For my loyal Blogger readers, I want to thank you for all your support over this past year.  This was a good site for me to test the waters with sharing my writing.  There are good things about this site, especially for beginners. Over time, the limitations of the site itself encouraged me to seek a more flexible place that would allow readers to subscribe for free and be notified when I post as well as be more comment friendly.  I will now be moving all of my posts to catheycone.substack.com as it is becoming far too time consuming to keep up both sites.  I do hope you will join me there and share your thoughts.  Check out my latest blogs, poetry and photos and subscribe if you'd like to be notified when I post something new.  Again, thank you all so much for all your encouragement, comments and connection.  Much love!  

 Footnotes from the Flipside

Overcomers Series Episode 5 - One Tough Cookie

I would love for all of you to know my friend, Lucy.  Some of you may have already had the chance to get to interact with her through a mutual community on Twitter, Instagram or Substack.  Lucy and I actually bonded over a music group, For King and Country, that we both enjoy.  I posted a song of theirs and she responded that she was going to their concert and that she would share photos and tell me about her experience.  That was the beginning of a friendship, all online mind you, that has blessed me and inspired me in so many ways. 

Before I even knew what Lucy had been through in recent years, I found her enthusiasm for life and deep faith so contagious.  She was a little ray of sunshine on the social media sites, posting Scripture and uplifting quotes.  Then she shared her story.  I know you will be as inspired as I was when I first read it.  Lucy is one of a kind and I have no doubt she’s one of God’s favorites. 

A few years ago, Lucy was diagnosed with Stage 3 squamous cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer that had invaded her sinuses, cheek, mouth and eye socket.  Having had a bout with cancer myself, I had some sense of how it affects your life in profound ways, but what I went through was a walk in the park compared to what Lucy has endured. What cancer meant for her was countless surgeries and treatments and grafts. Her doctors pretty much had to rearrange her face to get after the cancer.  Some of the surgeries were successful and some failed. To say it was a difficult journey is a massive understatement.  It was climbing Mount Everest.  She eventually sought a second opinion at the Mayo Clinic and became an in-stay resident at the Clinic’s Hope Lodge as they sought to reconstruct her facial features and give her back her life.  She has endured 28 surgeries to date.  There is one more surgery she is anxious to have with hopes of it being her last.  Lucy is one of the most positive people I’ve ever known, but what she has been through is something most of us can’t even imagine.  It was an uphill battle of surgery after surgery, not being able to eat or speak, and incredible pain.  There were times she didn’t feel positive or hopeful.  There were very hard days. But with the help of her strong and supportive husband and faith in the God who loves her and carries her, Lucy found a way to persevere and not only survive, but thrive. 

While Lucy was a resident at Hope Lodge, she began using her culinary expertise to create elaborate meals for the other residents.  She found solace and satisfaction, and perhaps a little distraction, in preparing and serving the meals.  She became everyone’s friend and inspiration.  Knowing Lucy now, I understand that this was only the beginning of her using her gifts to inspire and love on all kinds of people.  Upon returning to her home in North Dakota, she began to bake….and bake…..and bake for individuals and groups she wanted to bless.  Lucy says the baking gives her a sense of purpose and in some ways it’s like therapy.  And with a faith that bubbles over in all she does, it’s no surprise that she prays over the gifts she hands out in her community. 

What I want you to know about Lucy is not as much what she has been through, but how she has responded to what she has been through.  Lucy is an amazing example of what it means to overcome. When I see Lucy, I don’t see her scars.  I see her incredible smile and zest for life.  I see her huge heart and desire to encourage and uplift people.  I see her being the hands and feet of Jesus to those around her.  I feel the joy that comes from being a helper.  When I chat with her, I feel first-hand her sincerity and enthusiasm. She is literally an “energizer bunny”.  She calls all she has been through her “beautification journey”.  But I think Lucy is already beautiful inside and out. 

Lucy shares parts of her journey and her thoughts and prayers in a newsletter on the Substack site:  lucybernas.substack.com.  

