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Doing small things with great love…

Posted by Pat on December 10, 2012 in Uncategorized |

One of my favorite book titles is…

” Old Age is Contagious, But You Don’t Have To Catch It.”  
     And it reminds us that we can throw away the calendar older and wiseras an authority. Even medical doctors agree that aging is a completely individual process. They divide age into two separate categories; chronological age (the actual number of years a person has lived) and physiological age (meaning how old the body is in terms of deterioration).
    Since this is so, two people who have a chronological age of 65 may have a widely varying physiological age, the one as low as 50 and the other as high as 80. So, at 65 one of the two is definitely old and the other is definitely not.
     And, after all, Mr. Webster’s definition of the word ‘old’ is
      ‘outgrown usefulness…belonging to the past…shabby…stale.’
Not a word about the increasing need for glasses to read the menu or the additional wrinkles seen in the mirror!
Here’s a story I enjoyed in a new friend’s book that brought a smile to my face…
     The nearly blind woman sat on the bench next to an old man with his white cane planted between his feet in the waiting area of the supermarket. They struck up a conversation.
      He was waiting while someone shopped for him and she shared that she was too; that she had some sight, but not enough to recognize items on the shelves.
     With that opening, he began sharing some of the coping tricks he had learned.
     When she asked him if he had ever thought of getting a guide dog, he replied that he got along just fine with his cane. After all, he knew the town so well.
     He continued, with a chuckle, “I have a little granddaughter who loves to take me for walks. I asked her one day if she would be my seeing-eye dog.”
      “Oh no, Grandpa” she quickly protested. I can’t be your seeing eye dog ! I’m not old enough. I’ll be your seeing-eye puppy!”
 seeing eye puppy
    Her response still brings a smile to my face when I think of it. And the thought comes to me that, obviously, even though I can never again tell someone I’m too young to help them; neither should I be tempted to tell them I am too old.
 It’s all just mind over matter. If I don’t mind, it doesn’t matter!
    Isn’t it interesting how many “reasons” (excuses?) we can come up with when we don’t want to do something,
       or think we might not be able to do it well,
           or that someone will find us laughable,
                or that we might fail,
                    or…
    I’m too old, too young, too tall , too short, too weak, too poor, too uneducated, too handicapped, too tired, too sick…
     But there is always someone who needs what we have to offer and what we are. Let’s get our egos and fear out of the way and just try to help, to do something new, to contribute and participate however we can. Being able to do something is within each of us.
Besides it feels good!
As Mother Theresa said,
“In this life we cannot do great things.
We can only do small things with great love  ” –
    So this special season, what do you choose to do,
great or small, with great love?
It definitely will feel good!

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An Irish Christmas Experience?

Posted by Pat on December 3, 2012 in Uncategorized |

What fun it was to attend the live concert of The Irish Rovers while I was visiting my sister over in the Seattle area this last week. The group began in Canada, were immigrants from Northern Ireland, and then headed down to the states. They soared to the top of the pop and country charts with “Wasn’t […]

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And what did you learn this weekend?

Posted by Pat on November 25, 2012 in Uncategorized |

  I think Henry Van Dyke said it all when he said . . . “Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.” We can find reasons to be grateful from this weekend. Are you thankful that you got to […]

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2

How full is your cup?

Posted by Pat on November 19, 2012 in Uncategorized |

Abundance is not about how much we can get; the experience of abundance arises when we feel that whatever we have is enough. Brother David Steindl-Rast, a Benedictine monk who has studied Oriental and Western spirituality, is quoted in Legacy of the Heart by Wayne Muller, and says that  “abundance is not measured by what […]

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4

Thank God for the Fleas!

Posted by Pat on November 11, 2012 in Uncategorized |

I love this time of year! It’s the season we focus on being grateful. The harvest is in and the blessings abound!    And it’s easy to be grateful for the sunshine, the good things, plenty of food, meeting our budget, and compliant children.     But what about the storms, the money running out before the […]

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2

Ants, a life lesson (or 4!)

Posted by Pat on November 4, 2012 in Uncategorized |

We all tend to look up to big people, leaders, gurus, for lessons on how to live life better. But we forget that sometimes the biggest lessons in life come from the smallest folks around us. Take ants, for instance. Would you believe those small creatures can teach us how to live a better life? […]

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6

Aarrg!! Can’t wait for it to be over!

Posted by Pat on October 28, 2012 in Uncategorized |

Politics! Politics! Politics!    Why are we so cranky? So quick to snap at a family member or co-worker when the conversation turns to the election coming up in the next weeks? At least we can be grateful that the presidential debates are over and we just have the media stuff to wade through!    Of course […]

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4

50 Years Ago or Today?

Posted by Pat on October 21, 2012 in Uncategorized |

Over 50 years ago, Mahatma Gandhi gave a pretty good description of our current situation in one of his quotes:  “The things that will destroy us are: politics without principle; pleasure without conscience; wealth without work; knowledge without character; business without morality; science without humanity; and worship without sacrifice.” 50 years ago? today?      Are […]

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14

Do Thorns Have Roses?

Posted by Pat on October 16, 2012 in Uncategorized |

    What I want to share today is something I’ve shared on occasion in talks I’ve given, even though I don’t know where it came from originally.     I read it somewhere and that author indicated a friend told him it had been shared with him originally by an old friend who didn’t know who […]

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Passwords and Passports

Posted by Pat on October 7, 2012 in Uncategorized |

Words, words, words…  and now in this computer age it’s passwords, passwords, passwords.    We seem to end up with a list somewhere with all our passwords, since we can’t remember them or which website or account they go to. Existing to make our life safer, more private, they also are supposed to be changed […]

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