NORTHERN WHISPERS

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Created on Thursday, 27 November 2014 13:50
Written by Marian Moore

Marian @ Krysan

THE WELLBEING CONSULTANCY

Planting golden seeds in Northumberland, Tyne & Wear, and Durham

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There are more things in Heaven and Earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

- William Shakespeare

 

Durham Cathedral in the Snow

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N O R T H E R N   W H I S P E R S

f r o m   t h e   h e a r t   -   a   p r a y e r   f o r   p e a c e

by

A North East Storyteller

 

We are told that the Holy Spirit leads us all along our paths by speaking to us in ways we can accept and understand. Thus, fascinating bits of information that may not represent the absolute truth will appear along the way.  

Nonetheless, these help us realise that there is more to life than meets the eye. This is what Shakespeare meant in his words from Hamlet: "There are more things in Heaven and Earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy." 

You are invited now to read (and inwardly digest!) these wise and timeless words by poet T S Eliot. They are taken from:

LITTLE GIDDING
(No. 4 of 'Four Quartet)

We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

In relation to last week's happenings, what follows is just a smidgen of where I was, who I was with, (and most importantly) why I was there.  There was more, of course, but agents of change are at a premium and, in my experience, they are best allowed a private space to grow and develop their ideas. People of gold.

 

NHS LEADERSHIP RECOGNITION AWARDS 2014

On Wednesday afternoon, I attended the NHS Leadership Recognition Awards 2014 at the Biscuit Factory in Newcastle upon Tyne.  This was in response to an unexpected (but welcome) invitation to represent the Northumberland, Tyne & Wear NHS Foundation Trust's Council of Governors who had been nominated for a top leadership award - NHS Board/Governing Body of the Year.  This is how the programme described NTWs Council of Governors,

"... an amazing group of people.  Although they come from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, they are brought together through a passion to improve services for people with mental health problems and disabiliies.  They are committed to what really matters to patients, carers and the public, as well as the high regard in which they hold staff."

Sadly, on this occasion, the Council of Governors didn't win a prize.  Yet, hope - that still small voice  - whispers: 'maybe next year'. 

Meanwhile, for your information here's what the Managing Director of the NHS Leadership Academy said in his official welcome to the NELA nominees and their loyal supporters:

"Congratulations to everyone who has been nominated for a regional NHS Leadership Recognition Award - we are proud to celebrate your continued hard work, perseverance and positive impact that you clearly have on those around you.

"You have each shown outstanding leadership qualities that have inspired your colleagues and teams and it is a privilege to hear more about how you are all working towards improved patient care.

"The NHS Leadership Academy aims to develop great leaders at all levels of the health system and the Recognition Awards give us a brilliant opportunity to profile people at every level, in every organisation, who both champion our beliefs and values and who also go the extra mile to motivate their peers and provide an excellent service to our patients.

"Well done again for your nomination, and thank you to those who made the nominations - you are all helping us to highlight, through some extremely high quality examples, some of the fantastic people we have working across health and social care.

"Sending you all my best wishes in this very competitive process and I look forward to seeing those of you who go through to the national final in March next year. 

"Enjoy the ceremony." 

BE THE CHANGE

On Friday afternoon, I journeyed to a nearby NHS hospital for a final meeting with a group of young people who have been supported over recent times to speak out on the subject of their personal 'Recovery Journey'. 

Transformation.  Service.  Collaboration.

The aim of all the activity is to 'be the change' that improves the lives of people who are challenged and made vulnerable by serious emotional distress - often over many years.  Each and every one is on a mission to make a difference to the patient experience on the hospital ward and out in the community. 

Hope. Kindness. Respect

I say no more about the values of all young people who give generously of their free time to go 'out and about' speaking at meetings and conferences, other than I know they would support me in winging this message out into the ether.  

But first, I say to them: Well done!  

Without further ado, here is a message of hope for all who happen by this website during the Festive Season.  So, whoever and wherever you are, this is especially for you - from friends (young and old) living in North East England:

IN YOUR OWN WORDS ...

"Imagine hope sitting down next to you and picking up something heavy that you’ve been carrying for a very long time.

"As hope takes this burden from you, every part of your body feels lightened. Maybe it almost seems like you could get up and skip.

"But before you can, hope leans close and whispers into your ear. What does hope say? What does hope ask of you?

"Begin writing from the prompt below and follow wherever it leads you."

Hope whispers in my ear . . .

MAKE A DIFFERENCE

It is now time to remind ourselves of the Prayer for Peace; words to ponder for people seeking to help rather than hurt - some (but not all) are out in the public domain doing their best to make a difference. Here, then, is:

A PRAYER FOR PEACE

Lord, make me a channel of Thy peace that, where there is hatred, I may bring love; that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness; that, where there is discord, I may bring harmony; that where there is error, I may bring truth; that, where there is doubt, I may bring faith; that, where there is despair, I may bring hope; that where there are shadows, I may bring light; that, where there is sadness, I may bring joy. 
Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted, to understand than to be understood; to love than to be loved; for it is by forgetting self that one finds self; it is in forgiving that one is forgiven; it is by dying that one awakens to eternal life. 
St Francis

  

Northern Whispers.  From the Heart.  A Prayer for Peace.

Marian Moore (2014)

 

SHARED WISDOM

Some Solstice Thoughts at this time...

As we come to the end of this year, the future seems uncertain. No matter what happens over the next several years, we'll be at our best if we are grounded and heart-centered.  Here are some thoughts about this from our great friend, the Hawaiian elder, Hale Makua:

"Know that when you find love within its pure form, you are not confined; you are not finite. When you have found that pure love, you have found your eternity. And in this eternity, the wind of the present moment offers all lessons.

"It is at this moment that we must decide whether the illusion that creates judgment is to be seen as appropriate. It is now that we are faced with a choice: whether to judge or whether to appreciate... whether to ask for service or whether to be an agent of infinite service.

"If we are able to let our love free to ride the wind of spirit, we are always following the blueprint that we have laid out for our own soul's growth. Know that this is the density wherein we make decisions about the nature of everything, including all those about us, and of necessity, ourselves.

"Within the understanding that comes to us in response, we can then choose how we shall serve that Mystery that created us and the 'all that is'..."

With warm regards

- Hank Wesselman and Jill Kuykendall 

www.sharedwisdom.com.

 

 

 

ENDS

1,633 reads @ 2015-10-30