7/18/15 - Day 8

Arkansas Cousins. Four Generations.

7/16/15 and 7/17/15 - Day 6 & Day 7

Bentley likes to travel down the road as much as I do.

Before leaving Clear Lake, we drove around their historic downtown, "Main Street, USA."

I found it fascinating to run across two cars exactly like mine on our journey. One was in the driveway next to the Ames Unity Church in Iowa and the other one was on the road in Missouri.

Here are some road signs spotted while on the journey. We never did see Road "X" and my namesake road is def about my initials, DD, D2, double D (grin), and while we took "A" road through IA and MO, we saw lots of buggies.

Which makes for a different type of 4-lane highway.

I'm in Arkansas with family over the weekend. It's been 40+ years since I've been back here, and I have two generations of cousins I've never met. I am grateful for this opportunity.

While walking Bentley, I couldn't resist taking his pic in front of a Bentley wind sock. There is something amazing around every corner if we just look for it. Life is good, always.

7/14/15 and 7/15/15 - Day 4 & Day 5

Every morning, Bentley and I drove to and walked through Clear Lake State Park.

And to better share the experience with you, here's a video I took while sitting on the bench where I did my morning prayer and meditation each day.

Here is a pic of the wonderful Unity South Central Board I serve.

We worked hard and had long meetings during the day, and while the following pics were taken the evening after my birthday, I choose to think of it as a week long celebration. :))

Scott, our accountant, lowered his classic, beautiful boat, and then rounded it to the pier perfectly, and off we went!

Becky Whitehead, President and Joy Walker, Treasurer

David, our VP, is a wild man on the Sea-doo. What fun!

Originally from Georgia, he makes the best peach pies! Although they were made for everyone, to me, it was the best birthday cake ever.

This trip had so many gifts. I'll share more later, but for now - On the Road Again!

7/13/14-Day Three

This morning, in MO, Bentley and I got up early to walk the prayer path again. The reflection gardens were so welcoming in the morning sunshine. We made time to stop and smell the roses, or whatever these beautiful flowers are.

Bentley particularly liked this metal butterfly and gnome garden.

I think he thought he might find some treats in the Giving Garden, but he had to wait until we got back to the hotel.

Then we headed to the back of the trail to the structure you can see in the distance.

 Getting closer.

And we made it.

It was a Chime Chapel. Each beam had words engraved - joy, love, peace, patience, self control, understanding, kindness. Wonderful reminders and a great way to start the day.

The four huge chimes hanging from the cathedral ceiling had amazing tones. So peaceful. Here's a video of them so you can hear them too.

Tonight we are in Iowa where we will be for a few days attending the USCR Board retreat.

Bentley has now been in 5 states and I don't think he had been outside of Texas before. How cool is that?!? Big TX hugZ! We send you much love wherever you are.

Something tells me we're not in Kansas anymore Toto (sorry, couldn't resist).

7/12/15-Day Two

At the border of Oklahoma and Kansas, we stopped at McDonald's and there was a horse on the highway.

Well, not really.

It was a subway sign. I have no words.

And....

Drum roll please....

I drove! It was a straight shot up 35, no traffic, and no construction, but I drove! I was so excited and thrilled beyond belief. I'm on the road again. And I drove! Life is awe-mazing.

We made it to our hotel in Lee's Summit, and I get to see Unity Village for the first time tomorrow morning. What an adventure I am on!

Once we got to the hotel, Bentley and I needed some quiet time alone so we took a very long walk. You are going to be awe-mazed at the park we found. It is called a "prayer path" with many different "reflection gardens" and each one has its own name. I took the walk because I needed connection and God gave me a prayer and reflection park. Why am I not surprised.

It is one of the prettiest parks I've ever seen, anywhere, in all my travels. It got dark so I only got 3 photos of the very first garden on the trail. I will get up early in the morning and get more photos of the other reflection gardens.

These are views from The Garden of Hope. Thank you Spirit.

That's our hotel in the background.

And this is the Methodist church that maintains it all, with it's own mote of fountains around the entire property of peaceful trails.

