Monday, February 25, 2013

What Makes Your Heart Sing?

During my time off, I have had time to begin to ponder what my next act in life will be.

At 50, I still consider myself a spring chicken, albeit with some wobbly bits gained from a life well lived.


Ah - but am I a free-range chicken or one content to sit inside the pen?  Neither is a wrong answer, they are just different choices in life. 

One thing is abundantly clear to me: John Lennon's line in his gorgeous song Beautiful Boy is right on:  "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."  And I must confess: at times I have not been the one to make the choice, I just went with the flow, said yes (or no) without really thinking, and above all, made the safe choice.  So while I may have been a big fat chicken, I was a big fat chicken in the hen house looking at the other chickens out in the yard and thinking either one of two things:
  1. Are they CRAZY????
  2. How do I get to be that kind of crazy????
But I think before you know what you should be doing in life, you need to stop and think about what makes your heart sing.  What fills your soul?  What things do you do that make the time fly by in an instant and make you feel exhilarated, not depleted?  What feels like your natural self?

I think as children, we are inherently inclined to those things and people that make our heart sing.


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But then, we get busy making other plans.  And life happens. 

As you know, I have been thinking a lot about all of this, what with losing my last parent, having children about to leave home, turning 50, taking a break from a big job due to sheer exhaustion.  And for the first time in more years than I care to count, I have started to think about what I really love.  What makes my heart sing?  There is only going to be one me on this planet and I want to make it count.  But if I don't know what counts for me, how can I know what are the right choices for me?  So at 50, I have re-booted the old internal compass, and like the Wendy who could fly with a bit of fairy dust, am working hard to fix my compass to my own second star to the right.

The interesting thing is that while I am getting still and learning to really identify those loves, I am also kind of getting into Action Jackson mode!  I don't want to waste any more time on toxics.   I started to read a book the other night and realized about two chapters in that this was not going to be a book that was going to give me anything other than night terrors.  Bam!  Out it went.  The same has been happening with my wardrobe as you know.  What I watch on TV.  Who I choose to spend most of my time with.  What I look at on the internet. 

One of the interesting things that has unconciously aided me in identifying things that make my heart sing is Pinterest.  I only recently joined pinterest and I don't use it much, but it is an interesting way to only grab those things, those images, on the internet that you think are beautiful (or at least it is for me).   While you may "follow" someone else's boards, you only pin those images on your boards that you think are beautiful, that reflect your desired or preferred style, the places you would like to visit.  Your boards are comprised solely of your choices.  Even the chicken above is a chicken I chose to reflect me from hundres of pictures of chickens (I who am I kidding, there are likely 1000s of them!).  We all make choices.

So, as of February 25th, 2013, these are the things that I know for sure are making my heart sing.  The list is only beginning!

My family





My friends (local, far away, and virtual!)



Writing

I could write all day long.  I wrote "bureaucratize" for my job for many years, I have written fiction and non-fiction, even written a musical parody with one of my best friends that has been performed twice.  It wasn't until I started this blog, thinking only two people would show up (thank you Dani and Tabs) that I remembered how much I love to write.


And while this is an entirely self-published enterprise (!), it has inspired me to start to write again and has taught me that I do indeed have the discipline to sit and write every day!  And the hours pass quickly and it never seems like work.

Painting

I don't know how to do it, but this year I am working on learning and in the interim I am having a blast.  All I know is that when I am painting, despite not having a clue, I feel absolutely peaceful!  That is a good basis upon which to build I think!  Thanks Kathy, for the inspiration to keep going!  I think about the fellow outside Shakespeare and Co. in Paris, just painting away, and the joy he was having, and I want more of that in my life!


Gardening

There is nothing more peaceful for me than to be on my hands and knees weeding.  This year I plan to expand my vegetable garden, keep up better with the weeding and the dividing in spring, and learn a bit more about landscape design.  This winter, I have expanded the numbers of plants in my house and that has made me happier.  And yes, I am that person who talks incessently to all of my green things.   My God, the longer I stay home I could turn quite potty...  But never mind, it makes my heart sing...



