Archives

Blessed day…

Jul23

Some days, the stars align
I feel at peace
I feel loved
I feel I’m leading a good life
No major crisis is looming
No difficult problems to resolve
Everything is going its merry way
I’m not paddling against the waves
My spirit is in a sacred place

I know tomorrow won’t be like today
But that’s OK
Our lives are is constant motion
Our emotions rise and descend
‘the only constant is change’

So, I’ll celebrate today
Give thanks for the blessing
That have come my way
And when things get tough
And the ocean choppy
I’ll remember that what
follows is calm and serenity

Lida Berghuis
July 23rd, 2015

Travelling

Jul22

Travelling and learning
Getting to know new people
My favorite thing

Seeing new places is also good
But I’m a tourist of people

Different personalities fascinate me
I learn from talking and listening
The physical place is not as important
It’s the people that count for me

Connection matters to me
Friendship is important to me
It’s the trip of the soul that counts
The body just comes along

The physical landscape is interesting too
But if I go somewhere and don’t get to
Know a new soul
I may have as well stayed home!

Solitary lives

Jul21

At the coffee shop
We stare at our phones
One person per table
Conversation only over the phone
Two people talking
Not so much any more!

Each person interacts with a phone
Or a laptop
We’re not looking each other in the eye

We’re living isolated lives
Where is the community
Where is the warmth?

Blank stares on our faces
Smiles are rare
We are social beings
Not loners

We should sit in a group
Laugh and talk
Share experiences
Spread the love

Solitary lives are sad ones
We need each other to survive
We have taken independence too far
We need to rely on each other to thrive…

Lida Berghuis
July 19th, 2015

How I start my day

Jul20

 

dsc00531

 

I start the day with messages of love
A beautiful painting here
A poignant photograph there
A heart warming poem here
Words of wisdom there

And these messages of love
Come from all over the world
Boundaries have been erased
Communication is instantaneous
Our whatsapp group never rests

Voice files make phone calls unnecessary
Technology is the magician of this day

We learn from each other
We support each other
We remind each other of our common past

This group
The cream of the crop
The best there is
Brought together by love and care

East and West represented in different ways
Friendships formed, renewed, and strengthened after many years

Lida Berghuis
July 20th 2015

For my high school class whatsapp group!

A conversation with my son

Jul10

Conversation

Mommy, what happens when we die?
Death seems sad, it looks like we’re gone
And nothing remains

But our soul never dies…

Mommy, what is a ‘soul’?

your soul is your beautiful smile
Your inquisitive nature
Your kind heart
Your excitement and creativity
when you build LEGO cars…
Your sadness when your friend is down
Your curiosity to figure things out
All these questions you are asking
Are questions your soul wants to find out about!

But Mommy, then my soul is me!

Exactly!

But when I die I can’t see and play

You are right
Your body will no longer be there
But your soul will see in a different way
Will sense things in a new way
You will still recognize your family and friends
You can still grow and develop further

But Mommy, there is no LEGO there
What will I do
You told me before our soul is eternal
That seems like a long long time
Without toys to keep me occupied

Your soul will have other things to do
Things we don’t understand now
I promise you you won’t get bored
Yes, eternity is a long time…

So, I’ll see you when I get there

Of course my dear
I’ll wait impatiently for you
And we can be together always

That sounds good…

It’s time to sleep my dear
And dream good dreams
I’ll see you in the morning
Give you a big hug and then
You can tell me about your dreams!

Lida Berghuis
July 5th, 2015

Celebration

Jul8

imageAfter a long winter
I needed a new wardrobe
New clothes representing
A new me, a rebirth

After major upheavals one needs to
Mark the occasion, learn the lessons
And try to forge meaning from what was

Sometimes we can’t explain everything
Some mystery remains
But that is part of the condition of this life

I look forward more than I look behind me
I try to put my energy in new projects, new beginnings
And celebrate the coming of spring

After thirty odd years ….

Jul6

How does one catch up after thirty odd years?
Where does one start?

In the present, the past,
Or somewhere in between?
What does one first talk about?
Family, work, interests, or beliefs?

Who will one meet on the other side?
What will have happened in the meantime?

There are no good answers for these questions
The order of things matters not!
It’s a renewal of an old connection
One that was thought of as gone!

It’s a deepening of a friendship that was there before
It’s being a solace to another’s soul

With a common past the foundation is strong
The building we build will touch the clouds!

Lida Berghuis
July 5th, 2015

Your heart

Jul5

At the heart institute for treatment
But your heart is in perfect health
As loving as it can be
As patient as it can be
As joyful as it can be

No treatment needed for this compassionate heart
If anything we need to find how
Your heart became what it has become
Needless to say the trials of life have purified it
Needless to say prayer has burnished it

You may be in the heart institute for treatment
But your heart is in much better shape than ours…

Lida Berghuis
July 4th, 2015

fifty

Jul1

IMG_0353

We were fifteen
The cream of the crop
From all over Iran
Wide eyed and ready to take on the world

Idealism was the order of the day
Most things seemed possible at the time
Yet we had a lot to learn

Now, we’re fifty
Time has passed
We have scattered all over Iran
All over the world
No longer naive, we have experienced life
We have experienced love and heartache

Perhaps we now know the value of
Friendship more
Won’t take it for granted, if we once did

Each of us has forged a path
Done wonderful things
Challenges have been there too
But that’s where friendship comes in

Now our messages criss-cross the world
Weaving a web of love as they do
Perhaps a love exists that didn’t exist before
Living life has taught us this

We were fifteen, and now we’re fifty
My dear friends, it couldn’t be better than this!

Lida Berghuis
June 30th, 2015