Harmonizing the spirit

On this page we will feature inspirational quotes and stories to nourish the spirit and warm the heart. You can also visit our online bookstore to purchase inspirational and spiritual books worth reading. 

Words to live by

It’s good to come up against obstacles, it’s good to be faced with what you see as your weaknesses. In doing that, you not only begin to understand who you are, you begin to develop a sense of compassion and acceptance.

                                                            --Rodney Yee

I have always believed that whatever good or bad fortune may come our way we can always give it meaning and transform it into something of value.

                                                            --Herman Hesse

All moments are spiritually purposeful. All beings that cross our paths are angels. True detoxification is forgiveness. The true healer is love.

                                                            --Seane Corn

There already is much prosperity and good luck in your life. We are all going to lose loved ones, and I'd hazard the guess that most of us have also lost jobs at some point. We can also lose looks, money, relationships, health, etc. Those are only problems when you let yourself think that they are problems. In reality, it's just a part of living. Begin and end each day with gratitude. Not just for all the big things like a roof over your head and another breath to breathe, but for smallish things like clean water and toothbrushes and shoes. You quickly decide that your life is absolutely phenomenal, and treasure all the bumps in the road as part of the learning curve.

                                                            --Sri D

Love is what is left when you let go of everything you don't need.

                                                            --Erich Schiffmann

Just don't give up on trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong.
                                                            --Ella Fitzgerald

The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.

                                                            --Albert Einstein

No pessimist ever discovered the secret of the stars or sailed an uncharted land, or opened a new doorway for the human spirit.

                                                            --Helen Keller

Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come. You wait and watch and work: you don't give up.

                                                --Anne Lamott

Live your life like it's a work of art, seen through the eyes of an artist.

                                                            --Peter Sterling

Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens.
                                                            --Carl Jung

Worrying is using your imagination to create something you do not want.

                                                            --Esther and Jerry Hicks

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.

                                                            --Mahatma Ghandi

The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.

                                                            --Michelangelo

We are not human beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience.

                                                            --Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

Do not try to do great things. Only do small things with great love.

                                                            --Mother Theresa

Our home is in the present moment. To live in the present moment is a miracle. The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green Earth in the present moment, to appreciate the peace and beauty that are available now. Peace is all around us--in the world and in nature, and within us--in our bodies and our spirits. Once we learn to touch this peace, we will be healed and transformed. It is not a matter of faith; it is a matter of practice.

                                                            --Thich Nhat Hanh

Faith is the sound the songbird makes before the dawn. 

                                                            --Rabindranath Tagore

 

Personal stories
If you know of an inspirational person or story let us know and we may feature it in this space. We also take nominations for pets! Contact us

A Guerrilla Cleanup Effort

When oil poured out of a gashed cargo ship in northern California it spoiled miles of shoreline and threatened marine and wild life. It also mobilized nearby residents to take matters into their own hands. Dismayed by the government's slow cleanup efforts they formed Kill the Spill and within a matter of days hundreds of area residents were combing the beaches--some in flip flops and jeans--rescuing oil-soaked birds and doing what they could to clean the oil from the beaches. Initially, the government responded by threatening them with arrest and in one case made good on the threat: a 45-year-old Marin County resident was charged with two federal counts of entering an emergency area.

But soon the government realized they could not hold back the tide of volunteers--who were organizing on the internet--wanting to pitch in. At one safety training in the Bay area more than 600 people showed up. Local businesses provided paper towels, gloves and other supplies. Now they're talking about forming a non-profit so that they can bid to clean up a few beaches that remain off-limits to volunteers.

Isn't that a great story?

Remembering Leah

Kelly pays tribute to her friend

Ten years ago Monday I went to lunch at the Hotel Ero in Mostar, Bosnia with my friend Ed. The war that ravaged the country had ended and the difficult task of rebuilding had begun. It was a beautiful, sunny day and so we sat on the veranda. I was wearing my peach suit. By the time I got back to my office a dozen of my friends and colleagues were dead after their helicopter crashed in a mountain fog and exploded on impact.

There was a touching memorial service. And lots of tears. A small monument was erected at the site of the crash, which was in a strangely peaceful, idyllic place in a forest next to a small lake. The view from the top of the mountain was breath taking.

