Go Off Road Today

Inspired by one brave cook who went off road with a pair of calf's feet.

   This weekend I was flipping through an old cookbook and came across a recipe that both amazed me but also turned my stomach a bit.  Beyond my reactions to this slightly odd recipe, I was in awe.  In awe of the person who creatively came up with such a recipe.  Some brave soul said, why not, let's try this.  It may be out of the box, unusual, weird, unconventional, etc but what the heck, let's give it a try anyway.
 
     The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.  Trying something new, no matter how unconventional takes your life off road.  Off road is where there is fresh energy.  We need to go off road.

  Today, do something out of the blue, raise eye brows and shift your day.  Our lives are meant to be explored not set on auto pilot.  Go play- shock your friends, wear white after Labor Day.

If you are wondering what wild recipe got me going, read on...here it is word for word:

      Calf's Foot Jelly

A set of calf's feet:  Boil them in four quarts of water until reduced to two.  They should be simmered, not boiled.  Set the jelly away after being strained until the next day.  When the grease must be taken off carefully, and the jelly boiled with the juice and rind of three lemons, one pint of wine, a little cinnamon, a pint of sugar, and the whites and shells of four eggs for twenty minutes.  Then pour it into the jelly strainer and allow to drip without disturbance.

 Nebraska Pioneer Cookbook by Kay Graber

I told you!  After I got over my shock about this recipe, I thought, this is actually kind of healthy- a little like bone broth jelly.  Hummm, I don't think I'll try to make it but if given the opportunity, I would try it.  

Wishing you many days of sanity, off road adventures and living outside the box,

       Denise 

Walking into conversation

Sometimes you need to go off road.  My hubby, Dallas and I have discovered when we go out of our kitchen and into the woods our communication lights up and starts flowing.  After being married 26 years and in business for 25 years we have naturally developed patterns, habits, a sort of relationship dance.  This summer we got a new dance-a woodsy two step.

 A few years ago I got to travel to Iona, Scotland.  The folks on this little island had a great tradition.  They held tough or important conversations at what they called the crossroads.  That is literally what it was- two little dirt roads crossing. The wise residents would go to the crossroads to settle disputes, differences or come up with creative ideas.  They left their personal homes, their comfy chairs and went outside.  Standing in nature, fresh air - sometimes very fresh - they would talk on this neutral stetting until they came to some solution.  I remember thinking this was a brilliant idea but never thought to use it in my own life.

Fast forward to this summer, Dallas and I started going to the Dash Point State park to walk/run the trails.  A funny thing happened along the way...our chats started flowing.  We found our conversations got deeper, lighter, easier and more productive all with less effort.  Movement gets you unstuck- just like de-cluttering does.  Movement of any kind creates flow.  Gone are the meetings at the kitchen table, we are now outside, walking talkers.  

How great is this?  So if you find yourself needing to conduct a business meeting, solve the world's problems or just open up a new flow of communication with someone- take it to the woods, or to the beach!  

Yesterday afternoon, Dallas and I were on such a walking/jogging/talking journey.  Here is a picture Dallas took on our walk!  Maybe it is the beauty that makes conversation so easy...

Wishing you beauty and joy in your daily conversations, 

                                   Denise

An unexpected gift

Have you ever had a day go slightly astray?  Your carefully planned schedule just won't behave. This shift is not always a bad thing.  It might even be called a gift.

When life is truly flowing, life's events seem to mysteriously fall into place.  I find the less stressed I am the better life flows.  My intuition is on point.  Serendipity shows up frequently.   Life's little moments of happy coincidences occur as if by request and I seem to be in the right place at the right time.

Today, I had such a gift.  My day got greatly altered from what my schedule book had planned.  I needed this reminder to remember to say thank you when life gives me an unexpected shift.

This week was full to the rim.  My business is flourishing.  But today both of my appointments got moved to another day.  I find myself with time to write, create, research, think and even watch the clouds go by if I want.  I sit here with a beautifully open and uncluttered schedule.  I have been handed a gift: a treasure of free time.  Breathing space!  ahhhh my breath deepens just thinking about it.

When I was little my mom started what she called quiet time.  We lived on a farm in Wiggins Colorado.  My mom was a stay at home mom/farmer with three little kids.  In order to maintain her sanity she instilled what she called: Quiet Time.

After lunch we were all required to be quiet for 1 hour.  We would go to different parts of our home.  There were only 3 rules:  we needed to be quiet; stay inside; be safe.  Naps we supported but not required.  During this time I learned the value of play time, alone time, creative time and free time.

To this day I still crave quiet time, it is as essential to me as running in the woods.  I may not get it every day but I still need this space for my sanity.  Today, I was gifted a whole day of quiet time.

If you are ever gifted with such a day, do not fret, clutter up your gift or give it away.  Savor this gift of freedom.  Maybe you didn't make as much money or check off as many to-do items off your list as you had hoped for.  That is just fine.  Take this gift and say thank you.  The energy you gain along with the creative enrichment will pay off in dividends later.

