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Business Plan – Jaxx
They were text chatting about mindfulness and Buddhism, and the mind states of greed, when he told her he was starting a real estate business, with the name Jaxx in it.
She sent some information about the Buddhist practice of Muditā, a dharmic concept of joy, particularly an especially sympathetic or vicarious joy—the pleasure that comes from delighting in other people’s well-being. The traditional paradigmatic example of this mind-state is the attitude of a parent observing a growing child’s accomplishments and successes.
She asked him if a slight change from thinking “I” must make this work to knowing “the universe” can make this work for the good of all beings lessens any fear for him. He said it did.
Spontaneously, she searched for the spiritual meaning of the word Jaxx and this came up:
In the Bible, it is the short form of Jaxon, meaning “God is gracious.”
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Mary’s Magnificence
She got flowers for a chanting session for their dear friend, Mary, who was on hospice care and very near the end of her life. After Mary retired, she had worked with community based organizations helping seniors deal with issues surrounding death and dying.
That chanting session had been six weeks and 3 days ago….
She wanted to see if the flower would survive until 49 days after Mary died. It was clearly almost gone, but she was so grateful she had saved it. When she went to look again, the flower and one green stem had moved from one side of the vase toward the center front.
She said she knows the dog did not move it, and she is taking this to be a sign that Mary was there to mark the end of the 49 days1
Many Buddhists believe 49 days is the longest length of time the intermediate or “bardo” state before a person’s next incarnation can last. “Could be that Mary’s already reincarnated, though I would think she might want to rest a bit before coming back,”she shared.
So grateful to share in the magnificence that was and still is Mary.
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Game On!
Her husband absolutely loved watching sports on TV and he ALWAYS had on one game or another.
After he died, the TV would come on in the middle of the night.
Their TV set was old and it would just be static and white noise so she got rid of it!!!
(I found this online: “Spirits are said to consist of energy that can be measured by electrical devices. So it stands to reason that they can manipulate electrical objects around you. They could try and get your attention by making your lights flicker or even turn things on or off.” Over the years I have heard of many such occurrences shared in our Grief Journey Group, and I have also had experiences myself. ~ Debra) -
They Stay
Making preparations for the interment of his ashes that would take place two days after his birthday — on the one year anniversary of his death — she was having a particularly difficult day. It was the first time in 39 years she did not celebrate his birthday with him.
She was talking to him, telling him about the interment plans. Then when she looked at her phone she had his photo!
Just before the closing prayer, she would share these powerful words by the poet, Naomi Shihab Nye. They encapsulate her experience of losing him.
People do not
pass away.
They die
and then,
they stay.Note: Naomi Shihab Nye is an Arab American poet, editor, songwriter, and novelist. Born to a Palestinian father and an American mother, she began composing her first poetry at the age of six. In total, she has published or contributed to over 30 volumes of poetry.
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Moon in Clouds January 23, 2024
The moon was directly overhead where she was wintering in Southwest Florida. It looked full, had a gorgeous lunar halo, and she could see a distinctive heart shape in the clouds so she grabbed her phone to take a photo to share with her friend in Colorado. It was often cloudy at home in Michigan, and she would miss seeing the full moon, so her friend had been sharing a photo of the full moon for several years.
But when she looked at the photo she had just taken there were two images, both were undistinguished as the moon. One looked like shelving and the other was just a whitish streak, similar to what happens if you move the camera too quickly. Checking online she saw that the moon was not even full until two days later so she did not try again to get a photo.
The following morning, however, she received a magnificent photo taken by her friend in Colorado.
Although the “full” moon was still two days away, her friend had captured the image she had failed to get — complete with the heart she had seen in the clouds!“The same moon shines in every back yard,” as the saying goes….
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One Tear “Drip”
He had touched many hearts during his brief one-hundred-thirteen-day life.
She recalled having heard that it must be a very special incarnation for that soul who completes a lifetime so quickly. She lit both sides of the candle the morning after he passed, loving and honoring his passing while offering continuing prayers for his twin brother.
The twin-flame candle had been gifted to her, touted as both odorless and dripless. It had previously been both, but this morning she saw one l-o-n-g drip from the right side flame — running all the way to the base.
It was as though she was seeing the sacred honoring of his life with this one tear drip….
In Psalm 90:12 it is clear that Moses contrasts the brevity of life with our eternal nature: “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (New International Version)
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A Shared Love – Hawk
They had met years ago, when she and her husband were wintering on the east coast of Florida. A retired judge from Pennsylvania, he and his wife were also wintering in Florida. She and her husband attended a delightful birding class he was leading at the nature center. A shared love was born!
These many years later, in December 2023, although they were separated by miles, she still loved sharing her birding experiences with him.
Sitting on the lanai in Southwest Florida early that New Years Eve eve morning — at the exact moment she was writing an email telling him the details about two hawk sightings the previous day — a hawk loudly flew overhead! She grabbed her phone and hit the voice memo record button…. she included the lovely sounds of hawk in her email message to him.
Hawks most often screech in flight. A male screeches to announce his territory during the mating season. A hawk will screech loudly and repeatedly to defend his territory, generally from other hawks.
While each species of hawk, along with the details of the visit, can have slightly different spiritual meanings, hawk generally means change, accomplishment of goals and dreams, clarity, and protection which comes by your honoring your inner wisdom. These magnificent birds demonstrate the results from knowing and going after what you need and want.
Over twenty years ago she and her former business partner had chosen Red-tailed Hawk as their business logo. Or perhaps Red-tailed Hawk had chosen them. The logo line they used was: Perceive, receive, and use your abilities…. as the hawk rides the wind.
(This photo of Red-tailed Hawk is one her birding friend sent to her in 2014….)
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Eveready – All is Well
My father always wore a wristwatch and glanced at it often. He was always on time. When he retired, his company gifted him with a clock. For a good long time, it took a rightful place for prominent display.
When dad died, I brought home one of the two clocks he kept in his bedroom. The battery was dead, but I sat it on the kitchen counter anyway, as a momento. One day I noticed a ticking sound. As usual the time it showed was incorrect, but oddly, the second hand was now rising up and falling back to its original place over and over. Again, I reminded myself to change the battery.
A few days later I noticed the clock was ticking away and for the first time in weeks it was showing the correct time. I assumed my husband had changed the battery. But no, he had not! Neither of us had touched it, and each clearly remembered it had completely stopped, except for the day it ticked so oddly. I’m grateful that we caught it running smoothly that day and “magically” showing the correct time. I believe my dad’s spirit was contacting us to tell us all is well.
The clock eventually stopped again and this time we decided to “signal back” by finally giving that old clock a new battery.
