A poem . . . Plastic Girl

Plastic girl

Unworldly, young, and of no place,
She had a heart but not a face,
She viewed the world through wondrous eyes
But all she saw were clear blue skies.

A dreamer, lover, pure and new,
Chaste and fresh as morning dew.
From daydreams, hopes and Nature’s arms,
She made no match for boyish charms.

Her keeper, teacher, eyes and ears,
Held her tight and quelled her fears,
Moulded, shaped and clipped her wings
Weaved his magic, pulled her strings.

Bewitched by love, a blinded fool,
No one cared at home or school
To warn a girl so mute and raw
To love herself if she’s to soar.

Empty girl, lost and lame
Mourns her youth, cries in shame.
Tired eyes and silver hair
On bended knees she mouths a prayer.

Alone and in the dark of night
There shone a magic beam of light,
Her keeper, teacher from above
Then showed her what was perfect love.

And through the glow her path was clear
She had to throw away her fear
Discard her grief and all her blame
Love herself, relight her flame.

Own her past, forgive the boy
Smile again, see the joy
Learn the lessons, heal the pain
And watch the girl bloom again.

By Gaye Drady

Searching within ~ discovering self

I haven't deliberately sought out people travelling their own path of continual personal development - I've been drawn to them, or vise versa. The Country Women's Association (CWA) has provided me an ideal meeting ground for like souls. Women not content to let their own insecurities and perceived limitations beat them, make inspiring and stimulating company.

Universal forces bring us what we need, only when we are ready. I've been slow to realise that an unexamined life doesn't go anywhere, but over the past decade I've developed the ability to step back and observe myself in detail as my life unfolds. Now in my fifties, it's better late than never. The search for meaning cannot be forced, and sadly, some people will live their entire life without realising that self-discovery and change is possible.

Self-discovery is exciting; scary at times, but so exciting. Whole new worlds of opportunity become available when a person learns who they are, where they've been and why their journey has taken the routes it has.

Issues must be faced before there can be growth. Wounds need to be recognised and healed. Genuine forgiveness must take place. Through this complex, time-consuming personal journey you become an explorer; a pioneer, going places where no one has gone before. Change is inevitable. Gradually, or perhaps suddenly, a light is shone on your path and a deeper understanding of self suddenly emerges. There is clarity.

Self-analysis and discovery is not without internal clashes. It is not an easy road, but for those brave enough to embark on this momentous journey, the outcome is one of tremendous value. Life takes on more meaning; inner peace is finally possible.

Self-analysis is ongoing, a lifetime commitment, but once commenced, is impossible to abandon, so great are the rewards.

Meet yourself, begin healing invisible and hidden wounds, learn to love yourself, and you will radiate positive energy, automatically spreading love and cheer wherever you go.

Sitting at the feet of giants

I am but a speck, insignificant and of a foolish race, sitting at the feet of giants.

My bright red shirt should be an intrusion on this splendid canvas of green and brown, but it blends perfectly with the rosy plumage of parrots.

Silent and still, I become a part of the forest; a rock. No - a tussock of tall grasses gently swaying with the breeze. I breathe in deep, savouring the pleasant earthy fragrance.

Beautiful creatures, consumed with the busy task of surviving, venture near. The love in my heart creates waves of healing energy that emanate invisibly through the forest, bouncing off Nature's treasures, returning to me.

I am filled with joy.

   

On my walk through the Porongorups, I sat here at the feet of giants

Stately Karris - the Porongorups, SW Western Australia

Fight unkindness with kindness

Of course, 'fight' is the wrong word really; dealing with unkindness isn't a fight, but a challenge, and dealing with life's challenges effectively will improve life for us and those immediately around us, as well as sending positive energy far and wide to unknown people and places.

I'm not talking about criminals; we must allow our justice system to deal with unkindness on a massive scale. What I'm talking about here are the little acts of unkindness that we encounter day by day in the normal course of our lives from family, friends, neighbours, colleagues, associates, strangers.

And I'm also not talking about putting everyone else first before oneself, for we must be kind to ourselves first. If we are not kind to ourselves, we will not have the capacity to be kind to others.

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Kindness is not superficial etiquette or false pleasantries, and kindness should never be used as a way of manipulating or controlling. Genuine kindness comes with no strings attached. Genuine kindness comes naturally and from the heart, without having to first think about being kind.

