Gratefulness or Great Full ness?

This gratefulness list is an ongoing project. Set aside, sometimes, but temporarily. Picked up again. Continuing on. Some days, I have to scratch and dig to find something, like a hen searching for seeds, clawing at frozen soil. Those are the days I need to do this the most. That tiny seed, clawed for and found, nourishes my heart and grows in my mind to redirect my thoughts from burdened overload to a light-hearted perspective. Which I need.

The lists in the tabs above are numbered. Now, I don't number. And, I try to think of the whys. Taking the list to the next level of why I am grateful for something. What about that person/item/situation sparks gratefulness in my heart?

My goal, here, is to update this list about once a week. Perhaps, as you browse through, you will find a spark toward gratefulness in your heart, also.

• laughing with the kids (vs. insult = humor)
• responsibility - seeing it in our kids
• awareness/observation - they asked how I taught them that (Guess Who? game?)
• Farming Game - listening to B and N talking money, acres, tractors, cows, fruit...
• cold drink with ice on a hot day
• mini golf fun outing
• fresh corn on the cob, summer treat
• homemade jellies from the Farmers' Market booth - enjoying someone else's labor, glad to pay for it
• trip plans, tickets purchased, looking forward to family visits
• 2B Mindset food plan - wow! 14 pounds down so far, sustainable nutrition plan
• re-reading Four Seasons in Rome - how Doerr distills words to perfection
• from The Book of Mysteries Day 231 "Give thanks today for all your blessings, and for all your blessings in disguise - those of the past and the still-disguised blessings of the present."
• gratefulness or greatfulness? to see that life is full of great ness
• "The brave who focus on all things good and all things beautiful and all things true, even in the small, who give thanks for it and discover joy even in the here and now, they are the change agents who bring fullest light to all the world." -Ann Voskamp
• Day 251 Book of Mysteries " The Miracle World "Imagine if the Red Sea parted at about six every morning...would no longer be amazing...we live in the miraculous...For you are already living in a miracle world."  [eg: sunrise every morning]
• passport applications sent in - trip in September! 
• a new car - wow, amazing! a first!
• one dried bean in a jar - first from crop - a small start, but a start - a literal seed investment and a reminder of the importance of every small step
• a new granddaughter - a life of beginnings for her
• boxes sorted, organized, emptied! relief of empty space
• create a 'smile file' from The Little Book Of Lykke, Meik Wiking Why?...elaborate on how they impact your life in  a positive way. This list is my Smile File
• Denver Botanic Gardens w/ H - wow! flowers - zinnias, amaranth and summer stock - ordinary flowers with far from common impact - absolutely gorgeous! wow power!
• Tiny House Festival - dreams, inspiration, new visuals to think about, plans, ideas
• another Little Book of Lykke quote: "...turn the idea of the pursuit of happiness into the happiness of the pursuit..." Happiness is a by-product of the process.
• boxes sorted and stuff gone! continuing process , freedom and clarity and 'weight-loss' (less burden)
• new backpack - looking forward to many trips with it - family visits and new scenery - plan to travel light
• PRAYING CALM - when worried about family (3 on Pike's Peak in a thunderstorm, 1 recovering from a tough birth)(capitals show how much I needed the calm...)
• A Light So Lovely, by Sara Arthur - new book about spiritual legacy of Madeleine L'Engle. Beautiful, honest - favorite quote..."she showed up..." Powerful words about her life.

Code Your Goals

The last week of January. Already. How are your goals coming along? Did you just roll your eyes at me? Crazy, isn't it? The way the hands on the clock keep going around and around and around. Those weekly calendar pages check off, one by one by one.

I purposely made my goals a bit vague this year. Rule number one about making goals: make them specific, actionable, measurable, and time sensitive. I thought, maybe, if I kept the goals in general terms, I wouldn't roll my eyes at myself as time slips by, unproductive, ineffective, goals undone.

Well, I'm not so sure about my vague goals. Perhaps there is wisdom in having a clear, focused idea of where I am headed each day. The journey is important, yes. But a destination is critical, too.

This photo, cropped from the first one, focuses in on the details of the snowflakes. At least as well as my camera and my photography skills can do. Amazing, this morning, seeing the light snowfall we had last night, the flakes, each crisp and ornate and beautiful. Beautiful as a whole, but even more impressive as unique and individual.

An idea I read: when Gretchen Rubin worked through her Happiness Project, writing it, developing her monthly goals and plans, she blogged her process. Her chapters contain some of the comments she received along the way. One of them really stuck with me. The gal suggested to use your passwords as goal reminders. How many times a day do you plug in certain passwords? Use those effectively. Say, you want to exercise five times a week. Set up a password like, RnwlkX5#.

