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Tag Archives: Attitude

With Aging, There Aren’t Any Rules…

25 Wednesday Oct 2017

Posted by Cheryl Ries in aging, Attitude, Choices, Commitment, Discipline, Fitness, goals, Maturity, Outdoors, Persistence, Strength

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aging, Attitude, Fitness, goals

Have you ever told yourself that what you were considering was impossible before you even began? I’ve done it more in recent years than ever before because I’ve grown accustomed to thinking that with middle age, I am naturally more limited! But that, I would suggest, is a lie. And with aging, there aren’t any rules! I am no less able now than I was twenty or thirty years ago. The actual difference in my fitness or abilities is only evident in that I may have a few more aches or pains when I do something, I may have to warm up a few minutes longer, and I may have to go a bit easier at first when attempting things, but the only real limits to training and physical fitness is in my imagination! 

When I was younger, I had amazing endurance. It always took me a long time to get winded when working out, or when doing something physical. As an avid hiker, I was often chided by my friends as being part mountain goat, because the uphill effort wasn’t as taxing for me given my endurance. I’m not a fast runner or a speed demon in any pursuit, but I have that endurance consistently. Well, even with age, that hasn’t changed much. I’m still able to “go the distance” when it comes to physical activities and sporting endeavors. I can still hike and do hike, I can move up a flight of stairs without getting winded, and I can train for a considerable time before I start to get winded or fatigued. But the minute I try to sprint, run, or race through any sport, I can’t maintain the effort for very long. So really, not much has changed for me at this stage of life! With stretching, I’m just as flexible, with effort, I’m just as conditioned. The only thing I’ve really noticed with aging is a need to build and keep more muscle, as that seems to be less easy to do and more a challenge of our body’s aging process. 

So the lesson I’ve learned the last few years is to not limit myself by what I might perceive as the natural result of aging! Why start to tell myself that aging will impact me this way or that if in fact, it’s not true! Why limit myself and possibly become more sedentary? Why would I keep putting limitations upon my abilities, my possibilities, my efforts, and my goals just because a calendar flips another page? I shouldn’t! I’m realizing that all the changes I perceived about aging are more about giving into self-limitations and false expectations associated with certain periods of life. And that notion of the possible limitations of aging leads a lot of people into prematurely sedentary lives, actually accelerating the aging process, mentally and physically! Loads of people tell themselves that they can’t, so they never make it to can! I don’t want to be one of those people, as life ceases being as meaningful when we give it less space for growth and when we give ourselves less capacity for fullness and fulfillment! I enjoy being active and challenging myself.  

Last year, I set a goal during the Summer of swimming two miles without stopping. I have a pool in the backyard, so it was easy to imagine that such a goal would be possible in our long Summer swimming season here in the hot desert Southwest. I worked hard, built up my time each swim, and then swam with the purposeful fine-tuning of my stroke by paying attention to instructions I had once received in swim lessons. I bought equipment which made the effort easier, such as goggles, a cap, and a one-piece swimming suit. I swam several times a week, achieving my goal of two miles non-stop by early July of last year. Even though I had to quit swimming too early to have shoulder surgery (unrelated to my swimming), I felt great for pushing ahead with such a strong goal! This year in mid-May, I started on a new goal, swimming three miles non-stop! It’s a lot of laps in an in-ground residential pool, easily a couple hours of commitment per swim. But, I achieved that goal this year by early July and enjoyed a very productive and rewarding swimming season again! I’m not sure I will increase that goal for next Summer, as it requires a lot of time to swim even three miles at a time. I will keep that as a goal though, even though I’ll be another year older by then! 

Since it finally got too cold in the pool for me to swim, now that it is Autumn, I have taken my physical pursuits and can-do attitude in fitness and put them into a new effort – running! I do struggle more with it as a goal, as it takes a lot more physical control and conditioning for me, with such an impactful exercise routine. The benefit of swimming is the low impact the water provides my body. But I’m determined to not let myself be limited by my own mind’s perception of my possible limitations! My body is amazing in that it accepts my efforts by acclimating to my conditioning efforts, so I am left to ponder what more I might accomplish?! Why would I say “never” until I at least try?! And my efforts, though slow and steady so far, have proven that I am already able to do more than if I had just told myself that I was incapable from the onset! My challenge is to build up to some major achievement with this, just as I did with swimming! Remember, with aging, there aren’t any rules.