And this is the view from the Garden of Hope bench.

John reports Nonni and her half-brother Zuber are getting along famously.

Life is good. Unity Village tomorrow morning, then .... On The Road Again! Happy, happy, happy am I.

7/11/14-Day One

We arrived in Denton as the sun was setting.

Day One was not the start I had hoped for. Getting everything prepared, plus packing, plus getting ready was overwhelming. Then, I tried very, very hard to follow the instructions I had been given for turning the water off and closing the tanks. David, the wonderful maintenance man at the park, took great care to go over everything with me. I thought I had it down pat. Until the bathroom flooded.

A good night's rest is in order and tomorrow is another day. Unity Village bound.

KOKO!

7/10/15-Realization or Revelation

I have awe-mazing, fun, wonderful and loving people in my life. These are but a few. I am blessed.

I shared in my last post that the road trip is ON! Bettie and I head out tomorrow afternoon. As I said, I am blessed. And so excited!

Yesterday I had an appointment with the appointed doctor for SSA, Social Security Administration. It was my disability eligibility determination appointment. Now, that's a mouthful! Thank you dear friend Cathy for driving me.

It was 2.5 hours of grueling tests, and it was exhausting. It was a very emotional experience to realize so much of what I can no longer do. Sad many times over. I cried a lot. AND all is well, always, no matter what.

The doctor was sweet - very kind, and reassuring - almost apologetic for the ordeal. I wish it were possible to add her to my list of growing friends. Evidently my application has been fast-tracked and I am grateful for that since apparently I can no longer do basic math or re-tell short stories that were just relayed to me. It is okay. It is what it is. At least for now.

I choose to focus instead on the many wonderful people and events in my life - such as this trip. And I feel a sense of urgency to spread the word that Love is all there is.

The kind doctor also told me yesterday that she has seen many cases where people with symptoms like mine can stabilize for several years. She seemed to add for emphasis, "Three to six years in fact. You'll be okay."

She is right about that. No matter what, I am okay. In fact, I am great. I realize that now, right now, in this moment, every moment, is the time for me to let everyone know how much I love them. It is the time, right now, for me to give and receive as much love as I possibly can, and to encourage others to do the same - a realization that has turned into a revelation.

It is a revelation that became a mantra for me almost a month ago after reading an Elizabeth Gilbert FB post. I can no longer find it but she wrote something close to, "Good morning to all those who are the shit. Have a great day!" And she went on to say something similar to, "And to those of you who are still merely working through the shit, I wish you a special blessed day" (or something like that).

It absolutely made my jaw drop. I have been working "through" the shit my whole life. Up until that point, I was still working through the shit. I thought to myself, "No way! I am not only working toward being the shit. I AM the shit!"

It might not be the proper language for some, but it was empowering for me. I claimed it and owned it the rest of the day, and offered many praises of gratitude for realizing the difference. God was able to speak to me through a FB post in a way that had not pierced my thick skull in 50+ years. I was still in communion with Spirit around that the next day when Love flooded my trailer, enveloped me and finally became me. It was perhaps the most profound experience I have had to date. Love like that is powerful, it is consuming, and it is pure. My heart exploded in gratitude and I wept.

That experience transformed "I am the shit" to "I Am Divine Love Unlimited."

Grateful beyond belief.

That led to the revelation that I want everyone to have that realization. I want everyone to know love and be love - not from an outside source but from the One Source that is all. OMNI, including within you and me.

That gave way to a revelation....

I Am Divine Love Unlimited.

And So Are You.

That is everything. And my only desire, for whatever time I have left on this Earth is to live from that, be that, and expand awareness in that. It's not new so I don't know whether it is a realization or a revelation, I just know it is everything.

The next day the revelations continued and I was given the idea for my 3rd book. Which leads me to my bucket list.

One of the biggest gifts my illness has given me, other than the fact that I can still write, is that I have taken a full inventory of my life and I have been able to move into radical acceptance. I have come to terms with all my regrets, all the events in my life I formerly saw as mistakes, and I have moved into complete gratitude for every one. Love replaced negative beliefs and harmful emotions I have been carrying with me for as long as I can remember. I am now able to love not only what is, but what was. That is huge!

