The re-discovery of happiness … day 4
Even if happiness forgets you a little bit, never completely forget about it. ~Jacques Prévert
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IN THIS SERIES…
- The re-discovery of happiness … day 1
- The re-discovery of happiness … day 2
- The re-discovery of happiness … day 3
The re-discovery of happiness … day 2
Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.
~Robert Brault
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IN THIS SERIES…
Advice to my younger self…
A child can ask questions that a wise man cannot answer. ~Author Unknown
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“If I knew then, what I know now.” How many times have you said that to yourself and what would that knowledge change? Here’s my top 10:
- A penny saved is a penny earned. Don’t be an emotional spender. Learn to be frugal.
- Listen to your parents, they want what’s best for you. Rebellion comes back to bite you, when your kids are teenagers.
- Don’t light up that first cigarette.
- You are an amazing person, you’re not a failure.
- Learn proper nutrition and learn to love exercise.
- It’s not always about you.
- Don’t worry too much.
- Joy is about balance, not things.
- Your family comes first, the promotion can wait.
- God’s got your back… always.
I don’t know if knowing all that when I was younger would have made a difference. Well… maybe a few extra zeroes in my savings account, but I think that learning as I went through life is what made me who I am today. The woman my husband is crazy about, the mom my kids love (although she’s the neighborhood nut), the girl my parents respect and the person I like (most of the time).
What’s your advice to your younger self?
You’re not alone
Life is simple, it’s just not easy. ~Author Unknown
When life gets to you and you feel like walking away from it all, remember… you’re not alone. If you think you’ve run out of solutions and your problems are too much to handle, remember… you’re not alone. Although you’ve hit the bottom, and climbing back up seems impossible, remember… you’re not alone. If there is no one else to turn to and you feel no one will understand, remember… you’re not alone. Have you forgotten about me? Has the world taken you so far, that we’ve become strangers? I want you to stop… breathe… listen to your heart beating… give me your burdens and rest. Tomorrow is a new day with new possibilities. Live to love, give, serve and be thankful. I am here to keep you steady and strong as you face the most difficult days of your life. I am always with you, remember… you’re not alone. Love always, JC
Got Faith?
Faith… hope is its brother, trust is its sister, belief is its partner and reason is not required. ~ Christine Sternfels
I was raised Catholic. I married a Jewish man. I have friends who practice Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Mormonism, Paganism, Taoism. Some are Christian, Protestants, Baptists, Anglicans, Agnostic and Atheists. Today, my husband, daughters and I are Christians. I don’t go to church all the time, but I try. I can’t call out quotes from the bible, but I own one and read it. I am not religious, but my faith in God is steady most of the time. I’d be lying if I told you my faith can’t be shaken. It has been tested over the years, but I can’t say I’ve ever lost my faith in God.
I am human – not perfect, not without sin and definitely not without fault. Love and compassion are the baseline of my actions, and when you read about the message that different religions have, it boils down to those two words.
Faith is an essential part of my life.
Driving Miss Daisy
Daisy: “Charles, I think we’re lost. We must stop for directions.”
Charlie: “Shush woman, I know what I’m doing… ooh look…. camera, say cheese!”
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Do you ever wonder what your dogs are talking about?
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REFOCUS
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“There are days when things are crystal clear, then there are days when everything is a blur. There will always be obstacles in front of us and around us, so don’t spend your time being confused. Refocus and remember what you were going for.” ~ Christine Sternfels
Unplug
“The best way to recharge is to unplug.” ~ Christine Sternfels
Nowadays, between gadgets, noise, tv, life and the voices in your head, it gets draining. I’ve decided to unplug my computer and phone this week, surround myself with loved ones and go out there to enjoy nature so I can recharge. See you in a week!
The four-legged human
“Dogs never talk about themselves but listen to you while you talk about yourself, and keep up an appearance of being interested in the conversation.” ~ Jerome K. Jerome
Collecting memories
What surrounds your home are reminders of what’s stored in your heart. ~ Christine Sternfels
I collect memories, not things. Memories stay in your heart, even when you’re losing your mind. Things fade, get old, lost, broken, become outdated and useless. As my dad would say about material things ”You can’t take that with you when you’re dead.”.
There was a time when my most precious possessions were beautiful and expensive things. We lived in a neighborhood of ‘Joneses’. One day, the entire hill we lived on was almost consumed by a wild fire in Southern California. The only reminder of those ashes would be the hours of working too much, missing out on my children’s lives and spending whatever time I had at home being too tired and cranky to do anything with my family. The Grand Prix fire changed my life.
When you get that pay check and you’ve paid your bills and set some aside for a rainy day, try to allot a portion for non-tangible things such as travel and giving back to your community.
There’s nothing wrong with working hard for a living, as long as you make an effort to have a life. Work to live, don’t live to work. Then go out there and collect memories.
It’s bath time!
When you’ve done everything possible to quiet her down, yet a full tummy, a nap and dry diaper didn’t work… a nice warm bath will usually do it.
Never give up!