Unwelcome Wind, Refreshing Rain . .

03 Monday Apr 2017

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Attitude, Blessings, Change, Choices, Joy, Lessons, Positivity

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Attitude, Joy, Positivism

Just about the time I was going to complain about the winds which had picked up this evening, I noticed the fresh scent of rain in the air wafting in through the open window. I went outside to check, to my own disbelief, it was in fact, raining lightly upon me and all the world around me! Those winds were worthwhile as they surely brought with them those few moments of bliss in the form of a stormy weather cell! And that’s a lesson for life. Often what we endure brings us a reward, a lesson, or some result which is beneficial! Those winds enabled us to have the fresh, clean scent of rain falling. And even though the rain only lasted for a short while, it was delightful!  

In studying life, don’t we often find that what we endure produces some beneficial lesson or experience from which we can gain something positive? Even in the worst case scenario of death, loss, illness or some other tragedy, there are positives hidden amongst the seeming perils, hardships, stones and thorns. We just have to look for the hidden treasure of a benefit to reshape what we perceive as negative into something positive instead! And we can utilize this trick for small difficulties and significant problems equally.

I had started out by being annoyed by the wind picking up, as I had just finished creating two big piles of plant trimmings near the sidewalk out front. We have scheduled uncontained trash pickups every quarter, which enables us to put out plant trimmings as well as a lot of other items which won’t fit in our garbage cans. It’s a benefit our city offers, scheduled by the area of the city in which we live. In my area, we’re preparing for our pickup next week. So I was able to do a lot of Spring yard clean up in anticipation of this particular quarter’s uncontained trash pickup. The piles I made contain mostly pruned branches and assorted cuttings from plants in my yard. There are two piles of limbs, branches, as well as several trash bags filled with leaves. Unfortunately, the wind means my piles might blow around or shift from their present location! So I became a bit agitated at the thought of the mess I might have until I smelled the rain through the breeze that is!  

And now as I’m reflecting upon the change the winds brought, I can even still hear the thunder clapping outside a few hours later! It’s a pleasant surprise from what began first as an annoyance. The wind wasn’t entirely welcome, but along with it, was this storm cell offering up scents, sounds, and a refreshing change! I’ve learned to look for the benefit in things, in even the worst case situations in life. There is always something positive and beneficial to be found in everything, even in tragedy or great sadness or in our problems! It might require significant, heartfelt searching to find that benefit or to see the positive in something seemingly or overwhelmingly negative, but to do so ensures that we’ll have more joy and/or contentment in life! Instead of making ourselves miserable, especially over things we cannot change, we create more joy or at least don’t destroy our existing joy!

The wind was threatening after so much work creating those piles, after all, I worked hard to rake up leaves, bag them, cut branches off trees, then move it and stack it all at that spot in my yard near the street. But without the wind, I wouldn’t have had the rain tonight! So I welcomed the wind because it brought the rain and stormy weather. Often, without the negativity or the pain in life, we wouldn’t know how to truly value the blessings we have! Learning how to see life through rosier lenses is a gift for sure! It just takes looking past what at first seems to be less than rosy, positive or promising! Shift your focus and you’ll see everything differently, from a new perspective.   

Revised Expectations . .

27 Wednesday Apr 2016

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Attitude, Blessings, Choices, Contentment, Positivity

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Attitude, Blessings, Contentment

Often when we’re expecting something to be one way, we’re surprised to discover it come to pass in another way! Last Thursday, we went out on a whale-watching boat from Oxnard in hopes of spotting whales with their calves in their migratory progression to the cooler waters to the North. We were out on seas made choppier by winds which were increasing in intensity for about two or so hours, leaving unsuccessfully without seeing a thing! The captain determined that it would not be wise to venture closer to the Channel Islands, as the waves out in deeper water were even worse! We didn’t even see a dolphin and just a day before they had estimated thousands of them were seen in the area. The abbreviated trip was a bit disappointing to us all, but the ship’s captain gave each of us a full-fare voucher for another boat ride, to use whenever we are able.  DSC01536

