Wish I had done this at my wedding

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0

Sweet 16

Think back to when you were 16…

What are your memories? What did you spend most of your time doing? What did you think of the world around you and what did you dream of accomplishing?

For me, the scene is set in 1987. I was a Sophomore in High School, spending way too much time flirting with boys and worrying about my appearance—I must have single-handedly put a decent dent in the ozone with all of the Aqua Net that I used on my hair (it was the 80’s and I lived in the south where everything is BIGGER- double whammy).

I fell in love with Johnny Depp in 21 Jumpstreet (a crush that remains today), watched as Baby Jessica was rescued from the well, and cheered as a scantly dressed Cher won best actress for Moonstruck (I envied her cajones for wearing that dress.)

I remember all of the adults talking about ‘condoms in school’, the Iran Contra hearings and the stock market crashing. (No wonder it was the year that Ely Lilly released Prozac in the US.)

My parents were cool, they let me travel to Israel on a teen tour that summer. It was an amazing six week trip where I worked on a Kibbutz, hiked in the Golan, visited ancient sites, climbed Masada, rode a camel, and although I will always treasure the experience, I still remember wanting to break out of the ‘ tourist bubble’ we traveled in.  In many ways the trip felt like a Disneyland / Universal Studios ride meant to provide us a somewhat contrived experience with our counselors and guides, structured days and evening programs, and no time or ability to explore on our own.

I vowed to myself that one day soon I would take a trip to a far away land solely on my own terms. It took me another 12 years to do it.

Zac Sunderland just became the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe alone in his boat. He started at 16 years old and finished today.  I have been following his blog for a year, and admire him tremendously knowing that few of us attempt to tackle such things in our teenage years, or even many years later.

http://www.zacsunderland.com/

http://www.zacsunderland.com/blog/index.html

I hope that it will inspire you to live out one of your dreams..

Breathe. . .

I just found out that my Moms the Word blog at skyhidailynews.com (my local paper's website) is now going to be hosted on all mountain sites in the region.

Yee haw!! 

I just wish that I could get paid for my favorite things.

We all need reminders

As I sit staring at my son sleeping, I linger wondering what the world will be like in a few months when he starts asking “why”, in a few years when he starts school; in 5 years when he really wants to learn about the way the world works, in 10 years when he wins and loses his real first battles with himself and his peers. As all parents, I wonder how I can teach him to live an accountable life, to value things other than money, to stay true to himself while respecting others, and I sit with wonder looking for signs of what paths he will chose.

I know that it is impossible to know the answers to any of these questions now, and I smile to myself knowing that it is more fun not to know.

For me, someone who over thinks EVERYTHING, the beauty of having a child is in the details.

It forces you to:

Live in the moment

View things with wonder

Remember that you need to take baby steps towards your dreams no matter how old you are

Live an authentic life if not just for you, then in the hope that your children will too

Believe that anything is possible

Consider the importance of the HOW and WHY of everything

Learn to listen

Realize that the more you push someone to do what you want, the less likely they are to do it

And understand that we are ALL still trying to learn how to navigate through life with the least bruises

Do yourself a favor; find an old photo of yourself and read the above list to yourself three times a day for a full month.  Whenever the self-defeating or voice full of doubt tries to get your attention, or you are about to make a bad decision, look at your photo and re-read the above list.

Just try it for a month and see how it changes your life.

Sleepy or Zen Eating?