Extra, Extra, read all about it!

Wow, it's been a looooong time since I posted. So much has happened since I opened the door to 2010!

It's been eight months of ups and downs and all a rounds.

Late January, through a series of unfortunate events, I decided it was time to leave my marriage of 25 years. If you are a Christian, you might recall God leading the Hebrews out of Egypt; the flight, the crossing of the Red Sea, the long walks in the desert, the pain of looking back, the promise of manna each morning, the fear, the joy of considering what the Promised Land might hold, wonderings and wanderings of a people displaced, even though they had been praying for deliverance from a bad situation for so very long. That's a good summary of these past 8 months for me.

If you believe in Loving What Is (ala Byron Katy) then you would recall that everything that happens is neither good or bad but can be used for our growth and healing. That would be a good summary of these past 8 months too.

Or you could just say, "sh**t happens!" That too would be true! :-)

Anyway you look at it, I am moving on with my life! What have I learned so far? I've learned that facing the truth about your marriage is good, even when it hurts really bad. I've learned that loving yourself and creating a life that is healthy and happy is worth every minute of letting go that it takes. Here's a song that pretty much sums up how I feel this morning:


Carpe Diem!
Susan

Opening The Door To 2010

Long time, no see!

I've been busy working part-time, taking classes and studying to get my PreK-4 teacher's certification, running Christy back and forth to High School and attending the football games in order to watch her perform with the awesome band(the teams' good too), hanging out in Austin with the other kids, hanging out here and there with hubby AND most recently celebrating Nathan's 18th bday! Celebratory crew in above picture. :-)

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you've imagined."

Henry David Thoreau

“If you want to know what is going on in your inner world look at your outer world.” - Buddha

Carpe Diem!
Susan

Have You Been Validated Lately?

Carpe Diem!
Susan

May Your Life EXPAND in 2009!

"Courage is the ability to take action. But whether that action expands or shrinks life depends on whether the spirits we serve are good or bad: whether we’re serving the angels of our better nature, or the angels of our worst nature. And how are we to know?

There is no foolproof way, but there’s a famous formula from a third-century theologian I’ve always loved as one of the best guides for people of good heart (Origen, c. 185-254). Our course of action, he said, must always meet two criteria. It must both be useful to us, and at the same time worthy of God. Because life also shrinks and expands in proportion to the size of the god we are serving."
Loeher Davidson

Carpe Diem!
Susan

New Beginnings

Hubby and I spent a lot of time sitting right here over the holidays, that is whenever we could get the chairs away from the kids. Whether talking, laughing, playing scrabble, sharing a meal or even crying together, the fire seemed to mellow everything and make us feel that all will be well. Something about a comforting fire seems to put life into perspective. During the coming year, I hope that each of you will have many mellow moments near a glowing fire and many happy moments too! Happy New Year!

Carpe Diem!
Susan

Peek-A-Boo!

Fun At The Lakehouse!

Carpe Diem!
Susan

That, Not This!

"If you think you have to get THIS in order to have THAT, then what you REALLY want is THAT, not THIS."

Carpe Diem!
Susan

Happy Memorial Day!

Nicole chillin and playing her guitar at the lakehouse.
Jake, Nathan & Christy on the Banana Boat!
John & Me

Dinasours Still Roam The Earth!

Aren't they cute?
CLICK on the photo to see just how cute!

Carpe Diem!
Susan

Sabbatical

A sabbatical allows one to step outside the normal routine. In biblical times there was the sabbath year and in academia the sabbatical is not uncommon. I think it's high-time we regular folks enjoy the benefits of a sabbatical. Actually, I already do. I am blessed to have a place right outside my back door, the gazebo, where I can get away for mini-sabbaticals. Sometimes my sabbaticals only last 15 minutes but it's enough time to rejuvinate me for the next spelling test I need to give, or the next round of laundry that needs to be tackled or the next errand that must be run. I suggest we allow ourselves the gift of a daily mini-sabbatical...kind of like the siesta that is popular in certain parts of the world... and enjoy a break from the normal routine.
CarpeDiem!
Susan

In Honor of Leo Buscaglia

“It's not enough to have lived. We should be determined to live for something. May I suggest that it be creating joy for others, sharing what we have for the betterment of personkind, bringing hope to the lost and love to the lonely.”
Leo F. Buscaglia
1924-1998

I have been reading some of Leo's books recently. What an incredibly loving, insightful, smart and funny man! If you would like to learn more about his contribution to life, go here.

Carpe Diem!
Susan

I LOVE HUGS!

