October 31--Do I Have To? YES!

True love is not so much a matter of romance as it is a matter of anxious concern for the well-being of one's companion.  --Gordon B. Hinckley

    In his October 30 Daily Meditation, Richard Rohr offers these thoughts on Jesus' commandment to "love our enemies:"

Is there anything happening in America today that would make you think we believe we should “love our enemies”? If Christians do not decide to finally be like Jesus, then let’s just give up on this whole Christian thing. It doesn’t mean anything! If it’s just going to church on Sunday, then we have to stop pretending we’re following Jesus, because we’re just like everybody else—we are into power and money and deceit and war. If we do not preach the gospel, if we do not begin to live the gospel now, then let’s stop pretending that we care about Jesus or about following Jesus.

We are in a very scary position in the United States, and the whole world sees it. We are called to engage in a great mobilization, recognition, conversion, and transformation, because now the issues are too big, too real, and too right in front of us every day.

We cannot be silent any longer. Do not expect me to be silent, and I won’t expect you to be silent, either. It’s going to take courage. It’s going take each of us making little decisions in our little worlds to love, not just our neighbors, but even to pray for our enemies, to pray for our president, to pray for our country. If we can’t do these little things, what does it all mean?

    Loving is a daily choice and practice!

        Leta

October 30--Being a Decent Human

When we embark on intimate relationships, we make a basic human promise to be decent, to hold a flattering mirror up to each other, to be respectful as we explore each other.  --Lena Dunham 

    That certainly describes the ideal intimacy. Alas, we humans don't always measure up to the ideal. Otherwise there would be no domestic violence or the various forms of partner abuse. 

    On Monday I waited in a LONG line for one hour to vote. I am not complaining. The early voting lines have been consistently long, and folks keep coming. This is awesome! I saw a cartoon where one guy says to another, "I can hardly wait for election day so that we can stop arguing about the election and start arguing about the results!" I also overheard one man say to another: "I think it's going to be a shitshow no matter who wins." We are in for a wild ride, me thinks. 

        Leta

October 29--Reliability

Never esteem anything as of advantage to you that will make you break your word or lose your self-respect.  --Marcus Aurelius

    I grew up in a mostly unpredictable environment, so I quickly adopted reliability as my No. 1 valuable characteristic in a human. I don't care if you have three heads, walk with a limp and smell bad, as long as you can be counted on to do what you say you will do. The opposites, the unreliables, I refer to as "flakes." I have friends in both categories, and I love them equally. I just know that the "flakes" are likely to change their minds, for instance, if they get a better offer. 

    What about me and my personal reliability? Because I want to forever avoid the "flake" designation, I am quite cautious about what I agree to, and I have no problem with the one-word sentence, "No." A wise spiritual mentor once stated that if you are doing something you do not want to be doing, you are doing someone else's job. 

    I guess that's why I keep posting every day--I'm reliable!!

        Leta

The sun and tides--RELIABLE!!

October 28--Blossoms!

You are built not to shrink down to less but to blossom into more.  --Oprah Winfrey

    I look at my 2-year-old and 6-week-old grandsons and ponder how their lives will blossom. Our whole purpose in earthly life is joy, expansion and freedom. With that as our guide, we cannot help but blossom into more.

    We are living on a gigantic playground! Don't be afraid to explore it. I have been to Europe, Asia, Africa, Central America, Canada, and most states in the U.S. Soon I will be adventuring in the South Pacific. I live by two mottoes: 1) I lead a charmed life, especially when traveling; and 2) it's bad business to kill tourists, so countries generally don't do that. So far, so good!

    Closer to home, all one needs to do to keep blossoming is to continue learning. Ten years ago I would have proclaimed, "I can't paint." Now it is one of my favorite hobbies. The internet tells me that pickleball was invented way back in 1965--look how that has flourished and enhanced lives, including mine. 

    Can we please do our blossoming with much greater respect and care for our precious Mother Earth!?!?

        Leta

Zinnias know how to blossom!

