It Starts With a Seed

 "You're like the seed from which a plant grows:  Almost everything you need to be fully who you are is already inside of you---waiting for the things that nurture you, the things that bring you to life." 

--Magnolia Journal summer 2022

Now What?

Before the tender age of three I had gotten lost twice, according to my mother.  The first time was in a soybean field behind our house when I was two.  The second time I took my little red wagon and my dog, Tuffy (above) with me.  I don't know how long I was gone or how far I got, but the police found me plodding along down the sidewalk.  I don't know why my mother says I was lost.  I knew exactly where I was going!

Dance of Life

♫Last Waltz♫

"The Boyhood of Raleigh" by Sir John Everett Millais, oil on canvas, 1870

In the above painting a seafarer is telling the young Sir Walter Raleigh and his brother the story of what happened at sea.  Before books, radio, and movies/TV we had to rely on hand-me-down stories like depicted above for our stories.  Stories are important.

It is why I keep a journal and volumes of photo albums.  They tell the story of my life.  Like this photo...

...which tells the story of my first dog, Tuffy, who I was too young to remember.  It looks as though I really loved him--I'm petting him at both ends!

I'm in the process of collecting my childhood memorabilia so I can write my childhood story.  I want to leave it for my children and my children's children so they will know how they came to be in one small part.  So far it is just a collection of events and people, but I want it to tell a story--my story.  So I'm letting it all stew for awhile to see what rises to the surface.  

The elements of a story are characters, setting, plot, conflict, and resolution.  I already have my characters, setting, and conflicts for my story.  As the writer I need to uncover the plot and the resolution.  Do our lives have plots?  And are the conflicts ever resolved?   I'm hoping by writing my childhood memoir I'll discover the answers to these questions.

If I were to choose a dance for each chapter of my life they'd be the Bunny Hop for my childhood, Quadrille for my young married adult, and the Twist for motherhood.  

I'm calling this last chapter in my life the last Waltz.  It is a fitting dance because I still have my partner and together we will glide around the ballroom holding each other as we negotiate the turns that lay ahead of us.  

Ah, that life would be so simple for each of us--the  steps memorized and performed accordingly.  No, I think Freestyle is probably more like what really happens in our dance of life.  In fact, the Freestyle link lists these seven tips for how to dance freestyle:  

1.  Get comfortable with yourself.

2.  Move your body with the music.

3.  Get to know the song if you don't already.

4.  Put together a few moves.

5.  Make big transitions during the dance.

6.  Have inspiration.

7.  Have fun with it.

It sounds like a pretty good list for life, too.

  

Let It Be Easy

♫Let It Be♫

Alan Cohen in his book "A Deep Breath of Life" asks this question about his life:  How would I be doing this differently if I were willing to let it be easy?  By easy he means "honoring your aliveness.....acting from the place in you where life is meaningful.....and releasing any notion that you must participate in activities that deaden you."  With this in mind I examined my own life....

How do I honor my aliveness?

Caring for pets....

Poetry and Gabriel add a richness to my life that is special because animals have no guile and love with their whole hearts.  They get along with one another, but the times when their wild side emerges they never hold a grudge afterwards.  It is pure entertainment when both are feeling frisky!

I especially love it when they join forces in their escapades!

Making a home...

My home has always been very important to me.  Over the years I've enjoyed finding ways to make it more comfortable for my family and me.  It has been a place to express my creativity.

Gardening...

Making a garden engages all 5 senses--sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste.

Playing with dolls...

I love miniature things.  Decorating a miniature house is like having a second home to dote over--and much cheaper.  Finding just the right items, especially when it's been found in a yard sale, is very rewarding.  Making it myself is even better.  I made the kitchen rag rug, straw broom, and kitchen and coffee tables.

Collecting...

I collect children's picture books whose illustrators appeal to my love of pretty pictures.

In my basement my husband had to build shelves for all the books and matching dolls and stuffed animals I'm collecting to share with my future grandchildren.

I collect the books of my favorite illustrators like Susan Branch...

And Beatrix Potter...

And Tasha Tudor

Reading...

I read instead of watching TV.

Writing...

I write stories about Poetry and Gabriel.  

Travel...

The Arizona desert is breathtaking.

And driving through West Virginia in the Autumn is always inspiring.

What makes my life meaningful?

My family and friends...

My family is all grown up and on their own now, but they are still very much a part of my life.  

My family history...

I've researched my roots and written my ancestors's stories.  They've all contributed in some way to who I am and show me I, too, have a legacy to leave.

My blogs...

This was my first Blog, a daily devotional.  I actually wrote it in 2004, but did not post it until 2011.

My second Blog filled my need to continue looking for the ways in which God is in all of life.

The stories on this website were written between 1997 and 2003.  They are very special to me and I just wanted to share them.

This is this Blog.  I wanted a place where I could share my thoughts about my life.

And finally, what activities have I released that deaden me?  

Anything that doesn't fall into one of the above categories! There will always be something you will have to do that does not appeal, but when you have a choice, ask yourself, will this make a difference in my or someone else's life.  Life is too short to waste doing things that really don't matter in the scheme of things.  

♫The Beatles - Let It Be♫