Monday, January 2, 2012

What's "Write" with the World?

Note: 
For those of you who do not know me personally, it seems important to tell you here... this post was written on January 2nd, 2012.  On the following morning, January 3rd, 2012 things did not seem "write" with my world. My 47 year old husband passed away suddenly and very unexpectedly. The cause has yet to be determined, but appears to be heart related. I debated about taking this post down, but intuition has guided me to "walk my talk," and keep it posted, just the way it is.  My life suddenly felt "upside down" but within that, there are still many things "write" with the world. Choosing to place energy and attention on these things has been one of the things that has assisted me and my family in dealing with those things that may not otherwise seem right, right now. I suspect there may be future posts dealing with some of the other things we have gone through and learned.... but for this month, I will Simply dedicate this post to Julio. 

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Photo of the Month
Field of Sunflowers, MD, September 2011

Quote of the month:
Your attitude about who you are and 
what you have is a very little thing that makes
a very big 
difference.
-Theodore Roosevelt

Happy 2012!

I'll start by saying that, yes! I know that I used the wrong "write" (right) in the title! I did this on purpose! If it bothers you, my suggestion is to review October's post on Perfection!  : )  After making the annual Christmas trip to Florida and being with my Spanish speaking in-law's family.... along with my broken Spanish... the conclusion is, if understanding has taken place it can be considered successful communication, regardless of how it happened! Gesturing and pointing counts! 

What prompted this post is that it seems recently, I've heard or been involved in a number of negative conversations. I am not putting my head in the sand, saying that everything is wonderful or even donning rose-colored glasses. The economy and politics rank high on the list of things people seem to be complaining about.  Knees and big toes were on the list with my college friends.  (This seems exceptionally unfair given that we frequently toasted to them in college! "To love, health, happiness, big toes, knee caps and friends!")

My Simple suggestion this month is to give Teddy Roosevelt's quote above a try and give AT LEAST equal time to what is right in the world. Maybe even try giving it a little MORE time and attention than given to what is "wrong." 

I can hear the chorus of nay-sayers out there..... like what? Nothing's right!!!! If you will bear with me for a moment I will attempt to prove the chorus wrong!

Just for this moment .....let's start with the fact that the sun came up on January 1st, 2012 (1)... and it came out again this morning, January 2nd (2)!  Even if it is raining, cloudy or even snowing where you are, the sun is still up there!

Next, you are breathing (3)! And if you are reading this, I will assume that you at least have access to a computer (4) and the Internet (5).... maybe even a cell phone (6).... and let's add functioning electricity (7). That already puts you amongst the most fortunate of the world's inhabitants. I am going to add spell check (8) to my list of positive things as I've used it half a dozen times already in this post! (If I missed one along the way, I'll again refer you to the October post on perfection!)

There are many things that we take for granted every day.... our hearts (9) beat and our lungs (10) breathe without us having to think about it (11). What if we had to remember to beat our hearts? How many of us would get sidetracked on irrelevant details? No one! Or they would not last long! Let's throw in hearing (12), eyesight (13), touch (14), taste (15) and smell (16)!  How amazing is that? If one of these is not functioning or not as well as it used to be, you still have the other senses to assist you. Most of you can probably walk (17) or have some means of mobility (18). Do you have a vehicle (19) or access to public transportation (20)?  Don't even get me started on how useful hands (21) and fingers (22) are! 

Most of you probably have a roof over your head (23) and a bed to sleep in (24).... or at least somewhere to go where someone will take you in (25). Do you have comfortable sheets (26) and pillows (27) on your bed (28)? Is there adequate food (29) in your kitchen (30)?  Do you have warm (31), running (32), clean (33) water (34) in your shower or bath (35)?

Most of us have access to shopping (36) where we can purchase nourishing (37) food (38) and household "necessities" (39) such as paper towels (40) and Playstation 3's (41)!  Next time you are in the grocery store, just take a moment and look at the abundance (42) of items available!  I especially like to do this in the produce area (43)!  There are generally several varieties (44) of apples (45), tomatoes (46) and lettuces (47) just to name a few! What about that snack aisle (48)!?

You may say that these are very basic things.... so basic that you expect them to be there in the morning when you wake up, along with the sun and your breath! What if one of them was not there one day?  What if your home suddenly did not have a bathroom one morning? What would your life be like? Would you appreciate it then?  

Next time you find yourself complaining about something... anything.... I've given you a list of 48 things you can refer to.  Why 48?  That is Simply the number I got to writing this post.  I'll give you one more... a beautiful field of sunflowers in the photo above (49)!  

If you are reading this, I am willing to bet that you can easily be grateful for well over half of the things listed in this post! Try focusing even a minimal amount of attention on any one of them!  See how it can change your perspective!  See if you can also see what is "Write" with your world!  Let me know what you find!  Feel free to comment at the link below!

Keep it Simple!
Penelope

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

AMAZING - that is all I can say. Reading this post and your additional comments leaves me in awe of your stength of character. The true test on one's mettle is how she shines through adversity. We all can fluorish during good days. It is how we function with the bad that shows who we truly are. You, my dear, are a gem.

Gabriel said...

Beautiful. Once again you hit the nail on the head, and the timeliness of your post is not surprising. I'm glad you didn't take it down. As I go through this book, Who Dies, I keep finding messages similar to those you post on here. Even though I don't comment regularly, know that I read the blogs (irregularly) and always come away a little better for it.

Anonymous said...

Glad you posted this because there are still things "write", even in times of adversity or sadness,when you feel all is wrong. Things like amazing memories that would not have existed unless that person existed, things like the gifts that were given to you by that person which now gives you a reason to keep going, things like family and friends that are now even closer because they are united by that memory. There will be always sunshine tomorrow even if it seems a little cloudy today. Don't ever stop looking for the sunshine.

Risa said...

Wow Peni, how appropiate a post to keep you going in the "write" direction. You are being a great role model for us all. This will help me get back on the "write" track again. Love you!

Penelope said...

Thank you to everyone who has commented!

Anonymous said...

You were "write" in keeping this post. You are an inspirational person and your blog tugs me back from the negativity life can show us. I truly enjoyed our spiritual talks when I lived with you and Julio; I miss them often. Thank you for that experience! May you and the boys stay in Light and Live in Love. XOXO Israel

Kim Julen said...

Penelope,
Think about how different the world would be if we all continually focused on the "write" things. We are greatly missing you in Minnesota and I so wish I could give you a hug in person! When things settle down and/ or you need someone to talk to please call me. Love, light and hugs!