1980---Rain Dance Caused Rain

In Texas we are hot with temps rising to 108+.  But I remember the summer of 1980 when the temps rose officially to 113 plus.

I looked up an article about that time period and it was interesting.  Two things stood out to me.  Even then the Russians were blamed for meddling with our weather and causing the high heat.  Plus there was an Indian Rain Dance which did cause rain the next day but not enough to break the heat.  Below is from the Dallas Morning News of 2006.

"Some people had theories about what was causing the heat wave.  One letter writer to the mayor's office said the Soviet Union had installed space platforms with lasers beamed at North Texas.  Another said the heat was God's wrath at people who were gambling on the outcome fo the television show Dallas' who-shot-JR episode.

Other people had remedies.  On July 20, People performed a rain dance near the Turtle Creek fountain across from Lee Park in Dallas, asking those who couldn't attend to "concentrate their thoughts on thundershowers to provide enough energy to manifest a rainfall."  For the record it rained the next day though not enough to break the heat wave."

1980 Stats for heat

113 Highest official temperature ever recorded in Dallas (June 26-27)
29 Most tied or broken records for daily high temperatures
69 Most 100-degree days in a single year
42 Most consecutive 100-degree days
92 Highest average temperature for a single month (July)
105 Highest average maximum temperature for a single month (July)
31 Most 100-degree days in a single month (July)

Being Right at a Cost

It is normal for us to feel our pulses race when we feel that we are right and someone challenges us.  Yesterday I was driving in a place where a driver suddenly appeared and that same driver had the audacity to honk his horn.  I wanted to honk back but then I decided that would make the situation worse.  I felt right but I wanted to feel good and getting angry does not feel good.

All of us can't help but hear and see the huge political divide that is happening in our country.  Each side feels the other is "wrong".  Each side feels the other is "brain washed" by watching media that supports one side or the other.  Even the spiritual centers are getting into the middle of all of it.

I guess my getting older has helped me have perspective on the whole situation.  Yes, I have my own political opinion but I have also realized that getting extremely emotional, fearful and angry does not help at all.  I would be suffering at the expense of thinking I am right. Not only does the body get affected but friendships of many years are breaking up.  Is being "right" worth the price?

Also I have noticed that those who become extremely emotional are suffering physically and emotionally.  All of these emotions play havoc on the body.  Arthritis, heart problems and cancer begin to surface as a result of anger and tension.

I have decided that I want to treat my body with respect.  I can have my opinions but I also can have faith in a higher power/God/Spirit to work things out for the USA and world.  I am releasing any worry and anger and having faith.

The Tale of the Lowrey Festival Organ

I find it amazing how people choose to stress over situations that they feel that they have to solve all alone.  Actually through meditation and prayer you open up to wisdom and help.  Synchronicity kicks in and all is well.

I have done this at church so many times.  One time a congregant had purchased a very expensive electronic organ and donated it to our church.  We were downsizing and also wanted to purchase a smaller more versatile keyboard.  I found the ad that our church put out for the organ the other day while going through old files.

This Lowrey Festival Electronic organ was bought by a congregant for our church in 2000.  We are moving and would like to sell this organ.  The retail value was $22,000 in 2002 per the person who purchased it.

I will list what it has:

Lower:  Brass, vocal, strings, piano, Flute 8, organ, pipe organ

Upper   Vocal, reed, string 1 & 2, 4 flute buttons, jazz organ, pipe organ

Orchestral solo  piano, banjo, guitar, accordion, horn, vibes, electric piano, harpsichord, hawaiian, orch strings, trombone, marimba

Orchestral solo control  Lower, upper, chorus, dynamic keying, portamento, solo upper

                Bells, country guitar, trumpet, jazz flute, chimes, violin, sax, clarinet

Rhythm plus orchestration  Big band, country, broadway, march, soft and easy, rock n' Roll, Bossa nova, waltz, fox trot, gospel, hawaiian, swing march, ballad, contempo, salsa, polka

For a while there was no response.  Then a miracle happened.  A church in Springfield, Missouri was looking for an organ just like ours.  It so happened that I was going to Springfield the next week to be with my children for Thanksgiving.  I had a large jeep and the organ fit perfectly.  I brought it to Springfield, received the sale money and delivered the organ.  The universe had provided.

