I was given a 2010 desk calendar for Christmas by Jeff. It has a daily saying from the Dalai Lama on the front and a fun brain teaser on back. I use the discarded sheets for scrap paper. Overall a very handy gift. From time to time I will post some of the sayings from the calendar that I particularly find interesting.
Here are two of the latest:
"My earnest request is that you practice love and kindness whether you believe in a religion or not"
"Anger can not be overcome by anger. If a person shows anger to you and you show anger in return, the result is a disaster. In contrast, if you control your anger and show its opposite - love, compassion, tolerance, and patience - then not only will you remain in peace, but the anger of others also will gradually diminish."
I need to keep this last one in mind when dealing with Emily. No one else in the whole world can ignite my anger as quickly. Conversely, no one else can ignite such love and compassion in me as quickly either.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
More Gratitude
Today's assignment was to write about something I feel grateful for. I have so many things. But today I would say that I am thankful for my job. I have lived through unemployment - maybe more than the average person for some reason. There are many people out of work right now. I feel fortunate to not be one. More specifically, though, I am grateful to have the job I have. It overwhelms me sometimes because of all of the many different directions I can go with it. This is both a treasure and a curse.
It allows me the freedom to still be involved with Emily and her activities. I have the flexibility to take her to school and pick her up that a regular 9-5 job would not allow. By working from home, I can put in the hours needed and still maintain my family life - especially helpful when Jeff is traveling.
Like many things that we are grateful for, however, I take my job for granted. I don't always give it my all. I give into gossip and complaint like the next person. So I think I am going to list 3 things that I really like and feel grateful for regarding my job and post it in my office. Hopefully reading those things will bring me back to this place of gratitiude and encourage me to perform my best.
It allows me the freedom to still be involved with Emily and her activities. I have the flexibility to take her to school and pick her up that a regular 9-5 job would not allow. By working from home, I can put in the hours needed and still maintain my family life - especially helpful when Jeff is traveling.
Like many things that we are grateful for, however, I take my job for granted. I don't always give it my all. I give into gossip and complaint like the next person. So I think I am going to list 3 things that I really like and feel grateful for regarding my job and post it in my office. Hopefully reading those things will bring me back to this place of gratitiude and encourage me to perform my best.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Challenge of a Day
For today's Gratitude Challenge I am supposed to use the alphabet to list my items of gratitude. That was a little much for me tonight after a day of work that has wrung me dry. So I decided to use just the letters from Gratitude to make a list. Here they are:
G = Grateful of course is the key word. But what does the word really mean? I have felt gratitude so strongly that it moved me to tears. But on the other hand, being a Southerner, I have said "thank you" more than any other word in the dictionary over the course of my life. What I am truly grateful for is my family and friends. My husband, who is my life mate. My daughter, who has taught me the true meaning of unconditional love. My grandmother, who took me in to her house and her loving embrace and taught me the ways of a genteel world. And my very best friend, Robyn, who has taught me more about life and acceptance than any other situation or being. For these people and their teachings, I am grateful
R = Right now. I am thankful for right now and wish to live more in the right now. I regret deeply that one of my daughters first sentences was "just a minute". I was always saying that I would do what she wanted, look at what she wanted, in just a minute. Now that she is older, she says it to me. It is due justice for having put her off so frequently. I want to live more for this moment. It is a difficult thing to do in these days. But if only.
A = Attitude. I acknowledge and am grateful for the power of changing my attitude. I can chose how I react to things. I can decide if my attitude will be positive or negative. And the attitude of others can effect me if I chose to let them.
T = Time. I am grateful to have the time in my day that I have. Time is so precious. It is an older person's realization. Until you are older, you have no idea that time is the most precious of gifts. Just as one feels thankful for a great present, I feel not only thankful but responsible to use the gift wisely.
I = My I represents myself. "I". I have lived with I for 45 years. There have been many times, years even, that I was not happy with I. Egotistical as it may seem, I like me. I've learned to listen to myself. I've learned to accept my lack of compliance with the norm. I've learned what is important to me.
T = Technology. I wasn't sure I wanted to list this but it kept coming back to me. Though used inappropriately it can be a non-blessing. Technology has allowed me to stay in touch more. It has simplified my life. It just has to be monitored and respected.
U = Unprecedented. I find we are in unprecedented times. Economically. Morally. Technologically. I am grateful for being in these times. The good and the bad. The recent economic problems have amazed us. Fortunately, I had already gone through my own economic disaster. So, unlikely as it may seem, I was well prepared for these times and learned unbelievable lessons from my experience. I am thankful for times that shake us up.
D = Dogma. I am thankful for learning the Buddhist dogma and the precepts of the Buddhist belief. The dogma gives us a nice road map and some structure to life but doesn't give us the the guilt of a formative religion.
E = Energy. I wish for energy and am so thankful when I have an energetic day. I know that there are many things I could do to increase my energy, yet don't do it. That is part of my battle with myself. And one that I would be thankful to win.
After a challenging day such as this, it has been rewarding to think on the things I am thankful for instead of all the things that happened today. I think this challenge may be doing me some good.
