Infinite Precious Things

"Ordinary riches can be stolen;
real riches cannot.
In your soul are 
infinitely precious
things that cannot 
be taken from you."
-Oscar Wilde

Stepping To The Music Of Your Own Making

"Each second we live is a new and unique moment of the universe, a moment that will never be again  And what do we teach our children? We teach them that two and two make four, and that Paris is the capital of France. When will we also teach them what they are?

We should say to each of them: Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique.  In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you. Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything.

If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away."- Henry David Thoreau

Random Postcard

List of things to do every day
1.  Read a poem
2. Listen to a piece of music
3.  Eat good food.
4.  Create something.
5.  Express gratitude for something.
6.  have DIRECT experience with life.
7.  Drink tea.
8. Touch the earth
9. " Stop getting to work on time" (let go)
10.  love with an open heart. (nurture/grow something)

So Sweet

GOALS

“No great goal was ever easily achieved.”
― Margaret Thatcher

Buon Compleanno Mitra!

We had a wonderful party in my italian class today for our dear friend Mitra. A great occasion to celebrate a very special member of our group.  Buon Compleanno Mitra!  Happy Happy Birthday to you!

Here's a little slide show of today's FESTA!

This photo album made with Smilebox

The Pause That Refreshes

Daily Surprises

Sting Your World

"When we allow ourselves to exist truly and fully, we sting the world with our vision and challenge it with our own ways of being. " - Thomas Moore

Kira and Aaron's Engagement Party

This past saturday we had a wonderful family gathering hosted by my cousins Lisa and Greg to celebrate Lisa's sister, Kira's , engagement to Aaron. Here is a little slideshow of the happy  family celebration.  "CHEERS" to the Bride and Groom to be!

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Tre Stagioni

My friends Marion and Mitra and I make up our "tre stagioni" trio. We meet twice a month to study italian together and we call ourselves the three seasons.  I feel so lucky to have these women in my life and to be able to call them my "true" friends. We have so much fun together.

Here is Marion on the left (she's "primavera" Spring), I'm l'estate, summer.

Here's Mitra on the right. She's "l'autunno" autumn.

Here we are the "tre stagioni" three seasons. The gift of true friends is priceless!

"As we grow up, we realize it is less important to have lots of friends, and more important to have real ones."

Don't Ask Don't Tell

Dare To Be Different

"Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary." - Cecil Beaton

Lessons From a Tree

We have nothing to fear and a great deal to learn from trees, that vigorous and pacific tribe which without stint produces strengthening essences for us, soothing balms, and in whose gracious company we spend so many cool, silent and intimate hours.-- Marcel Proust, Pleasures and Regrets, 1896

Pondering

We Are All In Search Of...

“Everyone I know is looking for solace, hope

 and a tasty snack.” 
― Maira Kalman

A Peaceful Place Called Home

"He is happiest who finds peace in his home."
-Goethe

Visualize Your Future

You have the choice to create the life your heart is yearning to live.

"It could seem that the future holds unlimited possibilities for you, which could inspire you to invest more fully in your dreams today. You might notice that there is little that holds you back in this world except for your own ideas. This would be a good time to consider the power you have to manifest your dreams. You can first make a note of the things you would like to do in your life and the potential ways to accomplish them. As you make this list today you could imagine that these things have already happened to you. Picture what your future life would look like—what you would be doing, whom you would be with, and what would change. You could even think of the specific details as if you were a designer and your future your sketchbook. You might notice that your mental picture inspires you even more as a result.

Thinking about how we would like to manifest our future motivates us to follow our dreams. While we never really have control over everything in our lives, we do have enough power to try to design our lives. By visualizing what we would like our future to look like, we lay the groundwork for things to come, which allows us to have a better idea of what we need to do and how we should live our lives in order to achieve our goals. Picturing the path you wish to take will help you find the means to reach your destination today." *

*This quote is from:  http://www.dailyom.com/

Work and Kindness

"Hard work keeps the wrinkles out of the mind and spirit."
— Helena Rubenstein, Polish cosmetics industrialist

Simplicity

An Optimist's View

Optimist: Someone who figures that taking a step backward after taking a step forward is not a disaster, it's a cha-cha." -Robert Brault

Youth

"Youth would be an ideal state if it came a little later in life." ~Herbert Asquith

Best Friends

"You can say any foolish thing to a dog, and the dog will give you a look that says, 'My God, you're right! I never would've thought of that!'" ~ Dave Barry

 

Difficult Tasks

"There are two things that are more difficult than making an after-dinner speech: climbing a wall which is leaning toward you and kissing a girl who is leaning away from you." 
-Winston Churchill  

Reconnecting With Your Creative Self

5 Ways to Reconnect with Your Desire to Create

By OLGA GONITHELLIS, MA, EDM 

Creativity often is mistakenly considered to be a destination — a mental state you need to reach.