My dear friend Leah, with whom I once shared an office, was among those killed. She was 29. It's hard to explain how close you get to people in a war zone, but for those you literally sit next to everyday, well, you become connected to one another-- bonded for life. You know everything about each other. I'm not talking about knowing their favorite movie or favorite food and stuff like that, although you know all of that... I mean you really know what people are made of. You spend day after day, from early morning until it's time to go to bed, with these people under very trying circumstances and there aren't any secrets.

I was supposed to meet Leah and a couple of other people for dinner and a movie on the Saturday before the crash. But I had just gotten back from an exhausting trip and didn't think I could make the two hour drive through the mountains from Mostar to Sarajevo--where they were--without falling asleep. So I told them I'd see them the following week. I never saw Leah again. To this day, every time someone asks me if I want to meet up when I'm feeling too tired to go I remember Leah and I get myself out the door.

She was an amazing woman. A great writer, an even better friend. Loved pretzels and bananas. As odd as this may sound given where we were, I remember us laughing a lot. All the time, actually. She worked tirelessly to protect the rights of minorities. Ran herself into the ground. But always had time for you when you needed a shoulder to lean on. As I write this the memories are flooding back and the tears are starting to come.

But I am grateful. I am so grateful that she was a part of my life and that those special people with me in Bosnia are still a part of my life.

On Monday night, some of our friends from Bosnia gathered in Washington, D.C. to remember Leah and the others that died that day. I went through my photo albums and collected the pictures of us from back then to bring with me. Such precious memories and important lessons.

The most important lesson for me is that it's the people that make our lives special. Who really cares about the traffic jam or the run in your pantyhose? Trust me, you can live without electricity and water and all of the creature comforts. But you won't survive one day without love and friendship. So the next time you think you're too busy to meet a friend, or too busy to call or email--even if it's just to say hi--remember Leah and find the time. The laundry can wait. Open your heart, open it wide, and joyfully embrace the ones you love. Thank them for every moment they share with you.

The Two Wolves

This story comes to us by way of Dancing Lotus (her screen name). It is a Cherokee tale that we think merits passing on.

A grandfather spoke to his grandson and said, "Within the heart are two wolves fighting. One wolf is evil and ugly. He is anger, envy, war, greed, self-pity, sorrow, regret, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, selfishness and arrogance.

"The other wolf is beautiful and good. He is friendly, joyful, peaceful, loving, hopeful, serene, humble, kind, benevolent, just, fair, empathetic, generous, truthful, compassionate, grateful, and has deep vision."

Oh grandfather, the youth implores, "which wolf will win?"

Solemnly the grandfather replies, "the one you feed."

The Purple Bracelets

Rev. Will Bowen was tired of his congregation complaining about his choice of worship music so he laid down a challenge. Bowen, pastor at Christ Church Unity in Kansas City, Mo., urged his fellow worshippers to refrain from complaining, criticizing and gossiping for three weeks. He rounded up some purple rubber bracelets stamped with the word Spirit and gave them to his parishioners, telling them to move the bracelet to the other wrist every time they complained. It was no easy task. It took Bowen three months before he made it through 21 days without complaining. It also took Terry Rennack three months and he credits the exercise with helping him learn to stay serene and listen more and talk less. For his efforts he earned a “Certificate of Happiness” and his wornout bracelet hangs on a plastic tree in the church lobby. So far, Bowen has given away 70,000 purple bracelets through his website, TheComplaintFreeChurch.org.

To Honor a Friend

The new basketball court at the University of Southern California is named in honor of an obscure Trojan basketball player from the 1950s, Jim Sterkel. His name is etched in giant cardinal letters on both sides of the hardwood court. Until they were contacted by a Los Angeles Times reporter, his wife and daughter, who won an Olympic gold in swimming, had no idea. Sterkel, who worked as a salesman for Johnson Wax, died of cancer in 1997. It turns out that Sterkel's college roommate and life-long friend is a wealthy Southern California businessman. He made a $5 million donation to USC for the new court and asked the university to inscribe it with his friend's name. He also requested to remain an anonymous donor. When asked by a reporter, "So what exactly did Jim Sterkel do for you to warrant this incredible honor? Did he give you a kidney? Did he pull you out of a burning car?" Sterkel's friend replied, "He did much more than that," he said. "He was my friend." What a beautiful and uplifting story!

