Entries categorized as ‘forgiveness’
Christmas Comfort
December 8, 2009 · 12 Comments
Categories: Christmas · children · enlightenment · forgiveness · fulfillment · grace · hope · innocence · joy · life · love · mother · peace · thoughtless awareness · well-being
inner silence = world peace
June 4, 2009 · 9 Comments
On May 9, 2009, an enthusiastic gesture for peace was made in Nicosia, Cyprus, as hundreds of artists and children worldwide had their ambassadors for peace – handmade elephants – displayed on both sides of the dividing-line checkpoint.
The two mayors of the world’s last divided capital embraced in friendship, a gesture showing hope for a future of peace. History was also made by three ‘enemy’ passport holders – students helping with the exhibition – being allowed to cross the island’s severely guarded, temporary internal border! It may not have been the joyful civic tidal wave that eradicated the dreaded Berlin Wall in 1989, but every drop counts when it’s to help quench the thirst for freedom of the innocent generations to come.
Another highlight of the day came as a local shopkeeper near the checkpoint gave the artist organizers access to his wireless Internet service, allowing us, via web-cam, to broadcast live to the international Schengen Peace Foundation conference taking place simultaneously in Luxembourg – from one end of Europe to the other on Europe Day! All the delegates in attendance applauded after seeing and hearing about the efforts being made, by adults and children alike, for the important cause of lasting peace over in Cyprus.
The following day, Mother’s Day, the peace-exhibition was invited to Jerusalem by an Israeli university professor. The elephants-without-borders are on the march!
With a little mutual forgiveness, and respect for the innocent generations to come, this world can become a beautiful home for everyone.
Here’s my video-collage of the event (music courtesy of Matt Malley, former Counting Crows bass player)
(if you have a fast Internet connection, click on the HQ tab after clicking on ‘YouTube’, to see it in higher resolution)
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Categories: Ganesha · creativity · forgiveness · freedom · friendship · hope · humanity · innocence · joy · life · love · peace · people · synchronicity
world peace begins in each heart …
January 21, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Despite the fact that the world family is growing closer and closer together in communication, love and understanding, there are still certain hot-spots on our planet that require patient, collective attention. One such healing wound is called Cyprus. In mid-January, 2009, the voices of a few international artists and enthusiastic children brought cooling balm in the form of ‘Elephants for Peace.’ This was the beginning of a world-tour art/peace project created by German artist and historian, Rose Marie Gnausch, and the Art Initiative Naturalmente RoMa.
My wife and I were honored to be present for this inauguration, to be able to share our creative talents for such a noble cause, and to meet so many local, influential people whose hearts are set on peace for future generations. The next event in Cyprus will be along Ledra Street in Nicosia on both sides of the border – May 9 and 10, for the one year anniversary of this border opening – before the growing exhibition moves on to other countries. Here’s my little film collage of the initial ’sprouting’ (higher resolution, HQ, can be selected in the bottom, right corner after clicking on YouTube) …
if that doesn’t work, go to this address and wait a few minutes for high resolution streaming before playing:
http://homepage.mac.com/ed_saugstad/Sites/Go-Ganesha-Go.m4v
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Categories: Ganesha · art · children · forgiveness · freedom · friendship · fulfillment · hope · humanity · innocence · joy · life · love · peace · people
Tagged: art, Cyprus, elephants, peace
“Christmas greetings”
December 10, 2008 · Leave a Comment
Categories: Christmas · Ganesha · India · forgiveness · freedom · grace · hope · humanity · innocence · joy · life · love · mother · peace · spirituality · well-being · wisdom · writing
Tagged: Christmas, wonder
drummin’ for all the lonely …
November 28, 2008 · 2 Comments
When I woke up this morning, this new rhythm was vibrating through me. I would like to dedicate it to all unsung, lonely children and adults out there, waiting to someday be hugged. May the day come soon, when no human being feels unloved.
(The bass is my heel on the floor – heard best through a proper set of speakers – and the rest comes from my fingers on the desk)
with much (needed) love,
Ed

Categories: forgiveness · friendship · fulfillment · humanity · joy · life · love · people · smile · well-being
Tagged: collectivity, comfort, drumming, life
a message
November 14, 2008 · 3 Comments

As I clasp my hand tightly in yours,
from my heart emerges a solemn wish:
that happiness and wisdom will come freely to you,
and that your knowledge may be bountiful.
