Inspiration for what I write comes from many channels. One Sunday evening, I tuned in a little early to watch my 9:00 fav (no, not the Housewives!!!) and while I waited, I checked messages on my phone. Out of nowhere I heard my voice speaking out loud, “I want to do something great.” Startled, I looked around then wondered if I had received a subliminal feed from whatever was on the TV as I had no sense of the origin of this sudden declaration. Even more perplexing was the grace, recited at meals when I was a child, suddenly began to play in my mind with an exception -- though it had the same flow, the words were not as I remembered. I grabbed a pen and turned out this verse:
may I do something great
may I work to do good
may I always be thankful, as I should.©**
That evening, as I lay down to sleep, the evening prayer I learned when I was a youngster floated into my head. Like earlier, the words were different and as they began to arrange themselves, I drifted off. The next morning, they were waiting…
as I rise from peaceful sleep
body and spirit angels keep…
I wrote out a few more lines; they didn’t capture what I was trying to express so I left the words in wait. Later that week, I delivered a keynote address. As I was reminding myself that once delivered, a message may take time to be received, those who heard it loud and clear from the moment I opened my mouth approached. I was grateful for their words which in turn, breathed affirmation into my soul and spirit.
The next morning during meditation, I could barely stay focused; anxiously dancing on the tip of my tongue, skipping across my thoughts, and making my fingers tingle was a prayer that turned out to read as follows…
as i rise from peaceful sleep
mind and spirit, angels keep
me focused moments i’m awake
on purpose for my soul to take.
i ask the angels please to take,
every morning as i wake,
my hand to guide me and to keep
me safe until once more i sleep.©**
Once completed, I realized that doing something great perhaps meant that I was to create these verses to give others something to say each morning as they sit down to meditate and/or pray, particularly when they can’t find words of their own. Conceivably, they are for those who want to begin getting in touch with soul and spirit and just don’t know how. It could be that the answer for why new words turned out to match an old familiar rhythm beat by beat is simply…unknown.
I do not question a gift of the spirit, so please recite, share with others**, and..
keep your peepers open!®
**ps - these verses are ©tina scott lassiter however please feel free to use, print and share by including copyright credit, thank you.
pps…my Sunday 9:00 indulgence is Anthony Bourdain:Parts Unknown…can’t tell you how many nights I’ve climbed into bed ready to go on whatever journey he’s planned!
#partsunknown #anthonybourdain
ppps - in case you aren’t familiar or have forgotten, the original grace and evening prayer respectively are:
God is great
God is good
Now we thank him for our food
now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
if I should die before I wake
I pray the Lord my soul to take
#prayers #poeticverse # poems #inspiration #keepyourpeepersopen
Speaking of orange, I recently began to crave a crunch in the morning, something my green smoothies were not able to satisfy. One morning, I found myself spreading almond butter on a whole grain WASA crisp bread; not bad but, it was missing something. I sprinkled just a dash of pink salt over the top and damn if it didn’t remind me of those orange peanut butter crackers, you know the ones, only mine were brown and open faced. 
Older and wiser, I am now a more enlightened woman whose life experiences thus far have allowed for growth in many ways. I recently found myself looking back, reflecting on how easy it was for me to act with dismissiveness towards people who were unaware that they were playing a part in stories that were really not about them, stories that were influenced by others stroking a pen over my pages. Fortunately, my mindfulness practice combined with a passion for journaling and a commitment to self reflection has blessed me with the ability to see things clearly, manage buried incidents and emotions when they surface by writing for my eyes only, and take personal action to rectify situations I feel must be set right, especially when innocents are involved.
