Views from Raven's Nest: Daily Reminder # 589

I almost forgot that I'm doing the blog in the daytime right now. (This will not last.) Puxatawny Phil did NOT see his shadow this morning. Winter will drag on according to legend. That said, this has been an exceptionally winter-less winter by and large and apparently the ground hog population has forgotten to tell the trees and the squirrels that there will be no early Spring. Silly Groundhog. I found this kind of interesting item about the history of Ground Hog Day for those with time on their hands.

Other than that, there was another good message from Neale Donald Walsch today. By becoming a virtual hermit, I avoid the necessity for acting on such wisdom, but it's still a good thought to put out there. I think sometimes for some of us who, for most of our lives have been bullied and abused, it gets hard to let go of control or to trust the future. We need help and we fear help and we don't know how to receive help. Accepting that I was disabled was a huge bridge for me to cross. Asking for help was a huge bridge. Taking the help has been another battle. I still feel guilty about it. On the surface, I have learned to take whatever help I can get, but it is still a war. When Republican think tanks issue reports saying you aren't poor if you have a refrigerator or a TV, the community of Demonalians who live inside my head form a committee and offer up all the reasons why I am a blight on the face of the Universe, a waste of space and the reason for everything that is wrong in the world.... I'm not sure why I'm talking about this or how it's relevant. In the end, the person we need to persuade, the person or persons we are doing battle with are the voices in our head. For me, the internalized versions of my mother and brother are the biggest problem. Some idiot at Huffington Post says, "if you're poor how come you have a computer?" and all my buttons get pushed , in part, because I ask myself the same question. Part of me thinks I should live on bread and water (at best) and have nothing. Part of me has more compassion. It can be very exhausting to be me. But I'm rambling. I'm not sure that any of this has anything to do with the message but I am seem compelled to put it out there, so maybe somebody somewhere needs to hear it. Or not. Anyway, here's what Neale and God have to say:

On this day of your life, dear friend,

I believe God wants you to know...

...that giving up is not the answer. Neither is giving in.

Stand your ground.

There is a way of doing that without having to be

combative. There is a way of hanging on to your true self,

and demonstrating it, without resorting to aggression.

But giving up and giving in is not the way.

Simply and quietly claiming your right to be You

is the way.

You know exactly why you received this message today.

Love, Your Friend....

Some things I'm grateful for today: (Items in red are pre-gratitude, an attempt to embrace abundance and to expect good things in hopes of inspiring the Creative Forces of the Universe to help me manifest them.)