On Being Under God’s Care

A Quote to Carry You

April 14, 2014

“A feather on the breath of God.” Hildegaard von Bingen

I’ve long loved this quote. I first heard of it during a series on chorale music that I attended years ago at our former church. I remember that it was on a mid-spring afternoon; the sun came streaming through the long, arched windows. On hearing the words being spoken, I closed my eyes and breathed deeply as if to capture the peaceful, reticence of the moment. I remember feeling so much at peace, as if I were being bathed in love. Indeed, “a feather on the breath of God,” the perfect depiction of being safe and secure under God’s care.

May you experience that kind of moment…and may it carry you throughout your day.

In His Peace,

Felecia

Rating: +9 (from 9 votes)

A Day In The Life

“Gizmo,” (graphite pencil drawing by Felecia R. Weber, OntheWingofaDove.com)

A day in the life…our lives are filled with so many things; never lose sight of your passion for living.

“All my life, I always wanted to be somebody. Now I see that I should have been more specific.” Jane Wagner

It is easy to get so caught up in life’s “daily grind” that we lose sight of the overall picture. Our focus becomes blurred between what we do and who we are. Each of us are unique and were born with a purpose. It is not always easy to determine what that purpose is, but finding it can fill our days with so much meaning and provide an entirely new vision for who we can become.

Sometimes I sit and close my eyes and imagine what it might have been like to have lived in a different era. I think of how tedious it must have been living in ages where the modern conveniences that we enjoy today were inconceivable. Yet, those simpler times provided the basis for imaginations to gradually develop and produce those very things. It makes me believe more an more that old saying “…if you can dream it, you can become it”.

Living our daily lives in the present, in the reality of each day is what we must do; we are responsible for our own well-being. Peering beyond that, being sensitive to who we really are and why we are alive, well that is essential too. In fact, I dare say that is what truly sustains us. Do you agree?

“Live life to the fullest, leave nothing undone…after all, isn’t that how the best races are won? Your passions, they strive when you give them a go. Do not wait, start today…let vitality flow!” Felecia R. Weber, OntheWingofaDove.com

Peace and love,

Felecia

Rating: +11 (from 11 votes)

This Is My World

“Here she is again, Halo Rose…my how she’s grown!”

This Is My World…welcome to it!

A day in the life of Halo Rose

This is my world.

How I love to play…

In fact, that is how I start each and every day!

“As you can see, playing with her many toys has been Halo’s favorite pastime ever since she was a puppy!”

This my world,

How I love to explore…

My tail keeps on wagging whenever I dart out the door!

“Hmmm, I am not sure what she loves more, the diving board, or the peanut that her mom, Marilyn Hill used to keep her still for this photograph!”

This is my world,

How I love to share…

My big sister and me, we make quite the pair!

“Halo keeps her big sister Penny Sparkle on her toes…both day and night!”

This is my world,

How I love to help…

If my Dad makes a mistake, I give a big “Yelp”!

“Halo loves to help her dad, Dick Hill, whenever she can…a second pair of eyes never hurts, right?”

This is my world,

How I love to try new things…

But some things, I’ve found are just for human beings!

“Well, I suppose this photograph needs no explanation!”

This is my world,

How I loved sharing it with you…

Please come back and visit soon…I’ll have lots more to share with you!

Bye for now…Halo Rose

Nap time!

(poem by Felecia R. Weber, OntheWingofaDove.com; photographs by Marilyn Hill)

Rating: +11 (from 11 votes)

On Daily Life

A Quote to Carry You

April 7,2014

“There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it.” Oscar Wilde

What a paradox…so often we long for something more than anything in the world. Our days are consumed with charting out ways to acquire that very thing. Then we receive it and it’s not at all what we thought it’d be. I wonder what that is…it happens to all of us at one time or another. Is it because we have an insatiable desire that will never be filled? Is it that we don’t know what it is that will truly satisfy us? Is what we want really what we need?

Our days are filled with so much…may you strive to seek after those things that will truly satisfy what you hunger for.

“I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want…And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:12, 19

Peace and love to you,

Felecia

Rating: +8 (from 8 votes)

Perpetual Motion

“C’est la vie!,” photograph by Felecia R. Weber, OntheWingofaDove.com

Perpetual Motion…Life, vita, vida, vie…whichever way you pronounce it, it never stands still.

“I am a spiritual being having a human experience. My life is a continual unfoldment of my divine potential.” (Author unknown)

With this new season of freshness, growth and renewal upon us, I can’t help but think of how life is in perpetual motion. Life itself is a constant cycle of birth, growth, death, and rebirth, growth, and on it goes. The seasons demonstrate this circle of movement so well. The dark, cold shadow of winter, can sometimes feel like death with its subdued bleakness surrounding us. The early light and sprouting vitality of spring is reminiscent of the joy and brightness that we experience in our youth. The intense heat of summer’s blaze is equal to the confidence and strength that propels us along through our adult years. Alas, the crowning glory that comes with a lifetime of wisdom and knowledge, fades as quietly as does the fullness of autumn’s majestic colors…life drifts away into subtle hues of gray…and darkness rules once again for a season.

“Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” James 4:14

Life, vita, vida,vie…whichever way you pronounce it, it never stands still. It is fascinating to see this principle in every living thing. Plants sprout from seeds that have been sowed beneath rich, dark soil where they appear to be dead. Before long, tiny green leaves develop and buds blossom in the matchless beauty of delicate petals that are seemingly here today, and gone tomorrow. But oh what sweetness their fragrance brings. And when they are spent, their perfume lingers for all to enjoy.

“Vibrance,” photograph by Felecia R. Weber, OntheWingofaDove.com

As with all living things, we all serve a purpose and its meaning fold during every stage of our lives. We live our days through season after season, year after year. Like the showers of spring help to grow the brilliance of a field of wildflowers in the summertime; our tears wash away our pain and disappointment, making way for the glimmer of a smile when good news comes. The pensive mood that brews when watching a leaf bursting with russet hues falling gently to the ground in autumn, mimics the way we feel when we realize how much of our lives have already been lived. There is something starkly compelling about peering out at a winterscape from a window, safe and warm inside. The blustery wind that blows and howls outside, they echo death’s hollow song…the melody is one that we will all someday become familiar with. Yet we will live on in the hearts of those who remember us and draw inspiration and vitality from all that we’ve left behind.

Whatever stage you are in, may you experience the perpetual motion of your life in a beautifully and wondrous way.

I bid you peace and love,

Felecia

Rating: +10 (from 10 votes)

Riding the Waves

“The Great Wave at Kanagawa” from the series “Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji,” 1830-32, Katsushika Hokusai. Image from a page of the 2013 Desk Calendar, courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art Store

Riding the Waves…when we are inspired, we explore, we reach higher, we soar!

“One doesn’t discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.” Andre Gide

Riding the Waves

There’s a sound and it’s roaring,

Yes, it is calling my name.

I wonder, shall I answer?

If I do, will I ever be the same?

It is strong and demanding.

It beckons my heart…”Come to me!”

It is bold, it is fresh…

like waves rushing out to sea.

There’s a sound and it’s roaring,

I worry…I cannot swim!

I don’t know, where will it take me?

Is it for real, or simply a whim?

I am told for a seed to grow,

it must wither and die.

I can see the shore in the distance.

Step out and wade toward it, shall I?

There’s a sound and it’s roaring,

Okay, I shall take a dive!

Though I am tossed to and fro,

riding the waves, I am alive!

Felecia R. Weber, OntheWingofaDove.com

My life is full of wonder right now… I feel as if I am on the edge of my seat! I can’t look back, only forward…what is there awaiting me? I am afraid, yet I am not…I am weak, yet there is a power within me that propels me forward. What is that thing that won’t let me dwindle? What is that thing that keeps my eyes wide open, not wanting to miss what there is to see? Indeed, I feel as though I am riding the waves…heading toward a distant shore…one full of hope, one full of life!

Peace and love,

Felecia

Rating: +8 (from 8 votes)

On Crying…Tears of Hope

A Quote to Carry You

March 31, 2014

“Crying releases so much. God thinks of everything…crying cleanses away what sadness brings. Like fresh water flowing, the tears lead us through glistening waters to the welcoming shores of hope and love.” Felecia R. Weber, OnthWingsofaDove.com

We all face sad times. Life is full of them and they can spring upon us when we least expect them. It is my hope for you when those times seep into your life, that you will not drown in your sorrows, but that you’ll stay afloat; ride the waves; splash onto shore…open your heart and from God’s abundant provision…let the blessings pour!

Peace and love to you,

Felecia

Rating: +8 (from 8 votes)

Fool-hearty and Fancy Free

“Masqueraders” (Detail), 1875-78, Raimundo De Madrazo Y Garreta. Image from a page of the 2013 Desk Calendar, courtesy of The Metrolpolitan Museum of Art Store

“Fool-hearty and fancy free…let not a care in the world trouble me…”

“The fool hath said in his heart, ‘There is no God.'” Psalm 14:1

April Fool’s Day is approaching. I think of it as a day full of jokes, pranks and lighthearted fun. What appears to be real is actually fake; it is hard to take anyone seriously. It is easy to be fool-hearted and fancy free on such a day…after all, it’s all in fun isn’t it? It is on April Fool’s Day… but when the jokes are played out and it’s time to take off the disguises and reveal our true selves…What lies behind the mask you wear? Will it bring you joy or cause you to despair ?

As I contemplated these questions as they relate to “real life,” I was reminded of what happened in the Parable of the Ten Virgins, found in Matthew’s Gospel (Chapter 25:1-13):

“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’ ‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go out to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’ But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’ Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.”

Taking it easy and having carefree fun certainly is not a bad thing. In fact, it is essential and it provides a healthy balance to our daily lives. As life will have it, however, things do not always go as planned. Like the five foolish virgins in the parable, letting our guard down, not preparing for what may lie ahead, may cause undue hardship which can devastate us. Life is a precious gift to be enjoyed…no one can predict the future. When challenges come your way, when there is no smiling mask to hide behind to make light of a serious situation…will you have what it takes to see you through?

“Fool-hearty and fancy free…for only a time that way we can be…but wisdom knows a better way. How will you prepare your heart today?” Felecia R. Weber, OntheWingofaDove.com

Peace to you,

Felecia

Rating: +7 (from 7 votes)

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On the Wing of a Dove

Living life…beautifully!

On Being Under God’s Care