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A Beautiful Day!

Life is in full bloom!

Life is in full bloom!

I am choosing to make today a beautiful day.  It really starts with your mental frame of mind when you wake up in the morning.  Last night I woke up at 3:30 AM and really couldn’t go back to sleep.  I decided to write for a while before returning back to bed.  When I got up this morning, I could have chosen to be tired and have no energy.  However, today I am choosing an awesome day filled with love, abundance, and peace.  And guess what?  That is exactly what I will have. 

I took the picture above about a week or two ago when this plant was in full bloom.  It was beautiful, kind of like the day I am going to experience today.

Peace, love, and gratitude,

Bill

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Man, This Stuff WORKS!

You know, the Law of Attraction really works!  It is something I practice daily but sometimes I have to be reminded.  For the past 10 years that I have been going to our local post office, I have not had good success in getting in and out quickly.  Every single time I went in to mail a package, there would be a long line.  That was until this week.

As I started off to the post office, I immediately thought, “Man, it is going to be crowded.”  I quickly caught myself and focused on having an empty line when I got there even though my belief told me this wasn’t possible.  I did my visualization and released the outcome.  When I got to the post office, sure enough, there wasnt’ a single person in line.  I walked straight up and mailed my packages.  In and out in less than 3 minutes!  The funny thing is that when I was walking out, there were over 10 people standing in line.  Interesting, huh?

Fast forward to the next day.  I was again on my way to the post office and my thought was, “Man, it is going to be crowded.”  Due to my state at the time, I just couldn’t change it.  Sure enough, I got to the post office to find at least 10 people in front of me.  Some of them with 10-15 packages to mail AND they were short a window person.  It took me a good 30 minutes to mail my packages.

Fast forward to earlier today.  It was the busiest part of the day (so I have “learned”) for the post office and I was on my way to ship some more packages.  My instant thought was, “It is going to be so packed!”  I quickly caught myself and changed that thought.  I visualized an empty line and getting in and out within 5 minutes.  As I walked in, there was only one person working but there was only one person checking out.  By the time I walked up to get in line, that person left and I walked straight up to mail my packages.  As I was leaving 3-4 minutes later, there was a line of at least 10 people.  Very interesting.

I tell this story because prior to this past week, I NEVER got in and out in less than 20 minutes.  However, the two times I practiced visualization and changed my negative thoughts this week, I got exactly what I intended the outcome to be.  Some may say it was a “coincidence” but I say it is focused intention.  I challenge you to practice changing your negative thoughts and using visualization.  What do you have to lose?

Peace and gratitude,

Bill

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Tennessee Waterfall

What a great shot!

What a beautiful place!

A week ago I went to visit my brother in Tennessee and we did a short 3 mile hike to a waterfall.  Check out this picture!  This natural waterfall was 65 feet tall but was absolutely amazing!  Enjoy the pictures.

Peace and gratitude,

Bill

Positive Pathways Newsletter – Fearless Focus: A Laughing Matter

From the August Edition of the eNewsletter, Positive Pathways, you were challenged in the “Fearless Focus” section to find something to laugh at for 7 days straight.  This post is dedicated for you to put your own stories of the things that made you laugh.  By doing this, you will give others ideas to help them also find laughter in their lives.  Thank you for sharing your stories.  Come back and post your stories often.

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New Roof :-)

Roof Before    

Yesterday we had our roof replaced on our house.  I tell you, if you ever get your roof replaced make sure you work from home that day.  It is a true test of character.  Those guys hammered all morning and all day and didn’t stop until early evening.  They did a GREAT job!

During the day, I brought out some chilled bottled water to the men.  I was told I didn’t need to but I believe they were very appreciative of the jester.  Heck, it was the least I could do.  They worked over 7 hours straight before taking a short lunch break.  If you are not from Texas, you may not understand what a feat that is.  The temperature was hovering around 100-101 all day which meant it was probably near 120 to 130 on that hot black asphalt roof.  I still don’t know how they stayed up there that whole time.

Thank you Lon Smith Roofing!  You guys Rock!  Thank you for sending an excellent, courteous crew to take care of our needs.  Thank you!