Also, hope that the winds of reality may be gentle,
and guide you peacefully through the tides of life –
for you are my brother, and my love for you is infinite.
Ed Saugstad, age fourteen, 1972
(a message to the human race)

(Ed’s cover for the Burnsview Junior High School yearbook, 1972-73, North Delta, Canada)
Categories: forgiveness · friendship · humanity · life · love · writing
Tagged: compassion, life
and you think YOU’RE having a bad day (4)
May 9, 2008 · Leave a Comment

Categories: forgiveness · life · smile
Tagged: life
and you think YOU’RE having a bad day (1)
March 1, 2008 · 2 Comments

Categories: forgiveness · friendship · life · peace · smile
pure desire
February 4, 2008 · 3 Comments

Who played with a ball
And thought of the children
With no ball at all:
And gave it a kiss
And for every poor child
A ball he did wish.
Who looked at the sky
And seeing the dirt there
She started to cry:
Hugged sky to her heart
And prayed that the people
Stop sending up dark.
Who dreamed in the night
That God is inside us
With comfort and light,
For the Mother to rise
All the problems will end
In the love from our eyes.
Categories: children · enlightenment · forgiveness · freedom · friendship · fulfillment · grace · hope · humanity · innocence · joy · life · love · mother · peace · poetry · spirituality · well-being · wisdom · yoga
season’s greetings
December 14, 2007 · 2 Comments
Hi . . .
This is just a little Christmas greeting – taking an opportunity to wish you well at a special moment in time. For some, this particular moment won’t seem significant, that is, if you find in yourself no particular reason to especially enjoy the birthday of Jesus Christ, possibly because of other religious beliefs or out of disdain for the materialistic attitudes it brings out. Personally, I also respect and enjoy the special days set aside to honor others who deserve our admiration and gratitude: Buddha, Mohammed, Nanak, Moses, Krishna, Lao Tse and the many more who came, in indescribable compassion and wisdom, to guide us on the long road.
But I take this moment to honor the universal child in us – Shri Ganesha and Lord Jesus – with the sincere hope that we may all soon enjoy the unlimited joy and clarity that only a balanced child can know. And I honor universal motherhood. There are many who look forward with dread and insecurity. When I look forward, I look also inward, and I know that there is much to be enjoyed coming our way. That’s not a hunch but a certainty. I wish for you this comforting light, not just at this moment, but for always. It’s growing in our midst, uniting and strengthening us. The road leads to inner freedom. That is the wondrous beginning.

Categories: Ganesha · children · enlightenment · forgiveness · freedom · fulfillment · grace · hope · humanity · innocence · joy · life · love · mother · peace · spirituality · thoughtless awareness · well-being · wisdom
beyond ego pumpering
November 12, 2007 · 2 Comments
Did you know that you have a built-in Jeeves – a compassionate and intelligent butler who can gently lift you out of any tangle? By Jove – by Jeeves – you do indeed! It’s been rumored that we are using only a fraction of our brain power. Some think that by pumping and pampering (pumpering) of the ego, we can ascend to greater heights of skill in dealing with life. This line of thought leads to a solid dead-end. The only way to unleash that vast potential is to activate a specific energy at the base of the spine, whose purpose it is to rise up and open the pearly gate at the apex of the brain, thus connecting said brain to the power that created it. The more this energy is strengthened through appropriate meditation, the more this connection is expanded, and the more our brain is enlightened. In fact, our whole nervous system then becomes increasingly aware of subtler phenomena, and the dignified genius in us generously supplies answers to life’s many complications. You don’t have to be Bertie Wooster to have access to the ideal solver-of-problems. You become your own indispensable, wise best friend.
You: “Jeeves! What on earth am I to do about this incessant mental rambling?”
Your-Own-Inner-Jeeves: “Sir?” (or “Madam?”)
“This unsolicited, unproductive thinking, Jeeves! Is there no stopping it? Is humanity to be driven off the brink of its remaining sanity by this relentless inner train?”
“There is a simple way to ascend comfortably above these disturbing trains of thought, Sir.”
