The enemy of the best

Today I am thinking about the phrase the good is often the enemy of the best. In this fast-paced world it very easy for one to become over-committed to very good projects with all the best intentions. Unfortunately, all too often we also find ourselves running on empty and not giving our very best to anyone or any thing.

In my life I have been trying to pare down so that I can put more focus on what I'm beginning to refer to as my calling. (nothing mysterious there, it's just what I an beginning to see as my purpose in this life)

I had a conversation with my husband last night as I was trying to decide about the best use of my time and talents in a certain area and this morning I am at peace with a decision. I want to give my best to an area that I feel called to; I can't do everything and I don't want to be spread so thin that I am of little use where it matters.

Think about your personal calling and any areas where the good may be stealing the best you have to devote to that calling. That is my challenge for today.

What Not to Wear

Do you ever watch that program on TLC called What Not to Wear? I tune in occasionally when they feature someone who is, shall we say, mature. Every once in a while I learn something that is helpful in dressing this aging body of mine.

A few days ago they featured a woman of about sixty years of age. She dressed flamboyantly with lots of glitter and her hair was blonde and big. She was a divorced mom who dressed, acted, and enjoyed dancing and partying with her daughter.

I couldn't really relate to where she was coming from but I watched it anyway. Turned out that I found it to be one of the most melancholy programs I've ever seen.

The program hosts always deal with clothes first. In this case, she was ready to tone down the glitter and got some really nice outfits that were more appropriate to her age - yet still fun.

Hair was next, and that's where it all fell apart. Her long, big, blonde hair was transformed to a shorter, more classic, cut. The peroxide blonde was toned down to a share more honey colored. No more teased hair, just a classy style more age appropriate. I loved it! She hated it.

The show might as well have stopped right then, because she was no longer with the program. She couldn't accept her new hair style. The comment that continues to stick with me is when she said "guys won't like it".

I wanted to reach through the TV screen and give her a hug and tell her that it doesn't matter if guys don't like it; it doesn't even matter if girls don't like it; it's about what you like and what makes you feel good. I guess in this case, her previous style did make her feel good, but I can't help think that it was for the wrong reasons. She was a soft-spoken woman who dressed in such a way a to draw attention to herself and to please others she felt she had to. My heart went out to her as I sensed that she hadn't yet experienced the peace of accepting herself for the wonderful person she was created to be.

One of the best things about growing older is that we lose the desire to please everyone else and we become more comfortable with showing the world who we really are. I want to look nice and presentable but I have no desire to look twenty again. I'm fifty and proud of it!

My home and native land......

It's Canada Day! Although we live in the United States, and will be celebrating the 4th of July in a few days, today we are celebrating the birthday of our homeland.

In honour of the day, I thought that I would share some Canadian tidbits with you.

If you know who Stompin' Tom Connors is.....and you can hum the song called The Good Old Hockey Game.....you might be Canadian!

If you have ever plugged your car in at night.....you might be Canadian!

If you have ever frozen your tongue to a flagpole in the winter....you might be Canadian!

If you know that Regina means pile of bones, if you've ever been to Moose Jaw, and if you can spell Saskatchewan.....you might be Canadian!

On the other hand.....

If you have ever enjoyed long hot summer evenings when it stayed daylight until 10:00 pm......you might be Canadian!

If you have ever spent a summer without rain from June through September with the average temperature hovering around 100F / 40C .....you might be Canadian!

We are flying both the Maple Leaf and the Stars and Stripes on our home today. Today we're celebrating with our country.

Happy Birthday, Canada!

Our home and native land.

Strange Bedfellows

Making my bed in the morning sometimes reveals some interesting suprises. When I throw back the quilt quite often little dog chews or toys go flying onto the floor.

When we go to bed at night I always have a book, Gerry usually has a Suduko puzzle, and the girls often bring a little something of their own to lull them to sleep. We each have our own way of settling in and quieting ourselves after a busy day.

One's favorite book is another ones Suduko. One's addictive Suduko is another one's dog chew.

~~

Today is my last day of work before eleven days off. The sun is shining and it's going to be a beautiful day. My car needs gas so that means I have to stop at Fred Meyer on the way to work, and that's the excuse I need for a Starbucks. There are fun times ahead, most of which involve grandbabies. Life is very good.

I'm trying to find something for summer reading in the sunshine. Suggestions?

The Shack

A number of months ago, The Shack was recommended to me by my BFF. (thank you, Wanda!) I promptly bought it, and it joined my stack of "to-reads". Yesterday afternoon, I picked it up and went out to my favorite summer place, my lawn swing, and sat in the sun and read.

I could not put it down.

