by Sara on February 4, 2010
Letting Go of Impatience
Perhaps this isn’t the best thing to confess, but for a good part of my life I was a Type A personality! I tended to see life as a struggle and fought my way through it.
Needless to say, I wasn’t at peace with myself very often. As I grew older, I recognized the toll this fight was having on me and my body. I knew I had to change but wasn’t sure how.
As things worked out, change was forced on me during a crisis; one that was so overwhelming I had to do something.
I knew I couldn’t change the situation that was causing me grief, but I couldn’t continue to fight it either. I had to find a way to let go; something I didn’t do very easily.
My Go Gently Days
One evening after reaching a point of total exhaustion, I went to sleep. The next morning I woke up with the following phrase in my head; “Go gently into your day.” I have no clue where I read or heard this phrase, but it felt right for me at that time.
That day I thought of this phrase everyplace I went, consciously choosing to “go gently into my day.” I smiled at the overtired grocery clerk, opened the door for the stressed woman with two toddlers in tow, and drove calmly without once honking my horn because of some driver’s transgression.
In short, I spent my entire day “going gently.” When I got home, instead of feeling stressed and tired, I felt absolutely wonderful and energized. It was one of those WOW moments in my life!
By letting go of what frustrated me I could approach my day with gentleness. This brought love and energy to me. Who knew this could be so effective? I began to include more “go gently days” in my life.
5 Ways I Relieve Stress
How do I do this? I focus on being gentle to myself and to others. I smile, show kindness, and remind myself that the Universe takes care of things when I let it.
Here are some ways I practice a “go gently day”:
Remind myself frequently to “go gently into my day.” This reinforces what I choose to do during the day. It’s a mantra I repeat when I’m stuck in traffic, dealing with a difficult person or when I feel life pressing on me.
Show gratitude and kindness to others. I thank people who have helped me during the day and I offer help to others. I fully believe this creates positive energy throughout our bodies and souls.
Spend more time with gentle people or animals. I pet my dog and cat more often, have lunch with a person who is supportive and caring, or even visit some of my favorite peaceful bloggers:~)
Do something good for myself. Have a warm cup of tea or coffee, take a nice bath, go for a nature walk or listen to calming music; whatever makes me feel contented and peaceful.
Slow my life down. I drive slower and eat slower. I stop rushing and instead, take deep breaths and notice things around me along the way – trees, birds singing, colorful cars passing on the street – whatever helps me slow down my life.
I know it would be best if every day was a “go gently day,” but truthfully, I haven’t quite reached that level of consciousness yet. I’m still a “work in progress”:~)
Even so, when I start feeling stressed or angry I make an effort to take a “go gently day.” Most times these days make whatever stress or annoyance I’m feeling slink away, only to be replaced with happiness and contentment.
What about you?
When do you find you need to take a “go gently day?” What activities would you choose?
by Sara on February 1, 2010
photo by sara b. healy
This is a picture after a dose of Photoshop.
As an amateur photographer, I love Photoshop. It is one of the most amazing photo enhancement software programs ever invented. Not only can you improve a “not so great picture”, you can create new art from old photographs.
I took this picture and used Photoshop to alter it:~) I used four different filters to get this effect and had a lot of fun doing this.
The Challenge
Your picture challenge today is to guess what this is a picture of. Don’t worry; I’m giving you some hints.
I learned from The Puzzle Game that my readers are very smart and quick. Therefore, my challenge is to give you enough hints that you should be able to guess the answer, but not so many that it’s too easy. See, I believe in sharing the challenge.
Here are your hints:
- It’s something very common.
- This one is outside, but they can be found inside as well.
- This one is near my birdbath and is made of copper.
- It keeps Aggie, my cat, entertained when the birds are napping, but only if the weather is right.
- Some people live in them, but they’re not safe when the weather isn’t right. (oops! From the comments I’ve received so far, this clue isn’t clear. Let me clarify — The place you live in isn’t the object itself, but has the same name. All the people who have already commented, have been notified of my mistake. Sorry about the confusion.)
Can you guess what this is a picture of?
