~ The Journey ~

Hello…and Welcome to ~The Journey~. My name is Denise and my ultimate goal for this website is to make heart connections that will bring about healing and positive change; both for myself and for others.

It is my belief that we all came here to make heart connections by having life experiences that help us remember who we really are, by discovering the gifts that each of us embody, and by sharing those gifts in our own unique way.  And my unique way is by communicating from my heart in an honest, open and very simple manner.  I may not know the current lingo or the catch phrases that other’s may know, but what I do know is what it feels like to be a Spiritual Being having a Human Experience. I am keenly aware of both the pain and the pleasure of being Human. I am also very aware that as a Spiritual Being, I create my own experience.  What I write and what I share here on ~The Journey~ is a reflection of that awareness. I see my short stories, poems and musings as the apex of a  bridge where my spirit becomes fully present in the now of my human experience.  My photographs are my way of exemplifying that union by honoring special moments that I have experienced while looking thru my camera lens with my heart’s eye.

This is ~ The Journey ~ As Seen Thru My Own Eyes…Welcome!

~ D ~

Photo:  Red Rock State Park, Sedona, AZ~ July 2010
Copyright 2010 – Denise Gilreath ©

Love is what gives us breath, yet it can take our breath away.
Love is the light that shines so that we can see thru the darkness.
Love is the darkness that makes us long for the light.
Love is that place deep inside us where peace lives.
Love is the tears that roll down our face.
Love is the sky, the ground, the water, the trees, the birds, the bugs, the bears and the whales.
Love is the wind, the storm, the sunshine, the stars and the moon.
Love is You and Love is Me.
Love is everything and nothing at all.
Love is Love.
Love is.
Love.

~D~

Photo: Beautiful Sculpture, Hillside Shops, Sedona, AZ ~ May 2012
© 2012 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com

Sitting here on the back porch of the place I call my sanctuary, I look toward the west and see the sun beginning his daily descent. I’ve spent most of the day here, relaxing in the sunshine and the warm breezes. Deep within me I feel a strong sense of peace and joy. The birds appear to be especially happy today, too. They have been very vocal since the day broke early this morning. The wind even seems happy as it makes its way thru the trees, encouraging them to dance as they share in the immense joy that we are all experiencing. We are mirrors reflecting each other. It is a beautiful thing.

Life here in Sedona over the past two years has truly been an amazing learning and growing experience…and continues to be so. It seems that every day, in one way or another,  I am being shown a new mirror. Some of the reflections bring with them difficult lessons and some bring gentle guidance. Most bring a change in perspective and all bring an expansion of awareness. I could have never imagined just a few short years ago all that I see, hear, feel and know at this point on my journey. The truly amazing thing is that I am very aware that I have only just begun to scratch the surface of the vastness of this incredible universe and the truth of who I really am. Words just can not express the gratitude that I feel for the gift of each new day and the beauty that it brings. I am very blessed to be living and working in this awesome place in Arizona called Sedona. Being true to who she is and what she does, Sedona called me, she tried me, she tested me and she has, thru it all, embraced me. I am home.

~D~

Photo: Sedona Welcome Sign, Oak Creek Canyon, Sedona, AZ
© 2012 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com

Being raised in the southern Unites States as a conservative Christian, I have read the Bible from cover to cover several times. I am very familiar with the Psalms and have even recited them in song on occasion. Several years ago, I left the organized church and moved away from the religion and dogma that, for me, felt very controlling, hypocritical, and limiting. However, I still have my Bible with me and I do refer to it from time to time.

Last night I was talking with a friend of mine who just happens to be writing a book about Spirituality. He was sharing his views on several topics and, knowing my Christian background, wanted to share with me some  verses from a Biblical Psalm that he was thinking of referencing in his book. As I sat there and listened to him read the words that I had read so many times, it was as if I was hearing them for the first time. The Psalm that he shared resonated with me in a way that it never had before. I was touched very deeply. The words that I heard have yet to leave me and so I felt that I would write them down and share them here, with you.

