Choosing Health, Wealth and Happiness
If you had to pick just one color of the rainbow to love, which color would you pick? Do you have an absolute favorite or does it depend on the day? Does it depend on the season? Does it depend on your mood?
I know this seems like a silly question but it might help me figure out if we can be friends.
The unthinkable happened this week, Mother Fran took her last breath and left this earth. She left behind 1 of her 2 sisters, 8 of her 9 children, fifteen grandchildren and twenty seven great-grandchildren. She joins her parents in heaven along with her husband, sister, son and daughter-in-law. She died quietely in the car on the way to the beach. She played cards the night before (I bet she won) and walked to the car under her own power. Mother Fran died on her own terms.
Do we get smarter as we get older? Do we get wiser? I have no idea. I do know that as I age I get more comfortable in my own skin. I don’t care what anyone thinks of me and I like myself just as I am. That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t accept some improvements but if I were to die today, I would be content walking through the pearly gates of heaven.
Have you ever gotten your car stuck in the mud? Your first instinct is to put your foot on the gas and get the heck out. If you are lucky, this might work but more often than not, it only makes the situation worse. The tires spin and spin but the car doesn’t move, and you end up digging a rut that gets deeper and deeper.
When stuck in a figurative rut, you just keep spinning your wheels, unable to make the changes necessary to get things moving in a positive direction. Often, the problem is that we think we need to make radical changes to get out of the rut and this scares the bejeebers out of us.
I have loved to read since I was a kid. Amazingly enough all of my siblings are readers as well. That is just one of the many things I inherited from Mother Fran. I used to read mystery novels and the occasional romance novel. When my family gathers together, it is not uncommon for each of us to have a book in hand. Reading gives you something to do, when you only have a few minutes, when you are bored and when you are relaxing overlooking the lake.
I have been silent here on My Little Blue Kayak for several weeks. Nothing is wrong, nothing is new. I have been in a good head space and enjoying my time in sunny Florida with Mother Fran and my sister (#7). My days consist of walking in the sunshine, playing cards, watching the birds, sitting outdoors and hanging with Mom. I don’t miss the cold of Upstate, NY and I certainly don’t miss shoveling snow or layering up to walk out the front door. With that said, my time in Florida is winding down and I am getting excited to hug my honey and spend time together.
Do you operate in fear mode most of the time? Do you tend to get comfortable in your little blue kayak and worry that if you make a change, any change that you will rock the boat and get tossed into the angry ocean like a rag doll?
Being comfortable in your kayak is fine if all you want is comfort. I think as a species we are way more complicated than that. I believe we grow more when we embracing change AND choosing joy. Change is messy, it is hardt it and it gets us out of the comfort zone and off of the couch. That is how we grow, how we improve and how we become better human beings.
The sky is blue, the clouds are airy and the sun is shining. That makes for a pretty good day here in Upstate, New York. As I write this, The temperture is 19 degrees and going down to three degrees overnight. The windchill? Well that is whole different ball game. I am getting tired of bundling up in winter clothing just to take the dog out for a quickie. Damn – I wasn’t going to complain. Let me try again…
The sky is blue, the clouds are airy and the sun is shinging. Life is good here in Upstate, New York.
You know when you are driving to a familiar destination and you are simply on auto pilot? You arrive and turn off the engine only to have that nagging sensation that you have no clue how you got there. When driving, this can be a really bad thing! When developing positive habits, this is like the sweet spot.
For the last several years, I have worked per diem as an Occupational Therapist in a nursing home and doing yard work jobs on the side. These two income streams were sufficient to pay my bills and live my life on my terms. I love being outdoors and getting plenty of exercise without actually feeling like I have exercised. As I have mentioned before, with the onset of Covid, I made a decision to stop working in the nursing home as the risk of exposure is high. I knew I needed and wanted to spend lots of time with Mother Fran.