I am not advising you on your password safety. There are general suggested structures for a secure password, and various sites have different guidelines. In general, at least eight characters are recommended, that it does not contain a complete word, and it includes four types of characters: uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, and special symbols. And, I would add, something easy for you to remember.

Take a goal you want to be reminded of, often. Turn it into a personalized, coded password, and remember it often as you type it on your keyboard, multiple times a day.

In my head, spring is not far away. I know, for a fact, that reality is a bit different than that. Our last frost date is May 12th, and we have seen snow on the last three Mother's Days. That is three and a half months away. What will I have accomplished by then? Will my vague, general goals still be vague and general by then? Yes, unless I change my way of thinking about them.

The last weeks of December, I jotted down a list of things I wanted to do in 2016; a random list, as things came to mind. Now, looking at the list again, I see a need to quantify them. What, how, and when will I do these? How can I make them specific, actionable, measurable, and timed? I made a note in my planner, on May 15th, to reevaluate the list. And, I made up a new password to remind me of a key, priority goal.

What do you think of making a new password, unique to your goals?

Very Little

To write a short story, is, for me, a lesson in traveling light. Condense. Refine. Edit. Simplify. Clarify my thinking. Ask - what exactly am I trying to say? Limit the words. Especially for short shorts, a short story limited to five hundred words: how to incorporate protagonist, conflict, climax, and a satisfying resolution in few words.

Working within a framework, within a given, limited space provides form and structure, like an architect designing a tiny house, including all the necessary elements, excluding anything unnecessary.

Process. Practice. Patience - to write, refine, edit, and do it again, over and over.

Every word matters.

Here is my next five hundred word short story. Not perfection, for the learning process, for practice.




Very Little


Interesting things happen in grocery stores. Anywhere, actually, where people are, interesting things happen.

Brandy and I went to the store for two loaves of bread, chunky peanut butter and bananas. We giggled and talked about something silly - I don't remember what.

An older man walked past us. I thought he looked grumpy. Even that made me giggle. Some days everything is funny. This was one of those days.

Brandy said, "A loaf of bread. Mom didn't say what kind, and I have no idea. Shelves, thirty feet long, five shelves tall, six feet high. We could feed two whole schools with all this bread. Shandia, what do I get?"

"What looks familiar?" I asked Brandy. "What does she usually buy?

"Whole-wheat, I guess. This looks familiar. Yeah, this looks good."

Three little girls ran around us. One grabbed Brandy's jeans, to hide behind her. We giggled, they giggled.

Their mom scolded, "Really, girls, can't you behave? Leave her alone. Isn't it enough you smacked into that man?"

"It's okay," said Brandy. "She's just having fun."

"All day long she's just having fun. Nothing serious, ever, for her," the mom complained.

We couldn't help giggling. Brandy squatted down to be eye level with the girl, who gave her a sheepish grin. "You are mischievous, aren't you?" Brandy said. "I think you have a pretty smile, and, I think you should listen to your mom."

The girl glanced up at her mom. The other girls drew closer, drawn by Brandy's friendliness.

"Do you know what my mom tells me?" Brandy asked them.

The three shook their heads.

"'It's good to laugh,' in fact, she quotes some famous guy, 'The most wasted of all days is one without laughter.' And she quotes another famous guy: 'Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.' So, listen to your mom. She knows what she is talking about. Okay?"

Brandy held up her hand, and high-fived them.

"Not bad," I told Brandy. "You quoted a poet and a Roman Emperor to three cute little girls who probably didn't understand a word you said."

"Nonsense," said Brandy. "They understood perfectly. It will give them something to think about while they look at bread and pickles and bags of apples."

The older man turned toward us, a loaf of bread in his hand. "Please, excuse me. I overheard you. My grandmother had that plaque on her wall, 'Very little is needed to make a happy life.' She loved that, she always had it to remind her. Sometimes she didn't have much, but she was happy." He smiled, "Thank you for reminding me of her."

Brandy and I thanked him, then went to find the peanut butter.  I told her, "Even a very little encounter with someone is interesting. Because people are interesting, and they do interesting things."


"And every day has a reason to smile," said Brandy. We giggled.



(In case you are wondering, the quotes are from e.e. cummings and Marcus Aurelius)

a million little ways

Have you heard someone say, "She's a real piece of work." Their eyes narrowed, one hand on a hip, the other hand out, finger pointed, their mouth tight, twisted to one side, their nose, elevated.

