New Year's Resolutions

Every new year people make resolutions to change aspects of themselves

they believe are negative. A majority of people revert back to how

they were before and feel like failures. This year I challenge you

to a new resolution. I challenge you to just be yourself.

Aisha Elderwyn

This past weekend I did something I always do on the weekend before the New Year is ushered in. I dug out my old 'Resolution' book, not to write new ones....I stopped making resolutions several years ago....but as a reminder of the me I used to be. You see, every year it was the same thing. "I will stop smoking" was always at the top of the list, but I never did. In fact, I never made it past my morning coffee. It was the same thing with "I will lose weight", but I never lost a pound. On the contrary, each year I steadily gained a few pounds. There were other resolutions in my book as well, but aside from 'getting healthier' the above two were the most significant ones. Year after year the same failed resolutions. 

This is a time of retrospect for most of us. On the 1st of the year, we review the year that has passed, find what we need to give thanks for, and make our New Year's resolutions with great hope and anticipation for the upcoming year. It is an annual ritual in our society as we bid farewell to the old and ring in the new year. However, most of those resolutions are nothing more than words written on paper.
We are not going to quit smoking because we don't 'want' to quit smoking.  That weight is not going to come off because we are not ready to give up our eating habits.  And, this, as I have recently found out, catches up to us when we least expect it...which brings me to the point I am trying to make.

When it comes to a habit, we can have all the best intentions in the world, but if you are not fully committed, it just isn't going to happen. In other words, our resolutions often fail because they're based on what we THINK we should do and not what we really WANT to do. Furthermore, we often make too many of them, and psychologically speaking, the more numerous our resolutions, the more likely for us to feel justified in breaking any one of them because we tell ourselves, "It's okay. I have others to fall back on," and before we know it, we've  broken all of them.

So, we continue with our facade and good intentions year after year, but for some of us, it takes a real eye-opener to make us finally succeed, but our success has nothing to do with the fact that we wrote it in the book on the 1st of the year.  No, some of us need a real kick in the butt to finally 'get it'. In 2009 I once again made the same resolution I made for almost 40 years...to stop smoking, but it wasn't until July 4th that I finally did it, and not because I wanted to.  I stopped because I couldn't make it up the subway stairs. I couldn't catch my breath. Smoking had finally caught up with me, and if I am going to be totally honest here, if that hadn't happened, I probably would still be lighting up. It is the same with my health.  Years of not taking care of myself finally took their toll.

Hubby and I have nothing special planned tonight. Those days of hanging out partying til the wee hours of dawn are long gone for both  of us, and juving worked in a bar, a restaurant, and in catering on New Year's Eve, I have no desire to partake in the festivities.  A quiet evening at home is all that I long for.  Each year hubby goes to one of our favorite restaurants and we feast on this fantastic chicken roasted on the spit and yucca steamed in olive oil, vinegar and tons of lots onions.  Makes my mouth water just thinking about it. Yesterday I made a pernil, gondulas and rice, and salad...a typical Spanish meal.  And now, after that, it is time to get myself back on track. Not that I have done THAT bad over the holidays.  But, I have gone over my daily sodium limit...and calories...and next Monday I have to see the doctor.  If I don't get myself in gear, she is really going to hand me the riot act on a silver platter. Seriously, though, it is very easy for me to fall back on bad habits...and the fact is, these bad habits can kill me.  I want to live.

Do you make New Year's resolutions? Most adults do. How successful have you been in keeping your resolutions?

TGIF

How beautiful it is to do nothing, and then rest afterward.

Spanish Proverb

Ah, the weekend has arrived.  This was a short week for me, but, nonetheless, I am sure in need of some much needed rest.  All the preparation for the holiday is behind me, I don't have to cook, and I don't even have to head out to the store.  I've already gotten what I need from the fruit stand, and on off weeks, I usually cook my beans, but with holiday eating, the freezer is still stocked.  This will be the first weekend that I can remember that is totally devoted to rest.

Now, if only I could take advantage and sleep late, but I just can't seem to do that anymore.  My biorhythm just won't let me.  I can sleep no later than 7:30 where I used to be able to lounge about until 10 or later. A night person throughout my life, it was  hard for me to reset my rhythm to work a day job.  I finally did it, but what is happening now is that the old night person is struggling to make a comeback while the day person refuses to let go.  So, I find myself lying awake until the wee hours at night and up at the crack of dawn.  They do say that as we get older we need less sleep, but some days as I struggle to make it through the day, I have to wonder how true that really is.

So, this weekend I am going to take full advantage of my situation.  If need be, I will get up early and take a series of naps during the day, but, by golly, this weekend I am going to rest. 

Wishing you all a relaxing weekend.

Sometimes the most
important thing in a whole
day is the rest we take
between two deep breaths,
or the turning inwards in
prayer for five
short minutes.

