Friday's Quote: Pablo Picasso

"Action is the foundational key to all success."---Pablo Picasso

For the last several days I've been at a conference among like-minded people from my profession.  I will say that my profession, especially the sector I work in, is hard work and a noble cause.  I don't forget the population that I serve, but the drudges of my profession can get me down and I can lose focus on why I'm even in this profession.  

Somehow, this time around, the conference has been good to my soul.  I don't know if it has anything to do with where I'm at in my life or if it was just a better conference.  Yet, it was wonderful to be reminded that our actions and future plans of action are foundational to successfully help the population we serve.  It will be time to go home soon, but it has been a good experience so far, and I'm glad to be reminded of the "big" picture and why I do what I do.

I hope you're having a great day.  I hope you can identify in your own life, actions that are foundational to your success.

Adventures of the Adventurous Kind

[My dear Friends, thank you for some wonderful memories!]

My Dear Friends,

Most of the time when I write, I write for myself.  Sometimes, I pretend that I'm writing for someone else.  Today, I write for two of my dearest friends.

For the past several days, two of my oldest friends visited me.  It was actually a reunion of epic proportions.  It had been 19 years since the three of us last saw one another.  We each have different personalities and lead very different lives.  Yet, once the three of us were together, it was as if time had stood still; we just picked up from where we last left off and moved forward.

I showed them what Minnesota had to offer, despite the rain and cloudy skies, and I even roped my Friend to take them drifting, like Tokyo drifting, on his boat.  (BTW, drifting on a boat is super awesome!)  We cooked, ate my birthday cake, and hiked.  I even took one of them (the other had an early departure) to Barn Bluff, one of my most favorite spots.  The three of us had so many laughs, shed some tears, and even created a new dance together.  We made new memories and promised one another that we would meet up every three years.

So now that my dear friends have departed from my home, but not my heart, I'm feeling a bit lonely, but not so lost anymore.  I am so thankful that they both made time to see me and spend time with me.  I am also so thankful for their patience, their understanding, and their friendship.  I don't know what the future will hold for us because we did lose contact with one another at various points in our lives, but I believe we all are going to keep holding on to one another.  Unlike some people that make friends easily and call every other person they meet a "friend," I know that these two are truly my friends in its most sincerest form.

Thank you, my dear friends, for truly brightening up my life, my day, and my birthday week.  Thank you.

P.S.  In three years, we're supposed to remember this song:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JF8BRvqGCNs
BUT, I think this should've been our song:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeIJmciN8mo
I know this will be the song I will most remember: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtwQiueNLWI

Thanks TY.

Sometimes being with old friends and talking about the past helps me remember a memory in a positive light and reflect on what I was going through at that time.  I was talking with a dear friend and was reminded of my senior winter formal date, who was also my senior prom date, TY.

I asked TY to both dances.  Yeah, I really did.  I remember being scared, but I didn't think too much about it because if I had, I would've never gone through with it.  I recall being so shocked each time he agreed to go with me.  As I was telling my friend, TY was one of the "cuter" boys at school and if he had a girlfriend, she sure wasn't going to our school.  So, I thought to myself, why not?  Never mind the fact that he and I hardly ever interacted, he was a complete stranger to me, and we were totally different in many ways.

I won't go on and on about TY and my dates with him.  In my memory, I will always remember him as a perfect gentleman who gave to me some of the most beautiful corsages that I've ever gotten in my life.  I thank him, as brief as our time was, for helping make a girl feel beautiful and less of an ugly duckling.

What a Great Birthday!

Friday's Quote: Peter Drucker

"The best way to predict the future is to create it."---Peter Drucker 

I know I've written about how much I love my parents and I may have mentioned words of "thanks" to my parents in this blog.  Yet, I don't think I've ever really thanked them.  Even though I know that my parents may not ever read this, I send this message to my parents with all of my heart and all of my love.  I thank my parents for predicting a better future by creating it.

