"What If"... Isn't that such a fun phrase? There are so many possibilities with "What If"; so many places to go with the mind, both good and bad. It could lead to fabulous dreams as well as horrid nightmares, all which start with the thought "What If".
I recently pulled out a book ("If...(Questions for the Game of Life)" by Evelyn McFarlane and James Saywell) off my book shelf that is a fun one for philosophical dreamers such as myself. It is a compilation of questions. The authors say it best in the Intro:
"If is the ultimate book about fantasy. Each of its questions is meant to spark and tantalize the imagination. They are a celebration of the human spirit, which loves to dream and needs to hope, but which can also fear and even grow angry. Our ability to imagine is the remarkable gift we have been given to lead is into joy and aspiration and out of despair and sadness, because common to all of us is the idea that there could be a different world, perhaps a better one...We all fantasize and we all dream...Fantasies are what inspire us all; to work, marry, raise families, create, improve our world. It is why we lose ourselves in books, go to movies, watch television, go to the ballgame and on vacation...without our fantasies we would be lost. We imagine in order to learn, to understand, to strive, to attempt, to predict, to avoid, to correct, to describe, to solve." "And so, aside from the truths that are revealed, the contemplation that is provoked, the confidence or anxiety that surfaces, the self-knowledge that results, or the understanding that might be gained, above all we hope that asking these questions inspires optimism, since no matter who or what we really are, we share the ability to travel together the unpredictable journey of the imagination, which leads us through the wonderful game of life."
"Spark and Tantalize the imagination." I just love that description; it is delicious to my mind. Anything that sparks and tantalizes the imagination sounds awesome to me! May you have many things that 'spark and tantalize' you!
"They are a celebration of the human spirit, which loves to dream and needs to hope". "Loves to dream and needs to hope"; that is something I would not have thought of or put into words myself, but when I see it written, it makes me think of how true it is. "Needs to hope". Do all of us need to hope? Do we all have hope? Without hope, is there nothing but despair? I know for me and what I am currently going through with all this nasty joint pain, I sure as hell hope it will get better. I wish I knew exactly when, or if, the end was near (as I write those words, I should specify that I wish the end of the pain was near - not the end of my life). And I also hope that my kids have a good, happy life. I hope I can enjoy retirement and my grandchildren. I hope my husband's company doesn't close. I hope to not have financial worries. The list really can go on and on; thus there is a lot of things that we do hope about in our lives. World peace, end to hunger and poverty...all that good stuff!
"Fantasies are what inspire us all...to create...to improve our world". If fantasies bring about beautiful works of art as well as inspire those to make the world a better place, well then I say, bring on the fantasies.
May you all have wonderful fantasies, dreams, and inspirations!
Lost in Fantasy Land,
Me
Motivational Moment:
I thought I would pick out some of the questions from the "If..." book mentioned above for you to have fun with and get lost in thought and dreams. Enjoy!
- If you were granted one wish, what would it be?
- If you could eliminate any one type of insect permanently from the earth, what would you get rid of?
- If you could permanently alter one thing about your physical appearance, what would you change?
- If you could change one thing in the world right now, what would you alter?
- If you had to lose one of your five senses, which would you give up?
- If you could have any one specific power over other people, what would it be?
- If you could possess one supernatural ability, what would it be?
- If a photograph of one part of your body were to be used in an advertisement, which part would you want to be used, and for what product or service?
- If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would do?
- If you could cure any disease, what would it be?
My wish for you is peace and happiness for who you are right now!
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Bucket List
Do you have a Bucket List?
Tonight, I was reading an article in the paper written by a Chiropractor (Dr. Paul Bizjak) about having a bucket list. I have never met Dr. Bizjak, but I always enjoy his weekly articles, as they are always encouraging to live life to the fullest. This latest article was certainly no different. He encouraged everyone to write a bucket list and to start fulfilling it now, rather than later when you are no longer physically able.
