Wise Words

If you are like me you are often inspired by words. I have just read somewhere the following "Confidence comes from not always being right but from not being scared to be wrong". I read these words and went 'yes!'. I have often wondered what it is that 'makes' self-esteem as I have seen young people who have been brought up with positive messages and as young adults seem to have grave doubts about their abilities, whilst I have seen others who have not necessarily had such positive feed back but they seem to have all the confidence and assurance they could want. I also read somewhere that self-esteem cannot be given to someone but must be earnt by the individual. That also makes sense to me.
Raising children is such a hard thing to do but in hindsight it needs to be done with confidence that is accumulated by the above mentioned method.
The same sentiment relates to writing a blog on the Internet. I have been reluctant to put this blog 'out there' too much as I was aware that I need to be ready for the negatives and not just the positives. I am always very interested to hear differing points of view provided that they are not accompanied by vitriol. I love to have debates and discussions about all sorts of subjects but I am not interested in anger or hate or any of those sorts of attitudes. I think life is too short to be lived like that. On the other hand I also think that anger is a very valid emotion. I have read so many things that say that we should not be angry and my immediate reaction to that is, then why do we have that emotion? It is within us for a reason I have no doubt and just as we should control our other emotions, so we should with our anger. There is a lot that can be written about these thoughts but I will leave it at that for now. Have a great day and remember it is just fine to be 'wrong'. It is part of being human.



A place for peace.



Being Aware and Grateful

It was a beautiful day today and I took myself down to the beach. It was lovely and my best mate loved it. He gets great pleasure out of chasing the waves and the seagulls and just running with the wind in his hair, on the beach.


Is that a seagull over there?

I don't get to the beach very often and I wonder why I don't make more effort when I do get there. I strolled along the beach keeping an eye on the little guy, like a child, in case he went in too far and got caught in the undertow. To listen to the rhythmic sound of the waves is very calming. As I walked I wondered how many generations after me will see what I see. I am probably, on the surface, seeing much the same as previous generations of white people. There is probably a lot missing under the waves but that is another story for another day.

As I drove down there I became very conscious that we, the people alive today, may be the only ones who have the opportunity to see so much of this world. We have had the privilege of not only the finite resources of oil to fuel our cars and planes, but the knowledge of how to use these machines. I personally have done almost no overseas travel but I know lots of people who have done huge amounts and some still do!
It has been a very resourceful century and a half or so hasn't it? The result of all this may end up being that the glorious coastline that I looked at today may be gone in the future.
All of these thoughts really just made me so aware and so very grateful that I can see this beautiful environment. I believe that we must all go through our days much more aware than perhaps we have in the past. If the majority of scientists  are wrong and the climate change is not man made, it doesn't matter what the cause if the beach is many metres inland.
There are many houses on the coast and many people will be affected.
The real gain though is that we will benefit in our hearts and minds if we live our lives consciously and with gratitude. We will feel better and we will be happier. Everything around us has a message if we bother to look for it. My message for today was that the sea will keep on rolling in, the same or further, no matter what is happening in my life so I might as well just roll along with it and don't sweat the small stuff but be grateful for the small blessings in your day.


A beautiful view.

Close your eyes and imagine the sound of the waves rolling in. Clear your mind and give yourself ten minutes of 'me' time to meditate and feel right with the world.   Better still take the time this weekend to drive down to the coast if you can and listen to it for real. It is still 'me' time and good for all the family to do. Please be mindful though and really stop and appreciate what it is that you are seeing, smelling, hearing and feeling. Enjoy!

Using Time Well.

I have a week off work and it has been amazing how much I value this time. I have been busy trying to find the balance between not wasting my precious week and not trying to do so much that I go back to work for a rest. So I did all the boring things yesterday like washing and ironing so that I don't have to think about work until next Sunday. I had a visit from a friend and we sat under the walnut tree and drank a cuppa and chatted. I think that was the start of my holiday! To take the time to appreciate a good friend or perhaps having the free time to do so. Then I decided that I wasn't going to stress about the lawns, plus I am old enough to remember that you weren't allowed to make noise on a Sunday as that was everyone's day of rest! Wonder what happened to that concept? So as I had a few hours before dark, thanks to daylight saving, I headed off to the bush. There I visited my friend and her various animals. The geese and the chooks, her little dog and the peace and quiet of the bush. My day was made perfect by the privilege of seeing a baby echidna.



Very cute and so innocent.

 As I drove home I got to thinking how we seem to be constantly striving for balance in our lives. What happened that we are all rushing around and half the women in the world are feeling guilty about whether they should be working and leaving children in care and they have very little time to actually enjoy themselves. The men likewise are working and expected to work longer and longer hours. They too are constantly striving for some time to themselves when they are not doing something that they 'have' to do. Even the children are being rushed off to sport or some other activity. Whatever happened to daydreaming and just spending time 'mucking about'? 
I think we all need to work on that 'simple life' that is so beautiful and fulfilling and try hard to find the work/life balance within that lifestyle. 
 I know, so much easier said than done, but if I say it often enough and with conviction then maybe we will all get it and the world will be a nicer place for that.
I suspect that if advertising was totally banned in the world we would very quickly become not only more balanced but more sustainable and very likely more humane to not only people but all the other inhabitants of this earth eg animals, birds, insects, trees, rocks, air and everything in between. Think about that. I would be interested to hear if others get what I mean by that statement.
Have a great day and try to find the time to truly see and hear and feel everything in your day.


Mr Gander who didn't bite me!



Crab Apple blossom.