Harp Magic

Peter Sterling is an internationally-acclaimed harpist, whom Al and I had the great pleasure to meet recently. We attended one of his workshops and were inspired and blessed by his angelic music. The story of his journey is truly inspirational and uplifting and we'd like to share it with you. Peter had been working as a ski instructor in Aspen, Colorado when he was guided to move to Sedona, Arizona to pursue a more artistic life. He lived in his van and spent many hours walking and meditating in the back country wilderness. One day while walking he heard beautiful music playing, "a divine symphony." At first he thought the music was coming from someone's portable stereo but he then realized this was some type of spiritual encounter. He saw himself surrounded by angels and playing a harp, although he never had any formal music training. A week later Peter met a woman who was selling a Celtic harp. Interesting coincidence! He decided to buy it. He carried the harp out into the solitude of the wilderness and asked the angels to help him play it. The next thing he knew his fingers were gliding over the strings effortlessly. He recorded his first album, Harp Magic, 10 months later and it was nominated as the best string album of the year by the Indie Awards. You can read more about his amazing journey on his website.

Southern Belle

Three-year-old Belle Weaver of Ocoee, Fla., went to Washington, D.C. to receive the VITA Wireless Samaritan Award for calling 911 when her owner, Kevin Weaver, went into a diabetic-induced seizure. Yes, her "owner." Belle is a beagle and a trained diabetic-alert dog. A dog has a sense of smell several hundred times greater than that of a person. Belle went through nine months of intensive training, learning to detect Weaver's blood sugar level by licking his nose and smelling his breath. If something isn't right then Belle is trained to start scratching Weaver's leg, which is exactly what she did on the morning he collapsed. Weaver, though, thought the dog had to go outside. Weaver collapsed after Belle came back inside. Fortunately, Belle was also trained to bite on the number 9 on Weaver's cell phone, which is programmed to dial 911. Emergency dispatchers heard a lot of barking, figured something was wrong and sent help. Belle is the first animal to receive the award, bringing new meaning to that old saying about a man's best friend.

The Fat Man Walking

Many of you may have read about Steve Vaught, the man who walked from Oceanside, Calif. to New York City in an effort to lose weight and overcome an eating disorder and the deep depression he suffered from since accidentally killing two elderly pedestrians 15 years ago. He completed his walk in early May 2006, more than a year after he started, and lost more than 100 pounds. But what makes his story truly remarkable and inspiring is his attitude about it. He told the Associated Press, "People try to make this about calories and scales, but this is about living your life," he said. "I spent 15 years either regretting the past or fearing the future. Now I'm living in the present." Congratulations Steve!

Students Protest Candy Fundraiser

A class of gifted fourth and fifth graders in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida refused to sell chocolate bars, potato chips and hard candy to raise money for school trips to the state capital, Tallahassee, and Washington, D.C. "If they tell us to don't eat junk food and then after school we sell it, that disobeys what they said," said 10-year-old Daphnie Auguste. The students are part of a two-year Schools for Wellness program, which teaches healthy eating and exercise to thousands of students in Florida. School officials said that the students were united in their belief that it would be better not to go on the trips than to raise money selling unhealthy food. "We could sell bracelets or rings, but not candy," said Saint Remy, a fourth-grader. "We want the other kids to be healthy." What can we say except, Bravo!

Dog Gone It!

Irene from Connecticut wrote to tell us about her Westhighland white terrier, Scotty. A small lump appeared on his upper lip. Tests were negative for any cancer but the vet still recommended removing the lump. "It would have taken off part of his lip and since it wasn't malignant and didn't seem to bother him we said no." Instead, Irene contacted our very own Al who agreed to send distance Reiki to Scotty. "The next day at dinner my husband--who knew nothing of the Reiki Al was sending--looked at Scotty's lip and said the lump looked smaller. I must admit I was a little bit surprised myself. A couple of days later the lump was completely gone and hasn't returned since." Many people are surprised to learn that pets are especially receptive to energy healing, perhaps because they don't carry preconceived or conditioned notions about it. Glad we could help!