Think happy thoughts. That is the advice many people give and receive in times of trouble. When one needs to change the situation one is in, it's think happy thoughts. When one is sick and needs all the help one can get from all aspect, it's think happy thoughts.
Because believe it or not, our frame of mind, our attitude can spell the difference between win or defeat, so to speak.
And why am I talking about happy thoughts right now? It's because I have been constantly reminding myself to think happy thoughts lately. There are so many ugly things that are happening around me. While I tend to hold on to my faith, sometimes I cannot help but let that sneaky little worry and his bestfriend fear enter my heart and mind.
I am finding it hard to think happy thoughts at times, especially when one is feeling some pain. And the news that come from every which way is that another one needs prayer of healing. It's ugly. I'm getting afraid.
Showing posts with label experience. Show all posts
Showing posts with label experience. Show all posts
Friday, September 14, 2012
Monday, April 19, 2010
Happy, Sad and Panicky, Happy Again
I really wanted to write about my rollercoaster of a weekend because as you can see from the title, it was an eventful one. Let me get the ball rolling first by saying how glorious our weather was on both days. Clear blue skies and warming up to 82 on Sunday. Perfect spring weather, doncha think?
That's the first happy. The weather made me happy. It enabled us to plant two eggplants, a zucchini, and chili peppers in the same plot where we have six tomato plants and herbs growing. By the 4 pm marker, my husband was hurrying me out the door as he learned there's a jazz concert at the park - 9 blocks away from where we live. We took the cameras and went out the door.
By 8 pm, we have arrived home from the jazz concert (which actually was not one, but some guy playing jazz records in the park while a trio of gals do some yoga and a handful of people were watching on grass) and an impromptu grocery trip to Berkeley. There are two mom-and-pop grocery stores in Berkeley that we love and drive all the way there to shop sometimes.
I went straight to fixing dinner, hubby was doing the same. I think he realized that Emma our cat didn't go down to meet us. She has the habit of coming at the top of the stairs each time the front door opens. She's curious to see who has come home :D But at that time, she didn't peek. I was hungry and busy putting groceries away.
Hubs went to see what Emma was up to. He couldn't find her. His voice had that panicked edge to it that registered a red flag with me. I left what I was doing (I burned the paratha in the process) and helped him find Emma. Nothing. We looked high and low - twice, thrice, maybe four times. We opened every cabinet up and down. Opened toilet bowls. I was afraid she'd fall and not be able to get out and drown. Plus we keep the lids down because Emma likes to drink from it even though she has fresh water for her.
SAD and PANICKY we were. My mom helped in looking. We looked every where. My brother looked at his room - he was not in when we went out. We called the sheriff department, the animal control, the animal shelter to report her missing. We were confident that she would be found as she has a collar with our phone number on it. We drove around the three blocks of our neighborhood trying to see if she was anywhere. We looked over and over at the front and back yard, meowing and meowing and calling her name. I wonder if our neighbors heard us.
At about 11 pm, after our daily devotion, my brother was knocking on our door. He has Emma on his arms. Apparently Emma was hiding in his room, being very silent while the entire house rocked with our shouts of Emma. Then we were happy again that Emma was found. She put us thru one hell of a night, I'd say. The day ended with her taking her rightful place in our bed next to me and she slept peacefully.
MORE HAPPY
On Sunday before heading out the door to enjoy the glorious sunny weather - the first in a long time - I checked FB. Yah, it's a must to see what's my friends are up to. NOT!!!! And there I saw, my brother posted photos of cute little puppies. He got a pet, a puppy no less. A cute little mixed breed - too many breeds mixed that I can't remember them all. My dog-loving husband didn't wait to see the dog. We went straight to my brother's house to visit with the dog. What a cutie. I 'm so happy to see my brother and SIL very happy with the arrival of this cutie in their house and even their sons seem to be enjoying the new member of our family.
That's the first happy. The weather made me happy. It enabled us to plant two eggplants, a zucchini, and chili peppers in the same plot where we have six tomato plants and herbs growing. By the 4 pm marker, my husband was hurrying me out the door as he learned there's a jazz concert at the park - 9 blocks away from where we live. We took the cameras and went out the door.
