Welcome to Mirth and Motivation!
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Hello world!
“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” Viktor E. Frankl
Hello world: Welcome to Mirth and Motivation!
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Respite Reminder: I’m Taking My Advice. Will check occasionally. Back soon!
Welcome to Mirth and Motivation!
Mirth and Motivation is a lifestyle and motivational blog offering an eclectic mix of mirthful and motivational pieces: Life Tips / Advice, Affirmations/Wellness, Women’s Lives, Food, Travel, Interviews, Inspirational posts, Reviews, Peace, and social media ruminations on people, places, and events that shape our lives. That said, I invite you to stay awhile, read some posts, and share your thoughts with this growing online blog community.
I started this blog 17+ years ago, as a way to help agents/staff at the company I worked for stay motivated. This was my first blog post on this site, hence the dodgy title. After the market crashed and we were downsized, I decided to keep it going. Therefore, the main goal was, and remains, to encourage myself and others to keep moving forward. It has been a long and rewarding journey.
WHAT HAVE I LEARNED?
Over the years, I have learned a lot about blogging, its many positives and pitfalls, and how important it is to stay focused on our own Why or raison d’être. We can choose to focus on one of the fundamental rules of blogging: making connections with others by adding value through our message/content, comments, and social interactions. We can also choose to turn our attention elsewhere. It is entirely up to us.
Nevertheless, one thing I know for sure is that if your heart is invested in what you blog about, you will stay the course. Remember to stay true to who you are and why you blog. It can’t just be about monetization. Add value. Help others. Stay Encouraged.
Another thing I know for sure is that we all want to be heard, appreciated, and respected; I know that empowering messages are far more appealing than incendiary attempts to attract blog attention. If your blogosphere surfing brings you here, relax, kick back, and share a positive tidbit on your worldview.
HOW DO WE STAY MIRTHFUL AND MOTIVATED?
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Motivation Mondays: Gratitude & Optimism
“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.” Cicero
Motivation Mondays: Gratitude & Optimism
Optimism is a choice
Optimism is a lifestyle decision to live joyfully
Optimism is like a seed we plant that bears fruit
Optimism is about immersing ourselves in our work/craft
Optimism is about celebrating the little things
Optimism is about not sweating the small stuff
Optimism is a smile in the face of oppression – Gifts of the Day ~ EOF
Welcome June: As we leave May behind, two words come to mind: Gratitude and Optimism.
Gratitude for the company of family, friends, and well-wishers as we gather to eat, run, rejoice, volunteer, and support those in need globally.
Gratitude for my sister’s recent graduation from Harvard, the graduations of other friends/families, celebrations, renewals, and remembrances.
Gratitude to Abbott Pharmaceuticals/Abbottglobal and TeamAbbott for being my marathon-running sponsor and for sponsoring a community of runners who inspire others by showcasing how they’ve overcome health challenges and made an impact in their communities.
Gratitude for the gift of life, breath, health, love, basic needs, all things that make life joyful, and even for those that teach us painful lessons, and, above all,
Gratitude for God’s abundant grace and blessings.
How Often Do You Express GRATITUDE? It’s easy to be grateful when things are going well, but what do we do when we feel stressed out or trapped by life’s demands? What do we do when we suddenly find ourselves at a loss to say what we think or even how we feel about events around us? And what about when we’ve tried to handle a situation, and it persists, and we try another approach, and it lingers? At some point, we have to surrender our need for all our pegs to fit nicely into their square holes. We have to stop, catch our breath, and change directions, albeit for a short while.
What are you grateful for? What are you optimistic about? When we face life’s obstacles with grace and surrender, we see that life is about changes, hills and valleys, and lessons that help us grow. Real life is messy; it is not linear. We experience good, bad, and everything in between, and our attitude makes the difference. If we become bitter, our pain lingers. If we become grateful, our pain dissipates over time, and we gain the wisdom that comes from surrendering to our need to control everything. The Dalai Lama once said that “When you think everything is someone else’s fault, you will suffer a lot. When you realize that everything springs only from yourself, you will learn both peace and joy.”
An Æsop Story: The Town Mouse & the Country Mouse
A Town Mouse once visited a relative who lived in the country. For lunch the Country Mouse served wheat stalks, roots, and acorns, with a dash of cold water for drink. The Town Mouse ate very sparingly, nibbling a little of this and a little of that, and by her manner making it very plain that she ate the simple food only to be polite.After the meal the friends had a long talk, or rather the Town Mouse talked about her life in the city while the Country Mouse listened. They then went to bed in a cozy nest in the hedgerow and slept in quiet and comfort until morning. In her sleep, the Country Mouse dreamed she was a Town Mouse, with all the luxuries and delights of city life that her friend had described to her. So the next day when the Town Mouse asked the Country Mouse to go home with her to the city, she gladly said yes.
When they reached the mansion in which the Town Mouse lived, they found on the table in the dining room the leavings of a very fine banquet. There were sweetmeats and jellies, pastries, delicious cheeses, indeed, the most tempting foods that a Mouse can imagine. But just as the Country Mouse was about to nibble a dainty bit of pastry, she heard a Cat mew loudly and scratch at the door. In great fear, the Mice scurried to a hiding place, where they lay quite still for a long time, hardly daring to breathe. When at last they ventured back to the feast, the door opened suddenly and in came the servants to clear the table, followed by the House Dog.
