Spinning Your Gold Blog: Words that Open Hearts and Inspire Actions
“If you have one true friend, you have more than your share.” ~Thomas Fuller
Rewind four years: Malana Ashlie, my Honduras writing sister and dear friend, wrote The Threaded Gem Adventure: How to Connect the Jewels in Your Life, to celebrate the ONEness of life and friendships.
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Malana Ashlie, 2013 |
From the book's Introduction: “This is an idea and project that brought me joy. I want to spread the joy by sharing it with you. The idea came to me while I was trying to find a way to connect with all the people I care about for my 65th birthday. I was as many miles from them as they were from one another. How to connect with all of them brought the idea that I share with you here.
Meaningful relationships are the treasures of living, and the people in those relationships are the jewels of our lives.
Although this story is my story, within the personal experience are directions for a craft that can connect or reconnect, rekindle and even lay the way for forgiveness. The basic directions are set apart like stepping stones, blocked in to make them easy to recognize and follow.”
I sent Malana a glowing email.
I wanted her to know how much her inspiring idea touched me.
I wanted her to know how brilliant she was.
I wanted to experience my own threaded gem adventure!
Always the generous soul, Malana sent me her book as an early birthday present.
Months later as my 60 birthday approached, I embraced her directions to “connect the jewels in my life.”
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Porch time and the last time I saw Malana, 2017. (L-r Ginny Monroe, Malana & me) |
Today's blog post is dedicated to my dear friend, Malana.
This spring she left her earth suit to meet her heavenly friends and family. My words gratefully go to all my friends and family who joined me on this adventure. I am grateful to celebrate 64 turns-around-the-sun, I AM!
Should you choose to undertake this threaded gem adventure,
you might encounter these 7 gifts:
Gift #1. Completion:“I’m a big believer in putting things off. In fact, I even put off procrastinating.” ~Lisa Kleypas
Real life showed up despite all of my enthusiastic intentions four years ago to immediately construct my treasure necklace! The many happy detours included my daughter’s wedding; her pregnancy and; grandson Blake’s arrival. Creativity also happily consumed me while designing and delivering 10 online writing courses for the first time.
The beads and their tender birthday messages waited patiently for me until last week. And I imagine friends and family did too—or I hope so! When things are supposed to happen, they happen. Right?
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4 am * Yeah! No more waiting! No makeup either. |
Gift #2. Gratitude: “Gratitude without expressing is similar to wrapping a gift and not giving it away.” ~Unknown
Finally, I can publicly say THANK YOU AGAIN to the friends and family who joined me in this threaded gem adventure while crafting a new story of our relationship. You are most precious and dear to me! (To the new friends encountered over the past four years, know that there’s a new treasure necklace in the process with a forthcoming invitation.)
Gift #3. Detachment:“Don’t take anything personally.” Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz
Each days' snail mail delivery brought this lesson to my doorstep to practice as my October 14 birthday approached. I won't lie.
It was tough learning that it was mental flagellation to continue asking, “Why hasn’t ___ replied and sent me a bead or told me they’re not participating?”
In time, I did release the squirrel chatter and found peace.
Who and what showed up was perfect, and so was everyone who didn’t show up.
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Listening for the Whisper to tell me which envelope to open... |
Gift #4. Delayed gratification: “What is delayed is not lost…” ~Juliette Drouet
Intentionally, I waited three weeks for my birthday morning to open and read the contents of the padded envelopes. Lovingly sequestered for 4 years, these treasures filled a large shopping bag. I felt more expectancy than waiting for any Christmas morning! Finally, my 60 birthday arrived. While meditating and breathing, I energetically let my hand touch an envelope. Each one was a precious gift to be opened slowly and reverently.
Gift #5. The Ripple. “Many influences cause separation. However, just as many things can bring people together. The people of the world are beginning to awaken to the understanding there is no separation.
This bead idea carries the message of connection.
We are one.
May the ripple continue to spread.” ~Malana Ashlie
Each bead and message brought joy and tears over the next two hours of unveilment—this was a process to cherish and slowly savor. Hopefully, Malana’s message and this blog post will inspire you to venture out on a threaded gem adventure.
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My mom Clare, treasure necklace co-designer |
Gift #6. Co-creation: “When we think with love, we are literally co-creating with God.” ~Marianne Williamson
All parts of the threaded gem adventure contained thoughts of love starting with Malana’s original idea to my invitation to family and friends to share a bead and memory to my mom, Clare, who constructed the three treasure necklaces.
Mom, her bestie Liz, and I collaborated to design each necklace first by colors. I'm certain that God and the angels joined our creative chats.The chakras inspired the length and assemblage of each one: the longest one represented the lower chakras with red, orange, and yellow beads; the second necklace combined the middle chakras with green and blue beads and; the shortest necklace combined the higher chakra colors with white, silver, and gold beads.
Gift #7. ONEness: “The I that is we.” ~Dr. Wayne Dyer
Malana dedicated The Threaded Gem Adventure to ONEness saying,
“I hope that the story it contains and the connection of the beads help the people of the world return to the understanding that there is no separation between fellow human beings regardless of color, race or religion.”
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Gratefully celebrating the "jewels" in my life! |
I feel this ONEness when I see my treasure necklace connecting dozens of different colors, textures, and sizes of beads--symbolic of the diversity of people who bless my life. I feel it through the weight of the three colorful separate strands that appear as one. I remember each bead message and the gentle person who shared it with me. I appreciate this beautiful symbol to remind me of ONEness.
Now: May you also wear the idea and feel ONEness. That's all Malana would want.
It's all I seek today for my extra unwrapped birthday present.
I already have the greatest treasure--my friends and family.
I am blessed with more than one jewel of a true friend.
I am grateful, I am.
Amen