Recipe For A MindFULL Life
Into each day put equal amounts of faith, patience, courage, work, hope, kindness, rest and prayer.
Gently mix in one well-selected solution.
Add a teaspoon of good spirits, a dash of fun, a pinch of folly, a sprinkle of play and a cup of humor.
Mix thoroughly.
Pour into your favorite glass, making sure it is half full.
Garnish with gratitude.
Sit back and ENJOY!
What’s your recipe for MindFULL living? Let us know!
Have you ever stopped to think about why certain conversations stick with you?
The other day, I was reflecting on a conversation that was under my skin. What was really bothering me? I couldn’t put my finger on it. Then, as my mind wandered at a stop light, it hit me.
The person had been sarcastic. And I had taken it personally.
Sarcasm has its roots in Greek and it means “to cut or tear flesh”. Ouch.
I suspect that no one really wants to literally cut or tear anothers flesh. However, that’s what it feels like when we are sarcastic or someone is sarcastic to us. I try not to do it, but honestly, I have – and I feel lousy afterward. In addition, I have wasted energy by holding on to conversations where I’ve asked a question and received a sarcastic response. The under lying reasons for such nasty behavior is ours/theirs to own. Only we can make the choice to ask ourselves the question, “Of all my responses, which one will put more love in the world?”
Or as my dear friend Jill always says, “Be the behavior you want to be remembered for.”
Perhaps the next time we feel like giving someone a sarcastic response, we’ll remember how it feels to be wounded. After all, if sarcasm can metaphorically cut someone, imagine how kind words can heal their wounds.
How do you become more MindFULLY aware of the way you talk with others?
Let us know!
Are you living your life in vivid color or do some days feel like different shades of brown?
Lucky for us, my friend Nancy, who is a gifted and talented writer, offers insights and musings about living a vivid life on her blog, Vivid Living (http://nancysharp.net/vividliving/). After I read it, I often realize something that adds color to my world.
Her attitude and her writings are beautiful and stirring because her philosophy is “what happens to us in life matters, but in my view, how we choose to live matters more.”
Six years ago, Nancy’s husband, Brett, died in her arms at Calvary Hospice in Bronx, New York – he had a brain tumor that finally felled him nearly seven years after he was diagnosed in 1998. At the time, I think her twins were around two years old.
A few months later, with courage and twins in tow, she moved to Denver. When I met her, it was as if I had known her before. One falls into easy conversation with Nancy. I’m not sure if it is her warm smile and the way she looks you in the eyes when you’re talking or the life experience she brings to bear on a casual chat by the pool. One thing is certain; she has come to teach us how to live mindFULLY.
Now she has created a new life in Colorado and is re- married to a darling man she met by reaching out her hand and holding up her heart. How they met is a great story, in and of itself, and you can find it on her blog: http://nancysharp.net/vividliving/. Her story is like a rose. It has bloomed, thorns and all. And the color is so vivid.
I know you are busy. However, I encourage you to carve out a ½ hour and treat your heart to reading a few of Nancy’s entries. Money-back guarantee – you’ll be the better for it.
What are some ways that help you live MindFULLY and vividly? Let us know!
Three weeks ago, on a Tuesday, I brought in the mail and noticed a letter from a Realtor tucked into the Ballard Designs catalog. Usually I throw mass mailings away, but this one beckoned me to open it.
Interesting. The Realtor had sent a letter to everyone in our sub-division, asking if anyone was interested in selling their home. He was representing a family with kids who go to the school at the end of our block. My husband and I had talked about moving on and off over the past few years and decided we had nothing to lose by floating a trial balloon. As it turned out, eight families, including us, said, “yes, we’re interested.” (Four houses in the division are on the market already and have been for some time).
That Sunday, they looked at all the homes and on Monday, the Realtor said they liked ours, made us an offer and gave us 48 hours to decide. After I pulled my head out of the toilet (be careful what you wish for) we decided to counter offer. Thursday night they accepted. Someone in the RE division of my husband’s office was able to quickly review our end of the deal and by sundown on Friday, we signed a contract. The inspection was last week and the work is minimal. Knock wood, if all goes well, we’ll close sometime in May.
It seems like it is meant to be. We didn’t put our house on the market, engage a Realtor or have to keep the house clean for more than one showing. It came to us. Remembering this has helped as I clench up with fear and wonder, “what have we done?” Things were in order. Did I really need to turn it all upside down?
But the answer is yes. I have never really been comfortable in this house. True, it is beautiful and I appreciate the space that has held the sounds of friends and family over the years. However, I long for a smaller yard and fewer toilets to clean (OK, I know. I don’t really clean the toilets.) There are only 3 of us and in a strange sort of way, we have outgrown this house. Like many homes, we have rooms that sit empty. I love Sarah Susanka and the Not So Big House series. Sarah talks of how we make formal living rooms and use them when we have guests. If we really like the people, we invite them into the kitchen/family room. If we don’t, they stay in the formal room. So in essence, we spend money and space on a room for people we don’t even like! For years I have wanted to have smaller, creative, user-friendly space to LIVE in and host folks I love.
So, here we are, taking a leap of faith and trusting that it might take a while, but we will find a more fitting home. In the meantime, as we ponder how to proceed to “next”, we have turned this into an “adventure” and have decided to live in a new way for a while. Instead of settling into a bland rental house, we are going to sign the lease on a beautiful, smaller condo in a neighborhood where we can walk to the Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings and ride our bikes to the parks on warm summer eves. There’s a lot of possibility out there. We simply have to trust we will find it. And some days that is easier said than done.
What a ride! That fateful Sunday morning I went to the grocery store and here I am, three weeks later, wondering how we will possibly eat all the food in the freezer before we have to move. At least I don’t have to choose paint colors for the big window wall again!
Has opportunity ever knocked and filled your mind with possibility? Let us know how!
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