Perched atop the azure skyWith wings outstretched to lift me highAbove the cares and daily strife—I think upon my blessed life. Of friends and loves of times gone byThey came to mind I know not whyPerhaps they’re spirits in the airWho talk with me when I’m up thereRegardless of their provenanceMy love for them is …
Author: Gregory Hake
Son. Husband. Father. Thinker. Doer.
Peace
“Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.” – Buddha Peace is neither the absence of conflict nor the perfectly feathered nest; it is an active state of abiding in thankfulness for the privilege of being. Photo credit: Simon Maage on Unsplash
Refinement and Perfection
Refinement is rightly an inside-out process. It is the process by which the light inside of you shines outwardly into the world. It is the revelation of the wonderful One within you. Refinement is the means by which the “heaven” of your being is revealed through the “earth” of your outer capacities of body, mind …
Radical Honesty
Humanity is skating on thin ice. The lines between reality and unreality, truth and opinion, have never been so blurred as they are in our era. In a world where appearances trump substance, it’s increasingly challenging to find solid footing. I’m often asked about where to start in the face of such monumental nonsense. My …
Stop Picking at Scabs
People like to pick at scabs. They like to keep old wounds open. They are afraid to let them heal. They are afraid of what is on the other side. They are afraid of what they might lose if that wound is taken away from them. Unhealed wounds and unresolved grief are convenient scapegoats. They …
Creative Cycles
Between the shoulders of summer and fall lies my favorite ‘tween’ season. The bugs are less common in the cooler evening air while the biological clocks of the furry animals signal a coat change in preparation for the winter to come. The days, in the Great South anyway, continue to impart their only slightly diminished …
Refiner’s Fire
If you’re anything like me you’ve cherished the opportunity to be in the company of those people who by means of their very presence compel refinement. You’ve no doubt encountered such people, that is, those who carry about them an inspiriting atmosphere which acts as a refiner’s fire as you draw near unto them. The …
Conversation
“The reason why so few people are agreeable in conversation is that each is thinking more about what he intends to say than others are saying.” – Francois De La Rochefoucauld In Middle English, the word “conversation” denoted “living among, familiarity, intimacy.” I love these shades of meaning because even the most mundane conversation can …
Valor and Kindness
“He is as full of valor as of kindness. Princely in both.” ― William Shakespeare, Henry V There is something about the balanced demonstration of valor and kindness which has captivated my attention from a very young age. I remember seeing this in my father’s expression, perhaps unconsciously at first, but then consciously as I, as …
Words
“In a language like ours, so many words of which are derived from other languages, there are few modes of instruction more useful or more amusing than that of accustoming young people to seek the etymology or primary meaning of the words they use. There are cases in which more knowledge, of more value, may …
Gregory Hake 