"Takin' Time Out"

Definition:   in a state of peaceful happiness.

As I have stared into this computer screen for two days now, struggling to find the right word with so much anticipation built up on the inside, I can’t wait to see how this week’s post turns out.  I have settled in my nesting chair, sipping on a savoring cup of china tip green tea knowing tonight is the night to “gitrdone”.

 

Let’s start off by answering the question, “Are you CONTENT?”  “Are you Happy?”  You may have to think about this for a little while at least I did.  Are you always striving for the next latest and greatest gadget, hair or clothing style or do you focus on the woulda, shoulda, coulda mentality?  Looking back in my life, I will say for most part I was a happy person but not always CONTENT!  In my childhood I was very happy and even though I didn’t know what the word was at that age, I can say now I was CONTENT.  I never really wanted for much; I wasn’t an uneasy or restless kid.  I definitely could play by myself since I lived in the country with only one sibling seven years older or with a group of friends when I went to town.  I pretty much went with the flow and loved my life.  As I entered into my late teens and early twenties life took a little twist and I was happy for the most part but not CONTENT.  I always felt there was something more life had to offer.  Looking back I am a bit amazed at some of the things I did.  I was a bit of a pioneer or nomad…entering into unchartered territory with the thought if it didn’t work out I can always go home.  Over 30 years later I recently figured out I am home and truly CONTENT.  Now I am still open for adventure and love trying things new but I am happy in my own skin, at my midlife age, feeling happy and blessed, while looking for opportunities in “TAKIN TIME OUT”.

 

One of my favorite authors in the New Testament is Paul, many of his writings were written while he was in prison.  One verse in particular is found in Philippians 4:11, “I have learned in whatever state I am to be CONTENT”.  Just think about it Paul found CONTENTMENT in prison.  My question why are there so many people today who can’t find CONTENTMENT in their circumstance today?  The amplified Bible describes being CONTENT as “satisfied to the point where you are not disturbed or disquieted.”  It doesn’t say satisfied to the point where you don’t want to change, but satisfied for now until God brings the change.  This is huge.  I also think it doesn’t mean to stop growing and learning.  There will be challenges, trials and tribulations but through faith, hope and believing CONTENTMENT can prevail.  CONTENTMENT is not a destination it’s a manner of traveling.  You can desire more but be thankful for what you have and patient for what’s to come.  Many times when CONTENTMENT starts to flurry I have the confidence to state out loud “God’s current provision for my life is enough.”  It’s simply and amazing journey with him!

 

Last week our family was very saddened yet rejoicing on a life well lived.  Granny Burns spent 105 amazing years and we had to say our goodbyes to her earthly body.  The best part was she was keenly aware and could carry on a conversation with you up until the day before she passed away and I was able to be a part of at least 30 of those miraculous years.

 

Can you imagine what she was able to experience and see over 105 years?  The history, technology, trends, styles from horse and buggy to automobiles.  Amazing simply amazing to me.

 

Most everyone traveled from out of town to pay their tribute at the graveside service.  We did gather together as a family and close friends for a lunch and as we held hands and blessed the food and safe travels home, I looked around and quickly realized the dynamics of this family were about to change.  It is unfortunate but true Granny was the primary reason many of us kept in touch or even spent time together at her birthday celebration or through the holidays.  All of us had not been together in that type of setting for several years.  You might say she was the glue that bound the family together, children have children then grandchildren have children, new generations are born…in-laws come and go loved ones have passed on before her.  This is what we call the circle of life.  Uncle Gene & Eileen brought several boxes of photos of which we all enjoyed sifting through the past life of the Burns clan…we laughed at hairstyles, platform shoes and the classic cars.  Granny kept every newspaper clipping and important announcements of each of her 6 children, 11 grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren and 10 great-great grandchildren.  Memories precious memories!

