Have a Safe Halloween

I won't put out another blog before the 31st and I thought this might be good information...
Tuesday is Halloween.  Always a fun night, unless you’re Charlie Brown… “I got a rock.” 
Here are some interesting Halloween facts for you:

·         The word Halloween is a shortening of All Hallows’ Evening also known as Hallowe’en or All Hallows’ Eve.

·         Halloween has its origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain (pronounced “sah-win”).

·         The ancient Gaels believed that on October 31, the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead overlapped and the deceased would come back to life and cause havoc.

·         Masks and costumes were worn in an attempt to mimic the evil spirits or appease them.

·         Trick-or-treating resembles the late medieval practice of “souling,” when poor folk would go door to door on Hallowmas (November 1), receiving food in return for prayers for the dead on All Souls Day (November 2).

Of course, the times have changed since I was a child.  We used to make popcorn balls to hand out. People used to give fresh fruit.  That was until some evil person decided to put a razor blade in an apple and poison in homemade products.


Nowadays, people only give pre-packaged items and children have everything inspected before they can eat it.  Of course, a wise child will have an adult with them for on-the-spot inspections for immediate consumption, right?!


I suppose the way the world is going these days, it is best to err on the side of caution.  Halloween is the perfect opportunity for evil hearted people to do unsavory things.  Below is a safety tips chart put out by the Red Cross…

Remember, have fun with your friends, but… Stay Safe!
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Are your “seeds” producing the desired “fruit"

I have to say, I am quite pleased that I am still able to pick fresh fruit and vegetables out of our garden.  With that in mind, I got to thinking about the question, “Are your “seeds” producing the desired “fruit?”

You’ve probably heard the term, “You reap what you sow.” Let’s face it, if you plant tomato seeds you aren’t going to pick apples from those plants. BUT the type of tomatoes you grow absolutely depends on the seed, and the quality of the tomatoes depend on how you care for the seed as it grows into a plant.

Now let look at the “seed” as a project, dream, or goal you are working on.

First you had to decide what type of “seed” you wanted to grow.  Then you planted the seed to start it growing.  Some people are natural gardeners and can plant the seed, walk away and it just grows on its own.  Most of us have to work with it to get the desired results.

You’ll need to spend time working on your garden (project, dream, or goal).  It will need …

•             water and sunshine (daily tending)

•             weeding (getting rid of the unnecessary time wasters)

•             fertilizing (an extra effort every now and then)

•             pruning (cutting out the things that aren’t working, so the ones that are can grow better)

•             repotting (as you project, dream, or goal grow, it can grow bigger or be reproduced)

•             harvesting (experience the success of your project, dream, or goal)

•             enjoyment (bask in the “fruit” of your labors and share it with others)

Sometimes the plant just doesn’t produce as well as you had hoped.  That’s okay, learn from what didn’t work and start again with some new methods that could work.

Happy harvesting!

*Pam Horton is a Board Certified Advanced Christian Life Coach in the Raleigh area.*

Get Over Yourself

 What did I just say?  You heard me, but I could phrase it maybe a little nicer. We need to get over ourselves.  I could even make it very personal, I need to get over myself.  No matter how I phrase it, the fact remains.

 I was having a conversation with a friend when they made the comment… Do we let this ruin our family relationships, or do we just get over ourselves and love unconditionally?  They weren’t asking me.  It was a question the couple had asked themselves about some family drama.

 I was floored by the comment.  It was so eye-opening.  Can it be as simple as, “Get Over Yourself?”  Perhaps so!  Although, as I’ve heard, and said, before… simple doesn’t mean easy.

 Did you notice I mentioned “family drama?”  If you have never experienced family drama, consider yourself blessed.  Most of you know what I am talking about.  It could be something minor like, so & so said such & such about whatever. It could be as major as a divorce, or a death, in the family.

 No matter the cause, family drama has a way of tearing families apart.  People can say horrible things to each other in the heat of the moment, especially if they are trying to prove their superiority over the other person.

 If some of us are completely honest, we aren’t particularly close to (maybe not even fond of) some of our family members.  That doesn’t mean you let the family fall apart.  You are family.  That means something.

 A wise friend once told me, “It’s not worth ruining the relationship over.”  I have shared that tidbit of wisdom with many people in the last decade or so.

 Let’s take a quick look at why we may be experiencing family drama.  I believe it happens when one or more people…

·         Must prove their idea is the best

·         Believe they are correct in their thoughts or actions

·         Think they have the best way to do something

·         Feel self-righteous about lifestyle choices

·         Insist they know what the ill or deceased person wanted

·         Any number of other scenarios…

Do you see a pattern? 

 What might happen if, instead of the negative drama and people insisting they know best, you (me,we,they,everybody) simply “Get Over Yourself?”  If we all realized that preserving the relationship is more important than being right, more families would enjoy great relationships. 

 For those families who seem to thrive on drama, it could take some time to get everybody on the same page. 

Start by:

Remembering you are family

Forgiving past hurts

Conversing calmly

Agree to disagree

Repeat the above steps as many times as needed

 And then… Get Over Yourself!           

*Pam Horton is a certified Stress Management coach in the Raleigh area.*

Wondering leads to learning

I recently posted a PINTEREST picture/quote by Gandhi that says, "Persistent questioning and healthy inquisitiveness are the first requisite for acquiring learning of any kind."

 What types of persistent questions are we asking to gain understanding?

Typically…

·         What

·         Why

·         Who

·         When

·         Where

·         How

Your basic questions for information and problem solving, the “5 W’s” and how.

 I think all of those inquisitive questions could begin with “I wonder…”  Especially what, why, and how.  Who, when and where are probably part of a hypothesis (the inquisitive question) but the first three are the main drivers.

 Just think.  Where would the medical community be without people asking, “How can we cure (name a disease)?”  What about the environmental folks asking, “Why is this happening?”  How cool is it when the artistic community asks, “What happens when we put these elements together?”

 It’s the wonderers, the dreamers, the people that are persistently questioning, that are advancing things in this world. 

 If you know someone who fits this category, encourage them.  Many times, these people tend to be a little quirky.  They may not fit into the box that society tries to close them into.  As long as they are exhibiting healthy inquisitiveness, let them work outside of the box.  That’s where new ideas are found.

 Let’s not crush the spirit of the wonderer, they could be the next Benjamin Franklin! He invented of the stove, bifocals, and the lightning rod, among other things.  To bring it to more modern times, the wonderer may be the next Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Oprah Winfrey or Bono.

 Whether the persistent questioner is interested in math, science, technology, art, music, food, or humanitarian missions, we need those people to wonder and to enjoy the freedom to explore their healthy inquisitiveness.

 Yes, wondering leads to learning.  Hopefully, what the wonderer has learned, they will share with others.  For it is only by this method that we, the world, can truly benefit by changing for the positive and encouraging others to do the same.