The changing of the journals

I sit outside in the patio this morning, enjoying a cup of Costa Rican coffee, the fountain, the birds, and an ever slight breeze.

As I journal my thoughts in my "Advice From A Mountain" journal, the dreaded moment comes. There is no more paper. It is over. But it isn't.  Not knowing when I might finish this journal, when I happened upon "Advice From a Tree" at the Master General Store in Waynesville, NC last year, I picked it up.

Since 2010 my journals have been nature based. I picked up "Advice From A River" and "Advice From A Mountain" in Cape San Blas on a girls trip to the beach.

You can find blog entries about both of these journals within my blog, so I won't say too much about those themes.  (I have also picked up t-shirts that are nature based: "Advice From A Mountain" and "Advice From a Waterfall".  You'll find those in the blogs too.)

[Advice From A River..Go with the Flow-- 7/29/11]
[Advice From Nature-- 6/10/13]
[From the River to the Mountain-- 9/19/13]
[Follow the trails of the wise ones-- 7/22/14]


I will say that each theme has fit where I was in life at the moment, giving me additional support and strength to continue the journey.

As I finished "Advice From A Mountain" this morning, I am somewhat sad to let it go. Among other things, it has reminded me to stand in the strength of my True Nature, rise above it all, and climb beyond my limitations.

How very fitting as I finish this journal, that I was handed a heart rock yesterday morning at church by one of the members. She had found it on a recent trip to Louisiana. She knows that I love nature and creation and see hearts everywhere.

This heart rock reminds me that I will continue to learn and grow from the mountains and rocks.

The journal ends with these pages:

As I transition to my new journal, what advice from nature will be my guide?

"Dear Friend,

Stand Tall and Proud

Sink your Roots deeply into the Earth

Reflect the Light of your true nature

Think long term

Go out on a limb

Remember your place among all living beings

Embrace with joy the changing seasons

For each yields it's own abundance

The energy and Birth of Spring

The Growth and Contentment of Summer

The Wisdom to let go like leaves in the Fall

The Rest and Quiet Renewal of Winter

Feel the wind and the sun

And delight in their presence

Look up at the moon that shines down upon you

And the mystery of the stars at night

Seek nourishment from the good things in life

Simple pleasures

Earth, Fresh Air, Light

Be content with your natural beauty

Drink plenty of water

Let your limbs sway and dance in the

breezes

Be flexible

Remember your Roots

Enjoy the View!"

As someone who thoroughly enjoys the Creator's handiwork and connects with the Creator through creation, I look forward to my continued journaling journey with this journal by Ilan Shamir.

Blessings on your journey,

Debra

P.S.-- If you're interested in these journals, check out their website: Yourtruenature

From the river to the mountain...

Back in May 2010 I bought two journals I found in a quaint store in Apalachicola on a girls' trip to Cape San Blas, FL.  The memories of the sand, surf, and sunsets still can bring me to a peaceful place!  The two journals that I bought were: Advice from a River and Advice from a Mountain, guided journals from "Your True Nature".  [Check out their website for their various products.]

I decided to start using the Advice from a River journal when I began my Academy #32 journey in July 2011.  I came to the last pages of that journal this past weekend on my 2nd intensive weekend for my seminary ethics class on the Wilmore campus. 

I have been carrying around the Advice from a Mountain journal with me for months, not really knowing when I would run out of pages. 

I had forgotten what the inside of Advice from a Mountain said and back in the Spring when I was preparing for a talk for an Emmaus walk, I pulled it out to take a look at it.  I realized that as I was nearing the end of my Academy journey, the Advice from a River (going with the flow) journal was also coming to an end.  My first thought (fear) was that the next journal was going to say something about climbing steep and difficult terrain.  I wasn't so sure that I really wanted to use this journal. 

But when I opened it up, the first words on the opening page of the journal were: "Dear friend...Reach new heights"

That was much different than what my fearful thoughts had anticipated.

I could live into this new part of the journey.  Though I have been enjoying the river ride and going with the flow, I can live into reaching new heights.  "Going with the flow" wasn't simply a journal saying.  It was something that came from my husband as I shared a deeper calling back in 2006 on a mission trip and I wondered what it meant at the time.  His response was to "go with the flow".  And, I have been.  We have been.  And, oh what a wonderful journey this is turning out to be!

Even as I embark on this new realm of reaching new heights, I doubt I'll be too far from the river.  One finds both waterfalls and rivers near mountains.  I imagine that I will have some opportunities to still "go with the flow" and live into the other aspects of the first journal.

Ilan Shamir has created these beautiful nature journals. 

In the "Story of Advice from a Mountain" Ilan shares:

"The mountains, the rivers, the wildflowers, and the cloud patterns calm me in the midst of yet another busy day. [...] Sure, there are those days when I feel on loose ground, not sure of where I stand and not firm about who I am or my convictions, yet the mountains and timeless beauty of nature help me return to solid ground...the strength of my own true nature."

