I Need The Breeze

I need the breeze

Even though it makes me sneeze

Achoo Achoo Achoo

〰

I need the sun

Even though I sometimes feel like a toast well done

Crackle Crackle Crackle

〰

I need the trees

Even if I have to walk on wet leaves

Scrunch Scrunch Scrunch

〰

I need the air

Even though it buzzes with insects that dare

Buzz Buzz Buzz

 〰

I need the night

Even though the darkness is a fright

Ttu-whit tu-whoo Tu-whit tu-whoo! Boo

〰

I need the showers

Even though my shoes get squishy, and I am splashed on by cars

Squish Squish Squish. Splash Splash Splash 

〰

I need the sky

Even though the thunder and lightning make me want to run and hide

Boom Crash. Boom Crash. Boom Crash

〰

I need the dirt roads

Even if I have to say hello to lizards and leeches and toads

Creep Creep. Crawl Crawl. Croak Croak 

〰

I need the hills

Even though they sometimes make me huff and puff till I am ill

Huff and Puff. Huff and Puff. Huff and Puff

〰

I need the sand

Even though it’s hard to walk on it, and sometimes even to stand

Pludunk Pludunk Pludunk. Pant Pant Pant

〰

I need the ocean

Even though the waves make such a commotion 

Crash Bang. Crash Bang. Crash Bang

〰

I need the earth and all its creatures

Even though some of them have scary features

Slither Slither Slither. Snarl Snarl.  Hiss. Roar

〰

Yes, I need all of it

And if any of those things were not there

My life wouldn't be the same

So I’d have to get on a rocket and find another planet somewhere

〰

Where I could find the very same things!

 〰

So I make a heart with my fingers

To love it all through and through

But oh no, there’s that breeze again

Achoo Achoo Achoo!

A Few Of The Many Things

For my friend Nina, playing Draw Something online is one of the many things that brings meaning and quiet satisfaction to her life.  As you can tell from the fun images above and below that she drew while playing some recent games (drawn with her finger on her ipad, mind you), she really has a great time doing it.  Go Nina!

Being in good health

Living in a nice place

Relaxing with a cup of tea, or glass of wine

Retreating to a quiet place.

A few of the many things

We enjoy for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

 

Doing things with old friends and new

Eating our favorite foods

Going for walks, hikes, or drives

Enjoying trails, parks, and woods.

 

A few of the many things

We enjoy for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

 

Reading a good book

Enjoying a movie or two

Doing cooking experiments

Creating a scrapbook or two.

 

A few of the many things

We enjoy for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

 

Working on an intergenerational project

Sprucing up a nook or a room

Writing a blog post

Coaxing our flowers, vegetables, and ornamentals to bloom.

 

A few of the many things

We enjoy for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

 

Exchanging conversation

Caring for and playing with our pets

Going on a fun outing or trip

With family, friends, or associates.

 

A few of the many things

We enjoy for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

 

Challenging ourselves to a workout

Getting together with someone on the phone

Meeting friends or family and catching up

Enjoying time all on our own.

 

A few of the many things

We enjoy for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

 

Going to church or praying

Listening to our favorite musician or favorite tracks

Playing an instrument

Discovering new hacks

 

A few of the many things

We enjoy for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

 

Dear reader, I hope this moment finds you

Doing one of any number of things

That you do not because of money, status or because it makes you feel self-important

But for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

I urge you to keep going, dear reader

To keep up with those very special things

That you have come to cherish

For the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

Yeah...just for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

Yeah...just for the meaning and quiet satisfaction it brings.

Don't Let The Double Standards Stop You

Don't let the double standards stop you

That's what the Bronte sisters said

When they decide they wanted to write books

Even though "literature is not the business of a woman's life" in their time it was declared.

Don’t let the double standards stop you

That's what Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin said

She wore male clothing and smoked in public

And became more famous than Victor Hugo and Honore De Balzac.

