Sunday, September 23, 2007

JUST BREATHE

I'm back!!!!!! Wow, is almost all I can say! Just kidding, you know me, I never run out of things to say. I'm just getting back, actually about an hour ago, from my 3 1/2 day spiritual retreat and I am bursting at the seams! Just imagine as you drive thru the gate of about 496 acres of nothing but beautiful trees with several lakes on the property and you haven't heard the best part yet. About 1/2 mile hiking trail and you come out of the trees onto the ocean front. Heaven, right! Yup, you guessed it, that's where I've been! At least, that's my interpretation of it!I arrived there on Thursday about 2:00 pm, went out and bought some groceries to put in the wonderful communal kitchen and then checked into my cabin. Oh, it was so adorable, it was called; The Tree Room, how perfect for me since I love trees and I champion them all the time! The atmosphere was so wonderful, finally my soul was at home and at peace. I took this retreat to cook up some stuff in the kitchen to serve up to all of you when I got back and as you see I can't wait to start serving. I met some wonderful friends there in the kitchen cooking up their own viddles for serving! The stories were unbelievable and soul stirring from all over the world. From my heart center I would like to send out lots of love to my new and old friends there at the retreat: Jeff, Nancy, Barbara, Wayne, Will, Wilbert, Donna & Mike, Anne, Jonathan, The Volunteer Staff in Service , and to all those that I don't remember their names, Baba does! I hope that everyone will remember to take time out for your spirit everyday and take special retreat times for your total self to reflect on the real stuff that may be missing from your life so that you can be reminded how special you really are! I have refreshed my soul now I feel like I can really soar! I did go to Charleston, SC, Friday for a 2 hour introduction to Sue Monk Kidd (one of my favorite authors) before her Writing Workshop began on Sat, but I explained to her I would be at the Retreat Sat & Sunday taking care of some serious business; ME! Well, that's all for now so I can unpack!


Submitted by: Brenda Williams/Sacredflower @ The Writers Cafe

Friday, September 14, 2007

YOUR VOICE

Can you hear your voice anymore? Where are you from? That's the question I get asked wherever I go. I have often wondered why people are always asking me that question. I can speak however I choose to but it must be that original tongue that can always come through no matter where you are or who you are with. That is not a bad thing; it's just funny when people ask about it, but who cares. That original tongue is the first tongue you hear that you never lose. We try to conform, train or tame it in order to be received by certain ones but there is nothing to be ashamed of if it brings all the beautiful colors and hues of who you are to the surface. Hanging on to the essence of your ancestry through your voice is what you bring to the table. It speaks of your informative years. Your world is in your voice, without it, a piece of the story will be lost. Hanging onto your voice can be challenging in a world of fear, where everyone wants to think that someone has to be the enemy. It is by sharing your story that will tell the history and build bridges to make friends. Let me see your world through your voice. The melodies that flow like the river off your tongue, brings back memories to my ears. I am able to write new music because you have given me new notes, not heard before. Your voice plays new chords reaching a new people, for a new day, touching the heartstrings of tomorrow's dreams. Sing a new song with your voice. A fresh breeze brushed my face tenderly as you spoke of your native memories, latent within your soul. I am honored you chose to share with me those memories that moved me in your land with curiosity of how it was for you walking those trails, and enjoying the view of fresh flowers, plush green trees, flowing rivers, rounding the beautiful mountains. Without your voice I could not have peeked into your country and imagined your childhood but now in my heart I can feel your melody because you shared Your Voice.



By: Brenda Williams






This piece is dedicated to my friend Ly and his son. I would like to thank him for sharing his story of coming to this country with his father and family after the Vietnam war. I truly appreciate him teaching his son, their family traditions and remembering the value of their language/voice.

Thursday, September 13, 2007

REFLECTIONS

Sitting here reflecting on the last few dynamic weeks of my life and realizing that my pen is just waiting for me to release its flow; I take a deep breath and exhale. Turning up the volume on the music playing, "Free Yourself" from Eric Dozier and JB Eckl' new CD, "Badasht, While the city Sleeps" (http://badasht.net/) check it out for yourself, I am remembering our last "serving up" at The Writers Cafe 9/10/2007. The day before 9/11/2007. Six women showed up for our sharing of delicacies and that it was! My prompt was "What Matters", right now, in this moment, it was so profound how we all came full circle when it got back to me sharing my piece. The being of One accord was amazing! I was gifted Eric's new CD at a meeting in Atlanta, Ga on August 29th,2007, where I was invited to hear a wonderful public delivery from a member of The Universal House of Justice for the members of the Baha'i Faith that were of African Descent. Family members that were of other cultures were also invited, that was how I had the bounty to be present. It was a blessing to hear how precious their(the speaker and his wife) stories were of serving the African Continent within their Faith. What a wonderful encouragement and invitation to "Free Ourselves". I realized on my way home that Eric had gifted me with more than a new CD. He gifted me an Invitation! The same gift I offered to my Writing Workshop to its writers, "Free Yourself" through freeing your voice! Serve it up through your wonderful writing! I began the workshop on 9/10/2007 with, "Free Yourself" from the CD. The next prompt was a visualization toward remembering a time "on a front porch"; were you alone, whats in front of you, whats behind you. Again my writers truly amazed me with what was served up, we were truly cooking up some powerful stuff with lots of spice. Like grandma always said: "If you can't stand the heat in the kitchen don't come in here!" At the end of the workshop, I played," The Healing Prayer" from the CD. The miracles that have went out into our families,communities and World from that powerful serving up have been shared with me. I would like to say thank-you to Eric, JB and my writers @ The Writers Cafe for serving it up HOT!!!!

