Motivated By Spirit

This is Papa, with the new phone I am able to take a photograph oh photograph, a wonderful thing this new technology. So, I am republishing this post I published in June of 2015 with another photograph. Here's my Papa with my hand on his shoulder taken in1982. My father was a great storyteller, a man so full of joy, being in his presence always call up one’s innate joy. He would act out the parts of the stories he told and roar with laughter when he sensed there was something funny in one of his characters.  His Laughter was so loud you could hear it from miles away. He would take me with him to Mr. Winny’s shoemaker’s shop where all his friends gathered in the cooling evening after the day's hard work. Papa held center stage. All the men had stories to tell, but none of them equaled Papa’s stories, so his would be the last before everyone left for their respective homes and their cooling dinners. Papa would then say to me, “come Puss you have to go home.” The warmth of those t

The song wakes me up each morning and lulls me to sleep at night. It is a simple song learned in childhood and hadn’t crossed my mind in years. I’d  heard it and simply enjoyed the melody in my mind and sometimes sing out loud the words to no one in particular. It persists whenever my mind leaves an appointed task, or a conversation or any lull in pointed activity. The words are “howdy do my partner, howdy do today, shall we dance in the circle? Let me show you the way.”   That is all there is to the song. As children we would gather in any available open space hold hands and sing and dance with mirth and joy as only children can. We would laugh at the ones who were awkward and rejoice over the bold and daring child who came up with unique steps. Yes a child’s song replete with grown up implications. This morning the wider meaning came along with the song, its originator. I am truly grateful for the deeper dive into the world of children. The opening line is a greeting “Howd

There was a man who lived some years ago.   This man was quite ordinary in the normal scheme of things, but he was moved by a very powerful force to marry a particular woman.   He pursued her with all that was in him, and eventually won her heart.   They married and had a son.   While this son was growing into manhood, another woman cast her eyes on yet another man.   Don't let all these men confuse you; there is a point to the story of the lives of these very diverse people.   This woman was full of wiles and eventually she snared her man, again obeying a force that was powerful and imperative. They married and had a daughter. These two people, the son of the one couple and the daughter of the other, you know as your parents.   The powerful force drawing these six diverse people together into what you know as your family was YOU .   You needed certain genes, a particular type of body, economic strata, a town, a nation, a world at this particular stage of development, and a f

Hello Friends. I have decided to merge an older blog into this one, and there are three posts that I wanted to include here: Inside a Storm (Original Post Sept 1, 2011) In 1988 hurricane Gilbert hit Jamaica with devastating consequences.  It was estimated that 45 people died in that storm. I had visited Jamaica the year before the storm and the year after to see my father. The year before on my visit, I had noted that Jamaica smelled different.  One of the delights I looked forward to upon leaving the plane was the grand smell of pimento, coffee and ginger, blending together to make that distinctive Jamaican smell. That pervading aroma of spices was missing in 1987. Instead there was a great wafting of refuge and a rotting stench I had not experienced before.  In the fall of 1988 the grand aroma was back. It warmed not only my sense of smell, but put a smile on my face. It reminded of ‘Jamaica Land We Love’. This small tale is told to mark the importance of storms. They are

Allegory Number One Eons and eons ago there was a singular being with enormous power and wisdom. For ages untold this glorious and magnificent being contemplated and enjoyed the simply act of being. It knew all things, and loved all things equally. It surfeited itself in wonder and amazement of the grandeur of who it was. Once several eons ago, this beautiful being decided to conduct an experiment within itself. This had never been done and would change the way things were forever.   This mighty being embarked upon its grand experiment with enormous grace and dignity, knowing the outcome would increase its wisdom and power and enlarge its love beyond forever and a day. Quietly and with deliberate intent, the magnificent being divided itself into untold trillions of fragments. The most amazing aspect of this grand division was the being remained intact as itself. The difference being, the many fragments were aware that they were part of the grand whole that was this great b