True colors

All the male birds are really revving up the color in their feathers since it's mate picking time. It is amazing to see just how much more red the Cardinals can become. The Goldfinch are starting to turn their canary yellow and soon, the yard palate will be ablaze with true color.

Can you have a chat with your wife?

So, I wrote about how my female Bluebird is being very territorial and pecking at her shadow in my windows? Well, it did not stop. As a matter of fact, it got worse and worse and it seemed she saw the "intruder" in my high great room windows for the most part. We'd watch as she'd light on the railing of the deck or on the gutter and then fly up to peck and flutter in front of certain panes in the window.

On Saturday morning, husband's patience was running out and he said, "Just take down that nest box for a while and make her find someplace else to nest." I headed out to the yard to check the box, and of course, she already had two beautiful blue eggs. Not an option. Finally, I called Wild Birds Unlimited to see if they had the window strike clings. I ran by there later that afternoon, desperate to find some way to get her to stop. We isolated the particular panes she seems to peck at the most, and applied the vinyl cling birds to them, and we hoped that the next morning, she'd be less anxious.

Well, initially it seemed to be working, but then later in the day on Sunday, we heard her tell tale pecking and fluttering sound. Sigh. During the day, there were a few more incidents, but at least they had decreased a good bit. Maybe, just maybe, she was starting to feel less threatened.

Later in the day, I found her perched out in the tree line, and as I approached her with my camera, I spoke to her and told her that she needed to get in there, finish laying her eggs, and start incubating! She looked as if she was looking around me towards the window as if to say, "There! Don't you see her? Why don't you talk to HER and tell her to stop?"


Not long after that, I saw her fly to where her husband was waiting, so I talked to him too. "Uh, could you maybe have a chat with your wife and tell her that this is all in her imagination? We are tired and weary of her attacking our windows. Please tell her that she is the only one for you." I hope he understood every word I said. And, I hope these eggs don't hatch out to be babies with dents in their heads.

Isn't he just magnificent?

The hackberry trees are budding out next to the lower driveway, and the birds love to perch there. In a given moment, I can spot four, even five different species enjoying the view and sunshine from this vantage point. But when I saw my male Bluebird perched so beautifully on a limb, he received all the attention of my lens.

Nuthatch raspberries

I was trying to catch some photos of the Brown-headed nuthatch on the peanut feeder and was having a time of it as he scooted around and around taking small bites. I had the lens poised, waiting for him to come around the back of the feeder and fired off some shots as he made his way around. It tickled me to see that the sun was hitting him just right, and I captured him sticking out his tongue at me!

Oh, I love surprises

So, on Tuesday, I posted about the new template options at Blogger Draft, and since that time, have been playing around with it to see what all new options are available. Even with the new templates, the options still seemed sort of limited to me. That is until I went to the Background tab above and then by chance, clicked on the down arrow (I've marked it above with the big red arrow) to see a plethora of options for backgrounds!! WOW! Check out all the categories and options you can use below. Oh my... it's going to be a fun time indeed. I love finding little surprises like this that I initially overlook. Go ahead. Go to draft.blogger.com and have some fun.

I know I sound like a broken record, but...

Maybe, like Ruth noted to me on her blog comments, it's because I am in the health care field and have been for 26 years, but I keep feeling as if there is so little understanding about just how broken our current health care system has become. Or maybe, it's because a good number of those years were spent employed by a public teaching hospital, where I saw, first hand, what happens to those who have no insurance. Not only did I witness people who fell between the cracks or were left thousands of dollars in debt, but I watched as a health care system struggled under the weight of millions upon millions of dollars in uncompensated care.

I see all the opposition to universal coverage and I hear angry people shouting that it's "not their job to take care of everyone else." And, it stuns me just how little they understand that under our current system, they ARE the ones who pay for those who can't. They pay in higher premiums, higher deductibles, higher drug costs, insurance carriers dictating their care, and in some cases, they pay by becoming those who are uninsured because their employer can no longer afford to offer benefits. If there is a way for everyone to have affordable coverage, it becomes a more stable system. Why is that so scary?

