Elegant Life

Pizza Dreams: Dreams you remember upon waking after one has had pizza for dinner the night before. This may be peculiar to my husband only. He has the most fanciful apparitions visit when he eats pizza the night before. He only remembered a bit today, "the doctor said maybe a hypnotist can make him smile again".

I am taken with the phrase "Elegant Life". I don't need pizza dreams, some things just resonate with me.

Resonate:World English Dictionary

resonate (ˈrɛzəˌneɪt)
— vb (often foll by with ) (foll by with )
1. to resound or cause to resound; reverberate
2. (of a mechanical system, electrical circuit, chemical compound, etc) to exhibit or cause to exhibit resonance
3. to be understood or receive a sympathetic response: themes which will resonate with voters
4. to be filled with: simple words that seem to resonate with mystery and beauty
[C19: from Latin resonāre ]

That seems like a great theme for the new year, elegant life.

Something to strive for. Not in furnishings and possessions, but in the quality of the whole scheme of things.

elegant: tasteful, graceful, superior, concise simple succinct, carefully chosen.

Here is something worth pondering from: Computing Dictionary

elegant definition  (From Mathematics) Combining simplicity, power, and a certain ineffable grace of design. Higher praise than "clever", "winning" or even cuspy.

The French aviator, adventurer, and author Antoine de Saint-Exup'ery, probably best known for his classic children's book "The Little Prince", was also an aircraft designer. He gave us perhaps the best definition of engineering elegance when he said "A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."

That makes perfect sense. Time to start afresh.

I hate to clean, there is so much else to do.

http://www.womansday.com/Articles/Shelter/Organizing-Cleaning/The-I-Hate-to-Clean-Solution.html

Suggests using a timer for 15 minutes in each room;
http://hubpages.com/hub/Love-a-Clean-House-but-HATE-to-Clean-FlyLady-Can-Help

I love this guy; "[Stuff] robs people of so much," he says. "If your house is full of stuff, all the blessings that could fill your house can't get in. The stuff takes over. It robs you psychologically. You can't be at peace." Peter Walsh: http://www.oprah.com/home/Conquering-Clutter

Peter tells people if they haven't used it in 12 months, it needs to go. That includes the dingy sweatpants Janet's been hanging onto since high school. "If it doesn't fit the vision you have for your space, it's got to go," Peter says.

If it doesn't fit the vision, it's got to go.

I can envision a much better work space and living space, but can I get tough enough on myself to let go of stuff?







Interesting rabbit trail: http://hubpages.com/hub/Wormwood_What_the_Bible_says_about_it_is_amazing

Besties sent to you elegantly of course, xoxo

The Day After..

I love the day after Christmas. Not as much as the day of, it's true, but the day after is very special too. It is the day of new beginnings in my mind. I have learned over the years to find meaning in the holiday by keeping the birth of the Savior as the main focus of the day in my mind and heart. It is a meaningless disappointing holiday other wise. I love giving gifts, it's true, but I could transfer that need to the birthday arena, easily. I know the kids love the legend of Santa Clause and all the fun stories that go along, and I can play along to a certain degree. But the magic of a fat jolly man dropping down my chimney pales to the magic of the nativity story.

Angels, bright shiny stars, prophecy, babies, stables, straw, shepherds in fields, realms of angels, glorious singing, wise men, camels, gifts to the Christ child of wonderfully smelly  valuable items, that is where I find the meaning especially the birth of the Baby.

The birth is the beginning of a new era for mankind. Jesus introduced new thought new methods for living life differently that all people have embraced. A break from the ritual of the day, to embrace a relationship with God the Father. Treating people women and children included with equality and respect. A shift from the body to the mind and the spirit.

I can only imagine the day after for Mary the mother. Holding her son, finally all the anticipation and anxiety of the journey to travel to Bethlehem for the census is over, and she is gazing with wonder into her newborn babies eyes.

New life, I remember so well, that moment, with my own children and the birth of my grand babies. Looking back now, I would have done anything to savor those moments again. Time is a cheat...how fast we travel through but we think it will last forever. And so I begin again, the new life, the day after. The celebration is over and it is time to pack it all away and start the new year asking God to guide and direct us as He guided and directed the 3 wise men with the star above the manger.

May my road lead to the baby in the manger, show me the right road Lord, let me see the light of the star.

Wishing you God's richest blessings...

Dear Santa...WHAT HAPPENED!!

I just happened upon this blog post and wanted to share;

"My open letter to Santa Claus

Dear Santa,
First, may I call you St. Nicholas? I'm much more comfortable with that name.
So St. Nicholas, now that the holidays are over I'm writing to tell you that I'm very concerned. I mean, what happened? For hundreds of years you were this beloved saint, a bishop who loved children and saved three sisters from a life of prostitution. You supposedly punched out a heretic at the Council of Nicea and then proclaimed the Truth. You were cool before cool was a word.

But now you're seen as just being a fat guy in some silly red suit. Sure, people think of you as jolly and an all around good guy, but you've been stripped of all your coolness and left as little more than a large elf who gives overindulged kids whatever they want for Christmas...
 
.....PLEASE go finish, this is a great post.
 http://learningtobeanewlywed.blogspot.com/2009/01/my-open-letter-to-santa-claus.html
 
It has been an incredibly busy holiday season and I still have much to do. We are celebrating "on the cheap" this year, first there is no extra money to spend and second, my kids are grown and buy stuff as they need it. We did get the grandkids bright and shiny new toys because they are God's gift to us and we like to spoil them. But everybody else is getting handmade.
 
The gandkids are at the Santa age and I have mixed feelings about the whole Santa legend. It is a lot of fun, so true, fun little songs, concerns from them that Santa will burn his behind so we can't have a fire on Christmas eve...etc etc. My husband and daughter morph into stone faced liars as they perpetuate the myth, I squeem as I look at the impersonators dressed in red, waiting to take the kids adorable handwritten lists...as one lonely reindeer looks on. You know, I'm just not sold on this whole thing.
 
When I was a young mother we went to church. Now there is a reason for the season.
 
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Here is a very nice compilation http://teampyro.blogspot.com/2010/12/6-part-harmony.html pretty easy to understand, useful for a family sharing time. And some substance for the holidays.

Turning holiday into Holy Day...

 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" But Mary was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger."

Well, my best to you, I hope you are in the middle of a very meaningful merry holy holiday!

The best gifts of all around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family wrapped up around each other.