|
AM I ALWAYS JOYOUS?
Because I am someone who touts JOY as something everyone can have in their lives, I sometimes get asked whether I am ALWAYS Joyous. And I must answer completely without glossing over the truth: No. Like most human beings, there are times when I am too fatigued and worn slam out to be a constant messenger of joy. Just today, in fact, I was bone-tired and emotionally drained from dealing with a certain unmentioned teenager who will remain nameless but who is desperately creating chaos in my life and that of her father. (It's really hard to guess who that is, right?) She's almost 16, going on 30, and wants NO parental authority to interfere with her desires. She's filed false police reports, exhibits unreasonably belligerant behavior, lies, steals and has no respect for authority. It's awfully hard to be joyous in the face of such family turmoil, especially when her father and I have done only what good parents do. However, as I lay in my bedroom today with the cover over my head, too drained to utter a single word, it occurred to me that allowing her behavior to rob me of my Joy and Happiness was exactly what she would want. Failing to dust off my own britches, pick myself up and get on with something that I enjoy would be feeding right into her evil plot (the goal of which is to create a rift in our marriage). And so I pushed my tired self off the bed and dragged into the shower, determined to raise my spirits by sheer will power alone. I got dressed and set out to complete something that will bring me delight. Before long, I was in the comforting presence of an upstanding, fine Christian man and having a conversation about something I absolutely love (travel). So... no, I am not always Joyous. But I wouldn't let the misbehavior of one misdirected child rob me of today's Joy.
Make your Joy your first priority, and everything else will seem much easier.
peggy!
BEST PEANUT BUTTER PIE RECIPE
Sometimes there's something so mouth-pleasingly scrumptious that you just can't help but smile, and my favorite Peanut Butter Pie recipe can produce one of these moments. So here it is:
melt 1/2 stick margarine
stir in 3/4 cu. peanut butter (I use creamy/smooth)
1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar
3 medium eggs, slightly beaten
1 Tablespoon of white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla
mix well, pour into unbaked frozen pie shell and bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour. When it puffs up and looks crusty, it's ready. Allow to cool before slicing. This pie has a crusty, crunchy outside, and an ooey-gooey wonderful inside (some would say like me! hahaha!).
Most peanut butter pies are cream-based, more puddingey or ice creamy. This pie is converted from a chess pie recipe and has the crusty top and peanutbuttery inside. uuuuuummmmmmmmm good!
peggy!
Speaking of Passions....
One of my passions is TRAVEL. I LOVE travel. I love almost everything about travel (if only I could travel with my own bed, I could eliminate the "almost" part!). I love anticipating travel, planning travel, preparing for travel. I love talking about travel, sharing pictures of my travel, and on and on. Actually, I think traveling is one of the things I do best.
I'm fantasizing about a Joy Seminar... on a cruise to the Caribbean. For people who want to do all the JOY exercises in the book in a week, folks who just want to immerse themselves into a week focusing entirely on JOY, having a good time, learning more about yourself and just relaxing. This could be a dream-come-true for me, and certainly a way that others could enjoy a week-long cruise and end up with a happier self. So, if you might be interested in joining me for a week-long cruise in the Caribbean, please drop me an email. I'll start looking for the best prices and see what I can find.
Also, please don't forget to sign up for my newsletter. I'll be sending it out soon and I don't want to leave anyone out who wants to get it. Neither will I send it without your signing up, since I don't want to invade your privacy.
I look forward to hearing from you. peggy!
Do You Have Passion In Your Life?
When most people think of passion, they think ONLY of intimate, sexual passion. And while that's a GREAT one, it's certainly only one of many. Let's look at passion as an apple. An apple is great - it's tasty, it's crunchy, it's sweet, and it can be absolutely delectable, in addition to being good for you. But an apple is, after all, one ONE kind of fruit. If you only ate apples for 30 years and then discovered.... oh, oranges or bananas or papayas or pineapple... can you imagine the delight and excitement for your tastebuds? Suddenly, you've opened up a whole new world of fruit (I'm not being funny here)! There are grapes and strawberries, kiwis and watermelon, and on and on.
That's how passion is. If you've only enjoyed one kind of passion, then you can be in for a wonderful experience to learn about the other passions that are out there. I have an endless list of passions, like.... passion for fun, passion for helping people, passion for good food, good conversation; I have a passion for justice; I have a passion for (but I'm not really able to pursue this one much) snowmobiling; heck, I think I have a passion for snow-almost-anything. I'd love to learn snowboarding, love to go dogmushing (can big girls do that?), or might even try snowskiiing if I were feeling particularly brave. Perhaps my biggest passion is of the Caribbean kind... almost anything Caribbean, in fact. I love the turquoise sea and have a passion for the ambiance and atmosphere of the laid-back Caribbean islands. I have a passion for words, for reading and writing, for laughing and making friends.
What are your passions? Do you even know? What have you always fantasized about doing? What is the one thing you could do that the anticipation of which would keep you soaring for days? Travel? Shopping? Art? If you're ready to discover your own passions, buy my e-book, "30 Days to More Joy in Your Life" today. Not only will it help you discover your passions, but it'll encourage you to get off your intentions and learn to ENJOY some of them!
In the meantime, I'm off to indulge some of my passions! Thanks for being here!
peggy!
Just Fun Stuff....
I was standing in a long bank line the other day with a lot of frowning people when someone's cell phone "rang." Now, I don't mean it "rang" in the traditional telephone ring sense. No, it played a song, something that made you want to DANCE! And it played for several bars. Of course, everyone was looking around for the source of the music, and I said, "Dance! Everybody dance!" and started dancing. At first, people just looked at me. But it took only a few notes before other people started dancing, too. By the time the music had stopped, most folks in the line were grinning from ear to ear. I explained to them, "when you have dance music on your cell phone and it rings, you're supposed to DANCE!" Evidently, several people agreed because they had joined me in the dance.
So, just DANCE! If you have dance music on your cell phone and it rings-just dance!
Peggy!
September 28, 2007
Be Happy for What You Have... instead of grieving for what you don't have.
I think one of the hardest things for any of us to do is be happy with what we have. And yes, I know that each of us sometimes gets on the "pity potty" and wants to sit there for quite some time. But, really--think about it: what gets done on the potty? Nothing but "crap" or "do-do" or whatever you want to call it. And while that, indeed, has its place in life, it really should be only a minor part of your day.
Are there things I'd change in my life? OH, YEAH! I'm sure everyone feels that way. But I can think of few people with whom I would exchange lives. Actually, I've given that more than just a little thought, too. For example, I am one of those hard-working, everyday folks who must stay within a budget. Some costly emergency can absolutely blow my fun money out the window. I'd love to be able to truthfully say that I have more money than I know what to do with, but that's just not the case. But then... take a look at some of those folks for whom money is not a concern: some are splattered on the front pages drunk, drugged, shaving their head, abusing folks and themselves, and completely miserable. Would I exchange places with someone like that? No, thanks, I'll just keep my simple life. Because even in my toughest times, my life has been filled with friends and family who love me.
So today... just for yourself... give some thought to all the good things in your life for which you are grateful. Concentrate on the positive. Have a great day!
p!
|
