Monday, May 23, 2016

True Colors and Courage



Again it’s been another rainy week-end and I’ve loved having the stormy weather as it seemed to be Mother Natures’ way of saying, “hey girl – you need to cocoon and take some needed down time”.  So that is exactly what I did, I enjoyed hearing the steady stream of rain outside my window and the cool temps made me go find my favorite fleece jacket.  

 The gray day seems  to make the surrounding colors outside seem brighter and more vibrant

After last week’s post, I had the most touching and personal emails from two of my readers, both of whom I have the privilege of calling good friends.  Both women live hundreds of miles from me, but when we do have the opportunity to see each other, it’s like we just pick up where we left off. They said my candor inspired them to reveal and share very private aspects of their lives.  I learned one had the courage to disclose she was gay and had gotten married to a very special woman in her life not long ago.  Her career is in a fairly conservative industry, so when I asked how her boss and co-workers took this news, she was happy to say they were very supportive.   She is a known public figure and one very accomplished woman – and the raw courage to show your true self was nothing short of being one of the bravest souls I know.

The other friend told me about hitting rock bottom in her personal life and the journey of reaching deep down and figuring out she was a wonderful and strong woman who could do anything she wanted in life.  She decided to forge a new career path and put herself through college while in her 30s, and in the process found a man that she chose to share her life with. She's happy in her personal life and work life.   Both heartfelt stories were inspirational and they reaffirmed my commitment to always being real, staying true to what feeds my heart and soul and sharing my journey with you, in hopes it helps you in some small way.

Life’s ups and downs have a way of making people show their real colors, and like my two girlfriends. Each rose to the challenges in their lives and are inspirations in their own right.  Their true colors are courage, guts and doing what they felt was right.


“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.”~– Anais Nin



I can understand some of their journey of standing tall and doing what you need to do – for the good of you.   This past week I also learned sometimes a when a person shows their true colors that it is not always a positive thing and that a hidden side of a personality is suddenly exposed.   Unfortunately, this was the case with Randy.  And without going into gory details, all I’ll say is that it was an unpleasant surprise and a very disappointing display of actions on his part both before the break-up and after.    But the really weird thing is after I found out about everything, it was like I turned the corner, closed that chapter in my life for good, and I felt free, not even bad, just free.

I had planned on sharing a Peanut Butter Cake recipe, but the results were lack luster.  And like anything in life, you have to test it out to see if it’s a keeper or not. 

Before I close, in speaking about raw courage and true colors, a very heartfelt thank you to all who serve our nation to protect us both  on our home land and far away.  My heroes are those who risk their lives every day to protect our world and make it a better place--police, firefighters, and members of our armed forces.


And with that, I hope you have a wonderful week, I’ll talk to you after Memorial Day Week-end.  

As always, thank you for stopping by and feel free to email me at swheatfarmlife@gmail.com .  All my best, Gayle