I've had lots of thoughts rolling around this ole brain and just haven't given my self time to focus and write on the blog as much as I'd like to. And to help me accomplish getting a better handle on life.... I just started a program designed to help you reclaim you life and to focus on getting rid of the clutter in your life that keeps you from being your best. It's a one year project for 52 weeks.... so I thought I'd make you my accountability partner to keep my feet to the fire. 😉 So in-between sharing my articles from the magazine, I'll share each week what the lesson is, what I am trying to do and who knows, maybe it will be of help to you as well!
As always, thanks so much for taking time out of your day. I am hoping you are healthy, safe and doing well. Feel free to comment or shoot me an email at swheatfarmlife@gmail.com. All my best, Gayle
May/June, 2020
When you are a kid, or at least this was how I was, everyday
seemed like a Saturday. There was no urgency and days just melded one into
another. As I write the May/June
edition, everyone is in the middle of the mandatory stay at home order and I
have to admit, everyday feels like a Saturday, minus the fact that I am
actually working from home. Maybe
it’s the fact that the “commute” is just down one flight of stairs, through the
kitchen and into my office. Having never worked from home other than a day here
or there, my mind is fooled into thinking this is just a really long week-end. I
know I am one of the fortunate ones having a job and I take my time in front of
my work laptop seriously. But today, which is on a real Saturday, I let my mind wander as I ponder what life
will look like as you are reading this early summer issue online, given the
fact that the printer who prints this magazine and almost all the vendors who
have magazine carts are closed. So, I
imagine you, the reader taking a moment from your day and sitting down to
peruse this issue from your favorite spot, and hoping you are sitting at a
sidewalk café, sipping something delicious on a warm sunny day. And that life
is flowing back into a place where everyone can relish family, friends and
connections again.
And what keeps surfacing as I gaze outside this sunny but
cold April day, is the moment in my young life that I discovered I possessed
optimism. First of all, I was not an
extraordinary child by any means, I was scrawny with a mop of naturally curly
dark brown hair that seemed to have a life of its own. I was bossy to my
younger brothers, but outside the family I was quiet, but fairly social. So to sum it up, I was an ordinary kid and I
am still ordinary. Growing up, I was not any kind of genius - that title goes
to my youngest brother Barry and that is a whole other story of its own. Anyway,
I’ve had a couple of life lessons that registered in my young mind that I
recognized and actually felt the “aha moment” that have stuck with me and
served me well all through my life so far.
I was in 5th grade when my parents sat us kids
down and explained that we would probably be living in separate households. They were contemplating divorce. Back then I
knew only one girl who lived with her mom and she seemed sad all the time. And I was terrified of what life would look
like and how my world had changed completely overnight without my consent. My folks told us that they loved us and that
it wasn’t our fault, but it was still a gut-wrenching time. And then a few days later, after crying
myself to sleep every night, I awoke one morning and thought, this won’t be so
bad, we can have regular visits with dad and we will live with mom who always
was the one who nurtured us. She was (and still is) the “go to parent” and life
will go on. I felt our little world would
be okay, actually more than okay, it would be truly good. And then it hit me, I was aware that this feeling
was something important and there was this shift and I recognized what optimism
felt like. Even though I was only around 10 or 11, I knew this was powerful
and it registered as a life truth in my young mind. The ability to realize that
you had the power to choose happy and accept that regardless of what was
happening - that you had the power to frame the circumstances. I
remember telling my brothers, it would be okay and actually feeling like it
would be. Maybe they trusted me, maybe
they didn’t and tuned me out since I was the bossy sister, but I like to think
they took my words seriously. Anyway,
the split never happened, a comprise of my parents ensued and they stayed
together until I was twenty. But that life lesson of finding optimism has been
a corner stone of getting through many hard and difficult times throughout my
life.
I will admit I get more than annoyed with others who only
see the half-full glass side of life. I
wonder what made them choose to look at life in that way and it makes me feel
sad for them. My life is probably a lot
like yours, in that we’ve all hit our fair share of speed bumps on the road of
life. And the difference is how you view
the obstacles that may have temporarily derailed you, what you learned, and
what you did to get back on your journey.
I know personally when I hit a major speed bump seven years ago, that it
forever changed my pathway and in turn took
me on a very different road. One that I most likely would not have chosen on my
own, but one with all of its twists and turns has shown me so much more than I
ever knew existed. I guess I would now call it my version of a happy ending to
a long journey. But we before I ended up
in my present state, I had to face uncertainty, loneliness, heartache,
self-worth and all the other junk that sometimes gets heaped on when a major change
happens. But then you have the choice to sink deeper into that hole or stand up
and take one step at a time to move forward. Hope and a good dose of optimism
are essential items to keep in your back pocket. And I am here to tell you that today I have
never been happier and actually thankful for the bumpy road that has taught me
so much.
Being in the Ag industry for many years, having optimism is also a corner stone in every single farm family’s lives. Year after year, they have faith and hope every time they put in a crop that they will have a bountiful harvest and that the market is kind to them. Unknown factors of weather and a picky market play a big factor in the end result of the their efforts that is commonly called a paycheck. If you felt the toilet paper shortage, just imagine for a terrifying moment what a food shortage would be like. But these dedicated full-time farmers & ranchers go out every day and do what they do best, grow our food for our bellies, cotton for the clothes on our backs and give us a safe abundant food source. God bless them.
And the take-away as I reflect back to our forced stay home
order is that we all have the opportunity to do a “restart” on our lives and
redefine what is important in this journey.
This has been a difficult time, for some more than others, but it has
affected all of us. How we rise up and
go forward is equally important and I hope that you as well as myself will
continue to seek out and nourish that inner optimism and let it help you which
in turn helps our community. I know for
me personally, as I wait for the “pause button on life” to be lifted, that I
will be redefining my new normal and reviewing what is truly important and what
can be tossed. The headline of “Let’s
be Wonderful Together” from the Ruralite magazine hit the nail on the head.
It further quoted my all-time favorite movie from “It’s A Wonderful Life” when
Clarence the Angel says to George Bailey, “Strange isn’t it? Each man’s life
touches so many other lives. When he
isn’t around, he leaves an awful hole, doesn’t he?” The article talked about volunteers and
difference-makers who affect the lives of others for the better.
And I do look forward to seeing the explosion of life once
again where we can gather together to share a meal and laugh at our stories of
our struggles and high fives on our triumphs. I eagerly await the time when we
all are celebrating the everyday sweetness of life, love, family and friends in
ways that have meaning to each of us. Mr. Right (Rod) commented that we need to
do some kind of weekly friend/family dinner parties! (I agree) And in the
coming months, I hope I continue seeing people out riding bikes or walking
together, and where home cooked meals are still eaten in leisure and savored
followed by snuggling in to watch a movie or play a game. Cherished times.
 |
| One of my fav family photos |
Now more than ever, I see that I am beyond blessed with the
special people in my life, some related, some not and it’s that personal
connection to others that truly is the spice of life. So as you go about your new normal, remember
the good and the acts of random kindness that arose from our “pause on life”,
remember to not be in such a hurry to get things done and to savor those near
and dear to you and keep up the acts of kindness. All my best, Gayle (for more stories: www.swheatfarmlife.net)
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