Unexpected "Weed" Blessings

07 Wednesday May 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Change, Surprise

Every time some unexpected “weed” sprouts up anyplace in my yard, I leave it until I can evaluate what it is. I have learned that nature often rewards me in unexpected ways via the birds carrying seed or perhaps thanks to the wind, but no matter how, I might find a delight bursting forth which was unplanned yet welcome.

That is life in general, a sequence of the unplanned which interrupts the planned, which causes us to constantly evaluate our course, our situation, our surroundings and our reactions. We have to accept the unexpected with that which we dutifully plan as that is the essence of life – it is about the unexpected twists and turns which cause us to alter and to shift in much the same ways as water fluidly moves.

Some of the best blessings in life are unplanned! Some of my favorite gifts in the garden have been those unintentional ones too: the Bottle tree, the Chinese Elm, the Dahlberg daisies strewn about, the occasional wildflower, the Creosote bush, the numerous Mexican Evening Primrose, the Palm seedlings, the Saguaro and some other cacti, the Mexican Birds of Paradise, a Desert Willow, a pine tree and some Justicia plants nearby the parent. The list is endless . . for the nature of all of life is to be fruitful and multiply.

All organic matter in the garden wants to live, to persist and to multiply, so I take watch of those things which sprout freely in my yard, counting them as blessings I get to have for free! A gardener is conditioned to expect the unexpected in the process of gardening, as all of life is uncontrollable and sporadic by nature! Learn to appreciate those things which are unexpected in life and to not resent the surprise in them, for often times they hold just as much benefit as do those things in which we endeavor to make happen through our planning and careful steps. Life is most definitely a journey into the unexpected, so we should be prepared to face it at every turn!

Perfect Peace

07 Wednesday May 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Peace

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Perfect peace . . I cannot define that for you, but for me, it would be a moment in the early morning hours, before the sun fully arises, spent listening to the sounds of nature. It isn’t quiet, it isn’t still, but there is a peace within all the busy-ness of nature which soothes and relaxes me. I don’t find that as easily within the busy-ness of humanity – tires screeching, engines racing, people chattering, horns and bells and whistles and phones ringing! All of that belies soothing, peaceful, contentment. I find it so easily in nature though. In countless birds singing “Good morning, world!” in whatever tone and manner suits them. It’s evident in the morning fly-over of the geese honking on their way to another landing spot. I hear it in the silent stillness of the air not yet rancorous with air or ground traffic noises. It clearly sounds like the water continuously spilling over itself in the fountain, just to turn right around to do it all over again and again. It is in the peacefulness of this relative nothingness in which I gladly surrender again today, as to find such silence in the earliest hours of the day is my true special pleasure. It is rarely found ever again later in the day. In these moments, there is an ease of prayer, of praise, of being grateful and in being hopeful as well. All is right with my world starting my day in such perfect peace. I breathe in the fresh morning air, breathing out, “ahhhhh” and Amen! I encourage you all to find such a moment throughout your day whereby you can regularly find your perfect peace, or make one!

Living Life As An Overcomer

29 Tuesday Apr 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Lessons, Life

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Living life requires that you overcome . . a human being must always be at heart an overcomer for his or her life to measurably amount to anything at all. Our first breaths are overcoming breathlessness, and from those first days, we journey through progressively varying stages of difficulty in overcoming something or some state of being which is challenging, testing and often immensely painful. It might be our state of being, our own health, our family, poverty, a condition of our ability as compared to those of others. We all have something, some challenges or many states to overcome in life. When you choose to deign yourself a victim of a circumstance, a fearful soul, trapped in your present condition, unable to grow or incapable of much at all, you no longer can be an overcomer. You become rather an un-doer, a stagnant soul or a person whose own life disappoints them, fills them with regret or sorrow. An overcomer might be victimized or be temporarily in some state, even with a
permanent condition in which they cannot change, but they are inherently resolute to not defining their lives in that way. An overcomer take on the challenges of life, living it to the fullest in spite of the reasons to remain status quo. A most shining example of being an overcomer is Helen Keller. She had no ease in life being sightless, deaf and mute, unable to communicate easily with the audible language we all take for granted to first teach us. But yet, she was able to learn with much effort and patient teaching; and developed beyond those imprisoned states to become so much more! Fear, self-doubt and reasoning worry keep us locked in states of being, in conditions we don’t favor, in emotions which are negative . . but an overcomer takes on the hard work with courage, curiosity and a tireless resolve because they realize their greatness in life and the greatness of their life depends on being first an overcomer! Don’t let fear take your wings in life, don’t easily label yourself a victim who is unable, unwilling or just incapable. Be an overcomer and earn the rewards of taking on challenges even in the face of fear. Let your wings of courage and curiosity build a life worthy of your dreams and desires on the other side of your struggles, challenges and fears!

