Ballet

Romeo:  "Has my heart loved 'till now?  Forswear it, sight!  For I never saw a true beauty 'till this night."

We have tickets to the 2004 Atlanta Ballet Ball at the Fox Theater on February 13th with the Romeo & Juliet performace.    Dinner is beforehand in the Eqyptian Ballroom and we are invited to the cast party after for dessert and dancing.  I have always wanted to see this onstage and can't wait!  This is truely the greatest love story ever written and of course my favorite from Shakespeare.  I hope to feel the passion, hatred, innocence and betrayal illuminated through the dance.   My only worry now is will my big kleenex box go with my cocktail dress?  lol

speculative glance

I've been sitting alone thinking.....wondering where this path of life will guide me...how long will it take for me to see that there is nothing more that I could want....how many more trails out there that need to be hiked and breathtaking views to absorb before I would say I've seen it all....how many more nights will I lay and dream with vivid panorama scenes?   I imagine my love will continue to spread for the adventures given to me in my life.  As I sit here wondering,  I inhale the comfort set upon me by those thoughts....

captivating :)

Kid Rock

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Once again this old song re-emerges by another artist.  Kid Rock has done a new video to go along with this song.  Those old favorites always come back by artists with new ideas in how they want to portray it.  He starts off a little country but goes heavy rock the rest of the way.   I would have to say that I love this song...enjoyed the video :)  ....and will continue searching and listening to music that inspires my days and relaxes my thoughts.

Listen :)  And if your curious, go search for the video to watch. :)

Staying positive

Today a decision was made.  I have finally made that call to the eye surgeon to have my cataracts removed.  I was shaking at the time with the thought of having this done.  I will be surprised if I go through with this but know that I will. The fear I have is very close by.  What comes to the surface of my mind is something that I have thought of since I was younger....the fear of loosing that sense.  What is beside that fear is the fact that my eyes have been open today to facts that moved me enough to make that call.  My main goal now is to keep the positive outlook that I have about everything else in my life and include this....to know that this will benefit me...and to keep the negative thoughts out of my reach. 

What would you attempt to do if you knew you would not fail?  Dr. Robert Schuller

Hint of spring

What a great day it is outside!.  Hints of springtime are peeping through the trees and the warmth from the sun feels good.  I've just returned from helping the kids at school and each one brought with them smiling faces today.  Could it be that they too feel the change in the season?  Whatever it was the energy from them kept me smiling long after I left.  This is the kind of day that makes me want to stay outside frolicking beneath the sun.  I am patiently waiting for the birds to return to the feeders to watch them amuse the squirrels that have taken over their feeing trays.  Springtime...you can't come soon enough. 

Friends

"All people you meet here have one thing to teach you.  That there are no random acts.  That we are all connected.  That you can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind."  Mitch Albom - The five people you meet in heaven.

Since reading this book from Mitch Albom, I have reflected on those friends and strangers that have passed through my life.  I would have to say that I have always thought we meet each person for a reason.  Sometimes we know why, other times we never do find out.   We bring each experience of that contact of others with us and that forms the person who we are.  As I sat and visited a friend the other day who has been struggling for her life, I couldn't help but wonder why I met her shortly before her illness started a year ago.  Each time we met we would talk about anything and everything so easily....and it was like that the other day even though we both knew that time was running out.  Meeting her was no random act. 

This year

Genuine beginnings begin within us, even when they are brought to our attention by external opportunities.  William Bridges

This new year will bring new situations to my life, new friends that will inspire my thoughts and new opportunities for me to improve my world through kindness, compassion and generosity.  I hope to enlighten those around me with something as simple as a smile and other times as complex as my thoughts.  My strenghts will help me along my way and hopefully I will work with and around my weaknesses.  I will bring to this year what seems like my never ending excitement and enthusiasum for the life that I have.  I will persist on this journey and enjoy every moment that is put in front of me and notice life at it's best with a smile on my face and continued warmth in my heart..... :) 

Hiking

Did a short hike of 3 1/2 miles at Alatoona Lake on New Years Eve.  We hiked this trail before but never when the lake had been lowered.  I ended up going off the trail and walking where the water used to be.  It made for some interesting pictures.  The day was sunny, warm and quiet beneath the trees.  It is this kind of day that I feel most alive.  :)

Christmas

Our trip to Pittsburgh for our Christmas vacation was fun.  We enjoyed seeing all our relatives and also added our annual ski trip before we came home to Atlanta.  The time went fast, but we left with lots of memories.   I'm already planning the next road trip! 

