I Love Learning – Thank You, Dad!

I Love Learning – Thank You, Dad!

by | Jun 22, 2015 | Uncategorized


Both Mom and Dad taught me life lessons and I realized only recently that one from my dad was to love learning. It’s probably what lead me to believe I could start a new career (my own business at that!) as I approached an age when many have long ago figured out what they wanted to be when they grew up!

Aren’t our paths determined by now?

Aren’t we setting our sights on the prize of retirement and winding down and not on starting and gearing up?

Lessons from my dad offer a resounding “No!”

From the time I was young, I always loved learning. As the oldest of three girls, I was the automatic teacher every time we set up “school” in our kitchen and my sisters were the dutiful students. We used a small blackboard and scrap paper and that’s what we called fun (or at least I did!)

Some of my earliest memories are of my dad bringing us to the library on a Saturday morning and allowing us to wander in the children’s section, pulling books, skimming, and reading and creating a stack almost too big to carry to the checkout desk. Walking and whispering between trips to the water fountain, I’d notice the book covers that looked brand new and the worn ones of those that must be good. I remember the excitement as my reading level (and book options) progressed through the colors of the rainbow. You could pinch me when I was old enough to look through the card catalog and find what I needed for school projects. I wonder if you know, Dad, how much fun you provided with our free 3-block drive excursion to the Deer Park Library. I’ll call you today and tell you!

I also remember my dad sitting on the edge of my sister’s bed in our shared room drawing the solar system on the inside of a shirt box. We were riveted to learn what came next. I imagine this was prompted by a question, perhaps a passing inquiry that lead to several nights of drawing and showing as planets joined the solar system and we waited in anticipation for the next tidbit of knowledge. From your perch at the end of the bed, you taught us we could learn from any question, using any materials and that sharing knowledge is a gift often started at home.

Thank you, Dad, today and every day for instilling the value of learning and growing by inviting me into the world of inquisitive thought and expansion. It is one of your greatest gifts and for that I am grateful. For you, I am grateful!

Self-Care Thermometer: How Are Your Houseplants?

Self-Care Thermometer: How Are Your Houseplants?

by | Jun 2, 2015 | Uncategorized


Ok, so I keep writing about self-care. Must mean I’ve got some work to do there. Big surprise. When you’re growing a business and still working another job and raising a family, self-care kind of slinks to the bottom of the priority list. Even when we know that to do all those other things well, it really needs to remain at the top, much like that pinned post at the top of our social media pages.

Now, how do houseplants figure in? Well, I realized that mine are looking crappy. Not the bamboo one here. Miraculously, that one seems to be thriving. I couldn’t bring myself to photograph the other, sad looking plants I have in my house. They didn’t start out sad looking. They started out vibrant and healthy. Then they came to live with me.

I got thinking that I used to feel I had a green thumb but in recent years I’ve managed to torture through neglect even the plants touting “easy-to-grow” and the kind of plants that “anybody can keep alive.” Well, apparently, I’m not “anybody.”

Who I am is a person who plans to have time, effort and attention for the plants that have fallen under my care. Then life gets in the way. So, good intentions of watering and feeding on a schedule, figuring out the proper sunlight and repotting as needed, all very soon take a back seat. Funny, these same good intentions can apply to us: staying hydrated and eating healthy food, getting outdoors and giving ourselves the room we need to grow. Perhaps when I master or at least become a little more than a novice at these, we’ll see some healthy new shoots in the rest of my plants.

Though my work consists primarily of writing and editing, nurturing and supporting others is something I also feel called to do. As I develop some programs around writing and editing, there will be a component that promotes self-care. I’m planning some writing retreats with introspective work, self-care practices and plenty of room to write and grow. After all, we teach what we need to learn, right?

Tweet: Maybe our self-care is only as healthy as our houseplants.

So, how are your houseplants looking these days?

If you’d like some help growing your business with a communication strategy of clearmessaging and writing, contact me for a complimentary clarity call here so we can help you and your business practice more self-care!