It is an absolutely gorgeous day today, in the low 70's, partly cloudy, just great. We'll have more tomorrow, maybe even pushing into the 80's. Unfortunately, Wednesday may bring a drop in temperature of nearly 30 degrees and a storm coming in, hopefully just rain. It's just Mother Nature playing games again. Still, it's best to enjoy the good weather when you have it and not stress over what may come, right?
I recieve a weekly news letter from a guy in Australia who is a life coach. Most of his stuff is good and sometimes very good. This week's message was about going with the flow, a term that is used frequently. Phil had a wonderful way of explaining it, that really makes you think about how you live your life. You start out thinking of each day being a river. Some days the river is calm and placid and other days it might be more suitable for white water rafting. He then says that we have the choice each day which way we're going to paddle. Think about it, isn't it easier to paddle down stream, rather than up stream? How many of us spend our days struggling to get through by paddling like crazy up stream and wondering why we don't get to our destinations easily or why we feel so tired.
I love the visulization of the river, it help me to understand going with the flow better. If you look at each day as a river flowing by, doesn't it make sense to believe that the river will get us where we're going easier by riding it as it flows, rather than fighting it. I know many of us get suspicious when the way seems too easy, like something must be wrong with how we're living if it's easy. Maybe that's a hang over from the Puritan ethics model, but why would a loving Father, our creator constantly put obstacles in our paths,making us miserable? Many think that the obstacles are there for us to overcome and to learn. There's certainly something to be said for that idea, though I think many times, we put the obstacles there ourselves, either our souls urging to learn, or maybe even our egos trying to prove their point, that we're not worthy or something. At any rate, why shouldn't we paddle down stream and enjoy the trip of our lives, we're still on our way to that final destination anyway.
Another thing Phil had in his newsletter was a link to a narrated video on Youtube called "Shift Happens". This is really an interesting video, here's the link http://youtube.com/watch?v=FqfunyCeU5g If you're interested in Phil's newsletter, his website is at http://www.peoplestuff.com.au
Monday, April 28, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
It's Spring! or Not
Yesterday, I decided to get out into the yard and do some spring style work. As my Aunt was raking the front yard and scalping the roses, I opted to do something in the backyard. We have a bunch of gladiola bulbs that didn't get planted last year. I don't know whether they will grow now or not, but I decided to dig them a bed. I started digging in the east/front corner. Soon I had lots of help. Our dog, Lady, decided digging looked like fun, so she pitched in with gusto. There was dirt flying all over. My Aunt told me that Lady had helped her dig post holes for the fence, and I can see how. My flower bed is deeper than I would have dug it, but the soil is nice and soft now. There's also a very big root running through it. I have not a clue what tree it belongs to either.
I also started tocut up the branches that were broken from trees and bushes thoughout the winter. I only managed a small dent in the pile before the garbage cans were filled. It's a good thing they pick up every week. I also manage to get slivers in both hands. Now I have my badges of yard work valor.
Today, it is windy and cold again.It is supposed to be cooler still tomorrow, but at least we're supposed to get rain, not snow. Luckily for my hands, it's a little reprieve from yard work
I also started tocut up the branches that were broken from trees and bushes thoughout the winter. I only managed a small dent in the pile before the garbage cans were filled. It's a good thing they pick up every week. I also manage to get slivers in both hands. Now I have my badges of yard work valor.
Today, it is windy and cold again.It is supposed to be cooler still tomorrow, but at least we're supposed to get rain, not snow. Luckily for my hands, it's a little reprieve from yard work
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Perceptions of Age
I've noticed my Son being a bit preoccupied with his age. It seemed to start about the time he turned 40. It's been kind of a family joke, with the black balloons etc. I guess you can start noticing those small physical changes, like greying hair, especially in our family with a genetic predisposition to going grey early. My Son is lucky, I found my first grey hair in my 20s. I've also noted a certain preoccupation about ageing with other people I've known. One friend almost retired to her rocking chair when she first became a grandmother, even though she wasn't quite 40. It took going out and getting a job after being a stay at home mother, to get a bit more involved with the world at large.
I suppose that the fact that we have such an emphasis on youth in our culture makes people worry more about getting older. Still, that's starting to change, due to the "baby boomers" and thier determination not to let getting older stop them.