This is where many artists and creators become “blocked” and engage in paralyzing self-sabotage. How often do we hear that someone is “waiting for inspiration to come to them?”

However, creativity is not something static. It is a fluid process that we can connect to with the right mindset.

Here are 5 ways you can reconnect with your inner motivation and desire to create art, finish your novel, choreograph a new dance, or add an extra part to your piano composition…

5 Tips to Reconnect with Creativity

1. Understand that creative ideas become better over time.

It’s easy to get discouraged when you begin to work on something and quickly become your own worst critic by thinking something like “this is a bad idea” or “this has been done before.” Creative ideas, artistic flow and divergent thinking become reinforced over time and through firing of new mental associations. The first idea may not be that good, but the second will be better and the third even better than the second and so on.

2. Keep asking yourself why you want to create.

It’s common to forget why you set off to do something in the first place. Motivation slowly gets lost and you lose track of what you initially hoped to achieve. Whether it’s to become smarter, to heal from past trauma, to get in shape, to make money or to be more marketable in today’s job market, it is important that you keep asking yourself — and reminding yourself daily — what motivates you to become creative.

3. Minimize distractions or reasons not to create.

Naturally, you might be facing some environmental circumstances that make it difficult for you to create. Your children may be sick, you may be feeling depressed, there may be construction in a nearby building or you simply may feel burned out from day-to-day responsibilities. Whatever it is, it is very important that you identify what these distractions are and tackle them one at a time in order to resolve or minimize them.

4. Get external stimulation.

When you are waiting for inspiration to “come to you,” you are setting up a trap for yourself. If you want to write a poem, reread your favorite poets. If you want to put a dance group together, go to a dance show every week for a month. If you want to add another chapter to your book, watch a movie, go to a museum, have a discussion with a friend, anything that will add some extra mental stimulation to your thought process.

5. Talk about it.

An artist often may feel compelled to keep his or her creative journey internal, to quietly and discreetly surrender to the gradual decrease of his or her motivation. This could be because it is too painful to bring up, or because it is embarrassing to admit to a block, or even due to denial that low motivation exists. However, by talking about it to a friend, a mentor or a counselor, one’s intentions become more concrete, the obstacles to creativity become more apparent and the problems begin to seem more manageable.

Daily life can slowly chip away at your desire to create, to improve your skills and to become successful in what you do. Hopefully, these five steps will help you reconnect with your inner motivation to do what once may have seemed like the most natural thing.

Olga Gonithellis, MA, EdM, is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor who specializes in working with artists, performers and creative individuals. She lives in NYC where she works as a psychotherapist. She is also a singer and a songwriter with years of performing experience. She is a member of the Performing Arts Medicine Association and the Creativity Coaching Association. Visit www.creativityandperformance.com for more information.

*You can find the article here:

http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/02/28/5-ways-to-reconnect-with-your-desire-to-create/

Rest Is Vital

I Love These Words

Iris Afel ,born August 29, 1921, is an American businesswoman, interior designer, and fashion icon

"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more"Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer Newspaper, Cleveland, Ohio

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step..

3. Life is too short - enjoy it..

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and
family will.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself.

7... Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9.. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11... Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it...

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye But don't worry; God never blinks.

16... Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful. Clutter weighs you down in many ways.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It's never too late to be happy. But it's all up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't
save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23 Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will
this matter?'

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive but don't forget.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does..

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38.. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd
grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have not what you need.

42. The best is yet to come...

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

  

If It's One Thing I've Learned

"Do what you love. It always takes you to where you should be!"

In You

"Travel light,
Live light,
Spread the light  ,
Be the light."

Which Path to Take?

"There are no wrong turns. Only paths we had no idea we were meant to walk."

Easter 2013

This is my late mother's best friend Helen. She turned 96 in March. She is such an inspiration with her strong and clear mind and her wonderful attitude and great stamina.   She is our familys  life long friend.   All through my life our two families spent many summer vacations together, went to church together and spent most saturday nights at each other's homes.  I love Helen so much.  Yesterday we were able to spend Easter together with Helen and her daughter Jill and her son-in-law Bobby.  It was a wonderful day spent with old family friends.  Here is a little slide show of our Easter spent with Helen, Jill and Bobby.  It was a very memorable Easter Sunday.

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                            Happy 96th Birthday dear Helen!