Tag: Coffee

Chasing the Sunset

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I’ve started my morning over twice so far.

The taste of my coffee wasn’t pleasing, so I made a Chemex. I hadn’t made one in so long, it didn’t drain completely, but this is how I felt regardless.

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Photo by Devin Avery on Unsplash

Did it not drain, or did I not give it time?

♥ ♥ ♥

This morning I recalled teaching my daughter to drive. It was a scary experience. Not teaching her to drive, but that she was learning with my truck!

When it was time for her to learn, it was time for us to move. We were living in the country on 40 acres, and the road to our house was treacherous to say the least. It had sharp curves and made of dirt.

The next house we found had straight highway running to it. The first time she went 65 mph she exclaimed, “This is exhilarating!”

I sat in the passenger seat, drinking in the excitement on her face. You want that look to last, but soon after she learned to drive she began adulting. Then you hope they remember the moments which caused that look.

♥ ♥ ♥

One time we were driving home, and she turned off the main road. It was late in the day and the Texas sky was pink and gold. Her favorite time of day. I didn’t know where she was taking us, as she turned down one road, and then the next.

She parked the truck and stared straight ahead. She had run out of road trying to get close to the sunset.

She said, “I was chasing the sunset.”

We sat in silence watching the sun go down.

Chasing that sunset was exhilarating for her, even though it was out of reach. I was happy she tried without worrying what the end result may be.

I hope you never stop chasing the sunset.

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Photo by Sapan Patel on Unsplash

Take a Minute

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The house is quiet and still, but it wasn’t. Two days ago, my daughter brought home a puppy.

She went to meet a friend for lunch, and puppy went with. I have some errands to run, but decided to take a minute and enjoy this quiet moment.

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‘Velvet Blaze’ Grinds by Summer Moon. 

A small french press enhances a moment. It’s actually a moment within itself, and I could feel myself relaxing through every step of the process.

I’m having trouble keeping up with the days.

It’s December, and we are counting the days until she leaves for  England. In two weeks, she will board the plane. Then, the following week is Christmas, and next comes the New Year! I remember counting down the months, not days.

I poured a cup of brew from the press.

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Décembre.

Strolled by our wood calendar, and flipped the block to the right date. This calendar shows me what day it is, and takes less that a minute to flip.

Be encouraged lovely. You have more control than you realize. Just breathe, and take a minute.

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Just Write

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Looking through my Reader at the list of people I follow is disturbing. There are so many writers not writing. Some have not published a post for days, weeks, even months. If you are on WordPress right now reading this, I have to ask…”Are you writing?”

I met a girlfriend for coffee this morning. 🙂

She has the potential of becoming a great writer!

She told me what her sister said about her writing. She said,”You are just doing that for attention.”

That was disturbing for me on so many levels.

We agreed that her sister tried to hurt her, and what she said is mean. I responded with, “I guess it depends whether or not you’re willing to let that stop you.” She is not writing as much as before.

 

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I’ve read a lot of ‘rules of writing’, and had to let them go. The rules caused me to second guess my writing. Do you know the secret of being a writer?

You have to WRITE! It’s that simple.

I’ve taken many a break from posting Blogs. I even thought at one time of giving up writing. It was probably one of the saddest moments of my life, but that is what happens when your break is too long.

It feels easier to quit than to start writing again.

It doesn’t matter how many times we begin again, as long as we don’t quit altogether. I publish more now than I have in a long time, and you know what changed? I did. I stopped analyzing and I just write.

I stopped watching the stats. I stopped caring what everyone thinks. I stopped feeling like a spammer for publishing two posts in one day.

I decided to write for the pure joy of writing, still holding hope that someone would grasp something from it. When I felt an urge to write, (like now), to just let it flow, and stop letting things stand in the way. It has become a priority for me because Lord knows the only way to get better at it is by doing! 

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One of my all time favorite quotes.

Who says you have to have a researched topic?

Some of my favorite Blog posts are written by people struggling to write! They usually have some sort of breakthrough by the end of the post, and feel better. If nothing else, they get kudos for writing!

I begin each day inside my Reader over coffee.

