A REAL VACATION

This week my husband and I have been at the beach - Ocean City MD - for a vacation. Seems simple, but this is the first time we have had an entire week that is truly vacation.

Usually there are conventions associated with our time here, with a couple days being actual time off. Usually my husband has meetings and I spend my time writing while also keeping up with things at the office.

But this week we have done nothing but "vacate".

Every day was a no-alarm-day. Most days we decided what to do that morning, even if we thought about it the night before. The day it rained we pretty much stayed in the hotel.

Here at the end of this wonderful week, I am looking back at the peace and relaxation we have enjoyed. Mini-golf, wineries, skee ball... Even on the boardwalk this morning (with the weekend crowd having arrived) it seemed relaxing because we had nowhere to go that we didn't feel like going.

This morning I had an incredible experience - God spoke to me as I was waking (see my other blog, Prayer Under the Palm Tree, for more about that). And I realized that we are so rushed, so appointment-oriented, so planned and and scheduled, that I rarely have time for God to talk to me so clearly. There is always noise and haste. As soon as I open my eyes I am thinking about my workout, my breakfast, my day's schedule. I hit the ground running already feeling like I am behind.

So several lessons have come from this week away:

• take time all the time; set aside some free time, like Sunday afternoons, for just doing something fun - alone or with others
• start the day slowly; lay in bed a few minutes and just listen to the birds, say good morning to God, do some deep breathing
• exercise; even a few minutes of walking/marching/running in place or some stretching will get your metabolism started and will relax you for the day. Then take a few breaks in the day to do something: talk a walk, stretch and try to touch the ceiling and then the floor.
• Priorotize: determine what must be done and get it done; then choose what you want to do with the time that's left and do that.
• Plan for fun times. We are at the end of this vacation, but we are already looking forward to the next time we come (a weekend in winter?) and planning another week here (next May?). Plan rewards.

Whether it's an afternoon, a day, a weekend or a week, everyone needs some true down time. Plan it, and then keep to the plan. Perhaps all you can manage is a Sunday afternoon sitting in your favorite chair reading a book. Maybe you can manage a whole week at the beach or in the mountains. Whatever you can eke out, do it for yourself.

And perhaps you'll let me know what YOU learned?

The Year of Humility Continues

Just turning the calendar page apparently does not mean that we have learned all we are supposed to learn. Last year was The Year of Humility - a lesson I needed to learn and was forced to face by leading a retreat on the topic. Apparently, I still need some lessons...

Yesterday I received my annual performance appraisal, and was blind-sided by the report that staff members find me to be negative. To say I was stunned and hurt is an understatement. My perception of me (and my wholehearted desire) is of being supportive, encouraging, and appreciative. I love to tell people how well they are doing, and encourage them to pursue what gives them joy. One of my mantras is "if that makes your job easier".

Another lesson in humility - another area I did not explore last year - is that how I see myself is not how others see me. And added to that is that what I think others want from me may not be accurate at all. My perceptions and filters are all clouded by ... selfishness? Pride? and unwillingness to change?

So thus begins a period of re-examining what I do for others and how, and how I can be a better servant leader. Of being quiet and listening more closely.

Any ideas? Have you experienced this?

peace and quiet and time to write

It's 9:30 am here, and I have been enjoying a morning of peace and quiet and time to write. Craig is off to work, and other humans (and the dogs) are still sleeping. The bunnies have had breakfast and are happily playing in their yard - I can hear them leaping and tossing toys around as bunnies do.

Outside the window I see a constant stream of cars, a few walkers, and a couple of cyclists. The sun is shining and it looks delightful - which is deceiving because the weather app advises that the actual temperature is not yet up to freezing and the wind chill is in the teens.

So here I sit in the warmth of my dining room, having enjoyed a bowl of the delicious granola gifted by a friend and about to enjoy a hot cup of cocoa complete with whipped cream. Yes, it is Saturday, a Saturday without specific commitments, and therefore a morning of peace and quiet and time to write.