“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?  If I go up to the heavens, you are there. If I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me; your right hand will hold me fast.  If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to you. The night will shine like the day for darkness is as light to you.” The Bible, Psalms 139, 7-12

~D~

Photo: Oak Creek, Oak Creek Canyon, Sedona, AZ ~ May 2010
© 2011 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com

I’m feeling the need to write very strongly today…but I do not have a direction.  My knowing swirls around somewhere deep inside me, but I can’t grasp any particular subject.  I have grown accustomed to the swirling.  It’s always there.  Sometimes it reminds me of when I try to remember the details of a vivid night dream and all I can bring forward are flashes of remembrances.  How do I pull forward into my consciousness that which I know that I know but do not remember? I feel as if I need a jumping off point.  Where is my edge?  How do I grab hold of what I know that I know and bring it to where I am in this present moment? Am I searching for something that is not lost? Am I reaching for something that I already hold in my hand? Am I yearning for something that I already have in my heart? Is there a disconnect between my heart and my head that keeps me from the clarity that I so desperately want? How do I bridge the gap?…or do I? What is the bridge? Do I build it? If so, with what do I build it? Is it already built? If so, where is it? I have so many questions. Will I find the answers somewhere within my own questions? Do I just keep asking until I know? So many books have been written that claim to have all the answers. Am I to write a book that contains all the questions? That would be one thick book; or would it? Are there really that many questions or is there only one question? Do we just ask the same question a million ways? Is there more than one answer? Are the question and the answer the same?   That brings me back to words…What do they mean???  We can become so lost in the words that we can’t even hear what is being asked or said. So is the question “I am?” and the answer “I am.” Does what we’re looking for lie within the punctuation? Does punctuation determine if we are living the question or if we’re living the answer? Does the balance come if we remove the punctuation? “I am” can stand alone when we realize there is no need to attach more to it.  Being is. Why isn’t that enough? Maybe life is the question and living it is the answer. Life is meant to be lived…and there in lies the balance. It is all about balance isn’t it? The balance of nature is what sustains us…sustains life…period. There’s that punctuation thing again. What does it mean??? Do I need to know or do I just want to know? Is there a difference? Am I writing in circles or is it linear writing that I’m doing? Are there any straight lines in the circle of life? Can the path we walk ever be straight if life is a circle? Everything is swirling again. Aren’t swirls made up of lines that are bending because of some type of power source or magnetic field? Are the lines being pushed or pulled? Are they moving outward or inward? Are they going to the middle or to the outside? Will the batter swing or miss? Without a batter is a homerun possible? If there’s no batter can it ever be a cake or will it always be a pie? A cake can be made into a multiplicity of shapes…but isn’t a pie always round? OMG…that brings me back to circles. And why do I feel so hungry all of the sudden? At this point, I have to ask…is a genius a freak or is a freak a genius? I am? I am. Whew…I’m glad that’s over…or is it?

~D~

Photo: A Colorful Plate…or is it? ~ June 2010
© 2011 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com

When a light shines from a lofty place and illuminates that which we recognize as presentable or acceptable, it is easy for us to marvel at the perceived beauty of it all. But when that same light makes its way into the cracks and crevices beneath the surface of what we recognize as beauty, when that light shines where that which has been hidden lives, when it shines where lost and forgotten treasures can be found and rediscovered…when that light, by doing what it does naturally, illuminates a deeper darkness, we become uncomfortable. We fear that which is not familiar to us, that which we don’t understand. We fear that which we have been conditioned to believe contains no beauty. We might even go so far as to project that fear outwardly and blame the light for going where it shouldn’t go and for shining where it shouldn’t shine. 

May blessings rain down upon the light that shines where it is called to shine…no matter how deep the perceived darkness. And may we all learn to recognize and embrace true beauty, no matter where it may live.

~D~

Photo: Moon Goddess, Sedona, AZ ~ September 2010
© 2011 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com

For some time now, many of us have been experiencing the effects of very powerful transitional and transformational energies that are meant to prepare us for the approaching gateways and the changes that they will bring. I dare say that if you are anything like me, you have been very aware of the “pressure” of these energies.  We are being pressed to raise our vibrations by healing, changing and growing; by allowing ourselves to become all we can be…all we truly are. To do this, we must take a good hard look at ourselves…and the universe is doing its part to help us do that. Mirrors are popping up everywhere. Those people who cross our path that rub us the wrong way or those situations that cause us react out of fear or anger, cause us to break down and cry, or better yet, cause us to “cut and run”, they are all reflections of something within us; something that needs to heal, something we need to let go of or something we need to embrace.

As we make our way thru this process, and it is a process, we must be real with our self, but we must do so in a gentle way. Being hard on our self and being real with our self are two very different things. Grant it, either can and probably will make us feel a little or a lot uncomfortable. The question we must ask our self is “Am I judging myself or am I loving myself?” Being hard on our self comes from a place of self judgment. Being real with our self comes from a place of self love and compassion. When we judge our self it feels as if we’ve done something wrong and we therefore just don’t “measure up”. In that space, we can’t or won’t allow our self to heal. When we are able to look at our self thru the eyes of love and compassion, we realize that we’ve done nothing wrong, that we are not guilty of anything and that we deserve to feel safe, healed and whole…because we are.

