CONFESS

“Confess to yourself in the deepest hour of the night whether you would have to die if you were forbidden to write. Dig deep into your heart, where the answer spreads its roots in your being, and ask yourself solemnly, Must I write?”
Rainer Maria Rilke

What would you rather die for than be forbidden to do?


Afterthought:
I found this quote and it so sums up exactly how I feel about my ability to write and communicate:

"One of the hardest things in life is having words in your heart that you can't utter."
James Earl Jones

TEAMS

“It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”
Joanne Kathleen Rowling (author Harry Potter)

Tonight I enjoyed a lovely guilty pleasure - Twilight Saga Eclipse.

I left behind the duties of my day and escaped to drinks, appetizers and the movies with a dear friend. Our conversation spanned many areas of our lives and landed, of course, just as the previews were concluding on THE question: which team are you?

And for once I had the perfect answer (kudos to Kate:)

I am officially team Why Do I Have to Choose?! Honestly, I deserve a real,capable, 360 degree man who is able and willing to discuss literature and design, complete basic home repairs and share his feelings all without breaking a sweat. I don't need a teenage actor portraying a wolf or a vampire or drama over who's more handsome or more breathtaking or who's better at saving the day.

Edward or Jacob?

Why do I need to choose?

Although I am completely willing to shell out $12.50 to spend a few hours of my time daydreaming at the movies...

I am team "Why do I have to choose?!"

“Our choices in life are made according to our sense of our own worth”
Kaylan Pickford

How about you, who do YOU choose?

BON VACANCE

My mind reels with the possibilities! 5 days. No responsibilities. No structure to my time.

Certainly there is a feeling of longing and absence. Simultaneously there is an overwhelming feeling of gratitude for the ability to step away and be..."independent".

Like the elf who wants to be a dentist in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, my mouth is learning to form this very foreign-sounding word. In-de-pen-dent.

My days are anchored by a familiar routine for which I am truly grateful. I am blessed with an amazing daughter. We are both experimenting with this new-found independence!

Summer sleep-away camp.

Today my one thing is: GRACE.

I will savour the slow and beautiful in all that I say and do.
How can I define the word grace in how I choose to live today?

I'm curious - what does GRACE mean to you?

ONE Thing

“Never again clutter your days or nights with so many menial and unimportant things that you have no time to accept a real challenge when it comes along. This applies to play as well as work. A day merely survived is no cause for celebration. You are not here to fritter away your precious hours when you have the ability to accomplish so much by making a slight change in your routine. No more busy work. No more hiding from success. Leave time, leave space, to grow. Now. Now! Not tomorrow!"
Og Mandino

Deliberate action.

My golf coach reminds me that once I start to swing just think of ONE thing...

Plan, strategize, put everything in place and then once you're there just think - what's my one thing right now?

One thing.

Right now my one thing is typing this blog post.

When I'm finished my one thing will be sharing the end of this day with my family.

In this moment, what is your ONE thing?

POSTCARDS

I am enjoying blissful day dreams of recent sweltering summer days...cold ocean swims and bare skin nestled into warm sand or against scorching pool tiles...



This chilly, drizzly July weather is good for crafting and letter writing...shrinky dinks and postcards to far away places all happened today.

I wrote a special someone a stack of sleep-away camp letters and postcards today. Hard to believe!

I recall my father writing long letters to me in college and paper-clipping articles from the Wall Street Journal against their yellow legal pad pages. His precise, fountain pen print was unmistakable. He took the time hand-select intriguing stamps. At the time, it was a pleasure to receive mail, of any sort. But I must admit that I rarely made the time to write back to his considerate correspondence.

I get it now...I am hoping for a stack of postcards in return next week...I'll even stop by the Post Office to hand-pick some playful stamps.

And yes, there will be a care package!!! Summer camp is so...super:)

How often do you check your mail box? Do you ever get anything good anymore via snail mail?!

I read about this incentive project to encourage letter writing called Vive La Snail Mail on the Shutter Sisters site. Check it out if you're like me and LOVE to find your actual mail box full!

MARCHING

I have a new-found fascination with marching bands...

There is something so enthusiastic and proud about this summer tradition.

SUMMER TRADITIONS

Thought I'd share a glimpse of our weekend...Coronado Fourth of July parade...Part 1.
ENJOY!