“Well, out with it, Jeeves! What is this satisfying, cerebral secret that you’ve been withholding from the waiting world?”
“The answer is simultaneously simple and profound, Sir, and readily available to anyone, from any walk of life – it sleeps in each of us at the base of the spine.”
“Do you mean to insinuate, Jeeves, that my Aunt Agatha, among others, is presently sitting on the solution to mankind’s greatest problem?”
“Indeed, Sir. In fact, no single person on the planet is exempt from this common trait. Os sacrum, or hieron osteon, the ’sacred bone’, was so named by the early Greek mystics because of the enlightening energy coiled there, necessary to connect the individual awareness to the all-pervading power that created us.”
“And you have proof that this benevolent something can free us from the noise within, thereby lifting the willing subject into a sort of golden, wise halo of silence?”
“Indeed, Sir. It is a purely natural phenomena which occurs spontaneously when this Kundalini energy awakens due to contact with the subtlest of universal vibrations, manifested, causing her to gently rise up the spine to the fontanel, thus opening the door to collective consciousness. This evolutionary breakthrough was available to very few in the past, but it seems that we have all reached an important threshold which allows anyone to ‘dance liberated into the light’, as the poet so aptly put it.”
“So you’re saying that the moment I make the magic wish to ascend beyond my miserable, human bonds, I’ll be ready to pass by a smiling cherubim radiating these fine vibes that will inevitably cause my being to lift off like a Nasa space-shuttle at the end of count down?”
“The experience is somewhat subtler than that, but you have the gist of the matter, Sir. It is the promised yoga, that is, union. May I demonstrate?”
“Demo away, Jeeves! I have cast my wish into the fountain of hope. What do I stand to lose?”
“What indeed, Sir? Place your hands, palms upwards, comfortably on your lap. You may close your eyes, and sincerely, in your heart, ask the universal Mother for your Self-realization.”
“Ask the what for my what?”
“Addressing this Kundalini energy, Sir, simply request that you may know your true, universal nature. I will expedite the process by lifting my open hand parallel to your spine to a point above your head. This will help the Kundalini to rise in response to the familiar vibrations.”
“As I’ve always conjectured, Jeeves – so you are an angel!”
“No more so than any other Self-realized person, Sir. Are you feeling anything yet?”
“I am. My goodness, you know? I really am . . . This is even better than whiskey, Jeeves. Have I lived all these years without knowing joy? I feel, well, I feel as light as a feather, as focused as a hawk, and . . . what is all this breezy coolness? It’s pouring out of my hands, and the top of my head feels like a fountain! May I open my eyes, or will it all fade like a beautiful dream on waking?”
“You may open your eyes, Sir, and I can assure you that it will not fade away. These are the Vibrations of which I spoke. They are the powerful Breath of Life which have been referred to throughout history in various cultures and religions as the Chi, Ki, Chaitanya, Prana, Ruach, Ruh, Pneuma and Spiritus, as well as the Wind of the Holy Spirit.”
“This is marvelous! Only a laughing, well-fed baby cuddling at its mother’s warm breast could know how I’m presently feeling! Who was it that rejoiced about the coming Age, calling every breeze sacred incense, Jeeves?”
“That would be Lionel Johnson in Vita Venturi Saeculi, Sir. ‘ Let green woods wave thee welcome, and blue seas laugh welcome, and each breeze be sacred incense round thee: peace appear through crystal atmosphere, impassioned, perdurable, omnipotent; given by God, not lent, foretaste of Heaven, ere heaven be all in all, come to the vexed world’s call!’ “
“That’s the one! Yes, I’m gushing with goodness – woods and waters – maybe a bit like those bliss-sharing Kalpa-thingy trees in the Indian proverb!”
“You must be referring to the passage from the Gyaneshwari, Sir: ‘Such men/women are the moving forests of Kalpataru trees. They are mines of wish-granting living jewels. They are vocal oceans of nectar.’ It is but one early description of realized souls, Sir.”
“All this enlightening has made me thirsty, Jeeves. Would you be so kind?”
“Certainly, Sir. Would you like your usual whiskey and soda?”
“Not today – I don’t want to come down. Bring me pure water. This new connection can use some meditative nurturing. I think someone has just answered my prayers.”