Merry Christmas

From my family to yours....May you celebrate this holiday season with joy in your home, peace in your world, and love in your heart.  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Brian, Kelly, Carol, Dave, Daniel and Dave

Paprika

This is Paprika....he brought a smile to my face each time he hopped around the house, and an angry word to my lips everytime I had to pull him from underneath the freezer!   He was cuddly, mischievous and one of the cutest rabbits I've had.....he will be missed terribly.  December 21, 2003

I am at a lose for words.  What I feel sometimes is overwhelming.  I have been the ear and shoulder for my mother for the past six years since my sister passed away.  I sit and listen...for it is all that I can do now.  I don't know how she feels loosing a child, but the ongoing pain that I hear in her voice  is enough to know that I  shouldn't have any complaints in my life on minuscule things.  I fight to dig myself out of the emotions each time she talks with me of this.  It will come out of the blue like yesterday and hit me like a brick wall. She now is following a class action lawsuit of  similiar origin of the doctor that misdiagnosed my sister and has begun the process of writing letters in the effort to bring justice...or is it peace within herself.  My mother now wants my response and feelings on it....

I shouldn't tell her that I feel she should let go....it is not my right....I want her to never forget, but learn to stay positive for the surviving members of our family...I want her to put her energy in another direction....these feeling that I have will go unheard, for how can I tell her to do nothing?

I will continue to listen ...continue to keep it to myself...and hope that one day peace will replace the hurt that persists within her.

"Never deprive someone of hope, it might be all they have."  H. Jackson Brown Jr.

 

In the throes of indecision, a deep, inner voice will whisper an answer.  Lynne Ames from Easy Answers to Life's Hard Questions

Today I found myself amused by my surroundings.  At times I laughed with gusto... and other times I was searching for answers to questions that were asked of me.  Though the smile never quite left my face I found myself wondering why things happen as they do.  Is it just being at the right place at the right time....or do we bring certain energy towards us? 

patience

Sometimes I feel as if I'm pulled in all directions and everyone has just one more thing to ask of me....it gets to the point where all I can do is sit and smile.  This is when my patience kicks in and I learn to endure without complaining.   I will finish each day and be done with it.  If I am lucky,  I will  have another opportunity the very next day to deal with things all over again.... maybe with a new view that will make things seem easier.  In the meantime....I need a break!!!!!  lol

Silence

"Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself and know that everything in this life has a purpose."   Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

True silence is something that rests in all of us and is mixed with the realization that our life is ever-changing in our purpose of being here.  The impact of each person that passes through our life touches that silence within us and forms a new  perception.  We take that impression, add it to our existing thoughts and learn that life has more reason of living than ever before.  How lucky we are to realize this in our daily endevors.  We are our silence within.

Santa

Christmas is just around the corner and Santa Claus is coming to town... should I watch out now and start crying?....will he remember me being naughty?.... is it too late to start trying to be nice?....think he will notice my pout?....will he remember when I was good or just all that bad stuff?....has he been watching me when I lay there and can't sleep??......will he check his list more than twice just for me to give me a break?..... goodness sakes.... is 16 days till Christmas enough time for me to change his mind and think about stopping here?...should I start stressing now????...   :)

I just awoke from spending my Friday evening sleeping in front of the fireplace.  The warmth of the fire encircled me like a blanket and all I could hear was the intoxicating sound of the crackling wood.  I lay there mesmerized by the comfort but alone in my surroundings, for the house was quiet.  The light from the flames bounced against the walls and shown brightly just for me.....I should have stayed there all night.....

 

The Northern Boy

Here's the typical northern boy eating ice cream in front of the fireplace.  Cold?  Nope...hasn't gone in the single digits yet...these Atlanta winters are great!

Did you ever have one of those days when things just feel good?  Where everything looks brighter.... and thoughts run rapid....but every bright corner is filled with good feelings of calm?  A day when it seems like you open your eyes for the first time...and everything  in return catches our awareness?

This was one of those days.  :)

Dave's 19th Birthday

It is not necessary  to change.  Survival is not mandatory.  Edward Demming, Management consultant

Here's Dave this past Sunday on his 19th birthday.  Where has the time gone?  Seemed like yesterday that he was learning to ride his bike and now he's grown and in college!  Change....it's inevitable....