Now that Thanksgiving has passed, the Christmas shopping rush is on.  People tend to feel the pressure of the finances, the lists, and the crowds.  But take another pause.  Think about what you really are thankful for, beyond just Thanksgiving day.  The traditions you have carried forward from childhood, or even the traditions you have started with your own precious family.

Feed your soul with those thoughts whenever you start to feel overwhelmed.  The financial pressures will be there year in and out, and you will likely figure it out and last year’s pressures will be a distant memory.  But there are memories that will hold in your mind for years to come, and will be the ones that you hold very dear.  They are the little moments, the hugs of your loved ones, the scents of the pies you make that remind you of your childhood.

My grandson bragged to his friend how much he loved my pumpkin pies.  “Once you taste them, you’ll want to be here for Thanksgiving every year!”  I beamed with pride over that and let my mother know.  My response to him was that they were the same pies I grew up with.  I used to call her every year for the recipe because I always misplaced it.  This year when I called she assumed I was calling for the recipe.  It wasn’t.  I actually saved it in a good place but it wouldn’t be the same, making them without talking to her.  A tradition I will hold dear to my heart.

We all have something we can be thankful for, whether it’s the taste of a great cup of coffee, the warmth of your favorite sweatshirt, or even if it’s just the very breath we are able to draw.  Be still and feel it, and just be thankful.

They say live for the moments that take your breath away, but for me, all it takes is to actually pause and notice the blessings around me.  Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t born with a silver spoon in my mouth, either financially or physically, but with each step of my journey, from childhood into the autumn of my life,  there have been those moments.

I sit here at my desk with my computer, and have a view out of my window of the beauty of nature, music on, and clothes on that make me feel good about how I look.  I’ve come far in my life, and I still have so much living I want to do.  So many articles left to write, and breathtaking moments left to create and feel.

I could focus on the bad, the heartache and the struggles, but if I do that, I would cheat myself out of enjoying the moments of my life.  The right now, and those precious memories I have in my mind are only enjoyed if I stop and look.  It’s like a favorite song, you enjoy it only when you hear it or think of it.  but it’s always there for you to enjoy when you do.

Recently I tracked down my daughter’s favorite childhood movie (she had long since wore out the VCR tape) along with my own.  I watched hers with her, and thoroughly enjoyed seeing how much joy it gave her as an adult.  It was thrilling for her, just as mine was for me when I watched the childhood favorite I had not seen in over 40 years.  Those are the moments.

The scent in the crisp air you can smell after the rain.  The picture of a loved one in a past era.  Hold these, they are important.  They feed your soul even if only for a fleeting moment.  That’s why they are there, stored for you like files on a computer.  But they can only benefit you if you stop and view them.  Can you stop and look and know that you are blessed too?

I’ve been through so much on this journey of life.  Some of it profoundly intense (both good and bad); but if I had to lose even one of those moments that take your breath away (and I have been blessed with many), I would not change a moment of my suffering.

The bad only serve to show the sheer beauty of the good and to give those who help a chance to feed their soul and let their lights shine through.  For each of the bad times, someone was there to help me get through it, leaving ripples of blessings in their lives.  Humanity needs that, especially now.

My hope is that there are very few that didn’t see my appreciation for them.  I do look back and value them.  They are blessings that, as memories, can still make me smile.  Thank you all for being there.  If our paths should cross again, I shall try my best to show you I do value you.

Thank you!

In the recent years the battle has been plaguing our holiday season where many are offended by any holiday greeting that doesn’t include saying “Merry Christmas”.  Politically correct “Happy Holidays” are expressed to avoid offending anyone, especially those who do not believe in Christmas, or more specifically, Christ.  Unfortunately it offends those who feel strongly about Christmas being the true holiday expression.

There is a third option, of those of us that love Christmas and feel the magic of it both in spiritual and family traditions; but also would like to include the ones they, as well as others, enjoy also.  From the approaching Thanksgiving dinner they enjoy so much, to the celebration of New Year’s Eve they plan as well, “Happy Holidays” includes them all.

So when someone greets you with a smile Jesus would even be proud of, please feel the warmth it was intended to give.  And if you lack the holiday spirit because of your life situation, there are always things you can do in your community that can feed your soul by feeding that warmth to others.

Happy  Holidays!

Publishing this Website was one of the most exciting moments of my life, and like most big endeavors was followed by a time of fear that had me frozen out from the next step, and for a time period, I got nothing accomplished with it.  The more time that passed, the bigger the fear became.  Then I received some great advice to just set aside one day to accomplish one piece (or step) of what I needed to do instead of looking at it as a whole.  I started with the research for an article and by the time I was done, I had written the latest feature article, along with the makings of my next Thrive Global article that gives others the key to helping themselves.

Everything we do starts one step at a time that we have to decide to take, or nothing gets done.  Whether it is as as small as starting an exercising routine to the big projects we hope someday to accomplish, that one small step begins it and alleviates the pressure of accomplishing it and changes your focus to the present action.  Boy does it help, and I wanted to share that with you.  No matter who we are or what we do, there is always something new we will do that begins with that first step.  Forget the stress of accomplishing the whole thing.   Your focus will get there in the final stretch and by then you will be going full steam ahead.

Instead of focusing on me,  our communities have so many people filled with talent but are isolated by both financial limitations and health issues that keep them stuck in their homes and distanced away from the passion of life.  So much talent locked away and then gone when they are.  It’s either you, or someone you know.  If only we could harness it as a community.  Create some sort of a needs and resources group that can utilize those talents.  Maybe you are a widow who spends most of your time watching tv in your pajamas with no thrive left in you.  Back in your day you were an amazing seamstress or grant writer.  Could your community use your help?

John F. Kennedy was famously quoted as saying, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country”.  That stands true until your brain can no longer function.  You need to thrive.  You need more than past times to use up your days, and if you are still here, you still have a purpose.

This group should look first at what needs the community has and what part of the populations can address it.  Is their a big volume of ailing seniors that need yard work done but they can’t do it alone?  What age group is accessible to do the work as a community service?  Do the seniors in need have other talents that could be valuable to others?  Of course they do once we start thinking outside the box and stop thinking only of cash.

This blog will be focusing on you and your abilities that you may have forgotten you have.  You are a valuable person who may or may not know it and you have something to give, please know that.  There is always something you can teach others, even if it’s as simple as sharing your wisdom or reading to someone.  Your job is to figure out what it is.