Play Time

Okay so my posts have been so serious lately. As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, it is the best time to relax, hang out, and play. So go on have some fun. Do you want to play with me?

Oh Jolly Playmate

Come Out and Play With Me

And Be My Jolly Friend

Climb up My Apple Tree

Slide Down My Rainbow

Into My Cellar Door

And We'll be Jolly Friends Forever More

Crazy Ideas Bloom Big Dreams

I have always been a fan of the "I Love Lucy Show." Lucy always had a wacky idea that seemed so out there that everyone wondered what was in her brain. The creators of the show seemed to top the ideas as the show went on. This show from the 50's is my constant inspiration of nothing is too outrageous to try.

I recently said to a friend just think of me like Lucy. She looked at me incredulously and said, "Lucy? You're Lucy? Oh, NO because if you are Lucy, then I am Ethel, and I am not going to go down whatever road trip you're on." We both started laughing as she had read my mind, I WAS about to hatch nutty idea.

You see what made "I Love Lucy" work was Lucy's ability to drag her friend into her dreaming and into her schemes. If you keep your ideas only in your head, they cannot grow.

Let's face it out of crazy ideas bloom big dreams. Do you have a friend who always has a crazy idea or are you the crazy friend? Today, share your dreams…laugh and play yourself into a new reality.

Ricky: Lucy's actin' crazy.
Fred: Crazy for Lucy, or crazy for ordinary people?

Ethel: There's lots of things you're good at. Lucy: Like what?
Ethel: Well, you're awfully good at...uh... You've always been great at...
Lucy: Those are the same ones Ricky came up

Breaking the Rules

So often we are told to be perfect, to do the right thing. As children we were told to color inside the lines, eat everything on our plate, and clean up our mess.

But you know what? Life is messy. We don’t need to be perfect, to be in harmony with life. It is okay to be imperfect, just like no two snowflakes are alike, no two people look at life and deal with life’s situations the same way.

Revel in your mess and today break the rules. Color outside the lines, and work on being the best imperfect being that you can be. You will discover more things about yourself, than when you try to please others and fit inside the mold of perfection.

Give yourself permission – to
break free of the rules and fly!

"If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun."

Katharine Hepburn

Dear...........

This week I had the pleasure of finishing a wonderful book called the Wednesday Letters by Jason Wright. I enjoyed it so much that it inspired me to write this blog entry on the lost art of letter writing.

When I was growing up I had 82 pen pals from all over the world. It was kind of cool, I had a big world map on the wall in my bedroom, and I had push pins in all the countries where my friends resided. I loved getting mail from friends all over the world. I loved sharing experiences about my life in the US and theirs from whatever country they were from.

I learned to love letter writing. It was a process to pick the right stationery, the right stamps, and even as to what color pens to use. As I found out when I was young, not to use red ink when I write because it perceived anger. You see, through letter writing, I became culturally aware of others and how we are all connected in the Universe.

Now that the world is so much smaller because of the internet, letter writing seems to be disappearing somewhat. As much as I love email, it is not the same as opening a letter from a long lost friend. So to all my friends out there this is for you.

How are you? I hope all is well. What’s up where you are? I am
well. Today is a great day because I get to connect with you.

Write Back Soon,
Sandra

Eat Dessert First

I know I know it goes totally against what your parents told you. But just think about it, dessert at the end of the meal is usually yummy, rich and puts a smile on your face. Right…..

Well if that is the case, shouldn’t everything that we do in life be like a really good dessert. Now all the healthy conscious people please don’t shudder. I mean it with the best of intentions. Life is to be enjoyed. We even make guilt an association with pleasure e.g. (guilty pleasure). Well today let go of the guilt. Take pleasure in the fact that you can live your best life by fully indulging in a bit of fun.

Often what we want to do feels naughty just because we are having fun. Not today. Today I charge you with doing what you feel with no guilt attached. For some it might be curling up with a good book on a Saturday afternoon, it could be taking the day off for a mental health day, stopping to wiggle your toes in the sand, or even just taking a catnap in the middle of the day.

Whatever your pleasure ….... Eat your dessert first and do something that you enjoy!

Playing In the Sandbox of Life

Why is it when we get older we cease to gave fun in our lives? Why is it we laugh less, worry more, and forget to take each day as it comes?

I think it is because we forgot how to enjoy life the way it was intended. You see life is like the sandbox. We should jump into it, wiggle our toes, kick up the sand, grab your friends, make castles, and just remember to laugh and to play.

Yes, there is always work to be done. But who says you can’t enjoy it, while you are doing it. Today make a new rule in your life. Have some fun and remember to play.

We do not cease to play because we grow old; we grow old because we cease to play!

George Bernard Shaw

¿Why are you special?

You know one of my favorite interview questions is to ask someone why they are special. People become dumbstruck or better yet they look like a deer caught in headlights. We can easily talk about our skill sets and why we are qualified for a particular job. But when we get right down to the heart of who we are, why you are special seems to leave us baffled.

Yet if you ask a small child, why they are special, they have zero hesitation and zero limitations to their answers. A child might tell you that they are special, because they can jump, their parents told them so, they are beautiful, they are smart, they know how to share, they can color, they can run fast, and the list goes on.

What happens to us, as we become adults that we can not even put together a list of what makes us special? The fact is that we are all unique and amazing individuals that God created us to be.

So I ask you this today…...... Why are you special?

The Fun of the Yankee Swap

Okay, so I feel that I have been a little too serious lately on Christmas giving……

Last night my local Toastmasters held its Holiday Party. We had to bring a Yankee Swap gift that was odd, fun, and something that we definitely wanted to regift. We turned this into an amusing table topics discussion.

Well, I tell you, I originally opened a little clock radio quite nice, definitely a keeper. But no…… My eyes got greedy and I saw the lovely vase that someone else had and swapped it. For those who don’t know me, I love flowers, so I thought to myself, Wahoo! I scored. Yeah that cockiness was short-lived as someone opened their gift and swapped with me. You want to know what I got! I received a set of four miniature ceramic non-matching cowboy boots. What a hoot! We all laughed. I tried to hawk like an auctioneer telling folks they would just love to have this one of a kind item. We had so much fun. The spirit of this is to not take life seriously and enjoy the moment.

What fun and outlandish Christmas grab gifts have you received?