It is memory making time....

The mere thought of being "quarantined at home for 14 days"  brought me back to how my sister and I spent much of our childhood.  We lived at least 15 minutes away from our school friends, and our mom was "not carting us around all day" to go play. If anyone could "pinch a penny", it was our mom, and that included saving gas in the car for important, necessary trips, certainly not playdates. We learned to entertain ourselves, by ourselves. Games such as checkers, Kismet, Yahtze, Clue,  and card games like Rummy or Cribbage, or the "never ending" game of monopoly, were always options. We listened to music and impersonated Donny and Marie, giving concerts to our imaginary guests in our bedroom, complete with microphones and vocal harmony.  We colored with crayons and colored pencils and made pictures from various forms of pasta and noodles, Elmer's glued on to cardboard. For some strange reason, a new box of crayons still makes me smile to this very day. Paint by numbers, make your own potholders, you name it we probably did it.We watched Bewitched's  Endora make fun of "Derwood, or Duspin or Dobbin"...whichever his name was for the episode. We played in the basement, often at our ping pong table, or throwing darts at the dartboard. We had an old upright piano, and practicing for our piano lessons was also a regular activity. The long hallway between rooms in our little 3 bedroom ranch home became a bowling alley for our "bowling matches". I think I read my favorite book as a child "Baby Island" at least 10 times, as well as being a Trixie Belden and Sherlock Holmes fan. Puzzles, crossword puzzles, Scrabble, you name it, we played it. Oh, we had our own "Nintendo"...the very first basic version of "Pong". Sometimes our idea of fun was running across the lawn to my Dad's parents (our grandparents) house and eating cookies from our grandma's cookie bin and watching wrestling on tv with her. Grandma was a big fan of wrestling. Our time was also filled with cleaning chores all day on Saturday, and Wednesday afternoons. "You have to wipe down the sinks and counters, hoki, (Hoki was a stand alone carpet sweeper) and tidy up everything midweek you know" our mom would say. Dinner clean up and dishes were ours to do every night, unless we went out for dinner at Perkins after church on Saturday. At times I look back and think Mom was just trying to keep us busy and out of "trouble".  I guess why I am sharing this, is that in the very near future we  may have time  we will be "quarantined", in some form or fashion at home with loved ones. We could take some of this time and use it to make some memories...playing games, doing crafts, enjoying playing make believe with our children. I-pads, tablets and video games will still be here long after the coronavirus is gone. Having the chance to make those noodle pictures, playing a 'never ending" game of Monopoly, or grabbing those play microphones and giving a concert with your child could be a positive thing that comes out of this current situation. Get out those 1000 piece puzzles and the old card table and chairs. Challenge your loved one to a ruthless game of Rummy. We can take this time and do good with it.  Make some memories.

Blessings,
Brenda

The answer to the Big Question...

Hasn't the world been a challenging place the last few years? Whether you are struggling with a significant personal challenge, the various calamities happening across the globe, or the disturbing politics happening in Washington, D.C. ( I am trying really hard to remain neutral here), the Big Question I know I ask myself is HOW do I continue to mentally and emotionally cope with these situations? Where is the relief from the continuous non-stop emotional and mental anguish? I don't know about you, but my personal outrage meter is full. You are not alone. So how DO we cope? Especially when there seems to be no end in sight?

The answer..is BIGGER than us.  Literally, it is bigger than us.  I stood at the oceans' shore a few weeks ago, amazed at the simple magnitude of it all. Mesmerized by the waves, dwarfed by the sheer power of the water, lulled by the continuous roar of the sea,  I stood in the ocean giving thanks to the one I call "God" for the beautiful experience. Then as the peacefulness filled me, I had a moment of clarity.  I WAS CALM. My mind was uncluttered. My heart was full of gratitude and joy in that moment. The death-grip of everything else that was previously happening around me, was gone. I was connecting to something BIGGER than myself. In that moment of realization, I was filled with a knowing. I had found my answer to the Big Question.  We cope by connecting to something, or "someone", bigger than ourselves. Was the ocean  a pathway to my something  or "someone" bigger? Or could the ocean BE the something bigger? Either way, for me it brought about a peaceful calmness, and "space" in my mind for me to think, "space" in my mind for me to move passed the emotions of EVERYTHING ELSE.

Let's just explore this idea of "something bigger than yourself".  I am not suggesting that you go find a situation or "worry"  that is bigger than the current "worry" you are dealing with.  I am suggesting that you experiment and discover what is YOUR something bigger. It could be time spent walking in the woods, or sitting next to the cozy glow of a fireplace watching the flames dance. Your something bigger could be that run out in the chilly morning air, taking in all the beautiful sounds and sights of the day. Your something bigger could be sitting in the silence of meditation, connecting to the "God of your understanding". Your something bigger could be allowing the notes of a beautiful sonata fill your heart and soul with the universal love language of music. Whatever your something bigger is, being grateful for it, and connecting to the "bigger power" of love around us, will go a long way in releasing the tension and anxiety associated with your current issue or issues. I like to think of these moments of calm, peace, and  "oneness" as "miracle moments". These moments have such power, the power to help us to re-group and move through these mentally challenging and emotionally demanding times. These "miracle moments" help to ground and center ourselves, giving us the "space" in our minds to think more clearly, more rationally, as we deal with the everyday stresses that is our world around us.

The answer to the "Big Question"?...find your "something bigger" and be grateful for it. Do it as often as you need to. Allow yourself to have your "miracle moments".  And as you do..... you may just end up realizing how much of a "miracle" YOU and the world around you, really ARE.