Saint Patrick's Day 2022

Best wishes on this Day of St. Patrick, patron saint of Ireland!  I have a bit of Irish heritage on my mom’s side, so I like to claim it on this day, not that we need to be Irish to celebrate Patrick bringing Christianity to Ireland.  I have yet to visit Ireland but it’s long been on my bucket list of places I want to see.  I have an appreciation for all things Irish, but what I love most is the music.  Celtic music has its own unique sound and instrumentation that strikes a chord somewhere deep inside me.   Most of us are familiar with a song that has become a bit of an anthem when we think of Ireland so I thought I’d dig out how it came to be so popular not only in Ireland, but worldwide. 

As soon as I mention the title of the song “Danny Boy”, we can all hear the haunting melody in our heads and most of us know at least some of the lyrics.  The song has come to represent the Irish Diaspora and Irish national pride, but the author of the song wasn’t Irish at all, he was British.  Frederic Weatherly was a lawyer, author and songwriter from Great Britain.  He wrote the lyrics for over 1500  ballads,  “Danny Boy” being by far the most popular.  He penned the words in 1910, but it was not put to melody till some years later when his sister sent him the tune to an existing folk song and he thought it perfectly fit his lyrics.  No one knows exactly where the tune originated, but Weatherly’s mournful words made it famous. 

There’s a bit of a mystery as to what the song means.  Who is Danny and why does he have to leave? The song has universally come to represent loss and separation and finality of death.  It’s  been sung by myriads of artists from every genre of music.  On this day, when we’re all “a little bit Irish”, I’ll leave you with the words written so long ago that still resound today and a beautiful photo  by Leighton Smith.  Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!

O Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling
From glen to glen and down the mountainside
The summer's gone and all the roses falling
'Tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide

But come ye back when summer's in the meadow
Or all the valley's hushed and white with snow
'Tis I'll be here in sunshine or in shadow
O Danny boy, O Danny boy, I love you so

When winter's come and all the flowers are dying
And I am dead, as dead I well may be
You'll come and find the place where I am lying
And kneel and say an "Ave" there for me

But I shall hear though soft you tread above me
And all my grave shall warmer, sweeter be
And you will bend and tell me that you love me
And I shall sleep in peace until you come to me

Another Year, Another Birthday

Birthdays.  They keep coming, don’t they?  Don’t get me wrong; I like having them.  I love hearing from friends and family, and all those cards in the mail and online birthday wishes, lunches out with friends, hanging with my kids and grands.  And I also like having them because no matter how many I’ve had, they mean I’m still alive.  There was a time in my life that it was questionable whether I would be.  It’s amazing how strong that will to live becomes when you are faced with your own mortality.  So now every year is a celebration of God’s grace to me. 

Birthday presents are great, but what I really love is spending time with people.  There is nothing more valuable to me than relationships and spending time with those people who love me for who I am is my favorite way to celebrate.  I am sometimes completely humbled and amazed at the people who have been here for me, shared special memories with me, and continue to connect and reach out whether near or far. 

As the years add up and seasons in my life transcend, it makes me reflect and rejoice.  Mind you, not every day of my life has been cause for celebration.  There have been many hard things mixed in the with joyful.  But I feel completely blessed by the people God has brought into my life for seasons and purposes only He could foresee.  Each year when my birthday rolls around, I tick back through the list of people I have known and loved.  They are all treasures I don’t take for granted. 

So today is a day I celebrate and I try very hard to make March a birthday month to enjoy the people in my life.  The actual day of my birth matters not so much.  I will take a free lunch or dinner anytime this month.  I’ve already had some great outings and special time with dear friends.  My hubby is taking me out for a special day today at one of our favorite tasting rooms and dinner at our “special” restaurant.  After that we’ll Facebook Portal with friends in another state. 

