“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life, by what we give.”                                                                 Sir Winston Churchill

“You and I . . . → Read More: Shared Wisdom: Collected Works]]> Although my creative Muse was on vacation or dormant for the last couple of months, scraps of paper with scribbled words still accumulated on my desk, in my handbag, and in the car.  All carried words of wisdom that somehow continue to make their way to me.  I’ve decided that one of my missions in life seems to be to share as much collective and collectable wisdom as I can.  So here’s the latest and the greatest!

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life, by what we give.”                                                                 Sir Winston Churchill

“You and I share the serenity of understanding – a warm glow in the silences between us.  When we have talked and
  talked and come to the end of words, the speech of our hearts continues on…………                                                  Anonymous

“If I have achieved anything in my life it is because I have not been embarrassed to talk about God.”                             Jim Forest

“If you wish to travel far, travel light.  Take off all your envies, jealousies, unforgiveness, selfishness and fear.”               Cesare Pavese

“Your spiritual growth does not happen when you are peaceful and content.  It happens when you get angry, sad,
  greedy, jealous, critical, impatient.  It happens when you lose your “spiritual mask” and realize that you are not
  superman or –woman, but just an ordinary human being learning how to love.”                                                          Paul Ferrini

“No matter what age you are, or what your circumstances might be, you are special, and you still have
  something unique to offer.  Your life, because of who you are, has meaning.”                                                           Barbara De Angelis

“The lure of the distant and difficult is deceptive.  The great opportunity is where you are.”                                         John Burroughs

“You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it true.  You may have to work
  for it, however.”                                                                                                                                            Richard Bach

“Woman must come of age by herself ………. She must find her true center alone.”                                                       Ann Morrow Lindbergh

“Live your life each day as you would climb a mountain.  An occasional glance towards the summit keeps
  the goal in mind, but many beautiful scenes are to be observed from each new vantage point.”                                   Harold B. Melchart

“Happiness exists more in small conveniences or pleasures that occur every day than in great pieces
  of good fortune that happen but seldom in the course of life.”                                                                                Benjamin Franklin

Here’s to the next time.  May I wish you all a peaceful, healthy, abundant and joy-filled 2012!

Along the same lines:

• Shared Wisdom: The Last of the Batch
• Poetry & Shared Wisdom
• Spiritual Growth: Prayer and Meditation
• Shared Wisdom: There’s Always More
• Shared Wisdom: A Rush of Words

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

So on one of the evenings that we spent at Sherry and Greg’s place in Minnesota, we were invited to participate in a travelling dinner.  Two of the couples did not live in the immediate vicinity . . . → Read More: Minnesota: The Travelling Dinner]]> In my previous posting Vignette- Paula in Minnesota, I mentioned the “travelling dinner”.  I vaguely remember some years ago a friend talking about a “neighborhood dinner”, where everyone from the neighborhood (a fairly small one I believe) shared a meal.  However, instead of all coming to one house to eat, the families went from house to house eating a course here and another there.

So on one of the evenings that we spent at Sherry and Greg’s place in Minnesota, we were invited to participate in a travelling dinner.  Two of the couples did not live in the immediate vicinity of Sherry and Greg’s house, but were great friends of all the people who did.  So they brought their contributions to the meal to Deb and Crystal’s home.

On the appointed evening at the appointed time Sherry, Greg, Rich and myself walked down the driveway.  It was a very pleasant evening so the walk was very enjoyable.  We made a right-hand turn onto the road at the bottom of the driveway, walked about fifty yards, passing the driveway that led to Connie and Joe’s house (Sherry and Greg’s immediate neighbors), before making another right-hand turn into Deb and Crystal’s driveway.

No house could be seen, so I wondered how long of a walk this was going to be. I needn’t have worried. The driveway sloped upward for about fifty yards and as we crested the top we saw that it then sloped downwards for about another fifty yards and there at the bottom, slightly to the right, stood the house.  From this view point it appeared to be a one-story building with beautifully cultivated flower beds on the one side, and a wonderful large fire pit encircled by brightly colored Adirondack chairs which in turn were surrounded by more raised flower beds. All this was then surrounded by lush green grass and trees.  Another piece of heaven!

Kokopelli entranced me!

But the view of the house was deceptive because it was built on a fairly steep slope.  It wasn’t until another day that I saw the other side of the house and realized there was a lower level which contained a spacious apartment where Deb’s Mom, Mary, and Deb’s sister, Paula, lived. It took me a while to actually go into the house because, being the gardener that I am, I had to check out all the beautiful flowers in bloom and the various plants that I didn’t recognize, plus there were lots of interesting and whimsical garden decorations to look at. 

