There are times in our lives when we must say goodbye. It could be someone moving, someone you once loved separating ways, or saying goodbye to a loved one for the final time. As I have gone through life, I have had to say goodbye for the final time, many times.
Some of them I knew my whole life. Others I had never met. Some, I had the blessing of meeting a few times. Nonetheless, every single one of those lives meant the world to me. See, to me life is one of the most important things in this world. However, equally as important is how you spent your time in this world and what you leave behind.
In the recent months, I had the blessing to meet one of the most peaceful and beautiful souls I have ever met. Though I only got the chance to be in her presence twice, she became a very important person to me. Just getting to meet her was a true and wonderful gift.
I could be selfish and say something like, “it is not fair that she was taken so soon before I got to know her better.” In the end, that is not how I see it. Yes, as grieving can go, I went through some of these emotions. Of course, I would have loved to be around her and in her presence for years to come, but that simply was not to be. The moments I was given to be in her presence were some of the greatest gifts that I could ask for.
Through those around her, I felt I got to somewhat know her. She is a woman who was humble, kind, generous, and simply an amazing human being. She was a woman who was not one to say a negative word against anyone. She was a woman who loved her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. In just one evening, I experienced the beautiful light that she was and is. In just one evening, she was a woman who became someone who I will forever look to as an example of how to spread peace in this world. She was and is one of the strongest women that I ever had the honor of meeting. I say is, because if you personally know whom I am speaking of, you know that the glow of her presence passes through any boundaries that are present in this physical world.
I recently have gotten to hear some words spoken by someone very close to me. He spoke about her legacy. I know that her legacy will be the love and kindness that she left behind when she moved on to better places. I know that her legacy is in her children and grandchildren. I know this because I have gotten to feel the love of one of her grandchildren. Though different, it is yet the same love that she passed on to him. The gentleness, respect, kindness, and beauty that are a part of his soul are part of the same legacy. The peace that he brings to my life is also part of the peace that she gave to this world.
I know in my heart, that no matter what, I will pass on the peace and love that she gave to me in those few moments of being around her. I will always be honored that, someday, I will be blessed with helping to carry on her legacy. I know that, someday, I will be honored, beside the one I love, to instill her legacy that she passed on to her family in future generations. I will always be honored to have known her at all.
To some, she was known as Mary. To others, she was known as mother or Nana. To some she was a saint. To me, she is a guardian angel watching over all those that she loves. Yes, loves, not loved. She is and will be greatly missed in this world. But, more than that, she will be preciously remembered.
With that, I will leave you all with this. Always try to be a kind and peaceful presence in the lives of others. Always let those around you feel and know your love. Live every moment as it was the most precious. Hold tight to the good things in life and let the negatives go. Always try to leave the world in a better place than you found it. Because, though you may leave behind money or belongings, in the end, things do not really matter. It is your Legacy of Love that matters most. Much love to each of you. May your hearts always be full and your lives filled with love. May many moments of peace and blessings be a part of your lives.
With respect
Chieko Ross
Written by Chieko D. Ross on January 30, 2011 ©
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
On This Day
This day, the celebration of the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., will always be a day that I will celebrate. Dr. King is and always will be a hero of mine. I feel that if it was not for Dr. King (and many others along side him) and his fight for civil rights, I would not have many chances in this world that I have today. See, Dr. King is a person who fought for all people and our world. Yes, he fought for the rights of his people, but during all that, he was fighting for all. People of all races, not just one race. He wanted equality for all. And that is why he is one of my greatest heroes.
Dr. King, was a person who, from a young age, has helped to form the way I look at this world. I have not and never will be party in any form of discrimination. I will never be party to causing the oppression of another. I refuse to hate another. I refuse to cause another harm. My fight will always be peaceful and with respect for all. I will always fight for the rights of all people, no matter who they are. I will always fight for us, as a world, to be just that. We are all human and are all in the same boat in the end. I will always fight for peace, tolerance, and understanding between all people in our world. I will always fight for equality. When I say equality, I mean true equality. True equality is where all people are equal on all levels, no matter who they are, what they look like, no matter their gender or sexual orientation. I will always fight for a world where no one, not one single person, is below another. We are all equal, we are all human, we are one.
I will also say that I will always fight for the rights of animals and the protection of our environment. I feel that they all are a part of this life and are in the same boat . We, as a world, need to simply learn to take care of each other. We all need to protect each other. By protecting each other, we protect ourselves. I always hear people saying that war will always exist. That hate will always exist. Well, I stand here and say that I refuse to agree or believe any of this. As long as I breathe, I will always strive to live peacefully and help others to find that peace, both within themselves and with each other.
I feel that if it was not for those like Dr. King, I never have to choose which race that I want to be and I will never choose to be one or another. If anyone ever asks my race, I first will say I am human, period. I am never ashamed of any part of who I am. Yes, I am what one would call bi-racial, mixed, mulatto, or multiracial. In all honesty, none of that really means anything to me. It is just a label. The only label I will wear is human. I will always see the differences between us all as a thing of beauty. I will always celebrate our differences. I will never judge another because of our differences. I refuse to judge a person by what their skin tone is, what their sexual orientation is, what gender they are.
As I said before, I will never be party to the discrimination of anyone because of who they are. Because, if I did, I’d see it as discriminating against a brother, a sister, myself. What we do to one, we do to all. What actions we take affects the world, no matter how big or small. We all live in the same home, Mother Earth. We all breathe the same breath. We all drink from the same water. We all eat the same food. We all bleed the same blood. We are one.
My dream is much the same as that of Dr. King. As most of us know, he said, “"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." My personal hopes and dreams for this world is all peoples in this world will be able to walk freely, without hate, discrimination, and oppression always being at their backs. My dream is of a world where war is not the answer. My dream is that we will be able to drink straight from the streams again. My dream is that we will live in a world where genocide does not exist. My dream is of people freely and openly loving whomever it is that they love. My dream is that everyone in this world can walk down a street without have the fear of being harmed or killed. My dream is that people can dance under the sun and stars together. My dream is that our animal friends no longer get hurt, lose their homes, or lose their lives. My dream is equality, true equality. My dream is PEACE!
So I will end this by saying Thank You Dr. King. Thank you Ryan White. Thank You Rosa Parks. Thank You Mahatma Ghandi. Thank You Dr. Wayne Dyer. Thank You Dennis Banks. Thank You John Lennon. Thank You Mother Theresa. Thank You Dalai Lama. Thank You Peace Pilgrim. Thank You Bob Marley. Thank You Leonard Peltier. Thank you Maya Angelou. Thank You Emmanuel Jal. Thank You Robert Mirabal. Thank You Dian Fossey. Thank You Michael Jackson. Thank you Deepak Chopra. Thank You to the peacemakers, the peace creators, the peacekeepers. Thank you to all who fought for the right of others. Thank You to all who stood up when everyone else quit. Thank You to those you gave their lives. Thank You to all who dedicated and gave their lives for other people. And Thank You All for being you. I love you all to peaces.
Much love, one love.
Chieko Ross
Written by Chieko Ross on January 17, 2010 ©
http://thetyedyelillypad.blogspot.com/
Here are some beautiful quotes by beautiful people.
"We must protect the forests for our children, grandchildren and children yet to be born. We must protect the forests for those who can't speak for themselves such as the birds, animals, fish and trees." -Qwatsinas (Hereditary Chief Edward Moody), Nuxalk Nation
“Be the change you want to see in the world.” -Mahatma Gandhi
“I hope that people will finally come to realize that there is only one ‘race’ – the human race- and that we are all members of it. –Margaret Atwood
It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength. –Maya Angelou
The way of peace is the way of love. Love is the greatest power on earth. It conquers all things. --Peace Pilgrim
When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace. –Jimi Hendrix
Dr. King, was a person who, from a young age, has helped to form the way I look at this world. I have not and never will be party in any form of discrimination. I will never be party to causing the oppression of another. I refuse to hate another. I refuse to cause another harm. My fight will always be peaceful and with respect for all. I will always fight for the rights of all people, no matter who they are. I will always fight for us, as a world, to be just that. We are all human and are all in the same boat in the end. I will always fight for peace, tolerance, and understanding between all people in our world. I will always fight for equality. When I say equality, I mean true equality. True equality is where all people are equal on all levels, no matter who they are, what they look like, no matter their gender or sexual orientation. I will always fight for a world where no one, not one single person, is below another. We are all equal, we are all human, we are one.
I will also say that I will always fight for the rights of animals and the protection of our environment. I feel that they all are a part of this life and are in the same boat . We, as a world, need to simply learn to take care of each other. We all need to protect each other. By protecting each other, we protect ourselves. I always hear people saying that war will always exist. That hate will always exist. Well, I stand here and say that I refuse to agree or believe any of this. As long as I breathe, I will always strive to live peacefully and help others to find that peace, both within themselves and with each other.
I feel that if it was not for those like Dr. King, I never have to choose which race that I want to be and I will never choose to be one or another. If anyone ever asks my race, I first will say I am human, period. I am never ashamed of any part of who I am. Yes, I am what one would call bi-racial, mixed, mulatto, or multiracial. In all honesty, none of that really means anything to me. It is just a label. The only label I will wear is human. I will always see the differences between us all as a thing of beauty. I will always celebrate our differences. I will never judge another because of our differences. I refuse to judge a person by what their skin tone is, what their sexual orientation is, what gender they are.
As I said before, I will never be party to the discrimination of anyone because of who they are. Because, if I did, I’d see it as discriminating against a brother, a sister, myself. What we do to one, we do to all. What actions we take affects the world, no matter how big or small. We all live in the same home, Mother Earth. We all breathe the same breath. We all drink from the same water. We all eat the same food. We all bleed the same blood. We are one.
My dream is much the same as that of Dr. King. As most of us know, he said, “"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." My personal hopes and dreams for this world is all peoples in this world will be able to walk freely, without hate, discrimination, and oppression always being at their backs. My dream is of a world where war is not the answer. My dream is that we will be able to drink straight from the streams again. My dream is that we will live in a world where genocide does not exist. My dream is of people freely and openly loving whomever it is that they love. My dream is that everyone in this world can walk down a street without have the fear of being harmed or killed. My dream is that people can dance under the sun and stars together. My dream is that our animal friends no longer get hurt, lose their homes, or lose their lives. My dream is equality, true equality. My dream is PEACE!
So I will end this by saying Thank You Dr. King. Thank you Ryan White. Thank You Rosa Parks. Thank You Mahatma Ghandi. Thank You Dr. Wayne Dyer. Thank You Dennis Banks. Thank You John Lennon. Thank You Mother Theresa. Thank You Dalai Lama. Thank You Peace Pilgrim. Thank You Bob Marley. Thank You Leonard Peltier. Thank you Maya Angelou. Thank You Emmanuel Jal. Thank You Robert Mirabal. Thank You Dian Fossey. Thank You Michael Jackson. Thank you Deepak Chopra. Thank You to the peacemakers, the peace creators, the peacekeepers. Thank you to all who fought for the right of others. Thank You to all who stood up when everyone else quit. Thank You to those you gave their lives. Thank You to all who dedicated and gave their lives for other people. And Thank You All for being you. I love you all to peaces.
Much love, one love.
Chieko Ross
Written by Chieko Ross on January 17, 2010 ©
http://thetyedyelillypad.blogspot.com/
Here are some beautiful quotes by beautiful people.
"We must protect the forests for our children, grandchildren and children yet to be born. We must protect the forests for those who can't speak for themselves such as the birds, animals, fish and trees." -Qwatsinas (Hereditary Chief Edward Moody), Nuxalk Nation
“Be the change you want to see in the world.” -Mahatma Gandhi
“I hope that people will finally come to realize that there is only one ‘race’ – the human race- and that we are all members of it. –Margaret Atwood
It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength. –Maya Angelou
The way of peace is the way of love. Love is the greatest power on earth. It conquers all things. --Peace Pilgrim
When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace. –Jimi Hendrix
Monday, January 10, 2011
The Building of My Family
First, before I say anything else, I want to say that I love my family to pieces. I will always do what I can for them and want them to know that they are always in my heart. I would never replace even one of them for anyone. No one can substitute them and without them, I would not be who I am.
Therefore, as I go on, I will say that I am one who has been very blessed to be able to grow my family. While, yes, there are new generations who I love dearly, I am talking about family that is not blood related.
Over the last year and half, I have been able to form a bond with people who I consider family as much as anyone else. I have new brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, and one I am starting to see as a daughter. As I look back, I can say that I do not know how I would have gotten to the point in life that I am without a single one of them. Each has helped me to realize that life is not this horrible, lonely existence.
Before I met some of my family extension, I felt different, alone, scared, depressed, and sad. I always had happiness, but it did not feel complete. As I came to more to know the social media world, I have found so many people to be inspirations, mentors, and beautiful lights in my everyday life. As a side note, I will say if used right, the internet and social media worlds can help to bring hope and peace to so many. It can help to bring people together who would otherwise not have ever been able to connect. Because of the connections I have made, I have realized within myself that I did not allow myself to have complete happiness. Through these connections, I have been able to let down walls that I built up from past hurts.
So I will write about how it all started for me. I have always been one to support peace, love, equality, and kindness. This extends to the artists that I listen to and support. If you know me well, you will know that music is something that is very important to me. I decided to join a social media site to follow the artist who I felt the glow of peace through his music, words, caring and support of others. Occasionally, I would post quotes about different aspects of life and how if we come together we can make the world a better place. However, I often found that I felt no one was caring. I decided to stop and simply login for updates on artists that I followed. After awhile, I began to try again wanting to bring a little more peace to the world by posting some of my thoughts on our world issues and by posting quotes to inspire and make people think.
One day, I finally thought I had enough and wanted to quit the site, but in boredom clicked on one of the links. This was the best link that I had ever hit. It was something that brought me peace in the form of laughter. A link would eventually lead me to someone who I now consider my sister. I hope she knows what a blessing she has been to me over the last year and a half. I do not need to mention this because she knows who she is.
From this point on, I have been so lucky to encounter so many others who have become my family. I have a sister who is there, supporting and encouraging me at each turn. I have an uncle to who I can look up. I have a strong brother who is like a rock in this world. I have another sister who is such a sweetheart. I have yet another sister who has helped me to find my inner strength and learn to love myself as I am. I now have a person who is a beautiful light in the form of a daughter. I have so many more that I could call cousins. I now have someone who I love so dearly that I want to spend the rest of my life and beyond with. I am so blessed that each of these people care about each other, our world, and what is happening to it.
Some of them have been blessings in the form of tough love, others by supporting, and yet others by making me laugh. All have brought so much love and joy into my life. I hope I have been even a tenth to each of them what they have given me in life.
With this, I will say that you never have to meet a person face to face to become close to another. You never have to meet face to face to love others. I love each of these people as much as I do those who with who I grew up. I have been so lucky to meet a few of them and hope someday to get to meet the rest. Until then I want them all to know that that they each have a special place in my heart and in my life. To each of them, I want to say thank you for shining their beautiful light on my life. To each of them I proudly and unashamedly say I love you.
It does not matter what color of skin you have, what culture you are, or gender. All that matters is the love we share in this world. Whether a person likes it or not, we are one big family. What actions we take affect all. As one big family, we should always respect, support, and show kindness to one another and all living creatures.
With that said, I will sign off by saying to anyone who reads this: I love each one of you to peaces. You are a brother or sister by simply existing. You are all beautiful. Thank you so much for being who you are, being inspirations, and light givers. May you each have joy in your every day, light shining on your paths, and love in each of your hearts. Much love, one love always.
Chieko D. Ross
By Chieko Ross written on 1/10/2011 ©
Therefore, as I go on, I will say that I am one who has been very blessed to be able to grow my family. While, yes, there are new generations who I love dearly, I am talking about family that is not blood related.
Over the last year and half, I have been able to form a bond with people who I consider family as much as anyone else. I have new brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, and one I am starting to see as a daughter. As I look back, I can say that I do not know how I would have gotten to the point in life that I am without a single one of them. Each has helped me to realize that life is not this horrible, lonely existence.
Before I met some of my family extension, I felt different, alone, scared, depressed, and sad. I always had happiness, but it did not feel complete. As I came to more to know the social media world, I have found so many people to be inspirations, mentors, and beautiful lights in my everyday life. As a side note, I will say if used right, the internet and social media worlds can help to bring hope and peace to so many. It can help to bring people together who would otherwise not have ever been able to connect. Because of the connections I have made, I have realized within myself that I did not allow myself to have complete happiness. Through these connections, I have been able to let down walls that I built up from past hurts.
So I will write about how it all started for me. I have always been one to support peace, love, equality, and kindness. This extends to the artists that I listen to and support. If you know me well, you will know that music is something that is very important to me. I decided to join a social media site to follow the artist who I felt the glow of peace through his music, words, caring and support of others. Occasionally, I would post quotes about different aspects of life and how if we come together we can make the world a better place. However, I often found that I felt no one was caring. I decided to stop and simply login for updates on artists that I followed. After awhile, I began to try again wanting to bring a little more peace to the world by posting some of my thoughts on our world issues and by posting quotes to inspire and make people think.
One day, I finally thought I had enough and wanted to quit the site, but in boredom clicked on one of the links. This was the best link that I had ever hit. It was something that brought me peace in the form of laughter. A link would eventually lead me to someone who I now consider my sister. I hope she knows what a blessing she has been to me over the last year and a half. I do not need to mention this because she knows who she is.
From this point on, I have been so lucky to encounter so many others who have become my family. I have a sister who is there, supporting and encouraging me at each turn. I have an uncle to who I can look up. I have a strong brother who is like a rock in this world. I have another sister who is such a sweetheart. I have yet another sister who has helped me to find my inner strength and learn to love myself as I am. I now have a person who is a beautiful light in the form of a daughter. I have so many more that I could call cousins. I now have someone who I love so dearly that I want to spend the rest of my life and beyond with. I am so blessed that each of these people care about each other, our world, and what is happening to it.
Some of them have been blessings in the form of tough love, others by supporting, and yet others by making me laugh. All have brought so much love and joy into my life. I hope I have been even a tenth to each of them what they have given me in life.
With this, I will say that you never have to meet a person face to face to become close to another. You never have to meet face to face to love others. I love each of these people as much as I do those who with who I grew up. I have been so lucky to meet a few of them and hope someday to get to meet the rest. Until then I want them all to know that that they each have a special place in my heart and in my life. To each of them, I want to say thank you for shining their beautiful light on my life. To each of them I proudly and unashamedly say I love you.
It does not matter what color of skin you have, what culture you are, or gender. All that matters is the love we share in this world. Whether a person likes it or not, we are one big family. What actions we take affect all. As one big family, we should always respect, support, and show kindness to one another and all living creatures.
With that said, I will sign off by saying to anyone who reads this: I love each one of you to peaces. You are a brother or sister by simply existing. You are all beautiful. Thank you so much for being who you are, being inspirations, and light givers. May you each have joy in your every day, light shining on your paths, and love in each of your hearts. Much love, one love always.
Chieko D. Ross
By Chieko Ross written on 1/10/2011 ©
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)