Have they said it to you?

Are you searching for value, for dignity? For someone to notice, appreciate you and what you do?

http://bit.ly/15zptkk  (click to see the 1:34 video trailer for her book)

In the brand new book by Emily Freeman, a million little ways, she speaks in her quiet, gentle, graceful (grace full) voice. Not a to-do list of a million things to do. I'm sure you don't need help making that long list. Not lists of ideas of what is art and how to craft it.

 Instead, Emily offers a glimpse into the heart of art. The Creator. A life. A masterpiece. A beautiful creation by a loving Lord. Yes, that would be you.

"...I hope to prove myself a worthy companion, an intuitive observer of the art of God. Still, there is one thing I know for sure: I know you are an image bearer with a job to do. And the simplest description I can come up with for what that means is this: You are art and you make art.
And the only place to begin uncovering what your art looks like is to start right where you are."

She says, "Now, look at Ephesians 2:10. 'For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.'...The English words used in this text - masterpiece, sometimes translated workmanship - these are translations of the original word...poiema. Our English word poem comes from the same Greek word. Workmanship, masterpiece, poem - all these words in Scripture are used to describe God's work - you and me.
"God calls you his workmanship, his poeima. What happens when God writes poetry?
"We do. We happen.
"We are walking poetry, the kind that moves, the kind who has hands and feet, the kind with mind and will and emotion. We are what happens when God expresses himself."

I desperately want to do justice to Emily, to convey to you the heart of her message and encourage you to pursue and learn what she has to offer. The words have layers, like an onion. Peel them back, work deeper, uncover the hidden meanings. And, maybe cry while you are cutting to the heart. One line I particularly appreciate, because it is filled with freedom. "You are a poem, not a robot." Yes, poems have patterns and rules and structure. But also the freedom to create and breathe, heart and soul, within those words.

I could go on quoting, but it would be better if you read the book yourself.

What does this mean for me? How does this change my day, my attitudes, my actions? My art is here. This home, this family, these relationships, as I go through my days, freedom and excitement happen as I create art. Not one perfectly brushed canvas or one perfectly worded manuscript or one perfectly weeded garden, but an expression of who I am, in a million little ways.

Are you a piece of work? Yes, in a wonderful, amazing way.

Thank you, Emily.

The book is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Dayspring.
Emily's blog: www.chattingatthesky.com

I forgot to mention, Bloom Book Club with (in)courage is hosting a series of interviews with Emily, two days a week, now through Nov 21. You can listen in anytime to hear Emily chat about her book and share her inspiration.

Choices

Last week the kids spent hours playing with a set of nesting balls. Five sizes, ten halves with a rattly ball in the middle. The little guy watched, patiently, amused, as the elementary and middle school age kids were entertained by his baby toy.

They lined them up on the table, hiding the rattle ball under one half. "Guess which one the ball is under." Random guesses, sometimes getting it on the first try, sometimes on the very last option. The correct guesser hides it next. Close your eyes while the ball is hidden, then open them and make a guess.

Life can be like that.

Close your eyes, then make your best guess.

Should I take this job?
Should we move to this house?
Should we buy/rent/sell/stay?
What will happen if we go/don't go?
How can I know I am doing the right thing?
When will be a good time to take that step?

I did not take photos of their game, but we played Life also, with similar lessons in choice

As the kids played, they added levels of difficulty, hiding multiple alphabet blocks under some. The one with the most wins. Then, they added another little ball. The balls were subtracted from the number of blocks.

Choices.
Unknowns.
Subtractions.
Fear holds you back. What if? What if I don't?

Choices get more complex as you get older.
What do you want for lunch, macaroni and cheese or peanut butter and jam, become career choices or how will we survive?

The best we can do is ask, pray, make the wisest choice we understand. Move forward. We'll never know what could have been. We do know where we are today.

Close your eyes. Make your choice, as best as you know. Life.

In the Morning

"Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,
for in you I trust.
Make me know the way I should go,
for to you I lift up my soul."

Psalm 143: 8 ESV

As the Deer

"As the deer pants for flowing streams, 
so pants my soul for you, O God."

Psalm 42:1 ESV

[I do realize these are elk, not deer. It's the photo I had]

This weekend I am including a Sunday short story, "Ellie's Roses" - a short short, under 500 words.
Click here to link to my short story blog. It relates a little bit to deer.