Eventually I made it inside where there were some delightful appetizers laid out.  Once we filled our plates, most of us migrated through the kitchen and dining area to a lovely screened-in room located at the back of the house.  The view was as delicious as the food we ate.  As I mentioned before, the house was built on a fairly steep slope, so this room was was quite elevated and gave the impression that we were seated among the tree tops. (For me it was a small God-moment.)  It was here that we got to meet the non-neighbors, Char and Frank and Doug and Deb.

After about forty five minutes of eating and socializing, it was deemed time to move to the next course.  This was to be eaten at Connie and Joe’s house and we were told that we were going via the “scenic route”.   So we all trooped out in Indian file and followed a pathway that they had created through the woods connecting the two houses.  It was rather magical and I half expected fairies and pixies to jump out from behind the trees. The crossing point between the two properties was marked by a lovely vine-covered trellis archway that stood over a couple of steps down.  My heart actually started beating a little faster right here because in a “deja vue” moment it reminded me of my Dad’s garden.  (See my posting Vignettes-  My Kingdom.)

All of these neighbors are avid gardeners, so we found ourselves stepping into another beautifully appointed garden where flower beds were in full bloom with lots of lush greenery everywhere and more whimsical garden features.  We spent quite a bit of time checking everything out.  A special mention needs to be made here about Joe’s “work shed”.  I’m talking about a GIGANTIC work shed the size of a small warehouse.  There were big tools and small tools, and every kind of small (and some not so small) machinery all neatly laid out.  As you can imagine, the men folks in our party were in hog heaven.

Don’t you just love her!!

After admiring everything, flower beds and the work shed contents, we all drifted into Connie and Joe’s where a second round of appetizers was laid out.  More eating and more socializing took place and by this time a few glasses of wine had been consumed so there was lots of merriment and laughter.  In the meantime some rain clouds had gathered and so we got sprinkled on a little as we made our way over to Sherry and Greg’s.  Earlier in the afternoon I had helped Sherry assemble a huge bowl of a very colorful mixed salad into which we had put everything bar the kitchen sink!  As people came in, we tossed it in a home made dressing and in no time at all that huge bowl was empty.

We were all beginning to get full tummies but the walk back to Deb and Crystal’s house must have helped our digestive systems because we were ready for the main course by the time we got there.  Actually some of us rode in the car because of the rain, but we were still ready.  I think the laughter and the socializing shook the food down nicely because we even had room for dessert after eating yet another plateful of food.  It was altogether a very fun experience and I’m already plotting and planning to see how I can replicate it, even though most of my friends live in rather spread out areas.  But maybe that will make it even more interesting.  I’ll let you know when and how I make it happen.

Along the same lines:

• Vignette: Paula in Minnesota
• God’s Creation: Minnesota
• Travelling: Minnesota Tourists!
• Vignette: Lunch At Arby’s
• Musings: Back Again!

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

I was inside for a while because a . . . → Read More: Vignette: Prayers in a Parking Lot]]> On the second day of our retirement ride, Rich and I had a very unique experience.  We were some where in Tennessee having left Marietta, GA on the Tuesday morning and we were headed toward Paducah, KY.  Our norm each day was to ride for about one hundred and twenty miles, then take a rest stop and gas up if necessary.  On that Tuesday morning we had taken a break at a rest stop somewhere in Tennessee.  I had headed into the building to use the facilities while Rich took a stretch.

I was inside for a while because a bus had made a pit stop just minutes before we had arrived and there was quite a line for the ladies room.  When I came out Rich was standing beside the bike deep in conversation with an older gentleman.  I hung back a little giving them room for their discussion.  Then Rich looked around and saw me there, motioned me forward and introduced me.  I very much regret that I do not remember the gentleman’s name, but I can tell you some things about him.

I learned he was a retired Navy man, a Veteran from World War II.  He, too, had owned a bike back in the day and had met and married his wife shortly after joining the service.  He said that they really enjoyed riding together back then.  His wife came out of the building at this point and joined us and we learned that they were from Knoxville, TN.  They were very committed to their church back in Knoxville and they told us they were in fact on a day trip with fellow church-goers.  We asked where they were going and the gentleman, with a chuckle, said that they didn’t know.  They were on a “mystery trip” and had no idea what their destination was!

At this point, reaching out his hand, Rich thanked him for his service to country and said we needed to get going as we had quite a few miles to cover that day. The gentleman grasped Rich’s hand and thanked him in return for his service to country too.  Then, to our great surprise, he extended his left hand toward my right hand and asked permission to pray over us. With joy in my heart I reached out to take his hand and he connected with his wife on his other side, and she in turn clasped hands with Rich.

And right there, the middle of a rest stop parking lot somewhere in Tennessee we were blessed to receive prayers of gratitude and prayers for protection from two strangers. He asked the good Lord, our Father, to watch over us, to keep us safe from all harm.  He asked for blessings upon us as we continued our trip and prayed that we would have a wonderful and enjoyable ride.  With full hearts we said our goodbyes, mounted the bike, and rode off leaving our parking lot friends to enjoy their mystery tour.