Know that if we have connected even in some small way, I am grateful for you.  I know some amazing people who make me appreciate every day that I’ve been given.  So happy birthday to me….but I’d just as soon celebrate each and every one of you who makes my life so meaningful and special.  It’s a beautiful life year after year.  Thanks to John Lennon and Paul McCartney for their sentiments for this milestone birthday.  “When I get older, losing my hair many years from now.  Will you still be sending me a Valentine, birthday greeting, bottle of wine?  Will you still feed me, will you still need me, when I’m 64?” 

Hope of Spring

I usually feel it right around the first of March.  It’s a mental and emotional shift after the long, dark winter months.  The days finally feel longer. Everything seems a little brighter.  At our house we begin talking about taking the 5^th wheel out of storage and preparing it for travel adventures.  By March 1^st I begin to get itchy about being out in the yard and spotting those first shoots of new grass, buds on the trees and early flowers.  It’s a hopeful feeling that looks ahead to putting away the heavy coats and switching from boots to sandals.   It’s time to start placing the feeders for the returning hummingbirds.  Everything about this time of year feels new and fresh, like life starting over.  Sometimes the weather can still remind us that it’s not officially spring yet, but it doesn’t tend to dampen my spirits, knowing that frosty mornings and flakes of snow will be short-lived.

I’m a summer girl through and through, but there’s something special and optimistic about early spring.  It always feels like a great time to start something new.  I have more ambition and energy and I feel inspired to take on new projects or explore new ideas.  I realize that this phenomenon is a northern hemisphere thing as below the equator, they’re moving into fall.  The farther north you live, the more you appreciate the first signs of pre-spring in March.

This is the first March in over 20 years that I have not been working and it comes with a newfound freedom to enjoy the turning of the seasons.  It feels especially celebratory.  I have time to play more, get outside and wander more, read and write more. I can take advantage of sunny days on my mini deck soaking up a bit of extra Vitamin D.  I appreciate the flexibility I have to enjoy lunches out with friends and additional date nights with my favorite date. I’m loving slow-start mornings and the more relaxed schedule.  I like this new phase of life and I’m enjoying that my head and heart feel more content. I’m grateful and blessed by the difference that affords new possibility and I don’t want to take it for granted.

So here’s to March.  It’s one of my favorites.  Even though there are very hard things happening in our world right now, I wish you peace and contentment, and joy in the change of seasons.  Or as the Irish blessing says, “May your days be many and your troubles be few.  May all God’s blessings descend upon you.  May peace be within you and may your heart be strong.  May you find what you’re seeking wherever you roam.”  Cheers! 

Restarting in 3...2...1....

I have made some truly wonderful friends online and the other evening I was chatting with one of them via direct messaging.  When I chat online, I’m usually in multiple sites and writing or exploring so I depend on notifications to know when someone messages me back.  During this particular conversation, my phone was failing in the notification department so I left my friend hanging a few times.

Technology is an amazing thing, but from time to time it fails.  The first order of all things technology, before you resort to messing with settings or contacting support, is to restart the device you are on.  After many years of working on a computer, this is one lesson I learned well.  So on this particular day, I restarted my phone.  Wah-lah!  I immediately starting getting notifications again. 

I shared with my online friend what I had done and she said, “Strange how sometimes a restart is all that is needed.”  This friend knows I am a writer and mentioned that there was probably a story in there somewhere.  She was right.  The idea that restarting could so easily correct some inconsistencies or glitches left me thinking about that concept and what it looks like in day to day living. 

How great would it be if when things are going off the rails or it seems nothing is working as it should, we could just shut the day down and restart it?  What if a really bad day could be turned around by taking a moment to close down and start over?  I know that in a busy day, and especially one where everything seems to be going south, it’s hard to take the time for a reboot.  Have you ever had your computer decide to update when you have a million things to get done in a work day?  What’s to do but wait for it to be ready to resume?

I’ve had some days recently that a restart could have been so helpful!  What if, when you’re feeling overwhelmed or frustrated or frazzled or sad, you took ten minutes to power down, take some deep breaths, say a prayer or take a short walk, then power back up?  It may not be a complete fix for whatever is going on, but it may help you reset mentally so you can move forward with a renewed focus.  Just as with technology, maybe it could be the first step to try instead of the last.  Reboots are known to keep your devices running at optimal efficiency.  Maybe it could work for humans, too. 

