Maybe you read about it over at Leanne's place. But I wanted to post here. Since the Cellar Chicks decided on their One Little Word for 2012, Leanne had this vision. And we all know that when that chick has a vision, beautiful things result.
So this is the artwork she created for my word, Truth. Such lovely texture, and a story behind the creation.
It's a treat to run your hand over it, feeling all the different textures on one piece. She posted the "recipe" on her blog and it is inspiring me to make a piece with my previous years' words. Not that I can match her talent, but I'm loving the inspiration!!
Wouldn't it be nice if some of this showed up in her Etsy shoppe??
I think I'm going to spend part of the day creating. Something. Just don't know what yet. But I scored some sheet music yesterday (Thanks, CE) and it's calling to me!!
Sure you do. We all have dreams. Some of them are goals, some of them border on fantasy. Some of them are little wishes. Some of them are humongous. In my opinion, if what your dreams are make you into the best person you can be, then you are fulfilling your mission on this earth.
Today we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday. He had a dream. A dream that certainly couldn't be fulfilled overnight. A dream not just for himself, but for mankind. "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but the the content of their character." Isn't that beautiful?
I'm glad that I've witnessed in my lifetime a shift in how people/races interact with one another. One man spoke up to voice what others felt in their hearts and moved us to the healing that humankind so sorely needed. You see, as long as we hold those prejudices and hates, we are not free. We are shackled by those hates; that anger. And until we decide that what's on the outside really doesn't matter and that the only thing that matters is what's in someone's heart, we will never be free. He said it best when he said:
Let freedom ring. And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring -- when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children -- black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics -- will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: "Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"
Whether or not you have the day off today, have a wonderful day! And just send a quick note of gratitude to your higher power that we were blessed to have heard the words from Dr. King's heart.
I just wanted to show you how you can leave for work in the morning with nary a snowflake in sight. Return home 9 hours later to a totally different look!
Thank goodness for my PG who cleared the driveway before I got home!! He takes good care of me!
No, I won't be playing in the snow today. Not that much of a fan. Just an admirerer from afar!
It's a funny thing about this place known as blogland. Just as if you're at a party with a lot of people you don't know, you move thru the room and meet people. Some you connect with and others you listen to and decide that you don't want to continue the relationship. Recently, I came across a blog I enjoy. LifeUnity is a blog that focuses on awareness.
About three years ago, I was part of a research group that considered whether mindfulness had an effect on the recurrence of breast cancer. When we met, we learned mindfulness exercises, yoga, being still and eating healthy. Unfortunately, I didn't carry on with what I learned.
Back to LifeUnity. Lisa has a project that started today that invites us to practice mindfulness. I signed up for it. It's called Wild Elephant Project.
Day 1 - it's working. 'Twas a more mindful day for me today. I paid attention to things that I would normally do without thought. All because I did them with my non-dominant hand. (Try brushing your teeth with your non-dominant hand).
Looking forward to where this will lead. I'm expecting delivery of the book that inspired this project in a couple of days. Should be an interesting journey.
Care to join me? Stop by here to let Lisa know. And I'll keep you posted on how things go for me.
Love the sweetness of this song and the interaction between the two.
What a great way to start the year!!
Happy New Year to all! May this one be filled with questions answered, wishes fullfilled, dreams come true, and good health and prosperity to enjoy it all.
Many of my regular followers are familiar with Ali Edward's One Little Word. She suggests you identify one word that can be your guiding light for the year. Similar to a new year's resolution, but different in that it leaves things open for whatever might add to your life experience. As Ali E says, it "...can be a powerful thing. It can be a ripple in a pond that changes everything. It can be sharp and biting or rich and soft and slow." Sometimes the word picks you instead of you picking the word.
3. a verified or indiputable fact, principle, proposition or the like
And it chose me. As I was driving. Talking to myself. Asking questions about others' actions and then I turned it around and asked about my own actions. And I realized that what I need in my life right now is for me to be honest with myself. I need to take ownership of things for which I previously blamed (oh, how I dislike that word) others.
I need to discover and embrace the truth about my relationships. About weight loss. About exercise. About healthy eating. About homemaking. About time management.
I need to be truthful with myself. And I will not allow myself to believe what Jack Nicholson says...
Oh, yes I can. Oh, yes I will. I can't say this will be easy. I'm a little anxious on moving forward with this. But I see that as a good thing. Being anxious heightens awareness. And then...
All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered.
The point is to discover them - Galileo
And so the journey begins.
I'd love to know if you have a word for 2012. Feel free to share in the comments or to post a link to your blog. C'mon...what's YOUR word?
As we were growing up, my siblings and I knew "the look" we would get from my mother if we were stepping out of line. Many of you know about "the look". Without a word being spoken, while your mother is at the other side of a room, your eyes meet hers and BAM!! You know if you continue to do what you are doing, you are in BIG trouble.
I swore I would never use it on my kids. HA!!! So much for promises made to yourself when you are 12 years old. Yes, my kids will tell you that I used "the look" on occasion. And I can tell that my eldest grandson experiences "the look" from either mom or dad or both, because I catch him occasionally looking up to "take a reading".
I love how our eyes tell so much. I love looking at pictures to see whether the eyes match the mouth in what's being told in the photo. C'mon...you know what I mean! Smilin' eyes!! And how disturbing is it when the eyes don't match the mouth?
But the reason I tell you this is because I wanted to share with you my experience when I received the best Christmas present a grandma could get. I received a gift card for a date at Make a Messterpiece with my 4 1/2 year old grandson. But it wasn't the gift card that was the best gift. It was this gift bag, handed to me with a special look. A look that told me I was going to L-O-V-E what was inside. A look that exuded confidence in how perfect this gift was for me.
In actuality, I loved that he wrote all of this on the bag. You see, I will scrapbook this. I will take pictures of my date with him, of his Messterpiece, of our time together and I will scrap those pics right next to this bag. And I will melt each time I see it.
I am certain that I am the luckiest grandma in the whole wide world.
From my home to yours, may your Christmas be filled with joy and peace, may you enjoy your time with those you love, and may you know how grateful I am to call you "friend".
Have you seen any movie trailers for "We Bought a Zoo"? First of all, gotta love Matt Damon and that smile!!! But he says one line that just blew me away. It's a quote that grabbed my heart immediately. All I could think about was, I've GOT to share this with my blog buddies!! Ready??
"All you need is 20 seconds of insane courage and
I promise you something great will come of it."
Think about that for a minute. You can plan and dream and wonder and plan and when it gets right down to it, it's the 20 seconds you spend telling yourself you are moving forward with your dream that involves the insane courage. Everything that follows is just support, whether it's self support or support from others. I LOVE this quote. Can't wait to see the movie.
Hope your holiday planning is coming along at a non-stressful pace.
I'm really quite impressed with some of your amazing deals this season. Really some great pricing. I can see where you are trying to get your fair share of my Christmas budget.
However, I'm very aware of how much you are charging me for shipping. And if I think it's unreasonable, you aren't getting my business.
