Apr 29
“I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start, with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere behind the morning.” – J. B. Priestley
“It is always the simple that produces the marvelous.” – Amelia Barr
A seventy degree weekend, running in shorts, a fresh breeze, a bath to wash away the sand. Spring may come late, but it always arrives, in its own time. Each season, each day brings its own gifts. We only need to recognize them.
Apr 22
“Our real blessings often appear to us in the shape of pains, losses and disappointments; but let us have patience and we soon shall see them in their proper figures.” – Joseph Addison
“Wondrous is the strength of cheerfulness, and its power of endurance – the cheerful man will do more in the same time, will do it; better, will preserve it longer, than the sad or sullen.” – Thomas Carlyle
Whether it’s the prediction of seven inches of snow in late April or the challenging co-worker, we have a choice. We can see the sun in the clouds, the summer chair under the layer of snow. Be patient, be of good cheer. True summer is a state of mind.
Apr 12
“Small change, small wonders – these are the currency of my endurance and ultimately of my life.” – Barbara Kingsolver
“Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence, and I learn, whatever state I may be in, therein to be content.” – Helen Keller
This year, our April showers became four-eight inches of snow with a shift in a few degrees. On the surface, it’s wearing. As winter lingers, anticipation of spring grows strong accompanied with impatience. Beneath the surface, we are reminded that change and transformation happens in just a few degrees.
Mar 30
“I will greet this day with love in my heart. For this is the greatest secret of success in all ventures. Muscles can split a shield and even destroy life itself but only the unseen power of love can open the hearts of man. And until I master this act I will remain no more than a peddler in the marketplace. I will make love my greatest weapon and none on who I call can defend upon its force… my love will melt all hearts liken to the sun whose rays soften the coldest day.” – Og Mandino
“I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in.” – George Washington Carver
Even as winter lingers into the dawn of April, the sun’s strength melts away the past, the ice, the cold. Transforming the winter into nurturing water to awaken the ground, turning the brown to green. Nature teaches us to melt, to soften, to wash away the sand and awaken to the newness of the day with gratitude and joy. Easter and Spring partner to renew and refresh. Melt.
Mar 20
“While we are living in the present, we must celebrate life every day, knowing that we are becoming history with every work, every action, every deed.” – Mattie Stepanek
“Whoever is happy will make others happy too.” – Anne Frank
We welcomed Spring today in Minnesota with a temperature of 7 degrees, snow hip deep and a delightful breeze, often referred to as windchill. Last year, it was in the 70s. We then worried that it was too warm too quick. The topic of this week – the unseasonably cold weather and the longing for Spring after a long Winter. I’ve been an active participant in the weather chirping.
Every night this week, despite my initial, rational judgement, I ran 2-3 miles with the girls. Quite frankly, it wasn’t that enjoyable. However, it did shift my perspective from what “should be” to “what is” and to dive in and make the most of it. Like so many things out of our control, the weather is fleeting and temporary. The only true impact I can make is my view of the view.
So, it’s time to fling into Spring.
Mar 17
“I don’t want to get to the end of my life and find that I lived just the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well.” – Diane Ackerman
“In solitude we give passionate attention to our lives, to our memories, to the details around us.” – Virginia Woolf
Like a window open for the first time as winter comes to a close, we can open up to fresh breezes of clarity and warm sunshine of hope. It’s never too late and we’re never too old to learn, discover, transform, to become new.
Our days are often about speed, velocity and distance. When we quietly and slowly go deeper and reach wider, our world expands to new dimensions and possibilities right where we are, no need to travel afar. As the fresh air comes in the window, the weight of the past and the burden of others defining us can drift out the window too. Our story is still being written and it need not be based on history.
Open the window wide, releasing the old to make room for the new.
Mar 5
“The world we see that seems so insane is the result of a belief system that is not working. To perceive the world differently, we must be willing to change our belief system, let the past slip away, expand our sense of now, and dissolve the fear in our minds.” – William James
“People don’t notice whether it’s winter or summer when they’re happy.” – Anton Chekhov
Ice cream in winter? Why not? Let go of the “rules” and “I’ll be happy when” and start living today. True contentment is not moved by circumstances, negative people or a foot of snow. Get out of your comfort zone which really isn’t that comfortable. Climb the snow bank and get that ice cream cone, with sprinkles on top of course.
Mar 3
“Yes, now I understood for the first time that my soul was not so poor and empty as it had seemed to me, and that it had been only the sun that was lacking to open all its germs, and buds to the light.” – Max Muller
“As long as we are persistence in our pursuit of our deepest destiny, we will continue to grow. We cannot choose the day or time when we will fully bloom. It happens in its own time.” – Denis Waitley
We are doers – checklists, multitasking, moving fast, solving problems, busy, looking for the shortcut, the next big thing. Often times, life doesn’t require “doing” but rather “being.” In our challenging and difficult moments, we are called to not merely go through but to grow through, daring us to go deeper and to let go of our old selves.
With cultivation, patience and light, our bud will burst through to blossom anew. Spring always comes at just the right time. The promise of the blooming bud in all of us, ready to share our true beauty with the world. GrOw with it.
Jan 20
“Sunday is the golden clasp that binds together the volume of the week.”- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
“Sometimes the most urgent thing you can possibly do is take a complete rest.” – Ashleigh Brilliant
Sunday rest, reflection, and restoration resets our perspective on the past week and prepares us for the next, ultimately our life as a whole. The fruits of a Sunday well done carry through all of our days. After six days of creation, God rested on the seventh, showing us the way.
Work hard, play hard, rest hard.
Jan 13
“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.” – Robert Louis Stevenson
“To see things in the seed, that is genius.” – Lao Tzu
In life’s garden, there are weeds and flowers. We can be overtaken by the weeds, those daily irritations, small minds and minor inconveniences. Pull weeds every day and plant seeds in their place, and sow twice as many seeds to hinder the weeds return.
What weeds will you pull and what seeds will you sow?
Weed varieties: complaining, gossip, pettiness, jealousy, entitlement, negativity, unforgiveness. PULL THEM.
Seeds varieties: encouragement, laughter, hope, enthusiasm, fun, gratitude, joy, patience, grace, generosity, compassion, service, faith, optimism. SOW THEM.
Grey doesn’t look good on you. Go color the world.
