A Creator-based® Life

  We all struggle with a desire to be more than we are.   We see the images in the media and on billboards and unconsciously compare ourselves, inevitably coming up short.   Then we worry- am I good enough? How could I be better?  Why is it so easy for others but not for me? I’m here with good news.   You are not alone.   We all struggle.   Seriously, even the perfect Mom down the street struggles, and the rich gal on the hill who has everything.   We all struggle.   It’s a concept called Common Humanity. There are basic commonalities we all share as human beings.   We all need food, air, sunshine, water, and love.  (We have been referred to as complicated house plants)  We all feel sad, angry, happy, and rejected at times.   But somehow, that common humanity idea doesn’t stick  when our inner insecurities surface. That’s where a little pep talk helps.   You can comfort and help yourself by choosing some helpful thoughts. One of my favorite thoughts is: I’m not perfect, and I don’t hav

  Creator-based Complete   When I was little, there was a phrase going around.    'Please be patient with me.  God isn’t finished with me yet.' It didn’t make sense to me as a child because, as a child,  I knew everything grew and changed. As the years passed into adolescence (and body image became a thing), through young adulthood (and careers became a thing) into adulthood, where our image is important to society, somehow I created the belief that I needed to be completely perfect now. Enter the belief, “I am not good enough.” Oh, goodness, that is a poisonous belief!  It is victimizing, shame-producing, and incapacitating.  Not a created belief to keep. The question is, what do we do to release and change that ubiquitous belief?  Sister, if you asked 100 people on the street if they had felt not good enough, 99 of them would say yes.  It is common to us all. That’s the first step.  Remember that everyone feels this way from time to time.  Some even feel this wa

  Spring has sprung! With the pandemic decline, things are more open, and we are beginning to resume normal operations.  Life is looking a little more “normal.” Have you noticed that life is picking up the pace with these new opportunities?  More social engagements, more school and community activities, yard work, and outdoor stuff.  Everyone is telling me to “pick up the pace” lately! The closer we get to summertime, the busier things get. Have you noticed the cadence of your life speeding up as well? How’s that working for you? We each have an optimum cadence.  It is the life pace at which we feel mildly challenged but still have time to relax and enjoy a deeply satisfying quality of life.  As an introvert, I may have a different pace than my younger extroverted friends.  As a child, my pace was completely different than it is now.  Cadence changes over time and with current circumstances. Health challenges like illness or injury modify our cadence.  Life events like a marri

In the old movies, do you remember when stiff, proper old moms and grandmas would forever say,       "Sit up straight? Don't slouch!"?  This drawing was created by my granddaughter Kinsington.  Beautiful posture there, eh? Have you ever felt like you were slouching? That protective move when your shoulders roll forward and collapse, narrowing your chest and leaning forward?   Well, this morning, I was told, "Stand up straight, don't slouch. You're better than that." It gave me pause for reflection. Am I better than that?  What happens to your attitude when you slouch? Do you feel 'less-than'? Small? Sometimes when we slouch, we can feel like we collapse inward and want to give up.   We had a season of grief last year, and for the first time in my life, I felt a weight on my shoulders that made it hard to stand up straight. It was an odd phenomenon.  Making a concerted effort, I could do it, but my sadness and sorrow were like a weight, and my sho