Just Pause a Minute

I heard from a Facebook friend just a few minutes ago that she just lost someone close to her. Her loved one had been fighting a battle with cancer for over 3 years.  It made me feel sad to hear this story ended in death.  I  was grateful that so many of us were praying and celebrating her life.

In this case, my friend had truly walked the journey of fighting the disease with her.  I hope she knows what a gift she was to that friend and to the other people who watched from afar.

Then I caught myself shifting my attention to thinking about all the stuff I had to still do today. I had already run to the chapel to pray, rushed through grocery shopping, and to a travel business for brochures.

After dumping the groceries at home and grabbing a bite to eat,  I sat down to empty my purse of receipts and finish my drink from lunch. My faithful 4 legged friend, Rosy, curled up next to me, and put her head in my lap. “How dare you go anywhere?” was the non verbal she was expressing.   “Just pause a minute and rest!”

And so I sit here thinking of the merry-go-round I ride. Chores seemingly repeat. Vacuuming, laundry, getting gas in the car, grocery shopping, and work repeat every week. Add in the unexpected pleasantries of running into old friends like I did today. A man in his 90’s who shops with his daughter each Friday morning stopped to converse. It made the trip into the grocery store extra nice. I was glad I went in there just to accidentally connect with him in person.

Then there was our congenial postman earlier thus afternoon who smiled and waved to me as I rounded the corner in front of our home.  I have to thank God more often for the good things that come my way. The loving pet that slows me down. The friendly people who gingerly go about there daily paces and make mine routine nicer are a blessing. I am always trying to improve things and reading self help books. It’s not that I don’t appreciate all the gifts given to me, but I am trying to keep myself but becoming to complacent and unappreciative. I think there is more to learn; more to be shared.

So I must end for today. Time to pick up my quarterly return papers and get back to patient care. Sorry Miss Rosy, but our 20 min break has just ended. I loved every minute of it. Thank you for helping me to learn to just pause a minute and rest.  Peace to all for a great weekend!

The New Year is in full force.  I have several small grandchildren and witness our daughters constantly changing out the closets.  Especially in the first year when children grow so fast and change literally by the month.

It doesn’t end with clothes though!  If you are in a normal family, there are drawers that need cleaning, garages that need to be rearranged by the season and type of weather, shoe racks and places to put the boots.  There are the piles of papers, bills, and correspondence that need processing.   As women, the content of our purses has ongoing changes too.  Extra tissues for the winter days, makeup, hair adornments, and papers take up space.

Now proceed to your car, place of work, or office.  My car is always in flux and I think yours might be too.  Files, gloves, bags for groceries that I use each week are in the backseat.  The window scraper is necessary in our Illinois and their are two; one smaller scraper and a larger one for snow removal.  A box of paper tissues sits on the passenger seat along with a bottle of water in the front holder.  Oh and of course, there are sunglasses for the bright snow blindness that persists in the winter.

At the beginning of the year or with the change of the season, many of us try to get organized.  At the office, I was adding on 2016 date tags, new receipt files for the coming year, and gathering tax papers for 2015.  It seems like an ongoing task to stay organized and updated, but when things are done, it feels so good.  With books reconciled and new files in place, the domino effect started.  It meant buying a new file cabinet at home too. I added colorful file folders to make things more “joyful”. The files are now set up by month for an easier way to find things after adding paperwork and receipts into the computer.

The junk drawers are the next project.  Organizing takes time, but the payoffs are great.  Did you know that what we do physically is replicated in our minds.   When we clean up the environment it clears our minds to forge ahead.  My sewing room is yelling for my help too.   After Holiday projects, things were tucked away fast for a clean environment, but there are many things that need to be properly put away.  Material, scraps of ribbon, and buttons are in a few big baskets that need sorting before I can go play in there again creating new Spring projects.

In Ireland, we visited the Woolen Mills.  They have these wonderful drawers for keeping threads clean and tangle free.   Not quite the same at home, but there is a system, none the less, for me to follow.

