Vibrant Thoughts

Here’s a great short video, guaranteed to brighten your day!

Enjoy!

Have you noticed that we’re goal-driven these days? Everyone seems to be looking for improvement. Don’t think me obstructionist – I can see that we need to improve many aspects of our lives. From the food we eat to the things we buy, as a nation, we can be more conscious about our choices.

However, I’ve begun to wonder if we are missing something by not enjoying and appreciating what we have right here in front of us. My recent days are a perfect example. Here I am at 66 figuring out how to make my business successful. In fact, I could just take some time to appreciate the fact that I really don’t need to create a successful business – at least I don’t need to do it for the money. Oh, extra money would be nice – we could give more away if we had more coming in, but in truth, we do have enough to live on. So why am I looking for future success rather than enjoying what I have?

It a good question. Why don’t I just retire already? I can think of two reasons, and maybe by the time I write about them, I’ll have thought of another.

First, I do know that I can help people get healthier and or wealthier if I am successful with my current idea. That’s quite appealing – especially the healthier part. I know so many people whose health is jeopardized by their current eating pattern. I also know people who are looking for work and who could make the company I support a money-making project in their own lives. Actually, I guess that’s two reasons right there.

But there’s ano6ther reason. Since Jim has come out of retirement to consult with his old company, I would feel terrible if I am painting my toenails and watching soaps while he is concentrating on unraveling some code that makes MRI work. So in this case, it’s guilt that has me at the computer and at my desk, planning my success strategy.

What if I forgot all that and just loved my life as it is. What would I do with my time? What would I do with my knowledge? I feel like I have an obligation to use my time, talent, and knowledge and that is what is. I love my wanting to share these gifts. So, I guess I’ll put away my nail polish and hid the remote control and get back to telling people that I have some incredible opportunities for them to explore.

As a matter of fact, if you are someone who would be interested in a teleclass about health – how the systems of the body work and what you can do every day to promote optimum health – let me know. Thinking about this stuff is pretty much what I love about me.

I’ve been in a funk for several days – maybe even two weeks. And I’ve kept it to myself. No point in advertising a funk. Right? It only sounds like complaining, and we hear enough complaints, I don’t need to add to the misery – or do I?

Yesterday morning, as I was journaling about this feeling of malaise, I thought, “Maybe I should tell someone.” So I got brave and told the members of my Wisdom Circle. After all, the purpose of this group is to support each other. Then I told my coaching buddy who is always supportive. And I did get support from them, good wishes and invitations to talk. However, this is my little battle and I don’t need to talk, at least not right now. I needed to reveal.

I realized that I rarely tell people when I am feeling less-than-perfect. I rarely let anyone know that I am anything but all together and ready to be a role model. Wow! That’s pretty silly because I am rarely, if ever, perfect, but I recognized the feeling of embarrassment if anyone knew how I really felt.

All my life people have told me they thought I was one of the most put-together people they knew, and I was always shocked to hear that. That means is that I am a master of putting up a good front. Take the articles and blogs I’ve written for the past four years. I do reveal that I dealt with a problem – notice the past tense of that statement. I don’t reveal until I deal.

When I go silent, I’m not dealing, I’m pretending. I’ll bet that right now, my husband doesn’t know I’ve been in a funk. I’ve hidden any appearance of funkiness from him (and everyone else I know).

Therefore, my revelation was important because I hadn’t solved the problem yet. I still haven’t, as a matter of fact, but I have taken some action. What was missing was the creative spark that I usually feel, the desire to create something – a blog, a webinar, and a workbook – or a dinner, an afghan, a quilt, or a garden. All I really wanted to do was zone out in front of the television and eat something – almost anything would do!

Finally, after admitting my weakness yesterday, I decided to take some action and I tackled a very necessary and uncreative task – organizing the storage space in our basement! That’s destruction creating order. I went through 10 years of old tax files and purged all but the few things required. I sifted through a ton of camping gear and Christmas decorations. All-in-all, it was very satisfying work. I still have to deal with the discards, but we can actually walk in the room now and find what we’re looking for.

Today I did some EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) before I did anything else. I’d forgotten this interesting self-treatment technique that activates the acupuncture meridians in such a way to break through emotional and physical blockages. Since then, maybe even because of the EFT, I’ve written this blog entry and posted another, organized my desk, picked up my clothes and finished my 2008 taxes—and I just invited my daughter over for dinner. Maybe I’ve seen the end of this phase. I sure hope so!

© 2009, Jacqueline Hale

As I write this, my husband is practicing in the next room. He’s playing the guitar and singing Ripple by the Grateful Dead. This was the song that sealed the deal for our relationship. I was falling in love with him and when he played this song, one phrase spoke to me so much that I set my course for a different life. The line is “If I knew the way, I would take you home.”

As I am sitting here, getting all mushy, I wondered why that phrase touched my heart so much. First, I knew that I needed to find my way home. I knew that as nice as my life was, I wasn’t home. I didn’t know who I was or why I was. I did know where I was and what. I was what everyone expected me to be.
When I heard that song, I knew I must jump off a cliff and see if I would fly!