Case in point, was the patient I saw this week, who was employed and who fell off his porch back in 2004, sustaining a fracture of his left tibia and fibula of the lower leg. He had surgery to correct it, but in the interim, he lost his job due to being unable to work, and thus, his benefits. Back in the fall, he re-injured the leg and now needs to have hardware removed and the bones fused. He is in horrible chronic pain, and no orthopedic surgeon will touch him. He has no coverage. He can't pay for the surgery or an expensive hospital stay. So, what does he do? He takes numerous trips to the ER when the pain becomes too unbearable, and receives a prescription for maybe 10 pain pills. Why doesn't he see his PCP? He has no PCP, as he's still in the "process" of applying for Medicaid, and thus can't afford to see a primary care physician. Oh, did I mention he has hypertension too which is untreated? What happens if this man has a stroke? I'll tell you what happens. He gets taken by EMS to a hospital, is admitted and given the very same care as an insured patient, but there is no one to pay the bill. Who pays? You do. You and I do. And the bills keep getting higher and higher and higher to somehow compensate for those with no way to pay.

Now, tell me again why it's such a horrible thing to have a public option for those people who have no insurance? When you understand, that in the long run, it will cost more to fix the complications than the original problem, then it's a no brainer. Our current health care system is like the Titanic, not headed for the iceberg, but with one end in the water and about to sink. I know there are many that are so angry, they can't see this, but trust me when I tell you that doing nothing was no longer an option.

Best of both worlds

Is there anything better than a butterfly bush? They are heat and drought resistant and they bloom and bloom all summer long. It is a treat to see them covered by butterflies and even the hummers. But, depending on the variety, they will grow to be ginormous and require constant pruning to keep them manageable.

I was looking around some gardening sites the other day, when I came upon this lovely plant. It's called Blue Chip, and it's a miniature butterfly bush! You can place it in planters on the porch even. What a wonderful thing, especially for those without large yards, or who have limited space. You can enjoy the butterflies and hummers in a compact pot! I will be looking for some at our local nurseries.

New Blogger looks

As you can see, I've done some spring tweaking, and I'm sure it won't be long before the header photo and colors will change again as we get further into spring. Ruth had posted to her blog that Blogger was finally offering several new creative template options, and yesterday I had time to browse through them to see what I liked. Kudos to Blogger for responding to the need to have more options which did not require one to adjust HTML code and/or lift up lots of prayer while clicking "save." With these new templates, you can customize so much more creatively. Hopefully, more choices will be added soon. Check out some of the new template options!

Sing me a song

The Song Sparrow has been singing up a storm now.
This little one outside the kitchen window was quite the soloist!

And so now I know

(Photo taken inside my church years ago before I was in the choir.
You can see the choir practicing in the seating area behind the altar.)

I can do a solo by golly. I don't know... maybe because Debbie and I practiced a good bit, or maybe because I listened to the recording of our practices over and over, but whatever the reason, I felt really calm and prepared for my solo at church yesterday. No jitters to speak of. No gut twisting worry. Just calm assurance that I could do this.

We only had two hymns to sing but as luck would have it, I was also the lector for the service. Thankfully, the scripture reading from Isaiah was short and pithy. During the announcements (which we do in the middle of the service before the Eucharist), Debbie and I came out to sit on one of the pews along side the wall from the altar area. She had set up her stand with the music, and once the offertory began, we proceeded up to the rail area. She had not really been able to warm up, and so once she began the intro to Wayfaring Stranger, the chords sounded all off, and I had no clue where she was in the music. I turned to look at her and she smiled as if to say, "OK... well... let's try that again." She started over and it was perfect.

Once the intro was played, I opened my mouth to sing. And this is what I know... my mouth was so open, and I was so relaxed, that it came from me effortlessly. It was like pouring honey over biscuits it was so glorious and smooth. I made a point to actually write within the music, 'BREATHE!' so that I would not forget to take some good deep breaths to be able to finish out each line of the song without my voice wobbling. It worked. I think I was swaying as I sang and at one point, I know I closed my eyes, feeling the song so fully. It almost felt like an out of body experience in a way. I know that sounds odd, but I felt fully in another place. I hit that last ..."I'm only going over home" and lowered the music to turn and head back to the choir area, when the congregation erupted in short applause. OK, for those of you who do not attend a liturgical church, clapping during a service in Lent is... well... not in tune with the overall somberness of the moment. But regardless, they wanted to let me know that they loved it, and I was touched.

After the service, a long time older member came up to me whom I had spoken with briefly before the service to let her know about our solo planned for the day. She came towards me to tell me that I made her cry. She said, "I wanted to clap, but I was too busy digging out a tissue from my purse!" I was touched that my joyful noise actually brought people to tears. My confidence in my ability has increased exponentially and I felt truly blessed.

