Love In A Clothes Dryer

You know what I love ...? How every time I use my clothes dryer I am reminded of my mother and her love for me.

We never use clothes dyers and instead always hang our washing on the line. Living where I live it hardly rains and is often warm so it has always worked for us. We therefore viewed it (or more so I agreed to view it) as an expense we didn't need.

It has rained all this week and today I had no choice but to use our clothes dryer and when doing so I felt so grateful (like I have said this gratitude thing hits me anytime, any place). I felt grateful to own a dryer when I remembered why I owned one. My mum bought it.

My other half never would never ever have agreed to spending money on a dryer so my beautiful mum, god bless her, bought me one when my second son was born. She told me it was my baby gift and even apologised at the time for giving me such a crappy gift (which it so clearly wasn't!!)

Mum told me that now we had become a family of 4 I'd be needing it with the amount of washing I'd soon be doing. It sat in the garage for most the time she was alive, too big to fit in our small laundry and was hardly used.

Today however and in the past few years (mainly since she has left) it is used more frequently and every time it is I am reminded of her.

Its funny the things that become dear to you when a loved one passes. Sometimes its something as boring as a clothes dryer.

It has shown me though that we never do know how a gift we give to another will touch someone some day. I never would have thought all those years ago that a clothes dryer would hold as much sentimental value as this one does to me.

Depositing Kindness (and Donuts)

My mum worked in the Bank. She was the Bank. She loved her job at the bank. Everyone that knew her loved her. The young staff especially loved her. They would tell me how crazy my mum was and how she would make work fun, singing, dancing and doing crazy things and speaking her mind. Mum was famous for it, or perhaps infamous. She said it like was and people loved her for it. She said what everyone else was thinking but too afraid to say. Not mum. She said it!

We all loved her so last Friday when I visited the Bank where my mum once worked I wanted to do something nice. So whilst out shopping I bought one bag of cinnamon and one bag of sugar donuts and took them in and gave them to all the staff at the branch my mum once worked. I told them my mother use to work there and how much she loved it and how I wanted to gift them with morning tea on behalf of mum.

At first they were surprised and shocked as most people are when an act of kindness is bestowed upon them but that soon as passed and was replaced with gratitude and smiles.

I did this that day because I miss mum so much, because I love mum so much and because I thank her every day for inspiring me to be a better person.

Death Will Teach You

You know it often takes another’s life to be taken from you for you to be grateful for your own. For me it was my mothers. I of course knew she wouldn’t live forever and would someday leave this planet but nothing can prepare you for that moment and how it will affect you. For me personally it’s been a blessing, because I choose it to be.

Her death was a wake up call to me, a reminder smacked straight into my face that none of us here will live forever and that no one’s future is guaranteed. From that day forward I began to live my life differently. I saw everything as so impermanent and everything I did see I knew would someday be gone. That’s when I chose to live everyday in gratitude for it all!

I’ve always known my mother was the greatest gift to me but never would I have guessed that in her death she’d leave me wit the greatest gift of all – an appreciation and love for life.

Life is short it really is, so enjoy it and be grateful. And remember in every moment you have a choice. To be thankful for what you have or complain and whinge about the little things that in your death, and the death of those closest to you, will not matter.

Syria Under Attack...

Some of the victims of this attack. Innocent Children.

Today I heard of there was an attack in Syria where at least 1300 innocent people and more were killed by what was believed to be a gassing. Children also among the dead.

It saddens, upsets and angers me that we live in a world like this.

I often wonder what I can do. Because we can call all do something. Being mad and angry wont help the situation only add to it, like fuel does to a fire. What I can do is love. I can add love to this world and not hate anger or fear.

I can be nice to those that aren’t to me, I can treat all those I encounter with love and kindness, irrespective of their views, thoughts, beliefs and nationality. I can smile at the child who sits alone and help the lady who is having difficulty with her children. I can choose to bite my tongue when tempted to say something that is hurtful, I can put my own judgments aside and choose to see only the good in people and know that deep down within us all is love and goodness.

I do realise that I alone may not be able to change the world but I can change me!

Boston Marathon Bombing

Its 12pm and I log onto facebook for the first time today and my news feed is filled with news about Boston. I have been thinking about this, the Boston news and I can't help but wander why so many are interested. So many people are posting about it?? Why is it getting so much media attention? 3 people have died I understand? But why do people care so much?

I am not saying that what has happened isnt horrible and doesn't deserve our prayers but I can't help but wander why everyone is so interested in particular event?

Surely most of us realise that every day 25,000 die of starvation. 5 and more children die from physical abuse a day, and a average of 1,500 a murdered a day.

So why is it that so many are caring about Boston so much? I don't want this in any way to be taken as cold hearted from me. Far from. The world is in dire need of Love. The world needs love! The world we live in at the moment is dominated by fear and the Boston events add to this. Adding fear to all those that chose to let it. Watching the news and allowing yourself to feel the fear and then share the fear with others is ADDING to the fear. It is in no way helping.

The world at times wants us to live in fear, our news is dominated by fear based stories. Not love. There is love in the world and there is love at this time. For example. I just read that after these bombings many of the runners who completed the race then ran into the nearest hospital to donate blood. Love. Many people came from everywhere to help and offer support in anyway they can - love. This is what I want to hear about this is what I want to read. I stopped watching, reading, listening to the news years ago. It only tries to invoke fear into us all. Fear and that the world is a bad place to live. It isn't. However it would be if you only ever heard the bad stories.

What occurred in Boston is horrible but sadly much worse occurs every day. Its time to offer our hearts, love and healing to these events and to not add to them by adding more fear and hatred. Lets make this world a place we all want to live. And don't for one minute ever believe that you, and you alone cannot make a difference because you are the only person that can! You are the only person, thing, event and situation you can ever control. Walk yourself into love and out of fear ♥

Death. Its Natural.

I passed a hearse today. In the back lay a coffin. 

Was it someone’s mother, father, daughter or son?  A friend, aunt or grandparent?  Whatever label that person had they were someone’s loved one. Someone’s life.  

Life is precious. I say it so often because so many of us forget how precious life can be.  Today I was reminded of it. I was also reminded that I too will someday lay in the back of a hearse.

Its not something I like to think about often – death. But it’s as much a part of our life is as anything else. It’s natural and something each and everyone one of us will someday face. 

Seeing the hearse and coffin today was a reminder that my life is never guaranteed. Every day is a gift. Every day I am alive there is something to be thankful for and if I cant find anything to be thankful for than I can at least be thankful for the air I breathe and my heart that beats to keep me alive.

They say life is short. I don’t really believe in that. I say it’s not that its short its more that its wasted and not lived to its full potential. So many of us sit around waiting for life to happen, for it to start.

But life, this life of yours, IS yours. You are the driver, you are in control and you call the shots. Don’t let life take you over, take over your life!

Death. Its going to happen....

Did you know that we are the only species aware that at some point in our life we will die?

I believe this is so we can appreciate life. If you think about it every other species already does, they appreciate and live their life.

I don't see dogs, cats, elephants, fish or any other animal or insect every worry about how they look, who is doing what, or what is to happen next. They just live. Really live. Here, right now. Do you?