M.E.'s Thoughts

I have a friend who is an amazing professional musician;  just watching and listening to him play you cannot help but appreciate the depth of his talent and skill. But even when he is on stage solo, he is not a one man show. When it comes to scheduling his bookings, marketing his music, bookkeeping and selling his merchandise...well, frankly, he needs help. Running a successful small business is a lot like being a musician. Often an entrepreneur starts with an  idea for a great product or service. They have the knowledge and skill in their chosen field to ensure they can deliver an excellent end result. But even with the best of ideas, a product itself does not make money.  It requires someone to sell it. Once sales take off,  it takes great leadership, legal and financial knowledge and an ability to build relationships in order for a solid business to really grow. And let's face it, with the exception of a small number of ridiculously gifted anomalies...

Lavish love  Spilling out spontaneously  Abundance feeding famished souls Alluring magnetism lifting downcast faces Drawing gazes skyward To the expansive glories Refreshing mercies Pouring forth freely From the beauty of the heavens Forgivness embracing brokenness Soothing saddened souls Releasing shackled hearts Streams of life Flowing in unceasing torrents Drenching withered vines to fullness Outstretched arms raising trampled spirits From mire and drudge Cleansing mud soaked wings Sparks of joy Exploding with vivid color Echoing with bursts of song and laughter Spontaneous smiles piercing darkened emptiness Bursting forth radiantly Igniting ashes into brilliant flame Lavish love, Bringing mercy, life, joy Redefining reality Cleansing conscience Rejuvenating freedom

Searing seas of emotion Tossing us from crest to depth Balance threatened by the shift Certainty wavering in the toss Fickle feelings playing games The mind deceived by beliefs Unfounded and falsely created Setting a cardboard stage Living based on roving moods Changing winds stirring up sands confusion and deceit whipped around Blurring our true vision Surrendering the truth of matters To inconclusive evidence Compulsions of the moment Scattering rational realities Step away from the crumbling edge Ground the day in contemplation Set foundations in the known Tread solid in the truth

What is heaven Fantastical flights of fancy Happily ever after Dreams of  dramatic desires Magic potions  Promising fairy tale endings Pictures brushstroked In perfect accord  Masterpieces of vivid colors Haunting lyrics that move the soul Drenched in melodies of purest emotion Rays of light slicing through cloud pillows Sensibilities lost in the supremacy of uncontrived nature  Devoured in chaotic beauty  A dance of spontaneous swirls   Wild beasts coddling innocence breeze that carries honeyed scents Crystal waters mirroring double rainbows Spreads of jeweled florals and golden grains   Imagine the most profoundly beautiful  Dream the decadent Conjure visions of lofty heights  Yet None can compare Even in slight To what is heaven 

Innovation is not the invention of something completely original. Our concrete world has a limited number of resources; every new idea, product or process launches from something already existing. There are only so many colors with which we can paint, a set number of tones our ears can hear, an established table of chemicals that have been discovered.  Innovation exists in the way we manipulate what already is; combining the known into something excitingly fresh. Everyone starts with the same basics. But where the innovation comes in is when these collide with your unique imagination and creativity. This is when endless possibilities can be realized. 

We have all been told we are unique, there is no one else in the world exactly like us. Yet with the slew of assessments for  personality types, intellectual styles and temperaments, it seems society is constantly trying to classify us despite our uniqueness. Rather than celebrate that we are each an original creation of our genetics, experiences, environments and beliefs, we are encouraged to find where we "fit in" or worse, "blend in". Perhaps there would be less identity angst if we were not always trying to fit a category. If we believe that we are intended to be one of a kind masterpieces, why are we struggling against nature to become photocopies? Be proud of not being "normal"; after all who wants to live in a crowded box?

Is the value of a diamond Determined by the gold of its setting? Is a pearl worthless While covered in sand and mud? Does the sun shine less brilliant When hidden from Earths face? Is the beauty of a bloom erased As the shadows of nights cover fall? Can the richness of fine metals Be tarnished by age and wear? Is the majesty of a mountain peak Diminished  when hidden from view? Buried treasure unseen by eyes Holds not only wealth beyond imagination But anticipation And hope Inspiring to focus and dig deeper The value of a pure heart Cannot be tainted by the world around Each soul holds great worth Despite the mire it has been dragged through The brilliance of a creative mind Exists even when undiscovered Age cannot negate the value of experience Wisdom is not lost with wrinkles and gray Value, beauty, brilliance exists within each of us Waiting to be uncovered, discovered, realized, celebrated.

Is it Perspective or the shifting breeze That changes the wisp of cloud imperceptibly It's form evolving unendingly As eyes watch from the ground far below What forces are behind the alterations undefinable but evident One moment something is as it seems And the next it is not the same at all How can being in the same place Everyday people doing everyday things Suddenly seem so foreign In comparison to how it seemed yesterday? Have we closed our eyes To the winds of change blowing through us Or is our shift in position So slight it cannot be measured or felt One day the sun is cool lemon yellow Brightening the trees with refreshing light The next it is on fire Orange blazing heat, scorching the ground beneath our feet Dread at the start of a new day Dragging emptiness around in our wagon The load draining our resources Chasing after the next big thing, or the cloak of night to cover us Energy at the dawn of the next day Happiness coursing through us,...