Don't ask...DO tell!

Love, War & Humanity

I, personally, LOVE the story of and the poem from the Iraqi doctor near the end.

Thank you Lt. Choi, for reminding us that honor comes before all else, and that integrity and honesty are not just about ourselves or selfishness, but about others and our respect and relationships with others.  Thank you for the reminder that through every challenge, we learn something new, and that with the bad, always comes good.  There is always humanity.

Karma

"So how's this for karma?! I stop at the wine store to pick up a bottle of Pinot Noir for dinner...wine store is closed so I leave empty handed but I find a credit card on the ground outside. I pick it up, search Facebook and find the women who it belongs to. She comes over to pick it up and brings me a bottle of Pinot Noir as a thank you! So after all that I ended up with exactly what I needed!"

Thanks for sharing E.G.-good deeds, good karma ;)

It's Friday on the bus...

It's Friday.

It seems that were all running late as a unit.  I saw my bus pass this morning a block before I reached the stop and I pondered "do I run today?"  I could make it (I'd done it before and from a farther distance).  I didn't bother to answer my own question today. I slowed my pace (unusual for me, which you know already if you're familiar with my race walking habit) and moseyed down the street.

Today, I have time.  It's no more time than any other day but sometimes it's good to take a moment (or ten while waiting for the next bus) to recognize the time you have and how you want to use it.  The day is fresh, chilly, and cloudy with a chance of sun bursting through or a downpour...I choose to hope for sun and I have my glasses hanging from my shirt just in case.  I chose to take my time today and unwind.

In doing so I found more open seats and it gave me some strange joy to share in the lateness of the commuters that shared this bus.  A tap on the door as the driver waits at a red light, fumbling for  tickets, distressed hair...this is me almost every day but today...

It's Friday, after all.

Never Forget

On this, the anniversary of a terrible day in American History, let us remember not to forget:

To be thankful EVERY day for what we have:
The loved ones
The rescue workers (that we hopefully never have a need for)
The friends that share in our pain and suffering and also in our joy and triumphs
Food, clothing and a roof over our heads.
A place to call home, wherever that may be.

That the suffering of one day need not last a lifetime; the Phoenix rises from the ashes.

That this tragedy is a microcosm of a global problem...but more importantly, the problem has the potential for change.

On a day when it could be so easy for many to be hateful...choose, instead, to honor those who suffered, who died, who have fought (on both sides of the battle lines), choose to respect yourself and others by loving instead of becoming bitter and cold...choose a little more kindness...a little more love... because we must never forget:
There's always room for a little more love in this world.

Get your butt in shape...no, really!

I started 3 days ago...get to it!

Whether you have to do one every 15 minutes until you finish, or you do them all at once...set a goal and make it happen...You can do it!

Get your butt moving...literally!

5 Simple Rules for Happiness

Do you think you can change the world?

Do you think you can change the world?

This question...

If you asked a child, I guarantee you'd be motivated and inspired and probably even nostalgic when you heard their answers.  Why is that?  Why is it that children have a way to believe that they are incredible creatures with unending superpowers for good?  And more importantly, why are we so surprised when they answer?  Why are we not thinking the same things that they are?

Maybe we are.  Some of us.  Maybe we haven't gotten lost in ourselves or in work or in depression or in money or in fame.  Maybe some of us aren't jaded by bad politics, or the existence of politics, or by warring religions, or by all of the negative in the world.  Maybe we're little kids...we make mistakes and color on the walls (who said that was a mistake?) and we spill our milk and kick shins at the dinner table...but we know what's right.  We ask questions because we want to know "why" there are bad things and we have the most simple answers to fixing the most complex issues.

Where is your inner child?  Is he or she present in your adult life?

The question "Do you think you can change the world?" was part of my English lesson for spanish speakers on volunteering today.  One of the beautiful things is that even though I am teaching adults, because they are new to the language, they have to find the most direct way to say things, much like children do.  And when one has the positive sentiment that these women did and a desire to discuss, you get answers that can bring great joy and fill you with belief that we are all connected and we alll want this great peaceful planet to be healthy and happy for everyone...and I don't think that their answers are that uncommon which is why this blog even exists.