October 27--Belonging is Beautiful

Two or three things I know for sure, and one of them is that if we are not beautiful to each other, we cannot know beauty in any form.  --Dorothy Allison

We have to be willing to meet each other on the porch in peace, to make room for each other, to listen to each other. Even if, at first, we might be inclined to presume the other person or group doesn’t belong…. Welcome your neighbor. Have a conversation. Listen not with a need to agree or disagree but with an open heart and a desire to try to understand their perspective…. You never know what you might learn about this other human being. Or what you might learn about yourself. Our ability to sit with each other in that space, through our differences, is the gateway to radical belonging. It is how we learn. It is how we grow. It is how we become. --Rev. Ben McBride

    Rev. McBride is describing beauty among us.

        Leta

Leta's latest "straight line" artwork

October 26--Our Body Intelligence

You attract the right things when you have a sense of who you are. 
--Amy Poehler

    I often write about the wondrous mystery that is the human body. Lately in my readings there has been considerable information about the intelligence of the body to recognize situations even before we are consciously aware. The feeling of safety is a primary one. When we are in danger, our bodies signal us even before any threat is evident. One example is how my body gets into a nervous panic near a great height even before I get near the edge. 

    Being able to recognize and use the body's signals is part of "having a sense of who you are." We would do well to nurture that intuitive sense within us. It can both keep us out of trouble and "attract the right things." 

        Leta

Our backyard "Red Sunset" maple

October 25--Considering Empathy

Few people, very few, have a treasure, and if you do you must hang onto it. You must not let yourself be waylaid, and have it taken from you.  --Alice Munro

    This dives into the realm of "what is your treasure?" Is it family? Wealth? Power? A hot car? The big house? Your looks?

    Let us consider empathy as a treasure, with these words by Debbie Mirza, from the book I wrote about yesterday:

One of the most concerning things I have observed about our society as a whole is that there is a growing number of people who lack empathy. This seems to be increasing, especially over the past couple of decades. As this planet has become more advanced in many ways, we are also losing what is most important. 

Many of the political leaders running the world's countries are devoid of empathy, and this affects everything. ... I have observed overt and covert narcissistic behavior in both the Republican party as well as the Democratic party. Decisions made by political leaders as well as heads of large corporations affect all of us. If these are made from a place where empathy does not reside, it will not end well. When empathy isn't in leadership, decisions are made that hold money and power as the greatest priority instead of the people who reside here and the planet that feeds and shelters us. 

People with no empathy have no remorse and act out of their own selfishness, hurting others and not feeling bad about it. They excuse their destructive behavior and blame others. Covert narcissism is all around us, affecting our self-image and self-worth. 

    What are our treasures? What future are we creating?

        Leta

October 24--A Very Welcome Spiritual Nudge

Never say you know the last word about any human heart.   --Henry James

    I would say that this quote has quite a long spectrum, from the ultimate love of a healthy heart to the ultimate destruction of a wounded heart. 

    My niece sent me a picture of a book imploring me to read it, and as it turns out, I already had it and hadn't opened it. How's that for a spiritual nudge?!?!! The book is by Debbie Mirza titled "The Covert Passive Aggressive Narcissist." It describes my niece's life experience with her ex-husband in frightening detail. I originally purchased the book in regards to the abuse I experienced from my older brother, Ken. The book indicates that anyone who has experienced a CN is all three of these: target, victim and survivor. The target is one who takes most of the CN's abuse and is the CN's energy supply. We were victims of abuse even though there are no physical scars. And we are survivors diligently working on healing. 

    It is a very encouraging book, written by someone who understands the life-long trauma this abuse can cause. I have never been able to make anyone in my family understand the insidiously-sick relationship my brother created with me. It is comforting to find someone who "gets it." 

        Leta

October 23--Big Project Mostly Accomplished

One can never ask anyone to change a feeling.  --Susan Sontag

    Sure one can. That's what gaslighting is. But I get it--it is a cruel, disrespectful thing to do. 