I have found that if we give life a chance and try not to panic and think the world is coming to an end that things work out.

Dealing with Fear

I have talked to many people over the years and the number one issue boils down to fear.  Here are the common fears

• Not enough money
• Being alone which translates to no one loves or appreciates me
• Dying with our dream inside us
• Dying in general (how will it happen)
• Not having a satisfying and well paid job
• Fear of dark
• Fear of high places
• Fear of insects and certain animals

In looking over all the Facebook posts I see so many posts of anger and fear about the politics in our country. 

What happens when fear takes over?  We become emotional and depressed.  Anger can well up.  Helplessness predominates.  

Fear takes a terrible toll on our bodies.  Our bodies reflect our emotions.  People with impatience have heart problems.  In general cancer reflects anger issues.  Our minds are meant to work in conjunction with our emotions to help create a healthy environment for us to thrive.  

I have always talked and written about the choices we have in regard to fear.  There are 2 clear choices.  We can have fear or faith.

We can choose to have faith that we will have enough money and attract loving relationships into our lives.  We can  have faith that we are doing what we love and are appreciated.  We can have faith that dying is not "the end" and that we will enter another phase of our soul's experience.  We can  have faith that our country is going to be fine.

Visualizing a wonderful future for ourselves, others and our country will work miracles in our emotional well being.  We can relax and let life unfold.  We can know that we are never alone.

Pulled by a Vision

Having a vision is a powerful and important tool.  Do you have a vision?  A vision will grab hold of you and the vision will manifest.

I ran across an old newsletter article I wrote on January 25, 2012.  It was about my oldest grandson, Marshall, who at the time was a senior in high school.  He was on the wrestling team. 

My daughter sent me the article that was published in the Springfield, MO newspaper about Marshall.

Marshall Phelan isn't shy about his wrestling goals.  For this year?  "The goal is to win a state title  For the future?  "I want to go to Mizzou.  I want to wrestle at the highest level I possibly can.  Go as far as I can go." 

Phelan, a senior at Nixa High School, is well on his way.

The Eagle's 132 pounder recently checked one of his biggest goals off his list----winning 100 matches in his high school career.  As of Jan. 18th, 2012 Phelan is 106-52.

"It was a relief---I finally got it out of the way," a sweat-drenched Phelan said during a recent practice.  "It's been a goal since my freshman year.  And it's a lot of motivation to get even  more wins.

"There are a lot of things paying off for him right now.  He has some losses, but he's wrestled some pretty good competition,", Martin (coach) said.  "It's a mindset.  he has a goal this year to be a state medalist, and last year he didn't even qualify.  He's done a lot of great things this year, and he's put himself in a position to get into medal contention at state."

Phelan's work ethic has carried him to this point, Martin said.  He's currently ranked fifth in Missouri at 132 pounds.

"He's stepped into a leadership role for us in and out of the practice room," Martin said.  "He's here just about every morning at 6:00 AM to work out, and he's one of the last ones to leave practice very night."

That work ethic started in junior high, when Phelan wrestled for the first time.

"I fell in love with it," Phelan said.

When Phelan's freshman year came around, the 100-win goal was set.  Four years later that goal was reached.

"It was very exciting for him and for our program, but we don't want that to be the focal point of his season,"Martin said.  "There are still things he wants to accomplish.  So it was nice because there's only a handful of kids here who have done it.  But there will be a handful more that do it, and we want him to do well at state."

And Marshall was a state medalist accomplishing his 5 year goal. 

We all can set goals and watch them come to fruition.  It takes a positive mindset. 

April 6, 1982 My letter to Cullen Davis

Back in the 1970's and the 1980's I lived in Euless, Texas.  Cullen Davis attended the First Baptist Church in Euless and launched a vicious attack against my neighbor who was running for the school board.  Cullen believed in creationism and did not want the schools in the HEB area to teach evolution.  My neighbor was the minister of a Methodist church and Cullen offered $200,000 to prove evolution.  Cullen also called my neighbor a blasphemer.  The $200,000 offer was "made to the church itself for irrefutable physical evidence that proves that 'the Particles to People' theory of evolution is a fact.

