It Isn't Over Yet!

Sunday I decided that it was finally time to see the movie The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.  To say that I enjoyed it would be and understatement!  It is a marvelous movie about the lives and choices of a bunch of individuals.  They are not OLD people in spite of all the trailers that would lead you to believe that is the case. 

In fact, one of the central characters in the movie is a very young hotel manager and his very young girlfriend.  Everyone in this picture seems to learn something about himself/herself as the story progresses. 

In the beginning of the movie you are very briefly introduced to six senior adults, all coming from different backgrounds and circumstances.  Each one of them brings to the movie a set of choices.  It is fascinating to watch as they are transported to a culture which is so very foreign from anything they have ever experienced.  There is a Civil Service retiree and his wife of forty years.  There is a Judge.  There is a newly widowed woman who has never struck out on her own in her entire life.  There is a lady who is English and going to India to get a hip replacement after finding out her wait in England would have been six months.  Then there is the little guy who is the hotel manager/owner who is trying to build something beautiful and exotic and wonderful in memory of his father. 

Each of the characters has a different way of handling their new set of circumstances.  To say the least the Most Exotic is not exactly what ANY of them expected. Upon arrival they immediately have to make a decision of whether to stay or go.  For some of them the decision is easier than others. 

This movie will make you, no matter what age you are, examine your direction and priorities in life.  I felt saddened that about 90% of the people watching the movie on Sunday were over 50.  This is NOT JUST A MOVIE FOR SENIORS!  This movie has valuable life lessons for each and every person out there.  One of my favorite lines of the movie was "Everything will be alright in the end, and if it isn't alright, it isn't the end yet!"  What a marvelous way to think! 

This is a movie about learning to take risks and step out and make the best of the situation you are in, no matter what.  It is a movie which states you are NEVER too old to learn something new or to take a risk.  Without taking a few risks, you will miss ever so many wonderful experiences in life!

I used to sail in the Bahamas with a friend of mine for 2 to 6 weeks at a time.  It was just the two of us out there on a 37 foot catamaran in that great big Caribbean.  Oh, there were times we were nervous or scared, but I wouldn't trade those marvelous, exhilarating experiences for anything.  There were risks for sure, storms for one...pirates for another!  But that time soaking up the sun, sailing on the winds and dodging storms are priceless memories. 

I have a new friend in China who I talk with every day now on SKYPE.  China...huge, mysterious and entirely foreign to anything I have ever known.  The desire at the top of my "bucket list" now is a trip to China.  I am not afraid to go alone.  I am not afraid to experience a completely different culture and learn from it.  How about you?  Have you worked on a bucket list?  Do you have things you would like to do during this short span of your lifetime?  Plan for it.  Dream about it.  Make it happen!

I recommend The New Exotic Marigold Hotel to anyone who wants to see great acting, colorful and exotic backgrounds, culture different from their own.  Heck, it's a great movie, just go for it!  I promise you will not regret it!

God Bless - Peace, Love and Joy

Be An Encourager

This is a "self portrait" of Chuck Close, a famous American painter.  His story is remarkable on so  many levels, and as I listened to him talk about his life this morning on television, I was again really touched because of his will to succeed in spite of so many telling him he could not, and pointing out his shortcomings instead of his abilities.

Each and every one of us needs an "encourager" in our lives.  So many times negative parents, teachers and friends (if you can call a "basement person" a friend) say "oh, you can't do that you are not smart enough, you are not tall enough, you are not talented enough....it is out of your reach."

Believe me people, NOTHING is out of you reach if you strive and believe in yourself.  I will be your encourager right now and tell you that YOU can achieve your dreams.  Chuck Close was an awkward, clumsy child who could not succeed in sports and athletics, which made life even more difficult, because he was also dyslexic and had been told he would never be able to make it in college.  People called him lazy and stupid.  Then, his father (his one and only encourager) died when he was only eleven years old.  But, in spite of that and his Mother's cancer illness and other adversities, this man gritted his teeth and sought refuge in his art and succeeded beyond even his wildest dreams.

