A Heartfelt Journey – Page 3 – Join me on a blessed and heartfelt journey of discovery!

Dear Trees, Thank You for Your Gift of Shade

August 30, 2021August 30, 2021
by admin

It was a Saturday, and we had committed to spending the day with our granddaughter so her parents might have time to just be themselves instead of parents, if only for a short while. Fortunately, while breezy, it was a lovely sunny day, and I had planned activities that we could quickly pivot to as a toddler’s attention span seems to adjust every few minutes. From playing chase outside, giggling with each other as we lay on the grass gazing at the sky, to more structured activities like playing golf with the golf set her grandfather had gifted her, we were keeping her busy. Read more “Dear Trees, Thank You for Your Gift of Shade” →

Reflections and Lessons

The Curiosity and Wonder of A Beginner’s Mind

May 13, 2021
by admin

Dance has taught me many things in my life. The need for balance and positioning myself so that I am ready for the next steps to be executed. It has taught me how to move to the music of the world and how to be flexible, not just in the movement but in adapting to a change in rhythm or a prop suddenly in the way. It has taught me discipline and hard work bring their own rewards. More importantly perhaps, it has taught me that in approaching things from a learning perspective with curiosity and wonder, a beginner’s mind, the world of opportunity opens up.

Heroes Among Us

A Hero, An Artist and the Tiny Prints

March 18, 2021March 18, 2021
by admin

‘Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.’ I first encountered these words in a little framed picture of a butterfly that had been left on the counter where I work. Despite asking several people, no one could account for how this miniature piece of artwork had found its way to its new home where it has remained for several years. Simple and profound words that, unbeknownst to me at the time, built a connection between Nita Streetman and I. A reminder of the importance of kindness and soon I would learn, a reminder as well, at how we are all connected, unknowingly impacting each other.

Mindfulness

Wildflowers and Unexpected Opportunities

March 3, 2021
by admin

Looking forward to a couple of days with no work obligations, the weekend is always enticing as it sparkles with opportunity. A little time to catch up on my reading. A bit of time to take care of home finances and maybe even some housework. Spend sometime with my husband not worried about what time it is. Sleep in perhaps, or, perhaps take an extra long walk with Sierra, my dog. Better yet, a long hike on dirt paths surrounded by green foliage and maybe wildflowers or at the beach listening to the music of the ocean. Those are the enticing activities with which I so often look forward. And sometimes, I push those things aside when an unexpected opportunity presents itself for adventure, a new place to explore or people to chat with that I don’t normally see. Housework can wait. The bills can wait. My exercise routine can wait.

Reflections and Lessons

Under All the Chocolate Cake, Frosting and Vanilla Creme

February 26, 2021February 26, 2021
by admin

It is a story that is quite old in our family, one that has been retold several times at Christmas, Thanksgiving…anytime we are all together. It is now fondly regaled with lots of laughter but when it happened there was no laughter involved. There was anger. There were harsh words. There was a feeling of unworthiness. Then silence.

Reflections and Lessons

Letting Go to Make Room

February 11, 2021February 11, 2021
by admin

I made it. I found myself on the board of one of our community organizations that was populated by the movers and the shakers; the individuals that helped shape our community with their decisions. This was a place I had dreamed of being, a place to make a difference and I was humbled to have arrived. Like so many things, however, the perception and the reality don’t always align. After several months I found there was a lot of talk, many words and ideas shared but action became bogged down in posturing and differing agendas. The movers and shakers were more the talkers and sitters. Fortunately I realized this was not the place for me and resigned from the organization after a short two years.

Read more “Letting Go to Make Room” →

Reflections and Lessons

Self-Improvement and Growth or Something Else?

January 27, 2021February 1, 2021
by admin

Being an HSP in a culture that doesn’t value kindness (Nice guy finishes last!) or the other traits we tend to have is challenging. I have often felt like I was the odd one out, a square peg trying to fit in the round hole, and I had no one with whom to share these similar experiences. So I adapted.

Energy Flows

Change is Potential-Change is Hope

January 7, 2021
by admin

Change for me has been a scary concept far too often. I am slow to relinquish where I am and slow to embrace the new. Slow to take the next step and move out of the comfort of the known. Yet change is one of the constants in life. It is with us everyday from the hands on the clock moving to each breath we take. Each moment is different from the next, each inhalation and exhalation different from the one before.

Mindfulness

The Magic of Embracing The Moment

December 4, 2020December 4, 2020
by admin

I recently had the opportunity to camp with my husband and explore some new hiking trails. We had chosen Death Valley as our destination as it was one of the warmest places in California in November and yet a comfortable daytime temperature, not to mention we felt we could readily practice our social distancing. I wasn’t sure what I expected of the desert and this national park but I was unprepared for the majesty and the allure we encountered. The diversity of color and land formations created beautifully unique scenes. A beauty that while very different, was comparable to other places I had admired that were lush with vegetation. Nature has an extraordinary ability to create magnificent works of art with whatever she has at hand.

Energy Flows

A New Thanksgiving Day Tradition

November 23, 2020
by admin

As Thanksgiving Day approaches my feelings about the celebrations surrounding it are very different than they have been in the past. I have come to understand the history I was taught surrounding this day is a bit skewed, having been presented from a very narrow point of view. A view that represented a small portion of the people inhabiting this place we call America and while it may be how some experienced their arrival and celebration of this new world, it is not representative of all the inhabitants nor even the majority. And so I question, what does Thanksgiving Day mean for me this year, a year in which the world I once knew no longer exists?

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