Since I love serendipitous events, I have to share this ironic timing with you. While I was reading the article, (and immediately knew I wanted to blog about it), I was watching my favorite Wednesday night line up of TV shows. At the same time that I am reading this article, the TV show Suburgatory came on and it started with an elderly man talking with a younger man in the steam room. He was talking about his bucket list and all of the stuff that he wanted to do now that he was retired; stuff that he had looked forward to doing his entire life. Well you know what happened next; he was carted out of the steam room on a stretcher; he had passed away.
Both the show and the article was all about living life to the fullest now. Enjoy what you can now; don't put it off! (And I got a kick out of the fact that I chose that minute to read that article as the show started.)
This made me think about my bucket list...or more so the fact that I don't have one! Why don't I have a bucket list? Do a lot of people have them? Or very few people? I could pretty much guess and say that I don't have one because I have a full time job and three kids and who has time for anything else...but I am no longer ok with that excuse. After thinking about it tonight (and reading about it and watching it on TV), I am going to work on mine! Everyone is allowed to dream and work toward those dreams!! And if you don't have a bucket list, then you need to get on it! Dr. Bizjak encourages people to write down all their bucket lists in a journal by their bed and read it every night, making adjustments as necessary. I liked how he encouraged everyone to write down all their dreams and wishes, no matter how big or seemingly impossible. If you write it down, it is more likely to happen. It also gives you additional motivation to work towards your goals.
Dr. Bizjak said it best as he finished his article: "We have no idea what our lives will look like tomorrow, or if we will even be here tomorrow...This is your life. What are you waiting for?"
Damn straight! This is our life! Right here, right now. We don't get a do over (well, unless you believe in reincarnation, and then perhaps you do get a do over.). I am going to work on my bucket list! I really have no idea what I will have on it, but the dreaming and imagining sound like a fun exercise. It fits right into my blog about "What If".
Let the dreaming begin!
Lost in Imagination,
Me
Motivational Moment:
1. Some people drift through their entire life. They do it one day at a time, one week at a time, one month at a time. It happens so gradually they are unaware of how their lives are slipping away until it's too late. ~Mary Kay Ash
2. You miss 100% of the shots you don't take. ~Wayne Gretzky
3. Don't be afraid your life will end; be afraid that it will never begin. ~Grace Hansen
4. Every now and then, bite off more than you can chew. ~Kobi Yamada
Those above quotes are from the following site, which I found to be beautiful and inspirational: http://likemylife.homestead.com/
5. I intend to live forever. Or at the least die trying. ~Taylor E. Bennet
6. In the end, it's not going to matter how many breaths you took, but how many moments took your breath away. ~shing xiong
7. I never want to arrive. I love the ride. ~Coco J. Ginger
8. All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
9. If you obey all the rules, you'll miss all the fun. ~ Katherine Hepburn
10. Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the things you did. ~ Mark Twain (http://www.positivethinking-toolbox.com/best-life-quotes.html)
And perhaps the most fitting quote for getting out there and living your bucket list:
Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today. ~James Dean
Let the dreaming begin!
Me
Motivational Moment:
1. Some people drift through their entire life. They do it one day at a time, one week at a time, one month at a time. It happens so gradually they are unaware of how their lives are slipping away until it's too late. ~Mary Kay Ash
2. You miss 100% of the shots you don't take. ~Wayne Gretzky
3. Don't be afraid your life will end; be afraid that it will never begin. ~Grace Hansen
4. Every now and then, bite off more than you can chew. ~Kobi Yamada
Those above quotes are from the following site, which I found to be beautiful and inspirational: http://likemylife.homestead.com/
5. I intend to live forever. Or at the least die trying. ~Taylor E. Bennet
6. In the end, it's not going to matter how many breaths you took, but how many moments took your breath away. ~shing xiong
7. I never want to arrive. I love the ride. ~Coco J. Ginger
8. All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
9. If you obey all the rules, you'll miss all the fun. ~ Katherine Hepburn
10. Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the things you did. ~ Mark Twain (http://www.positivethinking-toolbox.com/best-life-quotes.html)
Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today. ~James Dean
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Birthday Party Prowess
This past weekend my inner Domestic Goddess came out. I made it through my twin 11 year old's birthday sleepover party! I am happy to say that everyone had a good time and I am even more happy to say that there was no stomach flu going around (which, unfortunately, is something we have experienced in the past at this birthday because of the time of the year it is). My kids had a great time and that, after all, is what it is all about.
