Don’t you feel like you are a passenger on a boat out in the ocean? There all sorts of boats, big one and small ones. There are fancy, dancy ones and ones barely staying afloat. They come in various colours and styles. The varieties are endless as are the multiplicity of quarks in the Universe.
There are calm days when it is smooth sailing and other days when they are rough and you wish you had not gone out there at all. Most of the time it is a good combination of flow – steady waves that rock you into the submission of life where you forget that you have a purpose in being there in the first place.
We all have a destination or somewhere we are going or need to go. We have an end goal or life purpose of being a passenger on this boat called “life.”
Sometimes, we get lulled into just the movement of the boat as time moves itself along the currents. One day follows the next but does it really? After all, time is an illusion and although we can have past experiences they may or may not impact our present circumstances, that storm you weathered the other day is over and gone and has moved on, so why don’t you do the same thing?
You are in a new space and a new part of the ocean. The future never really does come because you are in the ever-present presence. If we do make the effort, we can prepare for the “future” by doing the tasks we need to accomplish in preparation for the next moment or the ever present now.
It sometimes seems like we have little to no control. It sometimes seems that the ocean is God or the Universe and that he is controlling the whole scenario. The way I look at it, he is doing just that to a large extent but we are thrown into experiences to figure things out. We are then given the choice as to how we will deal with our next challenge or decision. That, then, is all about free will and free choice.
Enjoy your boat ride in the ocean of life! Let’s hope you enjoy the journey before the huge wave comes out and knocks your boat out of the water.
Women make up half the population but we do not have half the votes or half the power that men still have. We have grown and changed thanks to the hard work of many brave women who fought against the patriarchal system. What ever happened to ancestral societies that honoured, revered and respected women and their matriarchal systems? Why can’t we have a balanced system where both sexes or genders are equal and equitable?
I have not even touched the subject of countries or lands or societies outside of modern day ones who continue to discriminate. They are so behind in so many areas of life. Women are enslaved and treated like dirt. They are considered second class citizens or worse and in many cases are not even able to be given participatory equivalents in governing systems. Having said this, modern day societies still continue to discriminate as well in various areas of life.
Being older, I have seen how things have changed through time. I remember running in junior and senior high school. I remember the boys my age being able to do weight lifting to increase their muscle strength and endurance. I wanted to participate too. I wanted to be stronger and a better overall athlete. I was already an excellent runner but I wanted to be even better.
I was not allowed to participate. I was given the awful and misinformed reason that it would adversely affect my reproductive systems and so was denied access. Even it this were true, which it is not, why were the coaches and authorities of the day given this momentous and important decision over my life and what I choose to do with it? It is my body and my choice.
It was only after high school that I was finally introduced to some weight lifting machines and permitted to lift weights. I have continued to do so off and on throughout the years and I have to say that I love it. I love how I feel during and after a good work out with weights.
The point is that whether it is working out with weights or whatever we want to be doing with our lives, we should have the choice and option. I remember many occupations and careers such as firefighting, police work or the military were kept away from women because there would be unrealistic barriers based on physical size and weight or other factors that most women could not reach. We were all painted with the same brush regardless of ability. It is more important that women are given the opportunity to prove themselves.
There is so much more that I can say as I am definitely a feminist believing in equal rights and opportunities. Perhaps, I will have time in the future to continue my musings about various and similar topics.
The Polish name for Aunt or Aunty is Ciocia. I have had a number of Aunts on both sides of the family and the thing that I have to say about them is that they are very strong women – physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. They had to be. They lived in Poland during World War II which you can imagine was not an easy time.
I have such a profound respect for my Ciotki. They were very hard-working as many Polish people of that generation had to be out of necessity. They had it drilled into them because there were hard times on the farm and it was part of your ethic – essentially your personality – to work hard. You had to do everything yourself and be efficient and effective at it.
There wasn’t room to be slack and idle. You did what you could to help out.
I had one Aunt, Ciocia Angie, who was already married with a number of children. The story goes that she was helping a mother cow calve her baby. She was successful but came into the farm house, sat down in an arm chair, had a heart attack and died. That is how hard-working the women were. They did many things that the men would do.
Now to talk about my Uncles or Wujki would be another story in and of themselves. They were extremely brave, hard-working and courageous. What they endured, no person should have to go through. Have I mentioned being imprisoned, being sent to work camps and being sent to a gulag in Siberia?
