Pragmatism gives way to pagentry today.

A dream is a wish your heart makes." - Cinderella

So no one has ever, EVER, accused me of being overly sentimental or whimsical (and I don't see that as a bad thing). But this morning in the wee hours, I , along with millions of others, was seated in front of the TV, tea in one hand freshly baked scone in the other, watching a modern day fairytale unfold. Not only that, but I found myself projecting all the good vibes I could muster that early in the morning, to the next King and Queen of England for a long and HAPPY life together. .... weird, I know! I WANT them to prove all the nay-sayers wrong. To show the world that fairtales can come true.

Does this mean that I will start crying at movies - I doubt it (although those old Bell ads got me every time). Am I going to trade in my logic and intuition that drive my thinking for a softer, more emotional approach to life - definitely not. But what today has reminded me, and that I will keep tucked away for when my kids start making their way into the world - dating, careers, etc -  is that dreams, no matter how "out there" or based in fairytales they are, can come true ... just ask Wills and Kate.

Would you get more done if yoiu had a dolphin's brain?

 Lost time is never found again." – Benjamin Franklin

Did you know that marine mammals sleep by shutting down half of its brain, along with the opposite eye for extended periods of time, essentially putting half their brain  to sleep while the other half of the brain stays awake at a low level of alertness. This attentive side is used to watch for predators, obstacles and other animals. It also signals when to rise to the surface for a fresh breath of air. Then the do the same but reverse. How cool is that!

Think about it. How many things do you do in a day, week or a month that is completed on "auto-pilot"? Now imagine if you could complete these route tasks while sleeping? How great would that be. No more wasting "awake" time on laundry, or cleaning, or commuting to work. We could do these things and catch a few zzzz's along the way. Sounds good to me.

But is this the wrong way of looking at this sea mammal snoozin'ability?

I ask the question again, how many things do you do in a day, week or a month that is completed on "auto-pilot"?  And by doing all these things, no matter how mundane - although there are several people I know who take their laundry VERY seriously - without awareness and consciousness, what are we missing? By not putting our best effort and attention into the laundry, do we miss the opportunity to query into why the knees in our son's pants are ripped and find out it is not because of playground antics, but because of school yard bullying? Would we miss the signs of stress because we don't notice the sudden piled of shredded paper in our daughter's waste basket? And would miss the chance to really appreciate what our city has to offer by nodding off during our commute?

So while I don't know about you, but getting more sleep is something my body and brain would definitely welcome, I think I would rather focus on being present, even for the little things. You just never know when something amazing is going to happen, like connecting with your son as you sort laundry together, or hearing about your daughter's dreams as you tidy up after dinner. The dolphins can have their cat-naps, because there is no way I am going to risk missing out on moments like those.

Health + Passion = Happiness

 Man is fond of counting his troubles, but he does not count his joys. If he counted them up as he ought to, he would see that every lot has enough happiness provided for it. ~ Dostoevsky 

Hugh MacLeod - www.gapingvoid.com



'Nuf said.

Words are powerful - choose them carefully.

 Speak when you are angry– and you will make the best speech you’ll ever regret.” - L. J. Peter, author of the Peter Principle (1919 – 1988)

We have all said things that a nanosecond later we wished we hadn't. But on the flip side, we have all had moments of brilliance where what emotes from our mouths could not have been any more eloquent or appropriate than had we had  Ted Sorensen or William Wordsworth helping us out. It just seems we have more of the former than that latter, and that nobody ever seems to remember the good ones.

My dad sent me a link to a video called The Power of Words that shows how selecting your words more carefully can have a dramatic effect on the end result. While the music in video is a bit melodramatic, and I am not sure how I would feel if someone changed my sign and then wouldn't tell me what it said, I think it gets its point across effectively.  Amnesty International also did a great job on visually protraying the powerful effect of words in their video The Power of Words. 

As a communicator (in my job, being a mom, coach, friend, ...) sometimes the words come easy; sometimes not so much. One thing I work on (when I remember to) is reflectling on what I am about to say before I actually let the words tumble forth from my lips, because I understand the lasting impact - positive and negative - impact words can have on someone without the speaker even knowing.

I'm back ... did you even notice I was gone?

   Your attitude is like a red sock in a load of whites." - Linda Roy

Our "to do" list can be broken down in to various categories:

1. Things we have to do, whether we want to or not.
These are often considered responsibilities, and have an effect on other people if the task is not completed. Things such as groceries; do the kids REALLY need 6 to 8 servings of fruit and veg a day, and do seven Fruit-to-Gos count? And laundry - is it really such a bad thing to turn underwear inside out and wear it a second day?

2. Things we should do, but don't necessarily want to, but do anyways.  
These tend to vary as greatly as individuals do. For some this would be exercise. One of of dearest and closest friends is a case in point for this one. She HATES running and most forms of strenuous exercise. That is not to say she is lazy, far from it. She just doesn't dig getting all sweaty. But she is out there almost every day either cycling, swimming or running in preparation for her next Tri. She is often my motivation at 5 am to haul my butt out of bed for a run - her, and that the bestest running partner in the world is waiting for me, in the dark, and whatever weather happens to be happening at 5:20 am that morning, at our designated corner. Thank goodness for friends like these.

3. Things we want to do, but never seem to find/make the time to actually do them (or at least not on a regular basis).
This is where shades of gray start to creep in. This is where we can talk a big talk and then beg off actually doing it "because we are too busy".  Attitude has a lot to do with what actually gets accomplished in this category. Things like travelling, learning to: speak another language, cook, scuba dive, wrestle alligators, insert dream here, ... Or could be something simpler; getting back into a sport or activity after a hiatus (short or long), reading a book that has been collecting dust since you bought it - 2 years ago. Or even basic things that shouldn't ever not happen, like reading to your kids, staying connected with friends (with things like email, FB and other social media outlets there really isn't an excuse any more), or in my case, keeping up with blog postings.

Whatever the category the "to do" falls into, how it gets done, and the enjoyment you get out of it all boils back down to the attitude you approach it with. I have to admit over the past few months I would not be winning any awards for positivity, but today is a new day, with a new blog post and renewed sense of "life is what you make it". So with smiles and joyous gratitude, thanks for reading and I hope you will visit often.

PS: Thanks Sue for the nudge I needed to get back to posting. :)