Next on the party planning agenda, was deciding on the activities the group would do. Ironically, we just went to my niece's 5th birthday party and she had a scavenger hunt (and the end of the search led to the gift bags for the kids). My soon-to-be 11 year olds loved the scavenger hunt and decided they really wanted to do this at their party. They got busy writing out the clues and planning the hunt (all of the spots had jungle stuffed-animals hiding with the next clue). The party guests loved running around doing this and they also loved the 'find' at the end.
I am very happy to say that, after the girls were all rowdy and crazy from their scavenger hunt, my daughters asked the group what they wanted to do next, and they chose a quiet craft. This is now my favorite party craft for kids. It is called perler beads (http://www.eksuccessbrands.com/perlerbeads/), and it involves the kids placing tiny plastic pieces onto a shape and then ironing it to create a plastic piece of art. This requires creativity and extreme patience as the pieces are very small and get knocked off the pegs very easily! Their creations are below.
The house was very peaceful during this craft and it kept them constructively busy for almost two hours and they did it again the next morning when they first woke up. It inspires creativity; in fact, I was impressed with the designs they came up with. And all it required from me was about one minute of ironing for each one. (Parents - this one is a big winner in my book for a party craft that interested the kids and kept the house calm!) :)
A week or two before the party, I started googling images of jungle-themed birthday cakes. And let's just say that I am no 'cake boss', so there was not a chance that I could reproduce the professional images I was seeing. (I must say there was one I thought was a great idea - had I looked into it earlier than I had - as it was a really cool, edible decoration you could order and have them put your child's name on it. But since I didn't have time to order that, I decided to get creative and make this a family adventure.) I asked my three daughters to draw a picture of how they would decorate a jungle cake (I, of course, joined them on this artistic venture). It was really cute because they were all excited to be a part of this art experience as well as possibly design the cake. And I actually did get my idea for the cake from their drawings (pic below).
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| Jungle Cake Ideas |
With the drawings complete, I was now fully on my mission to make this cake. I bought cake mix and white frosting, as well as a package of food coloring (I did say I was no Betty Crocker, so of course I would not be making this cake from scratch!). Then we looked for jungle animals to put on the cake. I thought it would be easy to find a package of inexpensive, jungle animals at the store; however, this ended up not being the case. So I decided to look around our house (amongst the over-abundance of toys that is my life since I have had kids) for some small jungle animals. In addition to the figurines we found in the house, one of my daughters had the good idea of using animal crackers to add to the scene. My daughters all helped frost and decorate the cake. (I love these fun, creative, family-bonding moments because I know all to well how fast kids grow up!). The adventure of doing this cake ourselves was a fun one and we were happy with the outcome.
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| Jungle Themed Cake |
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| Jungle-themed decor |
Next on the party planning agenda, was deciding on the activities the group would do. Ironically, we just went to my niece's 5th birthday party and she had a scavenger hunt (and the end of the search led to the gift bags for the kids). My soon-to-be 11 year olds loved the scavenger hunt and decided they really wanted to do this at their party. They got busy writing out the clues and planning the hunt (all of the spots had jungle stuffed-animals hiding with the next clue). The party guests loved running around doing this and they also loved the 'find' at the end.
I am very happy to say that, after the girls were all rowdy and crazy from their scavenger hunt, my daughters asked the group what they wanted to do next, and they chose a quiet craft. This is now my favorite party craft for kids. It is called perler beads (http://www.eksuccessbrands.com/perlerbeads/), and it involves the kids placing tiny plastic pieces onto a shape and then ironing it to create a plastic piece of art. This requires creativity and extreme patience as the pieces are very small and get knocked off the pegs very easily! Their creations are below.
