Find Inspiration

“As I grow older part of my emotional survival plan must be to actively seek inspiration
instead of passively waiting for it to find me.”

~ Bebe Moore Campbell

Carl Jung thought about a benefit of being inspired that you may not have considered, "Nothing has a stronger influence psychologically on their environment and especially their children than the unlived life of the parent.”

Peace of mind

Set peace of mind as your highest goal,
and organize your life around it.
~ Brian Tracy

Thank You

Your support...
At times feels so undeserved.
Though it seems so inadequate to say,
I love you and I thank you.

Thank you

Too often we underestimate the power of touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.

~ Leo Buscaglia

photo: Linda, Jackie, Barbara and Myles
Classmates in Tucson, AZ.

The evolution of your consciousness

Boy, am I struggling right now.
My vision is blurred...

"One thing we do know: Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness. How do you know this is the experience you need? Because this is the experience you are having at this moment."

~Eckhart Tolle

Quotes by Martin Luther King, Jr.

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."

"We must concentrate not merely on the negative expulsion of war but the postive affirmation of peace."

"We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence of the good people."

"Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality."

"Whatever your life's work is, do it well. A man should do his job so well that the living, the dead, and the unborn could do it no better."

~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

Smile

"Your face is the canvas for your message to others.
Paint it with a smile."
~ Anonymous

Hope Whispers

"When the world says, "Give up,

"Hope whispers, 'Try it one more time.' "

~ Unknown

Integrity

Have the courage to say no.
Have the courage to face the truth.
Do the right thing because it is right.
These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity.
~ W. Clement Stone

Photo: Aruban beach through our window
June, 2008

Courage

Courage doesn't always roar.
Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying,
"I will try again tomorrow.”

~ Mary Anne Radmacher

Photo: Jackie and Stuart
Grand Canyon, 2007

Check out this little tyke!

This should make you smile!

Our Deepest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us....
And as we let our own light shine,
We unconsciously give other people
Permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.

~ Marianne Williamson

New Beginnings

There will come a time when you believe everything is finished.
That will be the beginning.
~Louis L'Amour
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Photos
Upper: Jackie, Susan and Beth at the Terrapin for dinner
Lower left: New office building in Williamsburg, VA
Lower Right: New artwork found in office building

Bailey Rose of Arbury

Today we remember Bailey very fondly and mourn her passing one year ago. Certainly, she is happy prancing through meadows and wading in ponds of the fields beyond. Miss you, girl.

Photo: Bailey Rose 1997

Happy Birthday, Shayne!!

Happy Birthday, Shayne!! Can't believe you are 20!!! Sometimes you seem like 40, sometimes you seem like 12. You are a pleasure and a joy and we can't wait to see what the next 20 years have in store for you. We love you very much, Mom and Dad

Together Again

What a wonderful day and beginning of a tremendous year. After five long months of separation here we are together again sharing crabcakes at the Raven, strolling the Boardwalk of Virginia Beach, and visiting the Heritage Center. I wish you all the sense of tranquility I feel today.

Peace and Love,
Jackie


Photos
above: Virginia Beach Fishing Pier
right: Stuart eating his half of a very large order of crabcakes - YUM!

Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

SUMMARY OF THE SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE by Stephen Covey

Habit 1: Be Proactive

Change starts from within, and highly effective people make the decision to improve their lives through the things that they can influence rather than by simply reacting to external forces.

Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind

Develop a principle-centered personal mission statement. Extend the mission statement into long-term goals based on personal principles.

Habit 3: Put First Things First

Spend time doing what fits into your personal mission, observing the proper balance between production and building production capacity. Identify the key roles that you take on in life, and make time for each of them.

Habit 4: Think Win/Win

Seek agreements and relationships that are mutually beneficial. In cases where a "win/win" deal cannot be achieved, accept the fact that agreeing to make "no deal" may be the best alternative. In developing an organizational culture, be sure to reward win/win behavior among employees and avoid inadvertantly rewarding win/lose behavior.

Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood

First seek to understand the other person, and only then try to be understood. Stephen Covey presents this habit as the most important principle of interpersonal relations. Effective listening is not simply echoing what the other person has said through the lens of one's own experience. Rather, it is putting oneself in the perspective of the other person, listening empathically for both feeling and meaning.

Habit 6: Synergize

Through trustful communication, find ways to leverage individual differences to create a whole that is greater than the sum of the parts. Through mutual trust and understanding, one often can solve conflicts and find a better solution than would have been obtained through either person's own solution.

Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

Take time out from production to build production capacity through personal renewal of the physical, mental, social/emotional, and spiritual dimensions. Maintain a balance among these dimensions.

Photo: Claude Monet's Studio where he held workshops in Impressionistic Painting for American artists.

Garden of Hotel Baudy, Giverny, France