Today is my birthday! It’s been a long time since I have been able to celebrate my birthday with family as opposed to them mailing me a package. I awoke this morning to a door length poster outside my door wishing me Happy Birthday, balloons covering the floor or my personal bathroom and all sorts of gifts in a goodie bag. Just like when I was a little girl! It is fun sometimes to emotionally time-travel, as long as I don’t stay there too long!

Things have been reasonably good since I have been here. I have been staining a fence for my parents and it has been a good exercise in breaking things into bite size manageable pieces. It is WAY too hot here to work on it all day, so out of necessity I have to strategize to work on it in the morning and early evening. Slowly, but surely I am making progress. And I can see the progress! It makes me think about all the things I make progress on in life that I can’t physically see, so I assume no progress is being made. Progress is always being made, even if the only progress I make in a day is to NOT do something to my or someone’s else’s detriment. Being plagued with the disease of over-achievement sometimes keeps me on a merry-go-round that I would rather not be on. But hey, I am making progress! I just have to remember to not use “making progress” as an excuse to rest on my laurels.

Speaking of progress, I have read almost two books since I have been here. The one I have finished is The Journey of Socrates, the prequel to Dan Millman‘s The Way of the Peaceful Warrior and the Sacred Journey of the Peaceful Warrior. I highly recommend all three books, but read the last two first and then read The Journey of Socrates. Dan Millman‘s style of writing is soul-provoking. He weaves a true story together with vivid story-telling to make a book that is almost impossible to put down and will without doubt leave you with some newfound discoveries about yourself. For sure a 5-star!

I have also been listening to The Alchemist on audio-tape while staining the fence. The Alchemist, by Paulo Cohelo, is a classic by anyone’s standards and has made the fence-painting (staining) into somewhat a spiritual experience. Whoever knew that you could find the sacred in such ordinary things! Interesting observation though—listening to the book on audio has made me want to go buy the book to read. It is so good that I am frequently tempted to rewind just to catch the magnitude of what was said, but I finally surrendered that strategy and am just trying to listen in the present now, because I know I can go buy it in print to supplement my understanding of the story.

Be well. Be happy. Be present.

~Lisa