Humility is the Key!!

16 Wednesday Apr 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Humility, Integrity, Kindness

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Humility enables us to accept the flaws, mistakes, poor choices, bad habits, unwise thoughts and imperfections of ourselves so that we may be able to say, “I’m sorry” to others when our mistakes effect them, or to develop beyond whomever we are now or to achieve some greater state of wisdom and growth.

Humility is the key to accepting our own equal state of humanity with that of others. Without first being humble, we cannot then be empathetic, sympathetic, compassionate, kind, gentle, loving or honest. We must be willing to be openly humble to speak earnestly, with integrity, as well as to accept our trial-and-error course in life.

We will fail, we will falter, we will not be the best, or the most . . . the prettiest, the most handsome, the wealthiest, the most talented, etc. But when we’re genuinely humble enough to acknowledge that we’re on a journey to become more and to do better, even with our imperfections, we’re in the right frame of mind to accept ourselves as well as others. With humility, we know we aren’t always going to be right, we won’t always know things, we aren’t always expecting to be or to have or to do . . with humility we just are!

Humility is as defined by Merriam-Webster: hu·mil·i·ty noun hyü-ˈmi-lə-tē, yü- : the quality or state of not thinking you are better than other people : the quality or state of being humble
And humble: 1hum·ble adjective ˈhəm-bəl also chiefly Southern ˈəm-
1: not proud : not thinking of yourself as better than other people
2: given or said in a way that shows you do not think you are better than other people
3: showing that you do not think of yourself as better than other people

Give Up

16 Wednesday Apr 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Giving Up, Quitting

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I believe we humans give up too easily . . on ourselves, on others, in hoping and with our faith in humanity and life itself. We begin our lives needing everything.Having everything given to us because we cannot get it for ourselves. We learn to get what we need for ourselves or as we experience hard times in obtaining what it is we need, even at the most basic levels, we often get caught up in a negative mindset. That mindset is brought on by feelings of not attaining, not achieving, not getting and not having. We want so much, we desire so much and we need basics in life – like food, water, shelter and clothing.

Even with the most positive of hearts and minds, we can learn to be hardened to the ache of disappointment, the failure of not achieving, the need left unfulfilled and the loss of losing what we treasure. Hardening from within isn’t an act of courage in the face of our pain, it isn’t the way to becoming or even having what we want. Hardening in response to what we perceive as pain is merely the way we try to protect ourselves and our hearts from more disappointments, failures and losses.

We build walls of hardness around the soft, tender nature of our feeling hearts and reasoning minds to keep the world from hurting us, from breaking us any further and from seeming to take from us! But we don’t keep the world away when we become doubtful, hard and unloving as a response. We merely keep ourselves from anything which is positive, gentle and loving! It is difficult to be tender, to risk, to love, to be exposed in life. It is often going to be the case that things don’t go as we planned, that we’re surprised by loss, filled with grief and exposed to pain.

It is often the opposite as well! It is only when we allow ourselves to not be hardened by pain, anger, loss or unfulfilled hopes that we will experience the thrill of achievement. The wonder of beauty. The pleasantness of pleasure. kindness, tenderness, love, compassion, and all the positive aspects of life! Don’t let yourself become negative, hard and callous to life . . it won’t stop anything negative from coming into your life, nor does it stop the pain. It just prevents you from also knowing joy, peace, contentment, hope and love!

Its A Chance For Discovery…

29 Saturday Mar 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Character, Choices, Ethics, Faith, Fullness, Gentleness, Happiness, Inspiration, Integrity, Joy, Kindness, Life, Love, Wisdom

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ATear-25

Remember today as you go out into the world of discovery, that some souls might be fragile, heartbroken, saddened in grief, feeling fear or suffering in some other way. Inside, they may be impacted by events in which we haven’t any knowledge or awareness, nor for which we see any obvious signs externally. We might not know exactly what others are enduring, but we can be compassionate in our journey, kind in our steps thus giving others respect, patience, our love & our best first so that if they’re suffering in some way, we seem to them to be safe waters in their already stormy lives.

