Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving !!

Calm Before The Storm

Steen Doessing - Calm Before The Storm

"Look for me in the whirlwind or the storm." -Marcus Garvey

The idioms "lull before the storm" and "calm before the storm" are terms for a quiet period just before a period of great activity or excitement. The literal reference being to weather. Today is one of those days that I would refer to as the calm before the storm of the holidays.

Halloween was a bit of a primer but Thanksgiving in the United States is the starting point of a nearly five week flurry. The gathering of families and friends for a large meal. The shopping madness, football games, decorating, more family and friends. The travelling, wrapping of presents, unwrapping of presents, more food and drink. All ending up with a celebration of a new year, family, friends and the end of what was a storm of activity.

What happens is that some people get a thrill from riding the waves of a storm while others get frightened by the noise. We sometimes forget that it is a rather long period of time in which we will ride high on the waves of enjoyment. While there will be other possible moments of disappointment. Some will want perfection in sailing through all of the celebration. Some will want it to just end.

While each of us will experience the holiday storm differently, be aware of two things; the storm will pass and that others will be weathering it with you. When you get too high or too low, look for a friend "in the whirlwind".

Enjoy your holiday season, enjoy the madness of it all and sail on to a great new year.

Maze Of Opportunity

"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." -Winston Churchill

Life can seem very much like a maze that has thousands of turns and dead ends. We find a promising path to take, only to find it ends abruptly at nothing. Other paths we take give us new adventure and experience while never getting us to the final destination.

All of these paths teach us more about our life and the world around us. If we pay attention close enough, we will not repeat some of the old paths that failed before. We begin to map out our life and what we did to get where we currently are.

Many people find it too difficult and reach a wall, only to stay there. Giving up is the only solution for their life. What they fail to understand is that each failed path is an opportunity to learn. It is in that learning where we build the chart that enables us to reach our goals.

Kierkegaard said, "Life must be lived forwards, but can only be understood backwards." We learn from our past with the vision of where we want to be. Without understanding the failed paths of our life, we are nearly doomed to constantly repeat them. The frustration will build until we either choose to give up or change our attitude.

Look forward to the life you want and learn from the path already taken. Keep searching and the correct path will eventually present itself.

Marjorie's Music

Back from a great, but short vacation down to the beach in Panama City, Florida. Great time to reflect, rest, relax and recharge our lives before the holidays.

While I was gone, a friend sent me her latest music video that I wanted to share. She is an independent singer/songwriter by the name Marjorie Whitley. Odd that I've never asked her if she is related in any fashion to the (now deceased) singer Keith Whitley. But Marjorie's talent is not to be overshadowed by anyone else.

There are thousands of independent artists that are singers, songwriters, painters, photographers and movie makers. Each of them deserve our attention and support. Huge fame and fortune may not be the end result. But creating great music or whatever it is you create in life is what matters.

Each of us have talents; artistic, business, community or any of a number of things. You may not realize it but living life takes a certain amount of talent. Nurture your talents and live a great life. If we support each other along the way, then life gets lived a little better.

Enjoy Marjorie's music and if you feel inclined, support her and buy one of her music CDs. Or write her a note on Facebook of support and to find out more.



Enjoy the talent that surrounds us.