a-musing-lee twin reflections

I absolutely love this time of year, it has always been one of my favorites. Some see Christmas as rushing and shopping, crowds and wrapping, baking and decorating and all the stress it brings. But before you know it, that wonderful day of excitement and anticipation and joy is upon us and when it is, how can one not feel the true spirit of the season.  I hope we see it as a time for setting aside the stress and worries and a time for refocusing on what is most important. Hope, Family, Love. Now, I for one have always loved seeing the smiles on my children's faces as they open gifts, laughing and smiling with them and family, when Christmas day arrives.  While this Christmas Eve and Christmas morning will be a little different, as I'm finally "home" close to family and will be spending it alone, I still see it as a season that shines bright. And I am thankful that I will still have the opportunity to share the holidays with family and ...

I was not prepared to write anything tonight, especially as I did a mental review of the past week and these last few days and all that needs to be accomplished in the upcoming week. As these days have been filled with stress, heavy emotion, deadlines and piles of paperwork and multiple lists.   All leading to not enough sleep, not enough to eat and a headache that has stretched on for days regardless of extra strength Tylenol, ibuprofen, and prescription pain relievers. I’ve spent time worrying about things that are troubling me instead of enjoying the small pieces of time in between. My mood has certainly been more somber due to my sense that things in the world feel heavy, uncertain, insecure, and out of control. However, as I type and think about those moments in between, I find myself this evening feeling content, even happy and hopeful. I’m still exhausted after a long week and I still have a lingering headache, but I have a smile on my face and more importantly in m...

Originally, I had other thoughts when I thought about the small pieces of silver and copper we hold in our hands through out the day, but given current events, my thoughts went here. We all have those days where we feel as if we're at our wits end, we're beaten down, struggling with what move to make, feeling lost in the crowd and we just want to give up or fade into the background.  On the flip side of the coin we have those days when everything goes right, our energy can't be defied, nothing can bring us down, we're at our best. We are the coin and most days, we're spinning, waiting for the coin to fall....will it be heads or tails, the one extreme or the other. Up or down, good or bad, but we know eventually the spinning stops and until we get picked up and start the twirl all over again, it's one or the other. Now if it lands face down, where we feel like we're buried deep within the mountain of our challenges and issues, there are motivational sto...

Over the years of my life, I can't recall how many times I've been asked what is it like being a twin? I'm never quite sure how to answer that question. When I was younger, I sort of shrugged my shoulders and said fine, I guess. It wasn't until I was much older when I really gave it some thought and my answer changed. Now it's simply addressed with a statement that I don't know what it's like not being a twin, so I don't have anything to compare it against. Of course, I have friends who give me more sarcastic answers that I should provide when asked that question, but I'm not quite the blunt, confrontation, smart-ass they'd like me to be and couldn't pull it off if I tried. However, I did come to the realization that sometimes it feels like identity theft. I haven't really done a lot of research myself on twins, but it does seem that most "sets", while similar, are opposites as well.  Your mirror and your opposite, seen as som...

You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young as your hope, as old as your despair.  ~Douglas MacArthur There are always times in life when you wonder or feel as if you're stuck in Winter or enjoying Spring, have the energy and light of Summer or feeling the Autumn within. Inevitably, there are various stages in life when we feel everything from the innocence of youth to the weight and burden of responsibility and everything in between. It no longer matters your age, we can feel those deep ranges of emotions at any age, over a short period of time, or over the years of life. At this point in my life I find myself relying on uplifting and inspiring quotes, positive messages or self help books to renew and build my self confidence as I find myself not minding my years, but how others may view them. Of course, I can re-read Mark Twain's quote to remind myself it's only a state of mind. Age is ...

We all have had times in our lives where all we wanted to do was crawl under a rock and hide away from the world or be invisible, so that no one can notice that we exist. This has been my inner world the last few days. I know that this particular desire typically happens when we are feeling hurt or angry or simply weary of the world. For myself, I sometimes revert to an excuse of being shy or more of an introvert, but I know that it's me hiding and usually...I'm only hiding from myself. I don't think anyone is meant to hide; everyone of us radiates a unique brilliance that is meant to illuminate and be shared.  Sometime, if you're like me, we question the brilliance of our light but we need to let our light shine regardless of our perception of the brilliance because we are the ones dimming our own light, diminishing the natural radiance and depriving the people around us of the unique gifts we are here to share. Stepping out, sharing our light,...

My father, knowingly or unknowingly gave me the gift of awe and wonder as it relates to the sky and all the magic that she holds. The sun, the moon and especially the stars by far capture my attention before the elements such as the rain and wind and clouds.  I remember laying on the grass with my sisters or friends and even attempting it with my children.....playing the game of what you see in the shape of the clouds. I will reluctantly admit that I never could get completely immersed and engaged or maybe my imagination just couldn't muster up the shapes and tales and stories the clouds had to offer. However, the sun, moon and stars speak loudly and have much to say and have reached my imagination and my heart. My fondest memories as a child are spending the evenings with my father and his telescope and attempting to learn about all the constellations and the stories that went with them and even the physics lessons he shared were intriguing when it came to the nig...