G            U            I            L            T            Y

You ever feel that

F    E     E     L     I     N     G.        .        .

Sometimes I feel so guilty

I need no

J u d g e

J u r y

E x e c u t i o n e r

I’m most perfect at all three

s i m u l t a n e o u s l y.              .              .

Do you believe

not once

but hundreds of times

I have actually stood before groups

and  proudly declared:

There’s no one better than the ONE

standing before you right now;

NO ONE

who could give a better presentation that

M     E.          .          .

I would say:

“I  BELIEVE  THAT  WITH  ALL  OF  MY  HEART!”

.          .          .”but,”

“I    K N O W    IT’S  NOT  TRUE,

and that’s what makes you work to be even better.          .          .”

G          U          I          L          T          Y

M  E  N     S  U  C  K

Maybe it’s because

I’m the biggest hypocrite I know

Maybe it’s because

I’ve been married and divorced

Maybe it’s because

I’ve been re-married now for 31+ years

Maybe it’s because

I’ve worked since 1994 in offices filled with women

but I’ve either

heard

seen

lived

experienced:

M  E  N     S  U  C  K

I get that an awful lot.     .     .

and yes.         .         .

the last time I checked,

I still kind of fit into that category

which has had me

putting my lips together very tightly

while opening my ears

Grand Canyon

w     i     d     e     l     y.            .            .

The gift of an Open Ear

is the most valuable possession I can share.     .     .

And I try

not just to listen

I severely attempt to actually

h          e          a          r

what a heart shouts

and a mouth can’t whisper.          .          .

“Well, he  left  me; he  just  up  and  left  me  after  8  years”

“How  come  he  doesn’t  listen, why  doesn’t  he  hear  what  I  say, or  worse yet, if  he  does  hear  why  doesn’t  he  acknowledge  me?”

“Why  is  it  always  about  sex; why  does  it  always  start  there  or  always  have  something  done  to  end  there; why  can’t  we  talk, really  talk  and  listen and  be  intimate  but  cuddling  or  just  holding  hands  without  it  always ending  up  THERE; don’t  men  know  that  the  greatest  sex  act  is  just  being held, being  heard, being  listened  to?”

“Why’s  the  bottom  line  always  about  how  much  things  cost  and  how  he decides  how  money  gets  spent  or  saved?”

“Why  am  I  never  good  enough  for  him; why  does  he  feel  the  need  to change  me  or  at  least  live  a  certain  lifestyle  OR  ELSE?”

“I  can’t  stand  all  of  the  lying.”

“He  never  really  tells  me  how  he  feels  and  I’m  a  terrible  mind-reader.”

T  R  U  S  T       M  E

What I have to offer

IS    N  O  T

a d v i c e;

I am no Guru

I’m not a

Dr. Phil

Judge Judy

Joel Olsteen

Best-Selling Author on relationships.          .          .

I offer

simply.          .          .merely

what’s in each of us:

My Ears

My,  o u r  Ability

to Listen.          .          .

But are ears are useless

unless they’re actually attached to

our hearts.          .          .

There has to be a willingness

to not just listen

to not just hear

.        .        .but a heart

that lets Another know

they’ve been

Acknowledged

Recognized

Noticed

Accepted

Un-Judged

L          O            V            E            D

It’s about letting Another

not so much know

but actually FEEL:

Right now

Your Pain

is My Pain

Your Disappointment

Is My Disappointment

Your Tears

are My Tears

Your Heart

is My Heart

and they are

S        H        A        R         E        D

never to be again

carried alone.          .          .

when   T H A T   is mutual

The Caring Catalyst

of me interweaves itself into

The Caring Catalyst of you

and WE

become a magnificent tapestry of colors

The brightest and darkest of hues

that SHOUTS

WE  NO  LONGER  ARE  HOLDING  ON  BY  A  THREAD

or a thick-never-to-be-severed-cable

but a tapestry

that serves a most magnificent safety net.          .          .

I remember a story that Henri Nouwen once told about the trapeze artists known as

THE  FLYING  RODLEIGHS

.        .        .he asked one of flyers the secret of trapeze artists

and one of the acrobats explained:

“The  secret  is  that  the  flyer  does  nothing  and  the  catcher  does everything.  When  I  fly  to  Joe (my catcher), I  have  simply  to  stretch  out  my arms  and  hands  and  wait  for  him  to  catch  me  and  pull  me  safely  over  the apron.     .     .The  worst  thing  a  flyer  can  do  is  try  to  catch  the  catcher.  I am  not  suppose  to  catch  Joe.  It’s  Joe’s  job  to  catch  me.  If  I  grabbed Joe’s  wrists, I  might  break  them, or  he  might  break  mine, and  that  would be  the  end  for  the  both  of  us.  A  flyer  must  fly, and  a  catcher  must  catch, and  the  flyer  must  trust, with  outstretched  arms, that  his  catcher  will  be there  for  him.”

M E N     S U C K

She said.     .     .

They said.     .     .

Yes.   .   .Yes, it’s true:

M   E   N      S   U   C   K

(and sometimes, others, too)

We all have the great capacity

to do just that sometimes

and actually make the worst

of the worst.       .       .

B          U          T

We have a great propensity

to be A Catcher

of One flying dangerously through the air

and bringing them not only to safety

but to an assurance

that can’t be found anywhere else than

through the intimacy

of a pure relationship .         .          .

Be That

B E       T   H   A   T

O f t e n

Now

And always

Every Next Time

A V A I L A B L E.       .       .

Your   P R E S E N C E

doesn’t require your advice

just your  v a l i d a t i o n.       .        .

G           U           I           L           T           Y

I  feel   IT

from  time  to  time

for not understanding

but hopefully never because of the lack of

WANTING  TO