 

I asked my husband what one word he would use to describe his Granny, he stated happy or better yet CONTENT.  He said my Granny and Granddad were never rich in wealth of money but they were rich in how they lived and made him feel as their grandson.   He said he loved to go to their house as a kid.  He remembered getting to their house late at night and she was always up waiting on them.  She would go to the kitchen a fix them fried bologna and fried potatoes before they went to bed.  Granny loved each one of them unconditionally; she never said a curse word, smoked a cigarette or drank liquor.   Granny loved working on the farm including driving the tractor, hoeing, picking cotton and growing a garden big enough to feed the neighborhood.  When she and Granddad retired from farming she went to work for Campbell Soup Company where she retired at age 65.

 

Retirement did not slow Granny down.  She sat with shut-ins which she called old people, many which were younger than her.  She lived independently until after her 100th birthday when she finally decided it was time to go into a nursing home, there were major adjustments from having other people help in bathing, dressing and serving you food you didn’t get to order.  You also were always on someone else’s schedule.  We as her family were relieved for the additional help but I often would put myself in her shoes and think this just isn’t fair when it came to rooming with someone you didn’t even know especially when you were of sound mind.  Yet we are so thankful for the dedicated individuals who work so hard and take of so many of our aging population.  She had the best possible care we could have ever asked for.  I am also grateful for my mother-in-law who ended up overseeing and being her primary caregiver through the latter years.  She had help from other siblings but Granny depended on her most.  One other verse comes to mind for my mother-in-law found in Matthew 25:23 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant!”

We will miss Granny yet we can say she truly was an example of living a life well lived and CONTENT!

 

Are you seeking to be more CONTENT?  As you are “TAKIN TIME OUT” this week, look back on your life, count your blessings, reflecting how far you have come.  Let’s breathe deeply.  Better yet take another deep belly breathe…hold it and count to ten, slowly let it out do it again, please!  Just takin a pause in this busy life we live will help in finding and becoming more centered while being CONTENT.  Until next time my friends CONTENTMENT and happiness is of your own choosing…Choose wisely!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Definition:   to imagine something to be as bad as it can possibly be:  one way to make yourself miserable.  Imposing impossible standards upon yourself and others.

 

Just this week I had a wonderful conversation with a dear friend and she brought up she knew she was AWFULIZING the situation but she couldn’t help it.  I started to laugh as I had not really heard that terminology before but began to really relate to the situation.  As I pondered all that we talked about and began listening to other friends and co-workers this week, I quickly realized this was the sad state of mind for many people including myself.  I am not sure why all of a sudden it is the hot topic of conversation, perhaps it is the January blues we encounter after the holiday hustle and bustle or lack of sunshine as we have had more cloudy days than sunshine.  The pouring rain and bitter cold or snow in some parts of Texas.  We all need a little more Vitamin D.  We also need to be more like Teflon and let some stuff just roll right off of us.  Don’t let it stick and begin to melt into our being or belief system.

 

Our whole society is faced with added stress and worry.  We burn up a lot of time and energy agonizing about what is going to happen next.  The fears almost always turn out to be more of a wild projection than the truth or reality.  You are going to get fired because you didn’t sell enough this month or year, you will never make the deadline as they put unrealistic expectations on you, the paper you wrote for finals won’t be right and you will fail, they aren’t going to accept me as I am too fat, too old, too short, too tall, blah blah blah…the list can go on and on.  To others it is the irrational practice of thinking everything is going to hell-in-a-hand basket, even though it is not.  That is what we call AWFULIZING…you would think we would know the routine by now, but NO, our brains love to stew, since they are tuned to a survival instinct that sees things through a disaster whenever possible.  WHY is that?  Are you guilty in AWFULIZING?

