You Rock

I am writing again!  Will you be as excited as me to see another post? I hope so!  I have recently moved back into my house after an extensive remodel.  I have my own room now and I love it!  I have been strongly encouraged to type another blog, so here I am.  I can say that change isn’t a walk in the park, which I do love by the way.  It requires patience and trust and faith that all will work out.  I frequently rely on others, so to trust that things always work out the way I want, is a stretch to say the least.  I recently was at my therapist, Margaret’s office, and she had the most beautifully painted rock sitting on a table next to me.  I, of course, had to hold it.

Rocks are so fascinating to me, they are full of life yet don’t say a word.  Only time knows its story.  I would love to be able to hold a rock and visually see its life reeling before my eyes.  Not all of us speak our story.  We are like rocks in a sense.  You need to hold people close to you to feel who they are. I would love to be held the way I cherish a rock.  I prefer the smooth dark rocks as they feel warm and gentle.  Every rock is unique in its shape, color, composition, and nature.  Will we find that our preferences in rocks are reflective of the people we love or the people we are?  I think you may find you admire the beautiful diamonds and rubies for their reflective properties.  But for comfort,  you would choose the smooth honed stone that is shaped by nature.

In the Japanese culture,  they revere purposeful shapes of rocks from nature as fine works of art.  How interesting I would find this curation process, as I love rocks of nature’s artistry immensely.  I am curious, if we were rocks what would we look like?   I think rocks are gifts to remind us of who we are and where we come from.  We may find that pressure has made us diamonds and each one of our struggles have shaped us into a unique piece of art that is admired by others.  Each time we look in the mirror, let’s admire the edges and our shape and celebrate our beauty and uniqueness with a smile and not judgement.

Until next time, keep experiencing life as a rock would, with patience and the inspiration of the world around you.

Your friend and avid rock collector,

Isaac

FINDING JOSIE

      I hope everyone finds their Josie.  I am so grateful each week I get to see her and ride her.  She is so considerate, gentle, forgiving, and caring.  Some may think it impossible for a horse to be all these things, but she is.  She is beautiful in form and strength.  I am in love with this girl.  She is supportive and patient.  I am talking about my horse,  Josie.  She isn’t really mine but she makes me feel that way .  I am hoping she will always enjoy me as much as I do her.  Why do I love horses so much?  Horses are better than pills in a bottle to calm your heart and soul.   Trying to push myself to be more independent I am.  She motivates me because I see what my life might be like if I was able to care for a horse of my own.  Horses are  motivation in a world of false hope.   They never disappoint.  Prancing high above our fears and worries they carry us thru our pain to a place of being.  Happiness emerges when we feel safe and laughter and joy abound.

Josie wasn’t trained to help people like me but she chose to accept her role in being a gateway to independence.  Will she know how important she has been to me?  I’m sure she understands I love her, but how much, how could she?  It doesn’t effect a moment of her riding to wait for praise or credit.  It is just what she has chosen do.  That is true giving.  I hope we all find a Josie in our life, whether equine, feline, canine, or human.  Perhaps we can be a Josie to someone as well.

A horseman,

Isaac

 

*Special thanks to Sherry at Hoofprints in Orange Park Acres for her amazing equine program.

GIVING

Volunteering brings me joy!

Everyday I ponder what I can do to be a happier person.  While I am well aware of the Bible principle that “there is more happiness in giving than receiving”(Acts 15:28), I still am intrigued by how this works.  Of course there is a level of joy to see someone elated to receive your gift.  Yet the same joy is felt by the giver and the receiver even if the giver is anonymous.

Why does this alway work when the majority  of people are focused on getting, not giving.  Well just as sure as my book hits the floor as I drop it, governed by the law of gravity, the law of giving is just as predictable.    Each day we must capture a picture of what our day would look if it were a great day.  I am often surprised at the end of the day I have closely matched my picture of a good day.  Everyone’s interpretation of a good day is different.  I think you just give it your best and believe it is good enough for today.     Will we dream of being joyful? If so, then giving and generosity will always be present.  For dreams to experience themselves we have to have faith in ourselves and want to become something a little different with each breath and thought.  We continue to evolve into a greater being each moment we live life this way.  I think it boils down to either living for yourself or living to give.

