This month I have been enjoying Hannah Braime’s Advent Calendar. Hannah is an expert in journaling and has written an excellent book on the topic called The Ultimate Guide to Journaling. Each year she offers an Advent calendar which she describes as ‘ a review of the year that has been and the year to come.’ When you sign up for it, you receive a daily journaling prompt. For me, each prompt has been so engaging, that I want to immediately open my journal and start writing. When I came to the prompt for December 15, I found it so interesting to think about and write about that I realized it was time to share with all of you about the availability of this resource.

Today’s question was : “What three qualities or traits do you most want to embody in 2022?”
Isn’t that a juicy question?

To join in to receiving a daily prompt from now until Christmas Day, go to www.becomingwhoyouare.net. Once there, scroll down the homepage and you will find information about how to sign up for the Advent calendar. I am not sure that you can receive the journaling prompts for December 1-14, so if you can’t access them and would like to know what they were, please email me and I will be happy to share them with you.

Have fun!

Love, Sue

This morning an interesting question came to my mind. I asked myself, “What is your favourite word?” Our favourite word is the one that makes us vibrate inside with excitement, lifts our spirits to hear it and we want to live our lives by it.

The answer to the question for me is actually a term, made up of two words- ‘personal growth’. I knew I had the right answer for me because I did experience a delightful shiver down my spine thinking about it!

Our favourite word, or term, can guide our lives in the right direction. There is a workshop that I love to facilitate called The Bigger Game. (www.biggergame.com) Co-founder Rick Tamlyn says, “Where you put your attention designs your life.” When I first heard that sentence 12 years ago, I didn’t understand it. But now I think I do, and combining that with our favourite word, I think today that if we put our attention on our favourite word, trying our best to live according to it, our life will become one that is personally very exciting and satisfying to us. Conversely, at times when we feel blah and blue, we could say our favourite word to ourselves and see if there is a way to bring more of it into our life that day. I have found, even during this pandemic, that if I choose to focus on facilitating a little personal growth to happen either for myself, another individual, or for a group, my mood immediately picks up, as well as my level of hope.

What is your favourite word/term today? Are you allowing it to design your life?

I came across a very encouraging website yesterday which can be found at www.viacharacter.org. The home page states: ‘In the early 2000s, something groundbreaking occurred in the social sciences. Scientists discovered a common language of 24 character strengths that make up what’s best about our personality. Everyone possesses all 24 character strengths in different degrees, so each person has a truly unique character strengths profile. Each character strength falls under one of six broad virtue categories which are universal across cultures and nations.’ The six virtues are Wisdom, Courage, Humanity, Justice, Temperance and Transcendence. Under these virtues are the 24 character strengths which include such things as creativity, curiosity, judgement, love of learning, perspective, and bravery.

The Via Institute offers us a free survery to ascertain what our unique blend of character strengths is. The survey takes about 15 minutes to complete. I love what they say about the uniqueness of each individual. “The number of potential character strengths profiles is exponentially greater than the number of people living on the planet.” Wow! That’s a mindblowing and exhilarating thought!

I did take the survey and was astonished at how accurate it seemed to be. I really enjoyed reading the descriptions they offered for each character strength. For instance, Honesty is described as ‘speaking the truth, but more broadly, presenting oneself in a genuine way and acting in a sincere way; being without pretense; taking responsibility for one’s feelings and actions.’ I liked that more extensive definition.

I think we all love taking surveys that give us more knowledge about ourselves. This one is a truly enjoyable one. I hope you get as much pleasure from taking it as I did!

The Psalms Project is a two CD collection of music which has been my soundtrack for the pandemic. Written by Mike Janzen, a gifted songwriter and pianist, this CD came out in August 2020, and I have been listening to it almost daily since then, especially at times of stress.

In the liner notes, Mike explained that he had been asked by a good friend to write some music based on the Psalms, but he hadn’t gotten around to it. Then he suffered a debilitating concussion severe enough that he couldn’t read or look at screens. He decided to take one or two lines of the Psalms at a time, and meditate on them. He said he found the ancient words ‘were full of cries to God in times of great distress. They lifted my spirits even though my circumstances weren’t changing. They gave voice to my despair when I couldn’t gather up the strength to call out for myself. They morphed from third person to first person. They carried me.’