“‘Holy mother, hear my prayer, somehow I know you’re still there. Send me please some peace of mind; take away this pain.’“
“Shakespeare?”
“Eric Clapton, Sir.”
“Thank you, Jeeves.”
“The pleasure is all mine, Sir.”
Categories: enlightenment · forgiveness · freedom · friendship · fulfillment · grace · hope · humanity · innocence · joy · life · meditation · mother · peace · spirituality · thoughtless awareness · well-being · wisdom · yoga
meditation: a new, hope-filled beginning
August 23, 2007 · 6 Comments
There are a lot of concepts about meditation. But for those who’ve experienced the real thing, it’s obvious that meditation is the state in which all limited concepts are exposed for what they are, and a new kind of insight becomes the norm.
Meditation is the state of thoughtless-awareness reached when the human attention rises above the mental turmoil to perceive everything as it really is, above thoughts. This state allows one to experience in a direct, actual way, without the filter of conditionings and projections. That may sound over-simplified and unlikely, but it is in fact a very natural, essential evolution of our consciousness.
Even after twenty-five years of daily moments of meditation, I’m still often surprised and delighted by my personal experiences, which sometimes come unexpectedly and in new, varied ways. One becomes aware of the subtle ‘vibrations’ that emit from persons, places, things or occurrences. The other day I sat behind a mother playing with her laughing baby on a public bus. My mind was filled with clear silence, and my body became light, joy-filled and pleasantly cool. In contrast, as I later strolled along the sidewalk and passed two angry motorists exchanging hot words over a minor accident, I experienced a short but vivid wave of heat, tension and noise inside. On such occasions, I usually take a moment to direct the very subtle, cool vibrations, that indicate and can even activate a deeply healthy and constructive state, into the fray, so to speak. This can be done with a simple implementation of the attention, or by using the hands. Once, when confronted by a raging clerk who had grown impatient with my innocent questions, I simply asked her to hold out her hands, palms up, to see what she feels. Taken aback by my request, she spontaneously complied and shortly replied that she felt waves of heat pouring out of them. I put my hand above hers, mentioning that we all have a special energy in the sacrum bone at the base of the spine, which easily rises at contact with certain cool, subtle vibrations, clearing stubborn obstacles to our well-being.
Suddenly, her hands emitted a soft, cool breeze, and her tense face broke into a lovely smile. She then felt the same cool wind coming out of the top of her head, indicating that this energy, kundalini, had risen up the spine to the fontanel. We were mutually grateful for this wonderful moment, which had bonded us in a way previously unknown and unreachable to average human beings.
In the simple practice of Sahaja Yoga meditation, which I and my family have enjoyed daily for over a quarter century, a natural process unfolds within the body, expanding the normally dwarfed human awareness. This is easily verifiable by anyone with an honest inclination to feel truth – and I don’t mean emotionally. Once the human nervous system is enlightened, it’s possible to literally feel the difference between goodness and harmfulness, constructiveness and destructiveness. It’s the closed, biased circuit of our personal thought processes that keeps us in the shell of insecurity and ignorance. The benefits I’ve experienced and seen would (and inevitably will) fill a book. I find it shameful – indeed tragic – that a handful of malicious persons invest their time in defaming this unprecedented, universal gift, thereby misleading earnest seekers. It’s an old story, I guess. History is full of the scars from dark hearts which couldn’t stand the light – individuals who cleverly don the robes of would-be righteousness. It’s always been easier to rally under the banners of hatred and suspicion, than to proudly plant the flags of common goodness. At last we’re able to equip ourselves with the inner tools to perceive reality and establish clarity. Now that we all stand on the threshold of a beautiful, new opportunity, I sincerely hope that you will recognize the difference when your moment comes.

You can try, just now.
Open your hands, palms upward, and ask quietly in your heart
for your Self-realization.
You can close your eyes or else look at the picture above this text.
Within a few seconds you should feel something in your hands
and on top of your head.
Take a few moments to enjoy this change.
This is the beginning.

Categories: enlightenment · forgiveness · freedom · friendship · fulfillment · grace · hope · humanity · innocence · joy · life · love · meditation · peace · people · spirituality · thoughtless awareness · well-being · wisdom · yoga
the bully and the ghost
June 10, 2007 · Leave a Comment
The Earth where we live is a very old place.