Anyways, I honour my Cioci for teaching me to stand up for myself and help out where I can. It is through their example that I have learned to be hard-working in my life too in whatever I face or do. Thanks Cioci!
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Snow Geese – Photography by Mary Mikawoz – Click on image or link to see the bigger picture.
Actually, this photographic shot is pretty rare. Although I live in Manitoba, it is difficult to find Snow Geese in our neck of the woods. If you look at a migratory map, you will see that they go quite far up north. I caught this image as they were migrating south in the fall time.
According to Wikipedia, “Snow geese breed north of the timberline in Greenland, Canada, Alaska, and the northeastern tip of Siberia…”
I hope you like this image.
As for me, I love beauty in all its forms. With my art, I am often in a zen-type of mood and feel as if I am “in the flow.” With my photography, I feel as if I am inspired by God or the Universe to capture these moments in time. I feel as if I am zinged when I capture that special shot and it is meant to be.
Thanks in advance for liking commenting, sharing and purchasing. Check out my other images and collections. Thanks for all positive feedback.
Feel free to follow me on my art page to see new photography or artwork as I release them. Thanks, Mary Mikawoz
Swim and swimming are words I like because they involve me being directly in the flow. I love being in water but have not always. I once had an experience where I was at a public swimming pool and midway across it, I simply forgot how to swim. I am not kidding. I was about to panic but I said to myself “Stay Calm. You can do this.”
I somehow figured out how to float and then make progression across the pool to the side. I was so upset, I swam to the ladder and immediately got out of the pool and left. I changed and went home. That was that.
I did not go back to water of any sort for a long period of time. Even taking a shower was kind of like a mini-crisis. I could not trust myself not to drown or so I thought. I am not sure what happened exactly. I was doing fine that day in the pool but perhaps I just was not focussed enough. I do not know what came over me. What had come naturally to me from years of lessons in swimming, now became a big time issue for me.
Fast forward a number of years and on many levels, I still had my fear. Then something switched in my brain again. I realized that water is good. I came to value it whether it was coming through internally when hydrating myself or through being in it for showers and what not.
I actually think I have to thank Wim Hof for this one. I reviewed one of his books where he suggested doing cold showers along with his breathing technique. I quickly implemented the specific breathing practice and loved the results so it was only natural to end my hot showers with turning on the cold for a few seconds and then longer. I no longer feared the water and had a new profound respect for it.
Now, when I go swimming in the lake again, I revel being in the cooler waters. It is enticing and engaging. Now, I am swimming in a pool again and I love the way my body feels immersed in the soft, luscious and fluid substance. I love the subtle feel of the water as it encapsulates and surrounds my body. I love the flow of the water as I take each stroke swimming. It is an incredible substance that can be a vapour, a solid as ice or fluid as water. I now and again love my H20.
Wow! This topic is certainly a doozy. It immediately brings up a lot of emotion and recollection. To admit that I have been depressed is something that I do not like to do but to admit that I have had severe depression is quite another.
I have fallen deep within the well of despair many times and otherwise fallen clearly down that rabbit hole. I have ruminated and worried about what is, will be or has been. Upon much self-reflection, estimation and analysis through the years, I see depression as all the worries we have had in the past time period while worries in the future arises as anxiety in us. In either case, the biggest problem is that we are not living in the present moment, realizing and appreciating with gratitude all that is great and good already in our lives.
Depression is cycling through all the old, negative guck. It is remembering all that which did not go as well as we had hoped or would want it to be. It is about holding on with a firm grip like your fingers around a pencil that you do not want to let go of but that we need to let go of. We need to unclench our fingers from the object that we have spent so much time being attached to.
The thing is that the past is gone. What happened has happened. Even if you were abused as a child or if you were mistreated by deceitful people with ill, malicious or involuntary intent, what can you do about it? If it is possible or necessary for your soul’s growth to do something legal, then perhaps you should. Otherwise, let bygones be bygones, release and let go.
If you learned a lesson, it was valuable. Perhaps, you need to share this message of warning with other people in which case writing a book or sharing in some respects may be in order. Even when you have done so, you will still need to let go of it all and forgive in the end.
I ask that you and I live in the “present now” as Eckart Tolle recommends and see the value of this powerful everlasting moment for that is all there is.
I want to say that I am as mighty as a tank – strong and resilient. I think that somehow, we should not want to be like tanks as that is an indication of war.