 

As I am sipping on a delicious cup of ginger pear tea, the news is blaring in the background I quickly realize many of the things that are fed into our subconscious mind can inflict the negativity and things that cause our minds to AWFULIZE.  There is terrorist attacks, natural disasters, accidents, murders, rape, debt, and illness, disease on and on and on.   For my sport lovin friends your team didn’t make the playoff or chosen to the big bowl game. Every second of every day our brain is bombarded by way too much data.  Most of how we process things is by a natural reaction of danger detectors.  The early warning signs that we seem to pay attention to more negative than positive things.  Other forms might be people we are associated with, perhaps friends or people we work with.  They have the daily mantra of Chicken Little “The sky is falling”! Retailers, merchants and advertising spend thousands of dollars in manipulating and controlling to gain power or sell their product through AWFULIZING.  I like to refer to it as Satan at work.  He loves nothing more than to mess with our minds and dwell on negativity!

Added stress at work or home can also deplete our energy making us more vulnerable to the AWFULIZING state of mind.  Things are blown way out of proportion.  The unreturned phone call, the meeting you missed or better yet you weren’t even invited to, the disapproving tone of someone’s voice are all signals impending doom.  Let’s face it AWFULIZING is awful…it is the byproduct of irrational self-talk.  It turns everything into worse case scenario.

 

Just because we have a bad day doesn’t mean you should give in and make it a bad week.  Don’t let another second of the negativity define who you are.  This is where faith steps in…now don’t get me wrong I am just as guilty in AWFULIZING as the next guy but I am trying to be more keenly aware when I am doing this and make the shift we talked about a few weeks back and dwell upon the positive, continue to feed my mind and soul with those things that truly matter.  I know bad things are going to happen and just as our pastor spoke about in church this week, at some point and time we will all experience some form of suffering.  It may be a diagnosis, divorce, death of a loved one or job and financial loss.   For those of you who have encountered more than your far share then maybe you have more of a right to AWFULIZE.   But scripture specifically tells us in 1 Peter 4:12 “Dear friend, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice in as much as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.”  It is so important to be in his word each and every day.

 

How do you overcome or change your state of mind when AWFULIZING finds its way creeping in your thoughts, your words and maybe even your actions?  Personally, I think being more conscience and aware of signs that might trigger AWFULIZING, is it certain people, places or times of year? Maybe when you have too much time on your hands?  I find it especially easy when I am trying to make positive changes or improvements in my life.  AWFULIZING always raises its ugly head and usually is the one thing holding me back.  I strongly encourage each of us to find help through wise council, whether it is a counselor, a coach, a good friend, family member or one who is an expert in the field of the change you desire. Accountability will really help especially in the beginning stages or when you become stuck from moving forward.   Make a list of all the reasons why you should and what is holding you back.  Accepting all that has been, yes you may have failed preciously but what if the next time the situation improves or you overcome.  Just think how good you will feel.  Quit AWFULIZING, procrastinating and let’s wake up saying this is a new day to begin again, you will no longer allow that stronghold or AWFULIZING to hold you back!  I promise you nine times out of ten the situation is never as bad as you AWFULIZE it to be.

 

While “Takin Time Out” this next week, consider really listening to what you say to yourself.  Our self-talk plays another key role whether you are AWFULIZING or not.  Do you hear words like, “That’s horrible”, “I will never be able to recover”, “I will never find someone to love me” I have a chest pain probably have a heart condition” or “My life is over”.  Do you have a tendency to exaggerate long after the initial reaction?   How do you characterize your typical response to undesired outcomes.  Readjust your mindset from AWFULIZING to awesomeness!  Break it down and as you start to with awe pause shift your mind and continue to someness….yes this is awesomness!  Until next time my friend no more AWFULIZING and let’s make it an awesome week…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Definition:   an opening in the wall or roof of a building or vehicle that is fitted with glass or other transparent material in a frame to admit light or air and allow people to see out.