One hour later, as we sat beach-side at our table in Malibu, we spotted whales within just feet of us, traveling with their calves where the waves broke on the beach. From the distance of our table, we could see about ten passing in procession, spouting, and breaching as they traveled. Everyone in the restaurant left their tables to watch the procession with great interest through the large windows. Now we surely felt rewarded for the day’s efforts to find such majestic creatures as the Humpback whales casually passing by while we were eating our delicious lunch with such breathtaking views!   gratitude-quotes-1024x819 

So in spite of the less than desirable results of our adventures out to sea, we rolled with the results and were rewarded in spades for it! Even when we were out there not spotting whales or dolphins, while several of our fellow passengers got seasick in the choppy seas, we maintained our contentment just for having had such a great experience. Things don’t always go as we plan in life, but if we keep our attitude of gratitude through our revised expectations, we surely can count our blessings more easily than when we don’t!

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Constant Spring . .

08 Wednesday Apr 2015

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Attitude, Christianity, Contentment, Faithfulness, Joy, Peace

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Attitude, Contentment, Peace of Mind

Every day of Spring is a new taste of beauty, nature, something unfolding after a period of closure and even near death. Winter is brutal, life seems to struggle to a silent demise or into a quiet surrender. The harsh climate of Winter is like the season of a person’s life in which death is near. But then comes Spring again! And with that new season, we are reminded that all is not lost and neither are we!  Lamb-sheep-30710619-1280-853

Spring wakens the lifeless, breathes hope back into the quiet and cold; it is the season of life which harkens to our need as human beings for continued faith and hope. In Spring, we can see life unfold anew, we feel warmth upon our skin again. We notice buds promising new leaves, new flowers, new growth and more reason to hope. In every creature newborn into the world each Spring, we can imagine how persistent life is regardless how near our own Autumn or Winter we are in life; and we see life overcoming our own fear about life ending. With Spring unfolding eagerly around us, we forget that life is dimming, dulling or lapsing. All we notice with Spring is the way in which life refuses to cede to death! And that is the message of God’s promise through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, at Easter-time, in Spring.  homeguides_articles_thumbs_10_best_plants_to_grow_in_winter_cover_jpg_600x275_q85_crop

He came so that we might know God; but He also came so that we might be with God eternally! That was His purpose in facing Crucifixion upon the Cross. He took our sin for all time so that we might live eternally with God. In Him, therefore, we have reasons every single day to await life; regardless the season and our condition! We might be overwhelmed, sickly, breaking down or facing turmoil; but when we realize we have seen God’s promises fulfilled through Christ having overcome death on the Cross, we can have faith and hope to live life regardless! Our hope and faith, like God’s grace, is new each day! We needn’t feel depleted or without our source of faith and hope in Christ because He overcame, and so shall we! So instead of feeling so low, wounded, broken or disturbed by life, we can take great comfort in the constant state of God’s promises to us. We are living a constant Spring every single day because no matter what comes of life, no matter the season, we have eternal life just because we believe! And in that eternal Spring we’re promised, we should sense as much if not more joy, contentment and peace as we do in each day of each yearly Spring we experience!  Signature02

When Pain, Grief or Hurt Come…

04 Tuesday Sep 2012

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Happiness

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Attitude, Fairness, Grief, Happiness, Pain

When Pain, Grief or Hurt Come…

When pain, hurt or grief comes to call in your life, it’s fair to give it some time, to ponder & to heal. But don’t let it become the reason for your life, or your sole focus, for then all you’ve done is cheat yourself out of your own happiness! Move through things as you are able, get help if you need it, but don’t let something tragic, or negative or painful be the story of your life! There are many more sunrises ahead in which joy, happiness & smiles can find you, but only if you learn to take each event as it comes, deal with it at the time & then close the chapter when it’s time so that you prepare yourself for moving onward! The only person responsible for your happiness is you!!!

Absence Makes My Soul Stronger – Cheryl Ries

04 Tuesday Sep 2012

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Uncategorized

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Attitude, Faith, Faithfulness, Problems

Absence Makes My Soul Stronger

I’ve not written for a while, not for lack of thought, but rather for an accidental “drought” of spirit!  I was besieged by a situation which was taking my total energy to concentrate upon the best way to maneuver through, around, or over it.    We all have times like that in our lives, when something more than a speed bump, but rather a major mountain of a problem comes along, one which takes our energy, our joy, our very peace if we let it.  I have spent the last month considering how to keep and/or regain mine … it’s not so easy these days.  