Pure sweetness

I saw Sam come out of his room and plop down on the landing.
I smiled and then inquired as to what on earth he was doing.
"Mom! I'm trying to rescue a ladybug!"

He was on the floor in front of her trying to get her to climb up onto
his finger, but she was having none of it.

After a few patient tries, she finally climbed up onto his thumbnail
and we took her out the front door to release her so she can
be the sweet, productive bug she is.
I think my bug is pretty darn sweet too, don't you?

Who is your God?

At work yesterday, I was assessing the leg of a patient, who had gone through a horrific accident 13 years ago which left her with a muscle flap on her heel area. Due to the trauma to the tissues, she will always have issues with circulation to this leg, and so is more prone to swelling and ulcers that have a hard time healing. The wound on her inner ankle area is almost fully healed now with good wound care and compressive dressings.

As I was dressing her leg, we were chatting, and she said to me, "You know, I was so relieved when the doctor told me that these things just happen (her wound to her leg). It was the first time someone had told me that it was not God's will." Of course, my head snapped up at that one. At first, I was not sure she was serious, but one look at her face told me that she was indeed. As if she had done something, or misbehaved in a way that God disliked, and so created this wound on her leg?

It reminded me of a mom I met years ago when I was mentoring and championing parents of newly diagnosed children with autism. Their church also intimated to them that maybe, just maybe, they had done something or had been really bad to have this wrath come down upon them. This was their faith community. The place where they turned for support and inspiration to get them through. Their son's autism was their punishment for bad behavior? I remember just sitting slack jawed on the other end of the phone, not knowing exactly what to say. In her heart, she knew that they had not done anything to deserve this, but here were people she loved and respected telling her that she was somehow to blame.

This makes me feel so very sad. Instances like these are why so many people have no faith at all. If your only choice is a scary, vengeful, judgmental God, or no God at all, well...

I know one thing. It's not my God. Never will be. Never was.

In Jayneland...

Here is what I propose the rules of Jayneland will be...

1. There will be no such thing as politics becoming a lifelong occupation. Nope. You get one five year term and that's it buddy. Go back home, and go back to work in the real world. Let another person in your district represent the people for a while with fresh ears.

2. There will be no such thing as raising a bazillion dollars for a campaign. Nope. There will be a channel, sort of like C-SPAN, where there will be an opportunity for everyone to see and hear candidates for two or three months prior to an election. Equal time to say whatever you need to say to let people know who you are and what you think. Even playing field. FREE.

3. There will be no such thing as "special interests" or "a lobbyist" in Washington. Nope. You can not use money and promise of votes to make people be beholden to you or your group as that is not how it was intended to be. Votes should never be, and will never be, for sale. Period.

4. There will be an equal number of Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate. None of this "na-na-na-na-na-na... we have the majority and will do what we darn well please." Nope. It will be 50-50 and guess what? People will have to use their brains, determine what the people THEY represent think, and then take those thoughts to the floor as rational debate takes place to discover just what is best for the country. Oh, and remember... you don't have to worry about your decisions making you lose an election as you'll only have one term and one election to win. WORK IT OUT people.

5. Health care WILL be available and READILY accessible for all Americans. Period.

Farewell my buttery friend

All winter long, I had yet to see a Yellow-rumped Warbler. They
spend their winters here in the South, but for whatever reason, they
were scarce around my yard this season. Finally, last weekend, I
spotted this sweet little one on the ground, and waited patiently until
he flew into the Crepe Myrtle. He only perched for a moment, then
was gone. I am thinking he may have just been migrating northward
and happened upon my feeders. Godspeed little one. Until next year!

Luck of the Irish to ya!

(From an Ireland tourism site)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

On June 12th, and my mom and I will be on our way!
I can't wait to see the rolling, green hills in person,
and to kiss (OK, touch... uh... or see?) the Blarney Stone.

Beyond Amazing

Sunday evening, on 60 Minutes, Leslie Stahl again visited with
Derek Paravicini, who is a blind musical savant. Derek also
demonstrates many of the characteristics of autism, and yet, when
he sits down at a piano, his genius is revealed. He can hear and
feel the music as if it's part of him, and can turn any piece of
music into another style upon request.

This much we know for sure about the human brain...
there is really so little we know.

Wayfaring Stranger

(Sunrise near Grandfather Mountain, Blue Ridge Parkway, NC - Webshots)


Well, the big solo is coming up , and so my fellow choir member,
Debbie, and I got together on Sunday to work out how we
would perform our version for the Communion Anthem during the
5th Sunday of Lent next week. We practiced last week, and thought
we had it down, but yesterday, Debbie suggested putting the mute
on her violin, which fully changed the tone and made it sound more
like a viola. The effect was even more mournful and fits the mood
of the song quite well I think.

I've never created a movie to upload with audio, and did not find
iMovie to be very user friendly, and so I apologize for having only
the one photo to see during the entire song. Maybe I'll get better
at this with practice. Please overlook the many vocal bobbles if you will,
as my voice was getting rather tired after singing during the service.
Attempting this solo at all (and sharing it here) is so outside my comfort
zone. Hopefully, you can at least hear what I pray will be a beautiful
anthem offered up to His glory next week.

(We are omitting the third verse for brevity as we did not want to run too long.)


I'm just a poor wayfaring stranger,
I'm traveling through this world below.
There is no sickness, toil, nor danger,
In that bright world to which I go.
I'm going there to see my father,
I'm going there no more to roam.
I'm just a going over Jordan,
I'm just a going over home.

I know dark clouds will gather o'er me,
I know my pathway's rough and steep.
But golden fields lie out before me,
Where weary eyes no more shall weep.
I'm going there to see my mother,
she said she'd meet me when I come.
I'm just a going over Jordan,
I'm just a going over home.

I'll soon be free from every trial,
This form will rest beneath the sod.
I'll drop the cross of self denial,
and enter in my home with God.
I'm going there to see my Savior,
who shed for me his precious blood.
I'm just a going over Jordan,
I'm just a going over home.

Welcome my friend to Blogger

(Portland Head Light photo by Robert Burns)

As I mentioned last month, my friend Dr. Burns is a wonderful
photographer. I've encouraged him to think about starting a
blog where he could post and discuss his wonderful photos,
and he's finally taken the plunge at Robert Burns Photography.

Go give him a warm Blogger welcome and enjoy seeing some
of his very beautiful photography!

Kate's Celebration

Kate, over at Chronicles of a Country Girl, is having a lovely giveaway
to celebrate reaching 500 readers. Check out the beautiful photos she
has created that you can choose from if you win. Heck, even if you
don't want to enter her drawing, check out her beautiful blog and be blessed.

Suggestions?

Last weekend, when we did some garden clean-up, I made the decision to do away with some Sweetspire in the side yard bed above. Now, I need to figure out what might work well in that space. I am open to suggestions, oh mighty gardeners out there!

As you can see, this bed (which was here when we purchased the house) has five Weigela (blooms deep hot pink) in the back and seven Dwarf Nandina in the front. It also had some ornamental grass, which was almost dead, and so I replaced it with some Zebra grass (on either side of the Weigela) which has been healthy and hearty. I also planted some Dianthus between the Nandina, which seems to like it there and which comes up year after year.

So, I need suggestions for what to put on the outer back corners. This bed gets full sun and due to the slope, gets a good bit of rain run off as well. I would think I'd need some sort of compact, hearty shrub that does not get way too big. We are located in the 7-8 growing zone. Any suggestions?

Shockingly sad

(Saffron Finch photo by Tom Fake on Wikipedia)

Yesterday, I was reading USA Today while waiting on Sam at school when an article caught my eye on the front page. It was about, of all things, the emergence of "finch fighting rings." What on earth? I went on to read the article in the Life section and was saddened to the point of feeling almost sick. It seems that this is a big "sport" in Brazil, and has found its way to the US. I can not even imagine how depraved human beings could subject these sweet birds to such cruel and deadly activity, all for the sake of betting sport.

It's bad enough to know that cock fighting, and even dog fighting are alive and well in many parts of the country, but songbirds? I am just shaking my head in disbelief. Truly. I can't even imagine it.

A brave girl

My Sissy got me this really neat Bluebird feeder from Duncraft
for my birthday. I decided to put some of the Bark
Butter into the dish as the Bluebirds love it and I knew they
would readily go into the feeder to enjoy some, without the
threat of Mr. Mocker ruining their meal and scaring them away.

Well, the Bluebirds took their sweet time in getting up the courage
to climb in, and while I was waiting for them to try it out, I noticed
a good bit of interest from the Downys. The male and female would
climb on the Crepe Myrtle all around it, so curious, yet could not
for the life of them figure out how to get into the feeder.

Finally, I watched as the female gingerly stuck her head in, then
slowly eased her body through. She relaxed and then enjoyed
a long feast while her husband perched outside chittering away.
Tee hee hee... methinks she may tell him only the girls can get in?

