It's a Classical Life

  Our perspective, or how we choose to look at things, is absolutely something that we have control over. Some may argue that our bad outlook on life isn't our fault, it's due to past trauma or a wrong that was never made right, but I truly believe that how we choose to look at life is entirely up to us. It might take a while to train our thoughts, but if we always choose to rejoice because thorn bushes have roses , then we are choosing hope and we are choosing optimism.  This lovely quote was taken from the rose gardens of the Botanic Gardens that I visited recently. It was painted on the ceiling of a gorgeous pagoda in the middle of the roses, with other wise rose-inspired quotes. This one, however, was a reminder to me (and I thought you might like it too) that as we are approaching a new year, how we see things matters. How I choose to look at my life, obstacles, challenges and all, are all a matter of perspective. I can complain that my roses have thor...

  Today as I went for a walk in the area behind my house, my mind turned to summer and the summer holidays that are now upon us here in Australia. For us, it is usually a time of rest and recuperation. We rarely go on long adventurous jaunts or journeys. It is time to rejuvenate self and soul before the new year - and the new school year - begins. As a teacher, that time was cherished, though always in the back of my mind was the thought that I would have to start planning for the new school year. I never really switched off completely. As I walked today I thought  more specifically about the last few summers we have had. In 2019 we went into the summer holidays with the worst heat waves and bushfires that many of us can remember. Every night that December and January I would wake up and look at the skies, trying to gauge if the flames were any closer, if the smoke was any thicker. I never truly slept or rested, always fretful that the flames would reach us, always a...

  It's the week before Christmas and, as always at this time of year, the thought of buying and giving is foremost in everyone's mind. But the generosity of the season is often overlooked by the need to shop for more and more, often spending money we don't have to give gifts that maybe aren't even wanted. It's a good time to stop and think about how best we could put our generosity to use. All year I have been participating in the Cheapskates Savings Revolution (you can also sign up for this for 2023 here ), and this week Cath included this little story: One day a wealthy woman was talking with her financial advisor. "I have a ridiculous relationship with money" she said. "I can't stop it from coming to me. Do you know why?" "I have no idea" the financial advisor said. "It's because I'm always giving it away. You have to give to receive. It's the law of circulation" the wealthy woman replied. The moral of the s...

When I was young I enjoyed reading Stephen King novels. Now, not so much, but I can still respect his talent as a master story teller. This week I chose this quote because as we approach Christmas, there is indeed magic in the air. Magic in books, magic in stories, magic in history, magic in faith. Whichever way you choose to look at it, it really is the most magical time of the year!  Books have always had the ability to be portable, but with technology at our fingertips, we can carry stories with us without having to carry the actual book. The stories are indeed magical, but to me, and perhaps to you, there is still something special about a real, hold-it-in-your-hand book. Our favourites with the jam stains on them, or the ones that we treasure so much but are falling apart at the spine, or the ones that are brand new to us, waiting to share their magic. I hope as you consider Christmas gifts this year that there are a few books on your wish list. Each year in my family the...

Originally, I was going to name this post Can We Live More Simply? I was recently reading an article on Nicole Lutze's blog about living simply enough. She reminds us that living simply is unique to all of us. She also adds, that simple living is about spending more time within our homes, and less time working for money. I believe there are many books that we can turn to that have a focus on the home to inspire us to live simply and to live well, but when I thought about it, really thought about, one book came to mind: Louisa May Alcott's Little Women . And what better time to remind ourselves of simplicity than the holiday season when things tend to get blown out, we become overwhelmed and we all wistfully remember that dream of living more simply! If you're interested, you can also read last year's post on Lessons to Remember These Holidays from Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol ". Tip #1 Ditch the plastics - eat like the Marches and grow some of y...