Creating Strength

I ran into an amazing piece of support from reaching out to a friend the other day. I had been struggling with feelings of isolation and disconnection from people, and Kim sent me a piece entitled " A Note from the Universe"The message hit me right between the eyes!; it's not the struggles you go through that count - it's how you FINISH - in a position of strength. It came at a time when I was considering giving up on human relationships, on trying to find those strong, deep ones that truly create joy, among the hundreds of casual acquaintance relationships we all have in our lives. I was simply tired of trying! But this video reminded me that the number of times you try DOESN'T COUNT, because if you stop trying before the next try, you won't get there. Whatever your goal, you have to continue to try until you get there, no matter how many times that is; then, and only then, do you finish in strength.
And equally important, the times you try and only make it part way to the goal, don't consider them failures; the strength of your finish is measured by the number of times you try - and keep trying!

Penny

Creating time for Joy

Life has been very busy lately; we moved my father from his independent apartment to assisted living within the La Posada complex ( his bone cancer is progressing unfortunately), and James had the first of his cataract surgeries ( which turned out great!). I've found it ever more important to make time in my life for those moments of joy brought on by creativity; otherwise life can become a continual series of unending chores. James and I have started updating our stamp albums together; it's fun, cheap, and appeals to my organizational sense. We welcome all donations of used stamps from our family and friends. I've also created a 2008 Christmas wall-hanging and am working on a set of 6 Christmas placemats ( we plan to invite friends over) and small Christmas gifts for friends. It amazes me how calming and satisfying creating something with my hands is; it completely removes any existing stress in my day!