Imposter Syndrome

Truth be told, I’m a bit of a learning nerd.  I have an unquenchable thirst for discovering new things. As I’ve said in past postings, I pour through books and in recent years (especially throughout the last two), I have embraced podcasts.  They are so great when I have something mundane to do and I can’t sit down with a book.  Most are an hour or less and it gives my curious brain something stimulating to do while I’m performing very unstimulating tasks like dusting. 

Today I listened to a portion of a podcast from Dr. Zubin Damania, also known as “zdoggmd”.  I discovered Dr. Damania on Instagram when he started speaking about Covid response.  I found him to be very balanced in his approach as a doctor and human being to help people understand the facts about the pandemic.  He’s a physician in the San Francisco Bay area, assistant professor, comedian, musician, and now internet personality.  I continued to listen because he did present facts and ideas about what was happening, but he made it entertaining and palatable. 

His podcast today was about Imposter Syndrome.  His guest was Dr. Rachel Zofness, who is a Stanford and USFC professor and pain psychologist.  Both of these well-known teacher/speaker/professional orator types suffer from Imposter Syndrome.  Imposter Syndrome is loosely defined as doubting your abilities and feeling like a fraud.  It happens most for high-achievers who find it difficult to accept their accomplishments.  They question their abilities, their knowledge and their credentials and wonder why people even listen to them. 

As these two extremely knowledgeable, highly educated, well-known speakers described the symptoms of this syndrome, I began to feel like they were digging around inside my head.  I started this blog with trepidation from day one.  I knew I had some abilities, perhaps even some giftings, to express things in creative writing.  I doubted that anyone would want to read or care about what I write.  I am completely blown away with how people I don’t even know have responded to my writings.  Compliments are hard because I tend to not believe them.   I keep thinking it can’t last.  And then I put something out in the universe and get amazing and meaningful feedback about how that entry spoke to them, and I once again begin to believe in myself.  Imposter Syndrome can apparently be very real even for people like me who are just experimenting with living out a dream to put my writing skills to use in some small way.

Dr. Zofness had some great tips for how to combat Imposter Syndrome because she suffers from it and did a lot of research in how to deal with it in her own life.  First, we need to acknowledge it’s happening and accept that it’s not unique and we are not alone – in other words, normalize it so it’s not so scary. Secondly, we have to externalize it so that we don’t become attached to it internally.  She suggests saying, “I am not this, I am feeling this way.”  In other words, don’t label yourself as unworthy, but recognize that you might be feeling unworthy at times.   And last, but not least, we need to reframe it.  We have to realize that it’s a sign of our success, we’re stretching, we’re achieving.  We haven’t arrived completely, so there will be times of feeling insecure or lacking in confidence. 

So what is that thing that you are telling yourself you aren’t good enough to put to use?  How often do you tell yourself you don’t deserve the attention you are getting?  Do you let doubt stop you from taking that next big, or even small, step?  Well, join the club.  Recognize Imposter Syndrome for what it is and don’t let it prevent you from doing what you are called and gifted to do.  And I’ll do my best to not feel like a fraud every time I write one of these.  

Link to podcast:  https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=zdoggmd+imposter+syndrome

A Tree Grew There

Today we are losing a tree in our yard.  It’s a huge box elder tree that we planted not long after we moved to this property over 30 years ago.  It produces beautiful filtered shade over one end of our house and keeps it cool in the hot summer months.  It’s part of the character of our front yard and I love to sit under it at our picnic table.  I’ve written quite a number of blogs and poems under that tree.  It’s been the home to lots of birds and squirrels and a shelter for our kids and grandkids when they played under it. 

But it’s a sprawling tree and it has begun to create issues with our roof and it’s messy when the seed pods and leaves come down in the fall.  It also attracts pests, specifically box elder bugs which have reproduced in plague proportion the last four years.  It’s not as healthy as it used to be so it’s time for it to go.  It will come down branch by branch today. 

