.reflections.everywhere.

Minturn Colorado

2012-02-16T20:24:00.001-05:00

Minturn Colorado, a photo by *cindi on Flickr.

..found this little bridge in 2006.. went back to the spot in 2010 and it was all but gone.

san fran 2011*day 1&2

2012-02-14T20:01:00.001-05:00

san fran 2011*day 1&2, a set on Flickr.

perfect way to see San Francisco... loved the up close views and the weather? it couldn't have been more perfect! wouldn't have changed a thing.. from riding the BART from the SFIA to the wonderful visit w/ an old friend in the Pier 39 area... even the baseball game was exciting. so ready to go back.

finders...

2012-01-30T23:56:00.000-05:00

keepers?

found a bit of money on my walk Friday

just blowing down the sidewalk..

there were dry patches on the driveway

where a vehicle had recently left.

no answer at the door

so I walked on

finishing up my 7500 steps

thoughts of earlier days

flashed through my

head

checking out of the grocery line

reaching in my purse

scrambling to find money

where is it?

panic!

that pit in your stomache

and a sinking heart!!

never will forget those times

and that horrible feeling

after my shower

I went back

the SuV

was in the driveway

she was surprised

as she hadn't realized yet

it was missing

but she seemed pleased

to get it back

.love.

2012-01-26T12:31:00.002-05:00

this blog:

wonderful things in your law

Gotye- Somebody That I Used To Know (feat. Kimbra)- official film clip (...

2012-01-23T22:18:00.000-05:00

forgiveness.

2012-01-23T15:31:00.003-05:00

stuggling .. forgiveness

taken from about.com.Christianity

How to Forgive: Understanding the Trinity's Role

When we have been hurt, our instinct is to hurt back. We want to make the other person pay for what they did. But exacting revenge steps over the line into God's territory, as Paul warned,

Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. (Romans 12:19, NIV)

If we cannot take revenge, then we must forgive. God commands it. But how? How can we let it go when we have been unjustly hurt?

The answer lies in understanding the Trinity's role in forgiveness. Christ's role was to die for our sins. God the Father's role was to accept Jesus' sacrifice on our behalf and forgive us. Today, theHoly Spirit's role is to enable us to do those things in the Christian life we cannot do on our own, namely forgive others because God has forgiven us.

Refusing to forgive leaves an open wound in our soul that festers into bitterness, resentment, anddepression. For our own good, and the good of the person who hurt us, we simply must forgive. Just as we trust God for our salvation, we have to trust him to make things right when we forgive. He will heal our wound so we can move on.

In his book, Landmines in the Path of the Believer, Charles Stanley says:

We are to forgive so that we may enjoy God's goodness without feeling the weight of anger burning deep within our hearts. Forgiveness does not mean we recant the fact that what happened to us was wrong. Instead, we roll our burdens onto the Lord and allow Him to carry them for us.

Rolling our burdens onto the Lord—that's the secret of the Christian life, and the secret of how to forgive. Trusting God. Depending on him instead of ourselves. It's a hard thing but not a complicated thing. It's the only way we can truly forgive.

hhmmm... that we may enjoy God's goodness without feeling the weight of anger burning deep..

getting there.

2012-01-22T21:10:00.004-05:00

choose ..

2012-01-03T13:00:00.000-05:00

...joy

I simply love this blog:

.. all Sara and sister Laura share from

the heart is pure inspiration to my soul.

inspiration everywhere you look!

2011-12-05T23:40:00.001-05:00

inspiration everywhere you look!, a photo by *cindi on Flickr.

inspiration on a board.

2011-12-05T22:48:00.001-05:00

LoVe. love. LOVE. Pinterest. *

spend about 30 minutes every few days "pinning" things on my virtual bulletin boards:

*either from the web

*favorite blogs

*favorite shopping sites

or best of all
*others on pinterest .. letting them do the "research"

this is a great way to keep everything in one place for a particular ongoing projects

inspiration ❤ abounds.

*if you need an invitation
let me know in a comment

colors for the soul

2011-11-10T14:12:00.001-05:00

We are purchasing a condo in downtown FtW.

I've been gathering ideas as I run into things... something that's been very helpful for me has been Pinterest.

It let's me put all the things I find in one place

so that I can look at everything

with a click of the mouse!

LOVE it!

Here are the colors that I'm considering:

I like the combo below the best.

One wall is already painted the green in

the lower left.

These just feel soothing to my soul.

***

.. oh my! remember....

2011-10-27T14:56:00.001-04:00

these??

when I was a little girl

we drove to Illinois

every single

summer..

family was there

and

sometimes it

included

a trip to:

for some reason

this place came to mind

so I looked them up

and

they're still around!

Eat Maid-Rite since 1926!

so if you ever find yourself

close to one of these

places..

give it a try

chances are good

you'll like it!

