Time...a second, a minute, an hour, a day, a week, a year... pretty soon you have a lifetime! "What is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou visiteth him?" David, who wrote many of the poems that are in our Bible in the Book of Psalms really had a point. We are but a glimmer on the spectrum of TIME, but to us each day can SEEM like forever!
We have lost several friends in the past couple of months. It seems that my husband, the pastor, barely recovers his equilibrium from counseling one grieving family and another comes along!! My time this summer has FLOWN by; it seems like a very busy time and at the RESORT we have also experienced loss. Our long time clients are at "that age" as well. Time...loss...gain...life. We all need to re-think our priorities from time to time and this month has been one of stress, and needed shuffling of schedules in order to try to "be everything to everybody" - to do everything that NEEDED doing,
to cross all the "t" s and dot all of the "i" s.
Maybe it was the 50th Anniversary back in February; or possibly the 50th High School Reunion at the end of the month, but my nostalgia is getting all mixed up with my sense of certainty. My focus on surviving TODAY is mixed with my certainty that Life does go on; my focus on what is true, good, honorable, necessary is mixed with my need to LOVE and be LOVED, to feel and experience all the aspects of LIFE each day.
May your day be blessed with a positive focus; may your LIFE be full of Love!!
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Thursday, August 4, 2011
WAIT A MINUTE!!
I just spotted a "news item" regarding cereals that we are NOT eating anymore and two of MY PERSONAL FAVORITES were on the list. Did anyone ask ME! NO. I took one survey in my entire computerized life and subsequently had more spam than at a Spam Sculpting Convention!! So when I say that no one "asked me" what I am saying is that I did NOT volunteer to take their survey knowing that they would SELL my email address and possibly leave "malware" and "cookies" in my computer. You can't be too careful these days!! WAIT A MINUTE!
So how can Cheerios and Rice Crispies lose their following after all these years?! Maybe the advent of commercially made Rice Crispie bars so no one melts the marshmallows with the margarine, adds the Rice Crispie cereal and pats it into the greased pan to be scarfed by the hungry hordes after school. Do we even SEE those hungry hordes after school? Well, not if they have soccor practice, band practice, homework club until Mom or Dad gets off work, no hungry hordes in most homes. NO WONDER the old favorites are in decline; the lifestyle that encouraged healthy snacks, like an apple a day to keep the doctor away, has been replaced by vending machines or afterschool clubs. WAIT A MINUTE!
Then there was the adding of sugar to Cheerios - I even bought a box of cinnamon roll Cheerios! They are so sweet that I mix them with 2/3 regular unsweetened Cheerios, and my husband will not touch them even then. It amazes how addicting sugar and salt can be. We have a vending machine in my office at the Realty - I never eat candy or salted peanuts except about 4 PM when I am holding down the "up desk" at the office! Is boredom the cause or effect of our current epidemic of diabetes?!! WAIT A MINUTE - it is a WASTE to put waste on your waist!
So in the midst of a recession HOW can "new movies" post the astronomical returns on "opening weekend" when everyone is out of work?! Would people sooner watch a two hour movie than clip coupons for money saving at the supermarket? I read a piece by an emergency room doctor regarding the "poor uninsured patients" who arrive with the fanciest cell phone, high dollar tatoos, professionally done nails, name brand clothing, and an attitude that they somehow "deserve" to have their medical problems treated at no expense to them! WAIT A MINUTE perhaps we have a culture problem rather than a financial problem.
The discussion this morning was about the "underemployed" - those people who are working shorter hours, but who are still working, attempting to make a living. A former Russian exchange student who has emigrated here, although on the East Coast, and is working THREE JOBS. How HARD is that!! I bet that she doesn't use the emergency room for her health care - how would she possibly squeeze a visit into her schedule when the wait is three to four hours in most locations unless you are bleeding on the floor!! WAIT A MINUTE maybe those unemployment numbers are not accurate?