I was not fortunate enough to have parents who were encouragers in my life.  In fact, quite the contrary.  Every time I tried something I was told I was not smart enough, not tall enough, too clumsy, too lazy...well, you know the drill.  But, for some reason I did not believe the negative naysayers in my life.  I was a strong willed person who thought "well, YOU may think I can't do it, but I will prove to you that I can!"  As a result I have had a very adventurous and fulfilling life.  Oh, I am not saying I didn't have my share of difficulties and problems, but by forging ahead, and meeting some great encouragers along the way, I have accomplished so much more than my parents ever gave me credit for. At one particularly difficult time in my life, a wonderful Counselor told me to make a list of all the things I "could" do and all the things I "couldn't."  As it turned out, the list of could items was much longer than the things that I couldn't.  It was an "AHAH!" moment for me.  The light bulb finally came on and I realized that I could probably do most anything that I chose to do if I was willing to apply myself fully to it.  My world only had to be as small as I chose it to be.  I didn't have to let the limitations set by others define my life. 

My stubborn personality helped me succeed, but the very sad thing is that so many children who have the ability to succeed are squashed by parents and teachers who rain on their parade.  So many talented children who might dare to be a little different, are often discouraged and told to choose another path.
As a parent, grandparent, teacher and even just as a person of the world, you have a responsibility to lift up others and encourage them to reach for the stars.  I believe when we step on the dreams of another, we are hurting society as a whole.  Some of the most brilliant persons who ever lived were virtual "outcasts" and "misfits" as children.  They were the "square pegs" that everyone kept trying to push into the round hole.

Unfortunately, my parents are gone now, and I have to tell you that I never did hear those encouraging words from them.  But, God did put people in my path time after time who became those encouraging "parents" that I never had at home.  We can't choose our parents, but we can choose who we want to spend time with, and I encourage you to seek out those people who will encourage you to strive for more, to reach for the stars and fulfill your dreams whatever they may be.


If you are a parent, please encourage your children to reach for their dreams.  If you are a grandparent, please encourage your grandchildren.  If you are a "person of the world" encourage SOMEONE to aspire to something greater.  As you head out into the world today, please be someone's "encourager."  Lift someone up.  Root someone on.  And reach for the stars!

A Wish Your Heart Makes

I always loved the song, "A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes."  I have always been a person who believes you should reach for your dreams and never let anyone or anything discourage you.

I still believe that you can achieve what you believe.  However, everything takes EFFORT and work.  Good things usually don't just fall into our lap.  Do you remember the dreams you had as a child?  Were they mostly happy?  Do you remember the nightmares too?  Which were more frequent?

Just for giggles I went to a web site http://www.dreammoods.com/dreamdictionary/e.htm about interpreting dreams.  It is kind of a "dream dictionary" if you will.  It did turn out to be just for giggles though.  The "definitions" given for some of the dream interpretations were funny if not bizarre.  I don't think that there is anyone who can accurately interpret the dreams of another.  I do believe, however, that we can examine our own dreams sometimes and see what is the desire of our heart. 

Does your heart have a wish?  Is there a job you would love to be doing?  Is there a place you would like to live?  Would you like to travel?  Do you want to learn a new language or a new skill?  Do you want to fall in love?  Do you want your marriage or relationship to be more fulfilling?  Do you dream of these things? 

If so, it is time to ACT on the wishes of your heart.  Never let anyone tell you that fulfilling your "dreams" whatever they are is impossible. 

I had parents who never, and I do mean never, encouraged me to reach for my dreams.  In fact they discouraged any effort I made to succeed in fulfilling my dreams.  I have often wondered why they were like that.  Perhaps it was because they had never fulfilled any dreams of their own. 

I am a risk taker.  I will try any new task and put forth any amount of effort necessary to succeed at completing it.  It doesn't mean I have never failed.  I have.  But, I have also succeeded at many things I had been told were impossible for me to obtain.  I will continue to reach and stretch for my dreams until I cross over to meet my Maker.  I actually think He expects that of me.

I believe that not only should YOU reach for your dreams, but you should encourage your children to do so as well.  Junior wants to play professional sports, and has some talent?  Encourage him to go for it!  He may not become Michael Jordan or Peyton Manning, but he may do well enough in sports to get a scholarship to college and just the fulfillment and joy of PLAYING may satisfy that dream in his heart.  One thing I am sure of is that many many children fail to succeed in life because their dreams are squelched by adults.  In some cases this is well-intentioned but misguided.  Let them dream and teach them to reach out for more, and you just might be surprised how much they will accomplish.

As for yourself, you are NEVER too old to dream.  You are NEVER too old to begin learning something new.  You are NEVER to old to succeed.  Just keep dreaming.  God Bless!