The Gift of Wintering

The Beauty of Wintering. The leaves, the growth will come again. 

The Prayer by David Foster. I was playing around on the piano this evening and this came to mind.

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Wintering

“Think of yourself just as a seed patiently wintering in the earth; waiting to come up a flower in the Gardener’s good time, up into the world, the real waking.”

C.S. Lewis

You watch and pray, each and every day. 

You get on your knees and plead each day. 

You ask for answers, sometimes patiently, other times in distress. 

You know there is an answer. 

You know that patience and prayer is best. 

To believe in word, yes it is easy to do. 

But to have faith the size of a mustard seed. 

That sometimes seems absurd. 

Why do I have to believe? 

Why do I have to wait?

It is a struggle to wait and to pray. 

What does it mean to wait? 

To wait to stay where you are. 

It is so hard to do so, when all around you are surrounded with doubt. 

Don’t give up dear reader. 

You have planted the seed. 

Your seed is wintering at the moment. 

God sees your need. 

Continue in prayer, continue to seek. 

Water yourself with patience. 

Keep working and rest. 

Until you start to bud from the ground then let those roots spread out all around. 

Start to bloom, continue in prayer. 

The Gardiner is tending your requests, he will be there. 

You will bloom as you have never bloomed before. 

There is not much to elaborate concerning this particular little poem. There are so many folks praying for answers. Today alone there were so many requests that came via email. I did run into one lady today whose son was diagnosed with cancer in December. It was all over his liver. Immediately folks started praying. Before he received treatment he had another scan. Half of the cancer was gone. After several treatments almost all of the cancer was gone. When they asked the Doctor what he thought happened he calmly looked over and said, “There is power in prayer, I have seen it over and over. Keep praying.” For those of you who are looking for that answer, that way, that path. Keep praying. If you need prayer I will pray for you and ask others to do so if you desire. Keep the faith. It’s hard. Trust me. Thank you dear readers. 

My books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

The Case of the Missing Moo-Cow Bell

The Case of the Missing Bumbly Wumbly Bee

The Case of the Missing Wellies

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Clean it Up! Wash it Up!

Coming soon!

Appalachian Allegory: A Southern Novel

Buy me a coffee… pretty please… actually it would be a proper cuppa in my case. Thank you for reading! 

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The Gift of Ships

One of the many ships we have visited. This is the USS Norfolk in Virginia. 

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Ships

“Ships don’t sink because of the water around them. Ships sink because of the water that gets in them.  Don’t let what’s happening around you get inside you and weigh you down.”

The sea, the ships, they can be vast and wide. 

Rocking the ship from side to side. 

The waves can be big, overwhelming, and quite strong.

But the ship never sinks, it just sails along.

Why do you think that boat never sinks?

It is built to withstand the biggest waves, the biggest crests, and be tossed about.

The boat continues to sail, even when the weather is fraught.

Build yourself a ship where none of those waves come in, you can be tossed and even get some sprays of water, but you won’t give in or sink.

Even when you are sailing on calm seas, you have no worries, your soul is at ease.

Build yourself a ship that shores up your spirit, soul, and mind.

Show others how to make a ship that can withstand even the toughest waves.

Be their example so that when those huge waves come in, the water stays in the sea and you never give in.

Have you ever watched some of the reels of boats and military vessels on social media?  I am not one to be on the open sea but those fishing boats, those frigates, aircraft carriers, etc… they take on some HUGE waves.  It is kind of scary to watch.  I do subscribe to a maritime page where they show these waves just pummeling the ships.  The water does indeed come over the bow and stern but it abates quickly and the ship stays afloat.  Why do you think that is?  It is all in the construction of the ship.  The construction is precise.  How much dead weight, how much equipment is needed to function, how much machinery is needed to operate.  These are just a few of the undertakings of the construction of a ship.  After that, there must be decisions made with both latitude and longitude so that the ship can maintain balance. To add to that tonnage is taken into consideration, (how much weight will be on there) and then there are considerations for the bulkhead (partitions that separate compartments) this ensures stability while the ship is at sea.  This is a very elementary explanation of ships.  It is really quite intricate and fascinating.  Having had family in the Navy, I have been on an aircraft carrier, destroyer, and even a submarine.  Each ship was fascinating.  To say that they are huge floating cities would be an understatement.  I marveled at the levels of the ship.  There are multiple kitchens, there are so many places to sleep, it is like a maze of a big city contained on a ship.  Then the deck of the aircraft carrier.  WOW! That is huge.  All of these ships stay afloat.  Sure, there are rules.  When the seas are particularly rough the exterior watertight doors are kept shut so that the ship can stay afloat.  Again, it is all in the design.  How is your ship designed? Do you have too much ballast? Too much on your bow and not enough in your stern?  Are there sufficient bulkheads to give those strong partitions when rough seas do come?  How do you relate this to life?  Well, it is all in the balance of making sure you can stay afloat.  Will you be tossed about with big waves?  Absolutely.  But if your construction is strong you will crest those waves with ease. One fascinating yet terrible story is that of the Titanic. It was deemed “Unsinkable” by its designers. The wanton hubris of the designers to think that they knew enough about the construction to deem it as such was interesting, even during 1912. To those who are not familiar with the story, basically on its maiden voyage the ship sank. Thousands of lives were lost to the icy Atlantic Ocean all because of many small miscalculations. First, they were warned repeatedly that there were icebergs ahead, those warnings were not headed. When the danger came they were unable to turn the ship in time. When they hit, six of the sixteen compartments were flooded. The ship was only designed to stay afloat with four. There were not enough lifeboats, and to top it off the ship sank quite quickly for such a monstrous vessel. What does this story teach us? To listen to the warnings ahead. To be open to the advice of others who have wisdom to impart. To shore up that your compartments won’t be overwhelmed when the iceberg of life is dead ahead. 

