Home Alone, not what you expect and exactly what you expect. I am sharing because this is so smoothly written that the character and actions are easily envisioned. Oy if I could only write this well.
The alarm went off at 6 am as usual. Instead of hitting the snooze bar, George turned off the alarm and got up. It was Wednesday, trash collection day in the small Florida town. He no longer had Ethel to push him out of bed so he had to muster the resolve to get up and take care of the chores. Jack, the faithful terrier, got up as well and was running around George’s feet as he tried to go through his morning routine. Terriers do not lack morning energy.
After he got dressed and made his way to the kitchen, he started the coffee. Ethel used to take care of this while George took care of the hyper active dog, but his wife of 40 years was gone now. George had to make his own coffee. George had to do all the…
When my kids were knee high to a grasshopper, I read to them every night before they went to sleep. Now I know that was a privilege and memory beyond replacing.
I read to them Dr. Seuss “Green Eggs and Ham” – I would read them anything, and over and over if they requested it. There were lots of other books and authors, some simple and some like Sherlock Holmes adventures, and Lord of the Rings were tolerated by my daughter and son even though it wasn’t exactly what they wanted.
I remember tip toeing out of their rooms when they fell asleep, or pretended to sleep and often times I went straight to sleep myself. Bath, brushing teeth and story time was at least an hour from start to finish. I wish I could go back and do it again.
But now it it 2014 and everyone has a tablet or smartphone crazyglued to their hands it seems but those are cold and artificial ways to read stories me thinks. I just don’t think Dr Seuss on a Kobo is the same for reading stories. Children want to see the pictures, turn the pages, and pretend to read along, or even change the story as you go. Electronic ink all seems too cold and impersonal for that. I draw the line for reading books, I’m old fashioned.
Birthday cards, congratulations, thinking of you, valentines day, anniversaries. Sure I suppose you could say emails meet the objective but you can’t compare with saved emails to the shoebox in my closet with cards to me from my loved ones. I draw the line on messages from the heart – emails are awesome but they lack the impact and strength of reading a handwritten note or card.
Where do you draw the line?
I know we can buy instant food, already cooked and just warm it up and it feeds us but it lacks the creativity and satisfaction you get from buying the ingredients and making it yourself. I draw the line on soup especially, nothing beats a home made soup.
Where do you draw the line?
I know we can keep in contact with people we care about instantly, emails, chat lines, skype, but it doesn’t replace a walk and talk face to face. It doesn’t replace the warmth of a hug or is a substitute for a shared sunset.
Draw the line for yourself this week.
When you look back on your week, it it all going to be electronic interaction?
– that’s just fast food without real satisfaction. Make sure when you look back on this week it includes some real food you made yourself, some real time in fresh air, and includes some hugs, maybe some silent time holding hands watching the sun go down. Put down the tablet for awhile, see and feel your life afresh.
“I don’t regret the things I’ve done, I regret the things I didn’t do when I had the chance.” –Unknown
Thanks for reading, and especially big thanks to those who follow my blog. You are so encouraging and I need that.
I talked to a young guest at a Toastmasters meeting last week. He is a student studying criminology. It was his second time as a guest to our club.
He spoke about how Toastmasters could help him with his self-confidence and how you enjoyed the meetings.
Age 18 to age 80 Everyone needs self confidence and the ability to speak up for themselves. I love it when people join, learn, grow and have a great time with their self improvement.
I am gobsmacked at how many people can’t voice their opinion, mingle in gatherings, calmly and factually make a verbal complaint, share their opinion in meetings, and the list goes on.
I was one of those people who always was able to fake it. People would never know that I was hesitant in speaking because when the occasion called for it, I could do it but they never saw my knees shaking before and after each time.
If you live on planet earth, you need your voice, and you need to be confident in using it, otherwise you’ll always live in the shadow of what you could have accomplished.
Ever heard of Warren Buffett? He took a course in public speaking from Dale Carnegie, and he said it was the most important degree he has. In his biography The Snowball, Warren said
“I was terrified of public speaking. You can’t believe what I was
like if I had to give a talk. I was so terrified that I just couldn’t do
it. I would throw up. In fact, I arranged my life so that I never had
to get up in front of anybody. When I came out here to Omaha
after graduating, I saw another ad. And I knew I was going to
have to speak in public sometimes. The agony was such that just
to get rid of the pain I signed up for the course again.”
Do you think you will go through life without ever having to talk? Think again, you can’t not communicate, get out of your shadow and be a guest at a Toastmasters Club – do it for yourself, do it for your future, do it for your success.
* thanks for reading my blog, I welcome comments and am grateful for the encouragement of everyone who follows my blog. Take care.
Lots of good stuff here, I suggest two things – don’t try to follow all of them, but do pick one. Secondly share with someone you care about the list BECAUSE you care about them.
I was 13 years old. My family had moved to Southern California from North Florida a year before. I hit adolescence with a vengeance. I was angry and rebellious, with little regard for anything my parents had to say, particularly if it had to do with me. Like so many teenagers, I struggled to escape from anything that didn’t agree with my picture of the world. A “brilliant without need of guidance” kid, I rejected any overt offering of love. In fact, I got angry at the mention of the word love.
One night, after a particularly difficult day, I stormed into my room, shut the door and got into bed. As I lay down in the privacy of my bed, my hands slipped under my pillow. There was an envelope. I pulled it out and on the envelope it said, “To read when you’re…
After he got dressed and made his way to the kitchen, he started the coffee. Ethel used to take care of this while George took care of the hyper active dog, but his wife of 40 years was gone now. George had to make his own coffee. George had to do all the…
