Yes, please

George Eliot professed:

What do we live for,

if not to make life

less difficult

for each other.

Imagine how pleasant a day might be

if we spent as much time

making life less difficult for each other,

instead of pointing out flaws

or ranting about what we believe.

You're welcome to your beliefs,

as much as you should own your flaws,

but neither is cause

to belittle another human being.

Rich

This is just a piece
of a quote by Sarah Bernhardt.
Wasn't as big a fan
of the beginning of this
as I was of the last line.
Just was so direct and true.

It is

by spending oneself

that one

becomes rich.

'Just'

For those of you
who might be struggling
with your worth ...

You're not 'just' a wife (husband).

You're a partner,

a co-owner,

half of a beautiful marriage

creating a warm and inviting home.

You're not 'just' a mom (dad).

You're responsible for a human.

You're caring and nurturing

and raising and molding a tiny person.

When in doubt,

remember how you melt

when that baby looks at you and smiles.

You're not 'just' a cashier,

or a secretary, or an assistant.

You are the glue,

you are the core, the substance

upon which that business thrives.

No one is irreplaceable,

but you are vital and integral.

You're not 'just' bones and flesh.

You are a soul with a purpose

who is loved and needed and admired

and inspiring and beautiful.

You are 'just' extraordinary.

Be the things

This post is for a few Ch-Angel friends
who are reeling from a recent loss,
but it's also for those of us
(including myself)
that cannot quite move beyond
the loss from many years ago.

Be the things

you loved most

about the people

who are gone.

They remain alive

within us

and around us

as much as we

honor and cherish them.

Mosaics

Found another gem.
Love this.

Hope you do, too.

We are mosaics ~

pieces of

light, love, history,

stars ~

glued together

with 

magic and music and words.

Absofrigginlutely!

Saw this quote
and fell in love.

It did not have

an author to recognize,

but ... yes! this!

The idea

is to die young

as late

as possible.

Hey Beautiful!

Today is National Compliment Day!

Without provocation or reciprocation,
just get out there and with all the sincerity
that you can scrape together,
SAY NICE THINGS!!!

It is not difficult 

to seek out a nice smile,

pretty eyes, 

a nice outfit,

a fun accent,

...

something

...

anything.

Be polite.

Be sincere.

And compliment away!

Celebrate

Today is Celebration of Life Day!

So ...

Celebrate the lives that have molded you and moved on ahead.

Celebrate the mothers that made us,

the fathers that forged us,

the brothers that bolstered us,

the sisters that sassed us,

the friends that fostered us,

the children that changed us,

the heroes that honed us,

and the people that provided paths for us.

But ...

Celebrate, too, your own life.

You are a piece of all those things above.

You carry with you a bit of all those things 

you so fondly remember and desperately cling to.

You are worthy and wonderful.

You are unique and beautiful.

You are passionately purposeful.

Celebrate you.

Celebrate Life!

NHD

Today is
National Hugging Day!

Get out there!

Squish someone.

No words, no advice, no lectures.

Just envelope them

in nothing but security

and acceptance and love.

Hugs are vital to our existence.

NEXT!

My Momma was a wise, wise woman.
She was strong and witty and determined and gracious and amazing.

One of her many poignant and purposeful quips was, "Next!"

She never let things stop her.

She might have been deterred, detained, demoralized, or disgusted,

and she let those things seep in and fuel her,

and then ... she moved on.

She found a way around the mountains.

She dug her way out of trouble.

She created magic where there seemed nothing.

She would just exclaim, "Next!" and be on to her next adventure.

It was never an avoidance. It was a growth spurt.

So, whatever you might be facing today,

let it seep in, let it fuel your resolve,

and ...

NEXT!

A.W.E.

A.W.E.

Act Without Expectation

This is my life mantra.

Do the good you can

while you are able

for whomever you can

whenever you can.

Do not seek reward,

glory,

compensation,

kudos.

It is but a joy

to see the delight

in another.

Prophetic Pooh

Today is National Winnie the Pooh Day.
Here's a tidbit of his that I just adore.

I always get

to where I'm going

by walking away

from where I've been.

Good Choice for Today

As we celebrate MLK today,
here is a quote that is not his,
but embodies much of how he lived.

Raise your words,

not your voice.

It is rain

that grows flowers,

not thunder.

A little January humor

I am more than well aware

that every day is Heaven sent
It would seem, though, that my giddy up
and has done got up and went.