This also teaches us humility. To always be open to learning from our mistakes and others. We do not hold the cornerstone of truth in our hands. In fact, sometimes those truths will be hard to take but necessary to repair our ship. So much of our society has been wrapped up in tribalism. It is time to re-enforce the ship of truth so that we may sail on to peace and unity. 

My books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

The Case of the Missing Moo-Cow Bell

The Case of the Missing Bumbly Wumbly Bee

The Case of the Missing Wellies

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Clean it Up! Wash it Up!

Coming soon!

Appalachian Allegory: A Southern Novel

Buy me a coffee… pretty please… actually it would be a proper cuppa in my case. Thank you for reading! 

Patreon:

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Paypal:  A.  Daniel King

The Gift of Crochet

This is the table cloth my mother-in-law made us...  the table was getting ready for a holiday meal.

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Crochet

“A good life is like weaving. Energy is created in the tension.  The struggle, the pull and the tug are everything.” 

Joan Erikson

To wind, to weave, to string together.

To bind, to create, to bring the threads together.

To stop, to relax, to take a little time.

To create a design of beauty that calms your mind.

To loop, to finish each small section.

Makes for a finished product that shows dedication.

Crocheting is much like life.  

We string together varying circumstances day in and day out.

Some may be happy, some may be joyful.

Some events may be filled with self doubt. 

Some situations may give us grief and anger.

Each situation is part of the threading.

In the end if we are persistent, we can take all these daily machinations and make a beautiful crochet project that can sustain us.  

To help us to learn, to grow and even succeed to master the art of spirit, soul and life crocheting.

Recently I pulled out a very intricate table cloth that my late mother-in-law made for our dining room table.  The stitching is so intricate and beautiful, the project took my mother-in-law months to complete.  This spurred my mind to ponder how life is much like crocheting.  So many different circumstances have been weaved into our lives over time that the stitching can either make a masterpiece or a misshapen woven mess.  How can we start making our life, our influence a beautiful crocheted pièce de résistance?  The process starts by finding something positive or joyful in each circumstance, no matter how hard that may be.  When the process of crocheting starts, it begins with a single thread. The thread is lopped in the crocheting hook and then made into a chain.  After the chain is made, the chain is made into rows or rounds.  If our outlook is bleak, that stitching may not look so great. With everything going on in the world,  folks are divided at the moment.  How do we start a new chain?  Find the grace, find the kindness, find something that gives the gift of commonality to yourself or someone else who might need it.  There are some situations where you are going to have to stop the stitching and start all over again.  There are going to be sometimes when you have to let go of that certain stitch or situation.  That is ok.  As you continue to crochet a life of meaning, joy, positivity and purpose you can graduate to a more intricate stitch.  Make the circumstances and even more extensive creation.  When researching crocheting, there are literally thousands of patterns and each one was different, some were hilarious.  The 70’s mens shorts were quite amusing.  Sweaters, hats, purses, fish!  There were teapot cozies, dresses, blankets.  You name it there was a pattern for the crochet.  In all of the patterns a theme was present throughout the instruction.  It takes time, patience, a whole lot of weaving in and out.  There are many colors and patterns in each one and in the end produced a masterpiece to the maker.  How are we crocheting our life?  One final quote to share:  “Instead of worrying about what you can’t control, shift your energy into what you can create.”. Roy T. Bennett.  

My books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

Clean it Up!  Wash it Up!

Coming soon:

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Appalachian Allegory

The Gift of Darkness to Light

I took this on one of our early morning walks...

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Darkness to LIght.

“In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present.”

Sir Frances Bacon

Do you feel encompassed by darkness?

Do you feel the weight of its might?

The light just can’t permeate, you just want to give up the fight.

You try to find your way, you crawl and use your hands. 

