With sunrise at 7:40 AM and sunset at 5:24 PM, we are starting to see the turning point away from the winter solstice toward the vernal equinox. Though we still have a number of days to go until spring begins on March 20th, there are still a number of natural wonders to ponder, lessons to learn, goals to achieve, and events to anticipate in the interim. This past week we saw a significant snowfall, along with very cold temperatures and the nastier side of winter’s offerings. Despite all the chaos that ensued after the major snowfall, we managed to find some positive things to focus on instead of the negative the rest of the world seemed to be fixated with. These positive aspects of life were found with the help of perspective and some really intellectual readings we happened to stumble upon. We also had some very honest conversations with family and friends in our inner circle, which allowed us to both learn and teach through stories. We thought we’d share some of our findings in this week’s post.
“Achievement is largely the product of steadily raising one’s level of aspiration and expectation.” –Jack Nicklaus
Theme of the Week: Aspire to Be
Our theme of the week started Sunday morning while I was running. It was cold, the sky was rather gray, and our schedule for the day had gotten mixed up quite a bit. While we try to be flexible with our plans, we do enjoy and seem to function better under a routine. I was contemplating how best to rearrange the daily plans and feeling rather incompetent and unsure of my abilities. Taking a bit of advice from an inspirational talk I had heard recently, I decided to break things down a bit into short term goals.
The first order of business was to calm down, so I used a mantra I discovered while running in a race years ago. “Settle in. Settle in. Just settle in,” I said.
Before I knew it, the mantra had turned into a poem in my head. Now this was a bonus, for when I had set out on my run, I really wanted to find some words to inspire and share with others I know going through some difficult times. Nature and running are my best helpers when it comes to such matters, or in this case, aspirations. Maybe it was a tall order or a lot to ask given the circumstances, but it never hurts to try (another mantra I’ve used for years now).
Trying turned out to be a really great starting point. In trying, I was able to “settle in” and accept the present moments as they came. This “being in the here and now” so to speak and being grateful for the present, be it good, bad, or otherwise has proven to be a really effective tool in our household lately. It can be a paradox at times, allowing us to achieve more by seemingly doing less, but we have come to accept it as a byproduct of faith and hope.
The next order of business was to negate some increasing inner frustrations. This would have been harder to do had I not been able to settle in and had not discovered the words to my poem going on in my head. There is this balance of science and art that can be found in and through nature’s ways, and I was experiencing it to what I think might be the fullest extent possible here on earth. The science of the mind and how nature’s beauty can invoke the mind to be creative is one of those mysteries in life that may or may never be fully resolved, for there is always more to learn, see, and do, and in going through the process, the cycle feeds itself in an infinite loop.
“Mystery creates wonder and wonder is the basis of man’s desire to understand.” – Neil Armstrong
Lesson of the Week: Hold Still Please!
Our lesson of the week came to us in a number of trying moments of frustration, mostly centered around some not-so-great dog behavior. The colder temperatures and amount of snow made it difficult to have Leo and Lena outside with me while doing our normal chores and tasks. This resulted in some pent up energy and more than a few mishaps in the house. While I was definitely not upset at or with them for their behavior, I was frustrated with myself for not being able to come up with a way to combat this escalating situation.
At one point while trying to brush the dogs before feeding them, I had to chase both of them in circles. Things got a little crazy with paws, teeth, and my fingers, and I ended up in pain. Trying not to lose my composure, I said in a loud voice just short of a yell, “Hold still, please.”
Of course I got the sad-eyed what-did-I-do-wrong face from both Leo and Lena. This made me feel guilty, for they were just being the kids at heart they are. After some negotiating, we managed to accomplish the task.
A day or so later while I was rushing around trying to get ready for work and finish house chores, Lena grabbed my arm in her mouth and started to bite down. It hurt, so I asked her to stop and the intent stare on her little face seemed to say, “Hold still please, just for a minute to love me.”
So, we were officially tied in the game of who needs to stop for a minute and just be grateful for the moment. Leave it to a dog to teach a human what is most important in life, and you will get one heck of a lesson in compassion and love for both parties to remember until God deems otherwise.
We all have aspirations in life, strong desires to achieve something high or great, but it is in achieving the little things that we find the biggest value which no sum of money can buy.
“The lure of the distant and difficult is deceptive. The great opportunity is where you are.” –John Burroughs
Song of the Week: Praise as You Seek
Our song of the week came to mind as I was running Sunday and really has been playing in the background ever since. We listened to different versions of it all week via YouTube since we don’t have a copy of it on CD. Each artist or group has a different way of doing this church hymn, but the message is made clear every time—as we seek and aspire in life, we must remember to be thankful and grateful.