Although I do not remember their names, I can picture them in my minds eye.  I can see the four of us standing beside the bike, the big tour bus in the background, holding hands and praying together. It was beautiful and was most definitely a highlight of the ride for me. That memory will be with me in years to come, and I hope that Rich and I will be able to do the same for someone else one day as we ride our Harley around God’s creation.         

Along the same lines:

• Vignette: Lunch At Arby’s
• Traveling: The Retirement Ride
• Sacred Riding: My Harley Prayer Time
• Vignettes: The Spirit In Publix Supermarket
• Spiritual & Physical: An Incredible Journey

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

“Nothing is impossible, the word itself says, ‘I’m possible!’”.                                                                                                                                                                                        (Audrey Hepburn)

“We all move toward the ego, and we even solidify it as we get older if something doesn’t expose it for the lie that it is: not because it is bad, but because it thinks it is the whole enchilada!         (Richard Rohr)

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”                                                                                                                              (Maria Robinson)

“Don’t ask what the world needs.  . . . → Read More: Shared Wisdom: Words from Wise Ones]]> Here is an eclectic mix of wise sayings that have come from here, there, and everywhere!

“Nothing is impossible, the word itself says, ‘I’m possible!’”.                                                                                                                                                                                        (Audrey Hepburn)

“We all move toward the ego, and we even solidify it as we get older if something doesn’t expose it for the lie that it is: not because it is bad, but because it thinks it is the whole enchilada!         (Richard Rohr)

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”                                                                                                                              (Maria Robinson)

“Don’t ask what the world needs.  Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it!  Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”                                                                     (Howard Thurman)

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children …….. to leave the world a better place ………. to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.  This is to have succeeded.”                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

“The greatest challenge of the day is:  how to bring about a revolution of the heart, a revolution which has to start with each and everyone of us.”                                                                 (Dorothy Day)

“God will find us, bless us, even when we feel most alone, unsure ……….God will find a way to let us know that He is with us in this place, wherever we are.”                                                      (Kathleen Norris)

“A man begins cutting his wisdom teeth the first time he bites off more than he can chew.”                                                                                                                                             (Herb Caen)

“If it is peace you want, seek to change yourself, not other people.  It is easier to protect your feet with slippers than to carpet the whole of the earth.”                                                         (Anthony de Mello)

“Do you know why the mighty God of the universe chooses to answer prayer?  It is because His children ask.  God delights in our asking.  He is pleased at our asking.  His heart is warmed by our asking.”   (Richard J. Foster)

“In the end, I think that I will like that we were sitting on the couch, talking and wondering where the time went.”                                                                                                               (Anonymous)

“She said she used to cry everyday, not because she was sad, but because the world was so beautiful, and life was so short.”                                                                                              (Brian Andreas)

Enough, enough or I shall drown in the beauty of words!  Don’t you just love the way they run off the end of the pen in someone’s hand, or appear on the computer screen at the insistence of someone’s fingers flying across a keyboard?  It never ceases to amaze me that the wit or humor or intelligence contained in a person’s brain just flows out onto paper in some fashion or another.  And then, I get to read it, soak it in, and share it on to others.

Along the same lines:

• Shared Wisdom: A Rush of Words–Part 2
• Shared Wisdom: A Found Treasure
• Shared Wisdom: Words For The New Year
• Musings: Parenthood; Life; Death; Faith
• Musings: Endings And Beginnings

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

“Life is curly, don’t even try to straighten it out.”                                                                                (Rebecca – age 11 years)

“What God gives us . . . → Read More: Shared Wisdom: Words On The Road]]> We have arrived in Kentucky and are spending time with family in Louisville.  So far we have travelled through 14 States, a couple of them twice over.  Even as I travel, I am aware of words that float up from memory, or that I encounter as I journey from place to place, or that I find scribbled on pieces of paper tucked into my meditation books or my gratitude journal.  So here are some words of wisdom from the road.

“Life is curly, don’t even try to straighten it out.”                                                                                (Rebecca – age 11 years)

“What God gives us in answer to our prayers will always be the thing we most urgently need, and it will always be sufficient.”  (Elisabeth Elliot)

“What matters supremely is not the fact that I know God, but the larger fact ……… that He knows me …….. I am never out of His mind.  All my knowledge of Him depends on His sustained initiative in knowing me.”                                                                               (J.I. Packer)

“Light does not resist or avoid darkness.  It merely includes it, welcomes it, loves it.  Light is not afraid of the shadow for it knows the appearance of the shadow is the first sign of illumination.”                                                                                                           (Paul Ferini)

“We are  not alone on our journey.  The God of love who gave us life sent us {His} only Son to be with us at all times and in all places, so that we never have to feel lost in our struggles but always can trust that God walks with us.”                                                      (Henri J.M. Nouwen)