Joy

2010-04-26T19:06:00.003-04:00

Joy increases as you give it,

and diminishes as you try to keep it to yourself.

In giving it you will accumulate

a deposit of joy greater

than you ever believed

possible.

-norman vincent peale-

march

2010-03-12T23:57:00.002-05:00

March is the month of expectation.

― Emily Dickinson

❤

just...

2010-03-11T19:03:00.001-05:00

it's all we have to do-

but there is so much more...

... spread the word

2010-03-03T20:18:00.000-05:00

Spread the Word to End the Word Day! March 3, 2010.

It is being referred to as “the r word.” It includes the two words “retard” and “retarded.” The campaign is asking people to take the pledge to drop the words from their vocabulary.

I just pledged here:

http://www.r-word.org/

Please ~ won't you do the same???

Please see the following websites promoting Spread the Word to End the Word Day today.

http://www.specialolympics.org/spread-the-word-to-end-the-word.aspx

http://therword.org/

http://www.facebook.com/EndtheWord

thank you.

so ready for ...

2010-03-01T20:03:00.004-05:00

my roses to bloom

if time is escaping so quickly...

why

is this winter feeling

sooooo

long?

time....

2010-02-03T18:28:00.003-05:00

is it just me?

.. or is it just going by incredibly fast??

I hesitate to declare it an enemy...

I want to work with it and

not feel like it's working against me!

It's something to be cherished

not wasted.

I want to look back and know

I did my best

for the time I had.

fighting...

2010-02-01T23:40:00.003-05:00

Here's how we've been feeling these last few days:

yep... not so good.

and here's what we've been doing about it:

well... this stuff plus a pillow, blankets and soup!

oh and a ton of sleep...

for ALL of us!

yep... fighting a cold or the flu or whatever this stuff is

has got us down but not out!

a great day is right around the corner!

I just know it!

☼

I'm a little slow and WAY toooo deliberate...

2010-01-21T22:28:00.004-05:00

... but hey - what can I say? That's just me! Sometimes I revel in it.. and other times ...it's a self loathing thing. I decided January was a good month to clear some things out. I've been going through closets picking out things that don't fit right (yes I had to try some stuff on) or is such an odd choice - color wise or print wise - that it makes me wonder just who bought that for me? LOL yep, I did! ... not able to resist a 90% clearance tag... BUT WHAT WAS I THINKING??? Anyway, putting all of these clothes into a bag for VVA or Goodwill just felt so good that I couldn't stop there. Nope, I wasn't done, I had to reorder it by color! That's right by color. Years ago I saw an O show and someone on there reorganized her closet (which I think was bigger than my bedroom) by color and she just went on and on about how much easier it was to find things and how good it made her feel etc... Of course, failing to say that SoMEoNe else probably did that for her. ANYWAY, I did the color step too so it made that little project a step longer. I asked Chuck to do the same and he did it in about 20 minutes! and of course he didn't do the color thing... I didn't see any reason to bring that part up. Two days ago the VVA truck came and took my bags away.

So yesterday I started clearing out photo images on my computer that are not stellar! I am making some progress but have a LOT of pictures on my computer. And while it does feel great to be judge and jury I can see that this will be a process. I am having a particularly hard time w/ the blurry and otherwise not acceptable ones IF they are of someone related to me.... i.e. the grandbabies! I will have to revisit some of them other times because as imperfect as they may be just seeing the image almost brings back the sounds and action of the particular event. Soooo.. I am not going to linger on those too long or delete them too hastily.
My next step is the unfinished basement but that really will take a chunk of time! Some of it I'm not able to do w/ out Chuck but at least I can get started! I figure I should be done by... oh give me until Summer.

love, luck and magic....

2010-01-20T19:34:00.005-05:00

*

I just finished reading this interview from Stacey Curnow's website and wanted to share! I just found it so inspiring... to embrace the universe every single day in this way. A few years ago I had come to the conclusion that no matter the circumstance all that we HAD to keep doing was breathe... I have a sticky note on the visor in my car reminding me:
Just breathe... inhale... exhale

I love how ABM talks about breathing in her happiness mantra:
"release and receive"

It's the perfect addition to my just breathe motto!

I love this Abundance by Magic website too! Great idea!

*

journey - listening and silence

2010-01-18T16:51:00.007-05:00

Just recently I decided to sit tight and see what developed. Now mind you, that doesn't mean I'm waiting to be struck by lightening but just to put aside the busy work and see where my spirit led me. I must admit that I am definitely excited for the constant confirmation that I am finding with every corner I turn! I've been very emotional lately but know I am on the right path leading to some personal growth. One of the new blogs I am following is Jen Lee. Listening to my thoughts and just allowing for them to seep out... To really hear myself. hhhmmmm. These days silence is something that I really treasure... I wondered if that made me weird or something. As a young mother I remember always wanting some background noise ... even at night just to leave the TV going as we slept seemed like it filled a void but now I just crave the silence. I still bring my ipod on my daily walks but some days I just want to hear the birds. And in the car? Most of the time CD/radio is turned down. I really don't remember when that started being the norm.

