We are in entertaining mode and at everyone else’s beck and call. ‘In preparation for the upcoming Word Lovers retreat, I shopped for almonds, Hershey’s nuggets, Cheddar cheese, and the weekend’s staple essentials—eggs, butter, coffee, juice. In concentrating on just that task, the task of planning and buying food for my retreat, the other things I had to get done receded and didn’t weigh on me. I could only do one thing at a time. I now not only delist, but I’ve learned to concentrate on only the most important things, and one thing at a time. Later, I prepared for the family, layering lasagna noodles with sauce and cheese, a servant to the present moment. We are servants in this world, a blessing to others if we can be receptive to where they are in their lives. No one is a stranger on this journey called life, especially if you accept them and allow them to enter into your life. Then you get a surprise—your own blessing in return. Hospitality, being in the moment, focus, acceptance, all those good things came to me when I just went with the flow.
Tag Archives | happiness
30 Perfect Days, Blog Post 16 – Just Be
on January 31, 2015 0
Week 16, Friday, January 30, Living in Luxury—On the 16th day of my 30 Perfect Days journey, I looked back over the previous two weeks and was ashamed of how many times I went out to eat. What luxury I’m living in! How hard do I want to work to support this consumption? It’s absurd to deplete the meaning from our lives so we can live in luxury. While I believe in my heart that it’s the journey rather than the goal that’s important, I strive too much, work too hard, try to have more, of everything. When a friend of mine recently told me that she’s amazed every day by life and what it brings, the connections, beauty, and awesomeness of it all, I remembered how simple it is to appreciate what we already have. It’s enough. The happiest we can be is when we’re enjoying the journey. We need to just be. Can you find a way to live in the luxury of just being, or are you working so hard at trying to have it all that you’re missing what you have?
30 Perfect Days Log Post 15 — Owning Up to Mistakes
on January 23, 2015 0
From Day 15 of 30 Perfect Days, Finding Abundance in Ordinary Life: Twenty years ago, I forgot I was human. But I WAS human, a frail and conflicted young woman who felt she had to prove herself and didn’t deserve happiness. In my unhappiness, I was always trying to be perfect, and I wasn’t willing to admit my mistakes. I had to grow into a person who could allow happiness and acceptance to infiltrate my life. As we get older, the number of mistakes we’ve made increases while the frequency of our mistakes diminishes, which makes it easier to accept imperfection. When we own up to our mistakes, we live in the present and are accepting of our human frailties. We get closer to the truth—that we aren’t meant to be perfect and we are meant to be happy. (Get the book for half price on Amazon today–http://www.amazon.com/30-Perfect-Days-Abundance-Ordinary/dp/0692277501/.)
30 Perfect Days Log 12 — Combatting Mediocrity—
on December 26, 2014 0
Norman Vincent Peale wrote “There is a real magic in enthusiasm. It spells the difference between mediocrity and accomplishment.” While Paul and I walked in the Rocky River Reservation, I showed him the beach glass I’d found on the beach the previous week and said, it reminds me of the ebb and flow of the tide, how the waves calm me, and what’s important.” He took my hand and replied, “You find meaning in everything, don’t you?” Later, while eating warm bread with Italian olive oil, I examined the label on the bottle of Sangiovese and asked the waiter about the wine region. The waiter said few people ask that question, and Paul said, “This woman does that. She’s anything if not enthusiastic.” That’s the woman I want to be, the one who knows magic because she’s enthusiastic about life. I am a woman who refuses to let life become boring, run-of-the-mill, and ordinary, knowing the good life is in a small miraculous moment. Mediocrity doesn’t recognize the miraculous. Again, it’s the choices we make on how to spend our time that make a good day, a good life.