"Envy is a symptom of lack of appreciation of our own uniqueness and self worth. Each of us has something to give that no one else has.”~Elizabeth O'Connor Years ago there was a super creepy movie called Seven. It was about a serial killer who used the seven deadly sins as a sort of motif for a string of murders. The film had a star-studded cast, did...
"Reading about nature is fine, but if a person walks in the woods and listens carefully, he can learn more than what is in books, for they speak with the voice of God."~ George Washington Carver I absolutely loved to climb trees when I was a kid. Summer days were long and sweet and I spent them outdoors from dawn to dusk. A shady hideaway high...
"The gentleman is solid mahogany; the fashionable man is only veneer."~J.G. Holland My husband and I spent several deeply satisfying years buying, restoring and selling antiques. That guy has a genius for spotting a diamond in the rough. He Cinderella-ed many pieces rescued from junk piles, old barns and granaries. Those once beat up and homely cupboards, dressers, benches and tables became treasures after he worked...
“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”~African proverb I had a wonderful experience attending my first writer's conference over the weekend. And today I binged on learning and networking at a gathering of women entrepreneurs. What a bright spot they've been in a stretch of gloomy days when spring refuses to show up! At both events I was...
"A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness, he will bring forth justice." ~Isaiah 42:3 Life lessons have a way of appearing on our doorstep over and over again until the light bulb finally turns on. I wrote about forgiveness last April. It happened when I fell into the pages of a book. Tonight as I write this,...
"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do."~Eleanor Roosevelt I have a very brainy nephew who delights in wearing tee shirts sporting highly intelligent humor. For example, one of his favorites is "Coulrophobia. It's no laughing matter." If you don't have an unabridged dictionary...
"Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later." ~Og Mandino Spring is almost here. It becomes official next week at 11:15 AM CDT on March 20 when the vernal equinox arrives. Soon, we'll see green shoots piercing through the soil and explode into bright colors. Last fall I buried papery brown lifeless-looking bulbs in the dirt knowing that a small miracle would take...
"The truth is, what you do matters. What you do today matters. What you do everyday matters." ~Jeff Olsen We humans don't always catch on real quick and it's understandable. It's hard to place value on slow and steady in a world of hot and ready. In a world of 24/7/365, always on and instant access, it's boring. Baby steps, incremental improvements and inch worm speed...
“Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, she became a butterfly.” ~Barbara Haines Howett Late February drags under the best circumstances, even though it's the shortest month. This time of year is hard. And, I stink at waiting. Waiting in line, waiting at stop lights, waiting for spring. Not my bailiwick. I'm especially bad at waiting for answers, waiting for progress. I admit it, I'm...
“We are perishing for want of wonder, not for want of wonders.”~ GK Chesterton Sure. Join the crowd. Give me a bad time about the huge number of unread emails on my iPhone. My family does. But I get so much good stuff! What if the next life-changing idea came from one of them? What would happen if I delete one that turns out to be...