July 7, 2009
I have decided to begin each musing with a quote. Over the years, I have saved quotes that spoke to me at the moment, and recently, I went through a stack of them, and picked a few for my writings. My first one relates to the last couple of entries, and I like it because it reminds me that it is sometimes harder for me to relax and do nothing than it is to be busy. The quote:

"How beautiful it is to do nothing, and then rest afterward." Spanish Proverb

How many of us can do this; how many of us even have the luxury of doing this?

On another note, sometimes I wake up thinking about, and worrying about all the negatives in life. When I get enmeshed in this thinking, I go to my "happy book" which is called "14,ooo Things to be Happy About" and reread things I have marked ; it always cheers me up, and helps me to get on the other side of sad. Today, I read some of my favorites, i.e.

1. Seeing a red bird; there is a red bird nest right out my bathroom window which I have been
watching, and is close enough for me to see papa feeding his new arrivals this morning.
2. Cinnamon rolls (anytime...day or night)
3. Browsing book stores
4. Downtown Chicago in 75* weather
5. Summer breezes while reading a good book on my back deck
6. Lunch with good friends at a special restaurant (doing this today to celebrate a birthday)
7. Fresh flowers from my garden on the table in a crystal vase
8. Wandering unknown country roads (will do this later this month with my husband in upstate
New York.
9. Glorious sunsets over the farmlands in central Illinois where I live.
10. A day with my daughters (rare)
11.Hiking in cool, shaded woods.
12. the mountains of Colorado and one more:
13. Listening to a symphony on public radio while doing nothing else but hearing the wonder of
the music.

These are just a few of my favorite things, and when I think about them in my life, it always cheers me up! Start your own list to read when you need a pick-me-up. It works for me!