Travel: Armchair and Otherwise

Oh sure, I love to go places.  And I dream of living in Europe for at least 2 to 3 months at some point, but i am also happy to read travel books, watch travel shows, read the history of places I have been or would like to go.



I am not a sophisticated traveller or person.  Above is a picture of my first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower.  I cried.  I pretty much cry with happiness whenever I travel somewhere nice and see things I have never seen before.  I think lots of people are like me, they just don't admit it.

I like to eat outdoors.  I like to eat and cook in general!

If there is a patio chair, I am there.  Food tastes better outdoors!




Oh and did I mention that rosé, tomato basil salad and frites would be on the menu everyday?  And at night we would have Cabernet Sauvignon and Spaghetti. 

I like old things

It will come as a shock to you that I have not a lick of modern style in my house, excepting my stainless steel appliances and two ikea bar stools, which were all I could afford at the time.  I love to read history.  I like to see old things.  I like things, inherited or not, that other people have used or loved.  When I sit at my great-grandparent's dining room set every night, I can almost feel the energy of the thousands of conversations that have taken place around it since it was built for them in 1883. 

I like to imagine what it would be like to have been there when something was built. I stared for a good half-hour at this section of Notre Dame Cathedral, imagining how many months went in to creating these amazing carvings


I like paths, nooks and crannies and the road less taken


When I was a child, my father used to sing The Bonnie Banks o' Loch Lomond to me:

Oh, ye'll tak' the high road, and I'll tak' the low road,
And I'll get to Scotland afore ye;
But me and my true love will never meet again
On the bonnie, bonnie banks o' Loch Lomond.
I always wanted to take the low road.  Give me a path any day.

Books & Music

Anytime, anywhere, especially books.  I love my music, too, but i also like to sit in silence a lot more now.


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And finally, as of February 25th, 2013, I know that Kindness makes my heart sing.

Over the last four months, everytime I have reached out my hand in need, either in person or here on this blog or offline via email, someone has grabbed my hand.  I am continually blown away by the human capacity for kindness.  Oh I know - the media would like us to think and ponder only on the human capacity for cruelty.  But even one hand reaching out to you is sometimes all you need to keep going and one kind comments can make the heart sing like a Stradivarius. 

I am reminded when I am here, reading your thoughtful comments, that every coming together of people in kind ways is another candle being lit.  I think it was Margaret Mead who said: Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.


So my next act must be able to honour these things that make my heart sing in some way.  My work life in the future must leave time for these things, and the other things, either too small to mention today or just nibbling on the corner of my brain.  If my work life can incorporate some of these things, more the better.

This introspection thing is not for the faint of heart.  Each step I take, I feel like I am getting closer and closer to finding the truth of me.

How about you?  What makes your heart sing?  If you are willing to share, I would love to hear!!

Happy Monday!  And Stay Safe out there!

54 comments:

  1. WMM, wow.
    Much joy, contentment, satisfaction and freedom on your continued journey.
    And if you haven't seen this or similar, do watch.
    http://abcnews.go.com/2020/video/steve-jobs-secrets-success-14694518

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    1. Thanks GF! I will definitely watch this today - have not seen it! I see from the time of your comments - that you stayed up for the whole awards. we went to be at 1:15 am ADT - oy vey! what did you think?

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  2. I love this! I am on a similar journey. I haven't written mine out as you have and perhaps I should. Like you, I decide fairly quickly about books and other things I spend my time on. I too love things with character and experience, old things. My house is filled with them. I'm still trying to decide how I want to spend my next 50 years, but I do know I want them to be authentically me.

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    1. Hey AWSL! Agree completely! I could have gone on and on (aren't you glad I didn't?) - I think we are all going on similar journeys to make it all count!

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  3. You write a good read Wendy!
    Breakfast makes my heart sing, lying on the lawn in summer and seeing the blue sky juxtaposed against the green of the trees, doing any kind of hard fast exercise/sport to music I love. In a weird way I wish I had been less me over the years, I think I would have been happier if I had done the right thing on many occasions but I am headstrong and stubborn.

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    1. I love to lie on the lawn, too! I can't say the same about hard fast exercise! I am glad you weren't less you!