I'm not sure where the concept of a bucket list came from, but for me it represents keeping my slate clean so that I have no more regrets. It means living life fully and out loud without fear of what others might think. And doing so from heartfelt, infinite love.

I have some decisions to make, and there are still a lot of unknowns (of course) on what my life will look like while I work on achieving my goals, but here are the things I do know:

• Angelique, my beautiful friend, editor and life coach at Write For Healing, is finishing up the formatting on my first book, Kaleidoscope 9 (a collection of 9 unrelated short stories), and she is working really hard to get it ready for publication next week. Wow!

• I have an agent at Balboa Press that calls me once a month to check on the progress of my 2nd book, Ariana, Star Giver. It is a series that was born during a guided meditation with Aliza Robinson at Unity of Dallas two years ago.

• I now know the title and the premise for the book I will work on after that (stay tuned).

• And finally, I know to my core that I am standing on a virtual springboard, ready to be used by Spirit, for Spirit - whatever is mine to do - to help others believe ....

I Am Divine Love Unlimited.

And So Are You.

My friend David has written a wonderful article around his own spiritual awakening titled, "The Transforming Power of Love," and he captures the spiritual essence eloquently and with great beauty (here).

I am reminded of a traditional hymn, "Love Lifted Me." My life is really just beginning, and it starts with a wonderful journey tomorrow. Road trip!

7/6/15-Road Trip is ON!

We're ready! After my last post I put up new flyers, and waited.

I regret that I freaked some people out by posting on the "world wide web." I really appreciate the love and care shown me, but please know that I never reveal personal information, and if someone I did not know had responded, I simply would have ignored them. Likewise, my FB post was for family and friends only, and if someone else had responded without a referral, I simply would not have replied. The Craig's List notice was a blind post and simply said that a "company" was asking for bids to pull a trailer round-trip from Texas to Iowa. No worries, I promise.

And, drum roll please.....

On Wednesday I got a knock at my door, yes, at my door....

Meet this beautiful person, Bettie....

borrowed from FB, Susan Arbuckle Music

She not only lives in my RV park, she goes to Unity of Georgetown, and she is going to be my road trip friend. What are the odds?!? Who knew it would work out this beautifully?? Oh yeah, God & Spirit knew. Co-creating with the Universe is such fun, isn't it? All I have to do is stay out of the way. In the flow, all is well, always.

Saturday morning I went with Bettie to the local Farmer's Market to stock up on some nutritious items for our trip.

That evening I went with another neighbor, Elaine, to see the fireworks. We sat on our lawn chairs in the middle of a field, had a wonderful breeze, and an amazing view. Thank you City of Georgetown!

Anita Moorjani, author of Dying To Be Me, writes

Anita Moorjani FB

I think my body is doing the same. Just like I knew I was going to go on this trip without knowing how, I also know I am healed. I just don't know when my body will catch up. It doesn't know it yet. Consequently, after a marvelous day on Saturday, I was in bed most of the day Sunday. When I wasn't, I had to use my walking stick and I had multiple symptoms throughout the day. I struggled.

There was a time that would have frustrated me so, and I would have wailed and moaned at the time lost, the things not done, but slowly, day by day, I am learning. I am learning to love what is, and allow my body to take the time it needs. It will catch up one day and I will be able to be active without repercussion. I just know it. I claim it.

Until then, I will Keep on Keeping On. KOKO! Stay tuned for highlights of Debra and Bettie's Excellent Adventure. Road Trip! I am so excited. So grateful.

--------------------------------------------------------
Coming This Month
Kaleidoscope 9, a collection of unrelated short stories by .... me
Enjoy this excerpt from Gone But Not Forgotten:

“Movement to my left caught me by surprise. A pink, hairless dog walked up. His quivering body and bewildered eyes were asking me for help, but I didn’t know what to do. He was begging for me to do something, anything, so I opened the door to the cab of the truck and let him inside. Once again I knew my actions were futile, but it was something.”