You feel around in the darkness. 

You try to stand. 

You are not sure you can find your footing.

You squint your eyes to see.

That one little pin prick of light, that will guide you to luminosity.

You stand and pray.

You hope and dream that this light will come to be. 

Your prayers lead you to firm footing, and you think that you just might see…

A small bit of shining as your eyes adjust to the dark, could it be?

Your spirit is bolstered, your heart starts to beat with a quick pump and a start.  

You take those ginger steps towards that small source of light. 

It becomes brighter and brighter as you squint with all your might. 

The prayers, the tears, the heartache, the storms.

You see them start to dissipate.

As the light just comes a little brighter with each step you take. 

When you have your sure footing your steps become more sure. 

Dear One, it is most certainly darkest before the dawn. 

Of that you can be sure. 

Don’t give up, pray, stand up in the dark.

So that when the sun begins to shine you know you made it even when times were dark.

Give thanks, feel the light, know your strength. 

You can do this, you are stronger than you think.

Today I was pondering the phrase, “It is always darkest before the day dawneth.” This phrase was uttered by theologian and historian Thomas Fuller. He uttered this phrase when he stood on Mt. Pisgah.  Moses stood there before his death to see the promised land. There are times when I feel that we are in a very dark time in humanity.  We have so much as compared to other places. Yet, well… we think it is too little. Recently I read a book about places in Appalachia where there are folks who cannot read, they don’t have running water or heat. They are destitute in poverty.  Right in this country.  It really caused me to convert my, “Ugh, I have to go to the store.” to “I am so blessed to be able to go to the store.”  This past year in our home has been dark, there have been health issues galore with several family members, other traumatic events as well.  Top it all off with the news cycle, social media, the division of folks. It just seems dark, right? You often hear people equate dawn and sunrise.  When in fact they are completely different. Dawn is when you can detect a little light in the sky.  Sunrise is when the sun makes its first peaks over the horizon.  I have shared many writings about my dark:30 walks with my husband.  This morning it was early, cold, and honestly I did not feel like doing it.  What a great attitude, right?  But in my move towards changing my line of thinking I stopped.  I thanked God that I woke up, I could walk, and as we were coming down the driveway, I saw the first pin pricks of light announcing the dawn. A lot of the time we have to tread some darkness to bask in the full light of day.  What is the real point of this musing? Keep going, keep the faith, keep praying, keep that strength.  Crawl, walk, stumble towards the light.  When the path is clear and lit, you know you have made it.  Let us pray for our world.  Let us pray for those who are in the midst of harsh war. Let us pray for our country. Let us pray for each other.  I leave you all with a quick story about Cpl Duane E Dewey.  He fought during the Korean war.  Earlier he had been significantly injured by a grenade during an attack during the night.  They were outnumbered and outgunned. Cpl. Dewey saw a grenade land in the midst of the soldiers.  He told everyone to get back and he selflessly jumped on top of the grenade. He was lifted off the ground and still survived.  When he was taken for treatment, they also found a gunshot wound in his stomach.  He was the recipient of the first Medal of Honor ever presented by Dwight D. Eisenhower.  Cpl. Dewey thought nothing of saving his whole squad in a very dark time.  We probably won’t ever be faced with a situation as dark as this (God willing)..... But we can appreciate his bravery of climbing from deep darkness into light.  Keep searching for that pinprick of light.. Eventually your path will be gloriously illuminated. 

Sources:

Uso.org

Bookbrowse.com

My Books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

Clean it Up!  Wash it Up!

Coming soon:

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Appalachian Allegory

The Gift of Leaving a Gift to Your Future Self

I like to look at this photo as a gift. A nice walk in NY on a beautiful fall day. 

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Leaving a Gift to your Future Self

“Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one!”

Brad Paisley

What is a future gift for yourself?

What could it be?

It does not have to be anything monumental, perhaps a small thought or quote for just you to see.

There may be days when you need the gift, particularly when times are hard. 

The present could be a fond memory to give you the little bit of temerity to keep on going when the day seems bleak. 

Cultivate a gift for your future self. 

Make it part of the recipe of your life. 

When it is time to open the gift, it will be right there for you to help you cope with life.

