Category: Balance

Messages From My Flowers

8/27/2021

Since by definition learning is change, when you learn nature’s lessons, you are changed. ~ Ron Lizzi

I sit on my deck in the mountains watching my flowers: petunias, geraniums, daisies, moss rose, dianthus, salvia, marigolds, snapdragons, begonias, pansies, and a number of dainty Colorado blossoms whose names I don’t know. I’ve spent hours observing their beauty and patterns of behavior. I’ve learned a lot about life, and myself, from being with my flowers. Here’s what I’ve learned:

2 Comments

Black and White

7/16/2021

0 Comments

Image Credit @grimurgrimsson

Things are not quite so simple always as black and white. ~ Doris Lessing

Life might be easier, simpler really, if everything was categorized into, well…categories, like always/never, either/or, yes/no, up/down, good/bad, all/none, perfect/imperfect, success/failure, black/white. However, that’s not reality. Life is not that compartmentalized but is multifaceted with shades of grey and a myriad of colors and possibilities.

0 Comments

Look At The Bear

4/9/2021

0 Comments

Image Credit @brooksieg

It was exactly what I wanted – beautiful distraction. ~ Maggie Stiefwater

We were having lunch at the Stagecoach Inn in Manitou Springs. I should say hoping to have lunch as the service was painfully slow, and more than an hour after finally placing our order, food was nowhere in sight. The conversation with my daughter and grandsons who were here on vacation was delightful, but everyone was hungry, especially my husband who was becoming increasingly irritated, as the restaurant wasn’t even that busy. Sensing his growing frustration and knowing that an impending confrontation with the waitress (if he could find her) was about to happen, I suddenly pointed to one of the impressive black bear head mounts on a nearby wall and blurted “Look at the bear!” My spontaneous outburst was so unexpected and out of our conversation’s context that we all looked at each other and started laughing uncontrollably, fully aware my intentional outburst had averted a potentially awkward situation. While my husband may have found it less amusing than the rest of us, the distraction allowed all of us to focus on something else. It was a feeble attempt to diffuse the tension, yet it worked.

0 Comments

Unplugged

3/12/2021

0 Comments

Image Credit @emotivephotography

Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes ... including you. ~ Anne Lamott

I think busyness has become an addiction. I learned years ago that being busy was admired, and it felt so good when someone asked how my day was going and I responded “Busy!” It made me feel important and needed. It’s taken years for me to learn that I am important and needed even when I’m not crazy busy multitasking and filling every waking moment working through a to-do list and tending to other’s needs. Once those habits are developed, it’s challenging to make changes that include solitude and quiet. Yet research tells us that doing so is in our best interests and actually helps us function more effectively and with less stress.

0 Comments

The Longer The Better

2/26/2021

0 Comments

Image Credit @koya79

If it doesn’t add to your life, it doesn’t belong to your life. ~ Paulo Coelho

I’m fascinated by telomeres. I first learned about them when I was doing research in preparation for leading a Mindfulness Meditation workshop. I was looking for the benefits of a mindfulness meditation practice and was surprised to discover there was research documenting the relationship between telomere length and psychosocial practices.

0 Comments

Living on Purpose

12/18/2020

1 Comment

Image Credit @seantookthese

The present moment is the only moment available to us, and it is the door to all moments. ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

I’ve read about people sleepwalking, unaware of their actions and activity, only to be told later what they did or said. I think that would be scary. Fortunately, I’ve never had that experience, but I wonder sometimes if I haven’t had some similar experiences – times when I’ve driven miles but didn’t actually recall those miles, or when I’ve been a few blocks from home but couldn’t recall if I’d actually pressed the remote to close the garage door, requiring a trip back to the house to double-check. It’s a little like sleepwalking – not being fully present in the moment, not recalling actions, not being in the ‘here and now’ with my mind in another time and place..

1 Comment

A Balancing Act

10/9/2020

0 Comments

Image Credit @thomasrey96

Balance is not something you find, it’s something you create. ~ Jana Kingsford

Is it possible to live a balanced life 24/7? I doubt it. But it is something to work toward.

There’s so much talk about living a balanced life…it sounds perfect, having it all together: Just enough sleep to function optimally (but too much sleep could suggest depression); Just enough exercise to feel great (but too much exercise can cause joint stress); Just enough sun for a healthy Vitamin D level (but too much sun can cause skin cancer). And the list goes on.

0 Comments

Messages From My Flowers

Black and White

Look At The Bear

Unplugged

The Longer The Better

Living on Purpose

A Balancing Act

Categories

Contact

Donate

Connect

Newsletter