During this time of transition and transformation, I encourage each of you to take a good hard look at who you are and what you really want. Let go of anything that no longer serves you. Embrace those parts of yourself that you’ve never allowed yourself to accept. Love yourself, just the way you are…but don’t stop there. Nurture yourself and allow yourself to heal, to grow and to become…more…more than your mind ever thought you could be…and all that your heart knows you already are.

~D~

Photo:  In the Garden, Southern California ~ June 2010
© 2011 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com

Once again, I find myself coming out of yet another very powerful transition period in my life. The word “whirlwind” does not even begin to describe what I have experienced over the past few months. I can truly attest to the validity of the statement, “The only constant is change”. Change, change…everywhere change…constantly…change!

The thing that I want most in this life is to become more of who I am by seeking, finding, living and sharing my truth. This is my calling. This is how I am to be of service to others. You can believe me when I say that I have walked this path long enough to know that in order for me to have that which I desire most, I must be open and willing to allow change…lots of change. “As within, so without” is another valid statement to which I can fully attest. It has been my experience that whenever I ask for the necessary changes to occur on the inside, everything begins to change on the outside; the latest series of events being by far no exception. During the last six months, I have been led to move three times. Each time, moving to a place within a mile of the place before; each time knowing without a doubt it was what I had to do…and each time eventually understanding at least some of the reasons why.

During this time of transition, my creativity seemed to be non existent. The well dried up, so to speak. I could no longer write. My camera began to collect dust. I made no posts to my website. I couldn’t share anything online. I stopped checking my email. I didn’t even write in my journal…and for me…that’s huge!

A variety of people began to come into my life experience; every one of them, a mirror to some part of myself that I could not or would not see on my own. They say, “When the student is ready, the teacher will come”. Well, I must have been really ready, because I found a teacher in almost everyone that crossed my path. Some have since moved out of my experience into another. Others are still here, reflecting what I need to see back to me, as I in someway do the same for them.

The changes and the lessons that those changes brought were coming at me hard and fast. Things I thought I had dealt with long ago began to rise to the surface. Issues of which I was previously unaware began to rear their little heads as well. I began to feel the need to go within…and be still…again. As a result, I experienced a lot of healing and I learned much about myself that I am only just beginning to understand and embrace. I even dusted off my camera and I started to write again.

Change is like being caught up in ocean waves. It’s all about navigation. If we stay on the surface, it is likely that we will fight the current and be continually tossed around; the waves controlling our direction as well as our progress. When exhaustion sets in, we may find it easy to give up and just sink. But, if we make a conscious choice to dive beneath the surface, we will find still water. In the stillness, we can relax and come up for air in between the waves; therefore maintaining the strength we need to chart your own course. We can use the waves to our advantage by allowing them to help us reach our destination.

And so, in times of change we must not be carried away by what is happening on the surface. We must instead, dive deep, remain centered and stay on course. For me, it’s all about being who I am; being true to me in the moment. It isn’t about being moved by what’s going on around me. It’s about being still in who I am and allowing that stillness to move me. This is how I will get to where I’m going. This is how I will have that which I desire most…in spite of…and because of…constant and inevitable change.

~D~

Photo: Pacific Ocean, Somewhere near Malibu, CA ~ April 2010
© 2011 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com

As I walked quietly along a familiar path in an ever deepening forest, I saw her in the distance…and she called out to me. I was drawn to her because she appeared strong and grounded. But when I touched her I felt her softness. I stretched my body across hers. She shared with me the warmth that the sun had shared with her.

I realized that beneath that first appearance of being immovable she was indeed very vulnerable…vulnerable to the wind, the rain and the shifting sands. Allowing herself to evolve as a result of her experiences, she stood firm in who she was. I recognized her determination and her resolve. I knew her.

She was me.

~D~

Photo: Chimney Rock Trail, Sedona, AZ ~ November 2011
© 2011 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com

The snow is falling and as it falls it brings with it a peaceful silence.  The peace is embodied in the silent beauty of each individual snow flake.  I can hear the silence as the snow becomes the ground and the ground becomes the snow.  I can feel the peace as the silence becomes me and I become the silence.

~D~

Photo: Sedona Snow, Sedona, AZ ~ 2011
© 2011 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com

Remember Thyself

Reclaim Thyself

And like the Phoenix from out of the Ashes

Arise

Resurrect Thyself

~D~

Photo: Phoenix in the Fire, Shaman’s Cave, Sedona, AZ ~ August 2011
© 2011 – Denise Gilreath. All rights reserved. ~ www.thrumyowneyes.com