Peace and Gratitude,

Bill

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Say What You Need To Say

Earlier today I was in my car listening to a song by John Mayer.  That song was “Say What You Need to Say” and it got me thinking.  First off, that song has some well written lyrics.  The ones that caught my attention were, “You better know that in the end – It’s better to say too much, than never to say what you need to say again.”  I think all too often we really do not speak our truths.  We were brought up with the old saying, “It’s better not to say anything at all than to say something hurtful.”  Well, to me, that is just not true.  Don’t get me wrong, I am not advocating to go out and say some hurtful things to people.  What I am saying is that sometimes those tough conversations (Saying what you need to say) rather than silence is really the right thing to do.  It might be hurtful at first, but I truly believe that you need to say what needs to be said.  One method I use when I am faced with tough conversations is to begin with, “(name), it is because I love you that I say this to you.  If I didn’t love you so much, I wouldn’t say anything.”  When I do that, it seems to change the tone of the conversation and the message is heard.

So, say what you need to say but do so in a loving and compassionate way.

Peace and compassion,

Bill

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Sunset Tonight

Sunset 07-11-08There was an awesome sunset tonight.  Thought I would share it with you.  It was taken from my writing room.  Pretty cool, huh?

Shakespeare in the Park II

Last night, a number of family members met to watch another one of Shakespeare’s plays, “Othello.”  My wonderful niece from Louisiana was visiting and hadn’t ever seen a Shakespeare play before.  I wish she would have been here for “All’s Well and Ends Well” last weekend because it was a much more cheerful play.  Although it was an excellent performance by a cast of incredible actors, to me,  Othello just wasn’t near as good as last weekend’s play.  I am that I liked last weekend’s play because it was a comedy (and a really good one at that) and this was a tragedy.

We knew Vince, the actor who played Othello, and sat in a special reserved section.  It was perfect because it had a cover over it while the others in the audience got a few rain drops through the performance.  I can tell you that Vince is an unbelievable actor.  He was just as flawless as he was in “A Raisin in the Sun” that we saw a while back.  Vince, great, great job!

Seeing Shakespeare in the park for the first time last week and a second time this weekend, I am hooked.  I will definitely make this a regular activity. 

Peace and gratitude,

Bill

Shakespeare in the Park

Last weekend my wife and I went to Shakespeare in the Park and saw “All’s Well and Ends Well.”  Before going, I was kind of dreading it because I never liked Shakespeare’s work because I struggled with understanding the language.  Knowing this, my wife pulled her notes from high school and  college and tutored me on the story.  What a great idea.  Knowing the story, I could understand what was going on and I really enjoyed it.

Tomorrow, we are going to another play in the park, Othello.  One of my wife’s staff is playing Othello so it will be really neat to watch him in the play.  For the first time, I am actually looking forward to a Shakespeare play.

If you have the opportunity, I highly recommend you attending any Shakespeare in the Park in a town close to you.  But be sure to read up on the story if you have any struggles with understanding the language.

Peace, love, and joy,

Bill

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Change Your Thoughts

Yesterday, my wife and I delivered Meals on Wheels to shutins in our community.  Before I started, I was having a very hectic and frustrating morning.  The thing that I noticed as soon as I started doing kind deeds for others by volunteering my time, my thoughts about the frustrations subsided.  My energy increased and my outlook was much more positive.

I do love delivering the meals to these people.  One of them is all dolled up with make-up and nice clothes each time.  My wife talks to her each time and compliments her appearance.  I wonder if she does it every day or just the days that MOW delivers.  One older man answered the door and the first words were “Ya gonna get wet!”  He said it in a raspy tone.  I looked up to see a bright sunny day and said, “Nope, we going to miss it.”  He looked back and gave me a look that said you are going to need an umbrella.  A couple of deliveries later, another older man said, “It’s gonna rain.  We need it though so that is good.”  I walked back to the car and sure enough, there was a dark line of clouds coming.  Within a few minutes there was a downpour.  And guess what?  Yep, I got wet!

If you are feeling a littel down and need a boost of energy, try volunteering for some community service.  I promise you will feel better when you are done.

Peace and kindness,

Bill