Because I am learning to know myself  and my Creator better, I know that one of my better connections with my Creator is within creation, so  this resonates with me.  As do many of the Psalms that bring out the beauty and power of God's creation. 

On the back of the journal there is a synopsis of what this journal is all about:

"Reach new heights!

Savor life's peak experiences

Stand in the strength of

Your True Nature

Rise above it all

Get to the point

Rock on!"

Standing in the strength of my true nature is a place of continued learning and growth for me.  But, ultimately, it means standing in who I was created to be.  It's that journey of learning who this unique creation is and living it out that adds to the adventure!

The longer version is inside the journal:

"Dear friend

Reach new heights

Savor life's peak experiences

There is beauty as far as the eye can see

 

Stand in the strength of Your True Nature

Be Uplifting

Follow the trails of the Wise Ones

 

Protect and preserve timeless beauty

silence, solitude, serenity

flowing rivers

ancient trees

 

Rise above it all

Make solid decisions

Climb beyond your limitations

Leave no stone unturned

Never take life for granite

 

Get to the point

Patience, patience, patience

Life has its ups and downs

Let your troubles vanish into thin air

 

To summit it all up

Enjoy the journey step by step

 

Rock on!"

 

~Ilan Shamir

 

I have approximately two years left of seminary to finish out my M.Div. degree.  I'm at 63 hours, very close to 2/3 of the way done for the 96 credits.  With the 5 credits this semester (praying for satisfactory completion and decent grades!) I will be up to 68 credits. 

 

I wonder if this journal will carry me these next two years like the river journal carried me the past two years?!?!  Who knows?!?! 

 

What I do know is that I am looking forward to continued adventures along the journey.   I look forward to learning, growing, and sharing these times with you.

 

How is your journey going?

 

Debra

 

PS-- For a link to a blog entry about my Advice from a River journal, you can check it out by clicking on the title: Advice from a river.... Go with the flow.



Advice from Nature... T-shirts and journals

I am almost finished using my Advice from a River journal.

I have some pages left, but I look forward to my next journal, Advice from a Mountain.

I bought them at the same time, at an eclectic shop in Apalachicola, FL where I also found wooden hand crosses. 

The main advice from Advice from a River was "go with the flow" and that is how I've been living it since 2006, though this journal has been in used from July 2011. 

I took a sneak peek at the Advice from a Mountain journal and was pleasantly relieved to find the advice to be "Dear friend...reach new heights".  WHEW!  I was a tad concerned that I would be moving into a rough time.  Well, that could still be the case.  Reaching new heights requires striving and climbing.  I am hoping and praying that the journey won't be too difficult.  I know that I can take rest stops along the way.  One page in this new journal says, "Stand in the strength of your true nature."  The back of the journal says this:

"Reach new heights! 

Savor life's peak experiences

Stand in the strength of

Your True Nature!

Rise above it all

Get to the point

Rock on!"

 

Toward the end of the journal is this page: "To summit all up... It's the journey step by step by step."

 

Just as I have enjoyed the river journal, I imagine I'm going to enjoy the mountain one. 

 

Both of these journals come from the company Your True Nature.  For more about this company in Fort Collins, Colorado, simply click on their name in the previous sentence.

 

On our recent mountain get-away trip to Amicalola Falls State Park in Dawsonville, GA I found some t-shirts that also carried advice from nature.  I was pleased to see a t-shirt with advice from a mountain.  I found another one with advice from a waterfall.  What I did not see there at the gift shop was a t-shirt with advice from a river.  But I did learn that the t-shirts are from the same company as the journals, so I might be able to find one there. ☺

 

Because it is in Creation where I connect best with the Creator, both the mountain and the waterfall shirt express to me ways I can live out my journey.  Rocks, earth, mountains, water, waterfalls.  Ahhhh!!! ☺

 

Here are the shirts:

 

Being a linguistic geek, I like the phrase "to summit up" to mean 'to sum it up'.  So, "to summit up", I plan to attempt to live in to nature's advice from these t-shirts and journals.  Notice that the waterfall offers some of the same advice as the river in "go with the flow".  So, I'm not done with that just yet. ☺  Additionally, the waterfall advises: "roar with excitement, let your cares fall away, create your own music, immerse yourself in nature, stay active, make a splash!" 

I recognize that not all persons are "nature" people.  So, you may get your advice somewhere else.  Your wisdom comes from other sources.  There's nothing wrong with that.  For me, enjoying Creation from my Creator is a source of strength, peace, and life.  Without it, my journey would not be complete.

However you choose to learn and grow on your journey, may you find something to bring you some encouragement and a smile to your face today.

Blessings on your journey!

Debra