Tag Archives: quality of life

Chocolate and Hummus

My daughter is visiting Wednesday and by the time this is published that day will be here. It’s Tuesday morning, but not yet daylight as I sit and type. I woke up thinking about the pile of drafts on this site waiting for the light of day.

Sitting here at 6:30 a.m. it seems the drafts and I have similar interests…to see the light of day. The drafts are mainly titles and some have the makings of a blogpost already written on the page, but this one was merely a title. It was written last April and saved to drafts when my daughter still lived here. Chocolate and hummus were two things we kept readily available in this house.

They weren’t always there, but if not, they were easily accessible. A quick drive to the market would manifest chocolate and hummus into our home which made that day better in some way. My daughter’s happiness moment was a fresh container of hummus with Naan and mine was having some form of chocolate to snack on. Stepping into the kitchen I see the glass jar of chocolate almost empty and the hummus sitting in the fridge is about a week old and half eaten.

Seeing this title almost one year later I can surmise chocolate and hummus lost their footing in my solo life, but they were a mainstay in our life together. These two things brought comfort in knowing they were there and I wonder if she’ll look for them today? Taking a sweeping glance around the house it looks like a single woman/writer lives here with way too many books, but I hope it forever feels like home…with or without chocolate and hummus.

A Sacred Space

You must have a room, or a certain hour of the day, or so where you do not know what is in the morning paper. A place where you can simply experience and bring forth what you are, and what you might be. At first, you may find nothing’s happening, but if you have a sacred place and use it, something will happen.

Joseph Campbell

Over the past year I’ve taken my meditation practice more seriously and it’s possibly one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done. The feature photo for this post is often used in my work with Zen Habits and from the first moment I laid eyes on it, I knew I wanted a part of my life to resemble that photo. It’s an accurate assessment to say, this photo planted a seed.

To make this photo a reality in my life, it was necessary to create space for it to arrive. I tried various areas in my home and even meditated outdoors when the weather cooperated, but couldn’t find THE right space until I looked toward the ultimate sacred space, which is my bedroom. It made sense to use a space already considered sacred, just on a smaller, more intimate scale.

It was important to see if I was serious about this practice before investing any money in it, or if it proved to be more difficult than imagined and wasn’t for me, so for a while I sat on a large floor pillow type cushion that I already owned. Within a few weeks, I truly enjoyed meditating and began seeing the well-being benefits of it such as, increased focus, clarity of mind and a prolonged feeling of calm. Taking time to meditate I began to see it spill over into my everyday which picked up a flow by offering serenity within the productivity.

I researched meditation cushions and even purchased a couple, but sent them back to the store. It’s so important for your bum to be comfortable, especially during prolonged periods of meditation. The cushion should feel supportive by keeping your back straight and your bum cradled. Crushed buckwheat hulls are recommended as the filler for adequate comfort and durability.

Mindful Zafu Cushion by Pure Chakra

The rug and floor pillar are by World Market and the 5′ floor pillar emanates a warm glow during overcast days. What’s used as a small, wood table is an old foot stool from a local Antique Shoppe. Palo Santo is lit to clear the air of this sacred space before meditating. The small dish you see is actually one of my pottery pieces from the class I took last year that you can read about here.

May the seeds in your heart lift and guide you into a sacred space.

Relax while I read this to you.

Feature Photo by Jared Rice on Unsplash

The Classroom of Life

I correspond through letters with several WordPress writers. The first time Dawn, at Aging With Grace mailed me a letter I was intrigued by her return address stamp on the face of the envelope. It’s round and I hadn’t seen anything quite like it before. She sent me the link to where she purchased it, but I didn’t want to order one just like hers, even though there was something about it that sparked my heart. Whenever I scribbled my return address on the corner of the envelope, I knew there had to be a prettier way!

Last November, I saw some Christmas cards on Etsy that were beautiful in their simplicity. I ordered a few and they did not disappoint. I had forgotten the art of embossing until seeing these cards and remembered how I used to love going to the bank to get something notarized just to watch them use the embosser! (I know, it doesn’t take much) After some Googling I found a company that makes an embosser to reflect return addresses and my heart squealed!

Dreams by the River

After weeks of waiting and the delivery being rescheduled several times, the embosser arrives, but Barb is not happy with it. The words are spelled out in all caps and I was careful to choose a font that wasn’t all caps. I went ahead and used it on some envelopes and mailed the letters, but it bothered me to no end. Plus, the word, ‘Street’ had been abbreviated to, ‘ST’ while there was ample space to spell it out. I sent a Marco Polo to the Marvelous Mrs. M and whined about my disappointment with the embosser.