It’s a lesson of life that some things are for a season.  All living things have a lifespan.  Some are very long and some are far too short.  I guess I had hoped that this tree would outlive us.  There will be a giant hole in our landscape when it’s gone.  We will plant another tree, but won’t be around to see it grow as big as this one. 

I love trees.  I could be a tree hugger.  I admire all the varieties and the contrasts of evergreens and deciduous.  Green is my favorite color and in trees I see every shade on the green spectrum.  They all have different patterns of branches and a myriad of leaf shapes.  To me, they are a testament to the magic of Creation and I must always live among them. 

This tree coming down is not without its upside.  Further damage to our roof will cease and the endless raking of seed pods will not be necessary.  Our view of sunsets will be opened up and the lilac that has been stunted under its branches will probably thrive.  But something about losing that tree seems like an ending.  I loved sitting under it and watching the morning and evening sunlight electrify its leaves to a bright chartreuse as they twisted in the breeze.  It felt safe to sit under the branches, like a cozy shelter from extremes of the seasons. 

I may be a little more sad about this tree than I should be.  I’m not sure I want to watch it come down.  I know it’s just a tree.  The memories and years associated with that tree won’t change.  But it was easier to remember when I could sit under it. 

Finding your Rhythms

I’ve always tended to be a night owl, so my morning routine consists of a slow trudge toward waking up and engaging in life.   When I was still working, of course there were the days that I had to embrace the readiness routine of pulling myself together so I would be presentable and alert in the office.  My preference, however, is to stay in my pajamas, pour myself a steaming hot cup of black coffee, check the news of the day and scan social media.  Once the caffeine begins to awaken my senses, it’s usually ok to talk to me and I might even be coherent.  Truth be told, I’ve never been a cheerful morning person.  I like to wake up slowly and peacefully.  It was harder when we had kids.  Offspring don’t wait for you to wake up before they start asking for things like food. 

I used to revel in days that I could stay up till the wee hours and sleep in the next morning.  My husband was really nice about getting up with the kids and feeding them so they would let me wake up slowly. I took on the night shift with the child who didn’t need much sleep and was still wide awake at 10:00pm.  Our routine worked pretty well with our internal clocks.  

Something happened a number of years ago that didn't just mess with my circadian rhythm, it completely broke it.  This may sound strange, but we went on a 10-day camping trip with my sister and brother-in-law.  We shared a tent camper and the other three people in the tent were early risers.  Sleeping in was not happening.  So every day I woke between 5:30 and 6:30am on that trip.  When I got home, suddenly I could not sleep past 6:30 even if I stayed up till midnight.  Consequently, I could no longer stay up late because I need my eight hours and couldn’t function well on less. I know some people who do perfectly well with six hours of sleep, but that is not me.  It was a sad realization that my youth was departing and forcing me to keep “old people hours”. 

According to The Sleep Foundation website, “Circadian rhythms are 24-hour cycles that are part of the body’s internal clock, running in the background to carry our essential functions and processes.  One of the most important and well-known circadian rhythms is the sleep-wake cycle.  Different systems of the body follow these rhythms that are synchronized with a master clock in the brain.  This master clock is directly influenced by environmental cues, especially light. When properly aligned, a circadian rhythm can promote consistent and restorative sleep.  But when the rhythm is thrown off, it can create significant sleeping problems such as insomnia.” 

I am pretty sure that winter in my part of the world also does a number on my circadian rhythm.  When it’s still dark at 7:30am and dark again at 4:00pm, my body clock says I need to be asleep more.  Hibernation would not be out of the question.  Now that it’s February, I’m beginning to see some lengthening of our daylight hours.  It feels like it takes forever to get past the darkest months, but I just read today that it’s only 35 more days until we return to Daylight Savings Time.  I look forward to that day every year as much or more than my birthday, which happens to fall around the same time. 

February is skipping along nicely toward the first signs of spring.  I know for some of my readers, it’s counting down to fall.  Whichever season you are headed for, I hope your circadian rhythms are adjusting appropriately.  If not, I recommend a 10-day camping trip.  It could very well be a life changer. 