Enjoy every moment of quiet time. Let your spirit and soul become refreshed, rebooted and realigned with what you are really alive for.  A happy you is the best gift you can bring to this world

 I wish you great fun in your adventures of life,
            Denise

21 day practice to lighten up the world

The 21 Day Practice to being Happy.  
with the goal to Lighten up the World...
 or at least make it a wee bit nicer

26 years ago, when Dallas and I got married, we were given two bits of wisdom for a happy marriage.  One was from Dallas's mom, she told us to be nice to each other.  The second lesson was from a class I took, that we are all responsible for our own happiness.  These tips may not seem earth shaking but wait...

When we are happy we are creative, full of love and compassion.  How we live touches those around us like drops of water rippling out on a still pond.  How we live extends well beyond ourselves.  Feeling fulfilled, connected and joyful spills out into our families, our companies and our world.  Being joyful and loving is not selfish but a means bring lightness to our world.  We can not give what we do not have.  What we focus our attention on grows.

Lately we have felt the pain and desperation of too many life ending tragedies.  Pain begets pain.  Innocent people die and more waves of pain spread. 

Sometimes it may seem like we are powerless for this kind of pain and violence in the world.  This isn’t so.

I think of each one of us are like drops of water in a pond.  We ripple out.  We connect.  We influence each other.  Now is not the time to sit back and wait for someone else to come fix our world’s pain. Now is the time to personally take action.  It all begins with each and every one of us.  We are all responsible for the ripples we send out every day.  "We are responsible for our own happiness."  We are responsible for our own actions.

It is time to practice what we most desire.  Love begets love.  Peace begets peace.  Joy begets joy.  If we want more love then we should give more love.  If we want more kindness in the world, maybe we can start the motion by being kinder to those closest to us.  Kinder to ourselves.

Our circles if influence are directly connected to us.  The more light we bring, the brighter our ripples, the stronger they flow.

21 day Practice of being Happy

For 21 days, every night, just before you go to sleep, write down at least three highly specific ways you showed and felt Love/Joy today.  What did you absolutely love about the day?  How did you show and give love? How did you receive love?  What touched your heart today?  What made you smile and shine?   What made your eyes sparkle?  What made your breath expand and your mind relax?  Did you have a moment of spontaneous joy or see beauty? Write it down.

 A new habit can take anywhere from 18 days to 254 -when done with intent and consistency.  Do this challenge with a clear intent and consistency.  Start with a solid 21 day practice.  Lets change the world one drop of water, one day, one person, one act of Love/Joy at a time. 

Resources and credit...

This 21 day practice- was created off a little article in the June issue of Natural Awakenings.  In an article on simple daily practices for a happier life by Judith Fertiq talks about Shawn Achor- and his book the happiness advantage. She quotes Shawn: "When the human brain is positive, our intelligence rises and we stop diverting resources to think about anxiety."  "Creativity triples and productive energy rises by 31 percent".   Shawn Achor suggests this 21 day happiness activity of writing down three highly specific, positive things about their workday.

The habit information about how long it takes to create a habit comes from Tom Corley's book: Change your habits, change your life. - great book!!

This work isn't my creation, I'm merely the messenger...
Happy travels into a lighter and brighter world...
                                    Denise

Travel Kindly Today

Good morning,
 
   Yesterday, I went for a walk with friends, There were sweet peas blooming along our path.  A few years ago I walked with one of my girlfriends 60 miles and countless training walks.  Along the way we became sisters.  On one of those walks there were zillions of sweet peas blooming.  We walked, took pictures of sweet peas and chatted about life.
   Now whenever  I see sweet peas I think of my friend and our magical journeys together.   There wasn't a lot of clutter in these walks.  Simple   Clear   Unhurried.
   Life is a journey not a destination- when we travel lightly we give our lives time to breathe.  We give our spirits time to play.  We give our curiosity time to explore, we take pictures of sweet peas, walk with girlfriends and just be.

"The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak."
                                                                   Hans Hofmann

In this case the necessary are sweet peas in spring noticed while walking with friends.
                              Travel kindly today,
                                           Denise

Living Small Doesn't Serve the World

Do you ever doubt yourself? Are you ever afraid?  I wish I could say: no, not me I'm always super confident and amazing.  The truth is there are moments I doubt, I shrink, I fret.  Sometimes, I think who am I to write, coach, create workshops, give presentations, even garden or create recipes?  But then there are other times, more and more, that I smile and know.  I like those times better.  Don't you?

Today, a friend of mine and I were visiting about this very topic.  She sent me a poem by Marianne Williamson.  If you are having a moment of doubt read this and see if your inner knowing doesn't perk up a bit.

As always, I wish you oodles of confident and splashes of brilliance,
      Denise

"Our Deepest Fear"

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.

Your playing small doesn't serve the world.

There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us.  It's not just in some of us;

It's in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fears, our presence automatically liberates others."

