Creative Inspiration for Passionate Living

"Honey, what should I write about today?" I appealed to the creative mind of my ten year old for guidance.  I think I expected a response that reflected his interests (i.e., wrestling or cars) but that wasn't the case. With wisdom far beyond his years, he turned to me with steady eyes and replied "Life. You should write about being happy and stuff like that". Today's Inspiration Cherish Simplicity Life is a bride of many faces.  She can be unwielding and bold yet nurturing and kind.  Her demands can strip away smiles and burden the broadest of shoulders - she gives much and expects more in return.   Every now and again, the moonlight catches the softness behind her veil and reveals a tenderness that captivates even the stars.  She gives us happiness, a simple gift, and asks only acceptance in return.  She first reveals happiness as a butterfly floating just beyond our grasp. In due time though, our eyes are opened to the joy of daffodils that ...

My fourth grader is learning long division in school.  After a less than acceptable progress report, I spoke with his teacher and found that, though my son had memorized the steps he should take to solve each problem, he was making critical errors and mis-applying concepts.  These errors had directly affected his math grade so I knew he needed some extra assistance. Since my oldest son enjoys math, I asked him to check little brother's homework tonight.  As I expected, several answers were wrong.  When we pointed out errors and questioned how he might have made mistakes, my younger son acted as if he really knew the answers though clearly, he didn't. Being the wiser of the two, my older son sat down at the table and told his littler brother "Stop trying to pretend you know.  Once we get past what you don't know, we can get this right." Today's Inspiration Admit it when you don't get it;  We cannot Learn what we think we Know It can sometimes be hard t...

Remember the tan hand-writing paper with two solid lines and one dashed line in the middle? Capital letters were expected to start at the top line while lower case letters began their life at the dash. I always loved penmanship, that is, until I encountered the letter 'C'. I'm not sure why I couldn't figure it out but for weeks, the letter 'C' was my arch nemesis. One particular night, my errors outweighed the acceptable attempts and the thin paper tore under the pressure of my eraser. I must have restarted that blasted letter 'C' at least 3 times. My hands were plenty sore from gripping my pencil and I could no longer find the dashed line for the tears of failure that kept welling up in my eyes. I was utterly distraught over not my inability to curve the back of the letter - it looked more like a sideways 'U' than any 'C' I've ever seen. That darn 'C' was going to be the death of me I just KNEW it. Because of that awful e...

The song that makes us cringe plays repeatedly on someone else's mp3 player. Our favorite outfit or shoes may make a friend's forehead wrinkle. Someone may be madly in love with the guy/girl we just don't find attractive. And that's ALL just fine. Today's Inspiration For every beauty, there is an eye to behold it Our perceptions are as unique and varied as our experiences. So many different factors shape how we see the world - how could we not expect varied opinions on the same topic? One may see a rose and feel a sense of allure as they remember a lover while the other is repelled as they are reminded of bees and thorns. It is said that some look at the world through rose colored glasses meaning, they see everything in a positive light. While we are not required to follow suit, we do have an opportunity to remember that in everything there is a touch of beauty somewhere - even though it may not be intended for our sight or our touch. Grace can allude us or...

As I child I would often find myself frustrated with the actions of others.  My father raised me to do things a certain way - his way - and I suspected that the rest of the world operated under the same premise. When I reached  early adulthood and began to clash with co-workers or management, I realized something was terribly wrong with the WHOLE WORLD!!!!  Why in heavens name didn't they see things the way I did? It wasn't that I thought the whole world revolved around me but I figured t hey'd  be much better off once they realized I was right and they were wrong. My life would certainly have been much easier.  A wise man recognized my blind spot and informed me that if we were expected to all think alike, the God would have one given us one big brain.  Today's Inspiration Vast are the opportunities of those who value differences Our world is a blend of cultures and experiences.  Our community, household size ...

When I picked up my younger daughter from school today she ranted non-stop about the delicious chocolate chip cookie recipe she got from home economics class. Her mouth was a speed boat of description.  She prattled off the ingredients, insisted cookies be made TONIGHT and thwarted her brother's attempt to stifle her enthusiasm.  How could I say no? She seemed to be quite comfortable in the kitchen though baking never really piqued her interest.  Like a professional might, she read the recipe aloud arranging every ingredient on the counter top just so.  Big sister, the future culinary artist, offered to help but an argument ensued.  Fearful of what might happen next, more to her esteem than my oven, I gave her a reassuring hug and encouraged her to do her best.  With that, my independent novice ruled - the kitchen became her stage.  The oven timer signaled the moment of truth or shall...

Born in poverty, raised in hatred Laughed at, mistreated. Scolded and shunned Lied on, blamed, torn inside... Still I am special! STILL I SHINE Today's Inspiration Our beginning does not define our destiny; for even from dust, we can rise to the stars Chris Gardner lived homeless with his young son before accumulating millions as an entrepreneur. Kanye West (love him or hate him) shopped beats to hip hop artists while sleeping on a futon.  Famous author J.K. Rowling - think Harry Potter - was a divorcee with an infant when she penned her first Harry Potter book. The son of a janitor, Clarence Otis Jr. studied hard, and climbed the corporate ladder where he now sits as CEO of Darden Restaurants, the world's largest casual dining operator (think Olive Garden & Red Lobster). These are more well known accounts of rags to riches.  Countless others started from meager, sometimes devastating circumstances.  Still, they achieved notable success in their chose...