Another interesting part of this song is that the singer didn’t know the way. Oh my. I was going to have to do this on my own. And I did. I found my way home.

The song has always moved me. Even 30 years later, after I did jump off that cliff and magically found I had my own wings and married the singer and created a life far different from anything I had ever known, I still get chills hearing Ripple.

If my words did glow with the gold of sunshine
And my tunes were played on the harp unstrung,
Would you hear my voice come thru the music,
Would you hold it near as it were your own?

It’s a hand-me-down, the thoughts are broken,
Perhaps they’re better left unsung.
I don’t know, don’t really care
Let there be songs to fill the air.

Ripple in still water,
When there is no pebble tossed,
Nor wind to blow.

Reach out your hand if your cup be empty,
If your cup is full may it be again,
Let it be known there is a fountain,
That was not made by the hands of men.

There is a road, no simple highway,
Between the dawn and the dark of night,
And if you go no one may follow,
That path is for your steps alone.

Ripple in still water,
When there is no pebble tossed,
Nor wind to blow.

You who choose to lead must follow
But if you fall you fall alone,
If you should stand then who’s to guide you?
If I knew the way I would take you home.

In just a few weeks, I will hear Jim sing and play Ripple in concert. I am a lucky woman!

© 2009, Jacqueline Hale

Am I the only one who can’t seem to get it together to plan the new year? I think it’s part of the mass consciousness about two things: the new era that is emerging as Barack Obama becomes the head of our country and the malaise and sometimes downright fear about the financial woes of the whole world.

As a coach, I should be able to deal with my current state of disquiet, but I’ve failed to do it. I simply cannot state what I want to be doing for the next 12 months. This is something I usually plan in December, and here it is mid-January and I still don’t know where to begin. I’ve asked myself, “What would I say to a client who was in a similar state?” Know what? I don’t know what I’d say! This is really a dilemma.

However, I’ve put myself in the best possible place to figure out what I want to do next. I have a few days of retreat in our mountain house – up here in the snow (melting snow) and away from the usual distractions. The quiet and solitude are wonderful. I came with a box of books and a few videos, enough resources for my every whim. This is the end of my second day and I have figured out a few things.

I know what I don’t want to do and I know what I’ve done well in the past. I even know what makes me happy. Doesn’t that seem like enough information for me to develop a plan? Well, maybe. I just spent some time in the hot tub looking at the billion stars visible through the evergreen trees and I was struck with an idea that scared me. Fabulous webinars about how to make your life be exactly what you want! Isn’t that something we all want? How could that not be successful? I just have to find a way to get people to know about it.

But, what if I fail? I’ve tried it before and didn’t continue because I couldn’t attract enough participants. That was several years ago. Now, I have a much bigger network and far more resources. Isn’t that what all these internet tools are for – getting information to the right person at the right time? It’s definitely the first idea I’ve come up with in months that elicits excitement. There’s more excitement that fear. How do I know that? Tune in to the webinars and I’ll teach you how to make such assessments in your own body.

Yup. I can do this. Stay tuned for the next milestone!

©2009, Jacqueline Hale

Okay. I stretch the truth a little bit when it comes to losing and gaining weight. Yes, I did lose 40 pounds – for a moment, maybe even for a whole week. But actually I put several of those pounds right back on the ol’ belly. In truth, I usually weigh about 35 pounds less that I did at this time last year. I go up and down a few pounds, but it averages out to be about 35 pounds. The odd thing is, I might as well have not lost that weight at all because I still beat myself up for not weighing what I intended to weigh – a totally of 60 pounds less. That’s where I need to get control of myself.

But why did I ever say I lose 40 pounds when I actually stabilized at 35? Does it matter? Maybe not. What does matter is that I’m still not happy with my current weight. I have all kinds of excuses for staying at this plateau – going to conferences, going to Italy, Thanksgiving, and the mother of all weight-gaining holidays – Christmas. How does a mid-western girl stay slim when there are cookies to bake and caramels to make and cheese balls to concoct? The entertainment factor for the holidays is enough to drive one to drink, and eat.

Over the holidays, I did manage to put on a few pounds and take off a few pounds, but basically I stayed in the same place I was last summer – down 35 pounds. That’s something. Right? And now, like so many others, I’ve committed once again to eating healthy food and the proper amounts. I’ve even added more exercise to my routine in hopes to jump start melting the next 25 pounds. The exercise I’ve added is a circuit workout every morning. I get up at 6, have my morning cocktail (energy, cleansing, endurance, and tonic) write in my journal, and walk to the gym. That puts a damper in my morning dog walking routine, but I’m adding it in the afternoon so Marlowe doesn’t burst his bladder and I get to break up my day with a little more exercise. Combine that with sticking to my food plan and I have the recipe for success! I hope. And I’ll quit fudging the numbers. Fudge? Hmm, that sounds good.

©2009, Jacqueline Hale

We did our annual caramel making this week. I was telling someone that I’ve done this with my family for 50 years – but then my daughter reminded me that she did not remember making caramels before 1987. So the myth is my memory: Probably I didn’t make caramels every year, but it seems like it.

