A sad week for me, we buried my younger sister Dixie Lee. She was buried next to her husband
and youngest daughter. She had been ill for eight years with lung and breathing problems brought on from smoking since she was 16.......
A happy week for me, because my three girls and their families, sister, brother, friends and
relatives were very supportive with love and being there for me. Funerals seem to be times
for reunions and I saw many cousins, uncles and friends I hadn't seen for years.
I will not stay sad, I realize that every word I hear triggers a picture in my mind that results in a corresponding emotion. These pictures and feelings can be either supportive or debilitating.
Try cancer, death, accident, problem, pressure, failure, can't, won't , impossible,
Now try, vacation, play, Hawaii, love excitement, friends, trust, success, happiness, I can, I will.
Every word, however fleeting is a seed. When planted in your mind, each seed yields a positive or negative picture, along with a positive or negative feeling. I will be vigilant of the words I plant. I will enjoy all the good memories I have of my "little sister."
Monday, November 24, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
''Haba Na Haba Hujaza Kibaba"
"Haba Na Haba Hujaza Kibaba"..........."Little by little fills the pot!" A Swahili Proverb...........
I love this little saying..........That is really the way a life is lived, little by little or one day at a
time. You live as you die, little by little. My second sister is gravely ill, and her life is ending day
by day a little at a time. I feel sad, her choice of smoking for many years was not a good choice!
My youngest sister and I just got back from a wonderful two week driving trip through the
New England States. October a perfect time of year to enjoy the leaves........I always say the
best part of memories is creating them. I journaled every day as I always do and titled the
memo "You and Me and the GPS". We would still be wandering around Pennsylvania somewhere without "Mertle." Every morning we got out the atlas and said let's head for that
place and put it in "Mert" and off we would go. She seemed to prefer the back roads and every
getto in the 10 states we hit, but we got to see some beautiful country that way. Very few free-ways were even touched. I just learned to Tex so kept the family informed on my where-a-bouts. Started in RI, MA,NH,VT,NY,NJ,DE,CT,PA AND MD........Not in that order though. So
I say if your hitting the road get you a Mertle to be your companion. We argued with her a few
times and had our doubts about her not knowing how lost we felt, but she always came through
loud and clear when we made a wrong turn............and always got us to our destination. Will I
ever get enough traveling????
I love this little saying..........That is really the way a life is lived, little by little or one day at a
time. You live as you die, little by little. My second sister is gravely ill, and her life is ending day
by day a little at a time. I feel sad, her choice of smoking for many years was not a good choice!
My youngest sister and I just got back from a wonderful two week driving trip through the
New England States. October a perfect time of year to enjoy the leaves........I always say the
best part of memories is creating them. I journaled every day as I always do and titled the
memo "You and Me and the GPS". We would still be wandering around Pennsylvania somewhere without "Mertle." Every morning we got out the atlas and said let's head for that
place and put it in "Mert" and off we would go. She seemed to prefer the back roads and every
getto in the 10 states we hit, but we got to see some beautiful country that way. Very few free-ways were even touched. I just learned to Tex so kept the family informed on my where-a-bouts. Started in RI, MA,NH,VT,NY,NJ,DE,CT,PA AND MD........Not in that order though. So
I say if your hitting the road get you a Mertle to be your companion. We argued with her a few
times and had our doubts about her not knowing how lost we felt, but she always came through
loud and clear when we made a wrong turn............and always got us to our destination. Will I
ever get enough traveling????
Saturday, September 27, 2008
On The Road Again
Time is flying........and I am getting ready for another adventure! My sister and I are doing a
driving tour of the New England States to take in the Fall Foliage. I only have eight more of the
50 states to see in my life time and I hope to get all but two in on this trip. Will I ever see ND and Oaklahoma?...........
It is so important everyday not to just look........but to see! How big, how little, what color, far away or near, rough, smooth, hot or cold, so many things to look for and to record in our minds
to get the real picture.
Is there any sound at the time? Birds, wind, animals, people traffic, children or whatever.
