Category: acceptance

Laugh at yourself

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, aggravations, consequences, coping, electronic devices, frustration, funny, humor, Laugh, perspective

catastrophe-2028623_640Today is one of those days where you have to laugh at yourself or just sit down and cry. This morning I decided to make a summer soup I have been craving. It is a curried fresh spinach and green pea soup and is a chilled soup and easy to make. It is made on the stove and simmered for a short while. Making the soup was a breeze and the last step is to put the hot liquid in small quantities in the blender. I blended the first two batches and all was well. There was just a small amount to finish up. I put it in and turned the blender on. At that moment the bottom of the blender began to leak and then there was a cascade of soup all over the counter, the floor, my socks. the cabinets and, of course, the machine part of the blender.

Apparently I did not check to see that the bottom was screwed in tight and it undid itself. The next hour was spent in cleaning everything up. I used almost a whole roll of paper towels along with cloth towels. I had to put the blender mechanism on towels and run it to clear soup from the inside. I have left it to dry and still don’t know if it will work or if I have to get a new one. When I tried it after cleaning it started to smell burnt but I am not sure if that is leftover soup or if it is the machine burning. I will find that out later.

Sense-of-Humor-864x486

I have long decided that one of the most critical things in life is a sense of humor. Without that I would have been cursing and crying over the mess I created. My sense of humor kicked in and all I could do was laugh. This yucky event gave me my laugh for the day.

I hope that you are blessed with the ability to laugh at yourself. It saves a lot of anger and pain.

Today is what matters

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, anxiety, appreciate, celebrate, choices, consequences, enjoy, life, Live!, moments

It is so easy to forget that today…this moment….is all we have. The sky could fall on me right now and it would be all over. Yet, I can spend an inordinate amount of time worrying about tomorrow.

Those of us who are troubled with anxiety are so good at worrying about things which usually don’t happen. I tend to pick the worse case scenario and obsess about it. So silly.

worry about tomorrow

It is time to throw off the shackles of worry and enjoy each moment of life that is given to us. Tomorrow may never come and if it does then that when I’ll think about it.

Neutral is hard

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, aggravations, balance, consequences, control, emotions, family, misunderstanding, peace, perspective

How can things go so awry? How can life get so out of hand? In mediations I see the mistakes that people make. Sometimes they have to do with relationships. Sometimes they are about money. Sometimes it is a mixture of both.

business conflict resolution conceptThe hardest part about being a mediator is wanting to fix it and that is not allowed. It is part of the legal court system and we must remain neutral and not give any kind of advice. Once there was a case where the only thing dividing the two people was $10.00. It would have been simpler to give the person the money rather than try to get them to meet in the middle.

As of yet I have not been trained to do Domestic cases which deal with divorce and child custody. I can see the real emotional issues attached to that. I am not sure if I want to do that.

If you have a family with multiple children I think you have spent a great deal of time mediating.  I learned early on to let one person pick two brownies and the other choose first from the two. Much time was spent finding exact pieces. I have always loved this cartoon from a long time ago.

popcorn

Just wait

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, answers, change, church, comfort, connections, consequences, decisions, faith, home, just sit, perspective, prayer, sadness

home no longer

It is an interesting to discover that you no longer feel at home someplace where you used to. That has happened to me. Lately I have felt disconnected from the church I am attending. There is nothing really wrong just me feeling differently. I suppose spending 20 years working for another church didn’t help but I do want to be back at church with my husband and this is where he is at home.

The church has made major changes over time. Initially there was a minister who seemed right for the church but turned out to not be. Following that mistakes were made in finding someone new (not by the church itself) and now the attendance is down to a very small group. It is really sad.

I love music and for me that is a large part of connecting spiritually. The music is not reaching me. Again may be just me but there it is. I can’t return to the church where I worked so am just puzzling about the whole thing.

I am finding my connections in my writing, reading and prayers but there are things I really miss. Both churches have wonderful people that I love and so I know the questions are mine.

Somehow I will wander through this time of feeling at a loss and come out the other end. It is nothing that I have to solve quickly. In fact I think taking time to sort it all out will help.

sit and wait

Questions about one’s faith are not unusual. In fact I think if we don’t question we don’t grow. I will find ways to fill my soul until some clarification comes. That always happens. Sometimes we just have to sit and wait.

Don’t fear

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, choices, commitment, connections, decisions, fear, joy, Live!, love, pain, unconditional love

It is a funny thing about love. We really can’t experience the fullness of it unless we are open to it. Being open, however, puts us at risk of being hurt. That is the trade off.

vulnerableSometimes we choose to love someone and are hurt by that person. It happens to everyone. Sitting back in fear gets us nowhere. I know people who have spent their lives alone because they couldn’t accept the uncertainty. Love is rarely certain.

