What is it about your life that has you sometimes scratching your head in bewilderment, with a ‘thought bubble’ over it, that has the word “Huh?” encased within,  and at others, literally jumping for joy like a little kid on a brand new pogo stick?  Does it feel like there is no rhyme or reason or are you noticing a pattern?

 

One of my favorite a-musing activities is questioning whether life is planned (‘Beshert’ in Hebrew translates as ‘meant to be’) or happens at random, like a wafting feather called aloft by a gentle breeze. There are spiritual teachers who espouse the belief that we create soul contracts with those who cross our paths, for better or worse. Wanna learn forgiveness?  Enter into a soul contract with someone who hurts you.  Need to know about compassion?  Perhaps in a past life, you were one who harmed others and in this life you have taken on the mantle of a healer.   

 

Gifts come wrapped in unexpected packages.  In my case, they have come as a result of the deaths of my husband, father and mother over a 13 year period. Their passing and those of beloved friends have offered the gift of cherishing those who are in my life, for whatever duration. People plant seeds in our hearts and it is up to us to water and nourish them as they take root. I am blessed to have rows and rows of kindred souls who make up the ever expanding field of magnificent wildflowers.

 

I just found out today that one of those blooms; a friend I have known for several years, named Beth Rotondo Hadrava, passed this morning after a valiant bout with cancer. She leaves a huge legacy in her wake; including her husband, children and a colossal assortment of friends who will miss her deeply. She was most certainly a bright light, whose star will continue to illumine the planet. My first reaction when I saw the email, was something my father would say when he learned of a death “Ah no….” followed by tears and sadness and then a sigh of relief that I got that Beth really was at peace. I last saw her a few weeks ago in the hospital where she was ‘holding court’, surrounded by friends, flowers, cards, books, chocolate, organic yogurt and music.  She was smiling and optimistic about recovery and healing. I perceive that she had her healing and is now in her ‘light body’.

 

Her personal and professional lives overlapped. As a 4th generation Homeopath, she had a client following who would call on her expertise. As a friend, she beamed wellness and wonder on those she loved. I thought of her as a magical soul dancing through life. Something she told me several years ago following an experience that could have left her totally deflated, makes me smile as I hear her voice. She learned “You can’t keep a good woman down.” and “By letting go of what didn’t work, I  bring into my life something even better, right around the corner.”  And she did.

 

I had the joy of officiating at her marriage to her husband Jiri a few years ago. I was on my way to attend as a guest and received a call from our mutual friend Linda Hutchings who told me that the celebrant had to cancel at the last minute.  I did my first ‘wing-it’ wedding that I still laugh about. Perfectly appropriate, since Beth exemplified angelic qualities and she loved fiercely.

 

When I hear this song, it reminds me of the preciousness of life and ALL that it contains.

God Speed, Beth~ 

 

 

With his back against the San Francisco traffic,
On the bridges side that faces towards the jail,
Setting out to join a demographic,
He hoists his first leg up over the rail.
And a phone call is made,
Police cars show up quickly.
The sergeant slams his passenger door.
He says, “Hey son why don?t you talk through this with me,
Just tell me what you’re doing it for?”Oh, it’s a little bit of everything,
It’s the mountains,
It’s the fog,
It’s the news at six o’clock,
It’s the death of my first dog,
It’s the angels up above me,
It’s the song that they don’t sing,
It’s a little bit of everything.An older man stands in a buffet line,
He is smiling and holding out his plate,
And the further he looks back into his timeline,
That hard road always had led him to today,
And making up for when his bright future had left him,
Making up for the fact that his only son is gone,
And letting everything out once, His server asks him,
Have you figured out yet, what it is you want?I want a little bit of everything,
The biscuits and the beans,
Whatever helps me to forget about
The things that brought me to my knees,
So pile on those mashed potatoes,
And an extra chicken wing,
I?m having a little bit of everything.Somewhere a pretty girl is writing invitations,
To a wedding she has scheduled for the fall,
Her man says, Baby, can I make an observation?
You don’t seem to be having any fun at all.
She said, You just worry about your groomsmen and your shirt-size,
And rest assured that this is making me feel good,
I think that love is so much easier than you realize,
If you can give yourself to someone,
Then you should.

Cause it’s a little bit of everything,
The way you joke, the way you ache,
It is waking up before you,
So I can watch you as you wake.
So in the day in late September,
It’s not some stupid little ring,
I’m giving a little bit of everything.

Oh, it’s a little bit of everything,
It’s the matador and the bull,
It’s the suggested daily dosage,
It is the red moon when it’s full.
All these psychics and these doctors,
They’re all right and they’re all wrong,
It’s like trying to make out every word,
When they should simply hum along,
It’s not some message written in the dark,
Or some truth that no one’s seen,
It’s a little bit of everything.