Strawberry Swing

"Just put your feet up to the edge, put your face in the wind

And when you fall back down, keep rememberin'

Every storm runs, runs out of rain

Just like every dark night turns into day

Every heartache will fade away

Just like every storm runs, runs out of rain"

 

Typhoid Mary has struck again!

The Top 10 Things that got me out of bed this week...

1. Vitamin Water and tissues at Duane Reade
2. Tuesday night tutoring with 6 yr old Clever, he read me one of my favorite books- Miss Nelson Has A Field Day
3. Premiere of Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" complete with cast and Q&A with Spielberg
4. My dad proudly showing me he learned to play Bob Marley songs on the guitar
5. NY Cares day aka Service Saturday at Central Park East elementary
6. Armineh's (former roommate) birthday party...and it was all chocolate
7. Solid jams- loving this week's favorite of oldies, currents and country (ask me for the playlist)
8. Wheeling, dealing and Massive Leaks...made sick days next to impossible (you know what I do)
9. The UFC mag my boss brought me, complete with poster-size photos and motivational slogans
10. If D Rose can do it, I Can do it... ADIDAS Commercial: All in for D Rose

Secretly I've been praying for a sick day, where I could relax, sleep, work from bed, etc. I finally got sick, during what could not be a worse week for me. There was no way I could work from home. I have never slept so much in my life or gone to bed before 9 that many times in a row. And true to my nickname, I managed to take down a couple people with me...sorry Natali. Half my floor at work is sick, but honestly, that's beyond even my capabilities to get that many people sick. Can't wait to be back at 100%.

I'm not usually into making endorsements, but apparently along with increasing waist sizes in this nation of ours, we have increasing calf sizes. I'm talking about women's boots being made for people with gigantic calves! Actually, the shoe store salesman said he prefers to call them "athletic calves." Right. What about those of us with little chicken legs? Men, you are so lucky. Well I finally found THE PERFECT pair of boots. Narrow, but not suctioned on like alien boots (I've seen those too, horrible idea) and they are the perfect classy equestrian boot. Paired with my quilted jacket, scarf and jeggings, I look like the cover of Horse & Hound, I kid you not. They are super comfortable with padded soles. I give you... Naturalizer Juletta Boots.

Ok, NOT me, but...similar in style.

I always feel like I miss out on Saturday evening's conference session. You men get all of the best speakers in one session! I've spent a lot of time thinking about President Thomas S Monson's talk: See Others As They May Become. He shares example after example to demonstrate, "We have the responsibility to see individuals not as they are but rather as they can become."

This reminded me of one of my favorite talks on love. Many like to think of love as "blind", blind to a person's faults, flaws and weaknesses. I think love is exactly the opposite. It's looking at someone as they are, but focusing on the positive person they will become. How can you build someone up/help them become a better person, if you are more pre-occupied with their flaws than with their strengths? The same thing applies to friendships. Sometimes I fall into the trap of thinking I don't want to be this or that person's friend, because they don't seem trustworthy, or we don't have much in common, or they do something that really gets on my nerves. In this case, it is me that is missing out, for there are many other people that see that person's strengths and potential, whereas I focused on the flaws. It's hard to believe that 2012 is almost over (um...remember those goals I made in February?!), but I do want to focus the rest of this year on establishing that habit of seeing the potential in others.

My final thought, is not my own. But my little brother Pete's. I loved it so much, I want to share:

"The most glory, happiness and blessings don't go to the man who races past the rest to get to the top of the mountain first, but rather to man who, although able to go at a faster pace, slows himself down to encourage and lift those who are traveling at a slower pace. To help those who, if unhelped, perhaps would have stopped, given up hope and never made it to the top with the others. The first man is selfish and is in it for himself. The second man clearly is not. I think too often I see life as a race that I have to win instead of a journey where the greatest goal is not to be first but to get everyone to the top. And then take a sweet picture."
Life is a team sport...

 

I call this...PROGRESS