What are the feelings you get when you see something? Happy, sad, at peace, scared, anxious,
secure, so many feelings to record. All this goes into a single picture you take or vision you see.
Realize it and enjoy. We are all visual, audio and kinestic, so use all these wonderful scenses. I intend to and hope to write about some of the new and different experience on this trip. We will drive for two weeks, stopping when and where we want and for as long as we want............aren't you jealous? No bossy husbands or kids.
Somewhere I read and always remember, like airplanes weren't made to just taxi down the run
way of life. They are designed to fly high in the sky, above the clouds, above the storms.
How many people do you know who spend their lives starting down the runway of life, reviving their engines, but afraid to take off? We were all designed to fly! But, so often we don't want to lose the security of keeping one foot on the ground. We HAVEN'T GOT THE GUTS TO GET OUT OF THE RUTS. The unique quality we each have going for us is not that we're equal, but that we are different!
I also want to congratulate my daughter on the publishing of her book. "The Power of a Penny,"
due out in 2009 to celebrate the 100 year birthday of the penny. She is not taxing any
more she has started to fly!............my inspiration!
driving tour of the New England States to take in the Fall Foliage. I only have eight more of the
50 states to see in my life time and I hope to get all but two in on this trip. Will I ever see ND and Oaklahoma?...........
It is so important everyday not to just look........but to see! How big, how little, what color, far away or near, rough, smooth, hot or cold, so many things to look for and to record in our minds
to get the real picture.
Is there any sound at the time? Birds, wind, animals, people traffic, children or whatever.
What are the feelings you get when you see something? Happy, sad, at peace, scared, anxious,
secure, so many feelings to record. All this goes into a single picture you take or vision you see.
Realize it and enjoy. We are all visual, audio and kinestic, so use all these wonderful scenses. I intend to and hope to write about some of the new and different experience on this trip. We will drive for two weeks, stopping when and where we want and for as long as we want............aren't you jealous? No bossy husbands or kids.
Somewhere I read and always remember, like airplanes weren't made to just taxi down the run
way of life. They are designed to fly high in the sky, above the clouds, above the storms.
How many people do you know who spend their lives starting down the runway of life, reviving their engines, but afraid to take off? We were all designed to fly! But, so often we don't want to lose the security of keeping one foot on the ground. We HAVEN'T GOT THE GUTS TO GET OUT OF THE RUTS. The unique quality we each have going for us is not that we're equal, but that we are different!
I also want to congratulate my daughter on the publishing of her book. "The Power of a Penny,"
due out in 2009 to celebrate the 100 year birthday of the penny. She is not taxing any
more she has started to fly!............my inspiration!
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Just a thought.............
A few years ago I took a photography class at the local Community College. One class period we went to the exhibit in the library to examine some of Ansel Adams pictures. We were to write a
composition about the feelings we got from one of the pictures. This is what I wrote:
My favorite picture in the exhibit in the library was the one of the huge stone nestled next to a magnificient, very large tree with it's massive roots flexing like muscles over the ground.
As I looked at this photo I felt I was looking at two old friends and I listened to the whispers of the wind as they compared notes on the weather patterns of their long lives and each bragged of their ancestry. Who had contributed the most to mankind and civilization?
Since time began men have used these two entities to survive and build their lives with. Caves in rocks safe from weather and wild animals, stone utensils and weapons are still in existence to testify of the early beginnings. Homes, monuments, burial sights, churches, castles with great walls to protect them were shaped from stones of many kinds and forms. Many, many of these are still around to testify of their ever lasting endurance.
As I trvel around the world I look and wonder at the great accomplishments with the use of stone in people's lives. The Sphinx of Egypt, the Great Wall of China, The Forum and
aqueducts of Rome, huge walled castles, elaborate churches and the complete city of Pompei,
which was buried but still survived to tell us of it's culture in stone. In Mexico and South America the huge temple ruins with their cobblestone court yeards and in our own country the homes of the ancient Indian cultures of old.
