Tag: New Zealand

Friday’s Majesty

Credit: Gregorio Catarino, Twitter Photographer of Queen Elizabeth, age 10, in July of 1936 was Lisa Sheridan

RIP – Queen Elizabeth II

“I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.”

When we judge people, we often forget that we all started out the same, as innocent little children, new to this world and to this living experience. No matter what anyone thinks of the British royals, or of the monarchy, no one can deny Queen Elizabeth’s unwavering commitment to her duties, carried out with a deliberate dignified stoicism, from childhood on. It is difficult not to respect people who are wholly devoted to something bigger than themselves, for their entire lives. It is only when these people pass on, that their constancy and loyalty is fully and truly appreciated.

Happy Friday, friends!! On Fridays, I discuss favorites. Life is an experience and there are so many wonderful things to experience in a lifetime. My favorite for today is Karen Nimmo who is a clinical psychologist and writer from New Zealand. She has so many practical, no-nonsense self-help tips in her articles, her 4-minute therapy sessions on Facebook, and in her books. I always glean helpful wisdom whenever I take the time to read one of her articles or to watch one of her short videos (plus I delight in listening to her wonderful Kiwi accent). Her blog on medium can be found here: https://medium.com/on-the-couch And her Facebook videos can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/KarenNimmoPsychology (I see that she has already posted a video about grieving people whom you don’t even know, such as for Queen Elizabeth)

Have a wonderful, restoring weekend, friends!!!

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

Kia Ora

Wow. I always want to start out of the New Year starting gate, raring to go, but I think that I am a slow starter. No, I know that I am a slow starter. The tortoise wins the race, though, right? In New Zealand, today is officially celebrated as the New Year’s Day holiday. Today, I am a New Zealander.

Thank you for my New Year’s wishes from some of my regular readers (and friends). We had a lovely time with our college friends. How can you not have a great time with people who have decided to remain friends with you for 30+ years? That needs to be cherished and rewarded. And luckily, all of us girls married nice, solid guys (the good ones whom we decided to hold on to 😉 ) and we are all blessed with wonderful, kind, pleasant children. It was a fantastic way to end one year out and bring in the new one.

I was scrolling through Twitter this morning and this post caught my eye. It was a re-tweet from a twitter account called Jessica Dore (I do not know anything about her, but I find this post very thought-provoking.) Let’s all be heroes and really, really start living even more full and authentic and brave lives this year, and throughout the decade ahead! As the New Zealanders apparently say, KIA ORA in 2020! (Maori for “be well”) Here’s the post:

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The Earth Has Stopped

Yesterday, I read this quote in my meditation:

“It was one of those days so clear, so silent, so still, you almost feel the earth itself has stopped in astonishment of its own beauty.” – Katherine Mansfield

I think that is one of the most poignant, beautiful lines I have ever read.  I had never heard of the author, so thanks to the wonders of the internet I was able to find out everything I could possibly want to know about Katherine Mansfield.  She was a short story writer, from New Zealand. She was friends with D.H. Lawrence and Virginia Woolf.  She passed on in 1923 due to tuberculosis at the young age of 34.

I think that quotes like the one above are why I love the written word.  When someone can help encapsulate what I am experiencing, thinking, feeling in one short statement, I think that it is nothing short of a miracle.  I think this is also why I love nature.  The author passed in 1923, but yesterday when I was walking a trail in a nature preserve with my husband and my dogs, I experienced exactly what she wrote.  The awe that I felt for the still nature around me almost took my breath away.  Nature is not timeless, but for our lifespans, it might as well be.

I don’t really have anything else to say about this.  Katherine Mansfield’s statement says it all and I am in awe of that.  And I look forward to experiencing that “earth has stopped” moment again and again for the rest of my life.