“What we plan for ourselves isn’t always what life has planned for us.”
Each day and every moment has the potential to be memorable and life has a way of working out - even when you are convinced it can’t.
This week was supposed to be our family fishing vacation. For most of my working career I enjoyed “summers off” as a teacher, which in reality, would usually turn out to be around a month off. The rest of the summer would involve planning for the next school year, in-services, technology training, curriculum development, collection development…lots of…well…work.
After leaving teaching, I now have a part-time job with three weeks of vacation. My schedule is more flexible but vacations are planned so that my husband and I, along with our son, can get away to somewhere that involves fishing, connecting with nature and being with family.
My brother Pat and sister-in-law Sandy have been the people who have given us multiple opportunities over the years to experience those vacations. Their generosity and kindness have made for many memorable experiences and we are so grateful that they share their vacations with us.
So plans were made several months ago for more family vacations this summer. Fast forward to this past Saturday, when a lingering pain led my husband and I to a local walk-in clinic and the unexpected diagnosis of a broken foot.
Fitted with a walking boot and crutches, my husband faced an unplanned challenge. Together we have worked through other health situations and we have discovered that the only way to really successfully get through something is to go through it together.
So as we faced this uncertainty I tried to remember everything we are blessed with because when you focus on that, good things tend to happen.
So plans were rewritten and many people helped us along the way.
Family and friends called to check on how my husband, Jim, was doing. Prayers were offered by parishioners of the church where I work. Our friends, Carol and Eric, graciously watched our dog at their home for us. And my son and I, following Jim’s insistence, took a few days to go on “up north” without him.
While we were away, I had a chance to reconnect, as I have for many years, with both mother nature and my family. Being surrounded by nature, the sounds of the wind in the trees, fishing in the same boat I had as a child, spending time laughing and being together.
And through technology Jim, Michael and I managed to stay connected with texts, phone calls and videos, doing the best we could under the circumstances.
Was it how we originally planned? No it wasn’t. But as the saying goes, sometimes you have to take a moment and pause to remind yourself that even though life hasn’t been perfect, there still is so much to be grateful for.
This week’s Smile Video
Steve Hartman shares stories highlighting people who have accomplished some truly inspirational feats. Enjoy this compilation of inspiring stories.
#believe #stevehartman #smilevideos
What I am reading…
While on vacation this past week my sister-in-law, Sandy, introduced me to a historical fiction Facebook group (Historical Fiction Book Lovers) and she lent me a book she had recently finished reading, entitled Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Letts.
The Amazon summary is as follows: “Hollywood, 1938: As soon as she learns that M-G-M is adapting her late husband’s masterpiece for the screen, seventy-seven-year-old Maud Gage Baum sets about trying to finagle her way onto the set. Nineteen years after Frank’s passing, Maud is the only person who can help the producers stay true to the spirit of the book—because she’s the only one left who knows its secrets.
But the moment she hears Judy Garland rehearsing the first notes of “Over the Rainbow,” Maud recognizes the yearning that defined her own life story, from her youth as a suffragette’s daughter to her coming of age as one of the first women in the Ivy League, from her blossoming romance with Frank to the hardscrabble prairie years that inspired The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Judy reminds Maud of a young girl she cared for and tried to help in South Dakota, a dreamer who never got her happy ending. Now, with the young actress under pressure from the studio as well as her ambitious stage mother, Maud resolves to protect her—the way she tried so hard to protect the real Dorothy.
The author of two New York Times bestselling nonfiction books, The Eighty-Dollar Champion and The Perfect Horse, Elizabeth Letts is a master at discovering and researching a rich historical story and transforming it into a page-turner. Finding Dorothy is the result of Letts’s journey into the amazing lives of Frank and Maud Baum. Written as fiction but based closely on the truth, Elizabeth Letts’s new book tells a story of love, loss, inspiration, and perseverance, set in America’s heartland.”
I am really enjoying this book so far and the Facebook group provides more titles and reviews that I look forward to exploring in the future!
This week’s TED Talk - Becoming “nature-wise”...
I have watched TED Talks for many years now. I love the wide variety of experiences and opinions TED Talks offer. Here is one I would like to share for this week:
In today’s busy distracted world, those who carve out 15 min to walk in a park or forest on a regular basis will have an edge. Research shows time in a park or forest practicing Shinrin Yoku or forest bathing will decrease stress and anxiety, and it will increase the ability to focus, think critically and make better decisions.
Children’s Corner - Author Gary Paulsen
I was blessed to get to hear a lecture by Gary Paulsen when I was in college. I also have a personally autographed copy of Hatchet, which is one of my prized possessions.
Over the years it was fun to introduce Paulsen’s books to my students and to see especially reluctant readers become engaged in reading. One day, after showing an interview of Paulsen to my 5th grade classes, I had a parent call and ask me who he was and where she could find his books. I was a little startled and asked her more about it and she responded, “Well, whatever that video was that you showed my son, he won’t stop talking about his books!”
I can’t find that particular video anymore but the following is a small introduction to one of my all-time favorite young adult authors - the late, great, Gary Paulsen.
Music Moment
This week I am sharing one of my favorite performances. This 2004 tribute to George Harrison features one of the all-time greatest guitar soloist performances by Prince. You will get goosebumps watching this.
Holistic Wellness Spotlight - exploring the mind/body connection
Louise Hay reading her Power Thought Affirmations as a voice over on a video of beautiful images. Her voice is so soothing and her words so powerful for reducing anxiety and helping you trust life! May you find greater peace as you listen.
Quote of the week
Until next week. Please remember…Begin and end each day with a grateful heart…and always, always be kind….