Leave your guesses in the comment box. At the end of my next picture story post on Monday, February 8th , I will reveal the TRUTH:~)
by Sara on January 28, 2010
Photograph by Sara B. Healy
A Bird Picture
This picture was a mistake. I was struggling to capture photographs of birds at my feeder. The minute they heard the camera, they were a blur of wings. I took a lot of photographs and thanks to digital, I deleted most of them.
When I looked at this one in the viewfinder all I saw was a blur and assumed it was just another mistake. I started to delete it, but stopped. I’m glad I saved it.
My camera and this bird created something magical and special for me. It’s not technically a good photograph, but there’s something unique about it. I see this mistake as a gift.
Making Mistakes
We all make mistakes; it’s part of life. Some are big and some not so big. When we make mistakes, it’s not the mistake that causes us problems; it’s how we react to it.
There was a time in our lives when mistakes didn’t exist in our minds. As babies, we discovered how to become human by making mistakes; we fell before we walked, we learned hot and cold by touch, and how things tasted by putting them in our mouth.
Unless someone constantly corrected us, these mistakes were simply learning experiences. They carried no particular emotional baggage.
As we grew older, things changed, as did the words that accompanied our “mistakes.” When we did something wrong we heard “Don’t do that!” or “That’s bad, stop it.”
Suddenly, mistakes weren’t just neutral ways to learn because there was a negative feeling attached to the learning. Later, we would discover that some mistakes came with punishments, further reinforcing that mistakes were bad.
Learning from Making Mistakes
We have a choice about how we see our mistakes. We can continue to see them as wrong, or we can choose to see them as gifts; like my bird picture.
Sometimes these mistake “gifts” create a new path of learning and opportunity for us in our journey through life.
A friend of mine was fired from her job and it upset her greatly. However, it gave her the momentum to go back to school and now she has a job she loves. In her case, a mistake gave her the gift of a career that she’d always wanted.
Some mistakes make it more difficult to find the gift, but it is still there. A member of my family was driving with a group of friends and they’d all been drinking. There was a car accident and one of the friends was paralyzed.
As the driver of the car, my family member was haunted by the mistake for years. He asked for forgiveness, which was not given.
This tormented him, but he made a choice to move on from it. He found a way to turn his life around. He stopped drinking, went back to school and had a family.
While he couldn’t get forgiveness from his friend, he found the strength to forgive himself. This was the gift of his mistake.
Mistakes happen and we can’t change that. We can change how we react to them. Next time you make a mistake, stop for a second and ask yourself “What’s the gift in this mistake?”
What about you?
Have you ever made a mistake that turned into a “gift” for you?
by Sara on January 25, 2010
Picture Tells a Story
Remember this picture? This was my first Picture Story Challenge Post. At that time, I called it Story Photo Contest, which eventually evolved into a regular category called, Picture Story.
This post was published on March 30, 2009. The first line of this post was “They say a picture tells a thousand stories.”
I believe this. The Picture Story posts evolved from this belief that others would also see the “thousand stories” possible in a photograph.
Picture Magic
Evita, photographer and author of Evolving Scenes was the first blogger to prove to me that photographs can be seen as something more than just a picture.
She once told me, “It is fun too to see how others see the world, and things. It never ceases to amaze me how two or more people looking at the same thing can see things so differently!”
I think these are wise words. They capture perfectly the reason why I do the Picture Story Challenges. I want to invite people who visit to look beyond the object in the picture and see something special.
I am also lucky to have some very imaginative readers. The Picture Story posts have always generated creative comments that never fail to surprise and delight me.
Picture Challenge Winners
I loved all the comments for last week’s Picture Story Post, Graffiti Artists in Switzerland. However, a special congratulations goes to the people who undertook Challenge Two from this post.
In this challenge, they answered all five questions used in the post, including making up a question of their own and answering it. Here they are:
Belinda, The Halfway Point
Hilary, Positive Letters Inspirational Stories
Jannie, The Jannie Funster Blog
Lisa Newton, Travelin’ Local
Patty, Why Start Now?
SuZen, Erasing the Bored
Tony Single, Trottersville [note: Tony and Cassy have a new site -- check it out]
Thanks to all of you! You amazed me with your imaginative replies:~) Visit the post and check out their comments!
