Practice | Bonnie Barnard - Part 13

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Prayer for Katherine Jackson

Two weeks ago, today, my daughter gave birth to a daughter, and I was made a grandmother. I am still learning what that means to my Soul and to my contribution while here on earth. I listen, and take note as I experience an inner shift underway. Last night I was awoken from a dream to pray for Katherine Jackson. This is not the first time I have experienced a deeper inner nudge calling me into prayer for someone I don’t personally know. This could be my unconscious mind, it could be the Voice of God. It doesn’t matter to me where it originated, what I know is; I was to pray. At 2 a.m., I crawled out of bed and prayed for Ms. Jackson who earlier in the week I witness an unhealed brokenness within her while watching her interview with Piers Morgan. Ms. Jackson on Piers Morgan Prayer for Katherine Jackson: I know there is One Presence, One Life, One Love which I choose to call God....

The Big Wait

“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” Ralph Waldo Emerson There was a time not that long ago that I valued travel and adventure over all else. Put me in a car with a tank full of gas and a GPS and I was a happy woman. After three years of intentional home building, there is nothing more that I yearn for than home. I have gone from two extremes; the wanderer to the homebody. The truth is, I am home whenever my heart is open. As I hang out in a state of impatience, my heart is closed and I go into an inward battle between what is and what I want. This battle is a guaranteed “lose” every time, yet I still engage in it. So, how do I practice patience in a state of impatience? I don’t know. Yet, I’ve practiced loving I didn’t feel it and I’ve practiced generosity when I’ve felt impoverished, so this challenge ought to be worth my...

Learning to Small Talk

I have always envied the small talker. The person who could create conversation for no other reason than to converse. Jean Huston once signed a book for me and it read “To a woman who dives in the deep,” she knew me from one glance. I am the deep diver. And, I would like to feel comfortable in the shallow end splashing, as well. Frivolity could serve me well. A friend of mine was interested in a new art technique. She is a “deep” artist. Wanting to hang with her, I signed up for a class having no idea what I was saying yes to. Then, I walked into the craft store. Unbeknownst to me, this was a scrapbooking class. As if on another galaxy, I walk into a back room set up with tables in a “U” shape with ten other women. Each one had overstuffed craft bags or suitcases on rollers loaded with a minimum of $2,000 worth of art supplies. Each container had 100 plus specialty...

Meditating in the Dental Chair

There have been many times in my life when I have paused to give thanks for my meditation practice. Today, at the dentist was one of them. Let me back up. I learned to meditate out of my deep, deep hunger to connect with my inner spirit, to know God within me. I have been meditating daily for almost twenty years. And, yes, little-by-little meditation has supported me in clearing out the voices of the world so that I may hear my deep, small voice within speak to me. Meditation has also trained me in pausing to make conscious choices over reactive impulses. Learning to follow my breath, calm my body, and retrain my thoughts have been a bi-product of this practice. Today I’m at the dentist. Laying the dental chair with my mouth wide open, my body tenses as a needle makes its way toward me. I thought I was going in for filling replacement, and it turned out to become the first step of getting...

Good-bye Whitney

As my years on the planet increase and my spiritual practice deepens, I become more and more aware of the gift celebrities play for us in our lives. These are my insights: 1. They have the courage to be seen. As a magnet for our sight, we give them permission to set our fashion trends. How often have you seen a scarf or blouse on a celebrity and said to yourself “I want one like that?” Or, have gone to a hairdresser to say “I’d like a Dorothy Hamil, Farrah Fawcett or Jennifer Aniston cut? The light side of the celebrity’s willingness to be seen is the bringing forth of beauty into our lives. The darker side is when we are hesitant to look within our own selves, we will likely hoist our opinion and judgement externally toward another. Celebrities are great lightening rods, just mention the name “Sarah Palin” and you will get a strong reaction of support or disgust. 2. They are willing to be...

Walking

I love to walk. Every day I take a four to five mile walk and magic happens. The walk is never the same, although the path remains so. Different cars drive by me, trees are in different stages of development, birds are chirping or quiet, I am surrounded by a whole variety of life. I have begun to vary the time I walk. Morning is different than mid-day different than day’s end. This time of year in Phoenix, I’ll wear long pants and a sweatshirt for my morning walks, mid-day attire will be shorts and t-shirt, and evening is back to the long sleeves. During my walks I receive “downloads” or cosmic insight. It was during a walk that I realized I needed to feel the absence of love in my life to recognize its presence. This changed the texture of my being and the direction of my life’s work. I forgive and bless on walks. And I practice being fully present. I practice being in my body, feeling...