There is healing power in the beauty of nature.

Author: karen.hessler2 Page 5 of 13

The Spider

spider in web

My Advent Prayer

In the days leading up to Christmas, and through the weeks of winter’s darkness, I offer you an Advent prayer. May the light gently find you right where you are.

Advent Prayer




Lord, I lift my face
to let you find me

let me be
open

to this Advent
to the blessings
to the grace
to the possibility

of the light
that comes

You are
the light
that finds me

Immanuel
God is with us
luminous


Journey

Life is a journey – may you travel lightly surrounded by love.

Life is a Journey


she travels lightly
with stars in her eyes
believing there is good
to be found
no one
can deter her
as she travels
northbound
embracing
what life has to offer

I follow her journey
with hope in my heart
believing that goodness
is near and nothing 
can stop us as we
spread our wings
and fly
bearing
the promise
of all that's held dear

away
far away
all the way 
we will go
until we reach
the other side
where wishes 
come true
and love
breaks through
and hearts
are fully alive



Leave A Space For The Light

Leave a space between each line.

Leave a Space

In writing, we are told to leave some white space on the page:

  • space to breathe
  • space to think and ponder
  • space to process and wonder

The same goes for life.

Our schedules are so busy, our days so full, especially during the holidays, and that’s not a bad thing.

But it can be draining.

It can be disconnecting.

Sometimes we miss out on the things we want the most:

  • time to enjoy our family and loved ones
  • connection with our friends
  • space in our schedule to savor those precious moments as they are happening, without rushing on to the next thing

We run on and on, like sentences without a period.

We spin and whirl on a merry-go-round without end, because we are too afraid to jump off.

We might get hurt if we jump off-schedule.

We might lose our pace if we hit the ground.

We’ll never get anything done if we stop, even for a moment.

But is this true?

What if, in the pause, we find the strength and grace we need to carry on?

What if we find refreshment that leads to a greater capacity to love?

What if we find a space in our heart to give of ourselves more freely and to live more deeply?

What if the white space between the moments of life can expand time somehow?

This holiday season, may the white space light up your world and give you the time of your life.

How Do You See Yourself?

How Do You See Yourself



see yourself a swan
a creature of beauty
and grace, a dancer
a diver, a dreamer
a glider, a soft
feathered friend
a winged catcher
of the wind
a seeker, a swimmer
an elegant shimmer
see yourself a treasure
more precious than jewels
lovely, beloved
bearer of good news
a welcome companion
with the warmest heart
see yourself a masterpiece
a stunning work of art
see yourself through
soft eyes, a forgiving lens
that swirls and blends
all the tiny imperfections
into shimmering reflections
see yourself in a dream
come true
living the life that was
meant for you


How do you see yourself, my friend? I hope you know how truly loved you are.

____________________________________________________

Live as if you are already beautiful, and so shall you be.

karen hessler

____________________________________________________

Tuck these words into your heart today, then go out and light up your world.

Mountain of Blessings

Hidden Blessings

May your eyes and heart be open to the hidden blessings that are ripe for receiving.




how many blessings
are richly scattered
across a day in the life
of a single soul

how many times are blessings
multiplied from person to person
across many days
blessings ripe and bursting

a cornucopia of goodness
spilling into hearts and lives
blessing mostly unnoticed
unseen
uncounted

we are people unaccustomed
to the face of kindness
the embodiment of good
walks the earth unrecognized

and the gifts fall softly
through the hands of time
waiting for someone to look
over their shoulder

and gasp, astonished at
the mountains of treasure
sparkling in radiance
just waiting to be received


Thankful Reflections

HAPPINESS IS…Feeling Thankful For Ordinary Things

Thankful Reflections

It’s the month of November, and I am feeling thankful here in south Louisiana.

I am writing outdoors this morning. I move my patio chair close to the edge, where the cement touches the grass, so that I have a clear view of the sky. So that I can gaze at the feathery angel-wing clouds spreading from north to south. So that I can feel the coolness of the air against my flip-flopped feet instead of burning them in the sun.

The birds are rather quiet this morning – they don’t seem to have much to say, except an occasional whistle in the distance, a soft caw or a little shriek here and there. Brownie whimpers and whines, annoying me like a petulant child. She wants to go all the way into the sun, with no part of her little body in the cold shade.