Etty Hillesum

The Dream Catcher

Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect.The

Chief Seattle

The above arrived for me at work yesterday. It was such a wonderful and rather unexpected surprise.  The gift came from a co-worker who moved onto a better position during the summer.  It   was her way of thanking me for the help I gave her when she had been suffering from some rather disturbing dreams. Nightmares were seriously plaguing her to the point that she was looking drawn and sickly.  After working through the dreams, I advised her to get a Dream Catcher and told her the story of how they came to be. She not only remembered, but she also remembered my love of nature and the Moon and included them in her gift as well. It's lovely, isn't it?  And maybe it might be totally psychological, but I slept better last night than I have in a long time. Below is a closeup...

According to the legend, Native Americans believe that the night is filled with good and bad dreams. It is said that, when one hangs a 

Dream Catcher above the place where they sleep, it moves freely in the night air and catches the dreams as they drift by. The good dreams pass through the center hole to the sleeping person. while the bad dreams, not knowing the way, are caught and trapped in the Dream Catchers where they destroyed at the first light of the morning sun. 

There are many variations on the legend of the Dream Catcher, but the Ojibwa are credited as the first people to use Dream Catchers, so I will relate the following...

"Long ago in the ancient world of the Ojibwe Nation, the Clans were all located in one general area of that place known as Turtle Island. This is the way that the old Ojibwe storytellers say how Asibikaashi (Spider Woman) help Wanabozhoo bring the Sun back to people. To this day, Asibikaashi will build her special lodge before dawn. If you are awake at dawn, as you should be, look for her lodge and you will see this miracle of how she captured the sunrise as the light sparkles on the dew which is gathered there.

Asibikaashi took care of her children, the people of the land, and she continues to do so to this day. When the Ojibwe Nation dispersed to the four corners of North America, to fill a prophecy, Asibikaashi had a difficult time making her journey to all those cradle boards, so the mothers, sisters, and Nokomis (grandmothers) took up the practice of weaving the magical webs for the new babies using willow hoops and sinew or cordage made from plants. 

The shape of a circle represents how Giizis travels across the sky. The dream catcher filters out all the bad ba-we-dji-ge-win (dreams) and allow only good thoughts to enter into our minds when we are abinooji (asleep). A small hole in the center of the dream catcher is where those good bawadjige may come through. With the first rays of sunlight, the bad dreams would perish. 

When we see little Asibikaashi, we should not fear her but instead respect and protect her. In honor of there origin, the number of points where the web connected to the hoop numbered 8 for Spider Woman's eight legs or 7 for the Seven Prophecies." 

It is traditional to place a feather in the center of the dream catcher; it means breath, or air. It is essential for life. In the cradle board, a baby watched the air play with the feather and was happy being fascinated with the blowing feather. Dream catchers used by adults do not use feathers in the center. The feather of the owl, keeper of wisdom, was kept by the woman. The feather of the eagle, keeper of courage, was kept by the man. 

Hanging by the window,

the dream catcher waits,

to catch me a dream, that's hopefully great.

Quiet and still, it waits in the night,

to catch a dream, traveling in flight.

Its web is of leather, its feathers light,

the magic it works, carries great height.

Will it bring me a lover, a funny story or song?

or, will it bring nightmares

where everything goes wrong...

The time is now near, for me to lie down

and wait for a dream that's happy and sound.

Dream catcher, dream catcher,

caution you please,

my heart is now calm, my mind is at ease

Go in the night and find what you will,

catch me a dream

that's meaningful and still.

Unknown

The Day After

Time goes, you say? Ah no!

Alas, Time stays, we go.

-Henry Austin Dobson-

Well, here we are...the day 'after' already. Another Christmas has come and gone so swiftly that I was barely able to catch my breath.  It was such a wonderful Christmas. There was lots of good food, sharing of memories, and laughter. We all became a bit melancholy when discussing childhood Christmases and those who are forever gone from our lives. We watched "A Christmas Story", and as usual, it stirred up memories of how we celebrated the holiday when I was a little girl. I was a child in the 50's, and oh, how I could relate.  Christmas WAS Christmas back then, and it 'never' began until the day after Thanksgiving.

This year there were presents under the tree. Not that presents are what it's all about. Actually, last year when we were only 15 days into our move and money was very tight, we had a great Christmas because we spent it together....but there IS something about a wrapped present under the tree that makes it look like Christmas.

Miss Minga even made out like a champ...something she so well deserves.

She really couldn't wait to open her gifts.

Our feast consisted of a wide variety of cold cuts, cheeses, potato salad, the above pesto salad, chips, dip, pickles, olives, cookies, candy, and cake. I am really pretty proud of myself because I didn't fall back into the Pepsi trap again.

