Gifts

Happy New Year to all my readers and followers.  I would like to start this year with a quote from  Neale Donald Walsch.

"Be a gift to everyone who enters your life.... you can always be a gift because you always are the gift... yet sometimes you don't let yourself know that.  When someone enters your life unexpectedly, look for the gift."

I look back over 2012 and think of all the people who entered my life during the year and the gifts they left in their wake.  Gifts come in all forms... a thought, a prayer, a word, a deed, an item, an emotion, a most unusual friendship, support or a smile.  How grateful I am for all those who took the time to be a gift to me.   May 2013 bring many small and meaningful gifts to you.

Inspirations

To my followers.... my apologies for not blogging for several months.  I found myself to be on overload and the creativity just wasn't present.  Today I am trying to get back to basics and reconnect to those who follow my blog.    This last Sunday I had the honor of presenting the Memorial Message for Knapp Funeral Home Memorial Service.  What an honor that was for me.  As I looked out over the overflowing crowd, I recognized so very many of those attending.. either by hospice, support group, emergency department, or friends and business associations.  I feel that God has blessed me by giving me the opportunity to do what I do.  I meet remarkable people who struggle with great strength in an attempt to find some normalcy in life during the grieving turmoil.  Kristin Heitzmann once said, "Grief is a coat you put on and off, wearing it only until it has warmed the chill of loss, but not so long as to take the edge from memory."  My advice to those grieving is to embrace life... use your experience and gifts with inspiration and zeal to help others who are just beginning the journey you have traveled.

Knight in Denim and Plaid

Valentine Day this week brought back some great reminders for me that I  would like to share with my readers.  First, it reminded me that some of the simplest things in life are the hardest to do.... saying thank you, saying I'm sorry, saying I appreciate you, saying I love you.   I personally have a Knight in denim and plaid who changes my light bulbs, who scoops the walks and drive, who walks my dog, who hauls my garbage, who buys me little things just because he wants to.   Over the last 45 years we have raised a family, spoiled grandchildren, traveled, had some difficult moments, had losses and grief and have experienced scars which we carry in our souls where they aren't seen.....all part of life.  Life is not orderly or neat.  Often it is confusing and messy, but we cannot quit hearing the music and loving the players.  Thank you to my Knight in Denim and Plaid.

THE CINDERELLA PACT

I recently read a book where the characters formed a pact to support one another through good and difficult times.  Some of the rules for this pact were that each person had to discover who they were deep inside and love the person they discovered there.  The whole idea was based on a "fairy tale" concept and their motto was, "True love is born of experience, not fairy dust".  The whole concept was cute, but perhaps somewhat over the top; but then again... it was just a story.  Finding yourself is an enlightening experience, a journey which I took "once upon a time".  It is not a journey for the weak at heart, let me tell you that up front.  There is definitely wallowing involved!

Thinking of myself as a chameleon through most of this era, I wondered if the real Lonnie D. would ever stand up!  I have been someone's daughter, someone's sister, someone's wife, someone's mother, and someone's grandmother.  So... at the heart of finding myself I then wanted to re-invent myself.  In so doing, I chose four words to describe the person I wanted to be:  loving, honest, understanding and dependable.  I then began this journey which is constantly a work in progress, sometimes falling and stumbling along the way.  Nonetheless, I feel that I have made progress and it has been worth it.  Mahatma Gandhi once said, "the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others".

Have you found the real you?

New Wisdom

The new year is upon us and I think about New Year's resolutions but know they will probably never formulate into reality. It can be discouraging to realize how many times I have failed at improvement! I then wonder if it is just too late to change anything about me... I am just pretty much who I am at this stage of my life. Even though I cannot always live up to my own expectations, I do like to read inspirations which encourage me to be better. I recently read a quote from Julie Ann Ford which I shared with my readers in my January Newsletter. There are a couple of thoughts from that quote that I have chosen to share with you. 

Julie Anne states, "Learn to Love. Make commitments to what's important to you. Take risks for the things that truly matter. Remember love is not just something you feel, but the things you do. Give others the very best you have to offer, and leave the world a better place for what you have done and who you have been. Learn to live. Don't be afraid of growing, changing, or living your life. No matter where you go or what you do, the true joy of life lies in the journey---not the destination. Search for your purpose, seek out your passions, and do what you love. It's not how long you live, but how you choose to live the days you are given, so choose to make the most of every opportunity you receive."

So... to my loyal family, friends and readers, when making your New Years resolutions, think about what is important to you, what makes you happy, what inspires you, and think of what you want your journey to look like. God bless and Happy New Year.

Life's Boundaries

We are officially in the Christmas season and one witnesses all the activities that belong to that season.  After watching several Hallmark Christmas movies, I am amazed at how many ways they create the meaning of Christmas.  In one of the movies yesterday, there was a phrase that caught my attention:  "If a man's life is measured by the joy he brings to others, then his life has no boundaries". We develop our boundaries at an early age through parental disciplines and our own self image, worth and esteem.  It may take years for us to develop new boundaries, breaking down old walls and building new ones.  It is all about how we want to live our life and deciding what kind of person we want to be.  Christmas is always a good starting point as there are abundant opportunities to help other people, bring some small token of joy to a person's life, and create new friendships.  If you know of someone who is spending the holiday without family, invite them into your family and share your joy.......your life will be enriched and your boundaries will be diminished.  God bless and have a wonderful Christmas Season.

Life's baggage

When I was in my husband's shop this morning, I took time to notice exactly what was important to a man in his shop.  The usual items one would expect such as ladders, saws, tools, TV, lawn games, wood, items that belonged to his dad and other momentos of the past.  There were also multiple items that were of no use and I wondered why they are still a part of his life.  Why do we hold on to things that do not serve a purpose anymore?  As I thought and reasoned through this question, it seemed to resemble life in general.  How many of us go through life carrying years of inner baggage?  That baggage can resemble sadness, anger, guilt, resentment, jealousy and/or hurt to name a few.  Cleaning out that baggage is not as easy as cleaning out our tool shed.  We first have to take a look and identify what the inner baggage holds and why it is there.  What is your guilt from and how could you remedy it?  Why are you angry and how can you resolve the issue?  It is impossible to clear all your baggage quickly because it has taken years to accumulate it, so take things slowly one step at a time.  You will feel so much better when the  baggage is gone.