A helicopter breaks the quiet, chopping it into pieces with his noisy, powerful blades.

Now he’s gone and the stillness slowly returns. Brownie is basking in full sun, her eyes sleepy, her sigh content. This is a good life.

And I thank God for his presence in all of these things, ordinary nature infused with the divine, transforming everything into something beautiful. I thank you, Lord, for the view of the sky, and the sweeping clouds, and the barking black dog two houses down. Thank you that I can write outdoors, my soul touching your beauty, my heart lifting with praise, my page ruffling in the breeze.

I thank you for all the lovely words and images you have given me to write, your thoughts and ideas spilling through me onto pages and pages, flowing like a river that runs through my heart, translating feelings into language, words wrapped in the fragrance of the divine and poured out like anointing oil to continually heal the brokenness of a wounded world.

You work your ways into our lives using the most ordinary earthly things. You make a normal life “the good life” – full and satisfying, meeting practical needs without fanfare, almost unnoticed. Easy to miss, unless one is really looking, attention open to the barely visible threads connecting our known to the unknown. With silver cords you lace our veins through your own heart, allowing us to flow through you, and with you, and in you, keeping us close and warm, never alone.

Such mysteries are too deep to fathom, yet we catch a glimpse on a quiet day, in the rustle of autumn leaves, with fresh air touching our skin, and the soft voices of birds in branches, brushing past us as we let our eyes rest on the blueness of the sky. Ordinary moments woven into everyday life – hot coffee, warm toast, cinnamon sprinkles, a good morning kiss – normal routines that link our minutes into hours, our hours into days.

All these things somehow transform the unremarkable into an extraordinarily fulfilled life.

And for that, I am thankful.

Hopes and Dreams




how long does it take
to get from here to there
how long does it take
for promises to come true
how long must we wait
in that mysterious
in-between
where nothing seems
to be happening
where we often
lose our faith
where we fear
we've lost our way
where the lines
are all blurry
where we give up
and give in
can we make it
to the other side
or will we always
struggle in the middle
forever falling short
of the promised land

We all have hopes and dreams, plans and goals that we are trying to bring to life. When our progress seems invisible, it’s easy to get discouraged, and so hard to keep going.

I have found that when I am stuck in the messy middle of a muddled life, the way out always is to just go through it. Go through the hard parts, and eventually you will get to the other side. Know that you are not alone.

Sometimes we have to keep doing the right thing for days, weeks, even months, before we see encouraging results. Don’t give up!

May you find strength for your journey and pockets of joy to sustain you along the way.

Hopes and Dreams - Keep Going

Hand of Grace

Hand of Grace

A poetic prayer about counting costs and blessings, angel wings and the hand of grace.





When I'm counting
the costs
let me never forget
to factor the
hand of God.

When I'm counting
the blessings
let me always see
the practical
hand of grace.

Let me never take
for granted
gifts delivered
on angel wings.

Let my eyes be
ever open
to divinity
within all things.

When I'm dreaming
upon my pillow
may I catch a glimpse
of your face

And if nightmares
reach out to clutch me
let me hold your
hand of grace.


A Writer’s Prayer

A Writer's Prayer

From the longings of my heart comes this writer’s prayer – my prayer to bless you.




A WRITER'S PRAYER


I long to have beautiful words spill from my hands, blessing all who read them. Words that flow like music and colors. Words that shine with loveliness and light. I long for a river of beauty to stream forth from my soul. 

Can heavenly beauty pour down into the mudholes of earthly life? I believe it can! Maybe all it takes is a willingness to receive. Lord, may I be willing.

I want to be willing to carry words and release them to the world, like healing balm. I want to embrace the call to write, and I want to write the call of beauty - the healing power in the beauty of nature. 

Lord, you make it easy for us to receive your love. May the words I write make it easy for all who receive them, whether it be in nature or in the grittiness of daily life; whether it be in celebration or in suffering. Lord, let beautiful words fall from my lips onto the page, sealed with a kiss of love and adoration for you. 

Let me live and move and have my being in you, in the secret place, in your presence where no enemy can withstand. Let the words come, Lord - words of peace and promise, words of hope and expectation, words that bring life and words that come true, words that paint the colors of goodness in all its living glory.

Amen.
May it be so.


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