Feelin' Just Fine!

Inspiration....exhileration....all things in moderation!

It's that darn old moderation that keeps my feet on the ground when the rest of me is soaring. It also makes a person tolerable to be around, because a person on a 'high' can be down right annoying to be with. Know what I mean? They can be mislabeled as a 'crazymaker'. In fact pure inspiration and exhileration can wear a person out! It's that moderation and sometimes a case of the plain old lazies that keeps one from riding off on a horse in seven different directions.

After ten years of being off caffeine I have allowed myself a good old caffeine laced vanilla latte for the past two Saturdays. I haven't had a buzz like that for years and I'm sure it has led to the feeling of exhuberance. Like Bob said when he was on steroids during chemotherapy, "I'm all dressed up with no where to go!"

In the past couple of weeks I have found myself in all sorts of situations that have not only fed my soul but  have been avenues of sharing with others the joy of being alive together.

It is good to surround oneself with friends that are like-minded. I guess that would be why I am involved in so many 'clubs'. I try to be careful with that because while drawing groups together to share life's interests, it can also create a type of fence around the participants which can lead to the exclusion of others. It also marks out blocks of time on a monthly calendar that can hinder one's freedom to do spur of the moment things. Here is another good place to introduce that word 'moderation.'

I am one blessed woman who enjoys the friendship of many wonderful women and my world continues to enlarge. As I pursue my interests and hobbies it naturally stands to reason that I will meet other people who hold the same interests. As I frequent the quilt shop or the scrapbook store, it is easy to strike up a good old fashioned conversation with the other shoppers or shop keepers. Next thing you know, you are sharing phone numbers.

Sometimes the Christian community (of which I am a part) becomes so self absorbed that it forgets that it resides in a larger community and often it becomes ingrown and forgets to engage itself in the beauty all around. It saddens me to watch 'burn out' set in as well meaning people serve with their talents and creativity and forget to replenish the well of their own starving soul. We serve well when we have an overflow and abundance. When life gets so busy that we jump from one event to the next and forget to stop and reflect and enjoy the experience that we've just been engaged in we will find that life is one big blur and we lose our True North. Sadly, instead of being in the moment of the present event, our minds race to what is next on the agenda called life. Blackberries and the iphone are constant reminders of our busy calendars.

My advice? Take a deep breath, look around you, exhale and enjoy the moment! This can take place in your office work place, at the grocery store check out line, at the kitchen sink scraping carrots, or while changing the tenth diaper of the day (you just might want to be careful with the inhale in that case).

Today I met a lovely woman. She became a widow ten years ago at the same age I was when Bob was diagnosed with cancer. We shared a deep moment of 'knowing'. While cancer took her husband, I was spared the experience.  I could have been in the same predicament that she finds herself in. We have both learned in a deeper way what it means to stop and enjoy each and every day as a gift from God and to love the people around you. We both agreed that although the sharing of interests is exhilerating, at the end of the day, it's really all about people and relationships.

I'm sounding a little like a Hallmark card so I will say goodbye for now. Here's a few pics from the week...

I'm enjoying working on Lola's quilt. I'm not showing the actual project yet as that must remain a surprise for Gina and Lola. Baby Lola needs her blanket but Grandma Linda has been struggling with some lower back pain lately and has been to the chiropractor too many times recently. I want only good, happy, healthy energy to go into the making of this gift. Please be patient, girls.

Sheila and I hung out in the craft room on Wednesday making altered books together. It's her first attempt and she's HOOKED. On the way home from the chiropractor the next day, I called my friend Judy and told her I was a grumpy bear and she said to get my grumpy bear bum over to her house where she treated me to a scrumptuous lunch, candles and spa music. I brought my altered book with me and we learned how to put a wire spiral binding on to it. In the meantime, I was TOTALLY inspired with Judy's collection of handmade books. She taught me a few new tricks and I am now finishing up my Rocky Mountain Christmas album. Pictures will appear next week...

I treated myself to a beautiful magazine today and purchased the cotton yarn for a special project that Cathy and I will work on next week. I haven't crocheted since high school....

Have a great rest of the weekend.