 

It’s January and the bitter cold outside makes me happy to be indoors with a warm fire in the fireplace.  Sitting here sipping on a delicious cup of Earl Grey tea pondering what to write about this week, hmmm I look up and the beautiful sunrise is entering through my kitchen WINDOW.  The start of a brand new day!  That’s it a WINDOW…

 

As I glance around into my family room, I see the most beautiful reflection of color coming to life through my stained glass WINDOW it hangs within a WINDOW by my nesting chair.  This stained glass is not just any ordinary stained glass WINDOW.    You see it was one of the most precious gifts my sister has given to me.  It is the top half of a WINDOW that used to be in the little Baptist Church I grew up in.  The building was torn down and she was able to buy the whole WINDOW in an auction, I have the top half and she has the bottom half.   I have such precious memories of my childhood. It truly helped in laying the foundation of who I have become today. You see my mother was the organist for many years and our spot as a family was to always sit in the second pew from the front on the left hand side of the church.  So you can’t say I am a back row Baptist (LOL)!   I remember counting each sections of the pane while lying in my grandmother’s lap and watching the colors glisten, partially listening to what the pastor was saying.   Currently the WINDOW is just as it was, I haven’t touched it so the paint is peeling off, the wood frame is weathered but it is a gentle reminder of how our lives can reflect our true beauty.  I love this analogy:

 

 

Beauty truly comes from the inside just as the stained glass, not the frame not the paint color but the inside section of the WINDOW.  I know women who spend hours and tons of money finding the latest and greatest product putting on makeup and making sure every little detail is covered.  But they never spend time working on the inside.  Now don’t get me wrong I want to maintain this aging body too but it is more important to age gracefully.  I am a big believer it is more important to work on your thoughts, your words, your heart…soul…and mind where inner peace will radiate to the outside.  The wisdom, knowledge, passion and our internal relationship with God, believing in ourselves makes us who we are.  Not the year we were born.  Our internal compass and light will also show in how we handle the tough times…

 

So this brings up another point, I love Shakespeare’s famous quote: “The eyes are the WINDOW to your soul”.  They truly are…there is no escaping it.  If you need to know the truth behind someone’s words and actions you must look directly in the eye to see it.  Your eyes can reveal your health, your thoughts and your emotions.  Some people have a way of looking right through you.  If I am doing business with someone and they can’t look me in the eye…it is a good sign I need to walk away. I don’t trust them! Simply Amazing what the eyes portray!

 

I had the privilege this weekend to spend some extended one on one time with my 1 year old granddaughter.  I love to watch her expressions as she is busy exploring.  She will take a few steps but if she wants to get anywhere very fast she crawls.  At her house she has stairs she loves to climb there are three steps and then a landing turning to go up several flights to her room.  The landing has a WINDOW from floor to ceiling and she loves to pause and look outside to the street.  She puts her sweet little hands on the WINDOW, she starts to pat or bang saying something in her baby talk gibber.  She gets so excited and will spend an extended amount of time right there in the WINDOW, she lines her little toys up in the WINDOW seal before scooting down or moving on.  At our house I will leave the front door open which exposes the full glass screen door so she can see out.  We watch our dog Sage scoping out the neightborhood or wait for someone special to come up the walk!

 

Not sure but have you ever thought about if you enjoy being in a room with or without WINDOWS?  Maybe it depends on what you use the room for.  If you are a photographer developing your own photos then you need to have a dark room with no WINDOWS.  I quickly realized after living in Texas it is important to think about these things when purchasing or building a house.  Our first home was built with the front facing the east and the back facing the west which was a BIG mistake as the sun heated up the living room by several degrees in the summertime.  When we built our second home we made sure the house faced south and the back faced north.  We also had the house flipped from the original plans the kitchen and breakfast room is on the east and the bedrooms on the west for anyone who might like to sleep late the sunrise wouldn’t disturb them and cooking in the late afternoon we didn’t have the west sun to contend warming up the kitchen even more. I love WINDOWS but in our bedroom they had a whole wall of WINDOWS and I decided to take two of them out in order to give us more wall space.  Something else you have to think about when building a home, placement of furniture and sometimes the WINDOWS do not always cooperate.