The house was very peaceful during this craft and it kept them constructively busy for almost two hours and they did it again the next morning when they first woke up. It inspires creativity; in fact, I was impressed with the designs they came up with. And all it required from me was about one minute of ironing for each one. (Parents - this one is a big winner in my book for a party craft that interested the kids and kept the house calm!) :)
Now, if only that calm could stay the whole time! There is apparently quite the rage going on right now about a song called the 'cup song' . If you, like me, have never heard of this, all you have to do is google it on YouTube and you will have plenty of examples to find out what it is all about (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oqsc6ahHVI&NR=1&feature=endscreen). Now, once you watch that, you may find it catchy or even cute. But let me tell you, once you have heard that song (and cup being banged around) for 45 minutes by 5 girls, well...let's just say the 'cuteness' wears off.
The evening eventually came to an end (although later than I had planned) and I had 7 girls camped out on the family room floor. One girl had to leave at 9am, so my husband and I came downstairs a little after 8am and all the girls were completely sound asleep. We started making breakfast and very slowly the group woke up. They were a tired group of girls!
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| Sleepover Breakfast of Champions! |
Breakfast consisted of delicious cinnamon rolls, with fresh fruit as well as bacon (hey - they needed some protein in there!).
After breakfast, the girls resumed their perler beads craft until their parents came at 10am.
Overall, a successful sleepover party with happy birthday girls!
Creatively Yours,
Me
Motivational Moment:
“Every child is an artist, the problem is staying an artist when you grow up” – Pablo Picasso
“Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people” – Leo Burnett
“Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try” – Dr. Seuss
“Don’t think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. It’s self-conscious, and anything self-conscious is lousy. You can’t try to do things. You simply must do things” – Ray Bradbury
"Anxiety is part of creativity, the need to get something out, the need to be rid of something or to get in touch with something within." - David Duchovny
"Creativity takes courage." - Henry Matisse
“Life beats down and crushes the soul and art reminds you that you have one.” - Stella Adler
“There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.” - Sophia Loren
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Life's Turning Points
I came across a blog today (the-serenity-space.com) and I absolutely love it. The author, Jenn, is very open about her life; honest about who she is; and incredibly motivational. She is a deep thinker; I connect with a lot of what she writes. She had one blog where she said: “Enjoy the social experiment that is what we call living as a human here on earth”. I couldn't agree with her more. We all have our own, individual time here on earth and even though there are billions of us and we are so different, it comes down to the fact that we are all humans and in that we share an innate similarity. Reading Jenn's openly honest blog about her life, specifically the fact that she is coming out of a dark period, inspired me to write my recent history, due to the incredible journey that it has been thus far.
I will start with the fact that I had a pretty decent career for 14 years at one company. The company experienced tremendous growth during this time period. While the first 11 years were very good ones for me, both professionally and personally, the last three years were what I can only describe as toxic stress. Due to being a highly sensitive individual (I love Jenn's comments about this topic!), I absorbed the stress around me rather than letting it bounce off me. This started to seriously kill me. Horrid headaches and stomach pain were more the norm than the rarity. Anxiety became extremely prevalent, in fact, my panic attacks returned after being gone for 15 years. I was experiencing irregular heart beats constantly, I even left work once via ambulance due to being in tachycardia. One would think that being rushed to the hospital would have given me the final push I needed to get out of what was a very bad situation for me, but it wasn't.
Fast forward two years. I look back on that decision as one of the best of my life. I wish I had done it two years earlier. I wish I had looked on it then as I do now: I made a wonderful, positive, healthy change for me and because of that, for my children. I want to be here for them. I want to be a positive influence in their life and support them; rather then be the stressed out misery that I had become.
Now I am working on me. Now I am working on over-turning years of toxic stress; trying to turn off auto-immune markers that I have turned on from years of being overly stressed out. I have significant joint pain in my elbows and my knees; my hands and feet have bad arthritic pain. Walking, on some days, is painful with every step (and that is wearing only these ugly, unattractive, big, flat shoes - without which I wouldn't be able to walk.) Gone are the days of wearing gorgeous heals, which are so sexy, but so stupid to wear (this is a perfect topic for another blog; how - for years and years - women wear shoes that are completely unnatural and harmful for our feet. Have you ever seen the comparison, by x-ray, of a bare foot and one crammed into a pointy high heel?? Stupid. Let's see men walk in these!!). A Rheumatologist told me I had intermittent rheumatoid arthritis and that it would turn into full RA and I needed to start a toxic med. My primary care then told me he didn't believe I had RA; he did believe I had an over-active immune and recommended that I go on an additive-free diet. At the time, I was highly annoyed with that answer. I said I am the mother of three; I work full time; I don't have a personal chef. How on earth could I stopped eating processed foods?! Impossible.