This book challenged my thinking in many areas. It made me think about things in a way that I hadn't before. It made me cry. It gave me a renewed sense of hope. It made me feel loved.

If you haven't read it yet, I encourage you to pick it up. It's a quick read that could very well change your life.

The times, they are a changin'

There has been a lot of talk lately about social networking. It got me thinking about how much the world has changed since I was a child, and even more since my parents were children. (the cute little baby girl in this picture is my mom!)

Both of my parents have been gone for about twenty-five years and they wouldn't recognize much of what we find common in our lives today. Here are some sentences that I came up with that my parents would not know the meaning of if they could somehow come back for a day (oh how sweet that would be).

• She is one of my Facebook friends.
• Are you on Twitter yet?
• I really enjoy blogging.
• I'll send her a text.
• I will IM her.
• Did you see that on You Tube?
• Don't worry, I still have two bars left.

There are so many more things that would be foreign to anyone who had not been involved in our day-to-day life over the past twenty-five years or so. It's hard to imagine what kind of changes the next few decades will bring.

Can you come up with any more sentences that would be foreign to someone from twenty-five years in the past?

Clock Therapy

A number of years ago an older woman made a comment to me about how much she enjoyed "the company of a clock". As a young twenty-something whippersnapper, I really had no idea what she meant but, because my parents raised me right, I smiled and nodded and made sounds of agreement.

For some reason that phrase has stayed with me and every once in a while it comes to mind for no particular reason. This past Sunday morning, I had one of those Ah-Ha moments that we hear so much about recently.

Gerry was sick on Sunday and he spent much of the morning in bed. Our usual routine on the weekends, well really every day, is that he goes down stairs first and pours coffee and brings it upstairs. (Especially on Sunday because there is something in the Bible about he-brews!)

Anyway, there I was downstairs in a quiet house waiting for Maya to go potty when it hit me. The house was totally quiet, save for the ticking of an old wall clock hanging in Gerry's office. I found the tick-tick-tock was oddly soothing and I realized what "the company of a clock" meant.

Our lives are filled with so much noise that it's easy to miss a little nugget like this. I thought about my own typical day. The first thing that I do when I get out of the shower is turn on the radio in my bathroom. From that point on, it's full steam ahead with activities and work and no time for quiet. Deep down I am an introvert, one of those people who can feel drained when she spends a lot of time around other people. Perhaps that's part of the reason why I feel so darn stressed most of the time. It also explains why I treasure a hot afternoon spent alone on the lawn swing with a good book.

So there it is. A lesson that has whispered to me over the years, but which I had missed the meaning of.

The next time I'm feeling overwhelmed by the noise and pressure of life, I'm going to turn off the noise and enjoy a bit of clock therapy.

Book Review - The Unbreakable Child

I have just reviewed Kimmi's book for Story Circle Book Reviews.

If you haven't read her book yet, you're missing out on a story of strength, faith, and character that will inspire you to rise above whatever hardships you may face in your own lives.

I encourage you to check it out.

P.S. Guess who is one of the newest Editors for Story Circle Book Reviews! It's a dream come true! If you are looking for something good to read, take a look at our site where you will find a wide variety of books written for, by, and about women.

Dads

Tomorrow is Father's Day. My own Dad has been gone for twenty-five years. Here are a few tidbits that I remember about my Dad.

If you asked Dad now many were in his family he would say that he had six sisters and every one of them had a brother. At first you may think that there were twelve in his family, but in reality there were six girls and one boy! Dad was the brother to each of this sisters. He used to get a kick out of telling that one.

• Dad had many quips, quotes and little dittys that he would share out of the blue. Here is one:
  
  Equine quadrupeds may indubitably be induced to approach that well-known standard of specific gravity, but not necessarily be induced to imbibe thereof. (You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink)

• Dad's nickname for me was Princess.

• The last words that Dad ever said to me were "I love you, Princess".

Here are some other Dad's that I am blessed to have in my life.


When I got married, not only did I get an amazing husband, I also got another Dad. My father-in-love has a gentle and loving spirit and he is one of the most patient men I know.


He raised fine children, one of whom I am proud to call "husband"!


Brandon was another gift I received when I married my husband. It has been a joy to watch him grow into the man that he has become. He is an excellent husband and father and I am proud to call him "son"!

Gord won my heart forever when he married my daughter. As I watched him look at her in her wedding dress, and saw the tears fall down his cheek, I fell in love with this young man. He treasures my daughter. I will never forget the look on his face as he hurried down a hospital hall saying "It's a girl...and she's beautiful!".

Father's Day is the perfect time to tell all the "Dad's" in your life how much you love and appreciate them!