So I wish you all a Happy 2016.  May you find systems of organizing that work well for you as you forge ahead to get things done in an easier way.

Hope your day goes well!  The posts here will be more consistent now  as the year continues.  Organizing certainly will help.  A new grandchild has brought new blessings, our playful dog continues to bring on more excitement, and our community continues to work well for everyone’s  benefit.  More to come on insights from business and personal events.  Be well and have a great New Year.

Embracing Life

Life is filled with precious moments that call us to embracing life.  It is easy to forget these times when undesirable things happen.  Today I was able to spend some time with our littlest Granddaughter and her mom.  It was a fun time just hanging out the doing necessary running around.

While in a local store, I ran into a man who once had a snack shop in town.  He lives a few blocks away from us and periodically I’ll see him walking with his staff.  He came forward and gave me a hug and immediately asked about my spouse.  It was a brief encounter, but indeed refreshing.  He was picking up a dessert for a Christmas Party.   He reminds me of how important it is to stay involved and how a smile can be so important.

What Legacy do you want to leave behind?

I thought about the Legacy that I’d like to leave behind.  It isn’t the first nor will it be the last time I think about that!  What value was I leaving behind to hand down to the next generation?  Was it loyalty, following through with promises, knowledge, experience, or something unknown to me? Was it a feeling of warmth?  Was it being self -centered or not engaged enough?

And what do people want most to leave behind if they are entrepreneurs?  Being known in the community or lending out a helping hand? Is it having given money to the poor?  I saw a lady today who was ringing the Salvation Army bell.   She was doing it for the whole day, not just an hour.  I was impressed! I hope people remember her generous heart.

I recollect the image of a man from our church. I saw every weekend, when we’d go as a family, doing more than his share.  He served as an usher and greeter.  Always dressed in a suit and tie for Mass.  He was always working the church’s activities from the “summer festival” to the Knights of Columbus Funeral’s.  He’d include my husband in projects often,  and ask for his help in carrying, lifting, and hauling supplies.  It was his way of getting people involved and needed.

He had a beautiful white house on the main street in town that was always impeccable.  I’d learned he had retired from a large successful business he had started and helped out at other activities in town, as well.  He also had a large family scattered in the neighboring suburbs.  He’d always wave a hand my way and extend a smile.  I saw him age, learned he was caring for a sick wife for many years, and watched him from afar until he died.  I missed him.

Since then, I think of him whenever I visit that church or pass his house. It was sold shortly after he died, but it reminds me of his stamp on the community.   I don’t know what impact he had on other people, but he did set a high standard of excellence in his efforts to help other people for me.  He was reliable, willing, and giving.  In my mind those are high and important standards.

What do people want from one another? Do they want to be mentored?  Is it answers to pressing issues, loyalty, time, clarity, direction, or to be heard?  Is it someone who tells the truth, shows up at the voting booth, or all of the above?

Embracing Life Continues!

Twas the night before Friday and all through the house, everyone was sleeping except me.  The next day was meant to be easier with a later morning start so I sat and I read late into the night.  I finally reclined into a comfy position with Rosy at my side and began to say a few prayers. 

I suddenly remembered I had not turned the tuner off at the office.  Opps, I decided to get dressed and take care of the issue.  I woke my husband so he’d know I was leaving and proceeded to gather my stuff.  I knew Rosy would announce my arrival coming back and he’d wake up anyway.

On one hand, I was thinking I’d  take my dog with for company but then   Tony decided he didn’t want me to go alone.  He’d escort me. It was a pleasant evening and so he also got dressed to come with me for the 6 minute drive.  A big effort for a short trip, but it was a beautiful night.  Kinda fun and a blessing to be out for a late night drive.  There wasn’t a soul around as we arrived in the parking lot.

I shut off the alarm, took in the plastic garbage bags I had bought that were in my car.  My  memory was correct about having run out of the office and leaving the sound on.   So, I shut off the tuner and proceeded to exit. On the way out, I grabbed a pile of Holiday cards on the counter.