What is the mystery and strengths of stone? At birth we are assigned a birthstone for
our month. At death they place a stone marker on our grave with our name and years of life,
to last into eternity.
Now the tree in turn whispers of it's contributions. It can be used for fires to warm us,
and cook our food. The many forms of wood give us homes to protect us from the Sun nd rain. Before metal it was popular in being formed into vehicles of transportation like wagons and boats.
It's pulp can be made into paper to preserve art and historical records for us, much
easier to use than the rock, which also claims this use. Some family members of this great tree produce fruit, used by humans and animals as food. Under the big tree we can find shade from the sun and protection from the rain without having to cut it into wood. In the jungle, families of this tree give interesting new medical help. Yes, this tree has many interesting stories to tell.
I guess when I look at these giant friends I see more than just a rock and a tree. I feel their power and influence in my life.......and what good friends they have been to me.
To one..........Sun, wind and water is a must,
To the other............Sun, wind and water, it can't trust,
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.........or a rock!
composition about the feelings we got from one of the pictures. This is what I wrote:
My favorite picture in the exhibit in the library was the one of the huge stone nestled next to a magnificient, very large tree with it's massive roots flexing like muscles over the ground.
As I looked at this photo I felt I was looking at two old friends and I listened to the whispers of the wind as they compared notes on the weather patterns of their long lives and each bragged of their ancestry. Who had contributed the most to mankind and civilization?
Since time began men have used these two entities to survive and build their lives with. Caves in rocks safe from weather and wild animals, stone utensils and weapons are still in existence to testify of the early beginnings. Homes, monuments, burial sights, churches, castles with great walls to protect them were shaped from stones of many kinds and forms. Many, many of these are still around to testify of their ever lasting endurance.
As I trvel around the world I look and wonder at the great accomplishments with the use of stone in people's lives. The Sphinx of Egypt, the Great Wall of China, The Forum and
aqueducts of Rome, huge walled castles, elaborate churches and the complete city of Pompei,
which was buried but still survived to tell us of it's culture in stone. In Mexico and South America the huge temple ruins with their cobblestone court yeards and in our own country the homes of the ancient Indian cultures of old.
What is the mystery and strengths of stone? At birth we are assigned a birthstone for
our month. At death they place a stone marker on our grave with our name and years of life,
to last into eternity.
Now the tree in turn whispers of it's contributions. It can be used for fires to warm us,
and cook our food. The many forms of wood give us homes to protect us from the Sun nd rain. Before metal it was popular in being formed into vehicles of transportation like wagons and boats.
It's pulp can be made into paper to preserve art and historical records for us, much
easier to use than the rock, which also claims this use. Some family members of this great tree produce fruit, used by humans and animals as food. Under the big tree we can find shade from the sun and protection from the rain without having to cut it into wood. In the jungle, families of this tree give interesting new medical help. Yes, this tree has many interesting stories to tell.
I guess when I look at these giant friends I see more than just a rock and a tree. I feel their power and influence in my life.......and what good friends they have been to me.
To one..........Sun, wind and water is a must,
To the other............Sun, wind and water, it can't trust,
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.........or a rock!
Friday, September 5, 2008
Grandkids and staying young.......
Another month of great things in my life. Today Karrie and I went to lunch at the Willow Creek
Country Club .......they are having the PGA Golf tournament in her back yard and belonging to
the Club entitled us to lunch. Fun, Fun. Tonight I'm off to watch my oldest grandson ,who is the
Captain of his football team, play another exciting football game. Last week they won. In the
morning I will be off to watch my youngest grandson (6) play soccor, nothing more exciting! AND THEN........at 1:30, it will be another football game to watch my 14 year old grandson play.
What a lucky grandmother I am. My children and grandchildren refuse to let me get OLD......
Which makes me contemplate the follow piece I read:
Youth is not a time of life---it is a state of mind. It is not a matter of ripe cheeks, red lips and supple knees; (I have chubby knees). It is a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a
vigor of the emotions; it is a freshness of the deep spring of life.
Youth means a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite of ad-
venture over love of ease. This often exists in a person of fifty more than in a person of twenty.
Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years; people grow old by deserting their ideals. Years wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkels the soul. Worry, doubt, selfish trust, fear and despair - these are the long, long years that bow the head and turn the growing spirit back to dust.
Whether seventy or sixteen or seventy-six, there is in every being's heart the love of wonder,
the sweet amazement at the stars and the star like things and thoughts, the undaunted challenge
of events, the unfailing childlike appetite for what next, and the joy and the game of life.
You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young as your hope, as old as your despair.
In the central place of your heart there is a wireless station; so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer, courage, grandeur and the power from the earth, from men and from the Infinite, so long are you young. This I believe...........
When the wires are all down and all the central place of your heart is covered with the snows
of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then are you grown old indeed and may God have mercy on your soul.
I thank my children for giving me a cell phone, (so they can keep track of me)....Ipod, so I can
look IN, Digital Camera (that I have finally learned to print out pictures at Target and recharge
the battery) and a lap top Computer (that I will learn to use or die trying and if my granddaughter doesn't give up on me first!) No, I will not get old.........thanks to a great family.
Country Club .......they are having the PGA Golf tournament in her back yard and belonging to
the Club entitled us to lunch. Fun, Fun. Tonight I'm off to watch my oldest grandson ,who is the
Captain of his football team, play another exciting football game. Last week they won. In the
morning I will be off to watch my youngest grandson (6) play soccor, nothing more exciting! AND THEN........at 1:30, it will be another football game to watch my 14 year old grandson play.
What a lucky grandmother I am. My children and grandchildren refuse to let me get OLD......
Which makes me contemplate the follow piece I read:
Youth is not a time of life---it is a state of mind. It is not a matter of ripe cheeks, red lips and supple knees; (I have chubby knees). It is a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a
vigor of the emotions; it is a freshness of the deep spring of life.
Youth means a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite of ad-
venture over love of ease. This often exists in a person of fifty more than in a person of twenty.
Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years; people grow old by deserting their ideals. Years wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkels the soul. Worry, doubt, selfish trust, fear and despair - these are the long, long years that bow the head and turn the growing spirit back to dust.
Whether seventy or sixteen or seventy-six, there is in every being's heart the love of wonder,
the sweet amazement at the stars and the star like things and thoughts, the undaunted challenge
of events, the unfailing childlike appetite for what next, and the joy and the game of life.
You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young as your hope, as old as your despair.
In the central place of your heart there is a wireless station; so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer, courage, grandeur and the power from the earth, from men and from the Infinite, so long are you young. This I believe...........
When the wires are all down and all the central place of your heart is covered with the snows
of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then are you grown old indeed and may God have mercy on your soul.
I thank my children for giving me a cell phone, (so they can keep track of me)....Ipod, so I can
look IN, Digital Camera (that I have finally learned to print out pictures at Target and recharge
the battery) and a lap top Computer (that I will learn to use or die trying and if my granddaughter doesn't give up on me first!) No, I will not get old.........thanks to a great family.
Monday, August 25, 2008
OUR TRUE WORTH
Some times we have a bad day.............For any number of reasons. You know when it seems like
a World Against Betty day! Some times we just need to be reminded we really are special. I love this story.
A well-known speaker started off his seminar by: holding up a $20.00 bill. In a room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $20 dollar bill?"
Hands started going up.
He said, "I am going to give the $20 dollar bill to one of you but first, let me do this.
He proceeded to crumple up the $20 dollar bill.
He then ask, "Who still wants it?"
Still the hands were up in the air.
Well, he replied, "What if I do this?"
And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe.
He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty.
"Now, who still wants it?"
Still the hands went into the air.
My friends he said we have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did, it did not decrease in value.
It was still worth $20 dollars.
Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value.
Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to those who Do Love you.
The worth of our lives comes not in what we do or who we know, but by who we are.
You are special......don't ever forget it."
Count your blessings, not your problems.
NEVER give up, just remember: amateurs built the ark..........professionsals built the Titanic.