Room to Expand

Expansion.  As I was writing in my journal last week, this word came to me out of the blue.  I was journaling about the last year and how it changed my life in such a huge way.  The routine of what I had been doing for a very long time was abruptly interrupted by my own need and subsequent decision to find a new routine.  I was left with being unsure of what my new life would even look like.  It was full of possibility, but also confusion and a discomfort in the unknown status of my future endeavors.  In my journal I was trying to describe my growth over these last months.  The best descriptor that came to mind was expansion. 

Just yesterday I was listening in a writing group I’m part of and the author, while describing the meaning behind a poem he had written, discussed the idea of being open and expansive.  I have often found that when I’m supposed to learn something, the message comes through loud and clear from more than one source and it behooves me to pay attention. 

The word itself is a noun that describes the act of increasing something in size, volume, quantity, scope or importance.  It’s used a lot in building terms like adding onto a structure or acquiring more property.  It describes suburban sprawl as cities increase in population.  In scientific terms, it’s what happens when you apply heat to things.  When substances are heated, the molecular bond between particles are weakened and the particles move faster, causing the substance to expand. 

For me personally, the word expansion describes what I feel has recently happened to the scope of my life.  Without the confines of the habits and obligations that had been firmly in place, new ideas, options and skillsets grew.  Dreams became possible.  I felt the world expanding around me and I became less afraid of expanding with it. 

A year ago I might not have been brave enough to do something crazy like starting a blog.  Putting your writing out there leaves you feeling vulnerable and exposed.  You don’t know if anyone will read it or appreciate it.  I wanted what I wrote to be helpful, to cause people to feel more positive, to maybe make them think in a new or different way, or perhaps at least bring a smile.  As I embarked on this new adventure, I thought it would mostly just be a little something for family and friends and a way to dip my toes back into the writing pool.  What happened was expansion.  I’m still in awe of how many people read my posts and the messages I get from people who connected with something are so encouraging! 

So, I asked myself when the word popped into my mind, “What does the next level of expansion look like?  Are you going to allow yourself to expand and grow even more?”  I am already working on a collection of essays, poetry, photography and artwork to put into book form that I’m hoping to complete in 2022.  Just a few days ago through a serendipitous discovery, I found a platform to expand the reach of my writing even more.  But I also want to grow beyond the bounds of my writing.  I want to allow myself to expand my horizons and see where I end up.  I want to grow mentally and spiritually and hopefully be used in a bigger way in the lives of others.  I’m ok with not growing physically.  There are areas where it’s best to consider contracting rather than expanding. 

The idea of putting feet to fire may be uncomfortable, but it may be what it takes for expansion to happen.  How will this year apply heat that causes me to continue to grow even more ideas, dreams, goals, opportunities?  Let’s see what you’ve got, 2022.  I’m leaving myself open to expand. 

Feeling the Feelings

I have a couple of blog posts in the pipeline and I internally debated which one to post today.  Both have my usual positive bent because most of the time that’s where I live.  I’m an optimist, a glass full and overflowing “this too shall pass” girl who strives to look for the good in every day.  If I am feeling blue, I generate a list of things I’m thankful for.  If I’m sad, I focus on all the reasons I have to be happy.  If I’m upset or irritated, I take a walk outside and breathe in the fresh air and exhale the anger or frustration. 

Today I’m blue and sad and maybe even a teeny bit angry.  I would usually keep telling myself that I need to snap out of it.  I would sternly remind myself that I need to stop moping, stay busy, listen to upbeat music, go for a walk, watch some inspiring videos, tackle a project, or read a funny book.  I may not be able to change my circumstances, but I can sure control how I respond to them. 