With nothing but time on his hands, he gradually found himself writing music and words inspired by nineteen of the Psalms. In time he was able to gather and record the songs in a studio with 14 other musicians, all socially distanced and wearing face masks. He said as the first notes of the recording session were played, ‘tears filled many of our eyes. The sound was rich and resonant, and you could see each face taken aback by the fullness of the music soaring in the studio.’

Mike goes on to say, “and that is how hope works. We are sidelined, weary, sick, sad and feel forgotten. But when the music plays, we are taken aback and we remember the God who holds us. And in the remembering we are renewed and remade to hope again.”

I have found these two CDs to work that way for me. Within a minute or so of sitting and listening to any of the songs, I have felt my stress levels fall and calmness return. I thought it was time to share about this treasure with you!

If you would like to read more about the Psalms Project, go to www.mikejanzen.ca and you will be able to learn more and order the CDs if you so desire.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Lately, the phrase ‘This too shall pass’ has been coming to my mind. I wondered where this phrase originated. Googling it this morning brought up a Wikipedia page where I learned that the phrase is a Persian adage that seems to have originated in the writings of the medevial Persian Sufi poets.

Abraham Lincoln used the phrase in a speech he gave on September 30, 1859 as he recounted a story:

“It is said an Eastern monarch once charged his wise men to invent for him a sentence, to be ever in view, and which should be true and appropriate in all times and situations. They presented him the words: “And this, too, shall pass away.” How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of pride! How consoling in the depths of affliction.”

It sent a shiver down my spine to realize that Abraham Lincoln gave this speech on September 30, the same date as has been chosen for our National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. This will be a solemn day of reflection for all Canadians. I am just beginning to ponder how Abraham Lincoln’s speech and the words ‘This too shall pass away’ might relate to our National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, but I can’t help but think there may be a connection of some kind between September 30, 1859 and September 30, 2021.

May God bless us all with insight, wisdom, courage, fortitude and the resolve to do our part to become the people we want to be, who do the things we know we should do.

Isn’t it lovely to be experiencing the cool, crisp mornings of September? Ahhhh! We can breathe comfortably again!

Summer is wonderful in its own way- a time of lots of visiting, fresh fruit and vegetables, swimming and ice cream cones! But for me, it’s also a time that feels a little chaotic.

Fall brings with it order, routine, planning and Thanksgiving, which is my favourite holiday in the calendar year. This week, I came across a marvellous quote found in the body of Christine Valters Paintner’s weekly Abbey of the Arts post. She was talking about Hildegard of Bingen, whose feast day it is today. Hildegard was a 12th century Benedictine Abbess. She was a visionary leader of extraordinary creative power. She was a monk, a herbal healer, a visual artist, a musician, a poet, a spiritual director and more! Although she was one busy lady, she also taught about the value of cultivating moderation and balance in one’s life. She developed a list of 35 virtues that she felt one should cultivate in pursuit of a happy, fulfilled life. The fourteenth of these she called discretio or discretion, the opposite of which she called ‘excess’. In writing about discretio she said, “ A person who toils more than her body can bear is rendered useless in her spirit by ill-judged roil and abstinence. Living hopelessly and joylessly, that person’s sense often fails.”

Christine commented on this by saying: “The key to creative flourishing is cultivating moderation and balance. The virtue of discretio is about discerning the right path and not being overburdened or overworked so that we are stretched too thin and joy is lost.”

I was really struck by these words coming after the experience of a very busy August and early September which was full of good things and lovely visits with people, but which did lack the balance of rest and reflection. This week I have been on a silent retreat, spending 72 hours alone resting, reflecting, journaling, just lying on my porch swing gazing at a tree for an hour, eating ice cream, going swimming and taking long afternoon naps.

The result is that I feel balance is being restored!

Thank you, Hildegard and Christine, for writing us these words of wisdom! May we all know balance and restoration in our lives!

Wow, a month and a bit has slipped by since I have written a blogpost. A friend pointed this out, and as I reflected upon why I haven’t written recently, I realized that the move out of my expressive arts studio on June 30 really took it out of me. Not the actual move, but the sorting through everything that had accumulated there after 14 years of working in the space. There were so many cards to read again, a lot of pieces of art to look at and decide if I wanted to keep them or give them away, so many notes to review from so many courses taken during that time frame, or given to others in the studio. After the move I crashed for a week of rest, and last week was a vacation week with family.