I remember many Christmases when I was a kid where making and hiding the caramels was a major aspect of our holiday preparation. Since stirring the molten sugar could be dangerous, I didn’t get to do that until I was 11 or so. All kinds of memories go along with the production, like the year we were snowed in. That was a momentous day because my dad didn’t go to work! I don’t think he ever missed a day of work – not while I was living at home, at least. So we made caramels, poured them in the pan to cool, and bundled up to stomp through the snow in a blizzard. We lived in a woods on a lake, so snowy times were magical. After our over the river and through the woods experience,  we huddled by the stove to wrap the caramels in waxed paper, while our snow-caked mittens, hats, and scarves dripped from the clothes rack. Never have caramels tasted so good!

That was one of my happiest childhood memories. Forget that we lived in a converted garage – all four of us and our dog, Lassie in a tiny space. Forget that my parents had left behind nearly all their belongings to move back to Ohio from Texas. They were looking for a better life. That day in the storm, we were celebrating being together and having fun.

The interesting thing about this Christmas memory is that I haven’t any idea what my presents were, possibly a paint-by-number set, which was the only present I remember from that time in my life. The gift I really remember is the little spice box my dad made for my mom. Things were simpler then because my parents were born during WWI and lived through the depression and WWII. The Korean War had just ended and it seemed no one had much money, but we sure did have fun.

What I remember most vividly is that determination my mom and dad had to create a home – wherever we were. It so happens that we were living in that converted garage because it was on the same property as the house they were building. That way Daddy would come home from work, and as soon as dinner was over, he’d bundle up and go over to the new house to work until midnight. He worked those two jobs for a whole year, working for Goodyear Aerospace during the day and building our home during the night. It was hard-work for both of them and even involved my brother and me from time to time. After that little pause on a snowy day, summer came and we had a fabulous new home to live in.

© 2008, Jacqueline Hale

How is a sane person supposed to know what to do when even the doctors don’t agree? I was listening to a program about one of the statin drug’s beneficial side effects on Talk of the Nation on NPR. At one time there were three doctors discussing inflammation and lowering cholesterol and why one drug in particular had interesting results. The only thing these doctors agree on was that patients should first try life style changes before resorting to a statin drug. They gave a few seconds lip service to a nature means of reducing chronic diseases and spent many minutes disputing each other’s approach to using a drug that many natural health practitioners disdain.

Many doctors are far too interested in prescribing a pill than babysitting their patients to reduce their weight and increase their exercise. It is difficult to inspire compliance, especially when it’s easier to just write something on a piece of paper and say, “see you in six months for a blood test to see if this improved anything and to monitor the potentially harmful effects. Of course, that little handful of pills costs hundreds of dollars every month! And we wonder why we have a health care crisis!
I know—I’m being cynical. This is why I don’t usually write about health and doctors. I find it hard to keep my irritation and frustration out of the discussion.

What I am most interested in is health without doctors. Since I have historically gotten conflicting advice from doctors, I avoid them and their prescriptions. I look for natural ways to maintain my health, and so far, I’ve not only avoided serious illness, I’ve also avoided prescription drugs, including antibiotics. My current health program consists of the following:

·    Eating sensible amounts of nutritious food, organic when possible
·    Drinking lots of filtered water – lots
·    Taking a few supplements and vitamins, just to be sure
·    Sleeping eight hours a night, and taking a nap if I get sleepy during the day
·    Walking 30 minutes (at least) each day and discovering something new on every walk
·    Practicing stress reduction such as conscious breathing and addressing problems when they arise
·    Being insightful every day by journaling, acknowledging life’s richness, and sitting silently for 10 minutes or so

Of course, if I needed the help of a doctor, I’d seek it – eventually! I mean, if a truck ran over me, I’d encourage the paramedics to take me to an emergency room. If I had appendicitis, I’d agree to surgery. And if I had a heart attack, I’d work really hard to find a cardiologist who thinks holistically. In the meanwhile, I am following my own advice – I live as though this is the only life I’m going to get!

© 2008, Jacqueline Hale

Well, here I am in the Holiday Season – a time when I usually get together with my daughter and her friends to bake cookies and make caramels and fudge. And here I also am – at a weight reduction plateau. I lost 40 pounds a few months ago and have been stuck at that weight for so long that I’ve forgotten my original elation at my success. I have had some success. I’ve succeeded in staying stable during many opportunities for heavy snacking and sumptuous meals (think travelling in Italy with friends and a week of Thanksgiving hoopla with our daughters and you get the idea about pasta a pumpkin pie).

I’ve been happy with my food plan and exercise. This program is how I melted 40 pounds of fat in the first place – why have I not continued on that successful path? So today, I was taking my usual morning walk and a little voice in my head told me to walk by the circuit exercise place I used to frequent. As serendipity would have it, the Saturday manager was putting out their sign and we started chatting. She invited me in to give me a free pass for the month. FREE. That’s a price I like, especially for exercise. Generally I think that housework and gardening should be exercise enough and that no sane person should need to go anywhere and pay money to get more exercise.
But maybe that is exactly what I need to shed those stubborn 20 pounds. I don’t know if it will do the trick, but I’m going to find out.

© 2008, Jacqueline Hale