it's not the end:)

I'm pretty sure the whole world is thinking about the end of 2014... maybe it's with relish, "phew, that year's finally over, it really STUNK!"or maybe it's with a bit of a "meh" there was good, there was not so good, but I'm looking forward to that fresh start. Maybe, just maybe, this was the year of success, change, motivation and exciting journeys, maybe all of the good that happened FAR outweighs any inconvenience, sadness or depression.

As with every year, there are always ups and downs, (understatement, I know) some of those downs can be overwhelmingly life changing and so challenging that we don't know how to maneuver to the "up". But I want to go back to my roots when I think of being down and getting stuck there, my mom always told me to "do something for someone else". No, I have not had a lot of personal experience with extreme struggles, trials and tragedy, but my mom has! and frankly she truly walks the walk and talks the talk of how to crawl out of those dark places in life. (shameless plug here). She recently finished a book called, "He Leadeth Me", by Charlotte Halsell Bradshaw (you can find it on Amazon, wink, wink). This little book chronicles how God has led her through some mighty fine times, but also how His voice guided her through some trials that would make the strongest soul crumble if they didn't have the Creator of the Universe talking them through it.

My point here is, and as usual I DO have one, we have 365 days within a year. But who says that December 31, 2014 at 12 midnight has to denote "the end". Yes, it is the actual end of 2014, (thank you to any doubters out there about my "point"), but it is NOT the end of trying, striving and attempting to make a difference. We definitely have to start with ourselves and what daily attitude we will put on, but if our circumstances are less than stellar, sometimes the circumstances may win. So what do we do? Choose our attitude, choose to step outside of our circumstances, choose to see the glass half full, choose to forget about ourselves for awhile and do something for someone else. There are 8,760 hours in a year and they can begin at any point, there really is only one "end". So until that day comes? Maybe you can make some conscious choices to move forward, it may be inch by inch, but
 you'll get where you want to go eventually. Because it's really not the end.

Let's continue this conversation in the next several days with some practical "how-to's"
Hope all is well with you my quirksters
Talk to y'all soon
xoxo
r

Holiday Humbuggers;)

"Hello Mr. Humbug, Hello Mr. Grimm"
God Bless us Everyone;)

Perhaps you're one of those that is comPLETEly overwhelmed with the holidays. Be it Christmas, New Years, Winter Solstice or any other winterized event that is worth raving about. Maybe the thought of family, friends, gatherings and all the frivolity involved just sounds like a big old energy drain and you don't know what you can do to ease into any of these moments or what you can officially "bring to the party", so to speak. I have a few suggestions, in particular, ones that focus on bringing back the fun in your Christmas and maybe letting go of some expectations of Martha Stewart-like buffets, decorations and home-made (aka thousands of man hours) gifts that are meticulously prepared, made and wrapped or served with unique flair and intention. Some of these have actually been tested by myself (or ones close to me), others just sounded like fun. So here goes:

1. Let it GO! There is a reason why this "Frozen" anthem rings true with so many listener's, we all need to attempt to let some things go, particularly at this time of year... maybe it's shoving things into a closet or closing a door on a less than perfect room in order to throw together an impromptu hot chocolate party. Maybe it's putting aside our differences with family members or seasonal friends (those people that always attend your family parties that you have nothing in common with...) and trying to find something that you can share. Needless to say, maybe this shouldn't necessarily be a "Frozen" anthem? maybe we would all be a lot less stressed in our lives if we could just let.it.go.

2. Gifts of time. Never underestimate the fact that your time can be given as a gift. You don't have to give a $50.00 gift card to someone that already has absolutely everything they need. Maybe it can be an interactive gift, making something with someone, a craft project or some kind of memory that they can keep forever. My mother-in-law loves when we jot a note and wrap it saying, "we will bring a tea party to YOUR house!" or any other gift of time. It's special for everyone and memories don't get thrown into the Salvation Army curbside give away bag.

3. Take a walk and take it all in. Slow down a bit and check out the lights in your neighborhood. Slow down is the key here, I know everything seems to be first on the scale of importance? But if you're exhausted then no fun will be had and your moments will be fuzzy and a blur of busyness.

