Living Consciously July 9, 2009

Dear friends,

One of the many aspects of life in my city that I love is the celebration of our diverse cultures that takes place in the summer. On any given weekend there are festivals in the park; Turkish, Ukranian, Carribean, African, Korean, Polynesian and many others present their unique cuisines, dances and music. There is a huge rodeo and fair honouring our Western traditions of roping and riding. Aboriginal peoples hold magnificent pow wows and everybody participates in the opening day parade of the famous Stampede.

It is hard to imagine living without this variety and richness of difference. What makes it so beautiful is the realization that beyond the appearance of difference is a unified beingness. Our sameness is invisible, it is the ground we stand upon, the air we breathe, the light condensed. It is the force of intelligence diversifying itself just for the joy of it, just for the fun of it, just because it can.

We are all One on the level of awareness. We all share in the field of possibility. We each fashion a life out of the One Life, the great formless Source. This is the awareness that ultimately will create peace on earth; the realization that our religions are simply cultural ways of celebrating our Source; that we are all arising out of it and giving it shape and form as our experience; that there is no hierarchy of value in this universe; that every life form is the One pretending to be the many.

As Mr. Rogers sang to the child in us: It’s a beautiful day in the neighbourhood, won’t you be my neighbour? Let’s celebrate difference and oneness at the same time. That is the path to peace.

Peace and Blessings,

Rev Carol Carnes

Living Consciously July 10, 2009

Dear friends,

Yesterday I bought a big fern for a corner of my living room. Her name is Fernice. She was one of many in the nursery section of a home supply store; wilted and lost in the cavernous space. Once I brought her home, replanted her in a larger container, misted her fronds and announced her name, suddenly she perked up, unfolded her graceful fronds and stands proud as the most beautiful fern you can imagine.

I shouldn’t have been surprised that a living thing would respond so suddenly to attention and appreciation, but I was. She literally seemed transformed into a different plant right before my eyes. Now I tell her how beautiful she is every time I glance her way. This morning I thought to myself, why don’t you do that when you look in the mirror? Usually I notice the flaws and the aging. My most frequent thought is not one of praise! It is a bad habit and nothing more. So from now on my reflection will receive lavish compliments and lots of loving attention.

In the era in which I was raised, it was considered conceited to think well of oneself. Compliments were meant with denial and self effacing comments. We were told to put ourselves down in order to be polite. Looking back on that time, I realize how wrong-headed that was and how superstitious. The idea that praise for the self would lead to our downfall was just silly.

There is a way to appreciate who we are without making ourselves better than anyone else. This is what spiritual praise is all about. It is always about the uniqueness of each person. We praise the one-of-a-kind being that we are. We announce our true name which is Beauty, Peace, Love, Joy, Genius and Soul. Whenever I return to that truth, I perk up and my light shines and I look wonderful! I look like myself.

Peace and Blessings,

Rev Carol Carnes