Role Models
Today I am grateful for a nap yesterday, even if it was a short one. I am also grateful for our house and the new arrangements and colors in certain rooms that bring a freshness to everything.
Yesterday I wrote about joy and pain, laughter and tears. Tuning into the news can be more painful than joyful most of the time. That is why I don't delve too deeply past the headlines on most days. With tragedies like the mudslide in Washington and the terrible mystery of Flight 370, it's tough to wrap my head around such news. My thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families.
Life is precious. Treat it as such. Just for today.
Let me turn my focus now to more news of the good kind: my weekend with my friends and one of the lingering inspirations I am feeling from our time together. It all started with a t-shirt and this picture:
Brenda, on the left, is wearing a shirt that says "Drinks well with others." Rita's shirt is easier to read.We had a few laughs about this combination. Let me first say I appreciate the understanding my friends have regarding my choice to avoid alcohol. Rita was considerate enough to bring along a bottle of sparkling juice so we could share in a toast Friday night after we all arrived. (Thanks Rita!) I can be around social drinking, but it isn't something I do real often. This weekend I was at ease and accepted. (And armed with chocolate!)
What has stuck with me is the idea of role models. People who make an effort to contribute positively to the world around them are my role models. That makes the other eight members of "The Lake City Nine" my role models. We each brought our humanness and our individual gifts together this weekend. None of us is famous, perfect, or rich. None of us has been left unscathed by life, but none of us has been left bitter and hardened either. We are just genuinely good people trying to do our best as wives, mothers, sisters, caretakers, co-workers, friends. Some days are better than others, but onward we trudge. With nearly five decades of life experience, there has been much wisdom gained.
We accept ourselves and our circumstances better than we did when we graduated from high school over 30 years ago.
I am blessed to have so many role models in my life, these women and many more people, who help me find my way by showing their way. Thank you!
Yesterday I wrote about joy and pain, laughter and tears. Tuning into the news can be more painful than joyful most of the time. That is why I don't delve too deeply past the headlines on most days. With tragedies like the mudslide in Washington and the terrible mystery of Flight 370, it's tough to wrap my head around such news. My thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families.
Life is precious. Treat it as such. Just for today.
Let me turn my focus now to more news of the good kind: my weekend with my friends and one of the lingering inspirations I am feeling from our time together. It all started with a t-shirt and this picture:
Brenda, on the left, is wearing a shirt that says "Drinks well with others." Rita's shirt is easier to read.We had a few laughs about this combination. Let me first say I appreciate the understanding my friends have regarding my choice to avoid alcohol. Rita was considerate enough to bring along a bottle of sparkling juice so we could share in a toast Friday night after we all arrived. (Thanks Rita!) I can be around social drinking, but it isn't something I do real often. This weekend I was at ease and accepted. (And armed with chocolate!)
What has stuck with me is the idea of role models. People who make an effort to contribute positively to the world around them are my role models. That makes the other eight members of "The Lake City Nine" my role models. We each brought our humanness and our individual gifts together this weekend. None of us is famous, perfect, or rich. None of us has been left unscathed by life, but none of us has been left bitter and hardened either. We are just genuinely good people trying to do our best as wives, mothers, sisters, caretakers, co-workers, friends. Some days are better than others, but onward we trudge. With nearly five decades of life experience, there has been much wisdom gained.
We accept ourselves and our circumstances better than we did when we graduated from high school over 30 years ago.
I am blessed to have so many role models in my life, these women and many more people, who help me find my way by showing their way. Thank you!
Lisa - I love reading these!
ReplyDeleteThen it's a win-win. I love writing them. Thanks FG :-)
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