I've been reading a book by Marianne Williamson called, "The Age of Miracles, Embracing the New Midlife". She talks about turning 50, how traumatic it can be,(I know it seemed like that to me.) She also talks about this new idea of midlife being a time to open up to new perceptions of your life. You can open to these new perceptions and live a new way, or you can close them off, and join the old ideas and restrictions of what you can and cannot expect for the remainder of your life. She says that this new midlife is the time to look back on our lives and access what we've done or not done. We probably will have regrets, most people do, but now is the time to learn from those mistakes of things done and opportunities missed.
One of the main ideas from the book, is to challenge the traditional expectations of age. Don't think that you're "too old" for something you may have the desire to experience.
Another idea, is that we've spent the first part of our lives being obsessed with ourselves, to a certain extent, though, of course,we're concerned for our spouse and children. We spend a lot of time worrying about our careers and futures and collecting "stuff". Now,when we have the chance to slow done a bit, it's time to get away from thinking with our egos and go into ourselves and listen for guidence from God to help us know how to spend the remainder of our lives.I'll bet that guidence doesn't tell you to sit around worrying about hair loss or how your joints feel.
Granted, you've earned the right to slow down and enjoy life a bit, but that doesn't leave you sitting in a rocking chair all day either. The important thing is to refuse to do ageing like many of us have expected to do. We need to think about things that we've thought we wanted to do, but were afraid we were too old to do them. We can still make a contribution to our worlds as well, even if it's just by living a good example. We can choose to have a rebirth in midlife, rather than start a prolonged march to death.
I suppose that the fact that we have such an emphasis on youth in our culture makes people worry more about getting older. Still, that's starting to change, due to the "baby boomers" and thier determination not to let getting older stop them.
I've been reading a book by Marianne Williamson called, "The Age of Miracles, Embracing the New Midlife". She talks about turning 50, how traumatic it can be,(I know it seemed like that to me.) She also talks about this new idea of midlife being a time to open up to new perceptions of your life. You can open to these new perceptions and live a new way, or you can close them off, and join the old ideas and restrictions of what you can and cannot expect for the remainder of your life. She says that this new midlife is the time to look back on our lives and access what we've done or not done. We probably will have regrets, most people do, but now is the time to learn from those mistakes of things done and opportunities missed.
One of the main ideas from the book, is to challenge the traditional expectations of age. Don't think that you're "too old" for something you may have the desire to experience.
Another idea, is that we've spent the first part of our lives being obsessed with ourselves, to a certain extent, though, of course,we're concerned for our spouse and children. We spend a lot of time worrying about our careers and futures and collecting "stuff". Now,when we have the chance to slow done a bit, it's time to get away from thinking with our egos and go into ourselves and listen for guidence from God to help us know how to spend the remainder of our lives.I'll bet that guidence doesn't tell you to sit around worrying about hair loss or how your joints feel.
Granted, you've earned the right to slow down and enjoy life a bit, but that doesn't leave you sitting in a rocking chair all day either. The important thing is to refuse to do ageing like many of us have expected to do. We need to think about things that we've thought we wanted to do, but were afraid we were too old to do them. We can still make a contribution to our worlds as well, even if it's just by living a good example. We can choose to have a rebirth in midlife, rather than start a prolonged march to death.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Right or Wrong?
I'm writing from Utah,and lately, our news has been filled with the raid on the "Yearning For Zion" compound near Eldorado, TX. The police and Texas Child Protection Agency went into the compound looking, they said, for a sixteen year old girl, who had been "spritually"married to an older man and became pregnant. She has an 8 mo old daughter and is pregnant again. She made cellphone calls to 911 saying that she had been abused. The Texas officials ultimately, removed 416 children from the compound and their mothers went with them. The compound was searched and they even entered to search the Temple.
This group practises polygamy as part of it's religion. It is a break off of the original Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints or Mormons,as they are known. Mormans also practised polygamy in thier early days, many of us who are Utah natives can find polygamy in our family histories. Polygamy was stopped by the Mormans in the late 1800s when we became a State. We still have a small number of people living in polygamous groups here in Utah,some quietly, some quite openly. There have been court trials for bigamy, and more often, for forcing young girls into "spiritual" marriges. The head of the sect that is having the trouble in Texas, has been put in jail for putting a young girl into a marriage with an older cousin against her will.
We in Utah have seen that there are problems with this lifestyle,many of the women and children are forced onto welfare just to survive, as the men have more wives than they can support, so it is more than just a question of people being allowed to practise thier religion in peace.