What is the purpose of a tank? It is protective and yet it can be combative. In a world such as this, we need to armour up to protect ourselves against outside forces, however, at what point do we finally let the good forces or greater powers in?
How then, do we decide who is good or bad? What determines their worth? Is it merely perspective only, which is subjective? Can it ever be objective?
We do need to protect ourselves to be sure. It is part of our defence mechanism within our Spiritual Beings. We need that bubble to excise out or keep those at bay who would do us harm. We need to be resilient and strong to keep those whose intentions are not good.
Protect yourself but be open to welcoming and positive forces. Keep alert and observe from your post. Guard your inner sanctum or inner soul. Protect your Higher Being but does it ever really need real protection as it is eternal and everlasting? You Decide.
I can calculate the number of days I have lived but not the amount of days I have left. That is entirely up to God and the Universe. I guess I do have some choices as some say. I had some decision-making choices before I came down. Perhaps, I did choose my parents and my siblings. Perhaps, I chose my gender, my ethnicity, my religion and so much more beginning data. Perhaps, I did choose the lessons I would work on while in my Earthly suit. Perhaps, I do have a choice as to how I will fulfill my destiny-driven life as I have free choice from moment to moment.
I can calculate the expectation of an outcome such as if I do part A alongside part B and C, then D is the most logical ordered outcome but this is not necessarily the case. There are other players in the mix and as they have free choice as well, their impact on my life has to be considered. It is all about synchronizing my efforts for my highest good while the other involved parties do the same on their end.
I do not judge the outcome but I do judge my efforts. Acceptance is key to it all. It is up to me to entice myself to do better and better. It is for my better judgement to accept myself as I am while doing my best on the path of life.
The process of moving forward is more important than worrying about the hows as I leave those details to God. It is about taking appropriate micro-steps to engage in the process of living and forwarding my movement in an ongoing and upward motion. It is up to me to take the necessary action to fulfill what needs to be learned in this lifetime.
I will calculate the next baby step and then the next after that. These steps build upon one another to the point where I will not realize and recognize how far I have gone because the journey has been meaningful and appropriate for my development as a human being and more importantly as a Spiritual Being on a path towards awareness and enlightenment.
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Solo Silo – Photography by Mary Mikawoz – Click on image or link to see the bigger picture.
I love our drives around Manitoba. You see many granaries or silos around the prairie land. You also see many farmer’s fields that are in various stages of development whether preparing, seeding, watering, sunning, growing, enriching, harvesting or still in a fallow state. I feel that this is the same way with people too, reflecting our goals in life and how we proceed. The silent silo is alone and is standing for storage of crops.
I love the bright colours in this picture of blues, yellows and greens. It was taken in the Interlake Area of Manitoba.
With my art, I am often in a zen-type of mood. With my photography, I feel as if I am inspired by God or the Universe to capture these moments in time.
Thanks in advance for liking commenting, sharing and purchasing. Check out my other images and collections. Thanks for all positive feedback.
Feel free to follow me on my art page to see new photography or artwork as I release them. Thanks, Mary Mikawoz
Book: “Trust Your Vibes (Revised Edition): Live an Extraordinary Life by Using Your Intuitive Intelligence,” Sonia Choquette, Hay House, 2022
Audio Book Review by Mary Mikawoz
I had listened to the original audio book called “Trust Your Vibes” a number of years ago. I am lucky to say that Sonia Choquette has rewritten this 20 year old book so that it is a newer version with updated information and experiences.
I was impressed with the first book and yet this one somehow tops even that one. I am not able to remember how many chapters the first book one had but this one has 34 chapters which are basically useable tips and techniques to increase you Intuitive Powers.
Overall, I am really impressed with this book and give it a 5 out 5. I highly recommend that you take appropriate actions and try to incorporate the practices into your daily life. Even if you only learn a few of them, you will be like the Chicago Businesswoman who was selected as the “Business Person of the Year” where she shared that her secret to success was using her Intuitive Intelligence.
In fact, I liked the book so much, I might listen to it another few times to glean more information and insights.
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If you wish more information on Sonia Choquette, feel free to visit her online website at https://soniachoquette.net or on her Social Media platforms. She has written many books, appeared at numerous workshops and conferences through Hay House and other organizations like Mindvalley. She offers quite a few courses, as well. Finally if you wish to have more a inspired connection, she has a private members Facebook group called “Good Vibes Tribe” and offers personal readings.
Mary Mikawoz Creative Pursuits Blog 