Day Thirty -- Your highs and lows for the month/year

For it being mid-April, there have been a variety of highs and lows so far for the 2016 year.  Fortunately, for the moment, the highs are somewhat outweighing the lows, which is a complete blessing! 

For this blog, I actually am not going to really focus on the lows, as I don’t want to seem super negative, and in reality, the low moments have mostly been associated with the ways of the world and how it seems more and more evil is overtaking the good.  We have to stand strong and continue to try to find the positive in a negative situation.  Trying hard to make the best out of situations that aren’t always so particularly pleasant.  Stand strong in your faith and be true to yourself.  Don’t let the situations of the world and the jealousy of others bring you down.  Be true to yourself, be who you are and don’t let others try to persuade you otherwise.  Focus on God and allow Him to control you.  He will help turns those low moments into high moments!

For me, putting aside the petty low moments that have plagued me off and on all year, I have been blessed to have some absolutely incredible moments thus far in to 2016. 

I have been absolutely blessed to spend a good portion of the first three months of this year at various women’s collegiate basketball games with dear friends.  We have gone to countless games both locally in the Raleigh area, as well as travelled to games at UNC, Duke, Wake Forest and the amazing ACC Tournament in Greensboro.  I am so grateful for the friends that God has brought in to my life through the realm of basketball.  We go and have the best of times just cheering on our teams (or against the teams we don’t like), laughing at crazy Barbie dolls on sticks in the stands (don’t even ask!) or just anything in particular.  In those moments is where I have felt absolutely free and relaxed this year.  I can scream and holler and act crazy and am accepted for who I am.  April has arrived and basketball season has ended, but I can guarantee the memories we made from the games this year, adding new people in to our cheering squad, etc. will be memories that last for a lifetime.  Now the countdown is on to the fall of 2016 when the next basketball season takes place!

Additionally, coinciding with basketball and my friends, is how our little cheering section has adopted one of our NC State players in to our family.  Our favorite Canadian, Jennifer Mathurin, has become our favorite player.  To show how crazy we can be, we proudly wave our Canada shirts and flags at games for her.  We even reserved a seat at the ACC Tournament to display our Canada sweatshirt and flags.  Needless to say the fellow fans around us think we are absolutely insane and are constantly asking us why we are waving Canadian flags. Even one of the security guards stopped us at one game asking why we had Canada flags. They just don't obviously appreciate the sport and players like we do, or maybe we truly are crazy! Either way, we are dedicated to our players and our sport.  I just hope and pray we haven't embarrassed (or even scared!) Jenn!   

I think one of the highest of highs for 2016 was finally meeting and being able to spend a little time with the amazing Coach Sue Semrau from Florida State University.  Patti and I attended many of the Seminoles North Carolina games and we met many of their players and were greeted warmly with hugs as if they had known us their entire lives.  I think they get most of their personality from Coach Sue, who is an absolute inspiration in so many people’s lives, including mine.  Coach Sue is a ball of energy.  She is one you just love watching on the sidelines because she genuinely cares for her players and is constantly coaching and mentoring them. She is passionate about the game of basketball, and it shows each time she steps foot on the sidelines.  If I ever have a daughter, I would want her to play for Coach Sue because she is a teacher as much as she is a coach and she truly impacts the lives of her players.  Meeting her in Raleigh was just so awesome because she is such a compassionate person. That has been one of the highlights of my year.  Thank you, Coach Sue, for all you’ve done (and will continue to do) for women’s basketball and thank you for being such a positive role model in my life! 

While I could go on and on about highs of 2016, I just want to capture those two moments as much of 2016 has revolved exclusively around basketball.  I am so humbled by the opportunities that have been presented to me in many ways.  God truly has blessed my life in ways that I often overlook and don’t thank Him enough for.  Even those low moments, He can use them for our good and help make us stronger individuals.  Keep looking ahead and do what you can to accept the low moments and build upon them.  Turn those low moments in to positive moments.  Continue to strive to make each day a great day and enjoy what all that surrounds.  Do what you can to make your 2016 full of more highs than lows!  You still have over half the year left, so I know you can do it!  

And many thanks to those of you who have followed me along this 30 day writing challenge.  Yes, it has spread for more than 30 days, but I stated initially that it would do that.  It has actually been another of the high moments for me as it helps me just get some thoughts out and eases my mind from the daily stresses along the way.  I can’t promise what may come next in the blog as I’m about to embark on a hiatus for a trip to the West Coast, but stay tuned, I’m sure I’ll come up with something!   

Day Twenty-Nine: What are your goals for the next 30 days?

Goals are simply something that we are trying to achieve in our life or in a set amount of time.  And, don’t we all have so many goals that we put in place for ourselves?  I think the most common “goal” that each of us always set is the mountainous “losing weight” goal.  For me personally that was one of the goals that I set at the end of last year for 2016 – to try to get in better shape and lose a few pounds.  As of to date, I have lost close to 15 pounds since January 1^st, but still have a ways to go.  Goals are certainly easy to set and lay out for ourselves, but the challenge comes in actually taking the first step towards achieving that goal and keeping the momentum to finish the task.  My weight loss goal has been a huge challenge.  One in particular because I love to eat and then second due to a recent knee injury, it has slowed down my exercising, but I am still determined to lose a few pounds and achieve that goal. 