My children were attending the HEB schools and I waited for a rebuttal letter to his offer which had been printed in the Mid-Cities Newspaper.  My guess was that people were afraid to make comment because of his acquittal of murder charges.  Below is from Wikepedia

Thomas Cullen Davis (born September 22, 1933, Fort Worth, Texas) is an American oil heir and member of a prominent family. Davis is best known for being acquitted of murder and attempted murder in two high-profile trials during the 1970s. At the time of his first trial, Davis was believed to be the wealthiest man to have stood trial for murder in the United States.

First he was accused of murdering his stepdaughter on August 2, 1976, during a contentious divorce from his second wife, Priscilla Cullen. He was found not guilty. The second trial, two years later, involved allegations that Davis attempted to hire a hitman to kill both Priscilla and the judge overseeing his divorce from Priscilla. Again, Davis was acquitted

I finally decided to write an editorial and send it to the Mid-Cities News.  I no more than dropped it off when the paper called me asking permission to print it.

Below is my response.  I will print out what I said in the editorial:

My letter is in reference to Cullen Davis's Letter to the editor published on April 6, 1982.  I believe he is out of line in his accusations toward the Rev. Thomas Q. Robbins.

I voted for Rev. Robbins in the last election because I believe there is a very real danger of having a conflict of church and state.  All it takes to have this potential conflict is to elect a majority of people who are all of the same religious persuasion to public office.  At that point they are free to pass laws legislating the morals and beliefs of the people that they supposedly represent.

In the case of the HEB school board elections, the controversial issue was whether or not to risk a lawsuit by including creationism in the curriculum.  Both creationism and evolution are theories at this point and it is certainly not worth spending unnecessary money on a lawsuit in order to defend a theory.

And the issue of creationism is just a beginning.  Next there could possibly be removal of "objectionable books from school libraries, removal of "uncooperative" teachers, etc.  

Davis's $200,000 challenge to the church to prove irrefutably the validity of evolution is obviously a farce, if he is the sole judge.  It is like having two people in a debate with one of them being the judge.

Davis is so prejudiced against evolution that if the evidence stared him in the face, he would never acknowledge it.

I believe Davis is out of line in his reference to Rev. Robbins as an anti-Christ.  It seems to be popular to label someone who does not believe with our particular religious viewpoint as an anti-Christ.

I do not really understand the concern Cullen Davis has about the Rev. Thomas Robbins since Cullen does not live in the HEB area and Rev. Robbins lost the election.  Is he out to get Rev. Robbins because of disagreement of a viewpoint?

Using the 80-20 Rule in Life

 All of us have heard of the 80/20 rule where 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes.  When I looked this up in Wikepedia many examples were given.  In computer software 80% of the errors were caused by 20% of the code. 80% of a piece of software can be written in 20% of total allocated time.  Conversely 20% of the code takes 80% of the time.

Brian Tracy (motivator and inspirational writer and speaker) said that we can maximize the use of the 80/20 rule by working on the 20% of the goals in our life that would cause major changes in our life.  He stated that most of us do the reverse and try to clear up small goals first.

I have been thinking about the energy I use during the day.  Making small changes can create big differences in my day.  Also the small changes can take very little time

• Meditating first thing in the morning creates a positive attitude for rest of day
• Small changes in diet such as replacing soft drinks with water will result in better physical health
• Looking at goal lists first thing in the morning changes course of the day
• Replacing negative thoughts with positive will attract synchronicity in life and effect better health and well being

I am excited about 2 things I had in my goals

I always love traveling and the best traveling that I can think of is to see my 2 daughters and their families.  One daughter lives in Tampa and one lives in Belleville, Illinois close to St. Louis where she works.  Now my grandchildren are growing up. 