The night ended about 1 am with kisses and hugs and promises to call each other more often.  And so, life continues and I find myself back to work.  In some ways it seems that Christmas never happened, but I know that is not true.  I will always have my memories.

What is time? The shadow on the dial, the striking of the clock,

the running of the sand, day and night, summer and winter, months,

years, centuries--these are but arbitrary and outward signs,

the measure of Time, not Time itself. Time is the Life of the Soul.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Merry Christmas

May the joy and peace of Christmas be with you today and always.

　Wishing you all the blessings of a beautiful Christmas seasons!

Christmas Eve

Christmas reminds us we are not alone. We are not unrelated atoms, jouncing and ricocheting amid aliens, but are a part of something, which holds and sustains us.

As we struggle with shopping lists and invitations, compounded by December's bad weather, it is good to be reminded that there are people in our lives who are worth this aggravation, and people to whom we are worth the same. Christmas shows us the ties that bind us together, threads of love and caring, woven in the simplest and strongest way within the family.

Donald E. Westlake

It is early on morning of Christmas Eve morning as I sit by the Christmas tree sipping a steaming cup of coffee and thinking about the things I have to do today.  I'm off work today.  I always take off on Christmas Eve. This has become a tradition for me. Just taking a few moments of relaxation before the busyness of the season 'really' begins for me.  Soon I will be off to the store for candy, cold cuts, and other forgotten items. There is potato salad and pesto macaroni salad to put together, cheese to be cut and platters to be made. Later will I will prepare my famous Buffalo Wings  for myself and my sons and shrimp sauteed in butter and garlic for hubby. These have become two of our holiday traditions. There is also a cake to be baked, and, oh, I must remember to take the cookies out

Since my children have grown, Christmas has become just another day for me, but Christmas Eve is different. Christmas Eve is a very special family time, a joyful time. and a great time to remember all of our blessings. We eat cold cuts and salads on paper plates and pig out on chocolate candy, cookies, and there is, of course, our Yule Log at midnight and a box of chocolate covered cherries for hubby...which will probably be gone by tomorrow.  Nothing formal. The time we have to spend with each other is just too important for anything, including cooking, to interfere.  It is just us, the tree, a sharing of memories, and a sense love peace that envelops us all. 

Wishing you all a joy-filled Christmas Eve.

The most vivid memories of Christmases past are usually not

of gifts given or received, but of the spirit of love,

the special warmth of Christmas worship,

the cherished little habits of home.

Lois Rand

It's Friday...Yippee.

Many days we may not get up with love in our hearts for our

family, our friends, our co-workers. We may, in fact, want them

to show their love for us first. But if we reach out, give love

unconditionally, focus on another's needs, love will return

tenfold. And the act of loving them will lift our own spirits.

We will know love; we will feel love for ourselves and

the many persons close to us.

Unknown

Wow!!! Here we are entering the last weekend before Christmas. I can't believe it, can you? Time has flown by so fast. I've not much to do this weekend. In fact, it will be quite a long weekend for me, I am off until Wednesday, so I plan on stretching things out. It's a cooking weekend, but, with the holidays on the horizon and the freezer still pretty much full, I only have to cook two meals tomorrow. House is decorated. Presents are wrapped and under the tree. Hooray for me. A much needed break.

This is also the day we celebrate the Winter Solstice, the longest night of the year when the earth is farthest from the sun.  From now onward the days will begin to lengthen. The ancients called it Yule and held feasts and rituals to encourage the return of the light. Bonfires were lit in the fields and trees were wassailed with cider. For years we have been hearing that the 'Mayan Long Count' calendar ends on ‘this’ Winter Solstice, December 21, 2012. Heralding the end of an old era and the beginning of something new.  Many predict it will be the end of the world.  Others say that some people will move into the fourth dimension while those who are ready will ascend. 

I believe that this day symbolizes a new beginning, a transition into a new era.  It ushers in the return of the feminine, balancing the energies of the masculine and feminine within ourselves. No longer will we be subject to a patriarchal...or a matriarchal society for that matter either...for the new society will be a blending of the two. It won't happen overnight. It will take time. I see this as a time of personal transition into a new era, a personal renewal that will help us to achieve peace and love in the world and harmony in our lives. 

So, as we enter into this weekend, the first weekend as the old era ends and the darkness begins to turn to the light, gather with friends or take the time alone to center yourself in the space of what peace means to you. Then offer a prayer for peace for all being and creatures everywhere.

Let us be united;
Let us speak in harmony;
Let our minds apprehend alike.
Common be our prayer,
Common be the end of our assembly;
Common be our resolution;
Common be our deliberations.
Alike be our feelings;
Unified be our hearts;
Common be our intentions;
Perfect be our unity.
-- Rig Veda--