Tag: living with excellence

From Good to Great

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My daughter’s mini lecture before leaving the house for the day. “I want you to eat something of sustenance, and that doesn’t mean chocolate and gummi vitamins.” All those years of mothering are paying off where she is now mothering me! I’m diggin’ it.

I did pretty well with scrambled farm fresh eggs, by adding some shredded gouda and thyme. Along with slices of everything bread toasted and cut into toast points to hold some fig jam. It was delicious and I took this photo as proof that I ate something good.

I like a little bit of egg with my thyme.

This only added to an already great day.

Because everyday we wake up to a new day is pretty great, right? I’ll let you in on a little secret. It’s drives my friends crazy how happy I am. When they ask, “How are you?”, the answer is always, “I’m doing great!” Even if I’m not feeling especially perky, or there’s trouble brewing ahead, it’s always the same response…”Great!” My daughter knows I’m carrying the weight of the world on my shoulder’s when she asks, “How are you?”, and I say. “Okay…”

I don’t know about you but ‘okay’ is unacceptable in my mind, and I’ve been blessed with a very good life, but what about better than good? I’ve been saying ‘great’ for so long now, and to a lot of people the life I live is great, but what does great really look like? This year I want to step outside the knowing of what’s ‘good’, and go for the ‘great.’

We can be mindful of our day, and take note of how to make adjustments for a better tomorrow. Each day a little bit better than the last sounds like a solid path for this life to emerge over time from good to great.

Living With Intention

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I’m sitting at the kitchen table writing morning pages.

Oh, it was so tempting to sleep just one more minute, but I sat up and listened to a mediation instead. He was talking about living enthusiastically. I’m not sure I can be called enthusiastic, but I do live with intention and maybe that’s a form of enthusiasm.

After the mediation, I got out of bed and let the pups outside. Walking through the house, it was like every action was ceremonial in welcoming the new day.

Opening the mini-blinds and pulling the string so they rest in place halfway up the window. Window one, two, three and open the front door to let fresh air in. Walking into the kitchen I see our dishes from the night before. A counter full of dirty dishes, but my thought was, “We use pretty pieces, so it’s a pretty mess.”

Yes darling. I’m going to show you my dirty kitchen, or at least the view from where I’m sitting. There is a flow to this life, but I believe if we get caught up in the flow, we can lose direction. Pause the flow and live with intention.

An up close view from the kitchen table.

The main thing that got my attention is the bamboo drying rack. I used to have a plastic one for the wet dishes to drain, but it would get gross and moldy if not wiped dry after use. I’m not going to take time to do that, so eventually it’d need replacing and having done so many times is like throwing money out the window. This bamboo one has held up for years.

My daughter bought the lilies and they’ve been sitting here for almost two weeks. We laugh at how long they’ve lasted. They just won’t stop being pretty! She bought them for me after a rough day at the Dentist. Just like the ribbon vase, she found the right container to place them in to do them justice. The purple mason jar was waiting patiently under the sink.

You’d never know the purple stock pot is dirty, but it’s sitting there waiting to be washed. I have to wash what’s in the sink first, because it needs a lot of room and relies on all the strength of the bamboo drying rack to hold it. It’s a solid piece, just like the crystal pitcher sitting beside the drying rack.

When choosing pieces for your life, choose solid.

The stock pot takes a grease cutting dishwashing liquid, but that sits in the cabinet out of sight. Here’s the one sitting by the sink.

There’s a misconception that pretty has to be expensive, but that’s nonsense if you keep it simple. If I need dishwashing liquid, I’ll choose pretty as long as it’s performs as good as it looks. That’s how I can sit at this table, beside a kitchen full of dirty dishes and think it’s pretty, because every piece of it is.

It’s a life well lived and loved by living with intention.

We’ve been talking about living the dream. Here are the posts in order up to now. Thank you for your love and support. ~Barb

Breathe It In

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Collette left a comment on The Beach Rug, “Maybe I should start being more intentional about the little fantasy that has danced around the back of my mind most of my life.” Right on darling.

That is why I began the simple habit of walking to the end of the street everyday. To become more intentional. It’s so simple I was sure I could do it without fail. The only time I didn’t accomplish it was when I ran out of day. Other tasks were placed before it, but then I had a revelation. Take the time limit off it Barb!

I have all day to walk to the end of the street. It doesn’t have to be any certain time. It’s the same with dreams and goals. Take the time limit off yourself, but do one thing toward it consistently.

I intentionally make my bed every morning. This morning, I noticed a little black book sitting on the bedside table. I’ve had ideas toward my daydream, but realized I’ve written them down in various places. This notebook hasn’t been used much and still has plenty of blank pages inside, so I gathered up all my notes and wrote them in the little book. Keep your ideas together.

Keep your dream close to your heart and don’t tell everyone. I’ve told 4 people and 2 of them gave me an odd look, but the other two who know me well are supportive. Be careful who you confide in. Some will try and talk you out of your dream.

You need to trust your crazy ideas.

After making my bed and dusting off the notebook I remembered a candle I saw a couple of weeks ago. I had no idea why I thought of this candle, (like I need one more candle), but felt led to follow the path. I grabbed my keys and drove to where I saw it. The candle was all soy and smelled divine is all I remembered.

When I walked into the shoppe, I didn’t see the display. A sales lady asked if she could help, so I told her what I knew about the candle. She lead me over to the display, which had been moved since my last visit. There were half a dozen fragrances and one of each on display, so I picked one up to smell it.

Ella B. Candles

I had no idea this was their label, but it coincides with the notebook. God knows the dream in your heart and wants to encourage us to walk the path of uncertainty. He’ll lay things right in front of us like the notebook and a candle always gets my attention. I brought one home, lit it and breathed it in.

The dream never leaves the heart, it just gets covered up with life, but it’s trying to get your attention. It can evolve over time, but every part of your life has prepared you for your purpose.

Light it up darling and once it’s lit, breathe it in.