Interim Ending

Feeling like it is the right thing to do, and needing more freedom,  I gave notice today that I will not be renewing my Interim contract when these three months are up in early October.  I would have served nine months by then, and have not really had any vacation.  So I am very much ready for a change.  At first when I began to think about the work ending, I was worried about "what I would do".

We got the church newsletter in the mail, and there were a number of events I wanted to put on the calendar.  Some things we will continue, even after I am not on the staff.   I want to attend my grand-daughter's home volleyball games, so those are on the calendar now.  We have a trip planned in October to visit friends in South Carolina.  I now belong to the Ladies Literary Club, and that will start up in September.  Suddenly the calendar is full without even trying!

Actually,  not having things to do has never really been a problem in our lives.  We were both on the School board when we met and fell in love and decided to get married.  That is so all consuming, in terms of time and energy and effort,  people wondered how we would manage when neither of us were on the Board any more.  Our resignation from the board and engagement announcement made the front page of the local newspaper.  Gerry's quote in that article has proved to be prophetic for all these years.  He said,  "I think we'll find plenty of things to do."

And oh how true that has been!

Bridal Tea

Cilla and Michelle and I traveled to Long Island over Saturday and Sunday to attend Youngest Offspring's bridal shower.  We were very excited to surprise her.  She did not know we were coming, at least not for sure. Only one person knew, and she did not tell. Yo probably wondered, but had not heard that we would be there.  Our intent was to show up at the shower, which was held at a girlie party house called The Tea Pot.

We stayed over Saturday night in Freeport, NY.  After checkout, we had time before the party, so we decided to go and check out Yo and Matt's new house.  We had the address and off we went.  While we were standing in the street taking pictures, YO and her friends actually drove up the street and we "got caught".  It turned out to be a good thing, because had that not happened, we would not have gotten to see the inside of the house.  It worked out very very well. And what a lovely house it is!

Here is Youngest Offspring in her sash and crown, as "queen of the hour".   We all had a lot of fun.  It was also a delightful adventure for the other two daughters and I who got to travel together and laugh a lot.

So many good memories in the making this year!  I will cherish them!

(Note:  I missed the other surprise party, the 80th for a friend.  Gerry went to that one.)

Surprise Party

Gerry and I were invited to a surprise 80th birthday party for a friend, happening on Sunday.  That got me to thinking about surprise parties.  I was telling a friend today that as a rule, as a family, we don't do surprise parties.  My oldest daughter's best friend once threw one for her. But aside from that,  we haven't done much of that.  My friend and I both reflected on our experiences with our one and only birthday party each,  which were surprises.  Hers was for her 16th birthday;  mine was my eleventh birthday.   She was very moved and touched by hers, and thought it was so wonderful.  I was just eleven and lived in a very rural area of the state.  In order to get  me out, appropriately dressed,  the cover-story (lie) I was told is that we were going to the movies in Memphis.

So we stopped off at the neighbor's house, and a gathering of people all jumped out and yelled:  "Surprise."  It took a while for it to soak in that this was a party for me.  I kept wondering about the movie.  When were we leaving?  Who all was going?  It took some time for me to sort out that the movies just were not going to happen that day.  I think I even felt a bit of disappointment, to tell the truth.  I was fully convinced by that lie!

 Come to think of it, maybe that is why I can live quite happily for the rest of my life without ever having to be surprised like that again!

I wonder if our friend will actually be surprised?   Can all those people who were invited really keep that secret?  Can they get him there without some big lie?   What will his reaction be?   I wonder how it will all turn out!

I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Paying Attention

I am reading a book by Deepak Chopra, Reinventing the Body, Resurrecting the Soul.  I have read some of his material over the years.  This book was in the New Release section of the local library.   I'm so glad I found it.   It offers clarification on a lot of things that are very helpful for me.  For instance,  he explains the difference between reflection, contemplation and meditation.  I was unaware of the subtle distinctions, and might use the first two interchangeably. 

 Reflection tends to primarily intellectual, taking a second look at one's beliefs and assumptions.  Contemplation focuses on a thought until it expands as far as it can, hopefully to the point of letting go.  Meditation is a search for a higher state of awareness.  This is more about emptying than thinking.   I find this helpful so I can identify where I have traveled along this spectrum.   I have done a great deal of reflection, maybe even a 9 on a scale of 10.   I have even gotten into contemplation of some matters,  to the point that healing has occurred.  Meditation is a state I have experienced very rarely.  I have indeed had fleeting moments of higher awareness,  but those were not really a result of deep focus and intentional breathing.

Another fascinating description is the difference between soul, mind and brain.  This is how that was described:

Soul carries the potential
Mind carries the intention
Brain produces the result

Chopra does not espouse any one particular religion, but speaks from a position of "universaility".  He quotes Christ frequently,  which is very helpful for the Christian reader to be able to put into context some of the more eastern ideas.

At this particular moment in my life,  (and perhaps for a long time)  I am definitely on the spiritual path to expand, grow, learn, heal, discover new possibilities.   The clues always come from the soul.  The trick is to learn to listen for it, pay attention, trust it.

I am open, and listening.