Find Joy
JOY ~ Journey of You March 5, 2010 |
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Outlook. Point of view. Angle.
What's yours? How do you see the world?
My friend Katie lost her right arm several years ago in a car accident that also claimed the life of her youngest son. She's faced more sorrow and hard times, yet she's not bitter. She doesn't wail that the world is an awful place and out to get her. Katie recently sent an entertaining email recounting how she was trying to hang pictures on her wall. She has a self-deprecating sense of humor, but think about it. Hammer. Nail. You want to try that with one hand? Hmm, helped me keep my daily hassles in a healthy perspective.
I know a writer, Jeff Flodin, whose memoir was recently adapted into a play in Chicago: "Cats Don't Like Fish (People Just Think They Do)." Jeff is blind. Try writing with your eyes closed. He has software that reads to him what he types and incoming emails. I had to ask what it reads from me: "colon parenthesis" or "smiley face." Smiley face. :)
When bad things happen - and they do - express your emotions. Cry, grieve, beat up your pillow. And accept.
The world keeps spinning whether you want it to or not. You are still here in the land of the living. You can choose to say "life sucks" or you can choose to say "I'm gonna learn how to be happy no matter what comes my way." Ways to LEARN how to be happy are coming at ya, every week, right here.
I wish you peace and a brighter perspective. Sometimes, crying is a joy. Read on.
Words to Ponder~
"I'll never take breathing for granted again."
~Connie Kuntz
mother of newborn premie Angelo (and Joce, Sam, & Fern).
Angelo decided to meet his mom three months sooner than expected. He's breathing on his own now AND HE CRIED and his mommy and daddy are now allowed to hold him.
Thank you, Connie & Jesse, for use of this photo. You're right. Angelo's hands are strong. |
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| Lyrics to love |
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Whenever you're near
I hear a symphony
~Diana Ross & The Supremes "I Hear a Symphony"
songwriters: Dozier, Lamont;Holland, Brian;Holland, Eddie
I cry not for myself
But for those who never felt the joy we felt |
| It's all a matter of perspective |
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| Picks this week |
Flick Pick - hmm, maybe watch the Oscars??
Book Pick - Keep Calm and Carry On
Collection of quotes, but I bought it because of the cover:
This was actual poster produced by Britain's Ministry of Information in 1939. Two other posters were made: Freedom is in Peril; and Your Courage, Your Cheerfulness, Your Resolution Will Bring Us Victory. Two and half million "Keep Calm" posters were printed, to be distributed only if Germany invaded. The posters were trashed. One was discovered years later and an industry was launched.
I also bought the bookmark which is my motto for life:
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| Birthday Love |
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HAPPYHAPPYJOYJOY BIRTHDAY WISHES TO:
MISTY COON
PJ FRANCIS
AND WHOEVER ELSE IS CELEBRATING THIS WEEK
"The truth is, I do indulge myself a little the more in pleasure, knowing that this is the proper age of my life to do it" ~Samuel Pepys
(Send in your birthday. Each month a name is drawn for a JOY prize delivered via snail mail.)
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| Inquiring Minds |
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Heels or flats?
The flats gals sounded off in force; my soul sisters who dig heels did not voice their favor. Flats win. (My thanks to Tammie Sonneson for appreciating girly-girl shoes. "I absolutely love the look of heels and the beautiful clickity-clack on hard surfaces (and they raise my shortness a little!)."
Inquiring minds want to know:
Do you still buy CDs or do you download? |
| Quote Junkie |
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Believe that there's light at the end of the tunnel. Believe that you might be that light for someone else.
--Kobi Yamada
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| Sage Advice |
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Live out of your imagination, not your history.
~Stephen Covey
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| More perspective |
Thanks, Mike DeDoncker, Rockford, IL
The speech is by John Spencer as the character Leo McGarry to Bradley Whitford as Josh Lyman in an episode of The West Wing ---- Lyman is in trouble for something and fears it will cost him his job. McGarry is telling him it can be worked out.
"A guy is walking down the street one day and he falls into a deep hole. He tries, but he can't climb back out. Pretty soon, a doctor walks by the hole and the guy yells up 'Hey, I'm stuck in this hole. Can you help me?'
The doctor writes a prescription, throws it in the hole and goes on his way. A little while later, a priest walks by the hole and the guy yells up 'Hey, I'm stuck in this hole. Can you help me?' The priest writes out a prayer, throws it in the hole and goes on his way.
A little while later, the guy's friend walks by the hole, sees the guy and jumps in the hole with him. The guy asks his friend, 'Why did you do that, now we're both in the hole'. The friend says, 'Yeah, but I've been down here before and I know the way out.'"
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| Gigs |
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March 13-21 = IRELAND
March 30 - St. Bernadette's Seniors - Living in JOY
Kelly's newspaper column - Someone swiped my peace sign. Again.
Kelly's blog for healthyrockford.com - It's not the medal that matters
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| Play big |
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"Each of us wants to be part of something bigger than ourselves. Call it purpose, destiny or a simple desire to get beyond the insufficiencies of our current existence. An individual's yearning to reach outside his life is a seed of greatness waiting for a stream of inspiration.