“I’m a girlfriend-kind-of-girl.  I love having women in my life.  In fact, I think women who claim they don’t need a girlfriend just haven’t found a good one yet.  I don’t have that problem.  I am surrounded by an abundance of the most remarkable women God ever created to be my sister, mother, daughters, and friends.  It’s a blessing I don’t take lightly.  Quite simply, having such dear women in my life makes my heart tingle.”      (Suzy Toronto)

“When you take the first step to embrace God in your circumstances, He will go the distance to embrace you.”   (Stormie O’Martian)

“When the reed is empty, blowing through it makes a beautiful sound, a sound that returns effortlessly to silence.  When mind is still, thoughts arise spontaneously, offer themselves, and die in the wind.  There is no complexity here.  The goal is not to make thinking go away, but to slow it down so that it comes to rest in its natural container.  Once you rest in that place, you no longer desire to be anywhere else.”      (Paul Ferini)

“Faith is meant to be lived moment by moment.  It isn’t some broad, general outline – it’s a long walk with a real Person.”    (Joni Eareckson Tada)

Blessings to you all. 

Along the same lines:

• Shared Wisdom: Short & Sweet
• Shared Wisdom: More Words On The Path
• Shared Wisdom: Latest Quotations
• Shared Wisdom: More Quotations
• Spiritual Growth: Personal Prayers

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

I haven’t written in a while.  I’ve given up trying to understand why this happens.  It’s not that I have nothing to write about.  I have been keeping, and adding to, a small list of topics that I want to express my feelings about. . . . → Read More: Musings: Dealing With My Frustration]]> I know that talking things through with someone helps to diminish the hold that anything that is frustrating me or causing me anger or resentment has on me.  Writing also helps in the same way.  So here goes.  Whether I’ll be able to post is another matter, and that’s where my present frustration is coming from.

I haven’t written in a while.  I’ve given up trying to understand why this happens.  It’s not that I have nothing to write about.  I have been keeping, and adding to, a small list of topics that I want to express my feelings about. But something is getting in the way.  The weather has been gorgeous lately.  We have been enjoying the best Florida spring weather – no grey, no de-pressing stuff going on outside, so that’s not the issue.

Now that I think about it, maybe there is still an issue connected to the weather that’s been keeping me from writing, but it’s the reverse of dealing with the de-pressing grey.  It’s been so perfectly beautiful outside of late that I have been called into the garden and have struggled to balance my time outside with all the other things that I want/am committed to do.

It has been really amazing to watch the garden come to life after the long cold winter.  It seems as though with each passing year I become more aware of the transformation that takes place as plants come back to life, buds appear, then full foliage and flowers blossom out.  The Confederate Jasmine, that I planted as two very small 20-inch tall plants at the base of the front supporting columns of my old gazebo two years ago, has now grown into thick, lush greenery that covers both 8-foot tall columns and trails upwards onto two of the roof supports and is also quite thick as it meets across the front horizontal bar.  It is also full of flowers which I hope will last so that I can see them and enjoy them when I return from this trip.

And therein lies another source of frustration.  I have been travelling on and off since 28 March.  Being out of my normal habitat and routine is always somewhat disconcerting and disruptive, and I haven’t yet learned to handle that with total grace and acceptance.  I drove up to Newport News, VA back then to spend a few days with my son who was there from Italy to attend a work related conference.  It was a gift that I had no intention of passing up.  We had a great three days hanging out together.  On the way home from there, I was then able to stop in Fayetteville, NC to spend an afternoon and night-over with my dear sister-friend LeeAnn.  She and I never waste time on pleasantries, diving deep into our sharing from the heart and soul which allows us to broaden, deepen, and strengthen our relationship on all levels, especially the spiritual level.  Another enormous gift for which I am truly grateful.

Arriving back in Florida after that trip, I had three days to catch-up (I always say that with tongue in cheek because, how on earth do you catch up with time that has already passed??).  So it was a flurry of unpacking and keeping up with some commitments that were on my calendar, before I then had to pack for the trip that I am presently “enjoying” ( barring bad internet connections – grrrrrr!) with my husband.

And therein lies the ultimate frustration.  Yesterday evening I had the first real longing, desire, to do some creative writing.  I sat down eagerly in front of my computer and – nothing.  I don’t mean nothing would come out on the page.  I mean nothing would come up on the computer.  No worries, I have my resident computer technician travelling with me, no?  But after checking things out he told me that there was nothing he could do.  There simply was no internet connection and he had no control over that.  Talk abut frustration!!!

As well as the creative writing I felt called to do, I also had a bunch of emails I wanted to send out, and there were several things that I wanted to check out on Google.  I was stuck.  Couldn’t do a thing.  So I called it a day and picked up a book and decided to read.  But the frustration was there, bubbling under the surface and even though I checked in with God and asked for inner peace, I guess I was wanting to hang onto the frustration and wallow in it for a bit because it was still there this morning, and so was the lack of connectivity!!!!!!!.