She has seen many things come and go.
From the left to the right, and right to the left,
The people have moved, fast and slow.
Here is a story about someone who’s left,
And someone who went very right.
And how, when they met, everything for them changed
And they came to the center of Light…
There once was a boy called Billy the Bull
Who walked with his nose in the air.
And when someone tried to show him their love,
He said that, “I really don’t care!”
But deep down inside Billy cared very much
And he wanted to show that he cared;
But when he was small he was hurt and abused,
And now he was angry and scared.
Every time big, bad Billy went out in the world
To find someone small to pick on,
He hid in his heart a big ocean of love,
And wished that the hate was all gone.
One lonely night, as he lay in his bed,
Billy felt he’s the worst in the world.
And as he sat up to shout out his shame,
He saw the small shape of a girl.
“What – who are you?” asked the boy in the dark.
But the little white shape hid and cried,
Till he walked ‘cross the room and sat on the floor
And told her to sit by his side.
There in the dark, on the cold bedroom floor,
Sat the bully and the white fairy.
Billy was trying to stay calm and strong,
But really he found her quite scary.
“You need not fear me”, came her quivering voice,
I’m a soul who has gone from this Earth.
When I was alive I was treated so bad
That I left, for I had little worth.”
And as she moved o’er, as if to fly off,
Billy begged her to stay and cheer up.
“Just because you were hurt, it’s no reason to die.
Why didn’t you fight and bear up?”
“You think it is better to fight like a fool?”
Asked the shimmering shape by his side.
“It is better to run and hide from the world,
Than show off your hate and false pride.”
“What do you mean? Running off is for fools!”
But before he could say any more
The room filled with golden, grand, sunny, warm Light,
And the children were filled with great awe!
Before them, a Boy with an elephant’s head
And the crown and the jewels of a king,
Stood smiling and shining like sun on a stream
With joy and sweet love o’erflowing.
“Take not to heart, all the pain that you’ve lived.
The dark ages of fear are to end.
For, coming to Earth, is the Mother’s sweet Realm.
All the wounds and dark thoughts, She will mend!”
“Little sister, fly up now and wait till you’re called.
A dear family is waiting for you.
You’ll come back, a baby in loving, warm arms
In a world with hearts clear and true!”
“And my brother, you’ve also been lonely too long.
Come with me and I’ll show you the times
That are coming to Earth, when innocence shines,
And all heart-songs, together, will rhyme!”
And up they did fly through great, wondrous dreams,
Till the whole world was laughing with joy.
Then down Billy bounced, into his soft bed,
Where he cuddled his favorite of toys.
When he awoke, with the sun in his eyes,
He looked out to see the new world.
Deep in his heart he saw, for the first time,
New hope shine for each boy and girl.
- Ed Saugstad
Categories: Ganesha · children · enlightenment · forgiveness · freedom · friendship · fulfillment · grace · hope · humanity · innocence · joy · life · love · mother · peace · poetry · smile
two drops of simple, practical advice
May 21, 2007 · 1 Comment
The two most crippling attitudes in our so-called advanced culture are guilt and un-forgiveness. These are the two sides, one dark and the other glaring, of an unlucky coin. The more guilty and insecure we feel, the more we try to justify our existence through unnecessary aggressiveness. On returning home to Vancouver after fifteen years in Vienna, I was surprised to discover how many old friends had completely stopped talking to certain family members because of some minor disagreement between them. When a sliver of inferiority is imbedded deep inside of someone, it’s impossible to maintain the flow of love that would normally generate in the heart. (The internal energy center in a human being that is directly handicapped by guilty feelings, the left vishuddhi chakra, is located just above the heart.) This is how most marriages shatter. When your own unconscious image of yourself is that of a kicked dog, it’s difficult to feel the goodness in others. Once the raging motor of ego kicks in (right agnya chakra), the chances of slipping back into a natural state of benevolence are not likely. Wouldn’t it be great to have a button to push, that would shift your machine back into a smooth gear? You have one.
