Courage, Confidence and Connections

  CONNECTED OR DISCONNECTED?     Are you connected or disconnected? The word connect means ‘bring together or into contact so that a real or notional link is established’. So disconnect would mean the opposite.     There are connections in life of all sorts. There are business connections, personal connections, computer connections, electrical connections. You get my drift so connecting means a type of contact and a link.     In business, I connect people to each other in various ways and it can be virtual or personal. Once I introduce them, it is up to them to take it from there and get to know each other.  In personal relationships, it’s much the same.     If you unplug your computer or television, you lose the ability to benefit from the ‘connection’ and the source. Unplugging however, can be very beneficial in our lives. We are so connected to our devices that often someone cannot function without it.     In our relationshi...

  FLOATING     Ahhh, I don’t know where you live but in Central Oregon, this is a very popular thing to do. I’m sure today and the next few days here the river will be a busy place with those who float.      Personally, I have not tried this but I have been told it is amazing and unbelievably relaxing thing to do. It’s one of the ultimate letting go experiences. I have floated in a pool, a lake and an ocean if that counts.      I love the sound of water in a creek, a river, an ocean and waterfalls. Water supports our weight when we let go. It is a trust factor when you want to float.     In my family we went to Myrtle Beach almost every year that I can remember so I am well acquainted with the Atlantic Ocean and enjoying floating and riding the waves back in. We didn’t surf!     My younger brother was considered the fish in the family. He taught himself to swim at a very young age and actually helped me learn to swim. Now ...

  STRENGTH     I have recently been going to see a physical therapist and he is putting me through my paces. I’ve had a few injuries over the years and it affected so much of my life.     I love walking outdoors in a nice setting as well as lifting weights since I was in my 20’s. Our muscles have memory and thankfully mine will start to have some memory recall.      My point in this topic is it is painful to undo what was done over the years and a lack of physical activity has weakened my body. One chiropractor told me several years ago that there are two reasons we can have physical pain.     The first reason is weakness and lack of use. The second is as we build our bodies back up there is a time of pain we go through regaining that which we lost. I am experiencing the latter right now but I will be better and stronger for it.     Our lives in general have this in common. What we don’t use, we can lose and it gets weaker. It ...

   CONTENTMENT      What is contentment? It’s a state of happiness and satisfaction. What does it mean to you? I love this photo. I love to swing. As a kid, you couldn’t keep me off of the swing set. I was always drawn to the swing regardless and learned how to fly high by myself. I even own a hammock chair now that swings.     Are you content? Are you happy? Are you satisfied? Let me tell you something, you won’t be content, happy, satisfied in the future if you are not there in the present. I talk a lot about being present. It is important.      You want to have a vision for your future without question and I encourage that. But we are a culture driven with goals and accomplishment and where do you want to be in 5 years mentality. Again, I don’t disagree as I am a coach and I ask those questions.      However, more and more, I work with people to be awake where they are right now. There are situations that seem to hover ...

ONE WAY STREET   Are you a 'ONE WAY STREET'? Hmmm, I guess I can explain that one. There are those who are awesome at giving and others at receiving. But I ask you, which one are you?      I  love to give, give, give. In some ways I have been a one way street in finding it easier to give than receive. However, that cuts off the flow in your life and burnout is inevitable. You can only give what you are and what you have. When the well is dry, what then?      Don't get me wrong, I have received much in my life and am very thankful. I have not been comfortable always with receiving. Much of the time it has made me uneasy. Not so much now as I am open to receiving all that comes my way and if I can't use it, then I get to pass it on.     I have a very funny story about one way streets to share with you about my Mom. We lived in a small town in North Carolina called Henderson. It's in the upper central part of the state and we...

  SWEET MEMORIES   We all have sweet memories don’t we? This is a caramel cake. My memory of this cake (photo borrowed) comes from the place of many of my sweet memories.      My Aunt Hettie, you’ve read about her before in my blogs, baked these quite often. She was an amazing cook and baker. My memory of this cake is of it’s extreme sweetness. What I remember most is how the icing was so sweet it made my teeth hurt. But that didn’t stop me from eating it.     I haven’t had a bite of one of these cakes in decades. My Aunt Hettie lived well into her 90’s and was my mentor. She taught me to sew at a young age. I love being there and you will read more in upcoming blogs about her and the sweet memories from my time with her.     Life can be bittersweet at times. I’ve written before about our focus. Sometimes we are in a place where it all gets jumbled up and the sweet mixes with the bitter. But in the end for me, the takeaway is the sweetness....

TIME      Time! It comes and it goes. Many songs and books have been written about time. This is a very old mantle clock that was given to me by my Mom a number of years ago; not sure how long.     Time has a way of slipping by and going too quickly in our lives, daily, yearly and on and on it goes. Do you ever just stop the clock and turn off life long enough to enjoy what is around you? Easier said than done.      My clock stopped at 1:12 many years ago and because of the significance of the clock, I decided to leave it at that time. I recall the clock being on my Aunt Hettie’s mantle of her fireplace in the dining room of her beautiful home in Petersburg, Virginia.. I think I may have a photo somewhere taken when I was in high school of it there.     Why write about time? Honestly, I simply want to encourage you to spend your time wisely and that doesn’t always mean time management with a silly calendar or smart phone reminding you to...

