October 8--Hit the Ground Running

To serve is beautiful, but only if it is done with joy and a whole heart and a free mind.  --Pearl S. Buck

    We are in London. The flights were fine, about eight hours from Atlanta to Heathrow. I slept very little. We were supposed to be transferred as a group from the airport to the hotel, quite a long ride, but there was an issue wherein the bus and driver never showed. We ended up taking a $75 cab ride to the hotel, and we will be reimbursed by the tour company. Not a good start to the trip, but we hope that is the one and only snafu. 

    We walked down the street from the hotel to the Swan, an English pub, where we had beers and lunch. I was introduced to the menu item "mushy peas." My first thought was "that is redundant." But it is traditionally served with fish and chips. (See menu below.) I had "sausages and mash," three sausages on a bed of mashed potatoes. Yummy!

    Back at the hotel, we rested a bit, then went out on the lovely patio and played Rummikub for a couple hours. We finished off the evening early with a light supper. We are most excited for a good night's sleep. Tours start tomorrow.

    Happy to be across the Atlantic,

        Leta

AMEN!!

October 7--Up, Up and Away!!

For it is in giving that we receive.  --St. Francis of Assisi

    Today is a giant day. It would have been my dad's birthday #106. It was always quite cool to share October birthdays with my dad. I miss him every day.

    This afternoon a couple of planes will take friends and I to London for a two-week tour of England and Wales. This is my first trip back to Europe post-pandemic. The flights and jet lag are a bit of a challenge--the price we pay for travel fun. We'll be traveling with a tour group, so the prospect of meeting new folks excites even introvert me. Seeing Stonehenge is the "biggie" for me, though I know the whole trip will be fabulous. 

    I plan to continue blogging and posting every day. We'll see how that goes with internet access and the tour schedule. 

    Stay tuned!

        World-Traveler Leta

I anticipate several of these in my future...

October 6--S-T-R-E-T-C-H

You will learn a lot about yourself if you stretch in the direction of goodness, of bigness, of kindness, of forgiveness, of emotional bravery.  --Cheryl Strayed 

    I started reading an opinion article a couple days ago addressing the idea that Americans in general are getting meaner. The topic frustrated me so much I stopped reading. Are we getting meaner? Is the thought that we are getting meaner causing us to be meaner?!?! We had President Trump for four years, a man who champions meanness, so what did we expect?!?! 

    I've experienced several instances of meanness over the last few weeks, and in no case was the nastiness appropriate or necessary. Then again, is meanness ever appropriate or necessary?!?!? I believe the meanness trend is reversible. Let's "stretch in the direction of goodness, of bigness, of kindness, of forgiveness, of emotional bravery," and learn to love ourselves and ALL our neighbors (i.e., everyone on the planet). 

        Leta

A neighbor's street-side turtle collection

October 5--What to Do?

It is well to give when asked, but it is better to give unasked, through understanding; and to the open-handed the search for one who shall receive is joy greater than giving.  --Kahlil Gibran 

    I am gradually (patiently?) pondering new options to use my talents with the essential side benefit of making some income. I am considering whether I want to keep doing the things I am currently doing. As of now, that's a "yes." My number one criteria is flexibility of schedule, primarily because of my love of travel. Anticipated changes over the past year did not happen, and now I have more time on my hands than is good for me. Working from home is definitely a positive possibility, a good result of the pandemic. 

    I don't know what this will turn into. I do know that the desired end result starts with thought, so I am developing a mental picture of what I would like. I must trust the givingness of the Universe. This is a work in progress. 

    Imagination is the key, 

        Leta

A lovely morning for a walk with Barney,
Sunset Park in Wichita

October 4--Improvement Isn't Hard

How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.  --Anne Frank

    There you go. Use your smile and a few kind words and get started! Most of us aren't going to change the whole world, but we can improve our little section of it quite easily. 

    I read an article recently discussing the big increase in vehicle insurance rates. Yes, repairs are more complex and expensive, but the big thing is that drivers have become both more careless and aggressive since the pandemic. I see this often--so many running red lights ("crush that tomato"), speeding and tail-gating. And this is just in the 15-mile radius of my home. These behaviors are not necessary or helpful. Thus, we can improve our world today just by being more patient and alert drivers. 

    Thank you!

        Leta

FOR EVERYONE!!!

October 3--No Math Needed

When one loves, one does not calculate.  --St. Therese de Lisieux

    I often joke with my sons that they embarrassed me so many times as children--therefore, I have plenty of opportunities left to embarrass them to even the score. Eye-rolling and smiles ensue. 

    Far and away the most generous person I have ever known was my dad. We lived in the beautiful boondocks of Pennsylvania. My dad would regularly drive from neighbor to neighbor to collect donations for the American Heart Association or Cancer Society. He supported the Lutheran Church even though he did not attend (hedging his bets?). He worked hard creating the Miller Lumber Company to support our family. When I wasn't in school, I was in the lumber truck with him doing deliveries. Somewhere along every delivery route there was an ice cream store that had to be supported 😉😉 I can't recall him refusing any reasonable request from me. He put me through college and grad school. Dad is the reason I love sports so much as we drove to many high school football and basketball games together. I remember watching the first few Super Bowls with him. I am the gratefully spoiled daughter of "Snapper" Miller. If he ever "calculated," he did not use it against me. 

    Love is the way, 

        Leta

"Snapper" Miller,
as handsome as he was generous!

October 2--Take Care of the Home Base

The place to improve the world is first in one's own heart and head and hands, and then work outward from there.  --Robert M. Pirsig

The only divisions between the sacred and the secular are in the minds of those who believe in and reinforce the split… All things draw from the same wellspring of spiritual energy.  --Dr. Barbara Holmes

    The theme in "Daily Kindness" for October is generosity. I believe the most generous thing we can do for ourselves and the world is to care for lovingly for our physical, emotional, mental and spiritual health; for our homes and belongings; and to have good relationships with our family, whatever that looks like. I would also add doing work that is useful and fulfilling. Just think what the world would be like if we all did this! Peace, justice and harmony would reign. 

    Count me in,

        Leta

At the CSU Gardens...
Mother Nature's infinite generosity