Great Ideas #BeWoW #WritersQuoteWednesday

As the old year winds down I usually do a little assessment of it and “grade” it according to my judgement. While I look at all aspects of my life, I focus primarily on the spiritual side. I’m not done with my assessment as of this writing; I’m writing on Monday, scheduling for today. 

I don’t “do” resolutions; studies and personal experience show they don’t work. But last year I discovered this idea of One Word; focus on a single word for the year and see how it works in your life. I liked it. I’m in the process of getting my word for 2016 now. 

As I’ve been pondering the last year I came across this quote I wanted to share.  

Great ideas need landing gear as well as wings. – Charles Douglas Jackson

In setting goal and making plans we tend to go big; there’s nothing wrong with that. However, it seems most of the time we don’t have a full plan for getting from where we are to where we want to be. Then when the inevitable fork in the road comes we are lost. 

This year I pray that we each have a happy, healthy, blessed year. And I hope we all get our landing gear in order before we see out on our trips. 

Although I know there’s not an official Writers Quote Wednesday this week, I figured that shouldn’t stop me from linking to it anyhow. As far as I know Ronovan’s BeWoW is still on but I may be wrong in that. Nevertheless, this post is linked to both. 

Love Heals All #QOTD

Today is day two of the Three Day Quote Challenge that Meredith invited me to participate in. 

The quote I’m sharing today is another one I saved from my Twitter feed some time ago. It was unattributed so I did a little searching to find the original source; I think credit should go to whom even it belongs so I do that a lot.   

 

“Love can melt the hardest heart, heal the wounds of the broken heart and quiet the fears of the anxious heart.”- Joyce Meyer

 You’re getting off easy today as I think this quote speaks volumes of truth and needs no real commentary; look out tomorrow though! LOL 

Where Are YOU on Your Own Priority List? #BeWoW

Do you ever think about yourself and your own needs during the course of your day? I know, well, strongly feel at least, that we live in a very self-centered, narcissistic society that predominantly thinks of ones own wants far too much. But I’m not talking about that or to them. There are many loving, giving, sacrificing folks out there and that’s who I’m speaking to today. 

If you have made it this far and are still with me, I’m very likely talking to you’ So, let me ask again: Where are you on your own list of priorities? If you’re honest I’m betting not very high, probably not even in the top-ten. 

At my annual eye exam last week I was reminded that I need to make myself a priority in my own life if I want to be around to both enjoy and be enjoyed by my family and friends. Your health and well being (and mine) is in your own (and my own) hands; we are each responsible for “us” (oftentimes along with many other folks and things in our lives but that’s actually part of the problem I’m speaking of). 

Do you want to enjoy the precious time you are gifted in this life as you move ahead? I do. Do you want to be a burden to those around you in the future? Having been a burden in the past, I know I certainly don’t want that again. If you can make choices today to prevent or decrease the chances of that happening aren’t you ready and willing to do so? I am. 

I know: you’re busy and have a ton on your plate; me, too. But I promise you that excuse won’t cut-the-mustard down the line when you’re unable to enjoy a decent quality of life, spend pleasurable time with your children/grandchildren or whomever it is that is near and dear to you. 

Starting right now move yourself up on your list of “need to do” list – or whatever you call your it – and don’t feel guilty about doing it; you’re doing it for the ones you love, I not just for yourself. What better way to express your love to those you care most about than by being there for them “then” as well as “now”?

BeWoT: a #BeWoW on Thursday

BeWoW is a blogging movement, no, phenomenon started by Ronovan the Great (yeah, that’s my moniker, not his, and it’s sincere not a “jab”). Here’s a blurb from his idea:

BeWoW stands for Be Wonderful on Wednesday. But really you don’t have to wait for Wednesdays. The idea is to post something about Wonderful on Wednesdays, though. It could be a  wonderful experience you had last week, a wonderful memory that came to you, something inspirational or motivational, maybe something encouraging, or just something that brings a feeling of wonderful to you that you want to share.

You can read more on his post explaining all about it. 

Now, onto my BeWoT or belated BeWoW!

I suffer from a lot of chronic ailments; in fact I began blogging and writing haiku again to have something to do while I’m sidelined from my regular hobbies. The last few days have been pretty rough so I’m late with my post … but that’s not wonderful nor inspirational so we shall leave it there. 

I am never ceased to be amazed by the genuine love, concern, and compassion I witness, and sometimes take part in, through the virtual communities I belong to, which range from other bloggers to professional-master-level leather crafters, and lots of folks in between. 

From the encouragement I receive on my writing, the wealth of shared knowledge in my leather guild (www.iilg.net), the fellowship and camaraderie between pipe men/women around the globe, the generosity does overwhelm me and touch my heart. Let me give you a couple of examples, from my Facebook pipe group the ACPA, I wanted to share: one from last week, my original thought, and one surprise from today. 

Last week I had the pleasure of meeting a fellow West Virginian, now transplanted to Minnesota, for the first time in person. He was in the area, an hour or so away, and we met for a few hours of pipe smoking, talking and just getting to know each other better, followed by lunch at the world famous Hillbilly Hotdogs. It was a truly pleasurable day for us both, as our smiles give away!

Then, today I spoke via messenger with a gentleman, in every sense of the word, about a project he’s been working on. Well, I shall not go on about it all but he surprised me with an offer to trade goods/services at my convenience for a project already on its way to me! Humbled I was to say the least at his generosity and trust in me. 

The world is a big, scary place out there. And the World Wide Web has only made it smaller and, potentially, more dangerous. But take heart my friend! It has also allowed us to reach out and meet folks we would want to know, with values and interests like our own that we might otherwise only wish we could encounter. 

These guys and countless other unmentioned folks give me hope that the world hasn’t really degenerated to the cesspool it so often seems to be.   

Surprise and Inspiration

Yesterday when I went to get my flu shot, I was greeted with a little surprise that I had not anticipated. Going in, I had everything ready to layout as to why I was doing things a little differently than my PCP had advised. After getting the vaccine the nurse asked about my numbers and I told her how much they had improved. I then began to rehash the reasons with her that I’d been doing things different, expecting her to – well, I really wasn’t sure what I expected other than maybe some resistance to my self-decided changes. So I was pleasantly surprised when she agreed that all of this made good sense and the the PCP had even done some extra research on this and had left me some advice and to continue with what I was doing!

As it turns out, my nurse (and at least one other staff member) have recently learned (the other/others already knew) she is at the diabetes-door and I have, with my changes, research and many questions, inspired them to get active in taking control of their BG and health. It was really kind of touching that she shared this with me, it’s not like she had to mention it.

I say this not to lift myself up or boast, let me be clear on that. But it shows me how, in yet another way, God can use us and the things going on in our lives and how we react to them to touch other folks lives. Every time I witness His movement in ways like this, so unexpected, I am awed, truly awed.