G = Grateful of course is the key word. But what does the word really mean? I have felt gratitude so strongly that it moved me to tears. But on the other hand, being a Southerner, I have said "thank you" more than any other word in the dictionary over the course of my life. What I am truly grateful for is my family and friends. My husband, who is my life mate. My daughter, who has taught me the true meaning of unconditional love. My grandmother, who took me in to her house and her loving embrace and taught me the ways of a genteel world. And my very best friend, Robyn, who has taught me more about life and acceptance than any other situation or being. For these people and their teachings, I am grateful
R = Right now. I am thankful for right now and wish to live more in the right now. I regret deeply that one of my daughters first sentences was "just a minute". I was always saying that I would do what she wanted, look at what she wanted, in just a minute. Now that she is older, she says it to me. It is due justice for having put her off so frequently. I want to live more for this moment. It is a difficult thing to do in these days. But if only.
A = Attitude. I acknowledge and am grateful for the power of changing my attitude. I can chose how I react to things. I can decide if my attitude will be positive or negative. And the attitude of others can effect me if I chose to let them.
T = Time. I am grateful to have the time in my day that I have. Time is so precious. It is an older person's realization. Until you are older, you have no idea that time is the most precious of gifts. Just as one feels thankful for a great present, I feel not only thankful but responsible to use the gift wisely.
I = My I represents myself. "I". I have lived with I for 45 years. There have been many times, years even, that I was not happy with I. Egotistical as it may seem, I like me. I've learned to listen to myself. I've learned to accept my lack of compliance with the norm. I've learned what is important to me.
T = Technology. I wasn't sure I wanted to list this but it kept coming back to me. Though used inappropriately it can be a non-blessing. Technology has allowed me to stay in touch more. It has simplified my life. It just has to be monitored and respected.
U = Unprecedented. I find we are in unprecedented times. Economically. Morally. Technologically. I am grateful for being in these times. The good and the bad. The recent economic problems have amazed us. Fortunately, I had already gone through my own economic disaster. So, unlikely as it may seem, I was well prepared for these times and learned unbelievable lessons from my experience. I am thankful for times that shake us up.
D = Dogma. I am thankful for learning the Buddhist dogma and the precepts of the Buddhist belief. The dogma gives us a nice road map and some structure to life but doesn't give us the the guilt of a formative religion.
E = Energy. I wish for energy and am so thankful when I have an energetic day. I know that there are many things I could do to increase my energy, yet don't do it. That is part of my battle with myself. And one that I would be thankful to win.
After a challenging day such as this, it has been rewarding to think on the things I am thankful for instead of all the things that happened today. I think this challenge may be doing me some good.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Less Go!
Well, less go! Let's go. My little grandson says, Less Go for Let's go. I like it actually. Less - something I am always trying to be conscious of.
This is my first stab at blogging. I love to journal and thought it would be the perfect outlet to unload my thoughts. My hope for the blog is to include not only my thoughts, but my passions. I love reading, cooking, art, intelligent conversation, and learning.
I'm also trying to be satisfied with less. Less stuff. Less worry. Less clutter - in my house, in my environment and in my mind and spirit. As part of my desire to be happy with less, I'm starting to do this Gratitude Challenge http://www.gratitudechallenge.com/ with my friend Robyn. If I can be more grateful for all the abundance in my life, hopefully I will realize I don't need more.
For my first day of the Gratitude Challenge I am supposed to express why I am doing it and what I hope to get from it. I'm doing this because I have found throughout my life if I will take the focus off of myself and my worries and live in a state of gratitude, I feel joyful instead of depressed and negative. I hope to achieve that state of joy and become more positive. I want to regain my hopefulness. But I also want to be able to pass this on to my Emily. Naturally, at 11 years old she is so in to herself. As she matures, though, I want her to think more about others and to be happy with what she has. I am going to propose the challenge to her and see if she will join in.
So, today I am thankful and grateful for this opportunity to express myself in this new medium.
This is my first stab at blogging. I love to journal and thought it would be the perfect outlet to unload my thoughts. My hope for the blog is to include not only my thoughts, but my passions. I love reading, cooking, art, intelligent conversation, and learning.
I'm also trying to be satisfied with less. Less stuff. Less worry. Less clutter - in my house, in my environment and in my mind and spirit. As part of my desire to be happy with less, I'm starting to do this Gratitude Challenge http://www.gratitudechallenge.com/ with my friend Robyn. If I can be more grateful for all the abundance in my life, hopefully I will realize I don't need more.
For my first day of the Gratitude Challenge I am supposed to express why I am doing it and what I hope to get from it. I'm doing this because I have found throughout my life if I will take the focus off of myself and my worries and live in a state of gratitude, I feel joyful instead of depressed and negative. I hope to achieve that state of joy and become more positive. I want to regain my hopefulness. But I also want to be able to pass this on to my Emily. Naturally, at 11 years old she is so in to herself. As she matures, though, I want her to think more about others and to be happy with what she has. I am going to propose the challenge to her and see if she will join in.
So, today I am thankful and grateful for this opportunity to express myself in this new medium.
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