foLLoW uR hEART . . .

Max's bestie has a heart-shaped mouth!

(aPpLe sLiCe sMiLe!)

Saving the World

Today may my prayers help me realize
I cannot control everything.
To put the world in order,
We must first put the nation in order;
To put the nation in order,
We must first put the family in order;
To put the family in order,
We must first set our hearts right.
-- Confucius

GooD dAy aLL!

Happy WEdnesday! Well, it's no coincidence that this poem landed in my inbox this morning . . . just what I needed to read! The poem basically says that the only stuff we can control is within us . . . like in our own hearts and our own thoughts and behaviors. And, even if we want to have a HuGe gInorMous iMpaCt on our beloved planet, we have to begin with ourselves! As Gandhi encouraged,

"You must be the change 

you wish to see in the world."

Having company in my home sort of threw me for a loop last week, which isn't a bad thing at all--

even if things felt a bit, well,

tOpSY tUrVY--

it made me look at myself in a new way, and I was actually reminded of this important stuff:

• I am not in control of everyone else (duh . . . only me)
• Others do not have to be like me (like, in their personalities, habits, or timelines!)
• If I am upset about my situation, only I can turn it around and change my own mindset--
• Others cannot MAKE ME FEEL a certain way, how I interpret situations cause me MY OWN distress! My feelings are my own business!
• I can look at stuff and complain about it (VICTIM), or I can see the blEssIngs and gifTs (POWER) in whatever life presents me . . . you know, like, as in presents?

Which, as usual, brings me back to GrAtiTuDe (yay!). SO here are 3 (my magic number!) things I feel grateful for about my bestie and her family staying with us for a week:

1. My kids had sosososos much fun with Luigie the Yorkie and Coco the miniature Alaskan--we played and played in the yard and had doggie kissy parties!
2. I had a chance to spend wonderful heart time with my friend . . . 
3. We had yuMmY food! We barbecued, went to Perkin's, ate Bruegger's bagels everyday, and ordered Chinese takeout! Yum!
4. My kids loved having friends in the house--built in playmates and chums!

(ooPs . . .) that's 4. Oh well!

Anyway, I was able to turn around my super slumber party and make it AmAzIng! That's my (NEW) stoRy and I'm sticking to it! What story have you turned around? Leave me a comment and let me know!

Have a bEaUtiFul day!

;0) dana