We are at war with so many things which threaten to steal our peace.  The world is restless, unsteady, chaotic. Sometimes, our peace hasn’t visited us for so long, that when a problem of major proportions comes along, we are already engaged in battle, and incapable of fighting off the demons.  Those demons cast our hearts full of doubt, worry, and fear.  They cast us upon a sea of despair, for the trepidations of not knowing our way through the situation we are in.  What are we to do?  What I do is simple.  I find my strength in my faith.  I always have.  I try to keep faithful during all times, but I surely pursue it in the tough times!

 When things are going on in my world which besiege me and threaten my spirit with such gravity of despair for the overwhelming nature of what those situations represent, I go to the mattresses as it were.  I have fought a long battle to be faithful in my life, so when something threatens to fill my heart with all things in opposition to faith, the very least I can do is fight hard to maintain what I know to be the truth.  That is how I arm myself to do battle, I read . . I study . . I pray . . .I listen . . I consult.  I do all things which make my primary focus the re-strengthening and resurgence of my faith and my hope!   The only way to grow through the things which happen to us is to use them as steps to help us grow!  When life is threatening to take your peace, your faith is floundering and your hope is more like hopelessness, do you just give in or do you stand strong where you are and prepare yourself for the fight ahead?

 I suppose it is our “have-to-have-it-now-world” which deems things as necessary five minutes ago, but some battles and some struggles have lasted and endured for a long time in history before resolution happened!  If that scares you, you better learn now, it’s not the type of test for which you are truly measured, but how you behaved during the tests!  If you are in the middle of a battle, a problem is persisting and you are just tired of it . . I suggest you learn how to find your faith, be strong, persist and persevere with happiness through it!  That is how the most successful champions have overcome anything!   We may not get what we want when we want it, but if we persist in faith with an good attitude while in the middle of our situations, not giving into our emotions, we can achieve greatness in life, all the while maintaining our happiness and sense of peace!  

God blesses those who faithfully persist with a positive spirit through all that life brings!  It takes discipline, but it is imperative to have a positive spirit through everything which happens to you in life.  I am persevering in happiness!  I am also practicing:  The only way to grow through the things which happen to us is to use them as steps to help us grow! 

It’s All In The Attitude

04 Tuesday Sep 2012

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Attitude, Happiness

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Attitude

AttitudeEverything-25It’s All In The Attitude

Do you find yourself envying someone their attitude or their mood?  Maybe they are always having a great day, happily enjoying life seemingly all the time!  How can this be?  Surely they have bad days too?  Perhaps the difference between your day and theirs isn’t in the actual events of the day, but rather how they view the events of their day.  Maybe, just maybe, their day is so great, they are so happy, because they choose to view their day as positive, happy, and filled with blessings!

Maybe absolutely nothing bad happened to you today, fortunately.  You had good health, you felt well, you experienced favor in your movements and you felt blessed.  Is that a guarantee that you will label your day as overall a success?  Will you automatically decide upon this set of conditions that your day is a happy one?  I hope so, but the real mark of a truly happy and contented person is when you can find your joy, your sense of contentment and your happiness even on days when things do happen to you. Perhaps it isn’t up to our circumstances to determine and decide whether we had a happy day, but rather, it is up to each of us, whether we have an ability to be happy in spite of our circumstances.

Some people are always happy, even though by most people’s standards, they should be miserable and unhappy according to their circumstances, spreading their misery like the flu!  Others are naturally negative, they ooze their stress, their pain, their discomfort, it spreads like something vile, like germs!  What distinguishes this phenomenal difference in attitude?  It’s merely a choice.  That is all it is.  Nothing needs to be decided other than,BeSoHappy01-50 someone choosing to be a positive affirming voice, speaking with hope, a healthy attitude, in a positive way.  Isn’t it nice when we encounter these people?  They are radiant bursts of sunlight, positive energy in a world marred by negativity and gloom.  We pay attention to them, for they stand out.

We usually feel drawn to them, like moths to the flame, for their radiance is a warming source of comfort.  Aren’t we encouraged to hear all about their lives, not because they are so different in scope, nor in actual events, but because these people can make the most mundane and ordinary days sound like something more special!  It’s a joy to be near these people, they illuminate the darkest corners of life, by just exuding light and love.  Be a source of positive energy in a dimly-lit world … shine and shine brightly, for you never know who is using your glow to lead them through their dark realms!

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