30 MindFULL Days

According to the Jewish calendar (a Jewish calendar is lunar vs a solar calendar like the one the US and other countries use) tonight begins Elul — the 30 day journey to Rosh Hashana (the Jewish New Year). This is a very auspicious time for reflection and redirection.

Whether or not you are Jewish, I thought you might find the support of trying something new for 30 days, helpful. I know I do. Below is a link to a blog and video that was sent along by a wise and loving teacher.

www.aish.com/h/hh/e/inspiration/Try-Something-New-for-30-Days.html

Pondering what I was going to work on for 30 days, another wise and loving friend posted this thought provoking commencement speech given at Syracuse University, by George Saunders. It talks about Kindness.

Kindness has been a big topic with a girlfriend recently. Whether kind to others, or to our selves, it seems to be a characteristic that escapes us rather easily. We are all human and make mistakes. But what we do after we make them (apologize, accept apologies, “know better, do better, have empathy, beat ourselves up) is where the work begins…and ends.

http://6thfloor.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/31/george-saunderss-advice-to-graduates/?smid=fb-share&_r=1&

I hope you will think about joining me. Of course you can pick whatever you need to work on. All I ask, is that you be kind to yourself and others, while you try.

What is the MindFULL trait you choose? Let us know?

MindFULL Re-Entry

All around the country, it sounds brutally hot and gazpacho is a wonderful light and cool dish just perfect for this kind of weather. While I was planning to post all the gazpacho recipes I could find, I’ve decided to share a link that offers lots of other delicious ideas instead. I hope you find something that adds to your summer repertoire! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/03/gazpacho-recipes_n_1645922.html#slide=1178639

Even tho the heat around the country is miserable, I took the chance to get out of town for a few weeks while my daughter was away. She got home last night and I am so grateful that I had some “me” time when she was gone, because I painfully needed to drop my own oxygen mask in order to help her breathe. I was clearly out of air by Spring. I knew I was struggling, but it wasn’t til an old friend from HS saw me and really validated my sense that the pounds had crept on and my beloved Leo’s mane was less then flattering (“half mullet, half duck’s ass”).

At that point in time, all I had on the summer books was a trip to Santa Fe with my Mom. And while I was looking forward to seeing her, the thought of NM in the summer was drying – and I definitely needed to be watered. Thankfully, my HS friend flies for an airline and lives on the water in Annapolis. She offered me a buddy pass and the chance to rejuvenate under her care. She, too, needed some lovin’ and we could help each other. After all, isn’t that what friends are for?

Off I went to a new haircut, a supportive nudge towards Weight Watchers, new underwear and plenty of vodka sodas. By the end of the week, I was feeling hopeful. Armed with her darling daughter’s phrase, “Hunt The Good”, I returned home, washed my clothes and re-packed with a new perspective on Santa Fe. There, with ease and insight, I walked and talked with my wonderful momma, saw an Opera and splurged on new clothes that fit and jewelry that delighted. I was starting to feel like myself again. In the center of town, I found even more words to hold onto, thanks to a beautiful statue of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha that graced the St. Agassi’s Church. To reinforce what I was seeking to remember, I bought a small case of lavender lip salve in a bright and happy gallery. When I rub it on my lips, it serves as intention that all that passes through them be soft.

When I returned home, I had a few days left to myself and every morning, I walked my neighborhood. I was happy to be home and yet longed for more visits, with other friends and family that I knew I could not get to this summer. One morning, when I was particularly feeling the pull, I came across this posting on a neighbor’s fence. With the seasons and holidays, these clever folks change the clothes of the goose in their yard. I was reminded to notice this happy corner – and to “Hunt The Good” in my own backyard.

As I laid down last night with my daughter and heard her struggle to re-enter her own backyard after spending the last 3 weeks with bright, kind and fun kids she fit with, I was able to listen with an open heart and ease vs trying to fix what was starting to sound like regret for the present. I wasn’t entirely successful, as I do admit to tossing out some ideas to build on the joy she had just experienced, but I was also less scared and wanting to make it all better. She is resilient, insightful and filled with possibility. She doesn’t need my fixing. I need my own fixing. And we both need our own ease. Afterall, that’s what summer is for. And we still have a month to enjoy.

How do you MindFULLY deal with Re-Entry after being away? Let us know!

MindFULL Gazpacho

Summer is finally here! Something about life seems easier, including the ever present question, “What’s for dinner?” As the grill wafts its enticing aroma, I love to put my vodka/soda/ lime in my cute handblown glass, pop on some Maroon5, sit on the back step by my hydrangea and pretend I am on Cape Cod. For me, that is summer bliss.