All we have is THIS MINUTE-RIGHT NOW.............enjoy!
a World Against Betty day! Some times we just need to be reminded we really are special. I love this story.
A well-known speaker started off his seminar by: holding up a $20.00 bill. In a room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $20 dollar bill?"
Hands started going up.
He said, "I am going to give the $20 dollar bill to one of you but first, let me do this.
He proceeded to crumple up the $20 dollar bill.
He then ask, "Who still wants it?"
Still the hands were up in the air.
Well, he replied, "What if I do this?"
And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe.
He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty.
"Now, who still wants it?"
Still the hands went into the air.
My friends he said we have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did, it did not decrease in value.
It was still worth $20 dollars.
Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value.
Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to those who Do Love you.
The worth of our lives comes not in what we do or who we know, but by who we are.
You are special......don't ever forget it."
Count your blessings, not your problems.
NEVER give up, just remember: amateurs built the ark..........professionsals built the Titanic.
All we have is THIS MINUTE-RIGHT NOW.............enjoy!
Monday, August 11, 2008
Beijing Summer's Olympics
Had a great weekend! Tiff and I got a pizza and setteled in to watch the Opening Ceremonies of
the Summer Olympics coming from Beijing..............Friday night..........and stayed pretty well glued to the TV the whole weekend. It was truly a fabulous sight and to be able to witness it in your comfortable chair in front of the TV with a big slice of pizza was such a treat. We had a much better seat than many of the ticket holders had. I have been lucky to have been to Beijing and seen it with my own eyes and walk Tenimin Square so know what a great feeling it can be. Of course, I would like to go back someday and see the Ice Cube and the wonderful bird nest and all the other buildings, but we shall see? At my age there may never be another Summer Olympics for me, so I am experiencing this one with all my heart and soul. In the middle of Saturday nights swim meet we got a text message from my oldest grandson.......he had been
playing water basket ball and someone came down on his head with an elbow and he was on his
way to the hospital to get sewed up.......seven stiches.....no less. I guess this to will pass...........and
boys will be boys come to my mind.
Just made plans with my sister to do a driving tour in October of the New England states to view
the Famous Fall Foliage...........Any helpful hints or suggests from either people who live there or
people who have been there done that, "The TWO LITTLE 'OLE LADIES FROM COLORADO" would appreciate it.
the Summer Olympics coming from Beijing..............Friday night..........and stayed pretty well glued to the TV the whole weekend. It was truly a fabulous sight and to be able to witness it in your comfortable chair in front of the TV with a big slice of pizza was such a treat. We had a much better seat than many of the ticket holders had. I have been lucky to have been to Beijing and seen it with my own eyes and walk Tenimin Square so know what a great feeling it can be. Of course, I would like to go back someday and see the Ice Cube and the wonderful bird nest and all the other buildings, but we shall see? At my age there may never be another Summer Olympics for me, so I am experiencing this one with all my heart and soul. In the middle of Saturday nights swim meet we got a text message from my oldest grandson.......he had been
playing water basket ball and someone came down on his head with an elbow and he was on his
way to the hospital to get sewed up.......seven stiches.....no less. I guess this to will pass...........and
boys will be boys come to my mind.
Just made plans with my sister to do a driving tour in October of the New England states to view
the Famous Fall Foliage...........Any helpful hints or suggests from either people who live there or
people who have been there done that, "The TWO LITTLE 'OLE LADIES FROM COLORADO" would appreciate it.
Friday, August 8, 2008
What I do know!
Today is the beginning of a new day.....
God has given me this day to use as I will,
I can waste it or I can use it well,
But, what I do with this day is important
Because I am exchanging a day of my life for it.
Tomorrow, this day will be gone forever,
Leaving in it's place what I traded it for.
I want it to be a win, not a loss.........
A success, not a failure.........
Good not evil........
In order that I will never regret
the price that I paid for this day.
As the years go by and I watch the hands on the clock tick off the minutes I have left here on this earth I do realize tomorrow, this day will be gone forever leaving in it's place all the things
I did or didn't do right here on earth today. I want to make every minute I have left really count. I have this saying memorized and say it often. It is a good tool to bring you into focus and try harder.