    The feeling I'm going with this morning is WOOHOO!!! I purchased a new laptop computer a few weeks ago, and I've been procrastinating on getting it up and running. I revved it up Monday afternoon and got it all set up, including cajoling my ancient unsupported laser printer to print!!! I asked my techy husband only a couple questions and was able to figure those things out. I'm feeling pretty proud of myself! 

    Happy dance!

        Leta

October 22--This Ancient Wisdom Still Applies

Consideration for others is the basis of a good life, a good society.  --Confucius

    Kansas is, unfortunately, a very "red" state, where our Republican-led state legislature appears to be clueless as to the wisdom of the Confucius quote. By all appearances, their mission is to make and keep Kansans sick, dumb and poor. 

    I would offer that consideration for others includes a "live and let live" attitude. There are so many personal things that are nobody's business--not the government and not any outsiders looking in. This includes such things as gender orientation, sexuality, and abortion. Our "good society" is fading away as our freedoms are being taken and government interference mounts.

    Vote!

        Leta

October 21-Warts and All

You need someone who will treat you with respect, love every part of you, especially your flaws.  --Cecelia Ahern

    One of the common characteristics of addicts is a "magic magnifying mind." I've got one of those, too prone to way too much drama. One of the jokes in recovery circles is that when the car breaks down, normal people call a tow-truck and/or repair place; addicts call suicide prevention. 

    So in the places where I am experiencing dramatic frustrations in life, I am trying to come up with more moderate ways to look at things. This also helps with the character defect of self-pity that I have written about recently. My spouse annoys me. Doesn't everyone's spouse annoy them?!?! I note that I am most likely equally annoying to my spouse. This is not cause to terrorize myself with thoughts of divorce or moving away! Anxiety shows up in me as a terrifying imagination. I could have had a great career making horror flicks. 

    "Calm down, Leta. This, too, shall pass."    

        Leta

  

October 20--Nothing to Prove

You alone are enough. You have nothing to prove to anybody.  --Maya Angelou

    I remind myself often that I have "nothing to prove to anybody," but like all of life, it's a daily practice. It is especially challenging for this codependent person! As I sit here and ponder this quote, I realize that painting has helped me with this. I'm never going to be a da Vinci, and I'm really OK with that. The key is to enjoy my playtime with paints and know that whatever comes through me is unique to me and quite enough!

    Birthday fun continues... my younger son called with birthday wishes and a friend from grad school called and we had a lovely catch-up chat. Our three best-buds set from grad school--all of us had two sons. What are the chances?!?!! 

    SUPER birthday bonus--I learned yesterday that my great-niece had her daughter on my birthday 😂 I am now a great-great-aunt three times over. 

    Let the fun continue!

        Leta

Leta's current fun-with-paints

October 19--What A Day!!

Three things in human life are important: the first is to be kind; the second is to be kind; and the third is to be kind.  --Henry James

    My birthday started with a 5am wakeup to squeeze in all the fun I planned. How can a day be bad when it starts with doggie belly-rubs?!?! I completed a 30-lap swim, shower and coffee purchase and was back home before the sun came up. I enjoyed my coffee while doing my daily readings. 

    I worked a bit on my current straight-line painting, then took Barney for a walk. We are having glorious fall weather and the leaves are just beginning to change color. Then I drove to Moxi Junction in Maize, where AARP was buying breakfast treats for all the guests. I attributed that special event to it being my birthday 😉😉 and enjoyed a cinnamon roll. Then I went to three estate sales. I found no treasures, but I love to look. At noon I had a lovely massage. Then I practiced my daily hobby of napping. 

    Party time! I reserved game tables at Side Pockets Sports Bar, and 15 or so friends showed up to eat, drink, play cards and Rummikub. It was a blast. This was an "inaugural event" as I hope to get folks together regularly at a bar for Rummikub. There is plenty of enthusiasm to carry us forward. 

    The day was capped off by a birthday wish from my older son along with photos of both grandsons. 

    Happy to be here!

        Leta

"Keeper of the Plains"
Love my Wichita home!

