<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div dir="auto">This is so significant, Riantee. It polishes the apples fallen from the family tree and offers hope in a <i>"future that heals the past."</i></div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">I love this line the most though:</div><div dir="auto"><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><i>to be is <span style="font-size: 12pt;">sacred, </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">to live is </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">holy.</span></i></div></div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">Church without a preacher - my favorite kind of worship!!</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">Thank you for posting this! </div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">~ Ed</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div id="composer_signature" dir="auto"><div style="font-size:12px;color:#575757" dir="auto">Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone</div></div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div><br></div><div align="left" dir="auto" style="font-size:100%;color:#000000"><div>-------- Original message --------</div><div>From: Riantee Rand via Thespiritexpress <thespiritexpress@lists.mcn.org> </div><div>Date: 1/11/23 1:10 PM (GMT-08:00) </div><div>To: thespiritexpress@lists.mcn.org </div><div>Subject: [Thespiritexpress] Bonfires- Read to the group yesterday </div><div><br></div></div><br class=""><div><blockquote class="" type="cite"><br class=""><div class=""><div class="" dir="ltr"><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">Bonfires on the Beach <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="text-indent: 0.5in; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span class="" style="font-size:10pt">2022-2023<span class=""></span></span></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" class="MsoNormal"><span class=""> </span><span class=""></span></p><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">Contemplating the fire<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">on the last day of the Old year<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">I behold the burning inside the fearful <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">suffering mind, <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">the flame of generations<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">that created fear, pain and anger. <span class=""></span></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" class="MsoNormal"><span class=""> </span></p><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">I witness the blaze of invention<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">birthing worlds with love<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">and destroying them with greed;<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">that violent fire suffocating our time.<span class=""></span></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" class="MsoNormal"><span class=""> </span></p><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">Smoke smothers me,<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">tears run down <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">and on the first day of the New year<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">my eyes go silent.<span class=""></span></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" class="MsoNormal"><span class=""> </span></p><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">I begin a slow pensive ascent<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">into a continuous coming into being,<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">the word of Love suddenly plain <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">for me to see<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">in the fire<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">and in everything around me.<span class=""></span></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" class="MsoNormal"><span class=""> </span></p><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">Each creation I behold<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">spells a divine word, <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">words are strung into sentences<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">sentences into scripts<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">proclaiming the joy of being,<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">the joy of knowing<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">that to be is <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">sacred<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">to live is <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">holy.<span class=""></span></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" class="MsoNormal"><span class=""> </span></p><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">I behold<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">that indigenous fire ignited <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">over and over<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">illuminating the faces of <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">mother and father<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">sister and brother <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">with love<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">and the immense energies <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">of the universe<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">whisper of a future <span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">that heals the past.<span class=""></span></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" class="MsoNormal"><span class=""> </span></p><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">The fire slowly burns down<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">as I fall into dormancy.<span class="">
</span><span class=""></span></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" class="MsoNormal"><span class=""> </span></p><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">I become ember<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">I become ash<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">I disappear into a dream<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">that has no beginning<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">no end.<span class=""></span></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" class="MsoNormal"><span class=""> </span></p><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">All of what I am<span class=""></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">is a blessing.<span class=""></span></div>
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