I know that when they fled their country and crossed over to live in a refugee camp, they did it because they wanted to live and survive.  Several years later, while still in the refugee camp, but with two to three infants, they tried their best, within the limited confines of the refugee camp, to have a better future by creating opportunities just to survive.  For example, my mother would embroider or grow vegetables, and my father would leave the refugee camp without permission to hunt.  With what they made, grew, or caught, they would sell to get some money.  They in turn would use the money to buy fortified powdered milk for my sisters and me.

Even coming to the US, they continued to believe in a better future and despite the limitations that may have been put on them, they continued to create a better world for themselves and their children.  For example, they ensured that all of their children had shelter, food, and love.  I can't imagine all that they have been through and I know that they have faced so many struggles.  At the same time, I hope that my younger siblings realize how much work my parents have done in order to create their present day reality.

I love my parents.  I am thankful and grateful that they had a vision for something bigger and better, and for all that they created so that I could have the life I've had.

How have you created the future that you predicted?

How I Met Your Mother Sadness

Picture credit:  http://www.pastemagazine.com

The television show How I Met Your Mother ("HIMYM") is causing me a little sadness.  This is the show's last season and the "mother" has finally been revealed.  I'm happy that Ted, the main character, has found his love but I'm personally sad that the mother isn't the mother that I want to be the mother.  I don't mean to confuse you, really I don't.

You see, my former beau got me into HIMYM and it's been a great adventure so far.  I've recommended this show to several other people and they've become loyal fans of this show (yes, you're welcome people . . . just kidding).  This season is the show's last season and the first episode aired earlier this Monday.  However, in last season's last episode, they finally showed who the "mother" was.  This season's first episode only further confirmed that she is truly the "mother" in HIMYM.  Since watching this show, I've been hoping that one of Ted's former loves would become the "mother."  Despite last season's last episode, I was still holding on.  Now, my hopes are dashed.  I'm sad.  I really am sad.

Oh well . . . I will continue to tune in and see how this all folds out.  Are you a fan of HIMYM?  Who were you hoping would be the "mother" and Ted's ultimate love?

The First Leaves of Fall

 

[Taken September 24, 2013.]

Before and After: My Spare Room

I have a spare room in my home that my brothers once occupied.  One brother used it then left.  Then another used it and left.  After my last brother left, he left the room in shambles.  Not only did I have to clean up after him (there was so much trash), but I had to figure what to do with the things that couldn't easily be thrown away (e.g. the bed and the fishes).

The "before" pictures of the spare room, as how my brother left it for me.

I've already chronicled what I did with the fishes.  As for the bed, rather than remove and replace it, I opted to just leave it in that room and allow my guests to use it.  I made some cosmetic changes to the room (e.g. changed the drapes, changed the lamp, and changed the bedding, moved the fish tank out, added a picture of two).  Yet, I really think it was just good ole elbow grease and throwing away trash that made a big difference.

The "after" pictures of the spare room.

Overall, I'm happy with how the room looks right now, although I would love to add some colors to the wall.  The room still feels as if it's missing something, but for the time being, I'm happy with it.  What do you think I should add to it or what color I should paint the room?
 

Be Inspirational, Be Yourself

My younger sister called me today and asked if I could help her daughter with an essay about our youngest sister.  Apparently, my niece finds her aunt, our youngest sister, very inspirational.  I don't know why, but I forget that sometimes we as individuals can be inspirational to another without trying. 

The journey to the next stage of life can be rife with struggles.  I didn't get to where I was without hardship and the place I'm inhibiting in this world was created through sheer determination and luck.  Sometimes, I can be so self-absorbed in my little world that I forget the  "mundane" things in my life may represent something bigger and make such a huge impact to another person.  That's the thing, I'm where I'm at in my life because I wanted to be here.  I believe that I could get here.  I continued to forge forward, despite the hiccups.  I forget that not everyone has that mindset.  And it's very humbling to be reminded that my struggles and the place I'm inhibiting, is one that can inspire simply because I represent a possibility to another.  I forget about that.

So, to all of those that have inspired me to be a better person, thank you.  For my siblings and my parents, thank you for all that you have done.  For everyone else, be yourself and be inspirational.