Rich has struggled all morning to give me some connection, but it has been been frustrating for him too.  Right now I have no idea if I have connection or not, but I did learn (thank God I can always learn something), that I can at least access my Live Writer programme and get the words out and down, and in doing so I have released some of the frustration.  Whether I will be able to post my writing is another matter, but at least it’s ready to go if and when we get a connection.           

Along the same lines:

• Traveling: The Retirement Ride
• Musings: Life’s Curve Balls
• Journaling: A Way To Heal
• Musings: Commitment Now
• Musings: A Day Off – Sort Of!

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

-  “Truth is such a rare thing; it is delightful to tell it".”       (Emily Dickinson)

-  “One thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found how to serve.”   (Albert Schweitzer)

-  “I pray thee, O God, that I may be beautiful within.”       (Socrates)

-  “Do whatever . . . → Read More: Shared Wisdom: Words From Others]]> Once again it is my pleasure to share words of wisdom from others that I seem to find at every corner and in every moment of my journey, many of them at just the exact moment that I need them.

-  “Truth is such a rare thing; it is delightful to tell it".”       (Emily Dickinson)

-  “One thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found how to serve.”   (Albert Schweitzer)

-  “I pray thee, O God, that I may be beautiful within.”       (Socrates)

-  “Do whatever comes your way to do as well as you can.  Put a good deal of thought into happiness that you are able to give.”   (Eleanor Roosevelt)

-  “Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves.”      (James M. Barrie)

-  “From every human being there rises a light that reaches straight to heaven and when two souls that are destined to be together find each other,
    their streams of light flow together, and a single brighter light goes forth from their united being.”  (Unknown – used by Michael Podesta, Calligrapher)

-  “No man is an island entire of itself; Every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.”    (John Donne)

-  “You can lay the foundation of a friendship in a matter of moments, but it is a work of time to build a monument.”     (Madelyn Watt)

-  “Every human being, of whatever origin, of whatever station, deserves respect.  We must each respect others, even as we respect ourselves.”
    (U.  Thant)

-  “Were there no God, we would be in this glorious world with grateful hearts and no one to thank.”     (Christina Rossetti)

-  “Don’t be afraid to take big steps.  You can’t cross a chasm in two small jumps.”      (David Lloyd George)

-  “Some goals are so worthy, it’s glorious even to fail.”       (Unknown)

-  “Why was man created on the last day?  So that he can be told, when pride possesses him: God created the gnat before thee.”    (The Talmud)

-  “No one is so rich that he does not need another’s help: no one is so poor as not to be useful in some way to his fellow man.”   (Pope Leo XIII)

I hope you enjoy these quotations and that they prove to be as helpful to you as they have to me.

Along the same lines:

• Shared Wisdom: Latest Quotations
• Shared Wisdom: Words of Love and Friendship
• Shared Wisdom: More Quotations
• Shared Wisdom: More Words On The Path
• Shared Wisdom: Words On The Road

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

I also . . . → Read More: Musings: The Tapestry of Life]]> The other day I was reading a small reflection about how we are all part of the tapestry of life.  The reflection said that we are all unique threads in the great tapestry of life, each with our own subtle texture and color.  It lead to to think about my own life and to see how that is a unique tapestry of its own. The events that have taken place, the people that have crossed my path, and my response or reaction to both of these, have all contributed to the rich cloth that has been woven. 

I also think of my life as representative of the seasons – spring, summer, autumn and winter.  Some of the threads are black and grey and dark brown and these form the winter scenes.  Others are bright yellow and light green and various hews of light blue creating renewal of life spring scenes.  Bright gold, vivid red and brilliant greens and blues form the summer, and then there are the gorgeous burnt tones of autumn – orange, ochre yellows, rich rusty browns and deep reds and purples.

As I thought more about this particular view of life I had a sudden memory of “photo tapestries”.  This type of art form came onto the scene maybe ten or fifteen years ago.  The artist would take thousands of photos of human faces.  Then he or she would render them as miniature pictures and lay them out to create one large unique image of a specific face, usually someone famous such as the Mona Lisa.

And so I thought of God as the artist creating each of us and then allowing us to co-create our life tapestry/photo through our behavior choices and responses to life events.  He would then take each completed photo and lay it out with all the others to form a complete photo-tapestry of the whole world from start to finish.

Just imagine, we are each a tiny, unique, infinitesimal yet very important part of the whole. We are each a wonderful creation of God with possibilities and opportunities to create a grand self portrait.  Then he, the Grand Master Artist, gets to take our individual  portraits – our works of art – to blend them together to create his work of art – the human history of the world.