4. Prioritize. What needs to come first? In appreciation of a season of wonder and love, perhaps acknowledging why we have this season in the first place. Taking more than just a perfunctory moment to bow our heads and thank God for saving us through His son Jesus. What an amazing, loving and thoughtful God to have created a way that we can be with him. This is where my thoughts become overrun, because as a human being I cannot even fathom the sacrifice that He made for us. So take time to thank Him, for humbling himself and coming to earth as a helpless baby, and experiencing everything that we experience...painful humanity, and living life on this earth with us and then allowing himself to be sacrificed in the most excruciating way possible... but THEN overcoming death... yes, this is a part of Christmas, CHRISTmas and acknowledgement of Him will help gain perspective on what is important in our lives. We might all be surprised by the peace that He provides within us when we put the one who created us first in our lives.

5. Give! Do something for a stranger, a distant relative, a frenemy, a neighbor that you never see except when you back out of your driveway at the same time.  See #2 for "gifts of time" there is a lot to be said for taking a moment and dropping a note to someone, calling, texting, waving, hugging, shaking a hand, put a posy in someone's mailbox, sing some Christmas Carols at the mall, hospital or rest home.

I'm pretty sure you mightlook at this list and think AAACK I can't do any of these things, I'm just overwhelmed looking at this post. But maybe you can start with #4 and see where your priorities lie and listen for sweet gentle guidance on what you can do to have a lovely, peaceful holiday season.

So blessings on all of your heads, talk to y'all soon,
xoxo
r

s...t...r...e...t...c...h... yourself.

Percival Pencil (one of my softy creations)
He's for sale at www.etsy.com/shop/quirkified

To all of my dear quirkified friends I would like to share a bit more on our habit of creativity. We've talked about so many aspects, but what about stretching yourself?


Personally, my "thing" tends to be the artsy stuff. Time literally grows wings when I'm drawing, painting, claying little bits of cuteness, crocheting, or coming up with a visual for a word picture that is running through my brain. These are my go-to's, the things that come naturally and will continue to morph over time as I practice my creativity habit.


I would say my second love is to write silly
"dr seussy" stories and then doodle cartoons to accompany them in a variety of mediums. Yes, this has a tendency to be a companion to my artsy "go-tos" but the stories are a bit more of a stretch and time tends to grow wheels instead of wings.

Maybe you are like me in wanting to explore all sorts of areas of creativity but you head back to the familiar like a mosquito to stagnant water. Maybe we need to find what stretches us but does not frustrate us. Personally I find in order to not be frustrated I have to make sure that I'm not looking at a big picture, that it needs to be something small and doable. Something that gets me excited by the success of accomplishing it, finishing it, regardless of my need for improvement or tweakage of whatever it is I'm attempting.

Some examples;
1. Set a goal. Make it just outside of your comfort zone. Just enough so you know you'll learn something but not be overwhelmed by time or the amount of effort required. (side note, I'm working toward being in a Craft Fair the first week in December. Putting together items and thinking of how to best display and attract is a stretch for me.)

2. Do something that you might not consider to be in your creative repertoire, but you find yourself thinking about doing. For me, this is cooking! I've never been much of a food person, yet with the dawning of Pinterest and all the lovely enticements pictured on these boards I find myself wanting to attempt some of them. A small goal for someone like me would be to make a dessert or an appetizer to share with friends or family, someplace safe that will accept my meager offerings without too much teasing or critique. (a little bit of a soft landing during your stretch is more than an acceptable compromise, since you are stepping out)

I hope these stretching suggestions are something you can relate to and be encouraged to reach for, hey we're in this together..

UPDATE: When I originally wrote this entry I was busily preparing for the aforementioned craft fair that has now transpired as of this past weekend. I'm more than delighted to say that it was an exhausting blast and that I learned SO much from the experience. Displaying items that you have invested time and effort into creating can make you feel very vulnerable, but I found that it was more than worth it. Some minor successes occurred and lessons were learned so I would add this to the "plus" column in my endeavor toward the creativity habit.

Blessings on all of your heads, I will talk with y'all soon:)
xoxo
r