January 7, 2017
I have a cold. I hate having a cold. Mine always incapacitate me for a week and it amazes me that a so much time can disappear from action in this way. Then I think about the fact that it will be over, and not everyone can say that about their health issues. So I try to accept.
We are in a new year, 2017, and the first sunrise was spectacular. I want—no, I desperately want that to indicate the start to an amazing year. I wasn’t thrilled with 2016 and I need better. I have chosen FREEDOM as my word for 2017 – personal, local, national, global. Not the kind of wild irresponsible behavior at Mardi Gras, say, but the type that encourages decisions from a central core that is based on higher good.
We are expecting snow, so I (in my slippers and PJs) manage to put out bird seed. I enjoy watching and listening to birds nourishing themselves from my small generosity. I place some seed on a window sill near my laptop and I am always thrilled by the stark white chin and yellow eye patch of the white-throated sparrow and the perky crest of the female cardinal who is apparently a slight bit nervous about being this close to civilization.
2017. I vow to surround myself with positivity, look for love (not fear), optimism (not negativity). I am self-sufficient enough to be able to select my environment and those who participate with me, and move gently and lovingly away from those who just don’t want to go there.
Lunch time, and I open the fridge to see Clam Chowder (brought last night by a former coworker), Seafood Curry (given by a neighbor whose mother is slowly but consistently sinking into Parkinson’s), Black-eyed Pea Soup (one of the few joint cooking project with my partner), and Carrot/Cauliflower Curry (given by a book discussion group member whose dear husband is battling debilitating back pain). I feel the tangible love that these people, many of whom have their own serious personal crises right now, have brought to nourish and support me.
I am house-bound by the snow and my cold, but I am not alone. With the physical evidence of food and a email inbox filled with support and caring, I know I am connected to others. Perhaps right now, I am more on the receiving end, but I am also trying to put myself in each person’s shoes and respond appropriately. Oh, and there’s Ramos the cat here with me, too.
That is my 2017 plan: sign up to do only those things that are right for me; share and receive Love, choose healthy over dysfunctional. I’ll keep you posted.
Beth Lapin 