The Adventure

This was written by my wife Casey for our little Cillian.  I thought it was poignant, and wanted to share it with you. ~Cole

One of these days, probably sooner rather than later,
I’m not going to be able to nurse you to sleep anymore.

And you’re going to stop falling asleep on my shoulder, grasping onto my shirt and holding me as if I’m your whole world.

At some point, the one am, three am, and five am snuggle times will cease.

One of these days you’ll stop laughing and flashing that big grin of mine (with my one random dimple) at me when I make funny faces and noises.

One of these days it won’t be like this anymore,
so I’m going to be thankful, now, for every moment that it is.

This morning as I was sitting down to write I was reminded how easy it is to focus on things we should be doing for positive outcomes instead of addressing our belief system.  Applying that thought to health, I came up with this:

Do you have any beliefs about health to share?  Any you need to discard?  Leave them in the comments so we can continue the discussion.

I can see you changing, little man.
Each day you are full of new wonders and discoveries.
A smile,
A laugh,
A look of recognition.
These milestones both break and warm my heart
As I realize there are so many moments now past.
They are recorded in a baby blue book full of your pictures
In an attempt to preserve their freshness.

I have to remember to keep looking forward.
There’s so much to see, so much to miss if
I’m not here, fully, with you in the present.

You enchant me, little man.
Staring into your bright blue eyes
Calms my impatient soul.
Hours pass in mere minutes.
You’ve taught me to be still, and to revel in it.
For time is much more fleeting than I ever knew,
Now documented in inches and pounds.
They seem to pass faster than days.

In this stillness, I try to will time to stop
So we can stay together.
I know it is futile; I’m simply not ready to let go.

Something wants to leap out of my heart,
yet I am not knowing what it is.
It is pure, powerful, and has always been present
especially on this night
at this time
staring up at this sky.

I am left feeling small, feeling overwhelmed
feeling moved, feeling significantly insignificant
in this great world that is longing for what is in my heart.
For it’s purity
for it’s power
for it’s omnipresence, it’s connectedness.

Maybe it is this night, and this night only
that I seek it
that I glimpse it
that I realize it is a vision inside me.
I have been searching in the wrong places with the wrong eyes
afraid to open my heart, that it may leap out and be gone,
leaving this shell without feeling, without purpose however unknown.
powerless.

Oh if that were true, yet I know it cannot be.
I cannot wait another year, far too many are now passed
and with each it takes longer to find.

Oh, that it may live in my heart forever
radiating purely,
powerfully,
purposefully.
Christmas, the miracle of birth
of Hope
of Love
of Salvation.
Open my heart, my eyes
Unlock my passion, my purpose
That I may share it with the world all year long.

Since building our Is It Paleo app, we’ve had many requests to delve into quinoa (pronounced keen-wah). Quinoa has become one of the more popular “grain alternatives,” with many people thinking quinoa is fundamentally different than grains.  While quinoa isn’t technically a grain (it’s a seed ), it has grain-like properties.

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Have you thought about changing your eating lifestyle to the Paleo or Primal diet, only to be overwhelmed by learning all the “rules”?  Or if you have been eating Paleo, have you come across something new and exotic in the grocery store only to wonder Is It Paleo?   Maybe you’re out on the hunt and wondering if camel meat is legal.  Enter Is It Paleo. 

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When I first put down Eastbound Sailing, I found myself reflecting on pivotal moments in my own life. During the emotional journey that unfolds, readers will undoubtedly identify with Aiden’s search for wholeness, making Eastbound Sailing timeless and relatable.

Letting Go

This first novel by Todd Foley is a redemptive tale of sorrow, remorse, discovery, and joy viewed through its characters different philosophical constructs. At the same time it is a coming of age story for a late-bloomer who is slowly learning to let go of his egocentricity and control, finding out how to simply “be.”

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One more night slipping into

the small hours of the morning

where dreams and truth can merge

and reality is rarely obvious.

Here the stillness is serene, yet disconcerting.

It amplifies the emptiness

present in your absence.  I wait

with mounting anticipation of your return,

knowing I cannot surrender to the shadows

and fall into their dreamscapes.

Without a companion

I lay waiting, catatonic,

longing for my guide.

A News and Observer article today has some experts weighing in on what is wrong with our state. You can read that article here. After reading it, I felt a little unsettled by what was deemed “the solution” to all our woes – education.

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