A lot of times when it comes to setting goals and starting out on the track of accomplishing them, it is often good to have a buddy or cheerleader of sorts who motivates and encourages you along the journey.  Sometimes something as simple as someone boosting you and telling you that “you can do it” might be all the motivation you need to accomplish that goal and cross the finish line marking one more item off your list. 

As far as my “goals” for the next 30 days, well that list could be endless, but the primary ones I am thinking is continuing to finish my exercise/weight loss goal, but also setting a big goal for myself regarding my upcoming vacation.  In less than two weeks (10 days, 21 hours, 10 minutes as I am currently penning this), I am departing the East Coast of the United States and taking a trek to the West Coast and up in to Canada.  I have never been to the West Coast of the United States, so it is something I am greatly looking forward to.  So, my goal for this trip is pretty simple yet complex – have a relaxing and enjoyable time and NOT checking my work e-mail or get stressed about being away from work!   I am the worlds worse at going on vacation and still staying glued to my phone, responding to work related e-mails, etc.  This time, I am absolutely setting a goal to try to not let it bother me.  The work will be here when I get back and I’ll get to it as I can.  So, that will be a HUGE goal for me, if I can accomplish that, it might just be a miracle! 

I’ve also realized lately that I need to set a goal that I never should have to set at being a better Christian example and witness.  God has really been dealing with me lately regarding my attitude and other issues plaguing my daily life.  I want to try to be a better example for Him, which means guarding more what I say and how I respond to things.  It might mean that I just end up staying quieter and keeping to myself rather than voicing what I really want to say. I truly feel this world that we live in is full of evil.  Satan is attacking from all angles and he is disguising himself in so many ways, it is hard to keep things straight these days.  But our God is mightier than Satan.  Our God can fight off any attacks that Satan throws at Him.  I need to be willing to take a stand and fight the good fight and spread the Word to so many lost souls who are being pulled in the opposite direction. 

Big goals have been set for myself over the next 30 days and maybe even for a lifetime. What about you? What goals are you going to set for yourself to attempt to accomplish? Don’t be afraid to set goals for yourself as it challenges you to come out of your shelter a little and may even make you a better person.  Remember, things are just “temporal” – it doesn’t matter if you live in the biggest house, drive the fanciest car, have the nicest clothes, etc. because all of that “stuff” won’t last.  The real things we need to be focusing on are the treasures that we can be storing up in our eternal home in Heaven.  Set your goals high, high as in eternity, and strive to reach for them. God will help us all along the way as long as we ask Him.  Blessings to all of you, and remember, you aren’t alone in your journey.  You can accomplish things!

Day Twenty-Eight: Post Five Things That Make You Laugh Out Loud

I love to laugh and I also enjoy trying to make others laugh.  That’s always been one of my daily goals – no matter how I may be feeling, I try to do what I can to say something or do something just to make someone laugh or smile.  Not only does it lighten the mood, but it just may be what someone else needs to lift their spirits.  I know for me personally that has been the case when someone has said something to make me laugh or shared a funny picture with me – it can truly have an impact upon your day.  Hey, even the doctor’s supposedly say that laughter is some of the best medicine!  So, why not try to laugh it off!

For me, I just never know what may personally make me laugh.  I can find humor in some of the most random things; things that other people sit and stare at and then I get the “what in the world is wrong with her” look.  So, for today’s post, rather than trying to sit here and come up with various stories, quotes, movies, etc. that make me really laugh, I decided to find some random pictures online with sayings or quotes that gave me a good chuckle.  You may look at them and think “I don’t get it” and that’s completely fine, but if you share a laugh, that’s terrific.  Sit back and enjoy some of the most random bits of humor that I decided to share. 

Church Sign Humor -- Aren't you sometimes just amazed at the things some church signs say?  I'll be honest that in my drives around town or in other areas, I've seen a few that give me a little chuckle, but most of them actually are usually more thought provoking.  But, there are a few that we see online or in various places that do prove to be quite amusing.  This one above gave me a good laugh because who really likes mosquitoes?  I know I certainly do not, but I know that mosquitoes love me more than most anyone else on this Earth.  So, I thought this one was rather amusing to me personally due to my feelings towards those little pesky insects!

Animal Humor -- Some of the funniest videos that I've seen online are often those of animals being scared or chased or something that just is plain silly.  I saw this online and it just made me immediately laugh.  Not only that, I couldn't help but think of my own dog Zoey and think of her having this same exact reaction to our cat, Maggie.  So, I had to share because it just looks like these two dogs are having a blast at whatever they are doing and it not only makes me chuckle, but it also brings a smile to my face (and sometimes, that is just as important as laughing!)