I shared with her about it being a custom order it cannot be returned, but she encouraged me to call the company to see if anything could be done, so I did and they were wonderful to work with. Come to find out, there was a technical glitch during the order process and auto-fill kicked in on their end capitalizing all the letters! Explaining to the customer service rep how I wanted it to look, compared to what I received, he discovered the technical glitch and offered to make a brand new one to my specifications for free.

Barb is happy. I think a lot of times in life we’re tempted to settle for the hand we’re dealt, but God wants His children happy. It’s up to us to keep inching forward for the desired outcome even when logically it seems impossible. I’m so grateful Mrs. M nudged me to dig deeper and reach out to the company, otherwise I probably would have stopped using the embosser and eventually discarded it. That would have been like throwing money in the trash.

Life is our classroom. May you pass every test.

Take a break from reading and listen instead.

Don’t Lose Heart

The first time I saw Steven Curtis Chapman was over 20 years ago in a video of his song, Dive, which you can view here. It was playing in a church I was attending, right before someone was going to be baptized. They had a pool inside this church the size and shape of a hot tub, without the jets, that you stood in with the preacher. After saying the appropriate words, he leans you all the way back, completely submerged by water and pulls you back up.

January wasn’t the best and I’m grateful to be standing in February. There has been sickness, trials and tribulation all piled into one month, so by January 30th, Barb sat down and had a 30-minute crying session. This doesn’t happen very often, but I felt better afterwards. Pandora was playing in the background and in that moment I heard a familiar voice. It was Steven Curtis Chapman advertising one of his new songs, ‘Don’t Lose Heart’.

I opened my laptop and Googled the song.

I kept this song open on my laptop all week and listened to it everyday. The timing of hearing Steven’s voice was God using him to pull me out of despair and back into the light. Every word was like water to this weary soul, because my faith was crumbling and I was losing all hope this situation would end. I’d done all I knew to do, but then we need to hand the outcome to God. He wants us to trust His timing and I was failing miserably because I’m human.

Whatever you may be going through let me assure you, the hard stuff makes us better. We can’t see it while we’re in it, but it’s true. Just don’t lose heart.

30 in 30

Last year when my daughter moved out to begin living her young adult life on her own, it ignited an interest in decluttering for me. Our stuff was no longer mingled together because she took some of her things with her and what’s left is either mine, or not needed at the moment.

One of my jobs is working with a company called Zen Habits, so Minimalism is a way of life for most of the people I work with. I’m not sure I’ll ever get to that level of simplistic living, but I’m making a valiant effort for Barb. The actual Minimalists are friends with the owner of Zen Habits, Leo Babauta and you’ve probably heard their names, Joshua Fields Milburn and Ryan Nicodemus. In their book, ‘Love People Use Things’, they unravel a fascinating tale toward their minimalism, but it’s not how I perceived it to be.

Minimalism is not about having less. It’s about making room for more of what matters.

The Minimalists

It all began when I started questioning my belongings by looking at each item and asking, “Does this thing add value to my life?” At one time it did and it may not mean much to me anymore, but I bet someone else would be thrilled to have it. This is where 30 in 30 comes into play by asking another question from The Minimalists, “What if you removed one material possession from your life each day for a month-just one-what would happen?” I walked next-door to borrow a giant box from Hercules and plopped it in the middle of the house.

This morning I was eyeing my wooden credenza where some of my favorite things are displayed, looking at each item and asking that question about value. I surprised myself by removing something I’ve had for years, but rarely use. This will bring joy to someone else, so into the box it went which already contains a few things because I began this practice days ago. This feels different than cleaning out cabinets, closets, or decluttering. These are items I live with everyday, and dust when required, but do they still add value to my life today?

As soon as I removed that one thing, I saw an empty space and was able to give the other items more space. I’m really starting to thrive in empty spaces.

With time this credenza could hold even less than what’s pictured here. The candle will burn out and be removed and the plant has numerous places to dwell in my home. What adds value to my life in this photo is my favorite lamp and some artwork is stored in the envelope propped behind the lamp waiting to be framed, but the most meaningful item is in the picture frame. It’s a notecard of a whimsical Emu I received from my friend Dawn at Aging With Grace.

I hope this inspires you to take a look around at everything you live with and as far as I know, 30 in 30 doesn’t include people, but I suppose it could.

Share What You Know

Welcome to another installment of Share What You Know. The years we’ve spent roaming this earth, offer ample opportunity to learn and share what you know. Recently, I shared this tip with someone and it was like a revelation to them, so it’s my pleasure to share it here with you.

I like to purchase substantial shower curtain liners instead of the thin, throw away type. They usually have metal grommets protecting the holes they hang from and are weighted at the bottom. The heavier liners are not very expensive and here’s how investing in a good quality one can save you time and money in the long run.

