cff December 2012 | Simple and Serene Living

Sunday, December 30, 2012

snowy dreams


As I stepped outside late yesterday afternoon, after a long day of cleaning and organizing I saw this snowy wonder and was reminded of one of my favorite poems.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
by
Robert Frost
                     


Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

The silence of a snow filled world and thoughts of my journey ahead were filling my head. I felt that both the world and myself were at peace in that moment.



 

Thursday, December 20, 2012

breaking free of the fear

As last week's event unfolded, I watched and listened as my fellow bloggers talked about how it has affected their lives. The fears, the  negativity, and the sense of hopelessness that many of you are feeling has me feeling concerned (yes, once a counselor, always a counselor)

There were a couple of things that caught my eye on the internet today. One was this photo.

original source unknown

The other was something I read in an email. You can read the whole article here, but this part stood out for me.

"The reality is we all get afraid.  It’s not about being afraid but what you do when you feel that way.  When you feel doubt, or fear, or anger, or frustration, know that you can let it go just as surely as you can pull your hand away from a flame.  Keep your life focused on the goodness, on the possibilities and on your most treasured dreams.  What begins in your mind ends up in your life.  Think continually of the way you would like to be, let these thoughts drive your actions, and your reality will reliably catch up to your thinking."


So maybe you are wondering why I put these two together. Well, a long time ago someone set that bike up against that tree and left it there. Over the years the tree grew around the bike and the bike became old and rusted. It virtually became part of the tree. 

That bike didn't have much choice as to whether that tree took over its life, but we do. We can decide to pull away from the fear and anger and not become part of it. We can walk away from it. 

No, that does not mean we are being disrespectful of the events that happened. It means that we choose to rejoice in our lives and work to change things so that events like the one at Sandy Hook last week don't happen again. 

The things we do can be big or small. They can be as simple as sharing a smile with a stranger or kissing a loved one. Or they can be larger like writing about gun control and mental health access on your blog or contacting your representatives in Washington.

If we let events like this take over our lives then we will become like that old rusty bike.



So often we feel like we are alone in all of the chaos, as if we are the only one on a long empty stretch of beach. But we aren't alone, and the wonderful thing about a beach is the water is always coming ashore and bringing new sand. That is what our lives are like. The old things are constantly being washed away and new beginnings are happening all the time.

So, my hope for all of you my sweet friends is that you will never forget the tragedy that befell our country, but that you will choose to remove your hand from the flame and remember all of the wonderful things that life still holds for you.

With Love,
Laura

 

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Day of Silence




Tuesday, December 4, 2012

how smart am I?

Yesterday I left the world of 1999 and moved right on into 2012.

Yes, my sweet friends I purchased this.


It is the latest in smarty pants smartphones.

So guess which one of us is smart. I've learned that it is definitely not me. 

Okay, I admit that I have never even sent a text, but I thought I could at least figure out the phone part of it. After accidentally calling my sister FIVE times in a row, I realized I have a lot to learn.

In fact, it only took me two hours this morning to figure out how to transfer photos from my phone to my computer (must be a new world record)

The best part is I now don't have to remember to take my camera, which means I will be getting tons of great photos. 

Hmmmmm!!! Where is that dumb smart phone?


 
P.S. I also had to run out to Walmart in my jammies last night to buy a new printer because mine bit the dust. SIGH!