Root out timidity by daring

The poet Maya Angelou is credited with saying this quote.  I like it and have been pondering it for a month or so.  Pondering means that I've posted it on the bulletin board in front of my computer so that I'll see it daily.

So what does it mean to root something out?  Does it mean we find the source of our fear?  Does it mean we find the courage to examine our lives?  Does it mean that we finally look that project or new business idea straight in the face and say, "Bring it!"?

And then you have to figure out what is daring.  Does daring mean that I try something that I think I can't do?  I tried para-sailing last summer at Lake Tahoe for the first time in my life and loved it even though I never thought I could enjoy being that high in the sky unless I was safely seated in a commercial airliner. Or does it mean taking a chance on a relationship or friendship even though it is not our usual type of relationship?

To me daring means being bold enough (and mature enough) to try something/anything new.  We only have one shot at this thing called life and I believe that it is time to stop being timid and start daring.

So, what do you dare to do that you've been putting off?

Why?

As y'all know, my life was changed forever by a drunk driving crashed that killed my first husband, Mike Dean, almost 20 years ago.  It is not something you ever "get over", you just get through it.

Last night I learned that a Mom from Wichita Falls, TX lost her only remaining child yesterday morning.  Debbie Horton went in to wake up her son, Jason, whose alarm kept ringing.  She found him not breathing and tried CPR.  Jason didn't make it.

I can't imagine her pain.  I can't imagine how she can breathe.  I can't imagine how she grieves for Renee and now, Jason.

I asked, "Why?"  I'm not going to get an answer here on Earth.  But even in the midst of intense heartbreak for this mom, I am thrilled to see that so many friends and acquaintances have posted prayers and deep concern for Debbie (Remembering Renee Horton Facebook page).  The thing is, we all get busy and we get so consumed in our own day-to-day business that we forget to keep encouraging one another.  We forget that her pain (and that of a number of my friends who have lost loved ones recently) isn't going to subside anytime soon.

I'm committing to doing a better job of sending cards, posting encouraging messages, stopping for a minute to say a prayer, and generally caring more for those who I say I care about.  I'm busy...but I'm not too busy to do what I should do for my friends and acquaintances.  Are you?

When the wind blew

Last Sunday was a really windy day (for proof, look at my hair in the picture below!).  I--and tens of thousands of other football fans at Kyle Field--appreciated it because it was a really hot day.  If not for the wind, the weather would have been unbearable for many.

And even though we at the football game appreciated the wind blowing, that same Texas wind was wreaking havoc across our great state.  

Even as we drove to the football stadium, we saw the beginnings of a grass fire in south College Station.  That was a scary sight! An immediate concern I had was, "What will happen if a disaster takes place at the University?"  Most of the first reponders were headed to the grass fire and the major road into town was closed due to poor visibility from the smoke.  Fortunately, everything appeared to go smoothly at the game.

Little did I realize how the wind we were enjoying was igniting wild fires in Bastrop, just 70 miles from College Station.  The gusty winds from the outskirts of tropical storm Lee fanned the fires and they were out of hand in a matter of hours.  As of today, over 800 homes and ranches have been lost just in that area of the state.  Other nearby wildfires have also caused families to be displaced, livestock to die and millions of acres to go up in flames.

It seems ironic...the wind that soothed us in College Station, caused thousands of others to be torn apart.  It's like that in many areas of our life.  The one thing that soothes us--be it alcohol, drugs, or other addictions--usually causes pain for others. 

What a hurricane (or himmicane) can teach you about life

This past weekend, the east coast of the U.S. experienced a Category 1 hurricane.  I've always wondered why these destructive weather phenomena have to be named after women...

Having been raised on the Gulf Coast of Texas, I, surprisingly, never went through a hurricane.  That all changed when I moved to Orlando, FL.  Little did I know that 2004 would be "the year of the hurricanes" for Florida.

I was speaking in New York at the DMA awards luncheon at the Waldorf Astoria hotel just as Florida started receiving warnings that a Cat 3 hurricane was headed straight to the west coast of the state with a projected path that moved it up Interstate 4 and through metro Orlando.  Fortunately, I was able to get out of NYC and into Orlando a day prior to landfall.  My husband was in Phoenix, so I would be going this first hurricane of my life, as the adult in charge of a 13 year old, a dog and two cats.

