Gratitude....again....

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.

 It turns what we have into enough,

 and more... 

It turns denial into acceptance, 

chaos to order, 

confusion to clarity. 

It can turn a meal into a feast, 

a house into a home, 

a stranger into a friend. 

Gratitude makes sense of our past, 

brings peace for today,

 and creates vision for tomorrow.

-Melody Beattie

I love this quote,

from one of my favorite authors.

I feel peaceful as I read the words.

Just reading these words

makes me feel as though 

everything is right with the world.

I hope that you feel the same way...

smiles..

Ordinary thoughts....

Several years ago...

my son suggested an writer/artist/singer

 that he listened to and thought that 

I would like....

He very nicely cam over,

loaded some songs 

and said that I would especially like 

the first one....

Honestly,

it slipped my mind.

Then,

a few months later,

I listened....

and liked.

And over the years 

I have listened a bit more....

and 

well, I have come to the conclusion

that I should listen more seriously to 

what my son suggests.

John Legend,

his song

"Ordinary People",

makes one believe that men

think....

have feelings....

mourn...

wound easily...

heal...

and 

love.

smiles.

Soap Box Friday...

I love Fridays...

I love azaleas.....

I love warm spring breezes....

I am bored with politics...

no, to be more precise...

I am annoyed.

Really.

I am usually able to ignore the rantings and ravings of

so many people that seem to think that they 

have all the answers.

Got news ...

No one person has all the answers.

No one party has all the answers.

No one nation has all the answers.

Well,

here is a thought....

one idea embraced by all the 

religions, and many cultures...

it is known by many names,

such as,

Karma,

the Golden Rule,

"what goes around...."

you get the idea.

I have learned a thing or two....

one thing I have observed

is 

that people,

regardless of origin,

faith, politics, etc...

tend to react in an 

extreme manner when they are scared.

Fear causes all sorts 

of bad behavior.

Behavior that we regret 

in retrospect.

Something I have noticed lately,

is that my friends (and some not so much)

are using the social media outlets

to express feelings of outrage.

Extreme feelings.

Feelings that sound like a riot when I read them.

Who are these people?

When did they develop these extreme views?

Why didn't I notice before?

What's up, Doc?

I don't have the answers.

But I am curious my bloggy friends,

have you noticed this too?

What do you think?

Why is it suddenly so obvious to me?

I would love to get your input,

insight, 

and feelings regarding this phenomenon.

Thank you,

smiles.

Silly girls...yep we are.

Years ago...

and many lost pounds ago...

there was a tribe of silly girls...

they didn't live together...

it would have been too silly...

really.

They did get together every once in a while...

either at the beach..

or in the mountains..

since both were equally available...

They had contests...

this one had something to do with

slippers....I believe.

Everyone Won...

No one was allowed to loose..

as life has a way of taking it's toll on

people.. and the silly girls

(also known as the "Chick's Kick")

didn't want life to have it's way

with any of their weekends together.

Their weekends were

twice a year, in the beginning...

Then things started to interfere with the weekends....

children....husbands...parents...illness....

that last one has had a particularly egregious influence on

the silly girls....as they don't really feel very silly anymore.

You see...one of the silly girls died of cancer.

She fought with all her might....

she fought it for over five years...

she fought it for herself, her children, her parents,

and for her silly girls....

but she lost.

Now the silly girls can hardly

make it to Christmas dinner together....

they are all trying to deal with the loss

in their own ways....

some work too hard...

some cry, a lot...

some push the feelings aside...

and well,

some blog.

Are we anonymouse?......

I know....

a weird play on words....

But it begs the question..

Are we mice or women?

Do you share your blog with your family?

I was "surfing" and found the question via

Andrea at

My Rocket Science....

I have shared with my son, and one friend that lives out of state.

and my husband, who probably doesn't ever look at it.

My life is an open book to these three.

Sometimes I use this as a safe spot to vent feelings.

Usually my feelings are pretty apparent, anyway,

but occasionally, I just want to let it all hang out.

Not everyone can handle my venting.

My son is an old soul, and has wisdom beyond his years...

he blogs too.....

My friend probably doesn't have the time to read me much.

She is "Uber-busy".

Is it cowardly to keep these blogs from our family?

I don't think so....

Everyone needs a place to be completely themselves, without

fear of recriminations..

I find sharing with those who only know me here

to be very freeing.

Thank you.