Now that the cleaning out of my father's house has been completed, I am cherishing these opportunities. As much as I dislike winter for its cold, I do like the chance to sit indoors like this without feeling the tug to complete outdoor chores. Once we hit March and new growth begins, mornings will be pressed into service with weeding and cleaning out and preparing for the new season.

Here however we are still in the season of rest - winter is a season for dormancy and renewal. So often we see it as dead and unproductive. But beneath the surface, all of those seeds and soil are resting, gathering nutrients and strength for another growing season.

I am beginning to see winter as that opportunity for me too - a time to spend Saturday mornings in my bathrobe at the diningroom table enjoying a cup of cocoa, thepeace and quiet and time to write.

Which just ended with the sound of puppy paws racing toward the door followed by the removal of the leash from its hook. Oh well... Next Saturday ....

Getting Back to Basics

A few weeks ago, I decided to start something "new" by going back to using witch hazel as a toner for my face. That was the first "beauty product" I used as a teenager. Dampen a cotton ball with the witch hazel and wipe it over your face as a toner/astringent. When you have acne, it stings a little, but it is gentle enough for the dry skin of a more mature face.

A few minutes ago I was doing dishes and reached for one of the other basics - baking soda - as a scouring agent for the pot I was scrubbing. Baking soda is a perfect scouring powder, it works great as a drain cleaner when paired with vinegar, and can be added to laundry as a detergent booster. For starters.

And that white vinegar? In addition to pairing well with baking soda as a drain cleaner, it is a great antibacterial agent, so you can spritz it on counters, wash cutting boards, and pour a few tablespoons in the laundry. It works well to clean windows and spraying it on those little "accidents" the puppy leaves deters the offender from returning to the same spot. For starters.

Why do I bring up all these simple things? Companies are being urged to remove chemicals and non-natural items from products, but we are still dependent on so many chemicals and additives. Every week another new "natural" product appears on the grocery shelf, but it's still important to read those labels. Instead, let's get back to the basics.

Another place this is being seen: glass vs. plastic. Companies who make leftover dishes are putting out glass versions. We are being cautioned not to reheat our leftovers in plastic bowls. The latest trend? Mason jars. Wide-mouthed Mason jars. We get them free when buying such staples as spaghetti sauce, or we can get them at the store for about a dollar each. There are fancy ones, but the basics are still the best. Online you can find suggestions for using these jars to make layered salads and breakfasts. And of course it's simple to put your soup or other leftovers in one and warm them right in the jar (take off that metal lid!) or dump a serving onto a plate.

So get back to basics. Save money and save the environment. Look to the old ways... go online when you have a few minutes and search for uses for vinegar, baking soda, peroxide, and other basics.

And then share them with the rest of us!

Dishcloths

Okay blog fans - raise your hands if you love your dishcloth.

I realize that many of you hardly "do" dishes - you have a dishwasher so you rinse most of the debris off the dishes, arrange them and set the dial. Those of you who have this "standard appliance" probably have very little opinion about dishcloths because you have very little use for them.

However, there are still those of us who are living in the past - we have no dishwasher and therefore "do dishes" by hand. And we have very strong opinions about the dishcloths and scrubbers we use to accomplish the task.

For years I have been a proponent of the little net scrubbers - I would scavenge as many as possible on the dollar days sale at my local grocery, getting six to a package for a dollar. They lasted a few weeks before unraveling, but truth be told I preferred them that way - almost like a cloth but "scrubbier". I also liked them because they were plastic and therefore did not need to be laundered. As long as they were rinsed thoroughly with hot water and allowed to dry they never smelled mildewed, and they rarely picked up any of the stains etc that cloths seemed to attract.

So I have happily used these little scrubbers. When one got a little too worn it was relegated to pot duty and a new one would be pulled from the bag for dishes. For about five dollars I had enough for the year.

In the recent past however it has been more difficult to find the scrubbers, and I have also been convicted of the waste in buying them and disposing of them. It would be wonderful, I thought, if there were wash cloths that I could wash and keep for long periods, but that also had a scrubby quality. Even better if they were the result of recycling.