WHEE!   First of all, that ’s not me. But I do have a story of courage to tell on myself. Why is there a picture of a tricycle when as I wrote previously that I do not like riding a bike? Stay tuned and keep reading.     I don’t like riding a bike but when I was about 9. I I decided to explore riding my little sisters tricycle instead. This was a time when we lived in Henderson, North Carolina in a parsonage beside one of the churches my dad pastored. (Yesterday would have been his 93rd birthday by the way.)      My sister is 6 years younger than I am (and yesterday was also her birthday but I won’t disclose ages here) so she would have been 3 with her first tricycle and maybe the only one she had. Behind the church and leading up to our house there was a gravel driveway with a slight incline coming in or (ha ha) decline going out. Can you see it coming?     I don’t recall being all that brave or adventurous but as I recall my childhood, I was as ...

  BEAUTY IN THE RAIN     In Central Oregon where I live now we are having some cloudy and rainy days. It’s not a common occurrence this time of year however. It can be very refreshing in the high desert and much needed.     I recall in North Carolina some years back when I was in outside sales that it rained and stormed every day in June on year. That did get old since it can be very humid and warm.     It is funny how so many complain about the rain isn’t it? You can have too much of a good thing but where would we be without the rain? The sound of rain is so soothing and to me even seeing lightning at a distance and the thunder that follows has such a beauty to it.     When it rains we want the sun. When it’s too hot and dry we want it to rain. Are we ever happy? I recommend taking a few minutes to take in your surroundings; look out the window and be thankful for what you see.     Rain is cleansing and healing to our land. It pro...

  PREACHING TO THE CHOIR     You may have heard the phrase before and since I am a preachers kid, I can and will take some "Poetic license" with it today. it originally means to try to convince somebody of something they already agree with. I always thought it meant I was telling you something I needed to hear. And that is where I will start.      Have you ever had it happen to you when you are talking to someone about something and you realize you need to hear it more than they do or at least as much? Yep! Me too and it recently happened to me.     I won't bore you with the details but I want to talk to you about it. It just so happened that in a conversation not too long ago that I was hearing something I need to hear but did not necessarily want to hear. Then, less than 24 hours later I am having a very similar if not close to the same conversation with someone else.     As I was having the second conversation it dawne...

  SURPRISE!     Do you love surprises? I do. Well, of course, happy surprises, not so much the other kind. I remember my only surprise birthday party. It was planned by my boyfriend and my mom for my 16th birthday. It really was a very special one.     Some people don’t like any kind of surprise. I personally don’t know that I know anyone like that. I like getting cards and gifts as surprises and happy moments that surprise me as well. There are all kind of surprises in life.     I also like to know some things ahead of time and stability. I’ve been watching some episodes of Undercover Boss. That is such a great show. So many of the bosses give lavishly to the employees they work with to better their lives.      I just watched one a few minutes ago that changed the lives of four people. It is inspiring how one person can affect another and a simple surprise alters their life for good going forward. Maybe we can reach out and change a lif...

  MIRROR MIRROR   Who do you see when you look in the mirror? Do you like what you see or who you see? Children are so awesome especially at a very young age and they are so candid.     We use mirrors every day and do we truly see ourselves? Maybe you look only at your face to put on your makeup or shave if you are a guy. Take a look in your own eyes. You may do it all the time or never, but do you truly see you?     You are beautiful inside and out. You are perfect inside and out. I wrote yesterday about being happy. It all starts with that. When kids are young, they just accept themselves and others. They form opinions otherwise later in life.      Recently I had new headshots taken for my business, new logo and preparing for a new website. My point in that comment is that I wanted a new look that truly represents me. My old ones represented the me I thought I was 6 years ago. But they weren’t who I am.      The most difficul...

  FOCUS FORWARD      Where is your focus? You may have heard it said, ‘What you focus on grows”. So I ask, what are you growing in your life? Are you living in the weeds of the past or sowing good seeds for a bountiful garden called your future?     If you aren’t paying attention, your mind will carry you like the wind in a storm and you will land in places not so pleasant. We have the awesome ability to choose what we think about.     I’ve been reading a book over the last few days called ‘Awareness’ and it is an eye opener. Why aren’t we happy? That is his focus. At first I didn’t quite understand the direction however as I continue in my reading of the book, it’s all making sense.     One of the offices I go to has a sign in their restroom that says, CHOOSE HAPPY. But do we? As the author points out in the book most people are asleep, sleepwalking through life and trying to get to ‘happy’.      We will be happy when we ...

  SECURITY     Today I’d like to share a sweet story about me. I’ve mentioned before about growing up as a preachers kid (otherwise known as a PK), There were four of us but at this time in my life, it was me and my older brother.      We moved around quite a bit while I was growing up. I was born in a town in North Carolina called Kinston. It’s in the more eastern part of the state and wasn’t that big at that time. Since I was only a baby, I believe we moved when I was 2 years old to a quaint little town by the name of Littleton, no joke. It’s in the north eastern part of the state.        My older brother is 14 months ahead of me. Mom said he used to tease me and pinch me. Sibling thing I imagine. In our little town of Littleton, we had neighbors, May and Walter Bobbit . They were such a sweet older couple and seemed much like grandparents at the time. Walking to their house on a daily basis was a part of our lives.     My da...