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    2. I've second guessed myself so many times about my past the lines are blurring between what I did and did not do Tabs. We love you the way you are. Real.

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  4. Great post, Wendy! I like your chicken choice too. It seems like this break that you're taking is just the thing.

    I think that a lot of things make my heart sing, it's just not clear to me what it all adds up to - and I should probably stop worrying about that. One thing I know is that health is everything. I've been knocked down quite a bit on that front, and it really mangles everything else. Now I'm trying to learn how somehow incorporate those realities into my life a little bit better and still pursue those other things that, as you say, make my heart sing.

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    1. Abby - you are so right - health is everything! I know that to be true and when I felt really unwell before the holidays, it was awful. It takes a while to bounce back. I do think that the need to really hone in on what's important to oneself becomes more acute as we age and we realize that we only have so much time to do what we want to do!

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    2. I am glad that you're feeling better now than you were before the holidays.

      Yes, I think knowing what's important matters. I don't have age looming in the middle-aged sense (I'm 30), but because of my chronic health issues, I think that I am more aware of time and well, let's say it, mortality, than a lot of people my age.

      I meant to say before, I love all of your family and travel photos, and you look so happy in those photos of you!

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    3. p.s. sorry if I sound morbid, am in a bit of a mood I guess! I'm not always feeling all of these things so acutely ;)

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    4. Oh Abby - I always love your comments and they don't sound morbid at all! I think that people who have had health issues do "get it" sooner than many of us!

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  5. I just loved this. it's a difficult transition from "work writing" to just saying what you need to say, you're an inspiration.

    I do the same thing with books, we have a very patient librarian who lets me take out 10 or 12 new books at a time because she knows that within 24 hours, 4 will be back. Oh, what joy to be a grown-up and not have to finish something boring or soppy or gloomy for a book report!

    At this stage of my life I'm happy that I've learned to find joy in small things and tiny moments, as well as in the staggeringly magnificent.

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    1. Hey Fred - you are right - the small things and moments are so critical! I suspect you have a different perspective after your scare last year. Too funny about the book reports- it is so true!!

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  6. Love this entry Wendy!
    I too love many of the same things as you. My son and my entire family would be my number one love and my main driving force. I have very few friends, but the ones that I do have I actually consider family. Quality over quantity has always worked for me.
    I love old photographs and telling stories I learned from my grandparents. I have a set of tea spoons that were my grandparents and they were my favorite when I was little. I remember using them in my grandmas kitchen. I smile every time I reach for them in my own home now. I really can't explain how happy it makes me when I see my son using them.
    I love traveling to other countries, cooking, eating, books, music and beautiful art. I so wish I minored in art history in college. I hope to travel and explore more in the future. It really rejuvenated my spirit like nothing else.
    I can write and write about this. Thanks for sharing your journey Wendy.

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    1. Hi A! I love that we are kindred spirits! I always imagine the energy that may still reside even on well beloved inanimate objects - I thik I would love to see your son using those spoons, too!

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  7. My family makes my heart sing. Hubs, son, daughter, mom, dad, and sister..also three dogs and I guess the cat..very tight group. I even get a kick out of my inlaws (mom in law is precious). That and exploring the world. I am more an exotic (the places, sure as hell not me) and adventure traveller at this point. Family says I sing when I talk. I can make any word multi syllable.

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    1. BB! I love that you sing when you talk! I forgot my dog! I love my dog!!!

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    2. Blue Booby - that cat - hilarious!

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    3. Affectionately called Devil Cat...real name Cricket. She's evil.

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  8. So beautifully written, Wendy. It's early and I want to give it some thought, but I'll be back.

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  9. These are deep thoughts for a Monday morning, Wendy. :)

    So many times over the years, I've felt like I'm waiting for the next big thing to happen: waiting to graduate, waiting for a real job, waiting to get married, waiting to start a family. I find myself getting so focused on these milestones that I feel like I'm missing the joy of my actual life.

