Our thoughts matter!

As you know, I try to start my mornings outside with my binoculars, my bird book, my devotional books, and my Bible. Often the thoughts from the books work together to remind me of some important truths that relate to what is going on in my life right now.

My readings today:
Mary Engelbreit, Just Be Happy!

If you observe a really happy man, you will find . . that he is happy in the course of living life twenty four crowded hours of each day.


“We are what we think.
All that we are arises
With our thoughts.
With our thoughts,
We make our world.”
-- The Buddha

From Grace Notes by Alexandra Stoddard:

Inaction snaps the vigor of the mind . . .:
Leonardo da Vinci

Nothing makes one more tired than just sitting around purposelessly. That's quite different from sittig in solitude when we can daydream in peace and then spring into action. Our minds need to be occupied not to feel sluggish.

Often unrelated actions or thoughts trigger concentration. Something kicks in, like an electrical charger. The mind is an amazing electrical appliance. Plug it in and it goes.

From a few days ago in Nancy Rotenberg's Photography and the Creative Life:
"Television, artificial ingredients, polyester, and email to mention a few, can all narcotize creativity and immobilize any artist. Consider limiting these benumbing environments."

I have always believed that what we say to ourselves matters. If we tell ourselves that we can do something, we probably will be able to do it. If we tell ourselves that something is impossible, that we can't do it, that often becomes a self fulfilling prophecy. Many years ago when I was a girl in Girl Scouts, my troop leader had a saying: "Can't can't do anything but fall in a bucket of paint." Needless to say, we were not allowed to say "I can't do it - it's too hard, " in Girl Scouts.

Now obviously, it won't work if I tell myself I can jump off a cliff and fly, but I think we often contribute to our failures by negative thinking. I also think that we have some measure of control over our attitudes.

Lately, I've found myself being pessimistic. I know I'm not getting everything done that "needs" to be done. I've also found myself doing the kinds of mind numbing things that Nancy talks about - checking my email too frequently, browsing websites repeatedly during the day, playing cute but repetitive internet games. Plus, there have been legitimate things to grieve over, things that are unlikely to get better. But I don't want to live my life as a pessimist. I want to cultivate positive attitudes. I want to be a "can do" person. Today's readings were certainly helpful to me.

Further research on the internet (for this blog) brought these gems:

“We become what we think about.”
-- Earl Nightingale

“Our lives are defined by our convictions of who we are.”
-- Anthony Robbins

“Man is what he believes.”
-- Anton Chekhov

"Dwell in thought upon the grandest,
And the grandest you shall see;
Fix your mind upon the highest,
And the highest you shall be.''
unknown

Christian minister, Norman Vincent Peale, wrote The Power of Positive Thinking, an entire book and built his ministry around the benefits of being positive and upbeat.

Going to the scriptures validated this line of thought:

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he , , ,
Proverbs 23:7 (King James Version)

We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ . . .
2 Corinthians 10:5


Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things . . .
Philippians 4:8,9


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I want to be remembered as someone who is cheerful, fun to be around, and capable. I don't want to be remembered as a pessimist, a grouch, or a negative person. I believe I have a choice and I choose joy!

A Life of Adventure

I get inspired at NANPA by the adventurous lives I see. Norman Wu was at one of the first NANPA Summits I attended. He told us about what it took to photograph UNDER the Antarctic ice. His book, Under the Antarctic Ice has amazing photos and he also made a documentary, Under Antarctic Ice. Several NANPA photographers lead tours every year to Antarctica. I already have an idea who I want to go with if I get to go.

On one of the panels this year, Michele Westmorland talked about her experiences in Papua New Guinea. She has done film footage of the native people there and leads cultural tours. I was impressed with her respect for the native cultures. I found a trailer for her film Headhunt Revisited. There is more of the story of this amazing expedition at the The Smithsonian Magazine. Whether I get to visit this amazing place in her group or not, I've been inspired to find out more of her view of honoring cultures and to get more information about her project.

This Summit, I sat across from a 68 year old gentleman. He had a heart attack in 1969 and began an exercise program. He is an inspiration - he's climbed Kilimanjaro and Mount Rainier. He's going to be going with a group to the Galapagos Islands this year. His eyes sparkle. He smiles and laughs. He is living a full life.

While for many reasons I may not get to do all of the things I hear about at NANPA, the stories inspire me to get out and experience this wonderful world that God made. I was browsing Nancy Rotenberg's site last night. She has an essay there about enjoying the world around her while she was confined to a chair. When you are truly aware, your backyard holds amazing wonders.

When my children were growing up, we made efforts to take them as many places as we could. So many of my children's friends never left the state of Texas while growing up. (Yes, Texas IS a big state, but still . . . ) We used saving techniques such as over withholding on our income tax. A large refund check in the spring often funded our camping trips throughout the United States. One year we drove to Alaska.

As I get older, I need to stay active. My body needs to be outdoors moving and my spirit still needs to experience new things. I want to be a vibrant old lady that people will want to be around. Whether exploring my backyard or going to far off places, I want to see and experience as much of God's creation as possible. I want to keep having adventures all my life!