The reaction among Mormans here in Utah has been mixed. We all have been touched by polygamy to some extent, and that influences our opinions. I have been withholding judgement through all this, waiting to see whether anything positive would come out of it. By most accounts, the compound has been pretty quiet, not abusing any laws and taking care of itself, not getting TX state welfare. I'm still not comfortable with the practise of marrying off young girls to old men, keeping women with the minimum of education and basically using them as breeders. But I'm also uncomfortable with police going though the temple that those people view as sacred. Now it seems that the state has removed the mothers back to thier compound, while still keeping the children in State custody.
I've no doubt that the state of Texas believes they are doing the right thing to protect those children, but they have acted on such a large scale that I'm afraid they are going to have a long,hard fight on their hands.
This group practises polygamy as part of it's religion. It is a break off of the original Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints or Mormons,as they are known. Mormans also practised polygamy in thier early days, many of us who are Utah natives can find polygamy in our family histories. Polygamy was stopped by the Mormans in the late 1800s when we became a State. We still have a small number of people living in polygamous groups here in Utah,some quietly, some quite openly. There have been court trials for bigamy, and more often, for forcing young girls into "spiritual" marriges. The head of the sect that is having the trouble in Texas, has been put in jail for putting a young girl into a marriage with an older cousin against her will.
We in Utah have seen that there are problems with this lifestyle,many of the women and children are forced onto welfare just to survive, as the men have more wives than they can support, so it is more than just a question of people being allowed to practise thier religion in peace.
The reaction among Mormans here in Utah has been mixed. We all have been touched by polygamy to some extent, and that influences our opinions. I have been withholding judgement through all this, waiting to see whether anything positive would come out of it. By most accounts, the compound has been pretty quiet, not abusing any laws and taking care of itself, not getting TX state welfare. I'm still not comfortable with the practise of marrying off young girls to old men, keeping women with the minimum of education and basically using them as breeders. But I'm also uncomfortable with police going though the temple that those people view as sacred. Now it seems that the state has removed the mothers back to thier compound, while still keeping the children in State custody.
I've no doubt that the state of Texas believes they are doing the right thing to protect those children, but they have acted on such a large scale that I'm afraid they are going to have a long,hard fight on their hands.
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
My Talented Progeny
Wow! I'm finally back on broadband! It will be great once I clean out one of my dial-up programs. Right now it keeps interfearing. I also need to figure out how to set up a network here at home, so my Aunt can use it too. She's having problems with her ISP as well. On to the subject at hand.
I have such talented people in my family! My Daughter-in-Law, is soooooo talented. She does photography, professionally mind you. She also paints, sews, etc. My Son can give a speech with no more than a few minutes preperation and he can write! Beautifully! My oldest Grandson can play piano,guitar, plus write music, but his main interest right now is writing fantasy. He's got nine chapters of a novel wrote and a really great short story as well. My granddaughter can dance and act and sings, she's even in a semi-professional choir. That doesn't even count all her extra curricular activities. I wish I had some of her energy. My youngest Grandson is learning to play the trumpet, jazz no less. The oldest boy graduated from an Arts and Acedemics school that encourages students to explore thier talents and they can start with 7th grade. My granddaughter is still there, in fact she was the first to go, with the oldest transferring later. Now the youngest boy has qualified to enter next year, joining in the tradition. In an era when some schools are thinking of curtailing the Arts to save money or from a lack of teachers, it is refreshing to know that there are still public schools who want to develope the whole person.
I have such talented people in my family! My Daughter-in-Law, is soooooo talented. She does photography, professionally mind you. She also paints, sews, etc. My Son can give a speech with no more than a few minutes preperation and he can write! Beautifully! My oldest Grandson can play piano,guitar, plus write music, but his main interest right now is writing fantasy. He's got nine chapters of a novel wrote and a really great short story as well. My granddaughter can dance and act and sings, she's even in a semi-professional choir. That doesn't even count all her extra curricular activities. I wish I had some of her energy. My youngest Grandson is learning to play the trumpet, jazz no less. The oldest boy graduated from an Arts and Acedemics school that encourages students to explore thier talents and they can start with 7th grade. My granddaughter is still there, in fact she was the first to go, with the oldest transferring later. Now the youngest boy has qualified to enter next year, joining in the tradition. In an era when some schools are thinking of curtailing the Arts to save money or from a lack of teachers, it is refreshing to know that there are still public schools who want to develope the whole person.
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