A-HA!

How many of you have heard of PLARN?

Plarn is the result of cutting plastic bags (the ones you get at the market) into strips, then spinning them into yarn. My industrious and creative daughter makes this stuff. She is also the fastest crocheter around.

I wondered out loud about the possibility of such a wash cloth, and one evening she whipped up a few - each has a slightly different stitch pattern, rendering each slightly different in "scrubbiness".

They are wonderful! Not quite as scratchy to the hands (think of keeping your manicure for a few more days) and yet they are wonderful for dishes as well as pots and pans. After each use they are hung from a clip that allows them to air dry. From time to time they get thrown into the washer, but they must be removed and hung or laid flat - the dryer would be a disaster.

Looking for a wonderful new dishcloth? Find some plarn and then someone who crochets - if you can accomplish both yourself then you are further ahead!

Comments?

A few last thoughts for 2011

It is the end of a year - time to look back and reflect on the highlights and lowlights of 2011. Before planning and preparing for the future we must first look back and learn from the past.

What do I see in my calendar/planner from 2011 that speaks to me?

Great family times, but not enough of them...
Great times with sisters from church - but I'd like more ...
Quiet times and fun times with my husband, but too sporadic ..
Exercise, but too little
Prayer and scripture time - but not consistent ...

There were good times and rough times, there were days I would like to repeat and days I would like to forget. All of them go into the fabric of life, into the quilt square that is 2011.

As we tie off the last few stitches on that quilt square, I wish you each and all a safe and happy new year - many days filled with joys and blessings, and enough strength and faith to get you through the other days.

Looking for Robins

It is that time of year again. Robins should return to our yard this week.

My mother's birthday was February 23rd, and every year two things happened that week: the hyacinths appeared in the grocery flower shop, and the robins returned to our yard.

So for the past week I have daily looked out the kitchen window to our field, where I hoped to be greeted by our personal harbingers of coming spring. So far, none have been spotted. I asked my Facebook friends to alert me to their first sightings, knowing that if they were seen nearby they would be here soon.

We do look for those positive changes in our lives. Spring brings with it new clothes (or at least ones we haven't worn since the nippy Autumn weather arrived) and flowers and more daylight and opportunities to enjoy outdoor activities. For some it means working in the garden or cycling or getting the motorcycle out of the garage.

But not everything about Spring is welcomed by everyone. Those beautiful flowers and trees come with pollen that make every breath miserable for some. The bees are a menace to those whose life is threatened if stung (and they are a nuisance to thise of us who are just scared of them). Some of us are not garden elves and look at all that outdoor care as dreaded chores.

Change however is part of life - some we welcome more than others.

I cannot comprehend how there are people who look forward to winter and cold weather and snow. But look at all the people who enjoy sledding, skating and skiing. So many who embrace the temperatures I dread. Summer in the mid-Atlantic can be humid and hot and miserable, and yet there are those who love it and rarely turn on the AC because they relish the summer weather for just those aspects.

Of course the normal course of the seasons isn't always like clockwork - we get the early snow, or the weather stays "unseasonably" warm or cool. We plan based on the "normal" and are surprised. (The year I got married, we had an unexpected heat wave in mid-May and it was 97 degrees at 7:30pm. We thought we had planned for not-too-hot-not-too-cold - hah!)

And so it is with the other seasons of our lives. Childhood gives way to adolescence which dumps us into adulthood. Being single ends when we get married and then become parents. Being the parent of a small child is different than parenting the teen who is on his/her own way toward adulthood. Being a grandparent is different than being a parent. Working full-time is the norm for many years and then we retire - another season.

We are sometimes prepared for these changes. We have months to plan a wedding, and months to prepare for the birth of a child. Often we plan our retirement for years. And other times we do not have time to prepare: the child is stillborn, the spouse dies of cancer, we are laid off or injured...

It is good to live prepared. It is good to live so that we are always ready for that new season. And it is good to be accepting when the seasons change unexpectedly. For as the saying goes, the only constant in life is change.

In the meantime, have you seen the robins?