Sports Humor -- This one might get me the most grief, but I am NOT a Florida Gators fan.  Blame that on either being a Tennessee Volunteers fan or even a Florida State Seminoles fan, I just don't like the Gators (although, the Gators are definitely not my most hated team!).   But sports humor can always be fun as we all have teams we love and teams we don't like at all.  So, it's always humorous to see the jokes and sayings that people come up with to use against their rival teams.  I more than likely should've posted some TarHeels humor, but I am not ready to get in to an all-out war with some of my local readers just yet (ha!).  So, for you Gators fans, nothing against you personally, but just had to share this one because it did give me a good laugh!

Music/Entertainment Humor -- I love music and I love movies, too.  So what better way than to combine the two together to come up with a little humor -- combining the great classical composer Johann Sebastian Bach with the Terminator just about did me in this morning!  Sadly, in reality, it almost does sound more like "Bach" than "Back" when Arnold says it.  (And well, speaking of Arnold, I could easily have a huge blog about him, but we'll refrain from that now!)  But I thought this was just hilarious putting his face on Bach's body, as well.  HaHaHa

Madea/Truth Humor -- And, when all else fails, you have to have some Madea humor!  While Madea herself obviously did not say what is listed above on the picture, I can absolutely picture her saying this.  And the sad part is, what the caption says, while it is so hilarious, it is absolutely truthful, as well.  We love editing our pictures to make our teeth whiter, make our skin flawless, change our hair and eye color, etc., but what if we do go missing?  Remember those things!  I'm sure we don't want Madea out searching for us because if she finds us, she's going to give us a big 'ole lecture!  Praise da Lort!  

So, there you have it.  Five simple little photos that I found quite amusing this morning.  I hope they lightened up your mood a little, as well.  Always be on the lookout for something funny in our daily lives.  We need to take that break and just release a little stress and sometimes that is the best method! 

Day Twenty-Seven: Post a Picture of Anything & Write your Thoughts/Feelings about that Picture.

Isn’t it amazing how something as simple as a photograph can hold so much power, contain so many thoughts, so many memories?  Each individual who looks at a photograph will more than likely see something different than the next person.  You may interpret the photo differently and you may subsequently have a whole different perspective and set of feelings than the next individual who views the photograph.  But to a degree, that makes it exciting – interpretation of varying kinds!

I love taking pictures and I love looking at pictures.  My computer monitors at work have a rotating background with a variety of pictures that change every few seconds.   I find that pictures help distract me and cause me to take a second to pause in the midst of a busy day to reflect upon my thoughts for that moment.  For me personally, I always take my digital camera, as well as my cell phone camera, with me most anywhere I go.  You never know what type of moment you might be able to capture on camera, so I always try to be prepared. 

Today, I chose to share a picture that I took last fall during one of our family vacations to the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee.  As many of you know, that whole region of the country is one where I find such peace and relaxation. This photograph captures one of my most favorite views in the Pigeon Forge area – the Pigeon River with the massive Mt. LeConte looming in the distance highlighted by the golden colors of the autumnal season. 

When I sit and stare at this photograph, it makes me wish I was camped out in a rocking chair just listening to the peaceful mountain water as it trickles downstream while inhaling the fresh mountain scent, as the air just seems to be so crisp and clear.  It always seems life is at a slower pace in the mountains and nature surrounds you.  You can easily walk along the paths by the river or you can just sit back on a park bench and listen to the rushing water, the birds chirping all around and absorb all that surrounds you.  With Mt. LeConte looming high above the river and overlooking the small towns down below (there is actually a lodge on top of the mountain that you can hike to and stay at, if you so choose – I haven’t attempted that feat yet!), you feel that you are surrounded in the beautiful nature that God has blessed us with on this wonderful Earth. 

Recently, I was very honored and humbled when former California First Lady and news personality, Maria Shriver chose to share this picture not only on her Instagram and Facebook pages but also in her weekly newsletter/blog.  She has a feature that she calls #SoulSpace where she encourages followers to share photographs that hold special meaning to them or photographs of places where one can escape to and find their peace of mind.  Needless to say, when I shared my #SoulSpace photograph, I had no idea that Maria Shriver herself would even see it, much less share it for others to see!  I was beyond amazed at that, and I offer a thank you to Maria for sharing a little piece of my world with the rest of her world!   Maybe one day, she will come over and visit this area in the Great Smoky Mountains and she, like you readers, can realize how truly peaceful this area of the country is.  It is about a seven hour drive from my home in Raleigh, North Carolina, to get over those Appalachian hills to my peaceful area in the Great Smokies, but when you can sit and listen to those sounds, breathe in the fresh air and feel as if you are million miles away from the stresses of this world, it is well worth the seven hour journey!

I encourage each of you to find your #SoulSpace areas in life and capture them in photographs, so in times when you are stressed at home or work, you can easily pull up a photograph and reflect back on places or times where you feel most free.  And while you’re at it, share your photos with Maria, too, she’ll definitely read them and hey, who knows, she might even share your journey with her readers, too!   As I’ve always said we never know who is reading our posts or viewing our photographs and we just never know how it might touch someone else’s soul, so always be willing to share!