    For me, it's helped to make a conscious attempt to appreciate the beauty in everyday life. It could be admiring the morning sun filtered through the leaves on the walk to work. It could be using the "good" china when it's just me. Or spending time shooting the breeze with my family, because if the last year has taught me anything, it's that you just never know.

    Thanks for writing about this, Wendy.

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    1. Merry Wife - you are so right! I don't take anything for granted! I think it is most challenging when you have young children - you KNOW that you need to hang on to every moment as best you can, but it is hard! That's why I am so looking forward to taking they and their friends with us to NYC - always such good times to travel together!

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  10. I loved this Wendy, thank you. I needed it today too, we were with some friends yesterday, one of whom is quite toxic. It seems there's always something mean being said and I'm so sick of it. Getting away from toxic people is key to finding happiness and our true selves!
    And thanks for reminding me of the kindness. :)
    We have so much in common, I like the same things! And I also love to look up at the sky like Tabs. Being outdoors and being by water are important things to me, and of course my family and doing small things in my home that increase the comfort: baking, tidying, cooking.

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    1. Hi Dani - one of my resolutions this year was to try to never ever knowingly put myself in a situation with a person or place that is going to make me feel lesser than I am or make me feel like I need to take a shower. It is so hard to that though sometimes, isn't it, especially if it is a long time friend. One of my joys is that I live out in the woods (in a subdivision mind you, but over an acre of land and all I see out back are trees, trees, trees. Makes me feel so peaceful! And I like doing those little things too!

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    2. I do dream of living in the country, I'd love to have a forest of trees behind my house!
      This is a good resolution, I'm going to try that too.

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    3. Or limit the time. I once read a piece by Alexandra Stoddard that you should be willing to do tedious things (say visit crazy family) for up to 4 hours at a time, but no need for longer!

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    4. I agree with you Dani. Toxic people are such a drain of my spirits. I love trees, the ocean and nesting.

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    5. Oh me too, if my house didn't look on to trees I would be nutso and I love being by water too.

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    6. Barry would love to be on the water! That is probably why we have the pool!

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    7. I agree with the trees, water, sky and also - and this is a big thing, I'm finally ridding myself of toxic people as much as I can. I've had too much of them in my life, and I notice how much it really gets to me.

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    8. I wonder if some of us are more susceptible to bad energy? My husband doesn't seem as bothered. I can feel it almost closing in on me!

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  11. Hi WMM, as Merry Wife said, very deep thoughts for a Monday morning! I've been in a bit of limbo for a while - a big move, boys growing up, the start of the 50s. Over the last year I have been helping an old friend - former university professor - with a book he wrote (it's being published this spring). It's given me the idea of looking at editing/ proofreading courses for when we move back to Ottawa next year. That would be a great career for me after being a stay-at-home mum/volunteer for so many years.
    I'm also looking forward to travelling more - my husband will be retiring in 6 years' time and we are already daydreaming about what we will get up to. We'll have to take the opportunities before our boys (hopefully) settle down with families of their own. They have grown up to all intents and purposes without grandparents, so we'd like to be there for them when the time comes.

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    1. My folks and in laws moved (we have the only grand kids on either side) to be close when the kids were young. My kids are the better for it. My folks actually travel with us fairly regularly so don't think grand kids and travel can't go hand in hand.

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    2. Patricia (and BB) - close grandparents are awesome. Before my dad got very ill and after my mum dies, my dad was with us all the time, travelling, sunday dinners, staying over night with my kids so Barry and I could go out, the whole 9 yards. It was such a pleasure. MY mIL only lives an hour away, but we asked once if you would come and stay and she said she wasn't interested. You never ask that again, and I always felt it was more her loss (but likely also theirs!)

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    3. Hi BB - it would be fun to travel with the grandkids! WMM - we sorely missed having parents around to help with childcare, etc., would love to do that for any grandchildren that come along. What a shame your mil didn't feel like it.

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    4. Patricia - I can wait to be a grandma, but I can't wait too, if you know what I mean!