Also, thank you to all of the people who have participated in my Picture Story challenges. You have proven to me that our imaginations are endless creators of magic:~)
by Sara on January 21, 2010
Photograph by Sara B. Healy
You Gotta Love Graffiti
This is a picture of some cool graffiti that had been painted on the wall of the apartment building where we stayed while visiting Switzerland last year.
It was part of a contest where kids painted graffiti on the wall and in other areas around the apartment building. I was pretty impressed with their artwork.
What’s interesting about Switzerland is that you seldom see bad or messy graffiti; even on the overpass of a highway.
It’s like the Swiss kids who painted the graffiti had to take art lessons before they could go out and deface public property:~)
This picture was my favorite because I felt like this creature was about to say something to me.
Picture Story Challenge + BONUS
I’m offering a BONUS with this Picture Story Challenge.
If you answer all the questions I will highlight your blog in a list on my next Picture Story Post. Otherwise, just choose one that appeals to you.
Either way, please leave your answers in the comment box. I can’t wait to see what you come up with!
1. If this creature could say something to you, what would it say?
2. What’s the name of this creature and how did it get its name?
3. What place did it come from? Share something about this place.
4. Is it a hero or a villain and why?
5. Make up your own question and answer it. Be sure to include your question with the answer!
I hope this picture will challenge your imagination. Have fun, be creative and enjoy:~)
by Sara on January 18, 2010
Photo by Sara B. Healy
NOTE TO READERS: Today I am reversing my usual posting schedule. As you will realize when you read this post, it is NOT a Picture Story Challenge. I felt the need to write this and so I did. That’s what’s so great about blogging; you get to chose what you write. On Thursday, I will post a Picture Story Challenge.
Martin Luther King’s Birthday
Today in the US, we celebrate Martin Luther King’s birthday. When I think of Martin Luther King, I think of freedom and when I think of freedom, I see birds in flight.
Let me explain. For me, there’s something glorious about watching birds fly; the way they stretch their wings and navigate the currents of the wind makes me sigh with wonder. They always seem so free.
Birds were given the freedom of flight so they can lift themselves high above the dangers below. Flight can mean life or death.
For birds, their freedom of flight is instinctual; they don’t get to choose whether or not to fly. They do it because it’s their lifesaving gift.
Freedom Choice
Humans were given many gifts. In my opinion, the greatest one is the freedom of choice. It separates us from other animals and allows us to choose the actions and decisions we make in our lives.
Unfortunately, along with choice, we also have prejudice. Prejudice is part of our instinctual human nature. We, like birds and other animals, naturally fear what we don’t understand or what is different than we are.
This is why I believe we were given choice. Through choice, we can question our prejudice and then choose how we will respond to it. Therefore:
We can choose to fear people who look or act differently than we do OR we can choose to embrace their uniqueness.
We can choose to fight people who believe differently than we do OR we can choose to acknowledge the universal need people have to believe in something beyond them.
Make a Choice
To make a choice to face our prejudices is not always easy. As Martin Luther King showed, there are consequences to fighting prejudice, but we do have the choice.
Today, as we think about Martin Luther King, consider your own freedom of choice and how you can use it to fight the prejudices in your life.
You have the lifesaving gift of choice. Use it wisely.
What about you?
How do you use your freedom of choice in dealing with prejudice?
How do you recognize your own prejudices?
Have you ever been in a situation where someone was prejudiced against you? If so how did you handle it?
by Sara on January 14, 2010
artwork by Sara
Controversy over 2012 predictions
SuZen of Erasing the Bored has been writing some interesting posts about the prophecies surrounding 2012, now only two years away. I have found her posts on this subject very interesting.
Rather than exploring these various prophecies here, I recommend you visit her site or read “What is the 2012 Doomsday Prediction?” SuZen doesn’t support one belief or another but rather, she gives an overview of the various interpretations of 2012.
My focus for this post is on the doomsayers who color these prophecies with their own predictions. The ones who say the world will come to a cataclysmic end in 2012.