My husband has said to me many times over the years, “Did you leave a gift for your future self?” The first few times he said it I honestly was confused at what he was saying.  I asked him what that meant to him.  He explained that in life we get tired, we get bored, we get angry, we just have those days where we literally feel the phrase, “I got nothing.” That is the time you should pull out that gift to your future self.  For my husband, it would be organization. He is quite possibly the most organized person on the planet. If I do not know where something is located, he does.  His penchant for organization is both annoying and endearing. When he is weary and feeling down he has a “bug out bag” that has all his clothes cleaned and pressed, his toiletries ready precisely where they need to go and his shoes and socks ready to receive his feet. This concept made me ponder what could be gifts that we could leave for our future self when we just are exhausted, annoyed, angry, or any range of emotions where we need to take a step back?  Obviously your gift does not have to be organization.  Your gift could be a little basket with your favorite tea, a book, and some chocolate.  Your gift could be various quotes stashed all over where you live to remind you that you can make it through this. Your gift to your future self could be that prayer or scripture that gives your spirit a little boost. When we invest in ourselves particularly when you are low, this activity fills you back up so that in turn, you can give to others. I have a friend who constantly struggles with negativity. He constantly deals with trusting others to be good humans, so much so that he is unwilling to entertain new friends or even open up to family members who love him very much.  Recently he discovered the concept of leaving a gift for his future self.  For him, he starts his day with scripture, daily affirmations and positive thoughts through music. While he still struggles with his distrust of others, his attitude has markedly changed from where his emotions were 6 months ago.  For him, he had to give himself a few moments of gifts for his future self daily.  Find your future self gift, wrap it up and put it in a safe place for when you truly need restoration and respite.  I leave you with a quote from the Dalai Lama “If you feel burnout setting in, if you feel demoralized and exhausted, it is best for the sake of everyone, to withdraw and restore yourself.” 

Source:Good Housekeeping 

My books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

Clean it Up!  Wash it Up!

Coming Soon:

Appalachian Allegory

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

The Gift of What?

Photo credit: My husband

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of What?

“Listen.  People start to heal the moment they feel heard.”

Cheryl Richards

What?  A common phrase. 

It is a word that signals to listen, to pause, and let the other person be heard.

I beg your pardon, excuse me, I’m sorry, what did you say?

These are all words related to active listening in a meaningful way.

To listen is sometimes all a person needs. 

To be heard, to be acknowledged, when they feel no one will listen to what they have to say.

To listen is to take the attention from self to another. 

To be all ears and share in their struggles can also open your mind. 

We all need to listen these days because it seems the yelling persists.

The talking over, the dismissal of ideas and feelings we just can’t continue this course of events.

So take a moment when someone says what, you could be the person that causes another soul to feel they are significant in a world that often makes others feel small.

What? Two of my sons say it all the time.  I will say it was annoying to hear that phrase constantly.  I thought they were not listening to what I had to say.  Well, after I asked why they say what all the time they both shared with me that they have military grade tinnitus.  All of the years of Army training had impacted their hearing.  They meant no disrespect, they honestly could not hear me.  That gave me pause after their explanation.  The act of listening without judgment was a lesson that needed to be learned.  So much of our world is geared toward judgment.  You see someone who looks frazzled and you think they don’t take care of themselves.  What if something truly tragic happened in their life?  We have no way to know.  Listening is not exactly portrayed very well in the media.  Shows where folks yell over each other rather than thoughtfully listening and asking questions when they disagree.  When we decide to actively listen, particularly to those we disagree with, we repeat, “I hear you saying” is an excellent place to start.  What happens when we start this practice?  People feel a little bump of goodness to their self esteem when they feel heard.  Also, try not to interrupt.  Let them finish their thought. This will help you to understand the speaker and the speaker to feel understood.  You may be asking yourself, “Why would I do this?  People are self absorbed these days!”  Yes, some are.  I would wager a lot are suffering on the inside.  Change has to start in small steps. One person at a time. I leave you dear readers with this funny story.  When my twins were little I bought some fiber chocolate bars.  The boys were going through a growth spurt, they were about 10 years old.  So basically they were eating machines.  If it was edible.  It was fair game.  I brought the fiber bars home and put them in the pantry.  After that, the kids were briefed about said fiber bars.  The twins in their haze of hunger chose not to hear what mom had to say.  My husband and I went out on a date, the twins were watched by their teenage siblings.  Generally speaking after a night out when you are entertaining feral eaters one needs to assess the carnage that was eaten.  I open the pantry and GASP!  There were about 20 fiber bars gone!  I called the kids in, asked who had eaten 20 fiber bars and it was the twins.  The conversation went something like this, “Did you not hear me when I said these were FIBER bars?!” The twins both looked at me and said, “No mom, I did not hear you.”  Needless to say much weeping, wailing and toilet punishment went on for about 24 hours.  The boys definitely learned a lesson that day.  I encourage us all to both embrace the word what and listen when someone says what.  We could start a “What?” revolution!  

Source:mindtools.com 

My books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

The Case of the Missing Moo-Cow Bell

The Case of the Missing Bumbly Wumbly Bee

The Case of the Missing Wellies

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Clean it Up! Wash it Up!

Coming soon:

Appalachian Allegory

Buy me a coffee… pretty please… actually it would be a proper cuppa in my case. Thank you for reading! 

Patreon:

Positive Pensées

Paypal:  familyking8@gmail.com