We want to help.  We want to grow and learn and exchange and exist and be successful at it all!  We can make a difference.  And if people all over the world think the same thing, I can't see any reason to deny a growing movement of positive change.

The item that preceded this question was the famous Margaret Mead quote:

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it's the only thing that ever has.

This is what my students had to say:

I believe that I can change the world.  Do you?  

GO DOG, GO!

My grandmother used to read the book "Go Dog, Go" to us every time we stayed at her house.  We loved it.  This 30 second clip reminds me not only of her, but also to live with the joy of this pup...

Joy is within reach if we focus on our goals (like he does).  It's how we see it, the path we take to it, and what we do with what we have that really allow us to enjoy our successes in these aspects of our lives.  Finally, it's the attitude we demonstrate in our actions that express out gratefulness.

Today, I challenge you to live like Walter.  If you have a goal, work on it.  Find the most direct path and push yourself.  Find joy and let your ears flap in the wind with every progressive step you take!  Let the little things bring you happiness :)

Only Love

Only love can save us.

Dread Mar-I & Luciano

The simple life...

A gentleman on the bus...

Just witnessed a fellow male passenger offer his seat to every female passenger who entered the bus after he got on.  He finally got a taker.  What a gentleman!  They still exist!  Thanks for being a gentleman, sir, because even though women seek equal rights and responsibilities, it's still nice to be treated kindly.

"Nouwen" to Love On!

"Every time we make the decision to love someone, we open ourselves to great suffering, because those we most love cause us not only great joy but also great pain. The greatest pain comes from leaving. When the child leaves home, when the husband or wife leaves for a long period of time or for good, when the beloved friend departs to another country or dies ... the pain of the leaving can tear us apart.

Still, if we want to avoid the suffering of leaving, we will never experience the joy of loving. And love is stronger than fear, life stronger than death, hope stronger than despair. We have to trust that the risk of loving is always worth taking." -Nouwen

Thank you to my good friend J.L. for his seeming telepathy when posting for the public and for the knack for exceptional timing!

Confessions

Sooo...a confession:

I race people. Every day.

I haven't lost yet.

They don't know I'm racing, so maybe it isn't fair.  But I race all the same. It gives me a focus. Something to strive for...and I'm just walking to and from work among the masses of NYC.  I joke with my family that I'm waiting for the Olympic speed-walking coach to discover me (no, really, though, if you want to check out my skills let me know)!

I think it's entertaining to are how fast I can push my body to move.  I even had a man stop me a few weeks ago to tell me I walk faster than everyone in NY (and if you've been here, and you secretly race people, you'll know this is a real accomplishment)!  My biggest pride about this, though, is that I'm rushing to give myself more life...less time walking means earlier at work which isn't great because of the work part but because it means I can then speed race HOME, out of the craziness and the rat race to a wagging tail and a consoling smile.  Secret-racing gives me more life!  It gives me energy and physical exercise that others avoid by standing in lines for escalators (that's the easiest way to win the race, by the way).  It makes me smile with delight at small accomplishments along my walk.  It gives me more time doing what I want instead of standing in lines.

What's your fun confession?!  Do you have anything that you don't tell people about that entertains you or that you do to make your life more positive?

People are (still) Awesome

After a tough commute home through the grime of Manhattan today, I wondered if humanity still exists, or if we're all robots.  I guess you could say my question was answered by a situation that could easily have happened in the tunnels below me today...way to go human beings!

DO you like guessing games and silent movies?  See why people are awesome here:

Still haven't caught on?  Read the brief NYPost article about the awesome-Aussies here.

Dear Dad...

An addition to one of my fav. posts:

Dear Dad:

Thanks for making me a girl who didn't need a boy to drive her UHaul truck.

Love, 

Your little-big-girl 

who just drove the 14 footer!