A little January, cold-weather, after-holiday,

post-family-get-together humor.

Enjoy your weekend

and may your team be victorious!

Ooh Ooh

I have written prior of legacy,
but this one truly grabbed me.
Hope it finds its place
wherever it needs to land.

Legacy

is not

leaving something

for

people.

Legacy

is leaving something

in

people.

(mic drop)

Fork It

Stole this from a posting from a friend:

There was a young woman who had been diagnosed with a terminal illness and had been given just a short time to live. As she was getting her affairs in order, she asked her Pastor to come by her home to discuss her final wishes.

She discussed songs, scriptures and outfits for the service. Everything was in order and the Pastor was about to leave when the woman suddenly remembered something very important. "There's one more thing ... I want to be buried with a fork in my hand."

The Pastor stood staring, not knowing what to say. "I'm puzzled by this request."

The woman explained, "As a young girl, I always remember that when the dishes of the main course were being cleared, someone would inevitably lean over and say, 'Keep your fork.' It was my favorite part because I know that something better was coming, like velvety chocolate cake or deep-dish apple pie. Something wonderful and with substance!"

The Pastor's eyes welled up as he hugged the young woman goodbye. He knew she had a much better grasp of what Heaven would be like than many folks twice her age.

At the funeral, people were walking by the casket and the Pastor heard over and over, "What's the deal with the fork?" And he simply smiled.

During his message, the Pastor spoke of his final meeting with the woman. He also told them about the fork. There were joyful tears as he told them they probably, like him, would not be able to stop thinking about it either. He was right.

When next you eat and you pick up that fork, let it remind you - ever so gently - that the best is yet to come. The best is yet to come.

Size Matters

Check yourself there, buddy!
;-)

This little quote from Evan Esar

kind of struck me this morning.

Hope it reaches whomever else

might need to see it.

You can't do anything

about the length

of your life.

But you can do something

about its

width and depth.

Time

(This is not mine,
but it is incredibly true!)

Time

has a

wonderful way

of showing us

what

truly matters.

I'm Baaaack!

Hey there, folks!
I'm back!

It surely does a body good

to focus on the things of the heart

instead of emails and texts and social schmedia!

As the new year unfolds,

make yourself a promise to get out there.

Do what makes your heart happy.

Find a passion and chase it.

Reach out to those you love and love 'em.

Create your happy place

wherever you might be at the moment.

Fill it with love

and laughter

and faith.

Write more tomorrow.

Carpe the heck out of this diem.

Be in your moment

Do not be consumed
by the noise,
by the anger,
by the hate,

by the ugly.

Do not be consumed

by the greed,

by the chaos,

by the politics,

by the narratives.

Be in your moment.

Maintain your energy.

Nurture your growth.

Rekindle your passion.

Develop your talents.

Normalize kindness.

Practice your faith.

Feed your spirit.

Be in your moment.

This week's posts might be intermittent

or kind of lacking.

I'm going to go be in my moment.

Enjoy the blessings

that abound around you.

Be in your moment.

The beginning of ...

So, amid a sea of people that I work in,
I am gifted with an interesting vantage point.

I can actually see what a positive attitude can do.

Folks will wait in line to see a happy person

rather than go through a speedy/grumpy experience.

I was able, on Christmas Eve, to purchase a few folks' items.

The reactions ranged from tears, to disbelief, 

to one woman exclaiming, "Thank You, Jesus! I'm paying it forward!"

One of my goals, during each shift,

is to truly and sincerely compliment people.

Sometimes, it gets nutty and crazy and busy,

but when I catch myself getting caught up in the mayhem,

I stop for a minute, breathe, really look at who is in front of me,

and find something positive to say.

Yesterday, on New Year's Eve,

(which was busy, but not as busy as Christmas Eve),

a young lady came through my line after a frenzy.

When I was giving her her change, I was truly taken aback

by her smile.

I simply stated, "Wow! What a beautiful smile you have!"

And I meant it. And she could tell.

She stopped in the gathering of her things, looked at me and said,

"That's the nicest thing anyone has said to me in a very long time."

This actually turned into a small conversation about her finding

a young man who will appreciate that smile and I assured her he's out there.

We were both buoyed by this conversation and the laughter that ensued.

She felt good. I felt good. It took so little.

People ...

Find the positives. Speak the positives. Be the positives.

2021 is O-V-E-R!

This could be the beginning of ...