,
Welcome the weekend, as well as August! Yes,
August really is here, and I have no doubt amazing things await us all. This past week, I stepped away from my house and escaped to the country as I shared last week, and well, the getaway was nothing short of rejuvenating and productive.
Why mix the two - rest and work, some may wonder?
I began to wonder why I can work without referring to a clock when I surround myself with nature, and I couldn't
help but remember a conversation I had with an author recently about that idea of finding inspiration to work without prompting. She explained how it is the buzz and energy of New York City that spurred her own muse and poked her creativity. And as I knew I differed as nature, the stream of a creek, the chirping of birds and a soft breeze with my dogs nestled nearby seems to make time disappear, I realized that each of us is nurtured to be at our best and produce our most loved work in a wide
array of different environments.
And what good news that is! Each of us is different, has different pasts and experiences with any surroundings we have experienced in our past, so it makes sense really,
no?
So why do I mention this? Today, consider for a moment where you are most at peace, calm in your mind, shoulders relaxed and breath slowed. Where are you when you don't care what time it is or would feel at
ease regardless?
These are the sanctuaries to create or find and then spend more time enjoying. These are the destinations that will nurture your best self and reveal your authentic talents and
gifts.
Set aside the idea of where you are most creative and instead contemplate where can you sit with a book, with no noise and distraction and just immerse yourself? More likely than not, this is a place
that you too could be most at peace doing just about anything.
Often we become so busy and consumed with our schedules that we forget that we need to slow down, consider our surroundings and how we respond.
Are we helping or hurting ourselves? And when we can answer this question honestly, we need to respect the revelation and work to include more time cultivating the preferred sanctuary that brings us most peace.
Hopefully, spending the few moments each week reading TSLL newsletter is a time you are able to relax and enjoy, so let me quickly share a few bits of news and then let you get to enjoying what the blog as been up to this week.
It was recently brought to my attention by a reader that my "Pinterest" buttons on the images in each blog post were hindering their ability to use the social media share buttons at the bottom of each post. In an effort to remedy the problem, you will notice now two things:
- the new "Pinterest" buttons on each photo are at the bottom right and
are a white circle with a black "P"
- the social media share buttons are a bit larger at the end of each post and allow you to email yourself posts that you'd like to archive or print.
One last thing, the recently released biography "The Mockingbird Next Door:
Life with Harper Lee" has stirred up great conversation and debate online. After reading the book this past week and absolutely lovely the simple journey into her everyday life, I encourage you to read my review (see below) and thoughts about the quandary of whether she gave permission or not. I have gone through the supposed source that everyone keeps referring to (links are shared), and I think it best nobody jump to conclusions.
May you have a lovely weekend, and until next week, I'll see you on the blog.