I remember the days right after my father died unexpectedly so many years ago . . I was feeling so vulnerable and broken that I felt I was operating at a different speed than the rest of the world, into which I had to venture out routinely, especially since it was fairly close to Christmas. But when I encountered – amidst the busy-ness and frenetic pace – kind people with loving hearts and gentle smiles, I felt somehow safer and less fragile.Being kind, compassionate, gentle, patient and loving isn’t always easy and sometimes seems in opposition to the events of our day and perhaps even our moods as a result, but we truly never know what others are enduring! We should endeavor to give the world our best for one day it might be us who needs theirs in return.

We should endeavor to give the world our best for one day it might be us who needs theirs in return. And we should try to see and to believe the best of others because we don’t know their full story. What might seem standoffish to us, may be someone trying to hold themselves together for the sake of not breaking down!s fragile. Being kind, compassionate, gentle, patient and loving isn’t always easy and sometimes seems in opposition to the events of our day and perhaps even our moods as a result, but we truly never know what others are enduring!

These are the fruits of our spirit from Galatians 5:22-23, nine things in which we already are amply endowed, may we practice them today and everyday when we meet one another as strangers or even as friends: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

We are so Focused…

27 Thursday Mar 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Courage, Faithfulness, Integrity, Self-Control, Strength, Success, Wisdom

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We’re so focused on what we’ll become that we often forget to develop fully first what we are. You cannot build a big, busy building upon a weak foundation. It will ultimately crumble from the weight of itself. Without a foundation based in integrity, without doing things the right way, any edifice built might look good from the outside, but the innermost facets will fall into weakness, decay, and then ultimately ruination.

You cannot live exclusively for the sake of your flesh ignoring your inner structure of soul and spirit, for like the building erected without proper foundational support, you will falter, grow weak, and further erode until you collapse. You must build your life’s foundation first, and then work on building the rest from that! What makes a great foundation for each of us personally? Well that varies by choice, be degree & by our history. But the common components of foundational strength are those of character – integrity, ethics, respect, honesty, confidence, kindness & responsibility, to name a few – which are the constant ingredients to a solid foundation upon which to build a successful, strong & busy life!

We are empowered to live and to grow as well through our connection to God, having faith and a desire to honor Him in our endeavors. As Aristotle mused, “We are what we repeatedly do!” If we make it our goal to build up our foundation as we endeavor to build our lives by repetitive practice, we will then be compelled to seek those things which foster our growth, fuel our success and enhance the possibility of achieving our goals. The nature of a life based on such superficial matters as our flesh and what feeds and fosters it, with no purposeful desire to grow, to mature or to develop fully the spirit and soul, is always one which is more limited.

With integrity and other solid character components in place as a part of our foundation, we make all our choices and take all our steps in accordance to the barriers and parameters we’ve established accordingly. Integrity prevents us from going beyond our own preset limits in behavior, thought and in our speech. Integrity compels us to act with discipline. We censor ourselves and self-discipline because maintaining our integrity is tantamount to our venturing beyond those limits.

The focus of our life is often skewed towards that which brings the most instantaneous satisfaction – that being on things which serve our flesh and its needs first. But the life built on a solid foundation, which nurtures the growth, maturity and the development of our body as well as our spirit and soul, will prove to be the key to a longer-lasting and more-rewarding life over all!

Positivity – Miss Goody Two Shoes!!!

21 Friday Mar 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Change, Character, Faith, Fullness, Gentleness, Happiness, Life, Love, Peace, Romance

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Positivity!! Maybe I try too hard, maybe I want to see things through rose-colored lenses too much or too often, perhaps I am too hopeful a romantic – stopping to smell almost every rose and listen to every bird’s song. I am all those things, wanting not to change to fit for negativity’s sake nor for the hope of fitting in with those who snipe, constantly complain or bitterly engage with others.

I’m the product of a lifelong struggle to not be beaten down by life, so why should I let it do that now? Life is a once-around kind of thing, there’s no do-overs once it’s done. There are infinite do-overs during life, but in this one lifetime I don’t want to choose to live in a pessimism of spirit and soul.