I sent a message to a friend earlier in the week that I was struggling a bit and was looking to be cheered up.  This person usually always has a way of making me laugh with their offbeat perspective and similarly quirky sense of humor.  I didn’t get back the comical message I expected.  Instead what this wise friend said, in essence, is that sometimes you need to live in the struggle; that sometimes you need to let yourself feel whatever it is you are feeling.  That may mean just hanging in and hanging on until it works its way through.  Sometimes, it seems, forcing yourself to be positive only prolongs actually dealing with the feelings.  Working up a false sense of optimism is like putting a ferocious animal in a cage and going about your business without considering the fact that at some point you’re going to have to let it out.  It may sit in that cage and calm down, or it may only become more dangerous the longer you wait, but it will eventually need to be freed. 

Today I’m allowing myself to feel whatever it is I’m feeling without trying to whip up a batch of fake positivity or platitudes.  I know there is truth in the idea that I need to accept those feelings, let them ruminate a bit, and then let go of them.  In the meantime, this same friend offered to commiserate and hang with me there in the darkness.  It was not comic relief, but it was a more important kind of benevolence that reached all the way into my heart.  That kindness did more to make me feel hopeful than any joke could have.   

I don’t know what you could be feeling today, but know that it’s ok to feel it.  It’s also ok to reach out to a friend.  Sometimes just what you need to hear comes from unexpected places. 

The Happy List

Recently an episode of a television show I like to watch introduced me to the idea of a “happy list”.  The premise was that one of the characters had just been through a cancer scare and had finally gotten a clean bill of health. She determined that she was now going to reprioritize her life and spend more time doing the things that genuinely made her happy.  She was no longer going to set aside those things and get caught up in the stress and busyness of life.  She declared that the saying, “life is too short” was true and it was time she made a “happy list” and began ticking off the things that brought her happiness. 

I happen to believe that there is a difference between happiness and joy.  Being happy is often a temporary condition depending on circumstances.  Lots of life events and moments can make us feel happy.  Sunny days make me happy.  At the moment I can’t exactly remember what those feel like, but I know sunshine makes me feel great.  Many of us think that if we just had a new car, or a vacation, or more money, or…… then we would be happy.  Joy is something deeper.  It’s an inner contentment that doesn’t change with circumstances.  We can be internally joyful even when we go through hard things. Joy is a mindset, a permanent deep feeling of the soul.

I’ve been struggling with the January blues this week, so while I know that my joy is still deep down in me somewhere, feeling happy seems like it might be helpful as well about now.  So, I present my “happy list”.  These are some things I can do or think about that make me happy even if it’s only temporary. 

 

Three things I’m good at:   writing, creating, planning

Three favorite vacation spots:  Hawaii, Oregon Coast, Western Canada

Three favorite movies:  Rain Man, Leap Year, Good Will Hunting

Three things I want to try or do again:  ziplining, horseback riding, hot air ballooning

Three things to do for fun:  outings with friends, wine tasting, camping

Three favorite books:  Small Great Things, Unbroken, The Day the World Came to Town

Three favorite activities: walking on the beach, taking nature photos, hanging with my grandkids

Three places I want to go: Italy, Outer Banks, Ireland

Three happy foods: fish tacos, loaded homemade BBQ burger, salsa

Things that always make me smile:  beautiful sunsets, hummingbirds, babies

Three best times of year:  summer, summer, summer

 

What’s on your happy list?   

In Search of Sunshine

Often this time of year in the Pacific Northwest we get a long spell of gray and foggy skies. This, in addition to the very short spans of daylight, takes its toll mentally.  Not to mention any names, but some people get grumpy.  All attempts to remain cheerful go into hiding with the sun.  However, I made a promise to myself and those who have to live with me, that this year I would not openly whine and complain every day, and I would do my best to remain optimistic about the fact that spring is still two months away.  As of yesterday, I failed.  I humbly acknowledge that I feel all done with January.  

I have readers from all over the world, and I know a number of you are currently feeling done with the heat you are experiencing.  Feel free to skip the rest of this posting.  For those of us stuck in seemingly endless gloomy days, I'm sharing some photos of my favorite atmospheric phenomena with hopes that they return soon.  So here's to 56 days till the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere!  (Click on the first photo for a sunshiny slide show!)