I can't wait to just open my new journal to any page and start writing!!!

reflecting ...

2010-01-11T14:20:00.001-05:00

cindi 2009

*

crazy love ❤

2009-11-18T18:00:00.004-05:00

❤

I can hear your heart beat for a thousand miles




And the heavens open every time you smile

❤

pittsburgh for the weekend...

2009-08-24T22:55:00.005-04:00

For some reason I did not think that Pittsburgh would be a very pretty city... was I surprised! We passed thru the long Ft Pitt Tunnel and then ...WOW! We went over a bridge like the Mac bridge connecting Newport Ky and Cinci and the city was right there. I don't know what I was expecting but it was striking. Three rivers come together there but I only recall seeing 2! We must go back so we can explore the city more in depth. Someone had given Chuck baseball tickets to see the Pirates and the Reds so that was how we were spending the evening and our hotel was right next to the stadium. We got to that without really looking around and got settled then went out to explore what was right around us! I think from just that little area I could count seven? bridges! Don't know why but I love bridges! We had a few hours before the game and were certainly eager to spend it walking after that five hr drive. After going out to the closest bridge -where I was able to capture it from the middle of the street ☺ because it was closed! ... we guessed due to the game.. we made our way around that part of the PNC Park to the river! Walked the waters edge around to the other side and found the football stadium Heinz Field. Took lots of pictures then found a cool place- Jerome Bettis' Grill 36 to eat a late lunch... The game was fun ... had great seats facing the city just perfect for watching the city as the sun was setting and the evening turned into night! Oh and we could see the game well too! lol Before the game was over we walked to different areas within the park just to see the view. It was perfect weather! When we walked across the bridge and back there was a guy trying to make a little $$ playing a sax... He was doing old sitcom songs... anyone younger than 20 might not even know them... all stuff from the early 60's... We went across the street to a bar to catch a bite before we called it a night. Should have listened to the guy in front... he told us to get the tator tots but we tried the nachos. ugh there wasn't an unstale chip in the bunch but the 2 'rita's were wonderful!!! The next morning we were on our way by 10 so no chance to get back into downtown! ... next time!!

The Bell Jar and my life yrs later...

2009-08-20T21:58:00.008-04:00

The first time I read this was in comp1 my first year of college... I didn't think I would like it but I did. Especially because Esther made it in the end! She was coming out of her funk and she was going to be OK! At first it seemed so 'old fashioned'... this was the mid 70's and it must have been written in the 40's. Well, I was surprised to learn it was written well... started in the late 50's and finished in the early 60's right before the summer of love, dropping out and burning bras or draft cards etc. I was really taken with Esther and found myself able to relate... even though you could see she was losing it. Her imagination and her unrealistic accounts of things... just setting herself up was something I've been guilty of way too many times to count. So I was really rooting for her and happy that she actually lived through these experiences. I don't remember if in the class we wrote a paper on this novel or what BUT what really surprised me was the instructor telling us that this was autobiographical. The author Sylvia Plath had written this not as fiction just making it up ... the conditions, the friends, the family but all very close inline to her life. She went on to marry a writer and have a couple of children. She wrote several poems and had several published. After learning this our teacher went on to tell us the Plath did commit suicide... even though she had children... even though she'd been somewhat successful SHE (Esther!) didn't MAKE IT. She spiraled down that path again with even more reasons to be alive for! Well, hearing the teacher speak of her demise was earth-shattering for me for some reason. Maybe because I had related so much to her (Esther/Sylvia). It was frightening! As I reread this these last couple of days I am several yrs older -but I don't know if I'm any wiser! I would like to think I am but I again felt so taken with her way of thinking ... just the unreasonable manner her brain worked and how she would be so so disappointed with herself and/or others over and over and over. Immature? Stupid? Instability?? UNREALISTIC to think that others (situations) would just fall into place all to my thinking. I consider myself a very practical person who does like most of her life to be orderly... give or take a few surprises here and there. I have a hard time just letting go in the areas that would go much better if I could. Like my art...oh do I long to just throw it all up in the air!☺ and then glue it down just where it lands! but nope it all gets a little messy and I can't create another until it is all back in order... so boring but I just can not think if it's a big mess!
But back to the book... I'm happy that I've lived through the times of grief and depression I've managed to bring into my life. SO ... Why do I do that to myself? I have seen the bottom... and do not want to ever go there again. But it's a struggle. Sometimes daily. I've had lots and lots of ups but the downs it seems are never far away. I know she was suffering from mental illness.... not that that point was driven home to me back in college.. oh the teacher I'm sure mentioned it but I really wonder. Where does that leave me?
Let me again..
count my blessings