As I thought this all through it made me want to make the rest of my life as beautiful and as interesting as possible. I want my life to represent joy and love and laughter.  I know I have created many winter scenes, but I have also managed to weave in to my own personal tapestry/life portrait much of spring and summer and the glorious tones of autumn.

Then, when it is time, I will lay my gift at the feet of the Master.  Only he knows where my creative work shall be placed in the bigger scheme of things.  Only he knows the unique offering that I have made to the whole.  Only he knows and can appreciate the bigger picture.  And when the time is right I am sure he will allow me to share that too.   

Along the same lines:

• Musings: The Changing Seasons
• Musings: Sliding Into Autumn
• Spiritual Growth: Personal Prayers
• Vignettes: My Kingdom
• Shared Wisdom: Collected Works

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

Our local streets have filled with more traffic than there has . . . → Read More: Musings: Sliding Into Autumn]]> I am a spring-into-summer person.  I love the awakening of the land; the buds on the trees and bushes, the early daffodils and tulips, the birds and the bees awakening from a winter lethargy, and the sun rising higher in the sky and giving more warmth.  I am not a fan of the arrival of autumn, even though I think autumn itself is a very beautiful season.  I simply don’t like the fact that it heralds the coming winter and the cooler temperatures and the presence of grey days.

Our local streets have filled with more traffic than there has been for the past couple of months.  Yes, school is back in session, the beginning of another scholastic year.  I have no little ones at home any more, so the only way I am aware of the school year is through the wax and wane of traffic volume and the occasional comment from teacher friends as they gear up or gear down for the start or close of the school year.

However, as all the children go back to school and the traffic somehow seems to double on the roads, I get that first hint that summer is over.  I fight the arrival of autumn with everything in me.  I have friends who talk about not wearing, or accessorizing with, white after the first of September.  Why ever not?  The sun is usually still as hot and bright as it was on thirty one August.  So, rebellious as ever, I wear white until it gets grey and rainy or just too cold to seem appropriate anymore.

It seems like the first of September, or at least the Labor Day weekend, heralds the beginning of “we can’t do that any more” season.  Despite the act that we are blessed with extended summer weather here in Florida, people seem to stop doing everything overnight.  No more picnics and bar-b-q’s, no more going to the beach, no more back yard parties, and everyone pulls their boat out of the water.

The two things that Floridians do hang onto, however, are shorts and flip-flops.  Year round, those two articles seem to have become the unofficial state symbol of the State of Florida. Even on a cold and rainy day, which fortunately we get relatively few of, there are those die-hard southern guys and gals who staunchly wear these two items as proudly as if they were the State flag.

But back to autumn.  The Fall season always brings a feeling of melancholy to my heart and soul.  I know that all the seasons are God-given and I appreciate them as such.  Perhaps in the bigger scheme of things the yearly passing of the seasons reminds me of the seasons of my life.  Although I have enjoyed them all, some more than others, I am well aware that I am in my own personal autumn.  This means that winter is just around the corner.

I am well prepared for this, at least as well prepared as any human can be.  Because of the Christian faith values that I hold and adhere to, I do not fear the winter years because I know they will culminate in a new life.  It’s just that I still have a lot of living that I’d like to do and many more things that I want to accomplish.  But, like everyone else on the planet, my time will come when it’s meant to and I have little control over that. 

So in the meantime, I’ll wear white until it’s too cold, I’ll go to the beach as often as possible after Labor Day and, although I don’t own a boat, I’ll imagine floating out on the sea with my hand trailing in warm waters.  I also have my beloved lanai at home and as usual will spend as much time as possible out there doing my writing, reading, or just enjoying the incredible gifts of nature that surround me.       

Along the same lines:

• Musings: The Changing Seasons
• Musings: The Tapestry of Life
• Musings: Commitment Now
• Poetry: The Urchin From Naples
• Musings: A Slow Return to Normal?

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

I’m not a very organized gardener as I’ve already mentioned in other postings.  I’m not a very organized anything because I’m a real “fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kinda gal”.  My garden is . . . → Read More: The Garden: An Inspiration]]> Those of you who know me through my writing know that I love gardening.  This love of gardening comes partly from my historic/geographic gene pool – I’m a Brit and we’re almost all gardening mad!  The other part is still  from my gene pool but from a more intimate and personal section – the family.  Both my parents loved the garden, but my Dad had an absolute passion for his garden.

I’m not a very organized gardener as I’ve already mentioned in other postings.  I’m not a very organized anything because I’m a real “fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kinda gal”.  My garden is a veritable hodge-podge of flowers and plants and I’m never quite sure what’s going to pop up where.  I throw seeds all over the place and plant bulbs here and there, then I sit back and wait for the wonder of nature.

I love the growing process.  Taking a seed and watching it peep up through the soil with it’s first tip of green is a most exciting adventure for me.  It fascinates me that from that tiny little thing a whole flower or plant or bush or even a tree can come forth. 