Having decided we could pass the Post Office, would turn out to be a bad idea.  It is only a few blocks away. Tossing them in the box, I noticed some were not sealed.   Since the parking lot for the Post Office was of course, empty, I sat there and sealed them.    How strange that just a few hours before, the area was bustling with shoppers and business people.  Now things seemed so still.

Today I realized that I grabbed the wrong bunch of Christmas Cards.  These were supposed to have letters in them. Opps!   I am hoping they were all at least signed!  LOL. I guess I am not doing newsy letters, folks!  All my great photos and the news of the newest Grandbaby will not be going out through “snail mail” after all.   I was waiting for his birth to add him into the letter.  Um, now I have to work on Plan B?  Not sure what that is at this time.

In the meantime, we had been listening to the  radio.  Brett Siddell was sharing about his recent trip to the Dominican Republic this past weekend.  He had gone with a few friends one of whom became ill.  Brett was telling the concerns he had over leaving a sick acquaintance alone in Punta Cana. We wanted to hear the ending to his story and if he was able to get help for the friend.

So now, we were home sitting in the garage listening at 12:45 in the morning. It was on the  Satellite station and we couldn’t get that in the house.   We sat through the commercial and had a good conversation while the advertisement clattered on!

I must say Brett was a good example of being a “good Samaritan”.  He generously went out of his way, missing plane flights, and having to change his work schedule for several days to generously help out someone that he didn’t know very well.  The situation he was describing was  serious in nature.   It really is nice to know people who go out of their way to be so kind.  This is now the Year of Mercy as announced at the beginning of Advent and I think he was a great example of being considerate.  It was food for thought.  He was really unselfish with his own itinerary and put another person upfront.  Thanks Brett for the choices you made.

So today is December 11th and the weather is not usually this kind to us. Inside the trees are decorated and light for the season.   Outside the ornaments in the trees are shining brightly.  It is 46 degrees and sunny.   A great day to run Holiday errands!  Have a super day everyone!

Well it was a beautiful Sunday morning.  The radio was playing in the background as I chopped some veggies.   I planned on cooking and catching up on projects around the house.  It would be a calm and quiet day.

I had on my regular weekly cooking show turned on in the kitchen.  It is the one day I catch up on odds and ends and try to unwind from running around and rushing.   I had attended church Saturday evening and was lounging in a cotton dress.  My husband was getting into his daily schedule.  The dog was curled up on her bed watching me after eating her breakfast.

The first commercial was about the horrors of losing ones health and the need for insurance.  Then another followed about mice and critters doing destruction around homes suggesting one get immediate service.   Within a half hour I heard about the adverse effects of a new drug that was being promoted.  It seemed to have more downsides than benefits.

The news came on at half past the hour.  It started with a murder in the city and followed up with an airplane crash.  All died on board the plane. Not a good day for those people or their families.  Finally an advertisement about identity thief made me turn the radio off.

So I decided to step out of the kitchen and took out the dog.   Rosy is always uplifting and fun. So out we go. As always, she steps out and then stops to check out the yard.   Immediately she ran off to the back fence to announce that our neighbor was there raking his lawn.

It was pleasant out and the rain from Halloween was now a memory.  The leaves were damp on the ground and more were falling as  I went over to  talk with him.  “Hello Ken!”

He pointed to the shed which he had painted last weekend.  It looked nice and clean. Definitely a big job, but one well worth it.  He asked if he might come into our yard and trim one of the bushes on his property from our side of the fence.  No problem, I would be going inside with Rosy and would make sure the gate was unlocked.

He began telling me about the burglary next door to him. The family had had work done in the house and a workman apparently read the calendar on their refrigerator. It showed when the lady of the house would be gone that week.  Bingo.  Now the family was without jewelry and a few major items.  Not an all uplifting to hear that.

Between the no insurance, critter invasion, loss of health, plane going down, side effects of medication, and now a nearby break-in, I called in the dog and began thinking about how so many of us tend to get anxious and concerned about everything.   Our media promotes all the negative, horrible things that are happening.   It makes people uptight and worried.   What pills are safe?  What will I need to spend money on next?  Should one even leave the house? Who does one trust?