 

WINDOWS are essential to me.  I love letting light in, however, living in the city I have to laugh we spend good amount of money to cover them up.  Many of our WINDOWS have WINDOW shades or blinds, drapes with sheers.  When I lived in the country all we had were curtains that usually tied back and you could look directly out all hours of the day or night.

 

I have read a couple different versions of the Man in the Next Bed and it has such great meaning and teaching I had to share:

 

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room.

One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs.

His bed was next to the room’s only WINDOW.

The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.

The men talked for hours on end.

They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation..

Every afternoon, when the man in the bed by the WINDOW could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the WINDOW.

The man in the other bed began to live for those one hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside.

The WINDOW overlooked a park with a lovely lake.  Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.

As the man by the WINDOW described all this in exquisite details, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine this picturesque scene.

One warm afternoon, the man by the WINDOW described a parade passing by.

Although the other man could not hear the band – he could see it in his mind’s eye as the gentleman by the WINDOW portrayed it with descriptive words.

Days, weeks and months passed.
One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the WINDOW, who had died peacefully in his sleep.

She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.

As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the WINDOW.
The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.

Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside.
He strained to slowly turn to look out the WINDOW besides the bed.

It faced a blank wall.

The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this WINDOW.

The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall.

She said, ‘Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you.’

Epilogue: There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own situations.
Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared, is doubled.
If you want to feel rich, just count all the things you have that money can’t buy.
‘Today is a gift that is why it is called The Present.’

The origin of this letter is unknown

 

As we travel along this journey and “Takin Time Out”, I encourage each of you to learn from your experiences and realize just how far you have come by peering through the rear view mirror.  Please don’t dwell too long and miss what is in front of you through the big wide WINDOW called the windshield.  I also realize many of you are facing unknown circumstances and you feel a door has been shut or tightly closed.  A scripture from Malachi 3:10 will remind us “When God closes a door he opens a WINDOW”.  Spend some time talking with him and listening carefully.   Until next time my dear friend when you peer through a WINDOW I hope you have a new perspective towards this wonderful and a crazy life we live…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Definition:  a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.  A feeling of trust.

 

As I sit here in my favorite chair sipping on a scrumptious cup of steaming hot ginger mango tea, with my favorite fuzzy blanket wrapped around me on this bitter cold January morning.  Fortunately, I am the only one up and loving the quiet still morning of a new day, the first full week of a brand new month and year!  I truly treasure this time, my brown lab named Sage curled up at the base of my chair.  She truly knows me so well.   We have our little ritual, “Takin Time Out” to reflect upon the possibilities I have set for the year, the week and the day… I am so keenly aware of God’s beautiful presence.  As I have finished my devotional time, I have lifted my friends and family up in prayer, the recent death of a friend who fought a long hard battle from cancer lays heavy on my heart for her loved ones she left behind.  I know she is in a much better place celebrating with our Lord and Savior but oh how she will be missed.

There is so much tragedy, sickness, selfishness and pain, yet I am filled with HOPE!  HOPE for a cure, HOPE for renewed strength, HOPE for a brighter tomorrow and HOPE for courage to begin again.  Just as the scripture states “We have this HOPE as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.  It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain.”  Hebrews 6:19.

Another scripture comes to mind found in 1 Corinthians 13:13 “So now faith, HOPE and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”  I truly think most people give more importance to love and faith than they do to HOPE, but HOPE is the foundation for the other two.  I read an article once that really resonated with me…the author stated HOPE is our positive imagination.  Let’s dig a bit deeper, HOPE is really something that can’t be seen, something that is not present.  Once it does become present there is no longer any reason to HOPE for it, so really HOPE means you are looking at something that you can’t see with your eyes.  It is your imagination or something your feel with every inch of your heart, soul and mind working together. It gives us anticipation and courage.  I love the saying HOPE is the only thing stronger than fear!  Therefore, HOPE is very powerful and without it our lives would be empty!