The Country Mouse stopped in the Town Mouse’s den only long enough to pick up her carpet bag and umbrella.“You may have luxuries and dainties that I have not,” she said as she hurried away, “but I prefer my plain food and simple life in the country with the peace and security that go with it.”
Moral: Poverty with security is better than plenty in the midst of fear and uncertainty. Via read.gov
🌟GRATITUDE by Melody Beattie
Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.
It turns what we have into enough, and more.
It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.
It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.
Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.
June by John Updike
The sun is rich
And gladly pays
In golden hours,
Silver days,
And long green weeks
That never end.
School’s out. The time
Is ours to spend.
There’s Little League,
Hopscotch, the creek,
And, after supper,
Hide-and-seek.
The live-long light
Is like a dream,
And freckles come
Like flies to cream.
More Below! Read more…
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends (nation).” John 15:13
Memorial Day: Honor & Remember
Honoring Memorial Day: On Monday, May 25th, we honor the brave men and women who served this great country and paid the ultimate price by giving up their lives so we can live free.
We honor and remember those who returned as survivors, witnesses, patriots, scarred.
We honor all our servicemen/women around the world. Originally called Decoration Day, this special holiday began in response to the great loss of life during the American Civil War, which, at its conclusion in 1865, had claimed the lives of over 620,000 men.
In the early days, women would place flowers on the graves of fallen soldiers. By 1868, Major General John A. Logan designated it as an official day of remembrance. In 1971, it became a federal holiday.
In case you don’t know this, Memorial Day honors American servicemen/women who lost their lives at war, while Veterans Day honors all who served, alive and otherwise.
I hope that as we grill, picnic, or enjoy being with family and friends today, we take a moment to remember why we honor Memorial Day.
Each casualty of war or MIA leaves behind loved ones, family members, and memories of what could have been.
How do we ever forget the pain and suffering inflicted on both victor and vanquished?
While one side might claim victory, the loss of life and the deepening resentments that come from warring create animosity and a spirit of revenge.
War is devastating, and its scars are indelible. So, when we raise our hands in salute to our heroes, let us also raise them in a gesture of peace.
In Flanders Fields By John McCrae – 1872-1918
In Flanders Fields, the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields. via poets.org
Decoration Day By Henry Wordsworth Longfellow
Sleep, comrades, sleep and rest
On this Field of the Grounded Arms,
Where foes no more molest,
Nor sentry’s shot alarms!
Ye have slept on the ground before,
And started to your feet
At the cannon’s sudden roar,
Or the drum’s redoubling beat.
But in this camp of Death
No sound your slumber breaks;
Here is no fevered breath,
No wound that bleeds and aches.
All is repose and peace,
Untrampled lies the sod;
The shouts of battle cease,
It is the Truce of God!
Rest, comrades, rest, and sleep!
The thoughts of men shall be
As sentinels to keep
Your rest from danger free.
Your silent tents of green
We deck with fragrant flowers;
Yours has the suffering been,
The memory shall be ours. via hwlongfellow.org
More Below! Read more…
“The cause of Freedom and the cause of Peace are bound together.” Leon Blum
Motivation Mondays Revisiting Easter & Passover
Motivation Mondays: Revisiting Easter & Passover
Happy Easter and Passover weekend!
Growing up, Easter was central to my religious celebrations. I looked forward to the joy of Easter Sunday services, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, colorful eggs for little kids, and special family meals, complete with chocolate treats shaped like bunnies and eggs for the little ones. It was a time of celebration, family, and faith. Christ had Risen. Hosanna in the highest heavens.
When I got married, Passover became part of my life as well. My first Seder at my in-laws’ home was a beautiful and meaningful experience, rich with prayer, storytelling, song, and tradition. Family members took turns reading from the Haggadah, and the seriousness of the story was gently balanced with laughter, shared reflections, a sip of wine, and delicious food. It created a deep sense of connection and reminded me that gratitude, to God and to one another, is essential.
Reflecting on both Easter and Passover, I am reminded that we are all children of one Creator. Faith, family, and shared moments of communion matter because they bring us together. Celebrating both traditions has deepened my respect for all spiritual paths. After all, we are each on a journey; returning to ourselves, guided by faith, love, and purpose.
This year, in the spirit of Easter and Passover, let us pray for global healing and an end to suffering. Let us extend peace and goodwill to one another and keep hope alive. We can all do our part. I will be attending online services, spending time in the Word, sharing meals with loved ones, and giving so that other families may also be fed.
A Shared Message of Renewal and Freedom
Passover (Pesach) commemorates the Israelites’ liberation from slavery in Egypt, a powerful reminder of faith, resilience, and freedom. Through the Seder, families retell this story using symbolic foods, prayers, and song, honoring both struggle and deliverance. “Remember this day, in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” (Exodus 13:3)
Easter, central to Christianity, celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ, a profound symbol of renewal, hope, and victory over death. It reminds us that even in our darkest moments, new life is possible. Together, these sacred traditions teach us about freedom, sacrifice, renewal, and hope. “He is not here; for he has risen, as he said.” (Matthew 28:6)
More Below! Read more…