Marianne Williamson

Senseless Acts of Beauty

Yesterday, I was working with a client and dear friend.  Clutter clearing tends to do that...create friends.  Anyway, during our downsizing travels we came upon an old bumper sticker.  I have heard the phrase of practicing random acts of kindness lots of time which is great message.   But on this particular bumper sticker was the addition of ..
and Senseless Acts of Beauty.

There is something in those simple lines that has struck a cord with me.  Senseless Acts of Beauty.. I'm not even sure what it means but I do know it is magnificent to the soul.

   What is a Senseless Act of Beauty and how often do you Practice Senseless Acts of Beauty?

Today is Saturday.  I'm working and I will also be discovering and practicing this idea and the uncharted territory of Senseless Acts of Beauty.

This is why we let go and clean out our homes...to discover what lights up our souls...
     
As Always, I wish you a happy home and today may I add Senseless Acts of Beauty,
            Denise

The Secret to Happiness....

Over the past 958 days I have been on a personal 1000 day practice.  A practice that is really a journey of learning to live from my heart.  I'm on the final stretch of this 1000 day journey.  

Would you like to know what I discovered today?

 It isn't the length of the journey that matters most.  It is staying connected to the moments in that journey that count.  As day 1 turned to day 32... 445, ... 768 and then to today - day 958, the specific numbers mean less and less.

Staying fresh in the practice becomes the greatest challenge.  Just is it is with life.  How do you stay fresh on day 18,250 of your life?  Now that is a good question.

Life is a series of moments and events.  Refreshing, rebooting, re-creating, resetting your life again and again become our practice in staying fresh and alive.

If we don't connect to this precious day, we end up getting caught up in a merry go round of days.  Life becomes like the movie Ground Hog Day.  And just like the movie, until we get "it", we will keep living the say old day over and over again.

Today, I cleaned off my desk, cleaned out my pens, posted notes and stamp drawer and then emptied and cleaned my bookcase.  I'm washing my office curtains as I type.  This morning, instead of doing my morning "normal" quiet/yoga/meditation time, I slept in and then jumped right into the day.  I didn't not start in a panic, I was not late, I was different.

Life is your habits.  Your habits can uplift you and they can deplete you.  Even seemingly healthy and positive habits can be come stale.  Maybe the secret to happiness is being connected, awake to the moment, trying new patterns, taking new paths and revisiting old paths.  And every once in a while to remember to hit the refresh button.

As always I wish you great joy on your path,

        Denise

The Wild Guide to Spring Cleaning

Spring clean like you are packing to hike the Pacific Crest Trail

Have you read the book Wild by Cheryl Strayed?  If not I highly recommend you do.  This book is an excellent guide for understanding what is essential to pack on your travels.   Cheryl needs a change in her life and decides to walk the Pacific Crest Trail- alone.  Along the way she discovers what's truly important and what isn't.

Cleaning out and letting go is tough but maybe a shift in perspective is just what you need this spring.  Wild is fun read and a good metaphor for de-cluttering.  As you read, substitute your home for her back pack.  What is essential and what is dead weight?

Before hiking we need to pack.  You don't take everything you own.  There is critical selection process.  You ask questions.  What do I truly need?  What do I truly love?  What do I feel obligated to take? Ask Ask Ask

 I loved the beginning of the book.  Cheryl has filled her huge back pack with life's "essentials".  She can barely even lift her pack and yet plans on walking the Pacific Crest Trail trail. It is a humble beginning.  But as she travels she lets go, gets stronger, lighter, braver and much wiser!

 How far do you want to travel this year?  How light to you want to live?

Spring is the season to get our packs/homes ready for our travels.

Spring Packing tips.....
    *  Pack light- a light and well packed backpack is essential for a successful trip
    *  Start by taking everything out of our pack
    *  Clean your pack- get rid of all the dust bunnies, gum wrappers and broken sticks
    *  Organize your essentials- you need to be able to find your matches in the dark
    *  Ask a zillion questions- be ruthless as you assemble your essentials
     * Take with you only the things your truly need and love.  Be clear and focused.
    *  Finish the process.  Put your pack back/home back together again.
               Complete what you start.

 Your journey will be so much easier when it is light and well packed.
            Begin walking.

As always I wish you happiness in your travels, your cleaning and clutter clearing.
          Denise

We Make Our Own Happiness

Dairy farming is hard work.  It is a 365 day a year job.  Twice a day you milk cows.  In between milking you fix fence, plant crops, feed cows...etc.  Both of my grandpa's were dairy farmers:   Grandpa Alton and Grandpa Biddie.
 
This week I got to thinking, both of my grandpa's made music as they worked.  Grandpa Alton whistled, Grandpa Biddie hummed.  Even though the work was long and hard, I never had the feeling they resented the work.  They seemed to enjoy the day.  They hummed and whistled along.

My grandpa's were good teachers.

When you start your spring cleaning or clutter clearing or anything you may hesitate on, try humming or whistling while you work.

Don't take my word for it, watch the science of happy.  It's a good watch.

To watch Dan Gilbert's TED Talk- The surprising science of happiness Click Here

As always I wish you great happiness and health in your daily life,
           Denise