Being Me...

   Being me.  Isn't that what we all want?  Just to be the most perfect expression of the person we were divinely created to be.  Somehow we keep getting caught in "trying to..." the attempt to be whatever we perceive society wants us to be.  Today, life showed me the way that I am caught up in this crazy mission to be the perfect person.

 From the Center's Website

    A group of friends and I went to the Center for Respite Care to help a friend stuff an invitation mailing for a large social event.  The Center is in a beautiful old mansion in Avondale.  Here we are, five white women from the suburbs, you can just imagine.  There was some nervousness about being in the area and sadness over the gentle decline of a once great house (the entire hallway was paneled in quarter sawn oak!)
    Last Friday, when I was asked to help, my friend who works there told me that 'this place changes everyone who comes in the door.'  I listened politely (and again when she said it today), but completely dismissed it from my mind.  How could that possibly apply to me?
    During our visit, we learned about the Center's mission (click on the link above to learn more, they do great work!). We toured the facility, then got down to work. Stuffing envelopes is very necessary, but very tedious. There were all kinds of interesting discussions from why Medicare does not fund the Center to local produce to mission trips.  It was a good way to do a very boring task.  As the afternoon wound down, I went to the restroom.

The Grand hall, from the Center's website (check out the banisters!)

     It was like the rest of the mansion, a hard working room with whispers of a beautiful past.  All of the wiring is in metal conduits on the surface of the wall.  The shower was full of bagged laundry.  Everything was well used, but well maintained.  The minute I opened the door, I felt at home. I love something used and loved far better than something brand new. Though I love beauty, when I create a quilt, I expect people to sit on it, let the baby use it, and wrap themselves tightly enough to pop the stitches. Being useful is so important to me.

Me, (oh, my!)

    This was such a revelation.  From pre-K through high school, I attended one of the most expensive schools in the city as a teachers kid.  This means that we did not have to pay nearly as much tuition as the other families.  Somewhere deep in my heart, a place I never look, I wanted to be one of my classmates. Those girls who could go shopping whenever they wanted and carry the very expensive purses that it seemed like everyone had.
    As an adult, I have never become that person (the shopping girl), but it turns out deep in my soul there is a 13 year old who wants to look just like all of the other kids.  I have always had friends in the country club communities.  They are living the life that 13 year old wants, but they've always liked me just the way I am.  From the intense student, to the loud laugh, to the interest in alternative healing, they never asked me to change.  It is time I loved that young girl enough so she doesn't need a purse to make her feel acceptable.
     The next miracle in a long line from the Center for Respite Care.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Very Genki Indeed or How to Live Your Values

        Very often I get caught up in the drudgery of doing, rather than the joy of being.  I have all these things to accomplish sometimes I forget that there is more than one way to do things.  A few years ago I heard a lecture by Dr John Demartini.  He gave a 10 question values determination that changed my life.  These are not the overarching principles of your life, more the values that set your course each day.

         I have always loved to teach, but used to be a bit more like the strict nun we all loved to hate rather than the fun teacher.  The first time I completed the values determination, having fun was my fourth most important value.  Now my classes are more light-hearted, full of laughter and movement.  This cartoon http://reikimarketing.com/ captures the flavor.  I love the look on the middle woman's face.   Five years ago, that was me....

        Another interesting thing I learned was that any human interaction fills my social needs.  It is great because I can derive great pleasure from just talking to the check out clerk and bagger at the grocery store (you know who you are...).  It is not so great because I tend to neglect my family and friends.  When I figured this out, I could make a few remedies, be more conscious in my interactions.  My calendar is now full of scheduled time with friends and family, because we all know I am the least likely person to pick up the phone just to say hi.  Now I need to figure out how to translate this to social media (sorry Facebook friends...)
       My Japanese tutoring students have tried for years to explain the word, genki.   The English translations range from healthy to energetic to lively.  The best description I ever heard was the feeling a dog expresses as he sticks his head out the window with ears streaming back in the wind.  May living your values make you very genki.