HOPE is truly a beautiful thing, it is stronger than Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz clicking her red shoes or the prince holding the single glass slipper in Cinderella.  How many of us have crossed our fingers HOPING for the best? HOPE makes it possible to live with our feet firmly planted on the ground while our hearts and mind are committed to the vision of life that is far bigger that we are.

I have a few friends named HOPE, they are very gentle and kind spirited women.  I decided to look up the meaning of their name.  HOPE is a unisex name derived from the Middle English HOPE, ultimately from the Old English word hopian referring to positive expectation or to the theological virtue of HOPE.  Maybe that is why they are so uplifting?  Many times it is given to a set of twins or triplets Faith & HOPE or Faith, HOPE and Charity.

How many women who are reading this had a HOPE Chest prior to getting married?  I know I did, it was made by Lane and packed with handmade items that my mother and grandmother’s gave me.  I had starched embroidered pillow cases and tea or dish towels for each day of the week along with a crocheted afghan and oven mitts.  I have been married almost 30 years it now stores precious outfits my children wore as a babies, don’t laugh but I also have my HS cheerleading uniforms and a couple of blankets.  It is lined with cedar and makes everything smell so good.   Personally I think they are a thing of the past, neither of my girls had one nor do they probably have a clue of what one is.  They still make a great storage unit or sturdy bench to sit on.

There are so many people who have shared their testimony of hope, Eliezer “Elie” Wiesel a Romanian-born Jewish-American writer and Holocaust survivor.  He is the author of 57 books and many reflect his circumstances that were built on HOPE!  One of his famous quotes is, “Just as a man cannot live without dreams, he cannot live without HOPE.  If dreams reflect the past, HOPE summons the future.”  I also think of Corrie Ten Boom and what her journey through life encountered.  I can’t even imagine yet it reflects one of HOPE.  One of her quotes I love, “the only place of refuge, the only place of HOPE, was within the shadow of God’s wings. That is where HOPE lies also.”  So powerful!

Have you ever felt HOPELESS maybe things were not going well in a relationship, a job, or you are fighting an addiction.  Have you hit rock bottom?  Maybe you are trying to lose weight and nothing seems to be working.  Perhaps you are taking care of a loved one who is ill or aging.  All these things are part of the cycle of life.  HOPE will see you through…

I am reminded of a children’s story, “Hope for the Flowers”.  It’s the tale of two caterpillar’s Stripe and Yellow.  They both want something more from life than just eating and growing bigger.  They get caught up in a caterpillar pillar, a squirming mass of bodies, building a caterpillar tower.  Each one determined to reach the top so far away it can’t be seen. Finally disillusioned, one of them discovered that being at the top was not who he really was.  He quickly came down and began to spin and spin and finally entered into a cocoon the place of darkness and stillness.   He had no idea how long he had slept but in his dreams he had HOPE that he was more, he awoke and found that he was inside a chrysalis.  Once he had pushed his way out, he realized that something was very different.  His body had changed, and he was no longer a caterpillar.  He had undergone a metamorphosis.  He now had two, beautiful, brightly colored wings.  He had become a butterfly!  He flapped his wings and took off into the sky.  He was flying!  He flew off in exhilaration, over the hills, over the caterpillar towers and beyond, into his wildest dreams.

This year will hold unexpected joys, sorrows, moments of faith and fear, wishes fulfilled and dreams abandoned.  There is much we do not know but there is so much we do know with absolute assurance.  There is HOPE…a new year with the pages unscripted.  We lift our pen and begin to write a new beginning.  Remember HOPE stands for:

 

Have

Only

Positive

Expectations

 

HOPE is the little voice you hear whisper “maybe” when it seems the entire world is screaming “NO”!  Dear friends never give up as you are “Takin Time Out” this week, look deep into your imagination, what is in your heart, mind and soul seeking…what are your hoping for?  Until next time let your imagination continue to give you HOPE as you set out with your new set of wings to pursue those dreams!

 

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Definition:  the indefinite continued progress of existence and events in the past, present, and future regarded as a whole.