My oldest grandchild, Marshall, graduated from Missouri State University with a degree in history.  He loves politics but also wants to experience the world right now before settling down.  Right now he is in Bar Harbor, Maine working at a restaurant as a waiter.  He pays $100 rent for a place to live provided by the restaurant who also employ people from around the world.  He wants to travel the world and is saving his money to do this.

My youngest grandson is a junior at the University of Colorado in Boulder working toward graduating with a major in engineering.  My oldest granddaughter lives in Tampa and is working towards an RN degree with a goal of becoming a Nurse Practitioner like my daughter.  My youngest granddaughter is a senior in high school in Belleville, Ill. 

Since I live in Texas I rarely get to see my extended family so I  set an intention of being able to see my family in my Law of Attraction journal.  I am traveling with my youngest daughter to see my grandson in Maine in August.  My oldest daughter told me she is flying me to see her and her family as a birthday gift.  I am ecstatic.

Intentions are powerful.

Are We Talking to People or Cell Phones?

My late husband, Dean, always had a cell phone from the time they first came out.  The first ones were only available for the car and were "tied" into the car cigarette lighter.  They could not be taken around and looked at.  It stilled seemed miraculous that you could talk to someone in a car at the time.

Now everyone has a cell phone that is carried around everywhere.  Most people have cut the ties to their "home phone" that plugged into a wall. 

The upside is that help is always at hand literally with a cell phone.  You can use its GPS features and automatically call people or find information by speaking instructions to "Siri".  You can play games when you are waiting for car repairs or doctor's appointments.  You can check Facebook and use a variety of apps.

The downside is that I believe we have a national cell phone addiction.  No one speaks as much to people anymore.  People at restaurants are checking their cell phones instead of communicating to the person they are eating with.  People are looking at phones while walking or in their cars.  We talk to others through the cell phone and not face to face.

I personally realized how lost I felt and out of touch with the world when I lost my cell phone.    That is when I realized how dependent I had come to my cell phone.

What can we do?  I think it is important to put our cell phones away as much as possible and really concentrate on the people in our lives.  Pay attention to what people are saying.  Put away your cell phones in classrooms, churches, or any meeting.  When you are eating with people really talk to people and do not check messages on your cell.  I have heard of people who live together who text each other rather than talking.  Real communication is being lost through short texts.  People are having a more difficult time focusing or concentrating because they are in the habit of checking into messages on cells.

It takes time to break our cell phone habits but being able to be fully present with others in our lives is worth it.

Fears from November 1999---Remember Y2K?

I am not only going through files at home but at church too.  I am having fun going through old church newsletters.  These newsletters are paper which I miss.  I can't tell you how often I want to look up something in old newsletters but can't find it on our church email.  We changed email providers and lost about 3 years of newsletters in the process.

Below is a copy of what I wrote in the November 1999 Unity of Denton newsletter.  (Hint---Y2K was looming)

Can you remember an occasion which was a milestone because you conquered fear?  All of us have events stored in our memory that have caused us anxiety, fear and concern, yet they also proved to be great benefit or blessing in our lives.

I remember the first time that I went to a public speaking class.  All through school, I had a great fear of standing in front of others and speaking in a formal setting.  Even reading a simple report caused me great trepidation.  Facially, I knew that I had to move through this fear in order to be able to express myself in any event that involved groups of people.

On the first day of public speaking class, I faced a class of about 100 people and tears ran down my face as I began to speak.  And this was in front of a positive supportive group at a local Unity church.  I stayed with it, and as I did the fear became less and less and I began to enjoy speaking (which I never thought would happen).

As we begin the final countdown to the new millennium, we may be having mixed feelings.  On one hand, we are hearing from some groups that we need to be prepared for the Y2K problem.  Other groups are certain that the millennium is the beginning of the apocalyptic time when the world will come to an end.  Others fear that natural disasters will begin to accelerate.  Others are fearful of of a terrible world war.

I personally feel that the new millennium is ushering in a time of unprecedented technological and scientific developments.  The changes that will occur will cause people to think about the real meaning of life and living, and I believe that people will be drawn to discover spirituality and prayer.

Our thoughts and prayers make a difference as we go through the many changes ahead.  We have the opportunity to transmute our fears and face a wonderful future.  The challenge lies within each of us to discover who we are, our purpose for being here and to move forward confidently as co-creators with God.