October 18--Party Time!!!

Real, sane, mature love--the kind that pays the mortgage year after year and picks up the kids after school--is not based on infatuation but on affection and respect.  --Elizabeth Gilbert

    Today is my birthday! Another trip around the sun has been completed, and I'm hoping for many more! I have made celebration plans which I shall report on here tomorrow. It's a treat to have a Friday birthday. As such it shall include my usual Friday fun of swimming and visiting several estate sales. 

     Back to the Gilbert quote... amen! Infatuation doesn't last long. I suppose it is a necessary part of the process, but I'll take long-term affection and respect any day. I often say that the two best things in one's financial life are 1) the mortgage is paid off, and 2) the kids are supporting themselves. Those are both evidence of mature love. 

    Big fun day ahead!

        Leta

MOXI Junction, coffehouse in Maize,
another favorite Friday morning spot

October 17--Encouragement Appreciated

Our chief want in life is someone who shall make us do what we can. 
--Ralph Waldo Emerson

    Do I want someone who will make me clean? I don't think so!

    Moving on... I think this is more in line with wanting someone who will strongly encourage us to use our Spirit-given talents. My husband's parents made all three sons take piano lessons as youngsters. Two of the three have been active life-long musicians. What a gaping hole there would have been in my husband's life without using his musical talents. I had an extremely creative mother who had the infinite patience to teach me to sew and crochet and in general planted the "creativity bug" in me. She is also responsible for my "travel bug." My life would have been so different without those encouragements. 

    When I was in training for my spiritual coaching certification, I was at an event with my teachers and other students and ministers. I volunteered to offer a prayer. Afterwards, one of my teachers basically said that I didn't do it right. Another minister overheard that, pulled me aside later and said, "Don't let that bother you. Once you get your license, you can pray however the hell you want!" And I do!

    Off and running,

        Leta

October 16--Gettin' Fancy

Love is the expression of the one who loves, not of the one who is loved. Those who think they can love only the people they prefer do not love at all. Love discovers truths about individuals that others cannot see.  --Soren Kierkegaard

    Although I see the truth of this quote, I have a LONG way to go to truly love those whom I don't prefer! It is hard enough sometimes to love those I do prefer.

    I have been sewing since I was probably eight or nine years old, taught by a mother who was both an outstanding seamstress and perfectionist. Back then I made my own clothes. That's what a thrifty person did. I don't sew much any more--it is not the economical practice it used to be. I mainly mend or make the occasional "project." 

    When I was last visiting my niece and we were playing Rummikub, we would put the tiles in a small beat-up paper bag to draw from. I promised her I would come up with a nicer set-up. I found the silicone steamer basket on Amazon which is the perfect-size tile-holding tub. At the fabric store, the colorful fabric jumped out at me as "the one," and it even matches the tub. I measured, cut and sewed the bags, one for the tub and one for the racks. This makes for easy transport, as my niece and friends often take the game to brew pubs and play. I mailed the tub and drawstring bags to my niece. She called as soon as she opened it, laughing, and said, "Oh my god, did you make these?!?!?" Yes! She is happy to have such a nice portable Rummikub setup. 

    Mission accomplished!!

        Leta

October 15--All Alone at the Pity Party

A little Consideration, a little Thought for Others, makes all the difference. 
--A. A. Milne

    I am fully aware that I am spoiled. I have been since birth. I am also aware that the other side of the "spoiled coin" is self-pity. I've been recognizing this character defect in vibrant, living color lately. Yesterday's reading in AA's "Daily Reflections" offered this: "Before we begin [our day], we ask God to direct our thinking, especially asking that it be divorced from self-pity, dishonest or self-seeking motives." 

    OK! OK! I get the message. One thing I recognize as pulling me into self-pity is having too much idle time. Another is procrastinating on creative projects. I am much happier when I am working on a painting. (To my credit, I have scrounged up some canvases to play with.) I was scrolling through my calendar for the next couple of months and found this note-to-self in November: "Make treats for the neighbors instead of being Christmas-grumpy." Clearly self-pity is a long-standing defect!