Serendipity. Meeting someone who went to a holistic doc at my new job. Going to said doc and having everything checked out. I am very early in this process, but I am going gluten free and am working on eliminating processed foods from my diet and slowly getting my family to eat healthier as well. It is challenging and there is a huge learning curve I need to overcome, as well as overcoming the fears of taking vitamins and supplements.
I am overwhelmed by all the information but I am hopeful. I am hopeful that if I stop eating foods that are bad for me, that are causing inflammatory reactions in my body, my body will settle down and feel better. People may roll their eyes at this. They may call me stupid and say that I should just take the drugs. We will see where this leads, but this is my path right now and I am hopeful.
Always Learning,
Me
Motivational Moment:
I am not sure how this gorgeous flowering plant grows out of this rock, but I love it. It makes me think of beauty coming out of hardship; or of beauty found in the most unexpected places.
1. The positive side of being highly sensitive:
The down sides of being highly sensitive are well known (such as taking things personally, being stressed out, being overly sensitive to pain); the upside, however, is beautiful! It is being deeply touched by beauty in any form (including photography and artwork), music, movies, books, people, and their stories. I love that music can affect me so strongly, whether it be a sad, contemplative mood; an excited, happy mood; motivate me to work or dance; be in love, moved, touched; music enhances the feeling - whatever it is. I love being swept away by a movie or a book, completely forgetting about my life and becoming part of what I am watching or reading. I love being so affected by others' life story that I get goosebumps or cry; I offer comfort and support because I care so deeply. I like being highly sensitive to all of the beauty that life has to offer.
- A big thank you being sent out to my friend, Pam, who was such a powerful cheerleader for me at a time when I needed it the most.
- Being inspired by complete strangers who live across the world from the simplistic power of words.
- Being inspired by true life stories of people who have overcome great odds to succeed and make something of themselves.
- Being inspired by those who dedicate their lives to helping others.
May you find inspiration in simple things; may you change your life for the positive if it is needed; may we all continue to learn and improve ourselves every day that we live.
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| Sunset |
I will start with the fact that I had a pretty decent career for 14 years at one company. The company experienced tremendous growth during this time period. While the first 11 years were very good ones for me, both professionally and personally, the last three years were what I can only describe as toxic stress. Due to being a highly sensitive individual (I love Jenn's comments about this topic!), I absorbed the stress around me rather than letting it bounce off me. This started to seriously kill me. Horrid headaches and stomach pain were more the norm than the rarity. Anxiety became extremely prevalent, in fact, my panic attacks returned after being gone for 15 years. I was experiencing irregular heart beats constantly, I even left work once via ambulance due to being in tachycardia. One would think that being rushed to the hospital would have given me the final push I needed to get out of what was a very bad situation for me, but it wasn't.
My point of no return came with the onset of joint pain. All of a sudden, I woke up one day and my pointer finger and thumb were so swollen I literally could not bend them. It affected one hand first, lasted about a week or two and then the other hand would swell up. Then I started having pain in my elbows, knees, and hips. I was referred to a rheumatologist and told I had rheumatoid arthritis. And THIS was my breaking point. As I look back while I am writing this, I really can't believe it wasn't either:
1. the panic attacks returning after being gone for 15 years; or
2. being rushed to the hospital with my heart in a crazy fast rhythm in which I thought I was surely going to die.
