Welcome back!Thanks for spending a few moments of your day with me. Each week I will share excerpts from my current writing, quotes from others that have really resonated with me this week, plus what I'm reading, listening to, watching, creating and excited about this week. Morning Page Musings(Excerpts from my daily journaling) On Presence and Action: "How do we set about to do something, which requires looking to the future, while keeping our feet (and mind and heart) firmly planted in the present?" On A/C vs. Fresh Air: "They just seem to move through life from one climate-controlled situation to another." On Nature Deficiency: "When you look around you and all you see is artificial light and technology, how can you get a sense of awe from a blade of grass?" On Feeling Stuck: "I struggle to move ahead because I'm stuck in wanting things to NOT be as they are." On The Energetic: "He was full of energy as usual. I am quite jealous of that. Maybe one day I'll have tons of energy again." On Precipitation: "Woke up to find it had rained a bit overnight. Best news ever!" On Stubbornness: "I ended up doing it almost entirely by myself because I wanted to do it my way."
Quotes from Others"To relinquish the futile effort to control change is one of the strengthening forces of true detachment, and thus true love." Sharon Salzberg, Lovingkindness, The Revolutionary Art of Happiness "OK, these are all of our options." 2-year-old Clara looking at a pile of colorful Lite Brite pegs. "Our friends show us what we can do, our enemies show us what we must do." Goethe ListeningQWERTY Podcast. In Ep. 120 Janet Skeslian Charles, host Marion Roach Smith talks to Janet about her newest books. Both are based on true stories from the WW1 and WW2 eras and feature daring women who are determined to get books back into the hands of those to whom they've been denied. ReadingSpeaking of reading, May 12-18 is Little Free Library Week! The Chez Slay Book Nook is proud to be a part of this important work of making books more accessible to all. If you want to find a Little Free Library box in your area, or even start one of your own, visit the Little Free Library website for more into. WatchingBaby Reindeer on Netflix. I will give you a disclaimer right up front. If you are easily offended in any way, you may not want to watch this. But, if you love watching slow motion train wrecks, then it might be a good option for you. This seven-episode series follows a would-be comedian through a ridiculously long and absurd stalking situation. Just when you think it can't get any worse...it does. It's not my typical genre at all, but I binged it in one day because it was so compelling. CookingGerman Potato Salad from Recipe Tin Eats. I am a huge fan of Chef Nagi, and of course, her aspiring taste tester and golden retriever, Dozer. I'm sure there are a gazillion German potato salad recipes out there, but I always seem to come back to this one. Sweet, savory, tangy smoky. It's got tons of flavor and the creamy texture of the potatoes is divine. The recipe states six servings and I can vouch for that. Danny and I had it twice with dinner and I've been working on the last two servings alongside my scrambled eggs for breakfast. That's been a surprising combo too. GrowingCentral Florida is in full-on Spring, heading into summer mode, so plants are plentiful. We are just starting to get some rain, after a couple of dry months, so everything that's been holding out for real rain will bloom and grow now too.
GoingI stopped by Tracy Stone Company to pick up some flagstone pieces that I am using to make a walking meditation circle. This was quite a production. I had to park, find a wheelbarrow, then take it to the bins where they have all the flagstone pieces. I chose twelve pieces and set them in the wheelbarrow. Then I pushed it to the giant industrial scale, put all the stones on it to get a total weight (68 lbs. @ 35 cents per pound, if you're curious), then find someone to take my money. Put all the stones back in the wheelbarrow, push it back to my car and load in the hatchback area. Drive home, place all the stones on the driveway for a couple of days until we loaded them in our own wheelbarrow, pushed it to the backyard and placed them in a circle. That seems like a lot longer version of "I bought 12 stones." On Mother's Day morning, my daughter and I went to Bok Tower Gardens, which is one of my favorite places on earth. We wandered through the native wildflower beds, then through the children's area, then finally made our way down the expansive back lawn of the El Retiro house and found a lovely bench in front of a peaceful pond setting. We got our watercolors all set up and spent about an hour just painting and chatting. She painted a scene from the pond, and I worked on my floral nature studies and color matching. One of those moments in time that was a slice of heaven. CreatingIn addition to my love of plants and flowers, I have discovered a new creative passion in Lego Flowers. Who knew this was even a thing? I got the sunflower, roses and lotus for my birthday and enjoyed putting them together last week. I even dug out the kids' 25th anniversary Lego tub (which is now more than 25 years old itself) and made myself a square Lego vase to display all my flowers. Now that these are on my radar, I see all the amazing sets that area available. I think the wildflower collection will be next on my wish list. Until next week...I'll be finding happiness in the pursuit. Betsy Work with Me!I offer private one-to-one coaching to a limited number of clients worldwide via Zoom. Every coaching relationship with me begins with a complimentary session where we discuss your goals, your struggles, and how coaching may benefit you. There is absolutely no pressure to commit further, this is simply an opportunity to get to know each other better and decide whether working together would be a good fit for each of us. Use the button below to get access to my calendar and book your free session.
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Writer • Life Coach • Running Coach • Happier Goals
Hello Friends! I hope this Friday evening finds you well, and for many of you, ready to enjoy a long Memorial Day weekend. Each year at this time I get the urge to take a pause, reduce the messaging coming at me from the world and also how much I'm sending out into it. This year I'm feeling led to an even quieter summer than usual with much time spent in nature, reading, writing, meditation, reflection, introspection and creation. With that, I am going to pause my weekly newsletter for a few...
Welcome back! Thanks for spending a few moments of your day with me. Each week I will share excerpts from my current writing, quotes from others that have really resonated with me this week, plus what I'm reading, listening to, watching, creating and excited about this week. Morning Page Musings (Excerpts from my daily journaling) On Reminiscing: "Reading it back over and reliving that day made me realize what a magical time it was." On Expectations: "I need to grieve my old life, or rather,...
Welcome back! Thanks for spending a few moments of your day with me. Each week I will share excerpts from my current writing, quotes from others that have really resonated with me this week, plus what I'm reading, listening to, watching, creating and excited about this week. Morning Page Musings (Excerpts from my daily journaling) On Life: "Just because life has thrown me a lot of curve balls lately, doesn't mean I don't deserve all the good things life has to offer." On Therapy: "I kind of...