I grew up in an family that hugged a lot and I have carried on this loving practice with my husband and children. The first thing I do when greeting friends is hug them. I have only come across a few people in my life that seemed resistent to a hug and I try to respect that...but always feel a little sorry for them because they are missing out. It's not unusual to hear me say "I NEED a hug." You can imagine that I was nodding my head "YES" as I read the followng words this morning:

"Hugging can lift depression, enabling the body's immunization system to become tuned up. Hugging breathes fresh life into tired bodies and makes you feel younger and more vibrant. In the home, hugging can strengthen relationships and significantly reduce tensions."
Dr. Harold Falk, Senior Psychiatrist at the Menninger Foundation

You can even give yourself a hug if you need it and no one else is around. So, here's to HUGS!...may you receive and give them with abandon!

CarpeDiem!
Susan

SERENITY

"God, grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
the courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference."

Ten Thousand Villages

Nicole, Nathan and Christy...what a trio of cuties...standing in front of Ten Thousand Villages. Nicole is volunteering there on a weekly basis. To read more about this awesome non-profit organization and fair trade, go HERE.

Me and some of the beautiful sculptures crafted by artisans that reside in Kenya.

Carpe Diem!
Susan

MAGICAL MOMENTS!
Click on the photo for a more magical view.

Now

“What you need to know about the past is that no matter what has happened, it has all worked together to bring you to this very moment. And this is the moment you can choose to make everything new. Right now.”
- Anonymous

The first yellow iris of the season has bloomed. Lovely!

Following My Heart

"SOMETIMES I can't see clear
The way to go from here,
So then I pause and pray.
Knowing God knows the way,
I throw away the chart
My cautious mind Designed.
And following my heart I just Trust.
And flowing with the flow
I go by letting go,
Believing that God's will
Will bring me to the still
Where I become the Me
God means for me to be."
James D. Freeman

There's No Place Like Home!

Twenty Days Later...

the scar is gently covered by vibrant green leaves. This too makes me smile.

Carpe Diem!
Susan

Thoughts To Ponder

"True healing has more to do with listening and unconditional love than fixing people."
Gerald Jampolsky

"A person never discloses his own character so clearly as when he describes another's."
Unknown

"Judge each day not by the harvest you reap but by the seeds you plant."
Unknown

Recommended Reading!

Did you know we have a happiness "set point" just like we have a weight "set point"? I didn't! Did you know we can increase our happiness set point? We do this mostly by changing the way we think, but also through certain forms of exercise and breathing. If you are at all intrigued by the idea...then read this book. It is a fascinating read and the author shares practical methods for raising your happiness set point.

"We do not grow absolutely, chronologically. We grow sometimes in one dimension, and not in another; unevenly. We grow partially. We are relative. We are mature in one realm, childish in another. The past, present, and future mingle and pull us backward, forward, or fix us in the present. We are made up of layers, cells, constellations."
Anais Nin

Our yellow Lady Bankston roses make me smile, too!

Purple petunias and lilac impatiens make me smile!

"I asked for strength
and God gave me difficulties to make me strong.
I asked for wisdom
and God gave me problems to learn to solve.
I asked for prosperity
and God gave me brain and brawn to work.
I asked for courage
and God gave me dangers to overcome.
I asked for love
and God gave me people to help.
I asked for favours
and God gave me opportunities.
I received nothing I wanted.
I received everything I needed."
Hazrat Kahn

Bird Creek

"The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature."
- Anne Frank

Porch Sitting...

and a HAPPY EASTER to you!

I Saw What I Saw

Prayer For The First Day of Spring!

"Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving, that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life."
St. Francis of Assisi

WakingUp

Kind of looks like our first iris of the season is waking up and yawning...maybe even sticking out her tongue!
"The earth laughs in flowers."
Ralph Waldo Emmerson

The Games People Play

John and I are learning to pray bridge. It is fun and definately qualifies as exercise for the mind. I would love to know how you exercise your mind...
Carpe Diem!
Susan

Another Day

James Taylor...singing my song.

Carpe Diem!
Susan

New Growth

Many of you know about our "Tulip Tree" that lost a limb last year...due to the weight of a heavy snow. I am excited by the new green leaves that are beginning to cover the black scar that was a result of the damage.

I want this blog to chronicle the new growth that is taking place in my life. I may recycle a few old topics but hopefully, they will have a new twist. I will be adding new photos and quotes and music. So check in from time to time and let me know what you think!

"Behold, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert
and streams in the wasteland."
Isaiah 43:19
Carpe Diem!
Susan