I must admit I have much to learn and own when it comes to this principle.  But awareness is the first step.  Wanting to acknowledge our weaknesses and concentrating on better willingness to change is a step in the right direction.  A good friend once encouraged me to start seeing each day as one step on a journey of a thousand steps.  He encouraged me to ask myself daily, “Am I taking a step forward”,  and not focus on how many more steps are between me and my destination.     I am still very much stepping one day at a time.  Everyday I feel I am getting faster and more efficient in my steps.  Before you know it I will be running, so the steps then are nothing to accomplish.  We are so encouraged with progress and we neglect to recognize it unless it is major.  Let’s all encourage ourselves and others by acknowledging we took our steps forward today.  Life is a journey let’s enjoy all we see and experience along the way.

 

Sincerely,

Isaac

Allegiance

 

As we move on to different stages in our growth, maturity and possibilities, we at some point have to decide who we want to be and what we stand for.  There is much controversy today over our rights and what or who we pledge our allegiance to. So much so that we understand what we say and do reflects our deepest allegiance. Everyone expresses this in some form or another whether consciously or subconsciously.  Work, money, power, greed, notoriety, or government, all claim a place for our allegiance. What have you claimed by your actions and life to be yours?

Not everything is worth our allegiance.  I must confess the only thing truly worthy of such action is the Creator of all things.  Other than our God Almighty, what must we pledge our lives and very existence to?  Just recently I was honored to express my dedication to live my life in support of the highest power and one who governs with love, justice, power, and wisdom.  I have wanted to do this for several years.  When you are not talking you tend to listen keenly and observe much. To my special circumstances I am grateful to be able to make my own decision.  If you are not sure who you give allegiance to,  just think of what you spend the most time and energy on and what you think about all the time.  I am often thinking about the future when I will not have the struggles I have today.  I try my best everyday to reach attainable goals and leave the rest to faith in a better world ahead thru the rule of God’s kingdom.  Doesn’t require tests or pills,  just loyalty and faith. Doing is equal to reality in our belief.  What do I mean?  Our lives reflect what is important to us.  So we may claim something is important but what are we doing?

I don’t know anything more trustworthy than to ally with the Creator of all things.  No one is more deserving nor more powerful than the designer and the former of all things that exist (Rev. 4:11).  My outward expression of full allegiance is my decision and based on much study and thought.  Not so easy for someone like me to do, but I did it,  and I am happy and grateful and feel I have purpose.

Jehovah God, our Creator and Almighty being,  has the ability to see our potential despite our limitations.  He is the “God of all comfort” (2 Cor. 1:3,4), and who doesn’t need comforted?    All of you who encouraged me and came to support me whether physically, virtually, or in spirit, I thank you.

You have helped me reach an important milestone in my life.  It is just the beginning…

Kindly,

Isaac

To learn more about comfort click here.

HOW TO MAKE REAL FRIENDS

Many friends of mine are well aware of Oklahoma people and their way of friendship.  I love the way people from that part of the country make you feel.  Knowing quick friendships are near impossible for me, I am researching ways to make real friends.  An article I recently read suggested to make a list of three qualities that you  would value in a friend.  Here are my three:

1.  Fun and funny.  I love a good sense of humor.
2.  Patient.  They will need a lot of patience when communicating with me.
3.  Love the outdoors.  I feel so calm and myself while in nature.

The article then asked you to list what three qualities YOU bring to the friendship. I find this part most challenging.  I am humbled to think of how little I am offering in the way of friendship.  I will still try:

1.  I can be funny or so I am told.
2. I am knowledgble of many languages and book knowledge.  I can be handy when playing trivia games.
3. Kind.  I am kind in my words and with my affections.

I can see these things I bring to the table are frequently interests of my own.  I see now that what I want, must be similar to what I am offering in return.   I am working to make my list more substantial.

My mom once had my Dad and I write down three things we wanted from each other and were not getting.  Then after we had compiled our list, she proceeded to instruct us to give those very things we wrote to the other person.  You can imagine my surprise when I then had to find honor, respect, and patience on my list of things to express to my Dad.  It did seem to help with our view of one another considering our list were almost identical.

I am humbled when I reflect on the friends I have on this blog.  I expected so much less and I am grateful.  Friendships are much like your favorite foods.  You love them,  knowing they will always satisfy you and always look forward to seeing them appear again. But variety is always a pleasure.  I once was on an eight day rotation diet and although I missed some of my favorite foods, it forced me to try others, which I surprisingly found satisfying and healthy.  Maybe we should all try a rotation friendship diet.  See how many new different friends we can make and see if we do not enjoy this variety of personalities.  It may make us appreciate our “pasta and pesto” friends a little more while we get to try a little borscht.

Link “How To Make Real Friends”

Love,

Isaac