As you will see after looking through this newsletter, we are planning many joyful events as the millennium nears.  Each of you are invited to participate and feel the joy.

I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to be here with you as we go through this time in history together.

An Easy Way to Visualize

For many years I have had workshops at Unity churches on how to make a Vision Board.  These vision boards are powerful and work.  The most difficult aspect of a vision board is working with them daily without having our minds wander off into other thoughts.

Just recently I have learned of a powerful way to harness the mind and emotions through watching on Youtube what are called Mind Movies.  These movies are found on Youtube by entering in the words "mind movies" and voila many wonderful short videos are there to choose from.  These movies have uplifting music, affirmations and beautiful photos of abundance, health, fulfilling life purpose, etc.  

There is also the option of making your own mind movie through various free programs available on your computer such as Photo Story 3 on Windows.  This program allows you to put in your own photos, images, affirmations and musical background which personalizes the movie for you.

This new world of technology allows us to easily visualize in an entertaining way that grabs our attention and emotions in a focused way.

Insight from My Mooing Cow Dish

I have a cow dish that holds candy that moos when your hand touches it.  Suffice to say that I don't eat much candy out of this cow dish as I don't want to hear that sound. (Photo of cow dish is at end of blog).

I was thinking this morning that it would be great if we had a "moo" sound inside when we are about to make a bad decision.  We do have an intuition about things but most of the time we do not trust it or follow it.

If we elevate our mind to a higher consciousness we will be led to right decisions at the right time.  Regular prayer and meditation with gratitude can transform your life.  Affirming affirmations keeps your mind alerted and receptive to good.

I love Catherine Ponder's affirmations which I found on a website and have listed below.

List of Catherine Ponder Affirmations

 Today, I let my light shine. I express my unique creativity and am successful in everything I do.

