Tricks and Treats

I appreciate any opportunity I get to do spoken word. Sharing my writing, delivering it off the page and out into the space I am sharing with others, is an experience I treasure and find energizing. This part of my writing adventure has been a more recent endeavor—becoming regular in the last two years or so, after a sporadic start over the last ten years. The writer within, putting pen to paper, has been at it for nearly five decades. Both the writing and the speaking are tremendous blessings and inspirations in my life.

Here is a piece that I shared at two venues. One was our local brewery on open jam night, and the other was a Halloween concert put on by a newly-formed local community orchestra. I performed them a little differently in each place, but the words carry the same message.

First, here is the Word for the Day at Grateful Living from earlier this week, a good launching point for what I hope you take away from my words:

I followed my passion and was guided by the light inside of me. That light does not belong to me alone. It is innate in all of us. Everyone has it. But more often than not, we choose not to see it.

-Lily Yeh-

And here is “Tricks and Treats” by Lisa Valentine:

Are the spirits of Halloween scary or happy? Evil or gentle? That depends on each of us and our make-up. Not the kind we put on our faces. The kind that comes from our heads and hearts. Our true character, not a character in costume. Our perspective on life and how we live it. 

Arriving at the doorstep of a new day and being fully present is a good place to start. Not a trick or a treat, just showing up, ready to give as well as receive. 

Daily gifts and treats are always available to us. Though they are sweet, they are much more than candy bought in a store or made in a kitchen. They are free, requiring only that we look around, tune in to the sights, sounds, and happenings around us. These treats don’t cause tooth decay. They build us up and bring wellbeing and strength. 

Just notice. Greet our fellow humans. Stop and take a couple of deep breaths. Now that’s a real treat–air to breathe and working heart and lungs. 

Treats as simple as a sip of coffee and as awe-inspiring as a colorful sunrise. Birdsong in a nearby tree and a soaring eagle high in the sky. The joyful laughter of children outside playing. The blessings of a body that can move us from point A to point B, along with the intricate organs operating within that help carry oxygenated blood through our bodies. No scary fake blood and haunted house here, but rather a cell factory of efficiency. 

Even with treats all around, life is tricky to navigate at times. Chance and fate sometimes brew up a wicked stew that delivers unwanted tricks like health issues and unexpected losses. Those can be scary for sure! But even such unexpected twists and tricks of fate can lead us to a new path. The path of growth and resilience. 

Challenges and obstacles we didn’t ask for or even welcome, can bring us treats we never could have predicted— newfound strength and courage, new friends and a sense of belonging, a passion or hobby just discovered.

Time can trick us by passing with much speed or way too slowly, but it never fails to treat us to precious moments we will forever hold in our hearts. 

Are there days we just want to scream? Sure. Is there a ghost around the corner? Is there a skeleton in the attic? Maybe. Shine some light, do some healing. Dark places illuminated are no longer as frightening. We each carry our own light within. Share your light! No masks needed. Bring your genuine self. Let’s light the way for ourselves and each other.