    Milne's quote is the solution!

        Leta

October 14--Infinite

Love is about bottomless empathy, born out of the heart's revelation that another person is every bit as real as you are.  --Jonathan Franzen

    Bottomless = infinite. I want to direct this writing to the fact that our magnificent Mother Earth is "every bit as real as you are." We have lost this knowing in our gross exploitation of the planet. This is from Richard Rohr's Daily Meditation of October 13:

We have not honored God’s Presence in the elemental, physical world. We made God as small as our own constricted hearts. We picked and chose, saying, “Oh, God is really only in my group, in baptized people, in moral people” and so on. Is there that little of an Infinite God to go around? Do we have to be stingy with God? Why pretend only we deserve God, and that God is not for other groups, religions, animals, plants, the elements, Brother Sun, and Sister Moon?

    The Earth and all creation are vibrant expressions of the infinite love of Spirit. "Infinite" is a tough concept for the human mind. But we need only look up into the sky to see "infinite." 

    Let us honor the infinite love that enfolds us by caring lovingly for our Earth home.

        Leta

October 13--Relentless Love

Watch out for each other. Love everyone and forgive everyone, including yourself. Forgive your anger. Forgive your guilt. Your shame. Your sadness. Embrace and open up your love, your joy, your truth, and most especially your heart. 
--Jim Henson

The conservatives/Republicans will never give up using their fear tactics, so we have to be equally relentless with love.  --Leta Miller

How about we don't have a president and we all just agree to be cool? 
--Random internet meme

Disagreeable things tend to disappear when they are not believed in. 
--Frances Lord

    I am exceedingly grateful right now for the rapid passing of time, because I want this election cycle to be OVER. The fear-based advertising and lies are nauseating. Even more troubling to me is the ignorance that has led folks to believe the lies. 

    The answer? Our hope? Reread the quotes above. We must stay focused on a higher consciousness, and that is literally homework--it starts within each individual. It is no small challenge, but our future depends on it.

        Leta

October 12--It's a Secret!

Self-love is a part of love just as self-interest is a part of friendship. 
--George Sand

    Self-love is the foundation of one's ability to love. If one does not love his/her own being, one cannot love another. We project how we feel about ourselves onto others. If we are judgmental and negative toward ourselves, we likewise judge others negatively. If we are content with ourselves, comfy in our own skin, we are accepting of others. 

    I've been pondering lately the idea of family secrets. I think the keeping of family secrets was hammered into me from an early age. I don't think anyone outside our family knew that my dad was an alcoholic, and my mom killed herself slowly via bulimia. When I was nine years old, there was a huge amount of family chaos and fighting about my brother Ken and wife-to-be Mary Ellen getting married. I was clueless at the time, but figured out later that she was, God-forbid, pregnant out of wedlock. When I was very young, a cousin married an African-American man, which was the worst possible thing that could happen in my parents' eyes. That cousin was forced to move away, and we were not allowed to speak of her. 

    I am keeping secrets to myself, I know. It feels safer than expressing them. It is a deeply-ingrained conflict-avoiding habit in me. I believe I am not alone in this habit. I am so grateful that I let out the big secret of my food addiction and sought help and recovery. 

    I fear that someday dementia and/or old age may cause me to lose my filters and all my secrets will spill out. That will be entertaining!

        Leta

Most likely true...

October 11--To Sparkle or Not to Sparkle

No need to hurry. No need to sparkle. No need to be anybody but oneself. 
--Virginia Woolf

    But I love sparkles!!! Well, mostly I sparkle with toenail polish. As I look around the woman cave, I have sparkly curtains, glitter on the pots I painted, and a red cap with sparkles on it. A bit of sparkle IS me being me. 