~Mac Anderson and Tom Feltenstein
Change is Good . . . You Go First
Come be inspired:
FIRST "HAPPINESS CLUB" IN ILLINOIS LAUNCHES IN LOVES PARK
APRIL 1 @ 7 PM-8:30 PM
NORTH SUBURBAN LIBRARY
6340 N. SECOND ST., LOVES PARK IL
Want to live longer, have less stress, and experience better relationships? Choose to be happy. Even if you were not born with the "joy gene," you can LEARN how to be happy. Happiness does not have to be fleeting. It can be sustained throughout your whole life, no matter your challenges or circumstances.
Kelly Epperson (writer/speaker/joy fairy), member of AHA (American Happiness Association) and AATH (Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor), states Happiness Clubs have been in existence across the US for nearly 20 years. The Loves Park chapter is the first in Illinois. "You will learn tools and tips to use to cultivate inner happiness that lasts even when external events throw you a curveball. Happiness Clubs are a place for happy people and wannabe-happy people to learn the science of happiness. Yes, you can TEACH happiness techniques, just like teaching someone how to hit a golf ball. Some folks are naturals; for some, it takes a little practice."
The first meeting is Thursday, April 1 from 7 pm to 8:30 pm at the North Suburban Library community room (6340 N. Second St., Loves Park). Meetings are free ($5 donation requested to cover room rental, refreshments, handouts) and open to all. "This is not a religious thing or a dating thing. It is simply an opportunity to enrich your life." For more information, contact Kelly Epperson at 815-871-7864 or kel_epperson@yahoo.com.
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| Word Nerd |
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Word of the Day: Peccadillo (noun)
Pronunciation: [pek-ê-'di-lo]
Definition: A teeny-tiny, barely discernable sin or fault.
Usage: The plural is "peccadillos" and there is no adjective.
Suggested Usage: This is a useful term to have on your side when minimizing your shortcomings: "Mom! So I drove the car through the garage wall. Why do you allow my petty peccadillos roil you so?"
Etymology: Italian peccadiglio and Spanish pecadillo, the latter from pecado "sin" + illo, a diminutive suffix. (A diminutive noun signifies something smaller than usual.)
-Dr. Language, yourDictionary.com
Peccadillos are certainly subject to perspective. One man's peccadillo is another man's major blunder. |
| Smile |
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(I always start my day with a tap dance)
(Thanks, Gabrielle Javier-Cerulli, Rochester, NY)
from Esar's Comic Dictionary "The Laughing Webster" printed in 1960 --
Fjord: a Norwegian automobile
Bachelor: a man who knows the most about bringing up children
Ahem: a seamstress' exclamation |
| Did you know... |
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"Happiness is not a when or a where; it can be a here and a now. But until you are happy with who you are, you will never be happy because of what you have."
~Zig Ziglar
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| Poetry is good for the soul |
Everyone forgets that Icarus also flew.
It's the same when love comes to an end,
or the marriage fails and people say
they knew it was a mistake, that everybody
said it would never work. That she was
old enough to know better. But anything
worth doing is worth doing badly.
Like being there by that summer ocean
on the other side of the island while
love was fading out of her, the stars
burning so extravagantly those nights that
anyone could tell you they would never last.
Every morning she was asleep in my bed
like a visitation, the gentleness in her
like antelope standing in the dawn mist.
Each afternoon I watched her coming back
through the hot stony field after swimming,
the sea light behind her and the huge sky
on the other side of that. Listened to her
while we ate lunch. How can they say
the marriage failed? Like the people who
came back from Provence (when it was Provence)
and said it was pretty but the food was greasy.
I believe Icarus was not failing as he fell,
but just coming to the end of his triumph.
"Failing and Flying" by Jack Gilbert, from Refusing Heaven. © Alfred A. Knopf, 2005 .
PERSPECTIVE:
Icarus didn't fail. HE HAD TOUCHED THE SUN!
If you have been told all your life, "Don't fly too close to the sun," I beg to differ. Go ahead. Fly. If you touch the sun and your wings melt, you can "grow" new ones.
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"There is an advantage in every disadvantage and a gift in every problem."
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What brings me JOY lately?
* Launching first Happiness Club in Illinois
* Singing Spandau Ballet's "True" in the car with my son (he knows it from "Wedding Singer")
* The tremendous feedback from you all
* Men in kilts in bowling shoes
* Listening to the uproarious laughter from 8 teenage boys downstairs in my living room (they were not allowed to sleep over unless they could explain who Casmir Pulaski was)
* sticky notes (buy stock in 3M and Coca-Cola; I single-handedly keep them afloat)
* Peace sign fake tattoos (want one? drop me a line)
* Checks in the mail
* Drinking cola from French glassware
* A bottle of wine left on my porch (not from a secret admirer; from an editor! jennie rocks!)
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"In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer." ~Albert Camus
joyfully,
xxkelly
as always, tell me what brings YOU joy.
LEARN all about healthy humor!!! and how to apply it in your life/job/family.
Affordable. Informative. Entertaining. (I'll buy you a drink too.)
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| parting shot...
A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable
but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.
~George Bernard Shaw
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Kelly Epperson
kel_epperson@yahoo.com
PO Box 2324 Loves Park IL 61131
Member AATH - Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor
Member AHA - American Happiness Association
Member NSNC - National Society of Newspaper Columnists |
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| JOY |
New book, 365 Days of Joy, is in the works and coming soon. $20
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| When LIfe Stinks, It's Time to Wash the Gym Clothes (collection of newspaper columns) $10
Shirts ~C'est Bon and JOY*US $10 |
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