“God closes one door and opens another, but it’s hell in the hallway.” ~ Joseph Garlington
Don’t settle. Don’t quit. Persevere. Hope. Achieve. Go on and never give up!
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Thank you to a blog post about “The Dreams of God” I read on “To Live For Him“, I found
Joseph Garlington’s quote (Which inspired me to shoot this photo and make this post).
Progress
“Our social progress has not kept up with our technological progress. We need a new way of thinking. “ ~ Ted Turner
After watching Oprah’s Master Class: Ted Turner, I discovered him to be brilliant. He spoke of hard work, success, losing 80% of his fortune, getting back on his feet, sacrifice, honor, giving back to humanity and taking steps to help save our planet.
It was all very interesting and inspiring but one thing kept bugging me. The question of “What am I doing to help save the planet?” Thinking about it inspired me to post this.
Did you know that industrial revolution has only been around for 200 years? Before that, (for 3 million years) all we had for progress were fire and stone tools? Now, think about breakthroughs in the last few decades. Let’s name a few. Transportation, housing and community development, drugs and technology. There are thousands of inventions to make life… convenient. Now I understand why Al Gore’s documentary on the environment was called “An inconvenient truth“. With all the inventions this generation has produced, there is much-needed attention to green technology. We have 50 years of natural gas left. That’s not very much time.
Getting educated in what you can do to make a difference is a good first step. After searching the internet, I found this. 10 easy ways to be green. What are your thoughts on global warming and have you done anything to help the progress of our planet’s health?
What’s for lunch?
While scoping out a venue for a wedding we’ll be photographing in June, I saw this eagle checking out that poor fish. I didn’t have the settings right but snapped the shot anyway, he was moving so fast. I didn’t get the details I wanted on the bird, but this shot pretty much tells you what happened to the fish.
Her future
We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that she is someone today.
~ Stacia Tauscher
The Writer
And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt. ~Sylvia Plath
One of my childhood dreams was to write a book or two. Notice I didn’t say “To be a writer”. There is a difference between being a writer and just writing a book (I tell myself this to take some pressure off, so just go with it).
English is my second language and the fear of grammatical and phrasing errors always stopped me from even trying. Then there’s the “I’m afraid to be judged” part when people read about all the things I’ve done. Oh and there’s one more. The “People in this book will hate me when they read the part they’re in”. Sound familiar? You see… just like you, I have stories to tell, inspiration to share, imagination and creativity but I also have self-doubt. For some reason, around this time last year I was done being afraid of failing and took a leap of faith! I’m glad and proud to say the book is coming along fine, now if I could just stay focused!
So this is what I’ve done so far:
Step one, decide on fiction or non-fiction? It’s about the story of my life with creative exaggeration and ad lib. What’s so interesting about my life that you would buy my book you say? Well… I said I dreamt of writing one, who said anything about selling it? Now if I happen to send an email blast of my story to all the publishers that will read it and hopefully most won’t get lost in spam folders… well I’ll think about that later, for now I just need to type my thoughts first.
Step two, set aside some time everyday to “type” or stare at my computer for an hour. I can’t have writer’s block if all I’m doing is typing stories, don’t you agree?
Step three, save the document and turn my computer off. I try not to go back to read it. Every time I did, I just ended up wasting the hour and deleting most of what I “typed”. Some nights I get into it and just ”type” the night away until I look up and it’s time to pack lunch for hubby and the kid… and brush my teeth.
Step four, well I haven’t gotten to that one yet. Once I’m done “typing” I guess I will take this step to share my work with someone who will tell me like it is… my sisters! This is the part where I give my ego a few shots of the chill pill… I must not be discouraged. So once I’m at this point… I will send out an update!
I know that nine out of ten people reading this post have had some desire of writing a book. I say go for it because the worse thing that can happen is you die wishing you had when here it is… you have today, tomorrow and days to follow. Go ”type” a book and maybe even become a writer!
Do over
There are no backspace or delete buttons in life, but don’t let that stop you from trying again.
~ Christine Sternfels
I think we’ve all been in situations where you might say “Wish I could click undo. Do over!”
I’ve been there too many times and continue to realize that had I given up in my darkest moments, I wouldn’t be here. Had I given up on love, I wouldn’t be happily married. Had I given up on my daughter, someone else would be helping her plan her wedding. Had I given up on my career, I wouldn’t be able to pursue my dreams. We learn things along the way and we don’t find the value in pain and hardships at the time but it’s what helps us achieve. Learning from our mistakes makes us wiser and more equipped to be able to handle, maintain and appreciate success.
Life is one lesson after the other. Each time you fall flat on your face or even if it’s just a scratch, get up and start all over again.
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Stay still…
Sometimes the best thing you can do is not think, not wonder, not imagine, not obsess. Just breathe, and have faith that everything will work out for the best. ~ Anonymous
In the woods…
The human spirit needs places where nature has not been rearranged by the hand of man.
~ Anonymous
The Path
Early one morning I tried to chase the sunrise without paying much attention to which way I was running through the woods. Thank goodness a path was there that led me back to my cabin.
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