The first step
I have talked about how we change our lives by taking one small step towards something different and then I get inspired by something said to me by our 15-year-old son. He hears a line in a song and passes it on to me…”The first step is the one you believe in.” Today, I visited with a dad who has a dream about being a carpenter. I asked him if he has done anything with it, and like most people he shyly says, “No.” He tells me he procrastinates and I tell him that one of my mottos is “It Starts Today!” and that it is on the plates on my car. He likes it. I also share with him about my quote about the “strongest tree” and he tells me he likes that too. Now, I do not know this dad very well and...
Read MoreChallenge yourself!
I am one to push myself to be better and do more than I had done previously, but had get motivated by different things and people at different times. Sometimes, I don’t understand it because it just seems to happen. It happened a few years ago when I picked up my then running twice a week and to running six days a week. Last summer, I really didn’t do anything more than what I had done the previous year. This year is different. The running I have down so now I am working on some other things that will make me better and stronger. In fact, one of those things includes running in a half marathon this Sunday. Yes, it is my first one and I have two main objectives: 1) finish without needing medical assistance and 2) finish before the race...
Read MorePerspective
If there is one thing I can learn every day, several times a day, it is perspective. Regardless of what it pertains to or what is relative, perspectives can change and therefore, our thinking can change. Sometimes, it is difficult, if not impossible, for others to see your perspective. Someone that I was friends with once told me when I was “venting to her” about something that upset me, “How does this affect me?” She was unwilling to even hear what I was saying and feeling…all she cared about was why she needed to hear this and how it just seemed to be a waste of her time. Hence, we are no longer friends, but are remain friendly with each other when our paths cross. When people have shared with me about things that are...
Read MoreStuck in the middle
Have you ever felt like you were stuck in the middle? Maybe because you were unsure of which way you needed to go, so you didn’t decide anything? Me? I just feel like I am stuck in the middle of who I am and who I could be. Kind of like a race horse standing in the gate, waiting for it to open so I can run, but never knowing if that gate will open. Maybe it is locked. Maybe someone thought it was someone else’s job to open the gate. It’s like wanting to run, but also not knowing if you should. So, maybe you trot a little…just enough to maybe built up some momentum, but not enough to totally self-propel yourself. But that just feels like a tease…like you get a little taste of something that you want, but you...
Read MoreIt is not about YOU!
We all become selfish at times for various reasons. Some we are not even sure why they showed up, but we fear being forgotten and not missed. That we have become so insignificant that we feel like we do more or want more, but it never seems like it is enough. I feel better about my place in this life when I put others first, not when I think about “what’s in it for me?” I have never really thought about that when I was growing up and try to think more of others before I even consider myself. It is not about me. Periodically, I send a text or call someone just to check in and see if they are doing well and find out how life is treating them. Sometimes, I am needed to be there to listen and othertimes, they just want to share with me...
Read MoreGrace
Where does grace come from? Is it easy or hard to find? When we find it, do we know that that is what it is? When we think of grace, we usually think of something bigger than us and how it means to give more for others. I find grace in a friendly hug or a smile from a friend. I find grace in complete strangers who greet each other with “Good morning” and leave with a “Have a great day!” I find grace in the innocent wave from a toddler who sees me in a restaurant. I find grace in someone helping someone else, who has graciously accepted that assistance. Grace is everywhere, but we have to choose to see it. It is not in all things, but it can be if we look for what it means. Grace is also often associated with religion and...
Read MoreAlways amazed…eternally grateful
I never know it and even when I am told, it still makes me speechless. Last week, RE sent me a nice text that included how someone else might benefit from coming to the G.I.F.T. and she thinks that I am the best person to help this someone else. RE told me how positive I am as we have shared more texts over the last week and am grateful for her friendship. Over the last few weeks, another mutual friend of ours got very sick and was close to no longer being with us and I am glad that she is home. Although she has a tough road and is not out of the woods by any means, I believe LL now has a brand new appreciation for the life she has, the people she chooses to share it with, and all the her future has yet to show her. Over the weekend, I complimented my...
Read More
