Tag Archives: United States

It’s about time…

image

 Spring is my favorite time of year in Door County. Over the past 17 years, residents have engaged in a program to plant my favorite flower — daffodils — EVERYWHERE. 2.2 million to be exact. The days when they start to bloom not only please my sense of beauty, but they signal that warm weather is here to stay for just a little bit; http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/wisconsins-door-county-celebrates-spring-in-style-89777112.html

Related articles

There Is Nothing Missing…

JenPastiloffSimpleReminders-850x567[1]

Beautiful soul Jennifer Pastiloff shares:

I feel like I’m about to write copy for an antidepressant commercial. Are you depressed? Trouble sleeping? Find you can’t focus? Find you’re feeling down when you have no real reason to, and, in fact, anyone would think you’re insane for admitting it?

I’ve been struggling lately. And it’s a little overwhelming.

That’s what I have done. Or what I want to do. Try to put down some of my load: in a parking lot, in a blog post. Anywhere, really.

I suffer from depression. Or I have suffered. Which is it? Past tense? Present?

Let me be frank: I’m slipping a little lately. So is it present tense? Do I acknowledge it, then shift my thoughts, creating new mantras, such as, “I am happy! I am free of depression!” or do I sit quietly on this airplane and contemplate it?

What does that even mean — depressed? Is it something I’ve been told (yes!) or something I know deep in the labyrinth of my body, in my DNA (also yes)?

For as long as I can remember, I’ve felt a certain sadness I could never explain to anyone: a dead part inside of me that made me pretend I was sick and stay home from school (even in kindergarten) so I could eat cream cheese and olive sandwiches and watch TV with my mom. During college, I would leave NYU during the weekends to go home to Cherry Hill, NJ, an hour and a half ride on the Peter Pan Bus, so I could be at home, safe from the slick world of New York City and from feeling anything except hunger. Perhaps that’s how I fell in love with anorexia; it allowed me to stop feeling such nothingness. I replaced nothingness with anxiety and hunger, but I no longer felt depressed.

The point is, my life is pretty great. I’m happily married. I’m successful. I’m healthy. So, what is it? What is this demon?

Go to the source of this quote: There Is Nothing Missing: The Epiphany That Helps Me Cope With Depression

I’ve been learning a lot about ‘nothing’ along these lines lately as in ‘nothing is wrong with me anymore‘ and now ‘there is nothing missing’; both good mindful meditations…

Touching Peace by Thich Nhat Hanh

See on Scoop.it – Wholeheartedness

Todd Lohenry‘s insight:

Free download! Developing upon teachings on the art of mindful living begun in Being Peace, Thich Nhat Hanh shows the connection between inner peace and peace on earth. Recorded live in New York in 1991, he teaches us how mindful breathing and awareness is refreshing and healing, and how it can be used as the basis for examining the roots of war and social problems. His vision for rebuilding society through strengthening families and communities coalesces the ultimate reach of each act in our daily lives.

See on www.betterlisten.com

A wake up call…

chart

My exercise miles over the past year…

Like George Bush, I was too early to report ‘Mission Accomplished‘ back in September. By not being mindful around stretching before vigorous walking and biking I learned earlier this month that I actually tore my meniscus. Today, I’m having arthroscopic surgery to try to correct the excesses in time to take advantage of the warm weather to bike again. Apparently Aesop was right; “slow and steady” wins the race — especially as I approach my 55th year. Lesson learned?

The Time of Your Life: More Time for What Really Matters to You

Tony Robbins writes:

When it comes to managing time, most people focus on one question: What do I need to do? Focusing only on what it is you need to do, however, does not guarantee that you are making any real progress. To-do lists can keep you busy, and checking off a series of tasks can provide the illusion of progress. But have you ever crossed off everything on your to-do list and still felt like you had not really accomplished anything? There is a big difference between movement and achievement.

Activity without purpose is the drain to a life of fulfillment.

