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Guest post: Bono Fide

Guest post: Bono Fide

From Billy Joel’s “Keeping the Faith” to George Michael’s “Faith,” one thing is certain: faith is a very hot topic (well, it was in the 80s, and…extrapolating).

Faith’s gaze alights upon a curious creature

As a collective, we humans are obsessed with the concept of faith.

This becomes most obvious when you look into the scads of individuals who are named Faith, including my brother’s sister-in-law and more famous Faiths, who have such surnames as Hill, Salie, Ford, and Ringgold.

Faith can be defined as religious belief, and there are multitudes of different faiths in the world. Faith is equated with trust, and we take leaps of faith. We have faith in ourselves or in others.

Faith is so many things. Faith changes moment to moment. Faith is different for everyone. There is no doubt about it, though, that faith encompasses the power of positive thinking, and it is a part of who we are individually and together.

Faith is a very big thing.

Faith is also a very little cat.

It is entirely possible that Faith is part owl. Seriously! She swivels her neck around and about every which way, honing in on interesting sights and sounds:

And, THOSE EYES!! Her big right eye focuses outward; her cloudy left eye focuses inward and on much more magical things than the person trying to engage with her.

Curious and cute, Faith doesn’t suffer one bit from any crisis, not of faith, not otherwise. She is a beacon of light. Where a charm might dangle from a necklace, Faith has a white locket that just might indicate that this wee bit of a kitty is in real truth a cat-sìth. She is, most certainly, fairy-sized. She is also completely endearing.

Although Verde would counter any of this quite effusively (“Her existence is an offense! Take her away at once! She is ANATHEMA!”), as well as anything else remotely flattering or positive about Faith (or any feline, for that matter), this little 6-year-old abounds with exactly the kind of joy and energy that we need in all days, but especially in these days.

Our necks, too, are swiveling around, trying to focus. We’re struggling to know what is best to do and when and where and how to do it and with whom. We’re struggling to retain grace. Without question, the now has its challenges. That’s really nothing new; it’s just a bit different from the challenges we were more accustomed to.

But, as these times inexorably morph into the later times, we all have to remember Faith. We should emulate Faith, and stay courageously positive. We need to hang onto our faith, however we define it, and stay focused.

Remember your purpose, or create it. Find goals that support that purpose and reach for them without striving too hard, even as your aim is the stars or farther beyond. Try not to out-drive your headlights, but stay the course. Keep one eye focused on the reality that lies before you. Keep the other eye free to focus alternately on yourself or on the magic that is within you and all around us all.

Have faith that you and we will all get where we need to go.

But, at this very moment, whatever else is happening, whatever tempests are buffeting the world, find peace within yourself. Keep faith with yourself. Be graceful to yourself. Go have a lovely now. You can make it happen.

Faith believes in you, so you better believe it too.

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