Out of all the Blogs I follow, there may be half a dozen new posts each morning. If I follow you, I want to hear every word you’re thinking.

You don’t need permission to fill up my Reader.

I have plenty of coffee, and I enjoy spending my morning with you. Let me encourage you to forget what everyone else is saying, thinking or doing and just write. And then hit publish. I’ll bring the coffee.

Listening for quiet

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Making a coffee pour over has a calming effect over me.

Once I go through all the steps of setting it up, I’m forced to slow down, and enjoy the process. Watching as the boiling hot water, slowly escapes from the spout of the pour over kettle. It hits the coarse grounds, and they begin to bloom. (My fave) Today, I poured the water very slowly, in attempt to keep the bloom alive for as long as possible.

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That magnificent bloom.

I listened intently during the process. When the water first hit the grounds, and the liquid drained into the empty cup, it was noisy. I could hear it trickling. As the cup filled with the hot liquid, the trickling became quieter, and quieter.

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I knew the cup was full when it was completely quiet.

The Don’t Wants

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To discover what I want, I journey through the don’t wants.

Earlier this week, I walked into the kitchen wanting coffee.

I had set the machine up the night before, but instead, there was black liquid oozing all over the kitchen counter. The pot wasn’t fully engaged to allow the hot liquid to flow. The basket inside was filled with water, and grinds were everywhere. This has happened before, so after cleaning up the mess, the coffee maker went on the give away shelf.

The don’t wants.

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Really good coffee beans deserve to be fresh pressed.

When our hearts are happy, we know what we want.

 

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Now my morning coffee is relatively ceremonial.

We recognize our wants, when we realize our don’t wants.

Beneath My Wings

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Not a peaceful nights sleep lastnight.

Just couldn’t get comfortable, and as the hours ticked by, my appointment was closing in. Got up at 5:00 am, and remembered not to drink coffee.

That was the worst part. Doing without my coffee, but God is so good to me. I drank some water, and was wide awake. My daughter and I got ready, left the house, and arrived at the hospital on time. Everything was seamless and painless. Exactly how God wants it to be.

God’s word tell us, what we sow, we will reap. There is a season of sowing and a season of harvest. Lastnight, my phone was blowing up with beautiful souls, encouraging me.

eagleI might have been tired this morning, but I was filled with peace. I knew so many people were holding me up in prayer, and I could feel it. The procedure of the port placement for Chemo, was nothing at all. They wheeled me into the operating room, told me I would feel some stinging in my IV, and that’s the last thing I recall. I woke up in my hospital room.

The nurse came in to check on me, and I was ready to go. Like nothing had ever happened.

It was perfect. It was God answering your prayers. Thank you.

So, even though you come to my page for encouragement…every view fills my heart. YOU are the wind beneath my wings.

A Better Way to Live~Day 1

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I woke up unreasonably early this morning. Usually, I can roll over and fall back to sleep, but not this time. I felt led to go ahead and start typing this up at 4:00 am. If this is your first read, welcome to a season of encouragement! That’s right. I will be right here, encouraging you through the rest of this year! You are just in time for Day One. I am using suggestions from Og Mandino’s book, A Better Way to Live.

Count your blessings. Once you realize how valuable you are and how much you have going for you, the smiles will return, the sun will break out, the music will play, and you will finally be able to move forward toward the life God intended for you…with grace,strength, courage, and confidence.

One of the most powerful tools I utilize is a gratitude list.

Waking up early while the house is still quiet. Grabbing pen, paper, and coffee if desired, I start writing out the first thing that comes from my heart to my mind. It starts off slow and simple, like “I’m grateful for waking up”. The words start flowing, and before long I have listed quite a few words and phrases on a piece of paper. Make note of the date, because it’s fascinating to look back months from now to see where you were.

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If your mornings are crazy busy like mine were when my children were small, take note in your mind while driving to your destination. Even if you can only think of three things, ponder those throughout the day, and feel the gratitude for them.

If you’re reading this, you already have the beginning of your list. You woke up.

 

Quote is from, “A Better Way to Live”, by Og Mandino