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Gentleness

When we look inside our souls
A little bit deeper
We find our gentleness
Our delight
Our warmest sensations and vibrations
We find our peaceful nature
How we connect with all other life forces
All other living creatures and things
We find our greater capacity to love
And for once we have no need to think
But just be...

I look into your eyes
The windows to your soul
I can see your gentleness
and watch its steady growth
I see in you a new kind of peace
The kind you've never had before

You once were filled with anger
But now are filled with light
I feel the joy within your life
projecting into mine...

In you I find a new song to sing
The kind that gives me hope and strength
The kind that stays inside my mind
And comforts me when I am suffering


In you I have found your gentleness
In me...
I have found my own
It is love that brings me peace and rest
And sends my worries home

We were made with gentle hearts
With gentle eyes to comfort
Lips to speak gentle words
Ears to gently listen
Hands to gently touch
Arms to gently hold...

We were made to gently love
And you, I gently love...

Listen, as I softly speak
This life was made for you and me
With our beating hearts we will do great things
Together we can
You and me...

We were made with gentleness
To be and to remain...
Touched by the gentle hand of God
So that we can do the same.

It is a love that is unconditional
Gentle, Kind, and True
A love that never ends
Or fails to be with you...

It exists...for all of us, you see...

What a great weekend!!

I am feeling more and more like my biorhythms are getting back into their perfect working order. My mind is getting clearer and more focused. I am feeling more centered and peaceful. I feel amazing. It is so wonderful to be able to listen to my body and give it exactly what it needs. I think that in today's society, we have this inborn tendency to neglect ourselves--therefore our health suffers and deteriorates. I feel like I have accomplished a great deal by being able to find time to allow myself to be nurtured. Sometimes it feels like I don't have time for anything; but the truth is that we will NEVER HAVE time for anything...we have to MAKE it first. I am finding more and more ways to make time for myself, and in turn, I have been able to get so much more accomplished. I feel more wholesome, less tired, relaxed, calm, tranquil, and content.

This morning, I woke up around 6 am, drank some wonderful herbal tea, did a little yoga practice, cleaned my hamster, Theo's cage, made myself some Millet with almond milk, strawberries, walnuts, honey, and cinnamon. It was delicious! :) For lunch I ate a salad. There was a green that I put in it that I feel would be much better in cooked things. It was kind of spicy.

Tash knows how to play the guitar, so we sang a couple of hymns from SHZ - it was such a refreshing feeling. I was upset because my voice was feeling unstable on all of the high notes, and I used to not have any problems like that. It's just because I haven't been singing as much as I used to I think, and getting older could have something to do with it. Tash is going to let me borrow her vocal exercise cd so that I can possibly fix my crackly high note mess. HAHA! Maybe I can get her to help me learn the guitar. I have one, I just have never been able to be consistent with learning, so I forget. It was interesting though, because we were talking about instruments -- she said she could see me playing the violin. This is interesting, because that's the instrument that I have always wanted to play, I just never had the opportunity. I'd love to learn that one day as well.

Last night, Tash, Angy and I were baking and cooking all day; healthy of course! Tash made brownies with coconut oil and honey, walnuts, and some other stuff. I made dark chocolate candies out of a 100% cocoa bar, honey, walnuts, and dried cranberries. Those are AMAZZZING! So are the brownies!
We also made soups, beans, rice, quinoa, and a few other things. I love eating this way. It's so colorful and makes me feel fantastic!

I've got a lot of plans heading my way and I am so excited to share everything as it comes.

Best week to everyone!!

Ashley

Back in my good ol' apartment

I am finally back to living in my apartment! I will miss those animals at the house of the people I was sitting for, but there's nothing like home, sweet home...even though this home is just temporary. :)It is nice to still have a home...

I actually have several homes. A home is a place to go to, where there are people who wait for you, and love to fill your soul. Yes...I have many places I can call home.

My first week of school was absolutely amazing. I would tell you if it wasn't, so obviously, it was great! I love all of my classes and all of my instructors. I will be doing more in the community, as well as writing a lot of papers instead of the usual exams, exams, EXAMS! :) I love this. I have to remember to go pick up the TB test record that I had done before starting my last job in April, 2011. I was told that my test should be valid for this semester, since we should be finished with the community stuff by around April anyway. I hope that my other class that requires it is the same, but we will have to see. I may have to get another one done.

TB testing is a little unsettling for me. I do not like that they insert mercury into the skin, even if it is just the skin, because it still goes into your blood stream...I mean, why wouldn't it??

Another thought I HAVE to put out there is that if you are planning to vote for President of the USA, please vote RON PAUL into Republican candidacy and then into office. It's CRUCIAL...seriously, research him, and tell me he isn't good enough for our country...yeah...I figure you will like the guy. I think he's our best bet. We NEED to get Dr. Paul in!

