A Legacy Of A Life

 
I spent yesterday at a memorial service for a dear woman I have known for many years. She was the kind of person who never saw herself as having any influence in the larger world. But as people shared about her life, you could hear how much she was an influence.  She was a mentor to me without really knowing it.  She encouraged me many times with positive words and told me more than once what a good job I was doing in my ministry life.  You really need to hear those words when you work in ministry because there are not a lot of awards, cudos or job advancements.  But when someone praises you, it means a great deal.
  In addition to her words, her life spoke volumes. Her love for her family was the strongest I had ever seen. She supported her kids, grandkids, and great grandkids all along the way.  She was always there for them and loved being surrounded by them.  When her husband passed away unexpectedly 17 years ago, she had a hard time going on without him.  But she did it for her family. She was taken too soon but is where she longed to be, reunited with her husband.
  As I listened to people share about her life, I thought about how important our legacy is. What will people say about us? We won't know, but if we live a life for others - not just ourselves, we are leaving a legacy for those whose lives we touch.  Goodbye Gayle, and thank you.

Want To Be Grateful? Look Around You

First, a couple of things I am grateful for:
  1. Despite dire warnings that cell phones (and now virtual reality goggles) make people less connected and isolated, I am happy to see the local coffee places full of people sitting together and talking to each other. So communication is not dead.
  2. Seeing the generosity of people on sites like our local 'Buy Nothing' and community pages on Facebook help me remember that there are still many people who care about others. Every need I have seen posted has been met in so many ways. People want to be generous when they can meet a need.

  One thing I do want to do at the beginning of this year is to challenge us all to remember to be civil to each other. I have noticed a dangerous trend in our area recently to run through red lights in just about every stop light. For a small community like ours, it is disappointing. I remember when we first moved here and we were amazed how people would move over a lane to let you on to the highway. Coming from California, we weren't used to consideration in driving. I loved that about our town. Now, many people have brought bad habits from driving in the city to our town.  Just try to remember that it could be your loved one that could be impacted if you are driving through a light after it turns red. Is anything that important that you risk your life, and others, to get someplace a few minutes faster.
  I know I am speaking about my community but I know it extends everywhere people drive. We can be more patient, more aware and more cautious. There have been too many accidents lately and it is most likely aggravated by impatience and the need to hurry. Take a deep breath and follow the rules of the road. It benefits us all.
 And finally, focus on positive stories rather than negative. Your outlook changes when you spend more time on positive stuff than the bad stuff. Bad stuff happens every day but we don't have to dwell on it. There are just as many positive stories. Live there.

New Year, New Attitude

  I took a year off writing my blog on gratitude but I noticed that I still had some people viewing my site. So, I have decided to revive my blog and share new ways I am feeling grateful as well as remind us all that there are some good things in this life we live.  It wasn't that I didn't feel grateful last year but it is amazing how hard it is to keep up a consistent flow of thought every week or month when you have expectations you put upon yourself. I had lots of ideas and thoughts but by the time I got a chance to write them down, they sounded disjointed and disconnected from what I meant to say.  This year I will try to at least jot down my thoughts as they come into my head so I don't forget what I want to say.
  So, on this beginning of a new year, I want to say how grateful I am that despite some difficulties in 2016, we have enjoyed our first year of retirement.  It hasn't quite gone as we planned. My husband had three eye surgeries and is still waiting to see the final results of that. My mother-in-law had a life changing accident but is doing very well in her new reality. As we are busy making plans, life is constantly changing.
  This year I am challenging myself to spend less on things and more on life experiences. There is so much stuff that clutters up our mind and life. With so many books on simplifying, I don't want to add to their voices but learn from their wisdom. What I know is that people are more important than stuff so I want to focus on that this year.
  What do you plan to focus on in 2017?