Now, it’s time to look around and think about what’s next. A friend sent me an intriguing question today. She said that one of her contacts had stated, “Our best years are behind us now.” My friend asked, “Do you think they are?” My immediate inner response was, “No way!!” I thought of Robert Browning’s quote: “Grow old with me, the best is yet to be, the last of life, for which the first was made.” How can it be that the last of life may be the best?

Thinking of today, it has been wonderful to email back and forth with my friend about this question. I took a long afternoon nap. I mused with another friend by email about a course I would like to offer this fall or winter about writing ethical wills. My partner and I worked on our front porch- washing it and applying a coat of stain to freshen it up. We will barbeque later and go for a long walk down at the beach.

I think it’s the freedom to choose how our days go, as we grow older, that most contributes to happiness for me. I love the luxury of afternoon naps, long phone calls with good friends, and the opportunity to go for a long walk, or a swim whenever I want to. I still want to volunteer at my local library, offer life coaching and workshops and Nia classes, but I get to set my own schedule. More often I can live according to what I truly want to do, and I can make plans on the spur of the moment that fit with that. I know it’s summer and we just got released from many of the COVID restrictions we have been living under, but I do think that freedom to choose my days will continue to be pretty thrilling. I read a study that showed that people’s happiness often is a U shaped curve over the course of their lives. High levels of happiness tend to occur early in life and late in life. Now isn’t that something to enjoy now, and look forward to later?

Happy Summer to all!

I love reading Shelley Klammer’s posts on her website found at www.expressiveartworkshops.com. Like me, she is a collector of quotations that feel meaningful to her. Here is the one she shared with us today:

“Love in a way that the person you love feels free.”

—Thich Nhat Hanh

These words led me to spontaneously raise my hands over my head and exclaim, “YES!!!”

What effect does the quote have on you, I wonder?

I am hoping that where you are today it is a beautiful, full of the fragrance of flowers in blossom kind of day. May you love yourself in such a way today that you set yourself free!

I am having fun this week taking a little course called Intuitive Painting Play, offered by expressive arts therapist Shelley Klammer via her website, www.expressiveartworkshops.com

Shelley has designed many bitesized courses, usually lasting 30 days, where one can explore making a piece of art, a piece of writing, or a collage in about 10-15 minutes each day. They are arranged around a theme for the 30 days. They are also very affordable. For instance, Intuitive Painting Play cost $25 US. This course is designed to loosen us up a little and get the creative juices flowing. I don’t know if it is a coincidence, but I have felt inspired by making these daily paintings and have made a new friend this week and connected with several old friends. I have been planting annuals, journaling more and generally enjoying life more since I started the course.

Of course, the stay at home order was lifted yesterday, the vaccination rate is going up, case numbers are going down and it looks like there’s every chance we will have an enjoyable and more social summer. This could definitely be contributing to my happy week too!

If you feel like engaging with something to jumpstart your creativity, I encourage you to take a peek at Shelley’s site and course offerings. Otherwise, enjoy being out in your garden and looking forward to summer fun!

Well, as I write this, we are still under a stay at home order. We are allowed to go to the golf course and the tennis courts, and to meet with up to 5 people outside, but we’re still pretty restricted overall.

I have discovered another author I want to recommend to you. His name is Robert Rotenberg, and he is both a practising criminal lawyer in downtown Toronto, and the author of six wonderfully written crime novels. They feature two detectives, Ari Greene and Daniel Kennicott. The stories are set in downtown Toronto. Although, admittedly, sometimes the murders that occur are quite grisly, that’s not the focus of the books. We learn a lot about the main characters’ lives as they go about the mechanics of solving the mystery. I found the characters both realistic and relatable, bordering on endearing! I started with a book in the middle of the series and then ended up reading all the rest! It has made for a very pleasant and engaged 4 weeks of reading. I am sorry to say I finished the last book in the series just now and I am eagerly awaiting the next story, which will likely be available in 2022.

The Telegraph-Journal says, “Rotenberg is Canada’s John Grisham.” I beg to differ. I think he writes a lot better than John Grisham and I love that he’s a Canadian, writing about real Canadian topics of concern, such as homelessness, in downtown Toronto.

I highly recommend him to you!