" Switchback Mountains " by Susan Pearl

Switchback mountains have zigzag trails that form a pattern.

I use the term"Switchback Mountains" as an expression that illustrates with words how something very steep and hard to climb in life can be accomplished when we keep putting one foot in front of the other.  We have to keep moving to get to a level of having a new view.  If we don't keep moving we will stay in one spot and continue with the same outlooks.

Life is change.  Sometimes we get through one change just in time for another change to come.  Sometimes one change brings on another change and sometimes a change can happen without any forewarning.  So, it can seem like we are coming and going, back and forth, one way and then another, through all of the changes that comes with life.

That is what "Switchback Mountains" means to me is to be going through all of the changes in  our life and to keep moving through them.  We may not even realize at the time that we truly are climbing a mountain, but we are.  When we keep putting one foot in front of the other and take things one step at a time we will eventually get to where we can accept change, or learn to live with what we cannot change and above all be at peace with it all.

I heard a wise person say once, "Look at the pattern and not just part of the picture."

Switchback mountains have zigzag trails that form a pattern.  The pattern shows lots of sharp turns, short straights and the only way to get to the top is to keep moving, keep putting one foot in front of the other - taking it one step at a time-  making the climb- and with time -to find true peace of mind.

That will be the view that faith, hope and love have led to.

" Embracing Time " by Susan Pearl

When we embrace the love in the moment,
  we are embracing time.
To embrace time
   we live in the moment,
   we stay in the moment,
We are not living ahead of our self,
   or living in the past,
We are embracing the love in the moment,
   we are embracing life as it is happening,
   we are living life to the fullest and healthiest measure,
And with time we will look back on these captured moments with great pleasure,
Because we didn't let them slip by or away,
   we embraced the love in the moment,
   we embraced time and lived life in the moment of each day.

" Peace Appreciation " by Susan Pearl

In my life I have met few people who truly have a deep abiding peace within.
In fact the number of them is minimal, probably close to ten or eleven.

There is a genuine joy of life and of nature that brings a true peace of soul
   that these people know.
And they say they are alright whichever way things will go.
Such a deep abiding peace does overflow into the lives of others
   for such peace and beauty about life that they willingly show
   because they desire this way of life for others to know.
These wonders of nature and the wonderfulness of life they have known,
   but most of all they want others to be able to see this, also, 
   and to see it all on their own.
 Then others will experience times of being so carried away by the majesty of it all.
And to still keep being carried away when such majestic and grand times they recall.
This brings a deep abiding peace within and a thankfulness, too,
  for the appreciation of having seen a greatness in life that stays so meaningful and true.

" Golden Wedding Anniversary Blog " by Susan Pearl

We are celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary this month.
It doesn't "feel" like there has been such a large passage of time since our wedding day.
But, like a good friend told me once, "Go with the facts and not the feelings".
With that in mind, we lived one place for eleven years,
   we lived another place for twenty two years,
   and we have been here for seventeen years.
I am not going into any personal ages of any family member
  to show the fact that fifty years really have come and gone,
  but I will say this about time:

Many years ago I read a handwritten note from my husband's grandmother. It read:

The past is in God's mercy.
The present is in God's love.
The future is in Divine Providence.

So the love of each day is very real and present with great gratitude and appreciation for the wonderful years together.






  

" The Rising of Minds " by Susan Pearl

Let our minds rise, more than ever before,
And let's see the love that can be and agree.
From a new height
   let us look beyond what we know
   and together we shall grow.
It is through faith that forward we shall go,
   sometimes fast, sometimes slow.
And by hope we keep moving towards our common goal,
With a  great love for good and kindness that knows no end,
Let us rise to new heights where we have not ever been
  and look to the new possibilities we haven't ever seen,
For they are there for us to realize
   if only we let our minds rise.