We take a risk when we choose to love. I have taken that risk more that once and been hurt. I also took that risk 56 years ago when I married my husband. That risk paid off. Not all of them do.

For me, a life without love is a barren life. Yes, I have been hurt by relationships. Sometimes even those we think of as friends can hurt us terribly. It takes time to know a person well and the person we see at the beginning may be wearing a mask. We may not find out until later what is underneath.

I know someone who was married for years only to discover the person she loved was a criminal. We can be fooled.

Is it worth it? Yes, yes and yes! If the love is lost we will experience pain. We learn from the pain and become someone who has more depth. If it lasts it brings joy.

Don’t stay away from love out of fear. It is one of the most fruitful things in life. You can’t afford to not live fully!

Some days

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, choices, consequences, emotions, healing, just sit, stress, understanding

This has been one of those days. There are times when there is nothing to do but back away and wait for the next day.  I can’t explain it adequately except this way.

Rest

Some Days

Some days

are just too hard

 

Some days

sap all your strength

 

Some days

there is nothing to do

 

But rest

How will we cope?

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, answers, appearance, balance, change, consequences, decisions, emotions, empathy, healing, life changes, Live!, moments, strength

Life can be so demanding. The things that happen not only to us but to others can be devastating. I have friends who have suffered with long term problems that are just there day in and day out. I honestly don’t know how some people manage to keep going.

coping long term

The friends that I know who are struggling still greet me with a smile and a sense that things are ok. I don’t see the stress that I know is under the smile. They are not putting a smiling face on as a false mask. Occasionally they will share the devastation that is part of their lives but they don’t allow it be in charge. I so admire that ability.

positive attitudeAttitude is everything. The ability to assess life and accentuate the positive is a gift and one that I hope I would have in their circumstances. We can be bombed by the things that happen to us but we have to learn to adjust out attitude. Life is for living not for bemoaning. We are entitled to spend some time asking ourselves “why me?” We need time adjusting to a new life but when that is done hopefully we can be like my friends, and no matter the tragedy, have some time for smiles.

Ideas?!

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, aging, change, connections, feelings, help, ideas, just sit, perspective

repairs

The next weeks will be challenging as we are having some repairs done to the house. I don’t know how long it will take but I’m geared up to just putting up with the chaos.  We will still be able to live here so that is a help.

Sometimes it is so frustrating not to be able to use the skills I developed over the years. I feel that so much experience is going to waste. Sometimes that is just how things go. I will continue to find places to help with the things that I can. It’s just that feelings get in the way and make me sad.

Share-Experience-I have no reason to expect others to understand how much I have learned and how much I still have to give. I know that if I keep searching I will find someplace to continue the things I love. Life doesn’t always go along the way we want. I am continuing to explore things I have never done and keep learning and growing. I actually have plenty to keep me busy and should concentrate on the things I can do instead of the things I can’t.

I understand how so many aging people feel useless. We have spent our lives learning and it would be wonderful to be able to share.  When I visit those in nursing homes I can see how the lack of something useful to do can sap the spirit. I have seen nursing homes recently who have found ways to give seniors inspiration and a reason to get up in the morning. Some have integrated with child care places and the elders help with the children and are also lifted up by them. A wonderful idea. There are some other that I don’t remember at the moment. I hope these ideas continue and grow.

New_Invention_Ideas_George-Foreman-2

Those of you who are young and full of ideas put on your thinking caps and suggest ways that seniors can interact with others in a meaningful way. Any ideas welcome!

Families are unique

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, balance, children, family, love, morals, parenting, perspective, unconditional love, understanding

It has been a fun and interesting week. The visit with my daughter and her family has been fun. Family together is never without its moments but this has been good.

welcome

I feel so blessed that my children “like” each other as well as love. the “liking” part is not always present in families. It is so easy to love someone as family but dislike the way they are. There are times when we can get on the outs for some reason but is has always blown over. I hope that part of that is due to my husband and I. At least I would love to think so.

Families are tricky things. It is so easy to forget that everyone is their own person and has thoughts, beliefs and ideas separate from others. The lifestyle of my three children is much different from each other but they still get along. They are vastly different in personalities and have each pursued totally different careers. I am glad they have followed their own paths.

nuts

If you have children don’t be afraid to let them follow their own path. Obviously, they need love and direction but they are individuals. As they grow they need solid underpinning knowing that there is someone who will be there no matter what. They also need someone who will teach them a moral compass. With this behind them they will grow into good people.