Monday Meditation

Photo by:  Alisa Laska

"Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart; Naught be all else to me, Save that Thou art- Thou my best thought, by day or by night, waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light."  

~"Be Thou My Vision" Irish Folk Melody

I remember this song playing as I would walk around helping preschoolers to fall asleep at nap time.  I was a college student substitute teaching at a Christian school.  I will never forget the innocent quiet that would spread across the room.  The same type of quiet found in the falling of snow.  May God grant us this innocent quiet today.

Monday Meditation

"Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it."  
~Henry David Thoreau

Photo by Steven Wei

A Little Change Will Do You Good

This morning I started back to my exercise class.  After about an 18 month "exercise hiatus" due to birthing a child, I started started back this Fall.  I loved the class, but after four months of the same songs, I was ready for a little break.  Christmas came with all of its baked goods and relaxation.  Well, I can't really say relaxation per say, as a Mom of two kids.  But, I would say it was more like another "exercise hiatus."

So I started back today.  The songs are new and my coordination is a bit off.  Ahem.  Maybe more than a little bit.  But, I enjoyed the newness of it.  New songs, new dance moves, new killer ab exercises.  (By killer, I don't mean the term a 17 year old surfer would use to describe a wave...)

It got me thinking about change.  I am generally a creature of habit.  I tend to eat the same thing for breakfast (cereal, banana, OJ) and many times the same thing for lunch (turkey sandwich).  I enjoy the feel of a good daily routine, although having kids has thrown this all out of wack and I feel like I never have a routine anymore.  So be it!

Though I am a creature of habit, I do get bored at times when things feel mundane and too ordinary.  (Take January for instance!)  My class today reminded me that it's good to change things up once in a while. Try taking a new route to work or bring something different for lunch.  Listen to a new album or look for some new recipes.  Let's change it up, 2017!

She Who Hesitates is Lost

This morning, I had it all ready to go.  Ticketmaster.  U2 tickets to go on sale at 10:00 am.  I was ready.  I kept checking back to see the ticker.

At 10:00 am on the dot, I clicked "search for tickets."  It found two tickets in a section that looked pretty high up, but who cares?  It was two tickets to U2.  Something lingering on my bucket list for a long time now.

I went through the pages, clicking and agreeing.  And then I got stuck on the last one.  The payment page.  The total for two tickets would be $250.  Whew.  That is a lot of money!  I didn't even have someone lined up to go with me yet.  My husband is not a concert person and I was a little worried that he'd see the $250 charge on the credit card and not be too happy.

So, I hesitated.  I watched the clock move down from five minutes to three minutes to one minute.  I thought, maybe I'll go back and change it to one ticket.  I tried and it completely messed up the order and my tickets were lost to someone else.  The next available ticket was much closer, but $280 for one ticket!  No way.

Having this experience today reminded me of the many times this has happened in my life.  I am an introverted perfectionist, which often leads to me indecision.  I think so much about all of the possible options and possible consequences that sometimes I wait too long and either don't make a decision or I make a snap decision and later regret it.

I encourage you today to not think too much. Is there something in your life that you really want to do?  A bucket list item, maybe? Do it!  We aren't guaranteed a certain number of days in this life, and sometimes we get caught up in the decisions or we get so caught up in the mundane details of life that we forget about the bigger picture.  We forget what we want our life to truly be about.

Make a list of things your really want to do today, this week, this year, and DO THEM!  Don't let hesitation or other details get in your way.  Live life to the full, because there is so much joy in the journey.

Monday Meditation

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?"

~Martin Luther King, Jr. 

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."

~Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Photo by:  Sebastian Molina M

What will you do in 2017 for others?  

How will you spread love this year?

Monday Meditation

"You'd be so lean, that blast of January
Would blow you through and through.  

Now, my fair'st friend,
I would I had some flowers o' the spring that might
Become your time of day."

~ William Shakespeare, The Winter's Tale, Act IV Scene 4 

New Year: Be YOU

The New Year brings with it many magazine articles encouraging us to think about the idea of a "New Year, New You!"  You should start a new exercise routine, lose 30 pounds and be an awesome new gal.

Most people abandon these resolutions by February.

I do enjoy a good resolution or two each year.  I like the fact that January gives us the opportunity for NEW.  New challenges, new routines, new ideas, new projects, new trips.  New.  It's a chance to start over, a chance to leave the challenges of the old year behind.  The hubby and I have started making goals for each year, including family, home and personal goals.  This year, I even wrote them out on colored index cards.  Will I fulfill the goals?  I hope so.  It remains to be seen how many I will fulfill or exactly how the year will turn out.  What I do want to do is go for it.  I want the New Year to be filled with me being me and challenging myself to step out of my comfort zone and do things that I've always wanted to do.

I challenge you to do the same.  Step out of your comfort zone and really be you.  Be the you you have always wanted to be.  Without fear.  Without regret.  Step out and do that thing you've always wanted to do.  This time next year, will you look back with regret or look back and smile at all that you've accomplished?

Fabulous New Year's Eve

For as long as I can remember, I've wanted to have a fabulous New Year's Eve.  I dream of putting on a sparkly dress and heels, clutching a clutch,  (Is that even a thing?) and heading to a fancy location with my husband.  My latest fascination would be the Kennedy Center.  I'd be wearing my sparkly gown while watching the orchestra perform, followed by a countdown to New Year's on the terrace.

Every year I dream of my fabulous New Year's Eve, but each year I am badly disappointed.  One year I came close with a nice dinner out with the hubby at the Olive Garden.  Sad, I know.

But maybe not.

Some of my most fun New Year's Eve memories are from my youth group days.  We'd have a sleepover at one of my friend's houses, interjected with random trips around town or to Friendly's for ice cream.  One year, our church offered hourly prayers leading up to midnight, so we'd stop there every so often.  I think what stands out to me in these memories is the community I experienced with my youth group friends.  I'm sure that's what led me to 15 years of youth ministry as a career.

This year, I look back at the fun years and the disappointing years and want to chalk this one up to a disappointing one.  But I stop myself.  This year is different to be sure.  I have a loving husband and two children to keep me occupied and tired enough that staying up until midnight sounds like a daunting task.  Is this disappointing?  Definitely not.  It doesn't fulfill my princess at the Kennedy Center dream, but it ends with the princess having a yummy dinner cooked by her husband and sitting with my two crazy kids.  I may have baby food banana on my pants and bags under my eyes, but I'm still a princess to them.  And I'm not disappointed at all.