Those who succeed in life, and more importantly, achieve fulfillment—whether they are consciously aware of it or not—have three things they consistently focus on to produce results in their lives:

  • They know what they want: The target or the result they are after.
  • They know why they want it: The compelling purpose that gives them the drive to follow through.
  • They know how to make it happen: They have a flexible MAP (Massive Action Plan) to get them there.

Start with the end in mind. By focusing on the result you desire and the specific reasons that drive you, you’ll come up with a more effective action plan to get there. There are so many things competing for and demanding your attention in life, if you don’t make a conscious effort to decide in advance which things you’re going to focus on, you’ll live in reaction to demands of the moment.

Focus is the ultimate power that can change the way we think, the way we feel and what we do in any moment. When we change our focus, we change our life.

For a free download of the first session of Tony’s Time of Your Life 10-Day Audio Coaching System, go to www.tonyrobbins.com/time.

via The Time of Your Life: More Time for What Really Matters to You.

American Minute for January 8th; The Battle of New Orleans

English: Andrew Jackson - 7 th President of th...

I think this is one of the most fascinating stories in American history and the whole think could have been avoided by one text message [which of course couldn't happen at the time]:

Though the War of 1812 was effectively over two weeks earlier with the signing of the Treaty of Ghent, December 24, 1814, news had not yet reached New Orleans.

On January 8, 1815, in the last battle of the War of 1812, nearly 10,000 British soldiers advanced under cover of darkness and heavy fog, intending to surprise General Andrew Jackson’s Tennessee and Kentucky sharpshooters, aided by French pirate Jean Lafitte and his men.

As the British neared, the fog suddenly lifted and in just a half hour 2,042 British were killed or wounded, while there were only 71 American casualties.

General Andrew Jackson wrote on January 26, 1815, to Robert Hays regarding the victorious Battle of New Orleans:

“It appears that the unerring hand of Providence shielded my men from the shower of balls, bombs, and rockets, when every ball and bomb from our guns carried with them a mission of death.”

General Jackson told his aide-de-camp Major Davezac of his confidence before the Battle:

“I was sure of success, for I knew that God would not give me previsions of disaster, but signs of victory. He said this ditch can never be passed. It cannot be done.”

Andrew Jackson wrote to Secretary of War James Monroe, February 17, 1815:

“Heaven, to be sure, has interposed most wonderfully in our behalf, and I am filled with gratitude, when I look back to what we have escaped.”

The Treaty of Ghent was ratified by the U.S. Senate, February 16, 1815.

All British troops were immediately brought back to Europe as Napoleon had escaped from the Island of Elba, February 26, 1816.

For one hundred days, events in Europe cascaded toward the massive Battle of Waterloo.

President James Madison proclaimed for the United States a National Day of Thanksgiving Devout Acknowledgment to Almighty God on March 4, 1815.

via American Minute for January 8th.

Related articles

American Minute for January 3rd

Emanuel Leutze's depiction of Washington's att...

Frederick the Great of Prussia called these ten days “the most brilliant in the world’s history.”

After winning the Battle of Trenton, Christmas night, George Washington’s small force met General Cornwallis‘ 8,000 man British army.

The night before the battle, Washington left his campfires burning and silently marched his army around the back of the British camp at Princeton, New Jersey.

At daybreak, JANUARY 3, 1777, Washington attacked, capturing three regiments of British troops. Enthusiasm swept America. Yale President Ezra Stiles stated in an Election Address before the Governor and General Assembly of Connecticut:

“In our lowest and most dangerous state, in 1776 and 1777, we sustained ourselves against the British Army of 60.000 troops, commanded by…the ablest generals Britain could procure throughout Europe, with a naval force of 22,000 seamen in above 80 men-of-war.

Who but a Washington, inspired by Heaven, could have conceived the surprise move upon the enemy at Princeton-or that Christmas eve when Washington and his army crossed the Delaware?”

Ezra Stiles continued:

“The United States are under peculiar obligations to become a holy people unto the Lord our God.”

via American Minute for January 3rd.