I have difficulty with doomsayers. What’s their purpose other than to make us feel fearful and helpless about things they believe will happen no matter what we do? If I can’t do something about it, what’s the reason for knowing the end of the world is near?
Doomsday 2012?
According to the doomsayers, all sorts of disastrous events will occur in 2012. The weather will take a dramatic turn for the worse, we’ll have horrible sun storms, meteors will rain upon the earth, the magnetic field will reverse and burn us to a crisp, and eventually the earth will be crushed.
Sounds like fun doesn’t it?
I’m not arguing against the prophecies surrounding 2012; there are just as many positive interpretations as there are negative. Unfortunately, the focus seems to be more on the negative predictions, which are supported by the doomsayers.
The movie “2012” was released in 2009 and stars John Cusack. It portrays this “end of world” scenario with HD special effects. As this movie indicates, the closer we get to 2012, the more likely the media will put increased emphasis on what the doomsayers predict. After all, disasters get high ratings.
The other thing about predictions and prophecies is that they always contain possible truths. Sun storms can happen at any time, as can meteors strike the earth. In addition, let’s face it; the weather is unpredictable.
Moving forward to 2012
So, the predictions could happen. The doomsayers could be right, but is this what we want to focus on in the next two years and beyond?
Personally, I think believing the doomsayers is a waste of my time. I’d rather spend it working to improve the world than believing it’s coming to an end.
We have so much potential and don’t even know yet what we can accomplish. Scientists say we’ve discovered only a tiny bit of what our brains are capable of. Using this example, I choose to believe we can use more of our brains, energy and creativity to make this world a better place.
Therefore, I feel sorry for the doomsayers and their followers. They look at 2012 and see the end of the world.
I look to 2012, and the years beyond it, and believe we are heading for a wondrous time of transformation and growth.
This transformation, I believe will help us discover just how much we CAN accomplish when we are connected and using our positive energy to heal, bring peace and unite.
What about you?
How do you feel about 2012 and the prophecies?
BTW…Here’s a chance to use your healing abilities. As you are probably aware, Haiti suffered a major 7.0 earthquake and they need our help. Please consider making a donation. Even a small amount can help, especially if enough people give. Click here for information about making a donation.
by Sara on January 11, 2010
The Puzzle Game
This is a picture I took at the Ballenberg Farm in Switzerland. I always liked the look in the eyes of this goose, but could never find the right time to use the photo.
Recently, I have discovered JigZone, which allows you to use your own photos and make jigsaw puzzles to play online. The program lets me upload my photo, break the photo into pieces from 20 to 157 and choose different types of cuts for the puzzle.
Picture Story Challenge
Today, you are joining my “focus group.” You will be testing a new feature I want to use on my site called, THE PUZZLE GAME.
I want you to give me feedback on this game so I can decide whether or not to continue it on my site. If you like it, it will become a regular feature.
Therefore, your challenge today is to play The Puzzle Game, which uses the picture of the goose above.
I’ve made this one pretty easy. So, for those of you who fall under the category of “puzzle solvers extraordinaire,” this one may be too easy for you. Have no fear, the puzzles will get more difficult. Remember, I can up go to 157 pieces:~)
Now it’s your turn.
Puzzle Instructions
Click on the link below
My Puzzles Jigsaw Puzzle Gallery – JigZone.com
Then click on the picture of the GOOSE. The puzzle will be loaded and then you can play. Loading time will depend on your computer.
Use your mouse to move the pieces into place. When you get a matching set of puzzle pieces, they will snap together (like they are magnetized).
You can go as fast or as slow you want. If you’d like a bit more of a challenge, look at the bottom and you’ll see a box called “Solve times for this jigsaw puzzle,” which shows your time, the best and the average time. I encourage you to try to beat the best time!
In the comment box, let me know what you think about this game. I need to know things like whether or not it loaded in a decent time, if you liked playing it and why, and if you think I should continue it.
If you are willing, include your time for completing the puzzle so that others can be challenged to try to beat your time. BTW since this is the first puzzle, you get to pick the best score out of TWO tries. I decided you might need at least one trial run:~)
Okay, go for it. Play THE PUZZLE GAME and watch the goose fly into pieces and come back together again!