But my turning point, the part of my life that gave me the strength to drastically make a dramatic change, was the thought that all of my toxic stress (which one could argue that I put on myself; I would argue that it is the highly sensitive person that I am - caring about those around me; attuned to those around me) had brought on a horrible auto-immune disorder. That was my final breaking point! That was the final push I needed to leave a lucrative, stable career and walk away with nothing lined up, against the wishes of the majority of those around me, particularly my family. They said I would be stupid to walk away without having another job lined up in this economy. They said outright, No, I couldn't do it. I thankfully found the strength; it was no longer an option to not do it. And a good friend (who had left the same company years earlier) was a major cheerleader for me; she came back into my life right when I needed it. Ironically, I didn't feel like a strong person at the time; I felt like a fearful person, running away. The fear of dying, thinking it was walk away from this job or have a heart attack, was my motivator. I was ashamed that I didn't have what it takes to "stick it out", I felt like I was walking away with my tail between my legs. Instead of leaving with my head held high, I quietly left. No big farewell parties for a 14 year amazing career with many people whom I had thought were good friends after working side by side in stress for many years.
Fast forward two years. I look back on that decision as one of the best of my life. I wish I had done it two years earlier. I wish I had looked on it then as I do now: I made a wonderful, positive, healthy change for me and because of that, for my children. I want to be here for them. I want to be a positive influence in their life and support them; rather then be the stressed out misery that I had become.
Now I am working on me. Now I am working on over-turning years of toxic stress; trying to turn off auto-immune markers that I have turned on from years of being overly stressed out. I have significant joint pain in my elbows and my knees; my hands and feet have bad arthritic pain. Walking, on some days, is painful with every step (and that is wearing only these ugly, unattractive, big, flat shoes - without which I wouldn't be able to walk.) Gone are the days of wearing gorgeous heals, which are so sexy, but so stupid to wear (this is a perfect topic for another blog; how - for years and years - women wear shoes that are completely unnatural and harmful for our feet. Have you ever seen the comparison, by x-ray, of a bare foot and one crammed into a pointy high heel?? Stupid. Let's see men walk in these!!). A Rheumatologist told me I had intermittent rheumatoid arthritis and that it would turn into full RA and I needed to start a toxic med. My primary care then told me he didn't believe I had RA; he did believe I had an over-active immune and recommended that I go on an additive-free diet. At the time, I was highly annoyed with that answer. I said I am the mother of three; I work full time; I don't have a personal chef. How on earth could I stopped eating processed foods?! Impossible.
Serendipity. Meeting someone who went to a holistic doc at my new job. Going to said doc and having everything checked out. I am very early in this process, but I am going gluten free and am working on eliminating processed foods from my diet and slowly getting my family to eat healthier as well. It is challenging and there is a huge learning curve I need to overcome, as well as overcoming the fears of taking vitamins and supplements.
I am overwhelmed by all the information but I am hopeful. I am hopeful that if I stop eating foods that are bad for me, that are causing inflammatory reactions in my body, my body will settle down and feel better. People may roll their eyes at this. They may call me stupid and say that I should just take the drugs. We will see where this leads, but this is my path right now and I am hopeful.
Always Learning,
Me
Motivational Moment:
 |
| Hawaiian Volcano Flower |
I am not sure how this gorgeous flowering plant grows out of this rock, but I love it. It makes me think of beauty coming out of hardship; or of beauty found in the most unexpected places.
1. The positive side of being highly sensitive:
The down sides of being highly sensitive are well known (such as taking things personally, being stressed out, being overly sensitive to pain); the upside, however, is beautiful! It is being deeply touched by beauty in any form (including photography and artwork), music, movies, books, people, and their stories. I love that music can affect me so strongly, whether it be a sad, contemplative mood; an excited, happy mood; motivate me to work or dance; be in love, moved, touched; music enhances the feeling - whatever it is. I love being swept away by a movie or a book, completely forgetting about my life and becoming part of what I am watching or reading. I love being so affected by others' life story that I get goosebumps or cry; I offer comfort and support because I care so deeply. I like being highly sensitive to all of the beauty that life has to offer.
- A big thank you being sent out to my friend, Pam, who was such a powerful cheerleader for me at a time when I needed it the most.
- Being inspired by complete strangers who live across the world from the simplistic power of words.
- Being inspired by true life stories of people who have overcome great odds to succeed and make something of themselves.
- Being inspired by those who dedicate their lives to helping others.
May you find inspiration in simple things; may you change your life for the positive if it is needed; may we all continue to learn and improve ourselves every day that we live.
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