Liveliness | Bonnie Barnard - Part 7

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Pig Tails and God

I am blessed with a highly creative daughter who has a great sense of humor. While in high school she went through a program that allowed her to attend high school and college simultaneously. She decided to take Cosmetology Management. Part of this program was practicing hair styles on people. My dad thought he had a good sense of humor and would crack himself up telling jokes which others didn’t find too funny. Last week my daughter sent me a text message which read “Pigtails” and had the following photo of my 9 month old grand baby’s first hair style: (You have to look closely as her hair color and background are pretty close in color). As I clicked on this message and saw the photo, I felt the energy of my daughter and the love the two of us share come through this text. I was pulled into my grand daughter’s joy and the love my daughter has for her. In that same shared moment, I...

Finally!! A Guide to Loving Myself

Last week I met with author Christine Arylo, author of Madly in Love with Me. She committed to learning how to love herself, and once she did the internal heavy lifting, wrote a guide book to lead individuals from loathing to love. It is a thorough piece of work offered to readers in a fun, inner-active format. I couldn’t wait to interview her for the blog. Enjoy!!! Rev. Bonnie: What motivated you to go on the journey of self-love? Christine: For example, while my high self-esteem helped me excel in school, climb the corporate ladder and show up confidently and strong, my lack of self-compassion led me to be really hard on myself. No matter how much I did or achieved, it was never good enough. My weak self-pleasure meant that I worked really hard but never stopped to enjoy or take in what I had actually accomplished. My lack of self-honor, led me to stay in the wrong relationship for 14 years and almost give up my dreams to...

Broken Heartedness

“We are pain and what cures pain, both.” Rumi “What is real can never be fully taken away; its essence always remains.” Poet David Whyte Many years ago, my heart broke wide open and since then I have not been the same. It splintered after an operation and my body wasn’t recovering well. My heart broke for the vulnerability and fragility of my physical being. At the same time, my father died. The grief oozed through my body and I saw everything through the temporal lens of death. Listening to a song I would say to myself “this could be the last time I hear this song,” then I’d cry for its beauty. Watching sunrises and sunsets choked me up more. I couldn’t imagine anything more beautiful and I knew there would be a time when my eyes would behold its last. At the same time, a major relationship ended. I chose to leave my home town and relocate to a city far away from family and friends and...

Partnering Up for Prayer, Part 2, The How-To’s

Imagine the feeling of your favorite holiday or birthday moment and times that times ten. That is the feeling of a powerful prayer partnership. It consists of love, surprise, recognition, intimacy, delight, and the visceral knowing someone has your back. Contrast this with the feeling of being bogged down in complaints, disappointments, anger, unhealed dredge run amock … placed at your feet to fix. That is the heaviness of a prayer partnership which isn’t right. Prayer partnering can change your life or can be a waste of precious time. I’ve experienced both. As my new PP and I are defining and playing with our new partnership, I thought I’d share my notes and insights with you. 1. Choose a partner who has the same level of commitment to their spiritual practice as you do to yours.Now remember, I am a reincarnated monk and nun many times over and I can and have invested all day in prayer. To be with praying light weight isn’t a fair exchange and...

Poetry in My In-Box

On the phone with a friend yesterday, we spoke about the impending birth of my grand daughter. “How will I know if she is close to her arrival?” I inquired. “When your daughter begins nesting and preparing for her arrival, you will know. Washing the baby’s clothes is a clue,” says my buddy. If someone were to ask me a clue for when their Soul was preparing to open, I would say, “You become quiet and still. You see your life from a space of animated energy. You become a poetry magnet. You will consuming it or write it like your life depends upon it. Maybe both. Poetry pulls the Soul forward, or the Soul pulls it.” Ivan, of Poetry Chikhana knows this. Several times per week he compiles thoughtful poems, a thought for the day, and his insight into the poem. This week’s poem is deee-lish. www.Poetry-Chikhana.com Last night, as I was sleeping By Antonio Machado (1875 – 1939) English version by Robert Bly Last night,...

Fighting for My Limitations

My dear friend called me last week. I was struggling with a decision around a quirky loan. I was sharing my “doubts” with my friend about signing this document, which terms seemed to change with every conversation I had with the lender. My friend said “you can pay this back easily, Bonnie,” which wasn’t really a part of the issue, but soon became a part of the conversation. “Bonnie, you got this one, it’s easy for you.” I could hear her certainty. “No it isn’t, let me tell you why….” I rebutted as I listed a whole host of reasons as to why I was going to fail. She shared a story with me of when she was in a similar situation and won. “This is how I looked at it prior to the decision and since then…” “Yes, but I’m not you and this is how we are different …..” another list of limitations came spewing out of my mouth. After ten minutes I felt so bad inside...