Hi Pam, This is a beautiful post, reminding us of what we have and what we can give from our gifts. I too, wish we could give water and firm land to the Nepalese people. I salute you and your writings. I can feel your heart and your generous spirit linking all of us with the Nepalese people now. I live in Los Angeles. I know what it's like, to some degree, to be in an earthquake that topples structures and to continue to feel the powerful aftershocks for days and even weeks after. The sound of an earthquake is like no other. The best description I can give is of an enormous living roar of living rock mountains that fills the world. And yes, I know what it's like to sleep on a mattress outside and feel it rock as if I were in a boat. But I had food, water, a house that had been retrofitted and remained standing, and city services to send trucks to pile up the towers of brick along side the streets from the fallen fireplaces. I had radio and telephone. No one in my area died. I had four or five hours of fear and helplessness until my daughter arrived at my door step with her cat and a quart of orange juice and cash. Her place had been trashed but she and her cat were fine. And I felt the greatest joy I’ve ever felt in my life to see her alive and well. I had earthquake insurance. I did rebuild. My heart goes out to the Nepalese people, suffering from a much bigger earthquake with much fewer resources to cope. From here I feel the best way I can respond to this tragedy is to send money and encourage others to do the same. Reputable organizations, like the Red Cross https://www.redcross.org/combined-donate?donationProdId=prod9150029&scode=RSG00000E090&subcode=nepalegram1 and the United Nations World Food Programme https://give.wfp.org/5279/?step=country&lead_source=2015-wfp-nepal-emergency&form_tag=2015-wfp-nepal-emergency are my choices. These organizations have disaster workers on the spot or as close as they can get. They know what is needed. Money is much easier to send and receive than merchandise. And money can be directed to specific and relevant needs of the moment. Your words about compassion, creativity, problem solving, love and caring are sensitive and profound, Pam. Giving what we have, emotionally and financially, is vital for Nepal. I think it’s vital, not only for those who need, but for those to give. We live in a dangerous time when it’s critical for all of us to be reminded that we can give and that we can rally to help one another regardless of miles or cultural differences involved. Namaste, Joanna

Dear Pam, You fluttered into my mind today with grace and beauty. I was relaxing on my garden couch this morning with my dogs at either side of me after I had completed my journal entry. The early morning was beautiful in my garden. Grass a lush green, Bouganvillea blooming red and purple, oranges glowing on the tree, sky a sweet blue, tall flowerless camellias a rich shining green. My body rested as I freely and mindlessly mindfully cast my eyes about the living systems around me. And then I saw it. Amid the hummingbirds at the arching honeysuckles was one black and gold butterfly. It was larger than butterflies I had seen before in my garden and I had never seen one this color. It was fluttering amid the blossoms. I thought of you and our conversations about the butterfly metamorphosis. I thought of you going through your thyroid treatment. I thought of you learning lessons from what seems to be your wise guide now, the butterfly. So, thinking of you I carefully observed what I was seeing in hopes I could share something of value with you. What I saw was a butterfly lightly fluttering with rapid wing movement while it's core body was still. It was a dance of wondrous balance between opposites - stillness and quick movement. It seemed to be finding what it wanted in the blossoms but stayed with each only briefly, a few seconds at the most. It must have had considerable powers of focus and discrimination to make immediate choices and gather what it needed so quickly. The wonder of it was that it could enter into the honeysuckle branches and flowers and continue fluttering in tight space between dense leaf structure with no difficulty or flight impairment. So, it could move freely in wide space, confined space and complex structures that combined both. The butterfly was also at ease with the hummingbirds although they didn't seem to communicate directly. But they must have somehow because they didn't interfere with each other at the blossoms. What this may mean to you I don't know. Maybe there's a metaphor in this story that is useful to you. All I know was that the butterfly was wonderful, that you are associated with the butterfly now in my mind, and that you are wonderful too. Namaste, Joanna Joanna Popppink, MFT Los Angeles psychotherapist author of Healing Your Hungry Heart: recovering from your eating disorder http://www.eatingdisorderrecovery.com