Well with that I walked back inside petting Rose and decided to say a few more prayers to calm me.   Life is beautiful; the day is beautiful.   Good things happen everyday.   People are always doing random acts of kindness.  I would finish in the kitchen, think about Holiday preparations, and the joy of a new grand baby coming up.   I’d pray for my neighbors, my family, and enjoy the brisk air and gentle breeze from the window.   It was, in fact, a very pleasant and productive day.  I hope yours was the same.

Today is “All Saints Day”.   It follows Halloween each year and seems so life giving to me.  One of the people I admired for his valiant life was John Paul II.  He lived through difficult times of war, studied under trying times, endured  family loss, and suffered through illnesses.  His words of  “be not afraid” always come to mind when things around me seem to be falling apart.

Peace be with you my friends and have a great week.  Let’s keep in mind the words of scripture!  In many places it reminds us to turn our concerns over to God.  It tells us not to be afraid, to turn over our anxieties and worries to Him; to find strength from above.  May you find many moments of peace!

Lately I find myself looking at clocks.   I want to buy a few new ones. The idea of digital clocks suddenly is less attractive to me and the large numbered “old fashioned” clocks appeal.  Must be throw back Thursday!  The old school clocks have character and a richness about them that draws me to them. Even the old mantle clocks with their roman numerals are appealing.

This made me think that I must be more of a visual learner than I first thought.  How do you learn?  Are you a doer, auditory, or visual learner?  Are you a person who reads and applies what they have read?   Do you need pictures and drawings to help you assemble projects?   Knowing how we learn is a great advantage to getting things done quickly, efficiently, and well.

Time is a friend of mine.   It allows me to accomplish many things and keeps me on my toes to get things done.   I have calendars to keep me current along with “self-set assignments” for every day of the week.  I keep myself organized to get a variety of things done.   I’ll admit  that it isn’t always easy.  I am in a Profession that must be somewhat flexible to change appointments, so I can accommodate people.  It took me awhile to figure out that my schedule needed to move with time and not fight it.  That means early schedules on some days and late nights as well.

How to you keep organized?  Do you have a staff that helps you?  I’d like to know how
other business people do their planning.  What tips do you take from people in your industry?   Are you looking to change what you do?  Is time your friend or enemy?

Time to try new things and enjoy!

Have a great Thursday!

“Wheels on the bus go round and round…” are words from a kids song that is popular in school.  It is easy to sing and to teach.  It was the first one I taught to 2nd graders some 47 years ago. 

Wheels make our lives easier.  They allow us to move heavy and/or bulky objects that we could not otherwise move.  In addition, they move our cars, tractors, and machinery.   Like wheels, we tend to repeat our actions.   We make the same repetitions and rely on routines to see us through.  Likewise, when things don’t work, we get stuck and make stay idle for some time.

This wheel barrel looks functional, but it isn’t.   It has a flat tire and I haven’t taken the time to fix it.  It doesn’t roll.  That is true with our skills.   When we don’t use them regularly, they get weak and rusty.   They don’t help us roll over into new avenues and have the fun or productivity we want.  We let things go and miss out.

Music is one of those things that I need to get “tuned-up”.   Reading journals, studying manuals for the computer, and business skills are constantly getting honed, because they are used all the time. These chores become tiring too.   Sometimes loneliness creeps in.

It is good for us to make lists, use our phones as reminders, read often, but I have one other thing that we need to do.   It is the most important thing of all. It is something we don’t have fix or reinvent. 

It is staying connected with friends and being sociable.   It is what most kids do naturally and what they get in trouble for at school.  Children love school because they can play at recess, see their friends, and eat lunch together.   They are spontaneous and love to interact.   I think we should all try to be like children.  Let’s reinvent the wheel and take time to get out and play.  I am planning to carve pumpkins this weekend and make pumpkin seeds.   Need a few helping hands for that so I will put out a call to action for help.   How about you?  What can you do to “play” this weekend?