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

TEMPORARY RESIDENT

In this moment, I know you feel like 1,000,000 miles away from everyone but in essence we all are in the same neighborhood! Do you feel me?

Your current address is only a temporary residence not an explanation of who you are or where you are. You are where ever your mind takes or leads you! Do you feel me?

We all are just passing through. Whether we are in the Valley or on the mountaintop, it is temporary. Check out the view. Observe, meditate, and reveal! Do you feel me?

We shift where we are every moment that we breathe by our thoughts. Life's mystic journey has many turns in the road that can come up at any moment. It is how we handle the curves that determine whether or not we survived the experience! Do you feel me?

Traveling life's road requires careful observation for the signs along the way. Going too fast may cause us to be taken by surprise and throw us off course. A good driver with balanced skills can compensate and regain balance to survive with little damage! Do you feel me?

Being unprepared for life's curves can cost one their lives but many times one is spared to tell life stories that will provide maps for the next traveler to see the bigger picture! Do you feel me?

Often times it is in the chaos and confusion that one is able to gain clarity of view. Do you feel me?

When the dust has settled, and the way is made clear, after we have regained control, we can see where we are truly going. Do you feel me?

In the bigger scheme of things, we all are only temporary residents where ever we are! Change is inevitable! Do you feel me?



By: Brenda Williams

SCARED OF THE DARK

I heard a song one time called, “Coming out of the dark”. I just cried and I knew why, at least I thought I did at the time. I was ending a relationship that was not healthy for me at all. I had been in a place of incubation for about four years, asking myself, why was I repeating some of the same old behaviors of the past and unhealthy relationships? Why I get involved with these kinds of people, I asked myself. Well, have you ever heard, “like attracts like”? I have and I did not like the sound of that! That meant I had to look in the mirror. I am afraid of the dark! I was afraid to look at some of those deep wounded places, way down deep. Those dark places that hid the shadows reflecting on the walls of my soul. It was time to come out of my own darkness, so that I could recognize the dark places in others and then choose whether or not I wanted to share that walk. Creating healthy boundaries wasn't something I had learned coming from an abusive background, but it was time to brush up on my skills. That dark place where I had been in incubation was not a new place for me. Many times I had been in this cocoon, but I emerged each time with a little something more to build on towards the new me. This time I had more courage to face some of my fears in the dark. I know one of them was fear of surprises. When I was young, I was fearless because my mother was too young to know about healthy boundaries, therefore she didn't instill any kind of fear. Of course she was in survival mode herself. It was amazing how she survived sexual predators, as well as emotional abandonment by her mother and maintained her sanity. It took all of my life of self educating me along with many mistakes, trial and errors of my own, to halfway understand her plight as well as my own. Not having the fear of places or people because of the color of their skin or the status of class caused me to venture into many a dark alley. I mean the alleyways of souls were color and class did not matter. Venturing into darkness were alcohol, drugs, sadness, inequalities of life, self-pity, selfishness, greed, lustfulness, and need I say more, was an unsafe place for a soul, that was only looking for love in all the wrong places. There were lots of surprises that were not very pleasant. I kept pushing those experiences down into a dark place to where I couldn't see them anymore. I would continue to analyze them until there were no more excuses. Surprises were not something I would welcome happily into my life as an adult. Poking around in dark places of my soul, cleaning out the cobwebs made it a little less scary, but there were still moments that took a lot of courage to turn the corner. That is when I would catch myself in another situation that felt familiar. The difference was I would spend a lot less time in that space wondering what it was. When my fears came up I would sit down, embraced them, recognize and acknowledge its service, to remind me that I didn't have to go there anymore. It was okay to hug that young lady and say, its safe passage, just keep on moving. I still have my moments but I can say now that I have all the tools I need to come out of the dark to embrace the flickering flame from the candle that continues to burn for ever.

Monday, September 3, 2007

A CALLING OUT

Soft, intoxicating, jazz is playing lowly in the background of the circle of women sharing their souls. I listened intently to a friend speak to herself; I could hear my soul reaching out to me, to provide for me memories of my spirit truly hearing me. Isn't that what we all want, to be truthfully heard? Reflecting on a thought, about what I really want to do with the rest of my life, came in the form of a puzzle piece, which landed in my hands at a spiritual gathering on a Sunday morning. It read “empower others”. It was an honor, at this time in my life to be called forth to do this. I realized in this seasoned time of my life, it was time to integrate all I had been gathering over the years. The tools that gave me inner peace and courage to be able to empower others lay within our reach. In contemplating a way to continue my own empowerment as I shared with others, it was given to me a way to co-author this vision. Creating an environment, where others could invest their minds, hearts and souls would be a powerful place to cook up something grand. That is where the idea of The Writer's Café came into view. This would be a place where chefs could come to cook up something to offer to the world. There are times that we wait, while the dough rises, and there is a time when we cook, expecting the aromas of delicious sharing as a desired result. The Writer's Café allows us to support one another in our “Soul Food”, preparation. Our society is in great need of the original recipes being restored with some new spices of life added. The energy flowing through the earth at this time is ready to be birthed into the world. For those that are being called out I am inviting you to be nurtured toward a serving up of what has been simmering in your kitchen. A diversity of dishes is requested at this time in history. Being at the right place at the right time is what brings fruition. There are times in our lives when we work collectively and then there are times that we have to discover the authentic “I “, to bring forth our unique dish to the table. Bring it out, so we all can applaud you and say, job well done! Let “The Writer's Café”, be a place of birthing for you and your creation. We are here to serve one another in the process. Let's kick it up a notch!