Michelle's birdie friends

See this wonderfully cute Chickadee?
She's mine and she's on her way to Chickadee!
Oh, my... you simply must see what all the talented
Michelle Palmer has created and has for sale in her
Etsy store. Her work just makes my heart sing!

Come on! One more!

Yes, even the Chickadees are trying to get in shape for spring!

Grinning as I gulp Ibuprofen

(Photo taken in March of 2007, when the Bluebirds claimed this
same house early, and were busy nest building. I've had this house
since 1986? Can't even guess how many babies have fledged from it,
but I usually have three to four broods each season.)

Yesterday, after getting all the laundry done, and waiting a bit for the sun to shine brightly, I headed outside. Sweatpants, old t-shirt, ball cap, and sunglasses... and fresh, sweet 59 degree air to inhale! Ahhhhhh.....

I started with the mailbox bed and cut away all the old growth of the Sedum, which I left standing so as to have some height and interest in that bed for the fall and winter months. The green shoots at the base are already very visible and headed towards the sun! I got all the leaves and weeds out of the bed, then headed to a larger bed in the side yard. The Zebra Grass needed cutting back, and the Weigela needed trimming as well. More leaves needed to be gathered up there as well. And then, I got a really wild hair and decided to fully remove some Sweetspire on either end of the bed that continually sends up shoots up to 6 feet away during the growing season. Yep, got me a shovel and dug up both of those puppies, I did. Pulled every one of those runners up as I laughed maniacally! Whoo hooo!

Then, I headed to the large bed along side the house where I have all my bird feeders and had to gather all the wilted Hosta (yes, I know that should have been done in the late fall) and cut more Zebra Grass in that bed as well. More weed pulling commenced, leaving that bed looking just lovely. Well, until I noticed that the Rose of Sharon could also use some trimming back. More stooping, cutting, lifting, hauling in the wheel barrow. All in all, I think I filled that big sucker up maybe five times??

Once it was all done, it looked amazingly better! Ready for spring! Oh... but what about spring cleaning for the birdies? I then headed to my houses and cleaned them all out to make sure they also were ready for new nest building. Well, except for the old bluebird house shown above where I know it has already begun!

I love this time of year, and though I probably will be groaning for a few days with sore muscles, it was so worth it. Just being outside in the sun, garden gloves on (hey, the gloves with nitrile on the hands rock!), and feeling the fresh breeze in my face is worth all the Ibuprofen I'll have to gulp this week! Today, it's supposed to be up to 62 and I will be able to simply relax on the deck, while smiling in the sunshine and reading my Kindle. Life is good.

The imaginary competition

For the past week, we've been hearing what sounded like something
hitting the window in the great room. Finally, last weekend, husband
happened to be sitting on the couch when he exclaimed, "There it is!
It's your female bluebird!" Well, I flew into the room, but did not see her.
He said that she would peck at the window and then fly back to the house.

Sure enough, on Thursday, I saw her carrying pine straw into the old
bluebird house, so she has begun her spring building already.
In the past few days, I've heard her again pecking on the window, but
have never seen her. But yesterday, as I was in here on the computer,
she appeared in the window and was not happy with the reflection she saw!
I was only able to catch this one shot, but she would periodically come
to peck and chitter away at the imaginary competition. I've seen Cardinals
do this a good bit, but never my bluebirds! I do hope she'll relax a bit
and stop paying so much attention to her own reflection.

Friday Inspiration

So, tell George Utley why life is hard...

"Life's too short," said Utley. "You've just gotta get out and conquer the world because you never know what you can do unless you try."

OK... enough already.

(Yesterday on Chickadee...my beautiful Double Bloom Daffodils are already coming up in my mailbox bed.)

It's that time of year again. This same time of year happens twice each year. First, in March, and then again in late August. Like clockwork. Feeling really antsy and impatient. Feeling like I will never be warm (March) or cool (August) again. I know it will come. It always does, and yet living in the midst of it can make one just almost mad. The teasing is endless. Mother Nature gives you a weekend of almost balmy weather, and then BAM! We are smacked back into submission.

The cold feels like it has penetrated my bones. I can't seem to ever get my feet or hands warm enough, no matter how hard I try. I am so sick of being cold. Can I just say that again? I am SO sick of the cold... the deep, wet, cold. And, I am sick of snow and ice. Yesterday, we got another 3" of the cold, wet stuff. I know my Minnesota girls peeps (amended for Troutbirder...lol) are rolling on the floor laughing by now, and I'll just openly admit it... I'm not hearty enough to live up there!!! Those thermometers showing negative numbers give me nightmares! I am a Southern girl, through and through. Temperate. Yes, give me a temperate climate and I shall happily bloom.