• I welcome and enthusiastically accept unlimited abundance.
• I will build a new me by focusing on my dreams and going after them.
• My financial abundance overflows today.
• My goals empower me to become all I was meant to be.
• Through a feeling of gratitude, I place myself in alignment with all the riches of the universe.
• I feed my dreams a steady diet of hard work and determination and watch them manifest in my life.
• I know that my greatest goals are achievable. I know that my every dream is reachable.
• My faith in God sets me free from all worry, anxiety and doubt.
• I release all anxiety, doubt, worry, fear to the power within me and I am filled with love, peace and joy.
• The presence of joy in my heart releases an abundance of good in my life.
• Practice, patience and persistence assure my success.
• My life is a positive reflection of my thoughts.
• I expect lavish miracles and blessings to unfold in my life today. I am grateful.
• I was destined to be prosperous. I have abundance to share and to spare.
• I have faith that I am being guided in ways that bring amazing results.
• I fill my mind with the idea of abundance, and abundance manifests in all my affairs.
• I recognize my true Source and let prosperity pour forth into my every experience.
• Abundance surrounds me. Today I claim my share.
• I choose exactly what I want in life, develop the consciousness of those choices, and they appear.
• My inner wisdom guides me to make right decisions and to take the steps necessary to achieve my aspirations.
• I do not concern myself with any negative appearances. I live my life, knowing my prayers are already answered.
• I choose goals that reflect what I want most in my life.
• Bountiful miracles and blessings manifest in my life.
• I deserve the best and accept it now.
• Abundance is limited only by my unconsciousness.
• My prosperity thoughts create my prosperous world.
• All that I have ever given is being returned to me in many forms.
• My life is filled with an abundance of good.
• With God’s guidance, my life is filled with joyous successes and rich abundance.
• I release all feelings of lack and limitation and joyfully accept blessings of joy and abundance.
• Today is rich with opportunities and I open my heart to receive them.
• I think of the things I want and see them as already accomplished.
• Money flows freely and abundantly into my life.
• Abundance is mine! I give thanks for the unlimited flow of good into my life.
• Wonderful things happen to me because I live with an attitude of gratitude.
• Gratitude moves me from perceptions of lack to manifestations of abundance in all facets of my life.
• I am worthy of all that my heart desires. It is my divine heritage!
• I am infused with a spirit of excess. Today, I give new life to my goals and dreams.
• I create my own security.
• In this moment, I asked for what I need, knowing that God responds throughout the day. I remember that God is my source.
• I manifest my goals at the perfect time.
• I accept the miracles God has for me.
• I am the source of my abundance.
• I focus on what I love and thus draw it to me.
• My thoughts are loving and positive.
• My choices and possibilities are expanding every day.
• I love and trust my imagination.
• I am an unlimited being. I can create anything I want.
• I picture abundance for myself and others.
• I live in an abundant universe. I always have everything I need.
• I radiate self-esteem, inner peace, love, well-being, and happiness.
• I create money and abundance through joy, aliveness, and self-love.
• Everything I do brings me aliveness and growth.
• I know the essence of what I want and I get it.
• Everything I create fulfills me.
• The things I create are even better than I imagine them to be.
• My energy is focused and directed toward my goals.
• I am increasingly magnetic to money, prosperity, and abundance.
• I create what I want with energy. Good things come to me easily.
• I trust and follow my inner guidance.
• I spend quiet reflective time; I hear my inner guidance.
• I am always in the right place at the right time.
• I follow my highest joy.
• I honor myself in everything I do.
• I always choose the path of most light.
• I honor my integrity in all that I do.
• I am a success. I allow myself to feel successful.
• I congratulate myself often.
• I forgive myself, knowing that I did the best I knew how at the time.
• I give myself permission to have what I want.
• My beliefs create my reality. I believe in my unlimited prosperity.
• I choose beliefs that bring me aliveness and growth.
• My beliefs create good things for me.
• I deserve abundance.
• Money flows in my life. I am prosperous.
• My energy is open and flowing in every area of my life.
• I always have more money coming in than going out.
• I allow myself to have more than I ever dreamed possible.
• The universe works in perfect ways. It always serves my higher good.
• My debts represent my and others’ belief in my future earning ability.
• My value and worth are increased by everything I do.
• All my experiences are opportunities to gain more power, clarity, and vision.
• I send love to my fears. My fears are the places within me that await my love.
• I speak of success and prosperity. My words uplift and inspire others.
• I live in an abundant work. All is perfect in my universe.
• The universe is safe, abundant, and friendly.
• I expect only the best to happen and it does.
• I trust my ever-increasing ability to create abundance.
• I accept prosperity and abundance into my life.
• I trust that everything comes at the perfect time and in the perfect way.
• I surrender to my higher good.
• I demonstrate love with action every day.
• I am linked with the unlimited abundance of the universe.
• As I do what I love, money and abundance flow freely to me.
• I have a unique, special contribution to make.
• Everything I do adds beauty, order, and light to the universe.
• I am in charge of my destiny. I am the builder of my life.
• I honor and use my special skills and abilities.
• I find my life’s work by looking within rather than without.
• I have a wealth of valuable skills and talents.
• I now have my ideal life.
• I know what I love to do and I do it.
• I allow myself to think and dream in unlimited ways.
• All answers are within me. I follow my inner wisdom.
• I am a valuable person. My path is important.
• I value my time and energy.
• My path and life’s work are my higher priorities.
• I accept and love myself for who I am right now.
• I honor and value my creativity and ideas.
• My days are filled with fun and meaningful activities.
• I am a special, unique person.
• I give myself permission to be all I can be.
• I commit to my path. I choose aliveness and growth.
• I follow my heart.
• I can have what I want.
• I invite and allow good to come into my life.
• I flow with the current. I know that everything happens for my higher good.
• I am alert to my opportunities and I use them well.
• I release anything that is not for my higher good and ask it to release me.
• I love and honor everything I create.
• I change the world around me by changing myself.
• I bring love and a positive attitude to everything I do.
• I create what I want easily and effortlessly.
• I am magnetic to my higher good and it is magnetic to me.
• I am abundantly provided for as I follow my path.
• I know my value. I honor my worth.
• People value and honor my work.
• I always give my best.
• All the money I spend enriches society and comes back to me multiplied.
• All the money I spend and earn brings me joy.
• I surround myself with things that reflect my aliveness and energy.
• I appreciate all that I am and all that I have.
• I appreciate myself. I give thanks for my wonderful life.
• I am open to receive.
• Everything I give to others is a gift to myself. As I give I receive.
• Every gift I gives serves and empowers other people.
• Everything I give others honors and acknowledges their worth.
• I give generously to myself.
• I serve others to the best of my ability in all I say and do.
• I experience clarity and harmony in all my energy exchanges.
• I feel good about all the money I spend.
• I am always being guided to the higher solution.
• I listen to the wisdom of my heart.
• I always look for ways to make the other person a winner; as I help others win, I win as well.
• I have abundance in every area of my life.
• My prosperity prospers others.
• Everyone’s success contributes to my success.
• I send others thoughts of their increased prosperity.
• My money is a source of good for myself and others.
• My savings act as a magnet to draw more money.
• I am financially independent and free.
• All my money is energy awaiting my command to create good in my life.
• All my money is working for me to increase my abundance, joy, and aliveness.
• I choose to live an abundant life.