 

 

This week I felt it was only appropriate to write about TIME as we end one year and enter the beginning of another.  Not sure about you but this past year I have felt a bit overwhelmed.  TIME is on the forefront of my mind.  I just do not have enough TIME to do all the things I want to do and accomplish the commitments I have promised.  The older I get the faster TIME seems to go and the less I seem to get accomplished. (Now I think my mother has said that before?)  Why is this?  TIME is so precious and what I am experiencing lately is a sense of rush not sure about you but I find myself rushing in everything I do.  It truly is a rush against TIME to “gitrdone”.  I decided to blog about this subject hoping to bring more clarity and share experiences so maybe it can help work through some of the issues I am facing with TIME.

 

When I started this blog, I realized I was living in the second HalfTIME of life.  Maybe that is it I have so many dreams, goals and aspirations still remaining and yet it might be late in the 3^rd quarter of life?  Looking back as a child TIME stood still in so many instances, I never really remember looking at a clock; a calendar, I didn’t have a clue on what a Day timer was or what week it was.  I traveled through TIME by the month or season. I looked forward to those favorite holidays like Easter, 4^th of July, Fair TIME, Thanksgiving and Christmas Not every little second or minute filled throughout the day with commitments.  I was just happy to wake up maybe have a few chores to do and then my day was filled with pretending, playing, reading and spending a lot of TIME outdoors in the fresh air.  Every day was a day of “Takin TIME Out”! When the sun was starting to set I knew it was TIME to go home.

 

Ok, I know I can’t go back to my childhood but I can reflect on those moments in TIME I found peace and was truly content.  As adults we get so involved in commitments, responsibility and making a living that we forget to really live and live in the moment.  Personally I thought it would be easier the older you get, the kids are grown. Don’t get me wrong I am a happy person and very blessed but I realized again this past weekend I rush, rush, and rush in everything I do.  I consciously have to make changes, a verse come to mind in Colossians 4:5 “Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, make the best use of the TIME.”  What about you, is any of this resonating with your current situation or life?

 

Personally, I know technology is important in all I do day in and day out.  Most of us have a cell phone attached to our hip, we text, we call, we post and we pin.   I have enjoyed  Facebook and Instagram, as I have reconnected with special people who have touched my life that I would in no way be able to otherwise but I will say we are truly wired 24/7 and we don’t allow ourselves much down TIME or disconnect. So the last few days I have spent creating a vision for 2015 and planning on “Takin more TIME Outs”!  I look forward to sharing my successes and my failures as we go along this year.

 

Recently, I have had the privilege to connect with a new entrepreneur that encouraged me to figure out my limiting beliefs that may be blocking me from moving forward to the life I truly want to be living, the changes I want to make and the goals or possibilities I wish to achieve.  This has been a very exciting exercise and I am nearing a miraculous breakthrough.  What about YOU?  Are there things you want to do, change, or accomplish this year?

 

As I am sitting here sipping on my lemon herbal tea, I recently read an article of a gentleman who had quit going to church…the pastor had missed seeing him and decided to pay him a visit, it happen to be on a cold January night and there was a fire burning in the fireplace as they were sitting there discussing the events of the week…the pastor quietly got up to stoke the fire…he placed a burning ember off to the side and went to sit back down, they both sat there and watched the light of the ember die off as the pastor got up to leave he went and put the dying ember back in the pile of flames and it came back to life.  The member smiled and said thanks to the fiery sermon he looked forward to being back in church on Sunday.  This has several meanings, one is how our actions can speak louder than our words, how important it is to stay connected to those who help keep us grounded and more importantly there is nothing more precious than TIME so let’s do this together and meet our possibilities for 2015!  Whether your list consists of getting out of debt, getting healthier and lose weight, or living in the moment, together we can do this…there is no other TIME than NOW!  Until next TIME my friend please remember “This is going to be your year; dust off your past and let’s get started to begin again”…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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