Sometimes I stand in my back yard with a seed in my hand and I look at everything that’s growing around me, and I am in absolute awe as I think it all started with a few seeds.  The hand of God is most definitely present in such a miracle.

Gardening brings me great joy and I consider it to be wonderful therapy for the soul.  Gardening takes me out of myself and is one of the few activities through which I feel a real connection with God.  Gardening makes my heart happy.

But today I realized another benefit that comes from my hard work out there in the garden.  Of late my husband has started taking series of photos of my garden.  At first he was taking general all-around shots so that we could share them with the rest of the family that is flung around the world.

More recently he began taking close-ups of single blooms and flowers.  Such works of art each and every one in itself.  He also took one set that was all leaves and they turned out to be very interesting and beautiful.  But here’s the kicker.

Richard is also this “computer geekie/techie guy”.  He works a lot with Windows 7 and it allows him to create themes.  These are a series of images that you can put together as desktop wallpaper.  Well he has taken my garden as his inspiration for creating beautiful themes that are available for free download if you work with Windows 7.

If you’re a garden fanatic and you’d like to check out more shots of my garden, you can visit our Summer Garden shots album.  I hope you get as much enjoyment from this as I do.

Along the same lines:

• Gardening: Spiritual & Physical Therapy
• The Garden: Hummingbird Haven
• Self Nurturing: The Garden – Remodeled!
• Fantasy: The Dandelion Fairy
• Dolphins: Return to Rimini

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

This year I decided to shake things up a little in my garden.  The St. Francis flower bed, so named because his statue oversees this part of the garden, had developed a deep-rooted weed system which was hard to control.  . . . → Read More: Self Nurturing: The Garden – Remodeled!]]> Finally the sun has deigned to grace us with his presence, his light, and his warmth down here in (normally!) sunny Florida.  The biting cold, the frosts, and miserable grey are hopefully a thing of the past.  And not a day too late; my garden Muse was absolutely itching to get to work because I had major projects to accomplish!

This year I decided to shake things up a little in my garden.  The St. Francis flower bed, so named because his statue oversees this part of the garden, had developed a deep-rooted weed system which was hard to control.  So I decided to dig deep, dig out as much as possible of the offending growth, and put in a fairly large (10’ x 6’) paved patio center-front of the bed to eliminate some of the back-breaking work of weeding. I have dressed up the patio with pots and urns of various sizes and colours which are planted up with bulbs, seeds and some partially developed plants. 

The Quan Yin flower bed, obviously named because her statue reigns supreme here, is much the same as before.  However I have decided to fill it with even more flowers this year.  There are also hundreds of seeds lying just below the surface of the soil which hopefully will germinate and bloom as the year goes by.  I also plan to add to the collection of brightly coloured chimes and wind twisters that hang from the wrought iron framework of the old gazebo that I moved to this bed when the lanai was built last year. 

The front yard has undergone the biggest transformation: the side two of the three small flowerbeds have been eliminated and returned to sod, while the central flowerbed has been enlarged to four times its original size.  I have walled it in with rustic stonework, elevating the back part to a higher terraced level.  The front area has been filled to overflowing with brightly coloured spring flowers and hundreds of seeds are also germinating here for later in the season. 

However, the central attraction of this new terraced bed is the weather-worn, trellis arch that originally sat just outside the screened-in back porch room.  This arch, which was deeply rooted into the ground on each side with six years of steadily growing orange trumpet vine, was dug up and relocated to the center of the raised terrace part of the new bed out front.  A couple of extra trellis panels have been added on each side of the arch to accommodate the copious trailing branches that grow from the vines, and I have planted several rose bushes in this elevated section too.

All of this was done with much help from my assistant gardener, Linda – a very dear friend without whose help I could not have achieved this major overhaul!!  This morning, after many anxious days of waiting and watching, new green growth showed on the winter-hibernating vine that wraps itself intricately around the arch:-).

As I sit in the lanai writing, my heart is full of joy and my soul sings in gratitude as I survey the end result of much hard work.   It continues to be a work in progress and God’s creation will become even more beautiful as seeds develop into plants and then bloom out in a riot of colour.  And this joy and gratitude are magnified because I know that passers-by can feast their eyes and experience their own heart joy.

My happiness is complete as I watch the birds swarming at the feeders. Squirrels are scurrying in the grass and chasing each other up and over the back fence.  Lizards and frogs are awakening from their winter lethargy and today I have seen at least a dozen butterflies. 

Richard has taken some lovely photos of the garden today, some of them early this morning in the subdued sunrise light, and some of them around lunch time.  Enjoy!!

You can see all 45 photos at the Spring Garden Update Photo Album.

