It is a new day. A Super Moon Sunday day. Another opportunity to a live what I believe, to have my spirituality tested, to step up to the plate and not be found wanting, to know if all those lofty ideals I cling to and write about are true. It’s an opportunity for me to practice empathy, compassion, forgiveness and healing even, and most importantly, in the trenches of despair.

In the wake of the shock and awe of the election, I found myself faced with several moments of truth.

I have been unfriended by my youngest daughter. She doesn’t understand why I am so selfish, and she is especially angry that I would express my thoughts on social media where her friends can see it, embarrassing her (she was obviously for the other candidate, as were all my daughters, along with their in-laws and extended family members). What cuts the deepest is that I no longer have access to her daily pictures and posts, to what has been a happy window into the milestones and growth of my youngest granddaughter. She promised to send photo texts. Social media aside, I imagine that the holidays will be a superficial practice in polite pleasantries. And yet, I do forgive her…she doesn’t realize what she has done. I hope for the best and look forward to that day when she and I can reconnect again in a meaningful way.

My oldest daughter called to check on me too,  and to say she was sorry because she knew I would likely be very sad about the election results. We talked for over an hour. I forgive her too, for being a one issue voter, for not stopping to consider the consequences of her vote. I accept her apology fully with all my heart. Love saves us. Love always wins.

It’s going to be bumpy. I imagine I will have daily opportunities to practice forgiveness and to find hope in miracles. Believe it or not, I’m grateful for this test of faith.

That being said, please be gentle with yourselves, forgive, empathize, seek truth, fight for justice, practice peace, hold one another, be kind and love one another. This is new ground for many of us. But we can do it together.

Peace and love!

Shi Sai Sunday’s Week in ReVerse ~ 13 November 2016

And that is all there is to it
Could forget it
but remember truth matters

NO WORDS

I can be more effective when I am free from the bonds of unforgiveness.
how eximious one is
Has grown dark…

kat

The Shi Sai (formerly known as a ReVerse) is a new form I came up with during Poetry Month in April 2016. I’ve actually been writing shu sai for years but was inspired to give it a proper name. It is a poem created by taking one line of verse from several poems of an author’s own collection. The shi sai is done as a review of a series or collection of poems and therefore, each line should flow in chronological order of the dates the poems were written (from oldest to new). The lines chosen should be the author’s favorite from each poem. This form works best if the author resists the temptation to read the full new poem before all the verses have been added. (It helps one to resist the impulse to change a line to make it “fit”.