Father Sky and Old North Wind sketched and blew up a powerful storm today. Heavy rains fell from the dark purple heavens, the wind banged out symphonies of angry loud tintinnabulations on the wind chime pipes. The bamboo got rowdy with their dancing, slapping their trunks together, keeping time with their slender fronds waving in the wind bursts. I sat in the lady den watching the silver raindrops watering the earth, imagining the names of wind tunes that set the bamboo dancing. I love a stormy day. “It’s not about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain,” Vivian Greene.

I look at a rainy day now as a day of reflection, a gift from the heavens as the earth is renewed with life giving waters. I gathered a few books of quotes and my favorite devotional books and as the day passed sat in my reading chair and read my favorite words and quotes. Lots of the quotes are about courage, friendship, love and kindness. One of my favorites is a quote from John Wesley. “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can.” What wonderful advice for everyone. I keep these words pasted in my favorite devotional book and read them most nights. These words remind me we can all make a difference in the world by our words and deeds. Bible scripture tells us God wants his children to live a life that centers on loving God and loving others. We bring peace and hope to the world when we live a life of Christian faith. God’s greatest commandments instruct us to “love God with all our being and to love your neighbor as yourself.”

Heartsill Wilson wrote the following words about the concept of intentional living. “This is the beginning of a new day. God has given me this day to use as I will. I can waste it or use it for good. What I do today is very important because I am exchanging a day of my life for it. When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever, leaving something in its place I have traded for it. I want it to be a gain, not a loss — good not evil. Success, not failure, in order that I shall not regret the price I paid for it.” This little quote written on a scrap of paper was taped on my bathroom mirror for years and now is pasted in one of my books. The Lord gives us a new beginning with each new day. As the sun, beautifully dressed in a rainbow of glorious colors, greets the dawn each morning, the Lord gifts us with a new day. We decided how to use this day of a new beginning. Don’t throw this day away, make it count for something. Live your days as God intended.

This quote by Kathleen R. Fischer reminds me of my friendship with my dearest friend. “Because humor brings us back to earth, it helps us to use well what is left to us even when we are keenly aware of what we have lost or been denied. Only those who know how to weep can also laugh heartily.” We’ve wept together for our husbands but the sunshine of our friendship pushes the clouds away and our laughter cheers us.

This is my most favorite gathering of words. I’ve used it often in my writings. Terry Tempest Williams writes, “I pray to the birds. I pray to the birds because I believe they will carry the messages of my heart upward. I pray to them because I believe in their existence, the way their songs begin and end each day — the invocations and benedictions of Earth. I pray to the birds because they remind me of what I love rather than what I fear. And at the end of my prayers, they teach me how to listen.” My beautiful little songbirds cheer my soul and their symphonies are the church hymns of my porch swing pew. Every time I see a crimson cardinal I know Chief is sending love from heaven.

I’ll close with a favorite prayer that I’ve written about so many times but it is so beautiful in its words and imagery.

Apache Blessing — May the sun bring you new energy by day, may the moon softly restore you by night, may the rain wash away your worries, may the breeze blow new strength into your being, may you walk gently through the world and know it’s beauty all the days of your life.

Good night to all my friends. God bless you all.

“Words are like a pebble, and the heart is like a river. What happens when a pebble is thrown into a river? It causes a ripple.” — Michael Bassey Johnson