Along the same lines:

• The Garden: An Inspiration
• The Garden: Hummingbird Haven
• Gardening: Spiritual & Physical Therapy
• Fantasy: The Dandelion Fairy
• Musings: Back Again!

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.

When the weather was too cold to be outside or if it was raining (quite frequently in England!), I sat with my nose pressed up against the window pane in the living room, fogging up the glass with each breath I exhaled. Eventually . . . → Read More: OASIS: Polly]]> In the summer, when the air was warm and my skinny nine-year old legs were brown and bare, I swung impatiently on the garden gate. My belly tingled in anticipation and every time I heard a car coming down the road, my heart pounded so fast and so loud I thought the whole world could hear it.

When the weather was too cold to be outside or if it was raining (quite frequently in England!), I sat with my nose pressed up against the window pane in the living room, fogging up the glass with each breath I exhaled. Eventually the shiny black car would swing around the corner and come to a halt in front of the “prefab” where I lived, and I would fly to the front door.

My parents had married during the second world war and, until I was about five years old, they had shared a tiny, two-bedroom apartment with my mother’s older sister and her husband. After the war, the British government erected hundreds of prefabricated homes (prefabs) to house all those who had lost their homes during the war, and we qualified.

Ours was a typical lower income, middle class working family. Both my parents worked but it was always a struggle for them to just cover the basic needs. My mother miraculously juggled the shillings and the pennies and made ends meet. I have a very clear mental picture of her sitting at the kitchen table with her little accounts book open and the long green metal box with the labeled slots (rent, gas, electricity, insurance, etc.) on the table beside her.

But Sundays were different. Sundays were magical and the magic always began with my childish anticipation of Aunty Polly’s arrival. Her husband, my Uncle Gordon, always accompanied her but I never really paid him much attention. He was a very quiet unassuming man who, once they arrived, would sit in a corner and read the Sunday newspaper from cover to cover, drinking the endless cups of tea that my mother made. I think he saved the paper especially for this occasion. But he was never the cause of my excitement. He was just the driver; a means to an end.

I suppose I could describe Aunty Polly in several different ways. Physically she was strikingly beautiful with her short, rippling black hair and vibrant red lips – such a dramatic contrast to her dark features. (I found out later that her features and coloring came from her Jewish background.) And – oh how she dressed! She never wore anything “ordinary” and everything matched.

She was elegant, refined and expensive looking, but not in an untouchable way. I think fashion critics would have labeled her as “quietly chic” and as having that indefinable something called “style” and “class”. And she had a vivacity about her that made the whole world come to life.

Aunty Polly was my real life “Fairy Godmother” who brought so much joy into my life.  She waved her wand over my childhood and candy and ice cream appeared every Sunday as if by magic. I’m sure that much of my excitement and anticipation was based on the mouth-watering sensations produced by my taste buds as I waited impatiently on the gate or at the window. Aunty Polly was also a superb seamstress, so often there was the added joy of a new dress in the latest style, made beautiful fabric in the most perfect of colors.

On the very rare occasion, we would make the trip to her house which was a veritable adventure in and of itself. When she lived in one house this would entail two different bus rides and a long walk in a very posh part of town. After moving to a different house, which was actually an enormous apartment, the journey included a train ride which was probably the most exciting thing we had done all year!

Visiting Polly’s house was like going to Aladdin’s cave. Her home was large and spacious and full of so many interesting things. There were many pictures on the walls, ornaments on coffee tables (probably very expensive curios and “objets d’art”), and fresh flowers filled vases in every room – even the bathrooms. The furniture was the kind you saw in magazines or drooled over in showrooms, and there was always music playing. Our prefab was very dull and bare by comparison. I hated going home.

But Aunty Polly was more to me than all of this. When she put her arms around me it was the sweetest, the most heavenly sensation I ever experienced. I didn’t want it to end. I felt loved and wanted just exactly as I was and it felt so good to be inside the circle of her loving arms. And, oh how she smelled! She always wore the most exquisite perfume that made me want to bury my face in her neck and never let go again.

She never tried to change me or tell me how I should or should not be or how to act. She just accepted and loved me for who I was. She actually listened to me and always seemed interested in everything I had to say. Even as I grew older and became a troubled and rebellious teenager, Aunty Polly continued to love me and hug me and to honor me as my own person. Her home was always open to me no matter what.

She was the oasis in my childhood years and through my teens. If I had understood that at the time I’m sure I would have said many prayers of gratitude to God for her presence in my life.  I always found refuge and refreshment with her. But most of all I received an unconditional love that formed the basis of my survival and eventual “return to life” in later years. Thank you Aunty Polly.

Along the same lines:

• Mentors: Along the Path of Life
• Musings: Your Father
• Going Raw: Part One
• Shared Wisdom: Resurrection
• Minnesota: The Travelling Dinner

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©2012 Life Coach: Spirit, Body and Mind. All Rights Reserved.