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  12. Hi Wendy-The crash of ocean waves is a big happy for me. I love being near the beach and the smell of ocean air. Of course my family and dearest friends are my greatest joys. I love watching Rocket Arm play ball-he's a natural athlete and I marvel at his talent. Our new dog, Beau is a love, though he's going nuts for a walk and I have too much to do. Travel is huge on my happiness scale, but trips are few and far between. I need to plan my fall NY trip-there is so much to see and do there - planning is part of the fun.

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    1. Yay for Rocket Arm - my dad was a HUGE baseball nut and so I grew up watching the Red Sox (where I grew up, only the team from the "Boston States" would do), though my dad was a White Sox fan, too. Luckily, we got to see them both win the world series.

      I can't believe I left out Indy the wonder dog in pictures, since I do consider him a family member!

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  13. It would be fun to have a few laying hens I think. But then I would probably have to give up my day job so I could be there every day to look after them. Maybe something for retirement.

    I love to know how things are made and how things work. It's a family trait, that's why we have so many doctors, but I'm not really interested in human beings so I took a different route. I love to sketch and will have some time for that again on vacation in early March. I do a bit of painting too but I find sketching so much easier to pick up and put down. Of course there is always time spent in the garden. I miss that during the long Canadian winters.

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    1. xoxo - I hear you - I would love a 4 season greenhouse. Big bucks around here! On the other hand, I have no clue how things are made. I still think that the telephone and internet are powered by fairies!

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  14. Wonderful and thought provoking as always. It is a good thing you enjoy writing because your posts make many hearts sing. Oh, and you have a lovely family!

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    1. HI KNityarns - they are lovely indeed, much lovelier than I am! I appreciate the lovely words!

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  15. Hi Wendy, Well, I've been sick for about two weeks with bronchitis/pneumonia, and I have to say that when you're feeling unwell, everything else sort of pales in comparison. So, I am starting to feel better, which is making my heart hum, but not quite sing yet. I think this is a great post and I'm glad (even though I know the detour in your life wasn't by choice) that it's given you time to re-evaluate so much in your life.

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    1. Kathy glad to read your finally on the mend! Hope there's time for your energy levels to pick up before your trip. Dry recirculated airplane air etc. enough of a pain as is.

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  16. WMM, thanks for making my heart sing top to toe today. (chicken little)

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    1. Ah you are so welcome! As they say, if the shoes fits..

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  17. This break is just what the doctor ordered . We're lucky that you share the transformation with us as it makes me think about things that are important to me. The house must be very organized now and this probably brings inner peace.
    My happy moments involve my family. Our Christmas trip to Mexico was the first time we had been together in a year.Both sons were studying abroad last year. One in Cambodia and the other in Japan. Our son Charlie will be finished his degree at UBC and be off to Japan in August so this summer I hope to spend time with him .

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    1. It is so interesting to how it always boils down, isn't it? Family and friend in the end. Thanks for the nice comments- I am sharing everything and I worry that it may be tedious for you all!

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  18. WMM, thanks for helping us all focus on the joys we find in our own lives. It is very easy to get caught up in all the negativity and indeed horror which occur in our world. So yes let us all take note of whom, what and where adds happiness to our days.Your blog also reminds me to be kind to myself, something I am not always good at.
    Now on to NYC! I hope you and your family have an absolutely glorious time. Since you have mentioned a possible stop at Bloomingdales for a little shopping, I wanted to mention that you can get a discount card with proof of being a visitor from out of country/state in a side room located in the fine jewelry section. Although some exclusions always apply, it is for an additional 10% or since they are running a promotion from March 1-3 it should be for 15% then. I know more temptations but there is that list of yours.......!
    Your wardrobe selections look fabulous and congratulations for getting it under control so far in advance. I am the absolute worst at packing, always shoving in something more until either the bag bursts or the car is leaving for the airport. And shoes you can really walk in = brillant. Please enjoy.

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    1. Sorry should be = brilliant. Typing also not a strong suit. Ha! I will also be in the city this weekend so if I see you out and about I will be sure to say "Hi".

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    2. oh please do say hi! I will be the one with the big smile on her face. I always smile in NYC!

      And thanks for the Bloomies tip ! i have a 20% off card at Macys, but wouldn't know to ask at Bloomis!

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Kindness is a virtue...