<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class="">Oooops, hit wrong button.<div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Riantee…. the depth and range of what you express is truly amazing.</div><div class=""><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Dennis</div><div class=""><br class=""><div><blockquote type="cite" class=""><div class="">On May 29, 2023, at 10:17 AM, dennis jecmen via Thespiritexpress <<a href="mailto:thespiritexpress@lists.mcn.org" class="">thespiritexpress@lists.mcn.org</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div class=""><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8" class=""><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><br class=""><div class=""><blockquote type="cite" class=""><div class="">On Mar 8, 2023, at 11:31 AM, Toni Bernbaum via Thespiritexpress <<a href="mailto:thespiritexpress@lists.mcn.org" class="">thespiritexpress@lists.mcn.org</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div class=""><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" class=""><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class="">This poem says it all……such an honor to have received it then……..and again and again…..each time<div class="">I read it, it enters more deeply. <br class=""><div class="">It speaks to your own true knowing of what it takes to sustain, maintain and keep the sparks flying</div><div class="">in the adventure of relationship. Your poems are such inspiration, Riante! You are indeed a treasure</div><div class="">in our lives. With so much love and aloha! T<br class=""><div class=""><br class=""><blockquote type="cite" class=""><div class="">On Mar 7, 2023, at 8:30 PM, Riantee Rand via Thespiritexpress <<a href="mailto:thespiritexpress@lists.mcn.org" class="">thespiritexpress@lists.mcn.org</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div class=""><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" class=""><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class="">The poem I wrote for Toni and Ron when they were about to get married.<br class=""><div class=""><blockquote type="cite" class=""><br class=""><div class=""><div dir="ltr" class=""><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">Holy Marriage – </span><span style="font-size:9pt" class="">After
Annie Lclerc<span class=""></span></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:10pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt" class=""><span class=""> </span></span></p><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">For our most ancient dream to come alive<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">let’s not flee from commitment<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">but have the heart to face it<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">for it is the true quest of life<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">its highest challenge and accomplishment.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">Refusing to take a vow is not freedom;<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">free are those who having faced the nature of love<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">its chasms, empty passageways,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">its triumphs and elations without any illusion,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">embark on the ocean,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">determined to live the adventure at all cost,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">refusing neither the victories<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">nor the wreckages,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">ready to lose everything they own<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">and willing to gain in the end what’s invaluable,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">the kept promise,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">the oath honored without deceit<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">in the meeting of two lives.<span class=""></span></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:10pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt" class=""><span class=""> </span></span></p><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">There is a time for every season.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">The inebriation of uncommitted ways<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">is fun to experience for a while and it should be,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">but when the time for it has passed, it become
lifeless.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">The real tragedy for us would be<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">not to attempt the impossible,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">to always remain within our own limits.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">In marriage we constantly show each other those
limits,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">test them,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">finding each other in our most hidden places,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">bringing out the secret and shadowy parts<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">of one another.<span class=""></span></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:10pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt" class=""><span class=""> </span></span></p><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">In each true meeting something unforeseen is present.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">Every time we love we recreate completion,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">and save our world from the absurd.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">Love will be reborn through you<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">because it has only one goal, itself:<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">once more, through you, it gains existence.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">You are called to love and to help,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">so that love and service<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">can be of this world.<span class=""></span></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:10pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt" class=""><span class=""> </span></span></p><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">What makes marriage so illuminating<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">is that it’s one of the relationships<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">that truly puts us to work.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">Obstinate, undeterred from its purpose,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">marriage is the pursuit through others<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">of our own truth,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">our authentic voice.<span class=""></span></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:10pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt" class=""><span class=""> </span></span></p><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">In the intimacy of bodies and souls<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">we access the reality of the lover.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">We mix our breaths, our juices<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">when sharing our days and nights,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">and in this way are entrusted to each other.<span class=""></span></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:10pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt" class=""><span class=""> </span></span></p><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">There are such things as laws of being.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">They decree the planetary course,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">orchestrate the music of the spheres,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">they arrange the corolla around the vibrant heart of
the flower,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">they give a pulse to the sap<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">that rises from the roots into the tree,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">they create, for the child, a caring environment in
its mother’s womb.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">These same laws bind the beloved<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">to one another,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">they breathe within them.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">Once they have immersed themselves<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">in the glow of sacredness,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">this in spite of their squabbles, of their severances,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">of whatever they say, think or do,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">these laws live within them.<span class=""></span></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:10pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"" align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt" class=""><span class=""> </span></span></p><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">Our most ancient dream comes alive:<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">shared life, share food and drink<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">and which each taste, with each sip,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">a certainty: I am loved.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">Let us shout with this oldest of dream,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">let us weep and laugh with it,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">tremble with it,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">let us dance and embrace it<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">this ancient dream:<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">to be loved without any motive.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">even undeserving,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">to be loved with no condition, no merit.<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">To be loved,<span class=""></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";" class=""><span style="font-size:12pt" class="">easy as that.<span class=""></span></span></div>
</div>
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