[quote]...Be kind, everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle...[quote]

Insightful words. Sadness, emptiness, low self confidence and self esteem, physical or emotional pain, insurmountable problems, insecurity, and more, can prompt people to be unkind to people they see regularly or strangers they pass. But if we can see the good in others and in the world, hold an optimistic attitude and act with kindness, we may never know how much hope and happiness we inject into the lives of others.

Kindness lingers. Other people's kindness can make your day, can make you feel special and give you a warm glow. If you carry around that warm glow, people will react to you differently. So we too can give this warm glow to others with the gift of kindness. Acts of kindness do not have to involve big things; cheerfulness and a sense of humour can be the simplest and most powerful acts of kindness. Listening, genuinely listening, can be a great act of kindness.

Do not just be kind to those we think deserve kindness. Kindness is the key to connecting with the real person inside. What you do to harm another, harms oneself. Reach out to other people. We are brought into contact with unkind people for a reason. There is a teacher in all of us.

[quote]....Learn silence from the talkative,

tolerance from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind.

Be grateful to those teachers....[quote]

I believe that every act of kindness helps to heal the world one small step at a time.

There will be flowers on every journey you take

To everyone who passes this way, have a beautiful day.

Karma

Exploring the concept of karma has been an interesting undertaking for me. I have adopted the Buddhist belief of karma, not a simplistic concept of reward and punishment, tit-for-tat. The Buddhist theory of karma emphasises the importance of intention: "Karma is the process whereby the things which a person does create the conditions for particular outcomes. Sometimes this outcome might be a repetition of the original action, other times it might be a consequence".

Buddhism is grounded in ideas of cause and effect. "When a person acts with intent, as opposed to accidentally, their action leaves a trace, or we may say, plants a seed. That seed is the seed of future action as it is created in particular circumstances reflective of the original activity."

A disillusioned person might ask, 'why does misfortune or illness befall a good person?' And, 'why does a criminal get away with his misdoings?' Buddhists believe this is because karmic debts are carried from one life time to the next, and the next, until specific karmic energy is balanced. A person can not escape his/her karma. Karmic debts will always be paid. Karma is not instantaneous.

Christians teach that we only have one lifetime, and that after we die God will either punish or reward us depending on how we have behaved on earth. I do not subscribe to this religious principle.  I do not believe in an all-powerful, all-knowing god. The Universal Law of Karma teaches that we have many lifetimes and are always involved in the process of healing ourselves so that we don't have to continue suffering similarly. The reward we receive for creating good karma and resolving negative karma is joy and peace in this world and the next.

"What we do and what happens to us are the result of our soul's choice to come to earth to learn the lessons we need to learn." All pain has a purpose, and troubles and tragedies occur because of karma and/or lessons that need to be learned. Unresolved bad karma doesn't make you a bad person; we all have unfinished business.

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There are several levels of karma: personal, family, global. "You may feel overwhelmed and depressed by all the catastrophes, wars, and cruelty reported in the news, but everything you do that is kind, loving, unselfish, and nurturing will uplift humanity because we are all connected. we rarely see how far our actions reach, but good karma truly does spread healing like ripples stretching out across a pond after you've tossed a pebble into the water."

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 Knowing something deep inside you is different from knowing something because other people tell you, or because you read it in a book. The more I read about karma written from the Buddhist point of view, the more I explored my own position in life, and the more sense life made to me. I now feel the truth of karma deep inside me.

I am beginning to see and understand the bigger picture, the universal connectivity of everyone and everything. My perception is changing; my energy is changing. I have a strong sense of self and won't be told what to do. I am me. I am not comfortable with restriction, but yet I am not a fighter, therefore I struggle to be myself.

For me, there is a recurrent temptation to meddle in the karma of others, to help them 'fix' things. But when we interfere with someone else's karma we risk taking on karma that doesn't belong to us, creating problems for ourselves. Our good intentions cannot change the fact that intervening in someone else's karma enables that person to avoid resolving it himself. It may even cause him to create more negative karma and to prolong his suffering. Some people do not have the strength or honesty to face their own issues, but that is their journey, and they must travel the path they choose.

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We are all connected; your goodness will help heal the world, and your unkindness will add to the world's suffering.