By 8 pm, we have arrived home from the jazz concert (which actually was not one, but some guy playing jazz records in the park while a trio of gals do some yoga and a handful of people were watching on grass) and an impromptu grocery trip to Berkeley. There are two mom-and-pop grocery stores in Berkeley that we love and drive all the way there to shop sometimes.
I went straight to fixing dinner, hubby was doing the same. I think he realized that Emma our cat didn't go down to meet us. She has the habit of coming at the top of the stairs each time the front door opens. She's curious to see who has come home :D But at that time, she didn't peek. I was hungry and busy putting groceries away.
Hubs went to see what Emma was up to. He couldn't find her. His voice had that panicked edge to it that registered a red flag with me. I left what I was doing (I burned the paratha in the process) and helped him find Emma. Nothing. We looked high and low - twice, thrice, maybe four times. We opened every cabinet up and down. Opened toilet bowls. I was afraid she'd fall and not be able to get out and drown. Plus we keep the lids down because Emma likes to drink from it even though she has fresh water for her.
SAD and PANICKY we were. My mom helped in looking. We looked every where. My brother looked at his room - he was not in when we went out. We called the sheriff department, the animal control, the animal shelter to report her missing. We were confident that she would be found as she has a collar with our phone number on it. We drove around the three blocks of our neighborhood trying to see if she was anywhere. We looked over and over at the front and back yard, meowing and meowing and calling her name. I wonder if our neighbors heard us.
At about 11 pm, after our daily devotion, my brother was knocking on our door. He has Emma on his arms. Apparently Emma was hiding in his room, being very silent while the entire house rocked with our shouts of Emma. Then we were happy again that Emma was found. She put us thru one hell of a night, I'd say. The day ended with her taking her rightful place in our bed next to me and she slept peacefully.
MORE HAPPY
On Sunday before heading out the door to enjoy the glorious sunny weather - the first in a long time - I checked FB. Yah, it's a must to see what's my friends are up to. NOT!!!! And there I saw, my brother posted photos of cute little puppies. He got a pet, a puppy no less. A cute little mixed breed - too many breeds mixed that I can't remember them all. My dog-loving husband didn't wait to see the dog. We went straight to my brother's house to visit with the dog. What a cutie. I 'm so happy to see my brother and SIL very happy with the arrival of this cutie in their house and even their sons seem to be enjoying the new member of our family.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Ahhh, Decision....Decision....
The Road Less Traveled
By Kit McCallum
How often we must bear the challenges of life;
The endless roller coaster between happiness and sorrow;
The constant ups and downs of daily strife.
And always the question remains .... why?
Life is not an easy road for most;
It twists and turns with many forks in the road,
Although always, and inevitably, we are given a choice ...
Do we turn to the right ... or the left?
Do we take the high road ... or the low road?
Do we take the easy path ... or the difficult one?
Decisions are not easy for those struggling for direction ...
And sometimes the many choices and signs become overwhelming.
While standing at a crossroads in life,
The urge is to take the most comfortable path;
The road with least resistance ...
The shortest or most traveled route.
And yet, if we've been down that comfortable road before;
Have gleaned its lessons in life, and learned from our experiences;
Do we yet again follow the known?
Or does our destiny lie in another direction?
The fear of the road less traveled is tangible and all too real;
It manifests itself in many ways,
And tends to cloud the issues that might otherwise be clear.
It is in these times of confusion,
That we must seek peace and solitude;
Time to contemplate on our life,
Our experiences and our choices past;
Time to look back, and reflect on what we have learned
Without fear or confusion.
For only each of us knows our own personal thoughts;
Our unique past and personal history;
The experiences that brought us to the crossroads we now face.
We can always learn a small degree from others experiences,
And yet ... no one person can walk in our shoes,
Others know not, the trials and tribulations faced in private ...
For each is individual ... unique ... and personal.
And that is why ... while standing at a crossroads,
Only "we" can formulate the decision for ourselves;
The true direction that lies within;
The choices we must deliberate on with clarity and wisdom.
For it is only through personal reflection,
That we can now choose our destiny;
... Our next adventure;
... And the future we will embrace.
By Kit McCallum
How often we must bear the challenges of life;
The endless roller coaster between happiness and sorrow;
The constant ups and downs of daily strife.
And always the question remains .... why?
Life is not an easy road for most;
It twists and turns with many forks in the road,
Although always, and inevitably, we are given a choice ...
Do we turn to the right ... or the left?