Summer is also the time when I allow myself a thoughtful, indulgent lunch. Last weekend in Austin, I took myself out and reveled in the most flavorful tomato Gazpacho loaded with lumps of crabmeat. Accompanied by a simple piece of toasted bread and pungent cheese, a thick rich crab cake with grilled leeks and balsamic glaze and a glass of Cava, I giggled with delight and gratitude. It turned my tried, worn out spirit around and inspired me.

It also got me thinking about how much I like all kinds of Gazpacho and have decided The Mindfull Creative would take the next few weeks, and in the spirit of sharing finds I love, offer a different Gazpacho recipe on MindFULL Mondays.

Below is the first, simple vegetable version. It’s from The Barefoot Contessa (www.barefootcontessa.com). Love her and it!

Ingredients

1 hothouse cucumber, halved and seeded, but not peeled
2 red bell peppers, cored and seeded
4 plum tomatoes
1 red onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
23 ounces tomato juice (3 cups)
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup good olive oil
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Roughly chop the cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and red onions into 1-inch cubes. Put each vegetable separately into a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until it is coarsely chopped. Do not overprocess!

After each vegetable is processed, combine them in a large bowl and add the garlic, tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix well and chill before serving. The longer gazpacho sits, the more the flavors develop.

What is your MindFully favorite Gazpacho recipe? Let us know!

Don’t Worry

These two weeks mark high school graduations, college graduations and end of school years. Big times for many special people in our life.

Standing around backyards and in hallowed school halls, there’s been many a sigh of relief, reflective conversations and all sorts of future ponderings. It seems no matter the age of your kids, you worry. If you don’t have kids and your parents are still with you, remember that you are a kid to someone and chances are they worry for you.

We don’t want to worry and many of us work hard to let go. But gosh, sometimes the tight feeling in your chest is hard to ignore.

So, with a wink and a nod toward gently reminding us that everyone worries and generally things turn out OK if you simply give them the room to breathe, I share the article When They’re Grown, the Real Pain Begins by Susan Engel, a senior lecturer in psychology and director of the Program in Teaching at Williams College.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/28/booming/when-theyre-grown-the-real-pain-begins.html?smid=fb-share&_r=1&

How about, if just for today, we all agree to take Susan’s advice at the end of her essay and treat ourselves to a few minutes of Zen? See if you can’t put one worry aside. Perhaps a little sunshine and fresh air will bring a new perspective later on. At the very least, it will give you a little less time to worry and a little more time for just loving your kids and/or your own special Self.

How do you MindFULLY stop worrying? Let us know!

Tiny Superheroes

“The Seattle mom was making superhero capes for her 1-year-old son when she came across a blog about a baby girl named Brenna. Brenna was born with a rare and severe skin disease. She needed eye surgery at just 3 weeks and beat an aggressive blood infection. In Robyn’s mind, Brenna was a fighter: She was Super Brenna.

“I realized that while my son looked cute in a cape, Brenna needed a cape,” Rosenberger said. So she reached out to Brenna’s mom, Courtney Westlake, who lives in Springfield, Ill., through Facebook, and asked if she could send a cape her way.”

So began, Tiny Superheroes. The company, started by Robin Rosenberger, makes capes for kids who battling cancer and other serious illnesses. Check out her wonderful story: http://www.today.com/health/tiny-superheroes-fight-big-illnesses-little-capes-1C9390606?franchiseSlug=todayhealthmain

We all have the power to be super heroes to someone or fight for a cause. How are you a superhero? Or after reading Robyn’s story, how are you MindFULLY moved to make a difference? Let us know!

WOW Factor from 74 Harley Street

When was the last time you flipped through your jewelry box and wished you had that one fun piece to wear, but all you had were bits and pieces of this and that?

Last month, when I was in Kansas City, our cousins were wearing fabulous necklaces; pieces made of sparkly beads, pearls and fun baubles. Paired with t-shirts and jeans, these ladies looked so spirited! Where had they gotten such statement pieces?

Turns out, that one of them, the wildly creative and talented Susan Mayer, was making jewelry out of vintage pieces she was finding and that women were sending to her. Brooches, old necklaces, you name it. Pieces that somehow how had been collected or handed down, but never quite worked in today’s world. Susan was taking these pieces and creating hip and elegant one of kind necklaces and bracelets. I loved what she had on so much that as soon I returned to Denver, I sent her a brooch that had taken up space in my jewelry box for years. I don’t think I had ever worn it.

