Wouldn’t Take Nothin’ For My Journey Now

Men Walking in the Woods

Men Walking in the Woods by MSN Clipart

I’m lying low these days and taking advantage of the cold and wintry season to soak in the writings and reflections of others. I’ve felt spent with no words of my own, like what my fellow blogger Andrea Stephenson speaks about in “Anatomy of Creation”,

“My creativity was stripped back and emptied out.  Now, I’m armed only with dreams and bones.”

Maybe, it’s a way of discovering and nurturing dreams I didn’t know I had and the making of new decisions. I like what she follows up in saying: Continue reading

It’s a Love Story . . . Discovered

I’m falling in love again with a little girl named Patsy. I’ve lost touch with her since I grew up. You may say I abandoned her, when I moved on to what was accepted and required. She grew pigtails, climbed trees and built houses in the dirt. We used to play and had a loving, imaginary friend that was always with us. (You’re right ― that’s me.)

Patsy as a baby

Patsy © Pat Ruppel

They were happy, carefree days with warm summer breezes and cloudless skies, where she played with cousins and ran barefoot in the dirt. Continue reading

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Change and My First Video

Changing Leaves in Autumn

Changing Leaves in Autumn — Image by © Royalty-Free/Corbis at MSN Clipart

‘If you realize that all things change, there is nothing you will try to hold on to. If you are not afraid of dying, there is nothing you cannot achieve.’ ~~ Lao Tzu    (taken from Leo Babauta’s “Zen Habits”)

Change happens and is natural. It’s constant starting with the ticking of time. If you’ve been on my site before, you’ll notice I made a change to the colors and picture. I’ve been in a funk lately. I felt stuck and decided to shake things up. It helps to jump-start creativity and get the brain juices flowing again.  Continue reading

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Entitlement

Microsoft Word Clipart

“I want my money…and I want it now!”  How many times have you heard that shouted on TV commercials?

I got to thinking about entitlement last weekend and how many times it shows up in our everyday lives as we make our way through the commercialism and hype.

We have to shout louder or push harder to feel heard or get noticed over the rest.

It’s like a feeding frenzy of newborn puppies or a caller on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange shouting the latest trade.  The one who pushes the hardest or loudest gets what they want.

When did it get to where more is expected and less offered?  And have we been driven so much as overachievers in a competitive, instant gratifying world that we no longer notice how the attitude of entitlement shows up in our personal lives.

Today, we have so much commercialism thrown at us it’s no wonder we feel as if we should get what we want especially with the ease of purchase and credit.  The system is set up so we can buy just about anything with entitlement as the driver byproduct of that commercialism and materialism as I see it.

But where is the value?  I think we put too much value on material things instead of values earned like a job well done, difficult problem resolved or respect gained from co-workers.

Like many, I get irritated if something doesn’t respond immediately or I can’t find what I want with all the choices I have.  I too make demands here and there.  It’s no wonder I see a reflection of that entitlement in myself, those around me and our children.

We’re doing what we need to do to function in this world and how it operates.  It’s been set up for that. Praise and prestigious promotions are expected for every little effort and our children get ‘participation’ ribbons in field-day events instead of 1st, 2nd or 3rd – robbed of the opportunity to see how they measure up and how they can improve.

Being with our grandsons last weekend I noticed the contrast between myself when I was the grandchild and today the adult. It seems harder to be a kid today – (heck) it’s hard to be an adult.

“Was it better then or now?”  In either case, the world was different and the culture that goes with it.  We, as adults, and our children have to learn how to function in the world as it is.  That’s a fact.

But when I look at our children and their expectations, demands – entitlement – I wonder if we’re expecting too much of the wrong things from our new generation given the culture and how it functions?  What are we doing to them and ourselves?

I find it hard to believe that kids would get bored more often today than they used to with all the technology, toys, video games and media available these days.  But they do.  I heard it several times last weekend, “Grandma, I’m bored!”

As usual when I reflect on a different time passed it is so different when compared to now.  When I was a little girl, I adored my grandmother and to this day I still miss her.  I remember I couldn’t stand to have her mad or disappointed in me and she didn’t treat me any more special than the others.  I could be just as big a brat as anyone else and really good at pouring on the “poor me” act.

I know and still feel that love from her and my grandfather and wonder what it takes to love like that – what is required?  They certainly didn’t give me a lot of toys or games.  They didn’t have very much money and it wasn’t the places they took me.

My sister, cousins and I were just happy to be with them – the whole summer.  That’s unheard of today – seven grandkids (7) staying with grandparents from the day school let out in June to Labor Day in September with no toys or video games.

What’s wonderful not only about children but regular adults as well is the magic and power of imagination and pretending not another big screen TV or video game.  It’s like when you made mud pies in the backyard instead of making them in a fully equipped mini-kitchen with pretend microwaves.

That was the magic with my grandmother.  She got down on the floor with us and played.  She redirected our boredom with fun and imagination and gave us a part of herself.  My grandfather likewise would hook a fish head on our line and sinker and take us crabbing in his skiff.

As an adult, I see the results of entitlement everywhere including the spiritual circles with the “law of attraction”.  Entitlement is not a bad thing – it’s just taken out of context and given more value than it’s worth along with the hype of commercialism and materialism.

We just have to see it for what it is and redirect it with the magic of imagination and creativity – then do something, have fun and go play instead of asking for another car.

Pat – from the ol’ kitchen table ~~ Put a smile on my face and leave a comment or question!

Creativity Where Are You?

Rainbow in Bailey

God I love this place where I live in the Rocky Mountains.  There is inspiration everywhere you look if you have the eyes to see and the heart to listen.

I was reconnected last night to that place in my heart I had forgotten so long ago in another place and another world.

In the past couple of weeks I’ve tried at least 4 times to write a story and it would fizzle out and nothing would come through.  I suspect you know what a challenge that is in whatever you’re creating.

I’m fairly new to writing and have discovered I work best when I write from my heart but that seemed to be in a current state of “silence”.

I suspect I needed to go through a period of purification and alchemy as my acupuncturist puts it.  I went for a treatment a week ago for inner untangling.  I was experiencing surges of energy so much so I couldn’t sleep.

One night I was up for 24 hours and wasn’t the slightest tired.  My acupuncturist said my body needed some rest so gave a treatment for the energy surges – the pendulum swung the other direction.

Oh yes, I’ve had some writing ideas: “Freedom-Family-Faith”, “When You’re Smiling”, “Commercials” or “Hang On” but couldn’t finish and push it through to materialize.  It was in the head but not really the heart.

I’m enjoying the rest and know change always takes time in the process of adjustment but it’s driving me crazy.  I want it to be right.

I didn’t realize yesterday was the anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death 35 years ago (Aug 16, 1977) and last night watched a TV Special of his Gospel music.  It brought back memories of a small Southern Baptist Church in Cape Charles, VA and I remembered as a little girl singing the song “There’s a Sweet Sweet Spirit in This Place”.

In watching the passion of the singing in that show I remembered how I felt and what Elvis may have felt.  I was again inspired and it touched my heart again the same way my heart was touched so many years ago.

Are any of you in a “silent” stage of change requiring more awareness, tuning in and patience?  I certainly have struggled with this for the past couple of weeks.  It’s not to say I’ve figured it out but would like to think I’m beginning to move again on the path.  Don’t give up – keep looking. You’ll be shown.  It’s there – sometimes closer than you think.

Maybe you would like to share some of your stories of creative challenges and how you’re working through them.  I would love to hear about it.