    "No need to hurry"... I remind myself of this often, because I create time and I can create as much as I want. (See "The Big Leap" by Gay Hendricks.) Have you noticed lately how many more folks are running red lights? They are in a hurry. If I am the first car in line at a red light, I have trained myself to hesitate and look for red-light-runners before taking off on a green light. Maybe I'm just becoming a "get off my lawn" cranky old fart 😉😉

    I'm relieved to hear that my Florida friends and their properties are OK. Power outages were the worst of their issues. Alas, having been to the Tampa Bay Rays baseball stadium on my MLB quest, I must say that having the roof ripped off that stadium is the best thing that could happen to that mold-infested arena.

    Speaking of baseball, I'm bummed for the Phillies and Royals who have now gone home for the season. One of the main reasons I dislike winter so much is because there's no baseball. 

    TGIF!!

        Leta

Tropicana Field--this is the roof that 
is no longer there.

October 10--Agree to Disagree

The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image. If in loving them we do not love what they are, but only their potential likeness to ourselves, then we do not love them: we only love the reflection of ourselves we find in them.  --Thomas Merton

    I suspect it is fairly common... I have family members with whom I do not agree politically or religiously. Possibly you just mentally said, "DUH!! Doesn't everyone?!?!" Consequently, when we are together, the subjects of politics and religion are avoided "like the plague." This was especially true of my recently-passed brother. When he would go off on politics, I just kept repeating my mantra, "I love this man so much," so that I could listen and not argue. There is no changing folks with whom we do not agree. Change ONLY comes from a deeply personal interior decision. 

    I have a short paragraph from Abraham-Hicks that I read before each coaching session: 

You will know when you are of value to anyone when you are able to think about the person and feel good at the same time. When you love others without worry, you are an advantage to them. When you enjoy them, you help them. When you expect them to succeed, you help them. In other words, when you see them as your own Inner Being sees them, then and only then is your association with them to their advantage.

    Live and let live, love and let love show the way,

        Leta

Couldn't resist!

October 9--"This Glorious Day"

If you really care about the quality of somebody's life as much as you care about the quality of your own, you have it made.  --Edie Windsor

    Fortunately for me, Spirit has many routes to get blog ideas to me. Today's prayer, "This Glorious Day," is by Mary Davis:

Spirit, come into my heart

and create with me this glorious day.

Walk through me

so I will know where to go.

Speak through me 

so my words may be of kindness and peace.

Pray through me

so I may know how to assist.

Praise Spirit through me

so I may know how to serve. 

Think through me

so my ideas lead me

to what You would have me do.

Be joyous through me

so I may celebrate the beauty of all creation.

Parent through me

so I may be respectful and helpful.

Be a friend through me

so I may love and be loved in return. 

Work through me 

so I may do my work in the consciousness of Spirit. 

Write through me 

this unwritten chapter of my life.

Spirit, come into my heart

and create with me this glorious day. Amen.

    That pretty much covers it!

        Leta

October 8--Respecting Wellness

Our lives are not our own. We are bound to others, past and present, and by each crime and every kindness, we birth our future.  --David Mitchell

    There is a liquor store just over a mile from our house that posts comical thoughts on their store sign. If you are a regular reader, you know this one really made me laugh: "It's a small world unless you have to clean it." I live in a small house until it comes time to clean, then it is a mansion!

    I have seen my older son, upon the arrival of his first child, clean up his act physically in dramatic ways, most notably to stop drinking alcohol. This is a quite common and worthy practice among parents with new beings to whom they are bound.  

    I've been thinking lately about personal daily practices--crimes and kindnesses--that birth our future. It is the repetitive daily actions that birth a healthy future. You don't eat just once a month--we get hungry and eat several times a day. You don't brush your teeth once a year if you expect them to stay intact. Exercising once a month isn't that helpful. 

    I am a Melt Method instructor. Melt works with your connective tissue system which is everywhere in your body. It is a fluid-based system that surrounds all your muscles, organs, and bones. You could remove all the bones from your body and it would still be intact because of the connective tissue. This system includes the primary balancing function of your body. It dries out from daily activity and repetitive actions. Ever been stiff and sore? Bingo, that's a dried-out connective tissue system. Drinking water and eating a healthy diet support this system, but it isn't enough. Daily movement is required. Melt is a very simple and quick way to support this system, and it does wonders for relieving aches and pains. The catch? Melting every day. 