There is a benevolent, motherly energy in each of us that, once awakened, nurtures the intricate affairs of our subtle insides. With the simplest sincere wish to know ones true self, combined with the slightest contact with the subtlest vibrations, the subatomic building blocks of Creation which can be felt via the human nervous system as a cool breeze, one can instantly reach the state in which we are linked to the all-pervading power that will constantly recharge our worn batteries. You change from a closed, stagnant system, to a plugged-in instrument with all the same valuable attributes as that unlimited Source. This is the first button. Then you get a whole range of active keys and switches that were previously only dormant.
One of these keys is that which selects a healthy, constructive self-image. Normally, an affirmation or prayer is something spoken (with good intentions) into a disconnected phone. After self-realization, you have your own, personal connection to the inexhaustible reservoir whose nature it is to answer promptly and fix without cost – more efficient and user-friendly than the best on-line device! I’ve been married for twenty-one years, and sometimes I’d like to give my wife a brain transplant when she’s disagreeing with me. Sometimes we walk away angry. But, with a childishly simple correction of the vibrational imbalance, fun and humor can be instantly restored. (And when I’m driving, there are moments in the line of fire of an aggressive motorist when I wish I had a James Bond car that fires rockets. But, with a wave of the hand and a gentle re-orientation of the attention, the cool, calming balance washes in, dispelling the fiery illusion.) It’s very easy to decode subtle obstacles to well-being with an enlightened nervous system. As soon as the inner festive tree-lights are turned on, all your beautiful decorations are discovered. It only takes a few minutes a day of regular meditation to feel and learn how to use all the inherent tools that are built in. The key that removes unnecessary feelings of guilt has many options, and can lift you out of countless complex dead-ends. The same with the switch that deals with your sometimes naughty Mr. Ego. These methods are possible because the hands and the attention become powerful instruments that are capable of directing these vibrations to correct any troublesome problem. Sounds too easy? When you’ve tasted the juice of thoughtless-awareness, a fruit like no other, you’ll never go back to cheap soft-drinks. Just try it and see what happens after you’re connected. The difference will overwhelm you.
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Categories: enlightenment · forgiveness · freedom · friendship · fulfillment · grace · hope · humanity · innocence · joy · life · love · meditation · peace · spirituality · thoughtless awareness · well-being · wisdom · yoga
Innocence Wins
April 16, 2007 · 4 Comments

One fine morning, down the street,
An elephant I chanced to meet:
“Good day,” I said, and trying to pass
Spoiled my shoes in the dewy grass.
(For he filled the sidewalk, where
He stood without a thought or care.)
“Excuse me sir, I’m late for work!”
I shouted up, a bit berserk.
“If I’m not there by half-passed eight
“I’ll loose my job for being late!”
(But he pretended not to hear
And simply smiled from ear to ear.)
“What’s wrong with elephants these days?!”
I cursed, my liver now ablaze.
“Don’t you watch the stock-exchange?!”
“Time is money! Life is change!”
(He waved his ears and gave a yawn
And nodded to the rising sun.)
“I’ve sweated all my life to be
“Important in the company!
“No elephant will make me stop
“My ardent race to reach the top!”
(With his trunk he picked a rose
And pushed it up against my nose.)
“Listen here you thoughtless brute,
“Perhaps you think you’re being cute,
“But you’d better face the fact:
“You’re holding evolution back!”
At this remark he seemed to grow
And over me, a shadow throw;
A shadow cool and comforting . . .
I wondered what was happening.
Just then I noticed in his eyes
A clear blue depth, like endless skies.
And did, or did I not there see
All life, all hope, all destiny?
Suddenly I seemed to wake
And gave myself a good, strong shake.
“What is . . . where am . . . how did . . .?” said I.
“Where is that god who made me cry?”
(Then wiping tears from both my eyes
I stepped back in great surprise.)
For there before me on the walk
A little child stood looking up.
With head just slightly to one side
He sweetly watched my melting pride.
(I felt embarrassed by his gaze
Which read me like the sun’s pure rays.)
With smile playing on his lips
He quickly turned, and off he skipped.
Was it my heart that, by his whim,
Ran that day along with him?
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That was a long, long time ago.
And though today I’m gray and old
I feel that child within me still.
And gratefully, I always will.
- Edward E. Saugstad, Cambridge, summer of ‘87
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Categories: children · creativity · enlightenment · forgiveness · freedom · fulfillment · grace · hope · innocence · joy · life · peace · poetry · spirituality · well-being · wisdom