Have fun, be creative and enjoy:~)
by Sara on January 7, 2010
Music memories
I grew up listening to my mom play this piano. During holidays and parties, we would gather around it and sing. We weren’t exactly talented singers and our dogs would often join in.
Even if I don’t have a great singing voice, I have always loved music. While I was raised in the 1960s, my first favorite music group was not the Beatles. Instead, I chose the Beach Boys. I played one their albums, Surfer Girl, over and over again until my sister and brother hid it from me.
Today, I like all kinds of music from Barry Manilow to King Crimson and U2, introduced to me by my daughters. One of my fondest memories is attending a U2 concert with both of them and sharing our love of this band’s wonderful music.
Whatever type of music we favor, it often marks important times in our lives. We hear a song today and are transported back to a memory; perhaps our first love, a breakup, time with friends – the list of memories goes on, all triggered by music.
Music and dancing
I also love that music has the power to evoke and alter emotions. It can raise us up when we are down, give us hope when we feel lost, and touch our hearts and souls, simply by the wonderful combination of sounds that become music to our ears.
Music can also help us get through difficult times. It’s helped me many times by taking me away from whatever problems I have, if only for a short while. In addition, it lets me do my favorite exercise, which is dancing. Just “movin’ my feet to the beat” always cheers me up.
Singing friends
While I love music, I only listen to it. I have absolutely no talent for performing or singing, unlike some of my blogging friends.
In addition to writing on her blog, Jannie Funster is also a singer and songwriter. Her CD, “I Need a Man,” is great. Not only can Jannie sing beautifully, but her lyrics make you laugh. She reminds me of Christine Lavin who writes wonderful AND funny music.
Recently, I found out that Patty of Why Start Now is a singer too. I’m hoping she will soon let her voice reach out to all of us via her blog. She’s sort of made a promise to do this and I’m hoping this mention will encourage her:~)
Last, but definitely not least, take a moment to listen to Caity singing a cappella. The song she sings truly captures how I feel about music and people. It also provides a perfect ending to this post. Thank you Caity!
* * * * * *
What about you?
What kind of music do you like? Can you pick a favorite and share it in the comment box?
What’s your favorite song to sing in the shower?
What kind of music makes you want to dance?
Has music ever helped you get through a difficult time? If so, what was the music?
by Sara on January 4, 2010
photography by Sara B. Healy
Florida State Parks
After Christmas, JC and I visited the Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park, one of the many beautiful state parks in our area. It is known for its majestic trees and beautiful flowers, especially Camellias and Azaleas.
The day was magnificent, with clear blue winter skies and late afternoon sunshine peeking through the moss in the trees. As we’ve had several freezing days, we weren’t sure what to expect regarding flowers, but were pleasantly surprised to find some still in bloom.
I took tons of pictures and will share some at the end of this post, but let’s get to business first.
Picture Story Challenge
While visiting the park, I found the time capsule in the picture above. I was thirteen years old when it was put into the ground and there’s 25 years to go before it will be opened!
I couldn’t help but think about what might be inside this time capsule. It made me wonder what it would be like to have my own time capsule. Of course, as I like to share, I immediately thought this idea might make a good picture story challenge:~)
So, friends, here’s your chance to create your own time capsule for someone to open in the future. Picture it in your head. Think of the person who opens it in the future. They’re looking at things you chose to put in the box, things you’ve selected about yourself and your life.
Your challenge question:
What would you put in your time capsule and why?
Other questions you might consider:
What year would you select for your time capsule will be opened and why?
What would be the inscription be on your time capsule?
If I didn’t ask the question you desperately want to answer, ask and answer it yourself….just be sure to share it in the comment box.
That’s it. Have fun, be creative and enjoy:~)
Here are a few other pictures from the park:
"Stand the test of time by placing your roots deeply!"
Like puzzles? Try this one. Using this photo, you can create a puzzle and put it together.Go to JigZone at 
Fireblossom32
Hilary
Patty - Why Not S...
talon
Chris Edgar
Davina
Jannie Funster
Keith Davis
Tony Single
Barbara Swafford
