I Choose The Jeep

In a world filled with grueling traffic, aggressive drivers, flat tires and cracked windshields, it's nice to see a positive message on the road every once in a while.

Last week, as I was driving to Qdoba's for "Dollar Taco Tuesday" day with my friends from work, I noticed a bumper sticker on a bright yellow jeep that said "The Meaning of Life is to LIVE IT." Below the sticker, the license place said "NJYLIFE"... Enjoy life!

When I saw "NJYLIVE", it reminded me of two others I noticed on the highways recently, "HGURKDS" (Hug Your Kids) and "PEACENU" (Peace In You.) It's interesting how these inspiring messages can refocus your attention to more important things in life, instead of grumbling about the guy who doesn't use a turn signal or the chic who just ran a red light while talking on a cell phone. These three license plates remind me of the importance of my family and make me thankful for the abundance of blessings in my life.

What a stark difference that peaceful feeling was to the one I felt when a monstrous, black truck with shaded windows and jacked up tires came barreling through traffic the other day, it's 6-foot long antennae swinging wildly. The truck was plastered with confederate flags, deer-hunter symbols, profane stickers about guns and country, and threats of violence for getting too close to it's bumper.

Theories of an apocalypse-type of event occurring in the year 2012 are starting to emerge and I can't help but wonder, "what if". What if all communication ceased, what if grocery stores were completely out of food, what if we were the survivors of a catastrophic world event? Amidst all the scenarios that run through my mind, I keep coming back to the yellow jeep and the black truck. If we did survive, it is my great hope that I survive with the yellow jeep folks.

On my own car, I have a bumper sticker that says "Breathe Deeply." One day, after dropping my daughter off at school, the gym coach who directs traffic stopped me and said, "I love your bumper sticker! I always tell my kids that it's so important to breathe deeply, to keep breathing - it helps us stay calm and resolve conflict. I love seeing your car in the morning, it's a great reminder!"

I truly believe that our actions and words have a chain reaction in this life. A kind word, a smile, an act of assistance to another can help create a more positive world. I'm so grateful for the yellow jeep and all the cars that spread peace and joy among us. We need it!

Not much time... but happy thoughts!

I don't have much time right now but have been thinking happy thoughts thanks to ButterBeeHappy.com. I found this little website from another blog, can't remember which one, but I bookmarked it awhile ago and set up my account last weekend. (See my happy thoughts on my Bee Happy widget - scroll down the sidebar on the left.) It's a great way to remember all the positive things in your life, especially when things get really hectic...

Like now, for instance! My first college course in almost 20 years is proving to be a challenge and I am as rusty as an old Chevy. (Speaking of rusty old Chevys, check out these pictures on Sunniviews I captured a few weekends ago when my husband and I went for a drive. It's the antique car graveyard!)

My class is a 15 week English course compressed into 5 summer weeks. Class is held 3 times a week (Mon-Tues-Wed from 6 to 9 pm) and each one represents a week. It's very overwhelming but I can do it, I CAN DO IT!! Even if I have to spend hours relearning basic sentence structure like subordinating conjunctions, subject compliments and passive transformations! (Quite honestly, I really don't remember learning these in the first place...)

I just keep remembering this picture (at top) that helps release all my anxiety and fills me with peace. This was taken at the Koka Booth Aphitheatre at an event that our organization held this past weekend. The cool rain, that ended just before the concert, brought in a gorgeous mist that enhanced the setting sun. Fabulous! And, luckily, I can use those weekend working hours as flex time this week for more studying! Hurray! And I'm so happy that my craft room is squeaky clean (for the most part) so I have a great place to spread out and get some homework done.

I read a quote recently that went something like "The more we have to do, the more efficient we become." Too true!

P.S. My daughter spent some time with her Nana (my mom) earlier this week. Check out this post on my mom's blog - what fun they had together!

The Comforting Delights of Home

Home is such a wonderful place to be. Even though traveling is exciting and thrilling, it's so good to be home... like the peace that follows exhaling a deep, fulfilling breath.

I love being in my home where all my special treasures are in perfect spots, my favorite books are proudly displayed on bookshelves, my pictures bring back special memories. I love being home.

The other day I was sitting comfortably in the sunlight, folding warm laundry and listening to delightful acoustic music when I noticed patches of brilliant, colorful light falling on the floor. I looked up at the source: my collection of hand-blown glass balls - each one an honored gift or a purchase from a delightful vacation.

I decided to experiment with my new camera and took some photos of these prismatic orbs shining so brilliantly in the sunlight. It's like looking at another little world, an iridescent planet swaying in the bright space of my window.

Each one is special and beautiful but there is one more visually interesting than the others: a purple witch ball with strands of glass running through the center. Back in the early 1800's witch balls were used to ward off evil spirits. The strands were rumored to catch the spirits and prevent them from coming into the house.

If there are evil spirits out there floating around, they've not chosen to enter our home. Perhaps the witch ball has helped. I'd like to think that it has more to do with the love that hold our family and pets together, the happiness that permeates the bricks that surround us, the memories reflected in all of our special things.

A house is made of walls and beams,
a home is built with love and dreams.

(More of my photo experiment on Sunniviews.)

May you be blessed

Many years ago, I worked with the most interesting fellow. He was a sweet, sincere man from outside of Houston with a heavy Texas drawl and a slow, deliberate way of talking. He ran a national trucking company by himself and was eager to please. After we booked the first truckload with him, he sent me flowers in a beautiful ceramic vase. Initially, I was a bit uncomfortable with getting flowers from someone I hardly knew. But after months of working with him, I realized that he's just a genuinely thoughtful kinda guy - a real cowboy, I suppose.

When the time came for me to resign, he was just about crushed. I could hear it in his voice. Shortly after our call, he sent me an email. It was called "May you be blessed" and had a link to a website.

When I clicked on the link of the email and watched the movie, I thought, oh, geez, here we go... another junk email. But after the first couple of frames, I became entranced. And touched. And then I realized that I was starting to cry - because how wonderful it is that someone actually wishes that you are fully blessed, that everything in your life is absolutely amazing and wonderful and that every dream you've ever had comes true.

I think this is a blessing that we should pass onto everyone we know - even those we don't know. Because it's only right and true that every soul in this world is blessed beyond their dreams. We can only reap the benefits of our friends, family, neighbors and strangers on the street having a happy and fulfilling life.

I don't even think I realized how nice it was to talk with Andy everyday and listen to his slow, southern drawl. He had a way of recognizing and honoring the spirit of everyone he knew.

So - to you... MAY YOU BE BLESSED! Pass it on to all you know.