Do we take the high road ... or the low road?
Do we take the easy path ... or the difficult one?
Decisions are not easy for those struggling for direction ...
And sometimes the many choices and signs become overwhelming.
While standing at a crossroads in life,
The urge is to take the most comfortable path;
The road with least resistance ...
The shortest or most traveled route.
And yet, if we've been down that comfortable road before;
Have gleaned its lessons in life, and learned from our experiences;
Do we yet again follow the known?
Or does our destiny lie in another direction?
The fear of the road less traveled is tangible and all too real;
It manifests itself in many ways,
And tends to cloud the issues that might otherwise be clear.
It is in these times of confusion,
That we must seek peace and solitude;
Time to contemplate on our life,
Our experiences and our choices past;
Time to look back, and reflect on what we have learned
Without fear or confusion.
For only each of us knows our own personal thoughts;
Our unique past and personal history;
The experiences that brought us to the crossroads we now face.
We can always learn a small degree from others experiences,
And yet ... no one person can walk in our shoes,
Others know not, the trials and tribulations faced in private ...
For each is individual ... unique ... and personal.
And that is why ... while standing at a crossroads,
Only "we" can formulate the decision for ourselves;
The true direction that lies within;
The choices we must deliberate on with clarity and wisdom.
For it is only through personal reflection,
That we can now choose our destiny;
... Our next adventure;
... And the future we will embrace.
Friday, January 15, 2010
My Starbucks Experience
My experience here in the United States taught me that people tend to make small talk, polite conversations, usually about mundane topics such as the weather, when in a public place, while waiting for something, the bus, or your coffee. And I liked that. I thought that was really friendly. I don't usually instigate the casual conversation but that day I did.
We were driving back from a pleasant afternoon in Napa when we spotted a Starbucks store. Needing a caffeine boost, we stopped. This one did not have a drive through window. So we went inside. The store was as expected at about 5 pm empty except for two or three people ahead of me in the line. When it was my turn to give my order, I thought it would be nice to chit-chat with the barista. My husband at this time was using the facilities. So I asked this lanky pimply-faced young lad who looked like he's not old enough to drink coffee what they put in my Americano. Cafe Americano is my signature drink when we go to Starbucks. Not only is it priced modestly, I also enjoy its taste, which is very important. I don't go frap or something, I get shocked thinking about the calories in each of those ventis. Anyway, he must have not expected me to say something else outside of my Americano venti order so he asked if I could repeat what I just said. I did. I asked him what do you put in your Americano? The lad found his composure and confidently answered: "Hot water and coffee beans."
My husband caught the last part of this conversation and could not help but give out an audible chuckle at the response. He chastised me; he said I got what I asked for. He said I asked a stupid question so I got a stupider response. Did you think my question was stupid? Maybe I did not phrase it correctly. I wanted to know what combination of coffee beans they use for their Americano, so I could copy that when I brew my own at home.
Enough for chit-chatting with baristas. I learned to just smile and comment on how glorious our weather has been. It's a much safer topic for everyone.
We were driving back from a pleasant afternoon in Napa when we spotted a Starbucks store. Needing a caffeine boost, we stopped. This one did not have a drive through window. So we went inside. The store was as expected at about 5 pm empty except for two or three people ahead of me in the line. When it was my turn to give my order, I thought it would be nice to chit-chat with the barista. My husband at this time was using the facilities. So I asked this lanky pimply-faced young lad who looked like he's not old enough to drink coffee what they put in my Americano. Cafe Americano is my signature drink when we go to Starbucks. Not only is it priced modestly, I also enjoy its taste, which is very important. I don't go frap or something, I get shocked thinking about the calories in each of those ventis. Anyway, he must have not expected me to say something else outside of my Americano venti order so he asked if I could repeat what I just said. I did. I asked him what do you put in your Americano? The lad found his composure and confidently answered: "Hot water and coffee beans."
My husband caught the last part of this conversation and could not help but give out an audible chuckle at the response. He chastised me; he said I got what I asked for. He said I asked a stupid question so I got a stupider response. Did you think my question was stupid? Maybe I did not phrase it correctly. I wanted to know what combination of coffee beans they use for their Americano, so I could copy that when I brew my own at home.
Enough for chit-chatting with baristas. I learned to just smile and comment on how glorious our weather has been. It's a much safer topic for everyone.
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