God has given me this day to use as I will,
I can waste it or I can use it well,
But, what I do with this day is important
Because I am exchanging a day of my life for it.
Tomorrow, this day will be gone forever,
Leaving in it's place what I traded it for.
I want it to be a win, not a loss.........
A success, not a failure.........
Good not evil........
In order that I will never regret
the price that I paid for this day.
As the years go by and I watch the hands on the clock tick off the minutes I have left here on this earth I do realize tomorrow, this day will be gone forever leaving in it's place all the things
I did or didn't do right here on earth today. I want to make every minute I have left really count. I have this saying memorized and say it often. It is a good tool to bring you into focus and try harder.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
You Gotta Journal
Before my second granddaughter went off to her new job after graduating from college, I
gave her a journal and a pen and pencil set and told her to write down all her experiences as she
started a new chapter in her life..........good or bad........and always, ALWAYS date each entry. I
know it can be a struggle some times, but it is great to look back over your life in the past. It
is also a way to help you focus and get past some hard times. JOURNALS only listen, they don't
talk back or judge you!
When I teach Journal classes, I teach there are many ways to journal......... now my granddaughter has taught me a new way to journal. She keeps us all informed on her where abouts and fun things she has been doing. My family assured me I could learn how to use it. Now I have another tool to do my journaling! Yes, I love it. My first try, everything I typed was translated into Hindu, but my granddaughter knew just what to do to take care of it for me, but I did feel pretty important knowing I could even journal in Hindu!
gave her a journal and a pen and pencil set and told her to write down all her experiences as she
started a new chapter in her life..........good or bad........and always, ALWAYS date each entry. I
know it can be a struggle some times, but it is great to look back over your life in the past. It
is also a way to help you focus and get past some hard times. JOURNALS only listen, they don't
talk back or judge you!
When I teach Journal classes, I teach there are many ways to journal......... now my granddaughter has taught me a new way to journal. She keeps us all informed on her where abouts and fun things she has been doing. My family assured me I could learn how to use it. Now I have another tool to do my journaling! Yes, I love it. My first try, everything I typed was translated into Hindu, but my granddaughter knew just what to do to take care of it for me, but I did feel pretty important knowing I could even journal in Hindu!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
New Directions In Creative Journaling
Travel, travel, travel.............Journal, journal, journal. Two of the most satisfying things in my life. I will not be like the Fortune Hunter who traveled the world over in search of the Great Treasures of Life...........only to return home exhausted and discover that all I need is, and has been, in my own back yard.
Yes, I travel as much as possible. In fact I have been badly infected by a "Travel Bug"........I call
him Homer! Homer bit me in high school in a small town in Colorado. I followed with all the symptoms and lived only to be 21, so I could become and "Air Line Stewardess".........which I did.
I have not stopped traveling since.
I have been and will continue my quest of visiting as many countries as I can around the world.
Some day I will have to hang up my "DUNN ROVIN" sign over my door, but maybe not for a few more years. My goal was to get 100 countries so I could belong to the "100 Countries Country Club", I did hit that goal a few years ago. I have been to six of the seven continents on my list and only eight more of the 50 U.S. states to go.
I would love to hear from some of the other world travels and compare notes.
Yes, I travel as much as possible. In fact I have been badly infected by a "Travel Bug"........I call
him Homer! Homer bit me in high school in a small town in Colorado. I followed with all the symptoms and lived only to be 21, so I could become and "Air Line Stewardess".........which I did.
I have not stopped traveling since.
I have been and will continue my quest of visiting as many countries as I can around the world.
Some day I will have to hang up my "DUNN ROVIN" sign over my door, but maybe not for a few more years. My goal was to get 100 countries so I could belong to the "100 Countries Country Club", I did hit that goal a few years ago. I have been to six of the seven continents on my list and only eight more of the 50 U.S. states to go.
I would love to hear from some of the other world travels and compare notes.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
