to unfold. May you, Carmen, and your children have a lovely Christmas, as well as an exciting and adventurous 2012!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, RUTH, for your very kind and thoughtful comments. I feel much the same way about you and the beautiful, creative postings that magically appear on your site throughout the year. Increasingly, I have come to recognize that what began as an exercise of self-expression for many of us has now become a vital means of staying connected with kindred spirits we often cannot find elsewhere. That, I suppose, is the critical element for me—the ability to nourish and deepen friendships with people whom I have come to love. I know that sounds odd, given that fact that most of us have never meet face to face, but that's how I feel.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous Christmas with your ever-growing family! I look forward to continuing this conversation in the coming year and beyond.
Merry Christmas George! I know someone who will really like "For Equilibrium". I'll send them a link to your blog.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Dominic! Merry Christmas to you and your family.
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas, George. Thank you for all the beautiful images and ideas you put forth here. They're always inspiring.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the lovely comments, TERESA, and have a wonderful Christmas!
ReplyDeleteYes, may we laugh, find peace and learn to listen and of course, learn from one another. Blogging has really surprised me as I truly care about the lives of the people behind these type written words. I have learned much and been inspired by many of the bloggers I follow, including you. Merry Christmas.
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