828 dots

W

hew! I finally did it. I removed 828 dots (spaces).  It's a good thing the document was a relatively short one.  Thank goodness, I discovered this rule - it sounds like a four letter word - before I wrote many more sentences.

When did they change the rules? The one about one space between sentences instead of two. What other surprises will I discover as I learn to write a manuscript? Oh well, it doesn't really matter because whatever it takes, I'm up for the game! After all, it is not so different from learning how to become an interior designer.

I've got a story to tell and nothing is going to stop me now - not even 828 dots. Game on!

Grateful for what I've learned as a designer

When I studied Interior Design at Florida State University, I was required to take a class in Home Management.  Back then, the Department of Interior Design was in the School of Home Economics.  One of the things I learned was how to organize a project.  It served me well when I pulled a project together and managed every aspect from design plans down to the last detail.  It also served me when planning a Thanksgiving Day dinner.

Unfortunately, everyone is not required to take that class and some people are freaked out by the process of planning and executing dinner for the big day.  Today, I found a site to help organize T'day.  Okay, I was actually searching for a Silversneakers class but, hey, sometimes, the best things are found serendipitously.

I hope you enjoy "A Healthier Thanksgiving Cookbook and Planning Guide" as much as I did and that it helps you have a wonderful T'day.

Here's what you will find at the back of the book.  Great tools to plan ahead and avoid a stressful day, plan your menu, create your shopping list & organize the day.  Things are bound to come up but this makes it easier.

   

   

Do not wait for Thanksgiving to remember all the things you are grateful for, like classes that served you throughout your life, moments of delicious serendipity and the many ways we touch each other's lives.

Inspired by Nature

Nine years ago, I made the move from Naples, FL to Richmond, VA.  For years prior to the move, I heard clients say, "I will be down after the leaves turn." or "I have to go back home for spring."  Having lived in south Florida for so many years, I did not get it but driving through Richmond recently, I was in awe of the colors of the trees.  Here's an ode to fall.


EMBRACING FALL 
The leaves outside my window are changing their colors.
I watch as one leaf after another zig zags to the ground,
joining other now dried and brown leaves.

This phenomena allows me to see the patterns of the branches
and the hawk's nest that once was hidden from my gaze.

A gentle breeze releases a shower of many rust and sienna leaves.
The sunlight casts it's light on tree trunks
exposing a play of texture and shadowy effects not seen before.

I am reminded of the Teacher's words "to everything there is a season."

I wonder why we human beings do not remember to take the time to let go of our coverings, to let the light show us the core of who we are
and to know that it is time to slow down and wait for the next cycle.

Oh, Mother Earth, I heed your message
and in my humanness, I stop for this moment
for what the tree outside my window has shown me.

I embrace it's changing colors as I embrace my own.

I get it!