Externally Grateful…

November was a month filled with thirty days of thankfulness. I have so much to be grateful for. If I said thank you as much as I have been blessed they would be as countless as the stars!!!

I urge you to think about giving thanks all year and not just around the holidays. Create a new habit and make it an important part of your life.

Just as you make time to dream and to play, make time to smile and be grateful. Take a moment of your day to give a playful wave to the Universe, and be thankful in that moment.

“Develop an attitude of gratitude, and give thanks for everything that happens to you, knowing that every step forward is a step toward achieving something bigger and better than your current situation.” Brian Tracy

In Memory of a Saint-Honoring Mom

In memory of a saint, I honor my mother today. Usually it is customary to use a white flower to honor a deceased mom on Mother’s Day. I choose to pay tribute to my mother today with a red flower because her spirit is alive and well.

Everything that I am is because of the strength of my mother. People have asked me through the years where did I ever get my unwavering belief of self and faith in God. The answer is simple, my mother.

I keep her memory close to my heart and with great admiration for her joie de vivre. She was a great lady who took risks in life, and had a faith that was unshakeable. For someone who was small she was soooo mighty.

I am honored to be her daughter. I hope to one day leave a legacy that is half as great as hers. So with the greatest of love and respect, today I remember my mother, a saint in my eyes and my heart.

Celebrating Daddy

Yes, I was Daddy’s Little Girl. I miss my father very much and as we approach Father’s Day, I thought I would take a moment to honor his memory. People tease me and tell me that I often call my mother”the saint,” but I don’t talk enough about my dad. He is a hard man to describe or fit into a stereotypical box.

My father was the epitome of a strong, proud, Jamaican male. His wisdom and insight was something to behold. He was never one to suffer fools lightly. However, as his youngest child, he always made time for me. Some people might even say I was his favorite and I would have to agree.

One of my favorite memories was the time he got me out of school early to go to a Red Sox game. It was total father daughter time, no moms allowed. He showed me by example, that a man should adore a woman, treat her right, bring flowers to make her smile, or hold them out as an apology, and read everything and anything you can get your hands on.

No, he wasn't perfect… but let’s be real, who is. When a man can cherish the time he spends with his daughter, it helps to set an awesome foundation. And for that, I am eternally grateful.

I love my father as the stars - he's a bright shining example and a happy twinkling in my heart. ~Adabella Radici

Happy New Year

2009 Welcomes YOU! With your entrance into the New Year, you crossed over into a world of new promises, paths unknown, and a road to new horizons. May your year be filled with all your hope and dreams. Peace

We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day. ~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

Giving with Heart

You know I was in a toy store the other day, to pick up a gift for our church’s giving tree. The giving tree grants holiday gifts to children in need. As I was trying to decide between a couple of items for a little girl, I asked woman who I was in conversation with what she thought about this present or that. Her answer alarmed me, "For a giving tree? I wouldn’t spend a lot of money on it? Wow! I thought, if we are giving a gift shouldn’t it be from the heart. Why participate in charitable giving to anybody and give them something that you would not want to receive.

That is why so many of us are royally disappointed with Yankee swaps, Kris Kringles, and holiday gift exchanges. We often buy the gag gift or something we definitely wouldn’t want to get as a gift and feel smug that we participated in the annual event.

This year, give with your heart, with love and with joy!

“In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Acts 20:35 (New International Version)