We had water, food, candles, matches and all the other required "Home Depot is going to sell out of this" items needed to survive the storm.  It was scary, but we survived with very minor damage to our home/yard.

Maybe hurricanes can teach us lessons:

1)  Always be prepared.  It doesn't matter if it is a physical storm, a spiritual storm, or an emotional storm.  Life throws storms our way often and sometimes they come with dynamics that we don't think we'll live through.  You will if you are prepared.

2)  Stay calm through the storm.  Sure, I had to put the teenager and all the pets in a small bathroom when the patio slider starting shaking due to high winds, but we all remained calm (OK, the cats were freaking out a bit) and the high winds passed.  Had I panicked or thought, "Hey, it's OK to stand here and watch this slider shake," we might not have fared so well.

3)  You've got to clean up after the storm passes.  While our damage was minimal compared to many in the Orlando area, we still had branches down, a few shingles blown off, all the pool furniture to retrieve out of the pool and some water seeping in.  Just like any catastrophe that blows into our life, you've got to pick up the pieces, shake off the hurts eventually and move on 'cause another storm may be brewing.

There were two more hurricanes that passed through the Orlando area in 2004 (and we had the plywood window coverings with the storm names on them to prove it), but they didn't seem so frightening.  Why? Because I had already been through one and knew to be prepared, to stay calm and to clean up afterwards.

How about your storms that might be on the horizon?  Are you prepared to face them?  Will you remain calm?  Will you clean up the mess they cause?

Here's hoping the U.S. is spared any major hurricanes this year and that our friends and family in the NE are helped in their clean up efforts.

Life lessons

After encouragement from several, I've decided to sit down and write a book!  My life in a zip top bag took me on the road a lot and I learned a lot of life lessons.  While it is not completely formulated, the ideas are starting to flow.  Life lessons...they run the gamut from peace to forgiveness to fear.  Stick around and I'll share some.

Retail therapy

Retail therapy--going shopping because you're emotional, bored, it's too hot to be outside or any other reason you need to "just do it".

Yesterday a dear friend and I drove to Houston to pick up her son.  Well wouldn't you know it...we just happened to meet him at the Premium Outlet Mall!  I was thinking to myself, what distinguishes a "premium" outlet mall from a plain, ol' outlet?  Is it just that the outside of the buildings look nicer or is it really that the stores that make up the premium place are that much better?  My conclusion is this:  the premium stores are sometimes higher end (think David Yurman and St John), but they throw in some average stores (think Ann Taylor Loft and Justice) just so all spending levels can feel comfortable.

Linda did some damage to her AMEX, but hey, everything was ON SALE!  I spent exactly $5.62 for a top that was 75% off and I felt pretty darn good about that.  Now that is premium savings!

What I like/dislike about traveling

"'Travel' is the name of a modern disease which became rampant in the mid-fifties and is still spreading. The disease - its scientific name is travelitis furiosus - is carried by a germ called prosperity."
George Mikes.
 
Let's start with the positive before moving to the not-so-positive:

1.  You generally get to where you need to go in a shorter amount of time than driving there.
2.  You see a lot of things you'll never see in your hometown.
3.  You earn frequent flyer miles that you can use for FUN trips!
4.  Your arms get a good workout from lifting your bag(s) in/out of overhead bin.
5.  You can check-in online & save some time at the airport.

OK, not so great things about traveling:

1.  People never learned from their mother that they are to walk on the right hand side of the terminal/hallway/passageway!!  This is my pet peeve and I wish people would learn to stay to the right.
2.  TSA screenings.  Need I say more??
3.  Hours spent in the terminal/on the tarmac when your flight is delayed.  (On a positive note--I was stuck in ATL for 8 hours last year and met some really nice people in the terminal!)
4.  Stinky bathrooms on the airplane.  I know this must be very hard to keep under control, but couldn't they leave some Febreeze in the bathroom or something??
5.  Hotels that put you in the very last room on the very last hallway.  This is not always a problem because I've got "status" with the two big hotel chains, but when you don't have status...speak kindly to the front desk clerk and they might hook you up with a great room.
6.  Being squeezed in a middle seat on the airplane.  See #5 above about "status".  If you've got it with the airline you are traveling on, no problem.  If you don't and you want to get home earlier/check in late, you are going to get what's left over as far as seating (AKA:  the middle seat).

There are many more positives and negatives about traveling.  What's your take?

Happy Tuesday!
Laura