Celebrating Friendship

"Friends are For-ev-ah!"

Well, I have always wanted it to be so.  Helen Keller once said, "Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light."  If you are like me, you too, have sought a kindred spirit to share in life's joys and sorrows.

In this technical age when many draw into themselves, being or having a friend appears to be more and more difficult.  Perhaps life's worries have consumed so much energy that it seems too much effort. However, if we take all of these possible factors out of the equation then perhaps on a level playing field we can start by just showing some basic kindness to those whom God places in our lives.

I know at times in my life, when I have been fearful or struggling with my personal woes, reaching out to others has been the perfect medicine for me.  Offer a smile, a helping hand, a phone call.  I won't deny it is hard to do the very thing our soul rejects when feeling down and blue, but these acts of kindness while experiencing human contact lifts our hearts and eyes beyond our desperation.  If you are lonely, chances are someone else around you is too.

There are many ways to meet others.  Think about what moves you and join a group.  Have you ever checked out  http://www.meetup.com? You may discover others with common beliefs and interests.  And it may surprise you that the very person whom you felt couldn't possibly be friendship material, happens to be the very one who could be your new very 'best' friend!

We all have value, and there is an indescribable potential in all of us.  No one is better than you, and you are no better than anyone else.  Resist the impulse to judge someone who appears to be different than you.  Keep an open mind when meeting new people, and watch a marvel happen.  Better yet - I believe if we keep our hearts accessible and refuse to set specific expectations many doors will open to promising friendships!

"There is no fear in love.  But perfect love drives out fear...
We love because He first loved us."  

1 John 4:18a -19

California - Week One, Conclusion

This has been the longest week of my life. :-(   It was full of 'nothingness'...some of it good. Well, mostly good. Rest is good. Recovery is good. Discovery is good!  So 'nothingness' is an exaggeration.  Forgive me.

I wonder how I will fit into the movement of California life to serve, to bless? I am not my happiest just receiving...although, I realize there is a time and purpose for everything "under the sun"...there is no reason to complain. I hope it doesn't sound like I am. This is just a 180 degree turn from where I was a mere four weeks ago. 

I am waiting to see where God wants me and what I am to do here. If it is PURELY for reflection, recreation, reconnection then I need to embrace that. And I have a impression, that this time, this is REALLY WHAT it is all about. OPEN. RECEIVE. I often have to remind myself. :-))  God's gift of fun. 

My first weekend here was spent driving with Kurt south on Hwy 1 along the pacific coast.  We ventured through small towns, stopping in Pescadero for french bread, salami, and cheese.  Blackberries, strawberries and cherries at a local farmer's stand completed our fare for the day. 

We stopped in Santa Cruz for a walk on Sea Bright beach with views of the board walk in the distance.  We saw a light house, sand crabs, crashing waves, seagulls, and there swimming out not far from where we stood, seals and porpoises as they seemed content in their race against one another.  Our feet received a proper exfoliation from the hot sand as we walked to and from our parked car.

We concluded our drive in Carmel where again we walked to the beach.  This time the sand was whiter, the sky bluer, and the ocean more forceful.  Pebble Beach was also in distant view.  (I had no idea it was one of THE most famous golf courses in the USA!)  We surprised ourselves by 'attending' an open house in a residential area that caught our eye.  I can say this $5 million dollar home a stone's throw from the beach had nothing on our lovely home back in the Black Forest.

If you are in Carmel, one HAS TO go to The Hog's Breath Inn, where the owner is Clint Eastwood.  So sorry, Mr. Eastwood.  But service was extremely poor, and those hanging petunias are in desperate need of some water.  At least we can say we have now been there!  And Carmel is indeed a heavenly place - just not so much The Hog's Breath Inn.

Turning around and heading back at 5:30 pm awarded us the delightful treat of a clear bright sunset over the now still ocean expanse.  The hot coal of color dissolved on the horizon in minutes.  The afterglow lasting about an hour longer before darkness enveloped us.  Singing 70's hits, one after the other, kept us occupied until we rolled back into the hotel parking lot in San Rafael at 9:00 pm.

I would say yoga classes, expansive daily breakfasts, two drives to Sonoma, two movies, coastal drive and church on Sunday morning complete a very relaxing FUN first week.

Speaking of Celebrations

I have traveled far away.  In space, in mind, in heart.  I feel the pull of a Divine Force that is taking me to a place where it is NECESSARY for me to trust.  For all the mountains I have climbed, the high leaps I have taken, the fearlessness I believed I possessed, I am humbled in realizing that fear still resides in me.  I am not as brave as I had thought.  All the courage, even my ability to trust is given to me.  I can't not conjure these strengths on my own or even will them into existence.  They are simply what they are: gifts.

I left Colorado on Sunday, September 2.  Journeying with my husband to California where he is working on a project for the next two months.  I am without a home, a job, friends and family, and my passion.  All these things I left behind.  Or did I? 
 
I have often thought of Christ these past few days.  In the three years of His earthly ministry, He was also without a 'home'...Yes, perhaps a physical home, but I venture that what He needed to survive in this world was available and accessable within.  He showed us how it can be done...how we can live our lives, full of meaning, full of joy, with celebration by tapping in to the Divine nature of a Great God whose Spirit dewells within us.

So speaking truthfully to where I am and what I am facing, I will share with you my journey these next two months.  Maybe you can relate; maybe you can learn; maybe you, too, will find your voice - and speak of your celebrations.  For now, I desire to find mine.

Shalom,
Pamela