Within weeks, she sent it back to me. I love it! She created a necklace made of out of dimpled pearls and attached my brooch — designing the piece so that I could add and subtract other brooches. How clever she is. I wore it to a luncheon last week with a simple grey dress and then over the weekend with a white t-shirt and jeans. I had such attitude!

Take a look in your jewelry box. I’ll bet there is something in there that could be recreated into something you would wear and treasure. Take a picture of it and send it to Susan. Check out her website www.74harleystreet.com and then get digging through your stuff. You’ll be sporting a “WoW” piece in no time.

What MindFULL piece did you find for Susan to re-create? Send us a picture and let us know!

MindFULL Color

A few weeks ago I wrote about wanting to paint my bathroom. I’m prone to changing color. I liked the green at first, but it never really sat well with me. However, repainting the room felt daunting. Remembering the lesson my daughter and I had learned – How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time – gave me the courage to look at the job as “one stroke at a time.”

Slowly, but surely, it came together. At first the blue was off, but a quick trip back to the paint store and a little adjustment gave me just the shade I wanted. I love it! When I am in there, or even walking by, my energy changes. What is that about? Do you think that color effects how we feel?

According to Psychology 101 color can certainly affect our moods. Check out their article for a simple read on how your favorite color may be affecting yours.

http://www.psychology-101.com/2012/03/color-psychology-how-colors-affect-our.html

What color do you Mind FULLY gravitate towards? And have you changed a color in your home to change your mood? Let us know!

MindFULL Kid

It’s officially Spring Break in our house (although by today’s snowfall, you’d never know it.) Finally, it’s time for me to take a post off and venture into the world to re-“full” my mind. While I’m out absorbing new ideas to share, I thought I’d leave you with a spot of inspiration I came across via a friend’s Facebook page. It’s about a young boy known as Kid President.

The first link is to one of his videos. The second is about him. I am touched, inspired and warmed by his story, his smile and his words of wisdom. I hope you will be, too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=l-gQLqv9f4o

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcZVGjG6LWM

As Kid President asks, “What will you create to make the world more awesome?”

Let us know!

7 Up

Looking for something new to watch? How about a new way to ponder life and time. The link below is to a blog that my Kabbalah teacher, David Sanders writes. Always insightful, David brings new ideas and ways of seeing, moving through and being in the world.

http://www.kabbalahexperience.com/life-measured-every-seven-years/

His latest post is about 7 Up, a series of eight documentaries chronicling the lives of a dozen people from the London area since the age of seven–every seven years. None have died. They are now 56.

I’m curious about what ordinary people like you and I have thought about, experienced and have in common.

Which led me to ponder, if I were to make a documentary of my life, how many years in between would I choose to revisit with my self? What thread would weave itself throughout my story? And how would I want it to end?

What MindFULL documentary would you create? Let us know!

Another MindFull Perspective

My friend, Joy, sent this to me last week. I thought for this MindFULL Monday, I’d share it with you, since this past weekend I posted a bonus blog on repainting my bathroom and all the thoughts it brought up. Love another way to look at decorating, not just our homes, but ourselves!

Each day we choose to decorate our life just as we do our homes, by Madisyn Taylor

There are few things more thrilling than having a new house or an empty room to decorate. Our imaginations soar as we consider the many possibilities. In the same way, our lives offer us the opportunity to express ourselves within various contexts, to ask ourselves questions about what we want to see as we move through our days and how we want things to flow. Some people do this instinctively, moving through the various environments they inhabit and shifting the energy with their presence. These people have a knack for decorating life. This can be as simple as the way they dress, the way they speak, or the fact that they always bring a bouquet of wildflowers when they come for a visit.

As we move through the world, we make a statement, whether we intend to or not. We shift the energy one way when we enter a room dressed elegantly and simply, and another when we show up in bright, cheerful colors and a floppy hat. One is not better than the other. It is simply a question of the mood we wish to create. What we wear is just one choice we can focus on. The way we speak to people, or touch them, shifts the energy more profoundly than almost anything else. The words we speak and the tone in which we say them are the music we choose to play in the world that is our home. Some of us fill the space with passionate arias, others with healing hymns. Again, one is not better than the other. We are all called to contribute.

Just as we consciously create an environment within our homes, we can consciously choose to decorate life itself with our particular energy. Ideally, in doing so, we express our deeper selves, so that the adornments we add to the world make it more meaningful, more beautiful, and as welcoming as a beloved home.

What MindFULL articles have inspired you? Let us know!