    I have a checklist of things I feel are necessary to support my wellness. It includes such things as flossing my teeth, taking my vitamins, doing my spiritual practice and using my netipot (sinus rinse) every day. I keep track of my exercise on a wall calendar and that motivates me. I've seen what happens to too many folks when they stop moving. 

    Days turn into months, months into years, and it is the "little" daily things we do, or don't do, that birth our future. 

    One day at a time,

        Leta

October 7--Thanks, Dad!

You are your best thing.  --Toni Morrison

    I can't trade me in for a new me, nor can you. In the big picture viewpoint of Spirit, each of us is perfect just as we are. Few of us, however, see ourselves that way. And most of us have or have had folks around us who would prefer that we be different somehow. I have a t-shirt that designates me as the "World's Okayest Pickleball Player." I'm good with that. I think we should all have shirts that identify us as "World's Okayest Human." 

    Today on his birthday, I remember my dad. He was born in 1917 and passed in 2000. I miss him every day. I believe I got my "numbers nerd" personality from him. He was a great businessman, kind and generous. One of my favorite memories is riding in the truck with him to deliver fresh-cut lumber to his customers--New Holland, Standard Steel, and several cabinet makers. Another memory was the nightly post-supper dish routine with me washing and him drying. I ironed many shirts and handkerchiefs for him. In our family of addicts, his substance of choice was alcohol. Mercifully, he was never mean to me and he always had my back. 

    Thanks, Dad!

        Leta

Me and Dad, a llloooonnnggg time ago!

October 6--Nerding Out

You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.  --Harper Lee

    There are loads of people I don't understand, wherein I can't begin to comprehend their point of view. That would include the very wealthy, who seem to me infinitely greedy, or those in politics, who seem driven solely by the insatiable desire for power. I've led a comfortable life, so it is difficult for me to understand the struggles of the very poor or homeless, or those who have had their lives devastated by natural disasters. The vastness of things that motivates people is so broad, I have to accept that there will always be plenty I don't understand. Waging war on fellow humans probably tops the list. 

    Nerding out... yesterday, for the 27th year in a row, I completed my swimming goal of 100 miles. Yes, of course, I have kept track of this in a spreadsheet. (My husband says I have "spreadshat" it.) This includes 117,052 laps, which works out to an average of 120 miles per year. I also keep track of my times playing golf or pickleball. What can I say? I love numbers and keeping track of these things motivates me. There is another swimmer whom I see often at the pool who already has over 500 miles in for this year. That keeps me (sort of) humble! And it will keep me swimming for the rest of this year and beyond. I am extremely grateful for the excellent YMCAs we enjoy in Wichita.

    Heading for the pool, again,

        Leta

One of many lovely Wichita YMCA lap pools

October 5--Whispers of Love

When we feed and support our own happiness, we are nourishing our ability to love. That's why to love means to learn the art of nourishing our happiness. 
--Thich Nhat Hanh

Butterflies can't see their wings. They can't see how truly beautiful they are, but everyone else can. People are like that as well.  --Naya Rivera

    I spent many glorious minutes this week holding and gazing at my three-week-old grandson, Remy. I love pondering what he sees, hears and understands. He can't see how truly beautiful he is, but his parents and grandparents can. He is a perfect new human. Sure, he has some baby acne, and he cries and is smelly sometimes, always for good reasons. Think of it--he goes from the dark, warm. confined world of Mom's womb into the world of lights, giants and noise. We have no way of knowing what his existence was before he chose this journey, but I totally believe there was consciousness somewhere/somehow. I spent a bunch of time whispering to him about how glad we are that he chose our family, what a great Mom and Dad he has, and how much fun he is going to have with his big brother, Luca. And over and over, how much he is loved. 