When Kindness Wins

"If the terrorists had hoped their attacks would reveal the weaknesses in western society, the events in Gander proved its strength."

Books are my preferred form of escape.  In this age of all things technical, the availability of things to watch makes it easy get absorbed in the screen.  But I still love to plop down with a book with real pages.  I usually have several on the go at any one time, but sometimes there will be one that I can’t put down so it takes priority.

Someone recommended a book to me a while back, but it wasn’t until September of last year that I got it into my Amazon cart and placed the order.  It arrived right away, but I still had a few others I was reading, so it went to the bottom of my “current reads” pile.  I was struggling to get through one of the books in the pile, so I moved this one up the list.  Once I started, every other book got set aside.  The book is The Day the World Came to Town by Jim DeFede.  I was especially interested because Jim had once been a staff writer for our local newspaper, The Spokesman Review. 

The Day the World Came to Town is the story of 38 jetliners bound for the United States from all over the world on September 11, 2001.  That monumental day in history was the day that the two towers of the World Trade Center in New York were levelled by airplanes taken over by terrorists.  Another crashed into the Pentagon and another, directed toward the nation’s capital, was brought down in a field in Pennsylvania.  It was that day that stopped time.  Once it was understood that these acts were intentional, US airspace was closed.  There were over 4,500 aircraft in US airspace that immediately had to find places to land. Suddenly those 38 jetliners headed for the United States had to be rerouted. 

One of the available airfields was a large former military airport in Gander, Newfoundland.  When it opened in 1938, it was the largest airport in the world.  After World War 2, it became a refueling hub for commercial airliners and private jets from everywhere.  When panic ensued after the US was shut down, Gander offered a place for so many planes to safely land.  And so they did, with their 6600 passengers and crew members.  This is the story of how the small town of Gander, with its approximately 10,000 residents, became refuge for each and every one of those passengers and flight crew members stranded far from home and their original destinations in the US. 

The author did so much research and so many interviews to capture the stories of only a few of those passengers as well as the people of Gander and surrounding towns who dropped what they were doing to welcome and care for 6600 people who had no place to go.  They provided shelter, food, clothing, blankets.  They opened their homes for people to shower and have a hot meal.  They emptied their cupboards and closets.   Local businesses emptied their shelves.  Gander residents loaned their cars, telephones and computers to these strangers. The people of Gander embraced their role and gave up their own comfort to help in any way they could.  There are too many stories of remarkable kindness to even begin to tell them here. 

I was so moved by this book.  It’s not a literary monster.  It’s written simply and factually.  The short chapters skip from person to person as their stories are told.  Most of what happened in Gander was basic human decency.  But what made it so unique was that the friendly little town in a remote part of Canada that few visited stopped life to take on an overwhelming challenge and did so without blinking and with extraordinary kindness and compassion regardless of race, religion, or language barriers. If you’re looking for something to remind you that there’s good to be found in this troubled world, this book will provide just that.  It’s uplifting and inspiring and just the kind of positivity we need in the world today. 

The Dream Lives On - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Today is a national holiday here in the United States to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King.  As I read about him and listen to his words, I am struck by the fact that he was assassinated at only 39 years old.  I know some pretty amazing people in their thirties, but few have come close to having the impact of Dr. King.  He was gifted and called to speak on behalf of the poor and for the cause of peace.  He was controversial in his stance about the Vietnam War.  He divided public opinion and willingly put himself in the crossfire.  He was a minister and an activist and the spokesperson of the civil rights movement.  He participated in and led protest marches for blacks’ right to vote, desegregation, labor and other basic civil rights.  He won the Nobel Peace Prize for combatting racial inequality through non-violent resistance. 

His “I Have a Dream” speech was not written into the text of what he planned to say on that day in 1963 on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC.  But the words that came to him in that moment are the words that we all know and remember to this day.  Here’s an excerpt:

I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today.

So today I want to recognize the contribution of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who followed his heart and his calling in order to transform the minds and hearts of people in our country.  May his words continue to resonate.