Standing in her hard fought power and glory
Like a Phoenix risen from the ashes
Ready to take on the world
To protect those in need
And to stand firm
Against the cowardly oppressors
Of the truth

Sink or swim,
That is the question.
The seductive abyss,
Or the choppy waves,
Which choose you?

The mermaid of the deep
Beckons,
Seductively calling
My name,
“Come hither,
Come rest your weary head”.
No! It’s a lie!
There’s no rest in that direction,
Only torment and pain and confusion.
So reluctantly at first,
I rise above it,
I feast my eyes beyond,
I float,
And swim safely to shore,
Slowly, exhaustedly,
But more
Stronger every time,
I resist the urge
To drown

What is true?
What is not?
Is that demon speak?
Ego speak?
Soul speak?
It’s all true.
It’s all not true.
So where does that leave me
Other than confused...

Trust is a choice,
We choose to trust
Or we choose to mistrust,
Often based on our past
Rather than the moment and the person in front of us,
Choosing to tarnish them with the same brush
As those who mistreated us
Those who did not have our best interests at heart.
Trust is a choice,
But do yourself a favour
And trust from the present
Trust from the heart
Trust until proven to the contrary

Regrets.
Such a wasted emotion
For what can you do
About what is past.
Certainly you can choose to examine what happened
But objectively
In terms of cause and reaction
Explore what was said and done that led to x, y, z,
That way you can stop repeating
Your sins  
And choose a different path
A healthier way
For you
For me
For the universe

There’s no time to waste,
Live with passion and purpose,
Love with all your heart, and
Bring joy, kindness and peace
To all you meet

It’s safe now
You’re home now
You can come out now
From behind the barbed wire
Of your troubled mind of turmoil and strife
With its venomous insults, fear and pain.
I invite you my beautiful vulnerable imperfect child
To come into the light
To experience the grace of God
To know all is well now
You are free now
You can laugh now
You can live now.
Surrender and
Give yourself
Fully
Completely
Wonderfully
To God
And know
You are loved
And accepted
Beyond all compare
You are safe now
You are home now

Open your ears
And listen,
Truly listen,
With an open mind,
Inquisitively
Unjudgementally
Unfiltered,
With no pre-conceived false slights
Tainting what you hear,
No black tinted spectacles
Marring your view,
No perceived attack
Altering your perception.
Just listen,
Truly hear,
Notice
The tone of voice,
The intention behind the words,
Know what is really being said,
And understand
The truth of the matter

Love trumps fear
Love trumps all
All you need is Love

What will it take to remember
I AM enough
I AM deserving
I AM loved
By Him at least,
And to know
It will all become easier
When I learn to accept
And let go?

If what you focus on
You attract,
Knowing
Your desire is
The path of success,
Then why do you
Gaze upon others’ mistakes
In the mistaken belief
That you’ll avoid them
When all it will do
Is lead to the
Repetition of?

Instead
Focus on
The Joy
The Abundance
The Success
That you so desire
To start
Attracting more of this
Into your life.
Learn your own lessons
On your journey
Rather than repeat the
Mistakes of others

And do you not see
Your true desire is not indeed to focus on mistakes
But instead
To be free
To fly
To soar,
So take my outstretched hand
Follow me
And I will lead you to your dreams

Life is precious,
We never know when it will be taken from us,
So enjoy every moment
And live like it will be your last.
No more time to be serious,
To carry the weight of the world on your shoulders,
Let go of grudges, perceived slights and those who wronged you,
Learn the lessons
And trust,
For there is hope in the now.
Enjoy
Smile
Laugh
Live every moment
With childish curiosity
Wonder and awe
And
Love.
Appreciate everyone in your life
See the light and good within them
Know they are struggling too
So do what you can to
Lighten their load
Ease their burdens
And bring joy to their day
By pouring yourself into them
And in so doing
You will bring joy and peace
To yours
In return.

Phone call
Out of the blue
Sister in law abroad
Screaming down phone
Reassuring her it’s all going to be ok.
Brother rushed to hospital
Cardiac arrest
In the sea
While training for channel swim
Dragged ashore on board
Laying on pebbles
Heart stopped
Fortunately
Doctor and two nurses
Nearby
Pumping heart
Back to life
While curious onlookers watched
Nonchalantly
While eating their sandwiches
Amongst the steely determination
To bring life back
Thrashing arms
Made it too unsafe
For rescue by helicopter
So by road instead

Hospital emergency
Heart stopped
Again
Brought back to life
Again
Induced coma
To recover
High alert
Family worried sick

But for me
Calmness
Awareness
A knowing
He’s not ready to go
Nurses confused by my
Lightness
Asking if I’m really ok.
Yes I’m ok
Because I know
It’s all going to be ok
My brother is not yet ready to give up

And sure enough
Defying all doctor’s expectations
Awakening early
From induced coma
Physically weak
Mentally strong as an ox
With no lasting damage
It’s a miracle they shout
When quite simply
He just wasn’t ready
It wasn’t his time