    In Spirit's "eyes," we are all, no matter our age and life choices, perfect humans. We are loved infinitely more than parents and grandparents love their little ones. Let us use this love to nourish our happiness. We are not here to suffer but to love and enjoy. 

        Leta

At Johnson County Community College

October 4--Home Again

To be one, to be united is a great thing. But to respect the right to be different is maybe even greater.  --Bono

    I think this is the huge problem we are experiencing nowadays--no respect for the right to be different, to disagree. If you are not "one of us" (whatever "us" is), you are simply bad and cannot be tolerated. This is painfully obvious as we enter the final month before the presidential election.

    Yesterday before leaving Fort Collins, we visited with our younger son working at Starbucks. Having achieved a well-caffeinated state, the trip was uneventful but quite windy. 

    It's good to be home!

        Leta

One of the many painted
utility boxes around
Fort Collins

October 3--The Choices We Make

Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.  --Simone Weil

    This is the Note from the Universe (Mike Dooley) from yesterday:

Would you ever take a journey if you knew ahead of time that you'd become hopelessly lost, have your heart broken into pieces, and sometimes wish you'd never been born?

Now, how about if you knew ahead of time that on that very same journey you'd later find yourself, fall passionately in love, and live happily ever after?

Yeah, I know, you made the same choice a long, long time ago.

                The Universe

WE ARE ALL BRAVE SOULS!!

    I saw a most excellent bumper sticker as we were driving around Fort Collins yesterday:

Roe Roe Roe Your Vote

    Yesterday's Colorado adventures included a dog walk, playing with Luca at the playground and hanging with his family, lunch at the Crown Pub where our younger son works, and shopping at Stardust, my favorite store. Well, maybe my favorite is Mary's Mountain Cookies. Let's leave it as a toss-up. My husband shopped and cooked dinner for all of us at the home of the grandsons, then we bid everyone "Farewell! Love you!" in anticipation of our trip home today. 

    On the road again...

        Leta

Read the back of the van!
Hint: it's a window blind business 😀

October 2--Grandsons!

Those who feel lovable, who love, and who experience belonging simply believe they are worthy of love and belonging.  --Brene Brown

    It has been a "rocky road" lately between me and my older son. Details are unnecessary. This visit has enabled us to hash things out. He is much more adept at talking about issues and he drags me along. 

    Yesterday morning was magnificent for golf--cool, sunny, no wind. I played nine holes with Ron, Bob and Paul, three fine gentlemen. I hadn't played in a couple months because I was frustrated with how I had been playing. I was quite nervous to start, but at least one of the men was not that good, so that calmed me some. I played my usual game (short shots down the middle) and only had one really dreadful hole. Anyway, I felt good about it all, ending this golf season in a much better mental space than I would have otherwise (I was considering giving it up.) 

    Then it was off to my son's house, where I got to enjoy both grandsons, holding 3-week-old Remy for long periods of time. While he slept in my arms, I whispered to him about his magnificence and how much fun he is going to have. His mom and dad are exhausted, and my husband had cooked lunch for them and then went out for Thai carry-out for supper. We left them with a wound-up two-year-old and a baby and loads of joy on top of their weariness. 

    More CO fun today!

        Leta

Fall blooms in my Wichita garden

October 1-Time for Respect

I always deserve the best treatment because I never put up with any other. 
--Jane Austen

    Welcome, October, so happy to see ya! 

    The October theme in "Daily Love" is respect. It is wonderful to start my birthday month in Colorado, where today I expect to meet my new grandson and play with his big brother. That will be after a 9-hole round of golf in magnificent fall weather.

    I enjoyed supper last night with my younger son and his significant other. He beat me to the check, of course, but that is OK, because he makes way more money than I do 😉😉 These two live together in a tiny studio apartment, so I can see there is a lot of love there. It is a joy to see two youngsters so happy!

    My husband took the nerd photo below while I was driving yesterday. Yes, I was speeding just a bit.

    Onward into the glorious Colorado sunshine!

        Leta

Odometer milestone 88888!