Don't let the double standards stop you

Said Elizabeth Blackwell when she decided medical school was what she wanted to do

She didn't let all the "no", "no" "no"s she received from the first few colleges

Stop her from becoming the first US woman to make this dream come true.

Don't let the double standards stop you

Said Elizabeth Cady Stanton in fighting for women's rights

She wanted for the American constitution to be amended, so women could vote

She fought for that from the age of 18, all the way until she died.

Don't let the double standards stop you

Said Lucy Stone when she got married, and didn't change her name

'Taking the husband's name confers on him an injurious and unnatural superiority', she said.

So she lead the way, and kept hers the same. 

Don't let the double standards stop you

Said Malala Yousafzai when she demanded girls be educated as an equal right

In spite of being shot in the head by a Taliban gunman

She continued to go to school, and for her efforts, won a Nobel Prize. 

Don't let the double standards stop you

Said Sojourner Truth when she escaped from her last slave owner to be free

In spite of facing many unusual and strange hardships, during and after her escape

She persevered for black rights and women’s rights, and never gave up the fight to end slavery.

Don't let the double standards stop you

Said the 22 year old Gloria Steinem, as she took responsibility for her own life and choices

She rejected the historical and idealized role of a woman -

That of being a stay at home housewife, and having no voice.

Don't let the double standards stop you, dear reader,

Be bold for the generations ahead, and the girls yet to be born

Walk in the brave steps of these women

Who suffered indignity, violence, shame, imprisonment, just so that many double standards would be gone.

                                   x___ ________________________________x

Further reading:

The Bronte sisters:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/bronte_sisters.shtml

Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin (George Sands)

http://www.authorama.com/famous-affinities-of-history-iv-6.html

Elizabeth Blackwell

https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/elizabeth-blackwell

Elizabeth Cady Stanton did not live to see her dream come true.  The 19th amendment was ratified  in 1920, 18 years after her death -  

https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/elizabeth-cady-stanton

Lucy Stone’s husband, the famous abolitionist Henry Blackwell, supported her decision to keep her maiden name - https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/lucy-stone

Malala Yousafzai is the youngest person to win a Nobel Peace Prize - she was just 14 when she received the prize - https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/malala-yousafzai

Read about Sojourner Truth's journey to freedom with a 3 month daughter Sophia in her arms - https://www.mindfulwalker.com/beyond-gotham/in-sojourner-truths-footsteps

and key events in her life:

https://www.pbs.org/thisfarbyfaith/people/sojourner_truth.html

Gloria Steinem - as this Wikipedia entry shows, she is still a force at 86 -

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloria_Steinem

"I'm Done"

Don’t underestimate the significance

Of saying the words "I am done"

The biggest changes are about to happen

When your current situation has seemingly had its run.

When you say you are over something

The wind begins to shift

And you sail towards the big wide open

And no longer idly just drift.

A new horizon beckons

One that is scary and unknown

Keep steering towards it, in spite of your fears

Because of the possibilities that might be sown.

No matter if a job or relationship problem causes it

Or a lifestyle, or living arrangement for which you don't care

Saying "I am done" signals you have acquired the confidence and hope

To believe something better is out there.

In this respect, "I am done" is a terrific tool

To make a change in your life

"I am done" says your plans for the future

Are to thrive, not just to survive.

"I am done" often includes giving up

Familiar jobs, places and things

But giving up those jobs, places and things, is worth it

For the vitality and agency it will bring.

Yes, saying and acting on "I am done" is powerful

In fact, it’s how many big ideas and actions are propelled

If you talk to successful, happy, and well-adjusted people

This is the story many will tell.

You see, "I'm done" is not just a declaration

But an intention, and a leap of faith

Powerful movements happen in our lives.

When we declare we are ready for a change of state.

So, don't be afraid to say "I am done", dear reader

Though your mind be full of anxiousness and doubt.

For in many situations, it just so happens

The way forward is the way out.