Random Thoughts
A firm foundation: fixing our eyes on the immovable
There is only one secure foundation…no matter what storms are raging. ~ Charles Stanley While house/cat sitting for my daughter and her boyfriend, I ventured on a solo walk close to dark. Unfortunately, I grabbed my sunglasses vs. my regular pair, rendering visibility limited. Nearly 20 minutes later, I realized I was lost so I…
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Thanks‘giving’ back: appreciation in action
First, thank you for stopping by my website. I appreciate you! Secondly, if you haven’t already guessed, this month my focus is all about “giving thanks by giving back.” In fact, I will be donating $1 to a local food bank for each new email subscriber in November. If you’d like to sign up, and/or…
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Attaining different outcomes: how to navigate crossroads
Since moving to Northern Arizona, my husband and I regularly explore a series of forest trails bordering our neighborhood—several of which are marked, as well as noted on our mobile apps. Others, however, reveal only worn-out grooves in the dirt, common at many of the forks we stumble across. This becomes an exercise in trial…
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More than thick skin: processing rejection and criticism
Who doesn’t love to receive good news? Or how about the saying: No news is good news? What about when the dreaded rejection arrives for that dream job, much-anticipated date, financial loan or story proposal? For me, the latter hits home big time. From five-sentence summary pitches to 800+-word short story submissions, the no’s outweigh…
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Catching up: permission to rest
I noticed it over a month ago during my morning walk: a tree in our neighborhood sporting a colorful top hat. In addition, the coniferous tree needles have turned into shades of brown and gold before dropping to the ground. And the morning temps on the mountain reflect the nighttime lows dipping into the 20s.…
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The long haul: do not grow weary
So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. ~ Galatians 6:9 Recently, I read a devotion that talked about changing how we view our problems. Instead of looking at them in their entirety, the author suggested taking one action…
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When results and efforts differ: defining growth
Now that we’ve surpassed the five-month mark into our new adventure on the mountain (see After the Leap), due to a three-week setback with COVID early on—as well as multiple challenges that have taken precedence—it often seems we have little to show for our efforts. Especially when they’re not tangible or measurable; e.g., personal growth,…
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Goodbyes and expectation: returning to reality
When my daughter visited our cabin in September, the goodbyes were especially difficult for me—the only consolation that we’d meet up the following week when my husband and I traveled for appointments and planned to spend two nights at her home. Not surprisingly, when the moment came to say goodbye the second time, it proved…
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View your surroundings with fresh eyes: resurrecting potential
Recently, we hosted our daughter for the weekend at our little cabin in the woods. To view the space through her eyes for the first time reminded me of the reasons my husband and I fell in love with the mountain retreat when we, too, first laid eyes on it. Yet it’s too easy to…
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Looking ahead: a healthier future
During a recent hike, my husband and I descended roughly 500 feet into a canyon. And what goes down, must go up or vice versa. Since moving to the Mogollon Rim in Northern Arizona—elevation approximately 7,400 feet—I wonder if this may be why I sometimes struggle with breathing on inclines. Another consideration may be that…
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