Look at www.dailypaul.com for awesome updates. and DO NOT follow mass media Bologna (or baloney, however you wish to spell the word). It's just that... Bologna

It is our duty as the people of this country to make sure that we stop putting all kinds of criminals and psychopaths in office...so please, do us all a favor, and vote Dr. PAUL!

Thanks :)


Anyway, not to rant, I'll get back on track.

I can't wait to get back to Phoenix. It's always good to be able to go back, even if I can only go on Sundays. Now that Tash is living with me in Tucson, transportation will be easier. We can split gas and mileage. It's super nice. Tash is such a sweetheart and I am so glad she is here. :) Thanks to God for bringing me a friend like her. She's a special one, and I already can see that.

I am looking at gathering my own wild herbs and would like to dry them and make my own teas and what not. I just bought a book on herbs and herbal medicine that will really help out. It will be fun to be able to get to know all the different herbs in Arizona, and in other places when I travel. This will be a fun experience for me...wish me luck!

I am feeling more focused and calm with each new day. It is amazing to feel SO AMAZING! I can't describe my inner peace and the joy in my heart; but I can say that it is all given to me by God. He is truly magnificent and works in mysterious ways. I feel guided and nurtured every step of the way, and when I doubt, I am quickly reminded to trust and to just continue walking in the direction I am heading.

I do feel like I am on the right track in my life right now, and I hope to continue traveling this way. It takes a lot of patience, trust, and faith to stay, but I am willing to put in my effort, and to tarry on...because I can feel my purpose calling my name. I am almost there.

House Sitting!

Well, I finally got home safely last night around 2300. My last day in Oklahoma was such a blast - my grandparents and I killed time in OKC in Bricktown. We walked the river walk, road the river taxi, grabbed coffee, and ate our last meal of the trip together at Toby Keith's restaurant. The last thing we did was visiting the Oklahoma City Bombing memorial. It was amazing... it's crazy how a memorial can bring so much emotion into our hearts. I just can't believe I've never been!

The plane ride was pretty exhausting, since I have been battling some sort of allergic reaction from something in OK. It seems to have been clearing up ever since I got back into town. I had hives, congestion, and other issues...but I am glad it has been getting remarkably better. There's no telling what it could have been.

I came straight from Oklahoma to my house sitting job here in Tucson! It's very exciting for me, because I am a huge animal lover. I am taking care of a cat, Baxter, and a dog, Barley. Barley is super fun to run the neighborhood with, and he is extremely obedient. Baxter, on the other hand is the most curious cat I know! He's fun to watch, of course, but it's too bad cats aren't as easy to train as dogs. :)

This morning I woke up to barley pushing up against my nose, telling me "get up!" basically. We ran around, met a few other dogs and their parents, and had a really fun time. I had to leave them for about 6 hours today though, because I needed to go meet my friend Parker who was living there while I was gone, to clean up for the new roommate who is moving in. :) Natasha is my new roommate - a girl from Alaska, who shares the same faith as me. She is staying in my room for now, until after the 13th, because that's when her room will be ready. I am so excited for everything to be going the way that it is going. We're all going to ride up to Phoenix together for church on Sunday (her mom is here until the 10th). It's going to be a great drive to and from - and also will be great to see everyone there.

I start school again on the 11th! It's going to be absolutely CRAAAZY!! But...I'm totally ready for it. :)

Happy New Year

My vacation in Oklahoma is just about to come to a close, but I am definitely not done with my visiting yet :)

New years was a good night, first I was at my sister's husband's friend's place, but I ended up leaving there for my own personal reasons... and things were resolved the next day. But I ended up going to my cousin's family's new years gathering, and ended up having a very good night. We reminisced about our loved ones who have passed away, especially about my aunt Terri who died just under 3 years ago. There were tears, but there was much family love floating through the air.
We also played games and couldn't even finish them because we couldn't shut our mouths. We were just having so much fun, and I wouldn't have traded it for the world.

I know that the decision I made to leave the first place I had been was the right decision...even though I knew I would have to leave my sister, and felt awful about that part...but my morals and values were being violated, and I had to make a choice.

One thing I learned during this holiday is that we cannot try to make everyone in our lives happy- because no matter what choices we make, someone will always disapprove. The important thing is that we protect our faith...protect our loved ones...protect ourselves... To some, it may seem confusing, but to me, it makes perfect sense. Our faith holds everything together...without it, things seem absolutely impossible...but with it, we can be sure that everything will be alright.

I am thankful for the strength God gives me every day. It may be easy to say no to strangers, a little less easy to say no to our friends, and extremely uneasy to say no to our families. Each experience teaches us its own lesson, and each experience makes us a little bit stronger.

I hope that everyone has a happy new start to a happy new year. I wish all of you the best.

Love,

Ashley