My Most Memorable 4th of July

It is the 4th of July and I know we all have many memories of past celebrations.  I spent many 4th of July holidays in my family's back yard with sparklers that my father purchased before they were banned in the cities.

The most memorable 4th of July was back in the early 1960's when my parents took my sister and I to Washington DC and we watched the official fireworks.   I have never seen such beautiful fireworks.  It was awe inspiring to be in the midst of our national monuments and see the beautiful fireworks illuminating the area.

Another memory took place in Branson, Missouri.  I joined the Chamber of Commerce and the president was responsible for the Branson fireworks.  One year a huge thunderstorm arrived just as the fireworks were scheduled to start and he threw himself on the fireworks to keep them from getting wet.  He could have been seriously injured.

No matter where we are or what we are doing, the 4th allows us a chance to pause to appreciate the many freedoms that we have in this country.  This country is beautiful and I feel that all of us should be grateful to be in a country that allows us to enjoy so many life paths and personal options.  Our happiness is truly up to us.

Lowering Blood Pressure

I think that blood pressure most of the time reflects our state of mind.  If we are nervous, tense or terrified then blood pressure goes up.  I know when I went in for cataract surgery I was very tense.  My blood pressure sky rocketed which the nurse said was normal for patients about to have surgery.  When I am in ER to be checked out, it is high also.

My mother's blood pressure goes up when she is at the doctor's office.  When it is rechecked later in the visit it changes a lot to a more normal reading.

I have found that if I take meditative deep breaths I get an excellent blood pressure reading at the doctor's office.  My mother thinks it is "cheating" but it shows to me how powerful the meditative breath is.  The more we learn and actually use breathing techniques the more relaxed we are.

When I was having my first child, my husband and I went in for Lamaze training in order to give birth without anesthetics.  The whole experience was based on breathing techniques.

Now when I am out in traffic or find myself in a stressed situation I just stop and breathe.  It reminds me that it does no good whatsoever to get stressed out.  It feels so much better to be relaxed and enjoying life.

Miracle in the Night

Here in Texas we are experiencing triple digit heat.  Not only is it very hot but the yards and plants are very dry and in need of water.

Yesterday I looked at the weather app on my phone around midnight (yes I was up late last night).  There was 0% chance of rain.  Earlier in the evening rain moved very close to Denton and then went right on north barely missing us.  I was wanting rain!

Lowell and I had been out late on a trip and as we came back into town about 2:00 AM there was a miracle.  Rain was softly but steadily falling in Denton.  It was like a small miracle as if it was a blessing. 

I again looked at my weather app and there was a very small band of weather moving from south to north and Denton was in the middle. The weather app changed to allow for a 20% chance of rain for an hour or so.   Best of all the small long band was extending to the south and moving north right through Denton giving the "miracle rain".

Sometime things in life are like that.  We look ahead at our lives and we have a "life app" within us that seems day to day predictable until we open to the possibility of good.  It is then that life can take a magical turn and the impossible happens.