Glory and Praise to Our God
Glory and praise to our God
Who alone gives light to our days
Many are the blessings He bears
To those who trust in His ways
We the daughters and sons of Him
Who built the valleys and plains
Praise the wonders our God has done
In every heart that sings
Glory and praise to our God
Who alone gives light to our days
Many are the blessings He bears
To those who trust in His ways
In His wisdom He strengthens us
Like gold that’s tested in fire
Though the power of sin prevails
Our God is there to save
Glory and praise to our God
Who alone gives light to our days
Many are the blessings He bears
To those who trust in His ways
Every moment of every day
Our God is waiting to save
Always ready to seek the lost
To answer those who pray
Glory and praise to our God
Who alone gives light to our days
Many are the blessings He bears
To those who trust in His ways
God has watered our barren land
And spent his merciful rain
Now the rivers of life run full
For anyone to drink
Glory and praise to our God
Who alone gives light to our days
Many are the blessings He bears
To those who trust in His ways
Questions of the Week: What Lies Beneath
Our adventures this week trying to achieve our aspirations led us to some philosophical questions that really made us think about where we were, are, and may be some day. The first question stemmed from the overwhelming number of cloudy, dreary days we have had so far this year. Visible sun has been a luxury, leaving us to wonder what 2022 has as its aspiration. Are all the clouds meant to challenge us to find the light despite the dark? Is all the precipitation sent to cleanse us through deeper inner thought? Are we missing the message of the year by fixating on the clouds instead of the light behind them?
There are many ways to view these questions centered around the weather, and we thought we’d offer up some possible answers. As for the aspirations of 2022, perhaps the year wants us to learn and grow through some unorthodox methods. Maybe we have become so stubborn and stuck in our ways that 2022 is saying, “Fine. Be that way and see where it gets you relying on your own strength.”
Whatever end of the spectrum we choose to view 2022’s aspirations, we find opportunity to prove ourselves. Wrong or right, strong or weak, wise or foolish, we will be learners and teachers to someone, somewhere, some day in 2022. We probably want to put our best efforts forward to rise to that call.
Perhaps the clouds of 2022 are meant to slowly unveil great, bright, clear skies. But maybe these great, bright, clear skies are not in the heavens above, but rather within the confines of our hearts, minds, and souls. Maybe the physical clouds are nature’s way of showing us what we are showing the rest of the world when we continue to be closed minded, prejudiced, sinful, or lacking self-restraint. Perhaps the clouds are reflecting the dim inner light we are harboring, and we should try harder to let our light shine through compassion, understanding, patience, and sense of responsibility for our actions. Maybe the inner light of one person will be reflected off another and then another and then off the clouds and all the light together will overcome the gray, allowing the blue of courage to show.
As for the message of the year, perhaps it is simply opportunity. Some possible areas of opportunity may be:
- To live better, healthier, lives by getting back to basics of faith, hope, and love.
- To get out there and be physically active, allowing our bodies to heal through the growth of strength, stamina, and endurance.
- To humble, honest, and true to ourselves and others.
- To keep trying, no matter the circumstances, and allow the wonder of nature to prevail.
- To be who we are, where we are, how we are with the perspective of being open to all possibilities.
“The possibilities are numerous once we decide to act instead of react.” –George Bernard Shaw
Words of the Week: Come to Be
Our words of the week from the Daily Word devotional include: rise, aspire, inner peace, jubilation, and mindfulness. In rising each day to the opportunities offered, we learn to aspire to greater heights. As we accomplish things small along the way, we come to find inner peace. This inner peace leads to shared jubilation in lessons learned, which in turn allows for the mindfulness required to start the process all over again.
May we come to find our way through each today. May the challenges faced lead us to the inner strength we did not know we had, and may we look to the skies as well as within to find the echoes of aspiration.
Echoes of Aspiration
Long in the morning, far off in the east,
The song of glory in life comes to be,
From the silence of the dawn
Upon the violets and the frost
To the caw of the crow
Along the road
With the shadows come the lights’ emancipation
In the echoes of aspiration.
Long in the night, far off in the west
Across the divide in hold of the heavens
There lie the stars
Whose light from afar
May come and go and just be
As the notes to the melody
Float on the undulations
In the echoes of aspiration.
Through it all, nature waits
Offering the call to grace
Across the fields and over the hills
Past the lost to the fulfilled
Part of the journey where
What is learned is shared
Through growth and foundation
In the echoes of aspirations.
-Lisa A. Wisniewski
A Note of Thanks
Our thanks this week goes out to our inner circle of family and friends who keep supporting us despite the missteps and hard lessons learned along the way. Thanks also to our teachers who helped us be better learners, and to the many unsung heroes of the world who give all they have every day without asking for anything in return.
-Lisa, Leo, and Lena
Natural Deltas 