Uphill idealist

Image from Epicurious . I wake up to see the time on the alarm clock and sigh happily as today I don't have to rush to get my feet on the floor, so I roll over for another hour or two of dozing. Easy does it bundling up. Two layers of track pants, two layers of gloves, a scarf and a wind breaking parka should keep the cold away on this bitter cold but sunny morning. Running down the street, crunching snow under my feet, leaving cloud puffs of my warm exhale behind me. Wandering through the too-quiet grocery store still filled with staff stocking shelves and filling produce bins. Chatting with folks I know as I wait in line while thinking what will be on the menu for today. Cleaning out the fridge to fill it with all the goodies I can't wait to eat. Coffee brews. Bacon sizzles. The home fries are getting crispy and brown. Eggs create a tasty variety of dishes as I take the requests of my household. We all sit together and listen to NPR playing "This American Life" as...

Image from D and G Autocare LTD. 3# Picking up my car from the mechanic It's not that I enjoy the expense or the necessity of car repairs, but I do relish the moment when I'm handed back my car keys and walk out the door of my wonderful-miracle-working-on-a-dime-mechanic's-shop and head to my Buick Skylark, open the door, sit down, and turn the ignition to hear the sound of the engine turn over, the car click into gear and feel the wheels carry me onto the road and back to the place of freedom that is given behind the wheel of a car. The open and even snow-covered road is better than slush trudging on foot any day in January in Western NY. So yes, my favorite thing #3 is picking up my car from my mechanic.

Image from the blog Polka Dot Cottage . Writing in life-giving to me. I would not say that doing laundry is the same, but it is a necessity how I feel writing is. I find that if I go a few days without journaling, blogging or writing in some way; that words and ideas begin to gather and multiply like piles of clothes waiting to be washed. I begin to trip over words and ideas like yesterdays socks if I don't keep up with the wash of words that spin around in my mind. I begin to talk too much and tell too-long stories to perfect strangers. There is so much overflow, that when I try to start writing again it's difficult to know where to start. I suppose I could begin again with this bursting, pounding heart and buzzing mind, just like I start with the laundry when there seems to be no beginning and no end - just piles as far as the bathroom floor can reach. So I will begin with today and the pile of words that is closest to me. One sentence, one word and one idea at a time; just ...

About a year ago, I was speaking to an acquaintance about something I'd wished I'd always done. I always wanted to write to Madeline L'Engle after reading her book A Circle of Quiet because I wanted to tell her how much it meant to me. Because of this book, I made the decision to go to college after the birth of my first daughter. It was frightening for me to take this step, because I was not fond of the idea of being a 22 year old freshman, but somehow I gathered up enough strength to do so by reading and re-reading the words in that book. My new friend wanted to know why if I had the courage to go to college, why I never had the courage to write to the person that had so inspired me. I was afraid that if I wrote to her she would think I was some odd duck or a crazy fan. But Madeline was much more than a famous person that I looked up to, she was through her writing - a much needed mentor to me at that pivotal point in my life. This person smiled at me and said, " Yo...

Image from the blog Almost Clouds . “A book comes and says, "Write me." My job is to try to serve it to the best of my ability, which is never good enough, but all I can do is listen to it, do what it tells me and collaborate.” Madeleine L'Engle quotes Madeline L'Engle is one of my all time favorite authors. According to the preface in her just released last-first novel, "Joys of Love" that was written by her granddaughter. "Her (Madeline's) spirit suffered badly with those rejections (to her work), but she never stopped writing, never stopped trying. Hers remained a legacy of discipline and dogged persistence. She has always said that being published doesn't make you a writer - writing does." (Page ix of the introduction to , "The Joys of Love". For many years now I've written poetry, articles, essays and even some songs. I've not yet attempted to assemble any of these writings into a complete volume. Yet that is. For ...

Image and Serenity Prayer found here . Mary Lue , creator of Sleeping with Bread Mondays made reference to a wonderful author this morning in her host post on the topic of surrender. I have this picture in my mind of what I imagine Frank Lambuach looking like while shaving and prayerfully asking G-d, 'What, Father, do you desire said? What, Father, do you desire done this minute?' Surrender is something I'm not always very good at. I tend to be independent, willful, and some may even say stubborn. From a young age, I'd tell my parents, "No, I'd rather do it myself." That statement wraps it all up quite nicely. In fact, I think I may have mentioned my independent streak here a time or two before. While there are times that being independent is a useful tool that I have been thankful to have throughout my life, there are times that it is a stumbling block. When you begin to believe that you can do life in its entirety on your own, you are due for some fe...

Image found at kecute@wordpress . It doesn't have to be the full turkey and trimmings kind of meal, but I do love a good stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy. I especially like how preparing a big turkey for my family can catch me a few days break in the dinner category. Turkey dinner is a nice way to gather a crew of people, have some tasty leftovers for a few days, and make the house smell so good when you come in the door. Maybe I'll cook a turkey as a wind-up-the-holiday tradition from now on. Here's to favorite things and the blessings they mark in our lives.