How is it that we have so much in us and near us all of our lives, and yet we grow to faithfully believe in so little, especially ourselves or our own dreams? Perhaps someone would argue that being a realist precludes dreaming, that dreaming is the act of a person deluded and out of touch with reality. I guess that could be said, especially by those who’ve given up their dreams or on life itself.

It’s not enough, however, to change my heart or my mind. I’m going to stay focused on trying hard with faith; viewing life with a grateful heart because I see, feel and know blessings for which I haven’t any explanation! I’m not going to stand in anyone else’s footprints of pessimism because for me, there is simply too much abundance all around me and too many miracles evident to give up on dreaming.

Call me a fool, I don’t care. I’m here every day hoping with faith, believing in earnest, loving without end & endeavoring to make things even more as I see them – positive, hopeful, worthy of all my efforts. If this makes me a goody-two-shoed, rose-colored-glasses-wearing, beacon of faith & hope, then so be it! That’s what I want to be!

Growing Pains . .

28 Tuesday Jan 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Change, Character, Confidence, Faith, Growing, Life, Opportunity, Second chances, Success

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Don’t you feel growing pains when something gets wasted? Like when you buy a container of berries but forget to enjoy them before the mold sets in. Or if you lose that lottery ticket you bought, always wondering what might have been or maybe, and more importantly, you hurt someone – losing their friendship which you valued highly. And all the waste beyond, lives, lost jobs, major losses which hurt beyond measure, we don’t even like to consider those. There is so much waste in the world, the possibility for regret is astronomical. But consider them all as growing pains….

The worst waste of all each & every day is that of our infinite potential as humans . . we linger it away or don’t accept it as ours to begin with by doubting our own uniqueness, our own ability & our own potential. We waste it, unaware of the chance we had to make a difference, to change a heart, to improve our journey or to grow vastly beyond where we now are. They are all growing pains…

We have talents, gifts, desires & hopes, all firmly dwelling within us, but we often become so disengaged from living with developing those as our goals, focusing instead on the past, or some hurtful event, or the pain of living each day . . we grow fatigued in the very process of growing & let the driving force of life become secondary to idling in the traffic of nothingness. Think of them as growing pains…

We often tell ourselves that in growth lies too much potential for pain, so we stop where we are, we give up on pushing ourselves a wee bit harder, we let our fears or our doubts take from us our forward drive! I urge you to focus on every opportunity you get today to call forth your own uniqueness, your own talents, your own passions & your own hopeful dreams! Don’t live in the impossibility of a void, but remember the possibility of all life around you! Don’t let the risk of what might happen on the way to what might be stop you from discovering the glory of all that you’ve yet imagined! Accept that with living comes growth, growing pains & change . . accept that as life, for with it all comes our ability to become the very best of ourselves!

Deep-Water Living . .

23 Thursday Jan 2014

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Character, Choices, Commitment, Confidence, Courage, Growing, Inspiration, Lessons, Life

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Deep-Water Living

So many people choose to live their lives in the shallow waters, never venturing out deeper where faith, hope,love, commitment, courage, growth, challenge & everything that pushes a human to live as more are found. Going further & deeper helps us to grow up. But it’s as if some feel more comfortable without the weight of too much emotion, the increasing burdens often fraught in real human entanglements & the messiness of growing up. They want to have fun, to enjoy life, to focus all their energy on whatever it is that brings them money, fame, power, joy or some other outer-body measure sans the hassle of going deeper & further. So they choose to make a life without any challenge to their spirit or soul. They learn to live so singularly for themselves that they don’t even see those choices, that reticent need to stay comfortably where they are & to not grow up, as narcissistic, selfish & self-involved. If we don’t allow ourselves to claim responsibility for our own messes, to feel for others compassionately, to entangle ourselves in the messes of life & to grow up through the challenges we have opportunity to take on, we never become much of anything in the world but an aging shell of a human being. As the noted poet Maya Angelou has said: “Most people don’t grow up. Most people age. They find parking spaces, honor their credit cards, get married, have children, and call that maturity. What that is, is aging.” Human beings are called upon to develop, not just physically, but also to mature emotionally & spiritually. What a shame to be so one-dimensional that we might focus all our energy on just staying happily in the shallow waters, never venturing out to where the real challenges of life might take us nor appreciating that great strength when we do find it in ourselves or when we see it in others! Taking the easy way isn’t necessarily taking the best way. And often times, staying where we’re comfortable means we miss more of what we could never even imagine in the way of true joy, inner peace & burgeoning self-esteem!