So, I will save this post and use it again come late August when I whine and complain about sweat in my nether regions and how I can't seem to get cool no matter what I do. Maybe this will remind me that it's better to be able to pile on the blankets, than to have to strip nekkid in front of a fan.

Five new discoveries

Recently over at Chronicles of a Country Girl, Kate did a post on ten new discoveries and invited others to play along as well. It's not as easy as you'd think to come up with ten new things, but I did manage to think of five to share!

1. Alegria Shoes - I ordered some new scrubs from a company
who sent me an information sheet on these cool shoes which, like
my beloved Danskos, are supposed to support your feet and legs
like nobody's business. I ordered the professional clogs in black
and am anxiously awaiting their arrival to see if they can live up
to their claims!

2. Wildbleu Pajamas - I was Googling to find some sleepwear
that is made to give us women who are in that "waking up hot with
my hair stuck to the pillow" phase of our lives, some blessed relief!
I read about these amazing PJ's and had hubby get me some for my
birthday. I wore them for the first time last night and oh, my. The
softness of them is amazing and they feel so great against your skin!
Heck, if they can keep a marathoner dry...

3. M-Edge Latitude Kindle Cover - I've had my Kindle for a
year now, and adore it more now than ever. I've used two different kinds
of covers, but was browsing when I found that M-Edge has created even more
fabulous covers which protect it even better! I ordered this Navy Latitude
Jacket and LOVE it! It zips all the way around and even has a neat zippered
front where you can fit your charger cord for travel. Now, I feel much safer
slipping it into my purse as I know the screen won't come into contact with
anything all cushioned nicely in gray polar fleece.

4. Fiber One Raisin Bran Clusters - I am a huge Original Fiber One
(ZERO grams of sugar folks!) fan and will truthfully admit that I've eaten a
bowl almost every morning for ten years. I sprinkle it with some Splenda,
and either top it with blueberries or raisins and pour Silk Vanilla Soy Milk
over it. Yummy! It holds me until lunchtime and I do not ever get famished
before then. Some evenings, if I've eaten lunch late, or am not particularly
hungry, I like to have some cereal. I've wasted lots of money on boxes of
cereal that just didn't do it for me. I don't like cereal that gets soggy in milk,
and was tickled when I tried the Fiber One Raisin Bran! It's really good
and maintains its crunchiness so nicely.

5. Eden Pure Infrared Heater - My dad has had one forever,
and kept trying to get us to get one. Well, with the cold winter we've had,
and utility bills worthy of a second mortgage, we decided to order one for
our great room. Man, do these things put out the heat! We were able to
turn our thermostat down, and the room stays cozy as can be. And, they
are so safe as they do not get hot like traditional heaters. Heck, if Bob Villa
swears by them, they have to have merit!

Go ahead... Yaaaawwwwnnn

As we watched the speed skating competition during the Olympics,
I used to get quite tickled when warming up on the ice, Apolo Ohno
would be yawning to beat the band. At first, I wondered if he was just
trying to psych out his opponents. As if this was just going to be a cake
walk for him! But, one day, the commentator mentioned that he says
the yawning helps to relax him for his race and pull in extra oxygen!

Who knew?
So, go ahead... have yourself a nice yawn!

What I know at 48

Today, I celebrate my 48th birthday and this is what I know...

Your forties are the decade of pure discovery.
You learn that for once, it has to be about you.
You know that it is no one's job to make you happy.
You have to decide what that is and feed yourself.
You quickly realize just how preciously short life truly is.
You learn to let go of the need to be right, and
you do not hold onto anger as it is poisonous to your spirit.
You learn exactly what your faith is to you,
and smile when others don't agree with you.
You can state your opinion without defensiveness,
and again, smile when someone disagrees.
You can finally look at yourself in the mirror,
and own the relaxed skin, along with each and every crinkle.
You learn how to hug yourself.
You know who you are, and smile at those in their 20's who think they do.
You know that all the kindness you put out comes back to you tenfold.
And, for once, you don't feel the need to compare yourself to anyone.
You are enough.

At 48, I can say this without equivocation...
I adore who I am,
I like spending time with me,
and this process of discovery is delicious.
Happy Birthday to me!
Wonderful, delicious ME!