General Washington

"The General is sorry to be informed that the foolish and wicked practice of profane cursing and swearing, a vice heretofore little known in an American Army, is growing into fashion. He hopes the officers will by example, as well as influence, endeavor to check it, and that both they and the men will reflect, that we can have little hope of the blessings of Heaven on our arms if we insult it by our impiety and folly. Added to this, it is a vice so mean and low, without any temptation, that every man of sense and character detests and despises it."

-General George Washington
This order was issued in 1776
I saw this quote in a booklet from our son's Civil Air Patrol.

Still Quiet

At the end of December, when I decided to make January a quiet month on this blog, posting a photo each day and few words, I did a crazy thing. I sat down and wrote out a list of projects to do to fill the days and weeks with productivity. I organized the list by week and color coded the to-do's.

Not very quiet. And, this month, I needed to be quiet.

At the end of the month, I have checked three things off that list, most of the first week's tasks, but only one thing from the rest of the list.

What have I learned? Being quiet is not always about being silent. Rather than being silent, there is quiet strength and energy in being still. I took the time to step back, rest, and take more time with the sons here at home than with the stuff.

"He leads me beside still waters."

Psalm 23: 2

A cross stitch our daughter made for me - it hangs on our office wall

Still waters, not agitated.

John Henry Jowett, in My Daily Meditation, says, 

"...contemplation determines character."

"Love is the lens through which I discern the secret things of God."

I pulled out Keep a Quiet Heart, by Elisabeth Elliot, to read as my devotional. Because the quality, the quiet of our days is determined by how we think, where our hearts are focused, and by the lens through which we view life.

In my planner, instead of a heavy to-do list, I copied a list of "quiet" synonyms from the Thesaurus. Besides the obvious, familiar definitions, I found: restful, untroubled, unruffled, composed, steady, unexciteable, imperturbable, contented, mellow, subdued...

I have much to learn.

I'm afraid I am more like the storm front moving in, a frown across the sky.

I can learn to be quiet like the steady, gentle, drifting snowflakes. Or, I can be quiet in the middle of a rowdy rambunctious wrestling match of happy brothers. Or, I can be quiet in the middle of a day when things are not going the way I want and the frustration level rises. Again, I have much to learn, with a quiet smile. More ideas to share tomorrow.

Still quiet.

Do You Feel Like You Are Pulling This Wagonload?

January, a quiet month, few words, a photo each day.
Photo source: an old post card, Frances and Mary Allen, Deerfield, Massachusetts, c. 1900

Untie the Knots

Opportunity Cost

In an article I read, the term, "opportunity cost" was used. It sparked my interest. What does that mean?
It is a term from the confusing world of economics, a complex term that really evaluates a simple thing. It involves what is given up in order to follow a certain action. Or, what you could have gained by taking a different path. Opportunity cost evaluates what is given up or gained.

Investopedia.com used the example of a college education: the salary lost while in school, compensated by the possibly higher salary after the degree is earned. Or, a stock investment that earns a small percentage, compared with the higher percentage you could have earned in a bond, the difference being the opportunity cost.

Opportunity Cost is about choice. If we decide to grow carrots in our garden, rather than strawberries or chrysanthemums, the different result gives us the opportunity cost. A choice is required. Knowing the results would be helpful, but the option we choose will give us either benefit or loss.

Both Investopedia and Wikipedia discussed that opportunity cost goes beyond monetary or material values, which I was glad to see. This applies to anything of value: how we use our time, how we build relationships, how we use our creative energy, our efforts to build memories and establish foundations in our homes and families, all can be calculated with opportunity cost.

For those of you who are algebra fans, there is a formula (on Wikipedia) for calculating good y vs. good x relative to the good forgone. Or something like that. It was over my head, but their example of choosing between parties and a date and mathematically calculating the result was amusing.

Opportunity Cost: what is given up or what is gained. What does all this mean?

• A choice to spend the time talking with the kids when I would rather be [whatever] is weighed by the benefits to our family relationships
• A choice to browse through a magazine instead of cleaning the shower or organizing the shelves is evaluated by the loss of order and cleanliness in our home
• A choice as to how I spend my time in the afternoons will result in good management of the resources I have, or wasted resources (thank you for this idea, Deidra)
• Being aware of the long term value gained by time spent together, reading aloud, playing games, learning together, just doing stuff together
• Choosing to eat smart and exercise rather than indulge my sweet tooth and idleness will yield a better opportunity cost, long-range
• Money I spend on one thing will be money I cannot spend on something else, perhaps something more important

What opportunity cost choices do you think of? We all make choices every day. The results are seen in hindsight, but by thinking ahead and evaluating the value, the opportunity cost, of our choices, perhaps we will be able to make wiser decisions.