We decided that as REALTORS we too are under employed - the requirement used to be twenty listings to call yourself a "full-time Realtor" and in order to assure yourself of a "living wage" an escrow closing each week was considered minimum. It just hasn't been "like that" for several years now. Although I am sure that there are SOME REALTORS who manage not to be "underemployed" by working the REO - bank owned properties - for the banks. WAIT A MINUTE - they are working!
So perhaps I have the solution to most of our problems - WAIT A MINUTE - don't be coerced into thinking that the world has come to an end because of a Stock Market decline - crash is too harsh a word since it is after all GAMBLING! Whether the problem is attitudes - financial, physical, or relational - often times just waiting a minute for the smoke to settle will go a long way towards solving the problem. My second most favorite Bible verse is II Timothy 1:7 - "GOD has not given a spirit of FEAR, but of love, peace and a sound mind!" I think that I will meditate on that for a few minutes. FEAR is not of GOD, just wait a minute and feel the LOVE.
So how can Cheerios and Rice Crispies lose their following after all these years?! Maybe the advent of commercially made Rice Crispie bars so no one melts the marshmallows with the margarine, adds the Rice Crispie cereal and pats it into the greased pan to be scarfed by the hungry hordes after school. Do we even SEE those hungry hordes after school? Well, not if they have soccor practice, band practice, homework club until Mom or Dad gets off work, no hungry hordes in most homes. NO WONDER the old favorites are in decline; the lifestyle that encouraged healthy snacks, like an apple a day to keep the doctor away, has been replaced by vending machines or afterschool clubs. WAIT A MINUTE!
Then there was the adding of sugar to Cheerios - I even bought a box of cinnamon roll Cheerios! They are so sweet that I mix them with 2/3 regular unsweetened Cheerios, and my husband will not touch them even then. It amazes how addicting sugar and salt can be. We have a vending machine in my office at the Realty - I never eat candy or salted peanuts except about 4 PM when I am holding down the "up desk" at the office! Is boredom the cause or effect of our current epidemic of diabetes?!! WAIT A MINUTE - it is a WASTE to put waste on your waist!
So in the midst of a recession HOW can "new movies" post the astronomical returns on "opening weekend" when everyone is out of work?! Would people sooner watch a two hour movie than clip coupons for money saving at the supermarket? I read a piece by an emergency room doctor regarding the "poor uninsured patients" who arrive with the fanciest cell phone, high dollar tatoos, professionally done nails, name brand clothing, and an attitude that they somehow "deserve" to have their medical problems treated at no expense to them! WAIT A MINUTE perhaps we have a culture problem rather than a financial problem.
The discussion this morning was about the "underemployed" - those people who are working shorter hours, but who are still working, attempting to make a living. A former Russian exchange student who has emigrated here, although on the East Coast, and is working THREE JOBS. How HARD is that!! I bet that she doesn't use the emergency room for her health care - how would she possibly squeeze a visit into her schedule when the wait is three to four hours in most locations unless you are bleeding on the floor!! WAIT A MINUTE maybe those unemployment numbers are not accurate?
We decided that as REALTORS we too are under employed - the requirement used to be twenty listings to call yourself a "full-time Realtor" and in order to assure yourself of a "living wage" an escrow closing each week was considered minimum. It just hasn't been "like that" for several years now. Although I am sure that there are SOME REALTORS who manage not to be "underemployed" by working the REO - bank owned properties - for the banks. WAIT A MINUTE - they are working!
So perhaps I have the solution to most of our problems - WAIT A MINUTE - don't be coerced into thinking that the world has come to an end because of a Stock Market decline - crash is too harsh a word since it is after all GAMBLING! Whether the problem is attitudes - financial, physical, or relational - often times just waiting a minute for the smoke to settle will go a long way towards solving the problem. My second most favorite Bible verse is II Timothy 1:7 - "GOD has not given a spirit of FEAR, but of love, peace and a sound mind!" I think that I will meditate on that for a few minutes. FEAR is not of GOD, just wait a minute and feel the LOVE.
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