Happy Thanksgiving

I feel a need to add to my blog this week after the Ferguson Grand Jury decision came down last night.  Whether you agree or disagree with the decision and/or the process, we can choose to either focus on all that is wrong or use our efforts to make change. Some of you may say that this is easier for me to say as I’m white. I haven't had to experience the prejudice, the racial profiling etc.  True.  I don't pretend to know what it’s like to walk in the shoes of anyone of color.  What I do know and believe is each and every one of us no matter color, ethnicity, religious belief etc. are blessings, add to the beauty of this world, and have contributions to make.  Polly Anna thinking?  I don't care if that’s the perception.  I know that if I spend my time listening to the news and everyone else’s opinions and “take” on the events that have occurred these past months; I feel down, discouraged, and it’s easier to focus on all the negative.  When I listen to talk around solutions, moving forward, we don't have to accept “the norm,” and what actions we can take to make a difference, I feel empowered and ready to move forward. Those choices are my choices.  I choose to make a difference one day, one friend, one situation at a time.

 

“Each year on the fourth Thursday in November, Americans gather for a day of feasting, football and family. While today’s Thanksgiving celebrations would likely be unrecognizable to attendees of the original 1621 harvest meal, it continues to be a day for Americans to come together around the table,” according to History.com. 

How do you celebrate Thanksgiving?  Do you have specific traditions that you follow each year?  What about those special recipes?  Do you have special memories of that day?

In 1976, our family and friends were all gathered at my parents’ home not only to celebrate Thanksgiving, but the next day Jon and I were getting married.  We wanted the wedding to be exactly one year to the day we met on our blind date, however, in 1976, that meant it would be on Thanksgiving Day.  Guess what…that doesn't work.  So Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, one year and one day later, became our wedding day.  To also “set the stage” for how we would celebrate Thanksgiving in the future, the Friday after Thanksgiving was always the day Oklahoma and Nebraska went head to head on the football field.  Because of that, the time of our wedding was held at 11:30 in the morning so our reception would be winding down by the time the two teams played.  With Jon working in the CU athletic department, we wanted Oklahoma to win which would mean CU would play in the Orange Bowl.  The end of our reception had moved in front of a TV set to watch Oklahoma win, so now we were also celebrating CU playing in the Orange Bowl for New Years. 

Fast forward to 1994 when CU moved from the Big 8 to the Big 12.  That now meant a CU vs. Nebraska match up on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Over these many years, football has meant we were either celebrating Thanksgiving in our home when the game was in Boulder, or we celebrated on Wednesday as Jon would be in Lincoln with the team.  As Jason and Elsa were older, we traveled to Lincoln, and we all ate our Thanksgiving dinner at the Cornhusker Hotel with other Buff fans.  And, yes, there were also times our anniversary did fall on Thanksgiving Day, so we had a double reason to celebrate.

There were five years, when Jason was a player at CU, that our Thanksgivings took on a whole new “look.”  If the game was here in Boulder, we had many football players and parents filling our home.  It was such a fun time with great food, great fellowship, much laughter, and many wonderful memories. 

Now our Thanksgiving plans vary from year to year.  Our children are married, and they have their own demands to juggle.  Jobs, basketball games, and needing to balance sharing time with in-laws come into play.  I must admit, that that was hard for me at first.  I love being surrounded by my children, grandchildren, family and friends.  Yet, I also had to remember… I was not available to spend time with either my family or Jon’s.  We were having to work around Jon’s job and rarely were available to have a Thanksgiving together with other family members. So now, I relish each time we get together no matter when that may be. 

Whatever your memories, traditions, and circumstances are this year; I am grateful for your friendship, the blessings you bring to my life, and all the memories we have shared.  Happy Thanksgiving to you and to your family this November 27^th, 2014!

What Does Your Paradise Look Like?

Darren Hardy, publisher and founding editor of Success magazine in the December 2014 issue titles his Publisher’s Letter “Dissatisfied?  How to Find Paradise.”  It’s an interesting question as I assume, no matter whether you’re 16 or 60+, at some time or another in your life, you questioned the life you were leading.  Maybe you envied the life your best friend had or you thought you’d be further ahead in your job, your finances, your relationships.  Maybe it appeared others had a “better life,” a more loving marriage, or you wished you didn't have to worry about money.  The “grass looked  greener on the other side.”  According to Hardy, “Every one of us desires Paradise.  The confusion of where to find Paradise is the problem.  The desire for Paradise is not itself a crime. Paradise is a choice.  It is a state of mind.  It comes from within.  Paradise doesn’t exist unless you create it and unless you choose it every day."

Are you spending your time looking at everyone else and comparing yourself?  Are you finding you spend a lot of time “wishing” you were back in time at a younger age, wishing you were doing something else, wishing you were with someone else? Etc. etc.  Or are you living in the present and focusing on all your blessings and gratitude?  Remember Jim Rohn’s words, “What you focus on expands.”  If you’re using other people’s lives as your definition of success or your paradise, chances are you are focusing on lack.  If you’re focusing on you, your successes, your gratitude’s then chances are you're focusing on abundance.

“Negative noise is everywhere in our society, but even more so it’s inside our heads,” according to Shawn Achor, a Harvard-trained researcher. “By emitting positive energy and canceling out that internal noise, you can get back the signal that leads to meaning, success, sustained happiness, and even a longer healthier life." Just like a few week’s ago, I asked you to come up with and write down your personal philosophy – what you want to stand for in all areas of your life.  If your personal philosophy is in place then your picture of paradise has already started to formulate.  It’s not comparing yourself to others, it’s all about YOU.  Zig Ziglar author of Born to Win: Find Your Success Code suggests more areas to consider for your paradise, your successful life.  How do these fit for you?

·       * At the end of the day, do you know and focus on that you did a great job?  The successes?

·        *Are there people in your life who love you and you love them in return?

·        *Financial security is often an area of worry and concern.  If your financial affairs are not in order, what actions are you taking to change it?  Are you moving forward and focusing on abundance or using excuses with no action and focusing on lack?

·        *Do you have the kind of faith that lets you know where to turn when there seems to be no place to turn?

·        *Work is only part of your day.  What brings you joy and peace?  An interest?  A hobby?

·        *Do you really know who YOU are?  It’s back to your personal philosophy once again.

·        *Are you making your health a priority, actively taking care of yourself, and waking up each day with a healthy mindset? 

·        *Do you end the day with a list of gratitude’s?

Are you actively creating and living your paradise?  Are you focusing on how unique and special you are?  Are you changing, learning, and growing daily so your paradise can change and grow too?  Amy Van Dyken Rouen could spend her days lamenting on the “if onlys” or “wishing” things were different.  My sister-in-law has every reason to “wish” things were different after her life threatening stroke.  We all know people who could spend time wishing, hoping, comparing themselves to others who seem to “have it all.”  We also know or know about those people who have every reason to live in the wishing mode or “if only” mode.  After all, we are human.  Yet, they choose to focus on moving forward.   The key question…what do you focus on?  Lack and self-pity or abundance and developing a paradise life for yourself?

Remember Darren Hardy’s words, “Paradise is a choice.  It is a state of mind.  It comes from within.  Paradise doesn’t exist unless you create it and unless you choose it every day.”  YOU are the only one who is control of YOU.  

Veterans' Day!

Today is Veterans’ Day.  We all have a little understanding of what this day represents, but as we are dealing more and more with the world in such turmoil, I wanted to know more about our country’s history and this day in particular.

First of all, there is a difference between Memorial Day and Veterans’ Day.  According to History.com, “Memorial Day (fourth Monday in May) honors American service members who died in service to our country or as a result of injuries incurred during battle.  Veterans’ Day, on the other hand, pays tribute to all American veterans-living or dead-but especially giving thanks to living veterans who have served our country honorably during war or peacetime.”

The origin of this holiday dates back to U.S. President Woodrow Wilson who proclaimed Armistice Day on November 11, 1919 marking the end of WWI. Armistice between Germany and the Allied nations ended WWI although the war didn’t have an official end until seven months later when the Treaty of Versailles was signed. Initially we “celebrated” with a two minute work stoppage at 11:00 am on November 11^th.  On June 4, 1926, Congress passed their own resolution asking then President Calvin Coolidge to issue a proclamation to observe November 11^th as a holiday designed to celebrate world peace and the end of WWI.  “In 1945, Birmingham veteran Raymond Weeks, a veteran of WWII, led a delegation to then Army Chief of Staff General Dwight Eisenhower to convince him to turn Armistice Day into a time to honor all those who served in the armed forces. Weeks led the first national celebration in Alabama in 1947 which he continued to do until his death in 1985.”   

The history of this day continued when Eisenhower, by then president, signed a bill into law in 1954.  Congress voted to change the name from Armistice Day to Veterans’ Day.  With the name change the date was also changed to the fourth Monday of October in 1971, however, in 1978, the date was changed back to its original November 11^th.  “Veterans’ Day is now observed on November 11^th, regardless of which day of the week the date falls.  Federal and state offices are closed on the day, as are most schools.”

As we observe yet another Veterans’ Day with many of our men and women continuing their service around the world, continuing to put themselves in harms way to serve our country and protect our freedoms, there are also many who are back here in the States recovering from both physical and emotional wounds.  Let us not forget to say thank you to those veterans but in addition to the spouses and children who have also had to make a sacrifice.  

Take time to express a voice of gratitude for all our men and women who continue to fight for the freedoms which we, often times, take for granted. What a wonderful opportunity to find a chance to give out random acts of kindness to these special members of the military and to their families.

Though this video speaks primarily about men, we all know there are a tremendous number of women who are also on active duty or are veterans.  The message is…let’s say Thank You, in some way, today!!

http://www.history.com/topics/holidays/history-of-veterans-day/videos/history-says-thanks