I took up a hobby in the early part of winter.  It was fun and exciting, I met new people and learned a dance that I really enjoy. While I was gliding and twirling though, laundry piled up, chores weren't done as thoroughly and I focused less than the right amount of attention on a major personal project (in my own opinion). For the first time in over 30 days, I missed a goal and that was my wake up call. There's another cycle of lessons starting but for several personal and professional reasons, I decided to take a pass.  I felt torn because dancing has always been a passion of mine and so is my project. I realized that I had to forego a simple pleasure so as to properly focus on my master plan.  Of course I enjoy dancing but I enjoy achieving life success even more. Today's Inspiration That Which is Necessary is Never Unwise Success comes with some tough decisions and serious sacrifice.  The rewards at the end of the road definitely make up for that which we mu...

In his last year of high school, my oldest son insisted that he'd have a job - he needed to find his own way as any young man does.  He found work easily enough but did not have transportation.  Rather than give up or complain, he stood tall, swallowed pride and rode my bright purple ten-speed bike 20 minutes to work - in the winter no less! Today's Inspiration  Desire is shown by pursuit, fueled by ambition and born out of confidence.  ~Steven Shelley Desire is a natural part of the human spirit.  It makes us tenacious  and drives us to excel.  It is our ambition though that sets us apart from the rest of the pack. The more we thirst, the more we must be willing to sweat for the opportunity to drink the nectar of accomplishment.  Obstacles will inevitably spring up along the way but we must stand confident against tides of resistance.  Because our very livelihood is at stake, we must not let our ambition be drowned out by the challenges t...

As a kid, I had quite a time figuring out my niche.  In gym, I was the kid that tripped over the ball and lost the relay for my team - I have bruises to prove it.  When we played basketball, I was the one who cringed every time a pass was thrown my way.  I quickly figured out that I was not the "athletic" type BUT, I could jump double dutch well enough to play with the teenagers at 10 yrs. old - what an honor. During grammar school, I joined the glee club, church choirs and every other chorus that would have me - I wanted to be the next Stephanie Mills! Over time, I realized being mostly tone deaf did not serve well for harmonies and solos.  I was nobody's songbird HOWEVER, I could dance.  I was such a good dancer that I was selected by the principal for special school programs and I even got to be one of the Thriller dancers for the annual Labor day parade once. Fast forward a few years.  I took a 3 day Java development course - coding i...

I got a distress call from my daughter during my evening commute today.  She sounded perturbed as she explained that she was giving up on her literature assignment and was ready to accept a zero (along with the consequences).  The next phase of a major paper was due but she was having trouble developing her outline.  She knows bad grades are a sore point so to declare that a bad grade was good enough meant she was truly at her wits end. I asked her what she needed and all she wanted was for me to say something to make her feel better.  I advised her to take a break, told her I knew she was capable and told her to relax until I made it home. I grabbed her a Snicker candy bar and gave her a big hug as soon as I walked in the door.  We laughed a little bit, ate dinner together then got back to the task of her outline.  In less than 15 minutes, she had her creative juices flowing again. She was figuring things out and she felt capable of completing the tas...

I laugh inside every time I ask my children to do their chores.  For hours they walk to and fro moving items around, shifting dirt and decorating rather than focusing on the task at hand.  I can recall one hilarious ocassion where my youngest daughter, the future fashion designer, spent an entire afternoon cleaning her room.  When I came in to check on her, she had carefully hung Disney Channel posters,  organized her vast finger nail polish collection and even moved her bed to a better location.  I was really proud of the changes she made with exception for one.  After all that activity and all the changes, she still failed to meet the ONLY objective - cleaning the room.  Cereal bowls, snack plates and juice boxes were spread throughout the room.  The carpet needed serious attention and piles of clothes (clean mixed with dirty) filled every corner yet she was completely astonished to find that I was less than imp...

In the early part of my career I had a lot of challenges.  I recall working at one particular company where I just did not fit in.  I couldn't seem to get things right though I was trying my best and my personality clashed with all the wrong people (i.e., the owner and my manager).  Before I knew it, I was called into one of those meetings.  You know, the one where you just listen and grit your teeth in disbelief as they read off a laundry list of reasons you can no longer work for them.  After 10 minutes of being berated, someone escorted me to my desk to collect my personal effects in an office supply box.  I cursed and screamed inside but was determined not to let a tear fall in the wake of my disaster - I would NOT give them the satisfaction.  I'd never been fired and had no idea what my next step would be.  At 5 months pregnant, I had a sizable baby bump, an even bigger mortgage and a couple of young crumb snatchers at...