0
0
Spring Cleaning is in order, and I’m preparing for an onslaught of changes quickly approaching by tidying up and simplifying my surroundings and my life. I’m trimming back the unnecessary to find the necessary. I’m letting go of all that no longer serves me, and I’m opening up and shouting to God, “Okay… I’m ready for you to go ahead and move that mountain for me, but until then, I’m going to start chipping away at it myself, stone by stone. Jump in any time you want, God. No, really.”
My game plan is to tackle enormous things in small bits. I examine it by thinking about how every day is significantly impacted by trivial things. How can I wrestle with the big things when I’m busy fussing over the relatively small things? For instance, think about traffic jams on your morning commute. Some sit there in angst, stewing over the slowdown. Okay, I do this too sometimes. Most of the time, however, I take a moment to look around at how the sunlight is hitting the wildflowers on the side of the road. I turn up the music and listen to the lyrics. I sit and give thanks for all of the marvelous things that I have in my life… including the traffic for forcing me to slow down and breathe. What could have led to an adverse effect, white-knuckled drive, yelling at no one and everyone, and pumping me up with adrenaline for no good reason, spiraling my day into an ugly decline, has instead, led to clarity, peace, and gratitude. Yeah… that is the stuff that is just too good NOT to share.
Our lives are a continuously unfolding event of cause and effect, cause, and effect.
Cause: Setbacks and slowdowns occur.
You can either sit and stew about it (don’t do that) OR… take the opportunity to look for the light. Look for the beauty. Look for the simple gestures of kindness.
Effect: (of choosing to seize the opportunity) Squashes fear down to a manageable size, ability to see beyond ugliness on the surface, know that there are so many good and amazing people that walk on this planet.
My life is a FAR cry from perfect, but compared to so many others, I am blessed beyond measure. Even when I am faced with struggles, obstacle after obstacle, I never take small moments for granted and look for something astonishing at that moment. It’s always there, even if the situation itself is ugly, there can be beauty in being truthful, open, and vulnerable.
Right now, I am prepping for a wave of changes in our life. Big ones, small ones, and all sizes in between. I’m taking stock of what I have, and getting rid of the unnecessary things in my life to allow the necessary to thrive. One of the things that I have deemed 110% essential in my life is sharing these moments with you. I’ve been offering up photos on a whim and bite-sized passing thoughts over on Instagram for a while now. It’s my go-to place for sharing these days, so I thought that I’d compile a few of my recent favorites.
Inspiration: Butter
Someone recently asked me where I find my inspiration when I share my photos and write my posts. Creamed butter should sum it up. Seriously. Tonight, I decided to make banana bread muffins because… well… Monday. The recipe called for creamed butter, so I took a few seconds to whip the butter. Is it just me, or is there at least ONE other person who thinks that whipped butter looks absolutely beautiful? So I grabbed my phone, snapped a quick photo, and continued on with the muffins. All the while, I kept thinking about how beautiful and delicious butter is, and how it IS that way only because it was agitated and mixed and shaken up. If it just stayed put, it would be something different. Don’t get me wrong, cream is great and all… but butter is magical. And then I started thinking… Do I want my life to be good… or do I want it to be magical? Then I can’t be afraid to mix things up a bit, can I? And THAT is how I find my inspiration! It just arrives. I capture the moment as best I can stitch together a few of the thoughts that fill my mind as it happens, and sprinkle it all into a post. There you go. Creamed butter.
Gray Rainy Days
Gray rainy days don’t really bother me. In fact, I love them. Sometimes, it’s the soft and subtle things in life that are the most comforting, most noticed, and most appreciated. Don’t brush off cloudy days as a nuisance. Every day is a gift… so take notice of the beauty everywhere. Even when the clouds block the light of the sun.
Inspiration: Nature
Even Mother Nature takes a season to simplify. And when the cold gray days pass, we all take delight in her eventual (albeit slow) and steady return of spring.
PSA: No age limit on sidewalk chalk
My Tuesday Afternoon PSA: there is no age limit on sidewalk chalk. Leave your mark. Make lines dance and colors smudge. Be bold. Be soft. Get dirty. Have fun. In fact… do it with sidewalk chalk, but more importantly, do it in your everyday life. Don’t be afraid to leave your mark on every single day. The rain will come and wash it away and give you yet another clean slate, ready, waiting, and needing the very things that only YOU can leave behind. Press hard, spread your mark far and wide, and leave your prints on everything you touch. In short: just be you. There’s no age limit on you being you either.
Moving Mountains
While attempting to move a mountain one small pebble at a time, it is advisable that you have someone to remind you not to look up at the beginning. “Just keep your head down, moving one stone at a time. Don’t worry about how much of that mountain is left for you to move; only concern yourself with the weight of that one tiny little stone.” Here I am, removed of all makeup and adornments, all fluff and pretty things. Sometimes you can’t dress up the hard work ahead of you, nor the struggle it takes to get you to where you want to be, but it’s helpful to assemble your cheering squad and let them see you for who you are, invisible eyelashes, struggle and all. Oh, the celebration we will have when we finally move that mountain!