Depending on the frequency and how many people are using your bathtub/shower, the liner can begin to look gross rather quickly. The simplest way I’ve found to clean it is to throw it in the washing machine with some suds and bleach. If you have some old towels that need bleaching, throw those in the washer as well to help weigh the liner down. It doesn’t take a lot of bleach for this method and you don’t want to use to much because bleach will eat holes through the plastic.

Once the washing machine is done, grab a large bucket or storage container. You’re going to use this to place the shower curtain liner into to effortlessly carry it back to the bathroom without dripping bleach. Sit it inside your tub and begin hanging your liner. I do this a couple of times a year and haven’t had to buy a new liner in a long time. There’s one less shower curtain liner in our landfills. 🥳

Don’t Rush the Seasons

I did something completely out of character. I made a purchase even though it’s not quite time to use it. Of course, I could go ahead and use it, but there’s a peculiar sweetness in the anticipation of holding off until the right time.

Twice a year I go in search of a wreath for the front door. Spring/summer and Christmas. Sometimes I use the same wreath the following year, but most times I’ll give it away once the season ends. It’s still Winter here in Texas, and it’s been relatively mild as I see fellow Texans itching for Spring, but I really want to wait for it to arrive instead of rushing toward it. A friend of mine has already hung a Springtime wreath on her front door and she’s been working in her yard.

From previous experience, I don’t trust buying wreaths online. The photos look amazing, but once the wreath arrives I’m disappointed in the lack of quality. The other day I was at Target, strolling through the Magnolia section of the store and didn’t really have a wreath on my mind, but there it was sitting on the bottom shelf as if it were waiting to be noticed. There was no hesitation in stepping over to take a closer look and knowing instantly that was the wreath for this year.

I’m excited! Once home I thought about going ahead and hanging it on the front door, like my friend, but my heart pressed the pause button. It’s only January, and February can be an unpredictable month for weather, so I vowed to wait to enjoy it Spring through Summer. It came in a sturdy box with a lid, so I closed it up to wait. Every time I see that box, it brings a smile to my face like I’m ready for the next season, but for now will slow the pace to embrace this season we’re in.

Take a break from reading and let me read this to you:

You Do You Boo

It’s Friday morning around 10:00 am, and I’m sitting at the massive wood kitchen table that has evolved into a giant desk. Looking away from the laptop screen onto the window I spot the mail carrier’s van sitting in front of my mailbox. Laying my glasses aside I head for the door, step outside and stroll through the front yard, across the street to the mailbox. That’s when I spotted it…

My neighbors had company and they were still seated in their vehicle with a clear view of yours truly. It bothered me for half a second, but then I felt my back straighten to stand at full height and lifted my chin as if I belonged there.

Here’s a detail about my walk to the mailbox. I was still wearing my pajamas, robe and pink suede house boots. This is not unusual and sometimes you’ll catch me still wearing that at noon if it’s a Friday, or weekend. (The joys of being single and working from home.) None of my outfit matches, so I’m sure it’s a sight to behold for a stranger, but my actual neighbors seem to think it’s part of Barb’s charm. Hercules commented recently, “That’s a nice robe you have there Barbara.”

When people ask, “What do you do for fun?”, I exclaim…”I write letters to people all over the world!” Silence. I wrote about letter writing last year that you can read here, so seeing the mail arrive is happiness for me. I don’t expect a letter in return, but opening the mailbox and seeing a small stack of them is sweet!

Don’t give a single thought what other people think.

You do you boo.

PS. If you’d like to receive a hand-written letter, email your details to Inbarbsworld@gmail.com

In Awe of the Moment

You know I’m feeling better when I slip on a sarcastic saying t-shirt and go for a walk. That will be the one time you bump into a neighbor you’ve never met before and they’ll want to stop and chat, but you hold firm to no apologies for the shirt.

Afterwards, I really wanted a cup of coffee, but not just any coffee…I wanted a magical cup of brew, so that idea took me to the coffee shop where I first purchased the shirt. When I stepped into the shop, the girl behind the counter busted out laughing and commented on the shirt. I ordered my favorite drink, picked up a couple of funny cards to send to friends and came home.

The coffee tasted like magic.

During my walk, I couldn’t get over how perfect the outdoor temperature was. I stopped at one point in the middle of the street and looked up at the sky to marvel at the shade of clear blue. I could have stood suspended in that moment for an hour, but heard a truck coming up behind me and moved out of the way. If someone would have looked out their window and saw me wearing this t-shirt with my face tilted toward the sky they probably would have wondered what the heck I was doing, but that didn’t bother me.

If they asked I would have told them….

I’m standing in awe of the moment.

You can listen to me read this post here: