EHarmony - MeMe

I heard an ad on the radio the other day about EHarmony...I've heard thousands of them. But this particular one caught my attention. I'm not sure why...can't even remember what they said (subliminal?). But my curiousity was piqued about the personality profile. So I took the tests...and am quite floored, really...at how accurate the results were, about who I am. There were quite a few questions that were hard to answer because of my values and belief systems, so it is less than perfect in my opinion, but I'm still amazed at what kind of studies must have gone into this questionaire to be able to draw such conclusions. (*disclaimer for those who are curious...I'm not on the EHarmony prowl. Taking my profile down.)

~AGREEABLENESS~

You are best described as:
TAKING CARE OF OTHERS AND TAKING CARE OF YOURSELF

Words that describe you:
Fair
Considered
Collaborative
Responsive
Sensible
Diplomatic
Contemplative
Indulgent
Rational

A General Description of How You Interact with Others
You are important. So are other people, especially if they are in trouble. You have a tender heart, but you know how to establish and keep personal boundaries. You are empathetic and compassionate, but you also believe that it's best if people solve their own problems and learn to take care of themselves, if they are able.

You are deeply moved by the needs of others, but you know that if you don't take good care of yourself, you'll wind up being of no use to anyone. So yours is a thoughtful compassion. You strive to be fair and sensible, taking care of others while also taking care of yourself.

When someone really is in trouble, you like to collaborate with them toward a solution; they do their part, you do yours. You consider carefully, and respond in a sensible way; they do their part, and together you move through the difficulty.

You seldom act impulsively; rather, when a problem arises, you take your time to think through the situation. This contemplative quality usually means that you'll arrive at a diplomatic solution, one that's fair for the other person and also fair to you. It's frequently a win/win situation.

Negative Reactions Others May Have Toward You
For people who are ruled by tender-hearted compassion, your more diplomatic response to problems might seem too cool, too focused on fairness and not filled enough with sympathy and selflessness.

For them, when someone's life is on fire, what is needed is not collaboration but rescue. And the person who experiences their life on fire may resent the time you take to contemplate. "I need you, and I need you NOW! This isn't about fairness, it's about the fire." "All deliberate speed" may seem too deliberate and not fast enough, either to the more compassionate or to people in genuine trouble.

At the other end of the spectrum of compassion, those who believe people should take care of themselves may find even your thoughtful sympathies too soft. They expect people, themselves included, to work their own way out of trouble. They are convinced that the helping hand you lend just fosters dependence and is not good for the development of character, either in you or in the person you assist.

Positive Responses Others May Have Toward You
Many people, perhaps the majority, will come to appreciate your balance as a compassionate person. The more they get to know you, the more they will admire your thoughtful compassion for others and its compliment in the sensible ways you take good care of yourself.

Those whom you help will appreciate the way you leave them with their dignity by expecting them to collaborate in their own rescue. Those who are more tender-hearted will find in you a balance they lack; when they've run out of energy because they fail to take good care of themselves, you will still have enough compassion left to lift others out of trouble.

Even the tough-hearted, those who believe people should solve their own problems, might come to admire your tenderness which they don't find in themselves. So the people you help will be grateful, and the people who see your balance between self and others will admire you. Certainly, balanced is not bad at all as a way to be known among your friends.


~OPENNESS~

On the Openness Dimension you are:
CURIOUS

Words that describe you:
Original
Inventive
Thinker
Brave
Eccentric
Avant-Garde
Out-of-Touch
Unique

A General Description of How You Approach New Information and Experiences
You think like an artist. Or better, you SEE like an artist. While most people look at life's straight lines, its height and depth and width, you're bending the lines with your imagination and turning black and white into shades of blue and yellow. And in conversations at work or with your friends you want to ask, "Do you see what I see?" A few might, most don't, but you've piqued everyone's curiosity with your own original and inventive ways of thinking.

You can, if you must, think in conventional ways. But left on your own, you'll usually opt for the eccentric or avant-garde; in fact you're usually bored with what everyone else is comfortable with. You learn from reading, talking, watching people and other fauna and flora, and simply sitting in the soft chair of your mind and wondering how people would learn how to count if they could only use uneven numbers. You are out in front of conventional ideas, bravely originally defining true and false, right and wrong, the good, the bad and the ugly.

Negative Reactions Others May Have Toward Your Style of Thinking
You drive through life faster than the speed limit, and when you hit speed bumps, and you hit a lot of them with your mind distracted from the straight line ahead your wheels leave the ground.

For people who like life at a safer speed, you move too fast and lose touch too often with the solid ground they prefer, hence their discomfort with you. As odd as you might find this, many people feel safe in the shelter of the world they already know. They like the familiar. They breathe easily and sleep deeply knowing with more certainty how the world works. So although they might enjoy your company and be curious about your latest notion of how to count backwards by threes, they can only take you in small doses. And they wish you'd quit trying to push the boundaries of their personal and social cosmos.

Positive Responses Others May Have Toward You
Even those whom you make uncomfortable know, as just about everyone does, that you're not a flake. You think well, and even your wildest fancies have their roots in the deep soil of sound ideas and tested beliefs. So even if some people don't want to drive at high speed with you, they will respect you for your courage as an innovative and unconventional thinker. You lend color and imagination to what would otherwise be the straight black and white lines of their work world and social environments.

A few more daring people of your circle might even learn from you to take a risk they would otherwise never consider. As comfortable as they are on solid ground, they may be curious about what it would be like to go faster than the speed limit, or paint the living room two shades of blue, or question ideas or beliefs they've fingered like sacred beads since they were children.

After all, they watch you do it, and you seem no worse for the risks you take. In fact, your eyes are wider and your breath quicker, and maybe they can find at least a bit of this for themselves. To be certain, they don't want their wheels to leave the ground, but maybe the next time they approach a speed bump they might just brace themselves and speed up just a little bit.


~EMOTIONAL STABILITY~

On Emotional Stability you are:
VERY RESPONSIVE

Words that describe you:
Emotional
Insightful
Perceptive
Sensitive
Self-conscious

A General Description of Your Reactivity
Each one of us encounters some hard times; we get caught off guard, or feel a sudden swell of emotion, whether from fear, joy, anger or sadness. Life is just like this sometimes. You know that because you are an emotional person. Some people go to great lengths to keep their emotions under wraps, to keep a stiff upper lip, to not let others know what emotions they are feeling. But that is not you. You embrace all of life's emotions, both the joys and the turmoil that life brings our way.

When you're having fun with a group of friends you don't even try to contain your pleasure; you laugh hard and feel every moment of the conversation because of the joy that comes from the experience. You make very intense friendships; ones where all of the depth of emotions that you feel can be shared. Emotions are such an essential part of your everyday life. You may cry at intense movies or when watching a sad story on the evening news. You get angry, at others or at yourself, and you do not stifle it. Emotions drive your personality and your relationships - you simply are what you feel.

You experience both the highs and the lows more profoundly than most. And you usually relish the intensity of your emotions. For sure you enjoy the positive times. There are those times, though, when your feelings get the best of you and you wonder how you will manage the moment. But because you are so in tune with all of your emotions you will experience something very pleasant and will be able to engage with that positive feeling to again enjoy the wonderful intensity that life brings you.

Negative Reactions Others May Have Toward You
If we were to ask you what negative reactions may result from your approach to your emotions, it would likely be that some people find it hard to deal with your strong feelings. They might think of you as emotionally "over the top," and wish you would be more like those who are always emotionally composed and less prone to fully engage their emotions.

Positive Responses Others May Have Toward You
Despite any negative reactions others may have toward you, many people will be grateful for your strong emotions and your willingness to experience these emotions. They will appreciate the candor with which you express even your deepest feelings, feelings they themselves might want to express but may find difficult to share. Your openness will be an encouragement to them as well. Still others may find your intensity compelling; they feel emotionally flat, and you could be a burst of passion in their dull worlds, and an encouragement to them to "get with" their own feelings. Any or all of these people will be grateful for a friend who is so emotionally present.


~CONSCIENTIOUSNESS~

Your approach toward your obligations is:
FOCUSED AND FLEXIBLE

Words that describe you:
Casual
Informal
Compliant
Reliable
Organized
Solid
Dependable
Uncommitted
Genuine

A General Description of How You Interact with Others
When you take on a task at work or at home, you are reliable; you get the job done. In an organized way, you define the goal, lay out a plan, figure how long the task will take, and get to work "solid and dependable you".

But and this is important you're not a slave to the plan. You're committed to it, but not chained to it; the connection is more casual and informal. You know that sometimes "the best laid plans" fall off the tracks; when this happens, you clean up the train wreck and start over, undeterred.

Though not happening often, when plans change, you're okay with it. In fact, sometimes you change the plan. It's too nice of a Saturday to finish organizing the garage. Let's go for a bike ride instead. True, the next rainy Saturday will likely find you back in the garage, but for now the work can wait.

What an interesting combination of qualities in you're organized, but casual; solid, but compliant; and dependable, but informal. At home and at work, people know they can rely on you. You take great satisfaction in knowing that people think of you as disciplined and responsible, but you also know that you have something of a free spirit in you, and when this spirit moves you, off you go, following the impulse of the moment. You are rightly proud of your work ethic, but you also enjoy your willingness to lay the tools down, crank up the music and play like a child.

Negative Reactions Others May Have Toward You
Some people live like Marines: duty-bound, disciplined and driven. To these people you might seem uncommitted; where they would never leave work for play or change plans in the middle of their life's forced march, you let the circumstance sway you and move in a different direction, and they don't understand.

Others live like kites on a string, attached by thin threads to the solid ground of responsibility and are blown about by every gust of impulse or imagination. To these people you might seem too cowardly, like you'll flirt with your impulses but never give in fully, play on a Saturday but never blow of the entire work-week to "follow your bliss".

While these Marines and kite-flyers might look down on you for your combination of focus and flexibility, others might be envious. They can't free themselves from a sense that they're not doing enough, or from the equally frustrating feeling that they're not free enough.

And here you are with your accomplishments and your pleasures, getting the job done but also getting your hair blown back as you run with the wind. As far as these people are concerned, you're lucky you've got the best of both of the worlds in which they feel they fail.

Positive Responses Others May Have Toward You
What a great life you have, and a great attitude to boot. You know when to buckle down and push ahead to get the job done, and you do it well. You know when to lay the tools of your trade aside, grab your kite and head for the meadow where you can run with the wind. Many people will see and admire in you this lovely combination of a person who can focus, but who is flexible enough to know when to let the spirit move you in some new and livelier direction.

It's a life they aspire to, and they delight in seeing it played out in your life. They may ask your advice and turn you into a mentor of the full and balanced experience. They will want to know how you do it, what the costs are, and if you get frightened that you're not working hard enough or playing often enough. They may make you think about your own life more than you have, so you can share it with those who want to emulate this balance between flexibility and focus. They may be correct lucky you!

~EXTRAVERSION~

When it comes to Extraversion you are:
SOMETIMES OUTGOING, SOMETIMES RESERVED

Words that describe you:
Moderate
Amiable
Laid-back
Temperate
Relaxed
Poised
Civil
Uncommitted
Pleasant

A General Description of How You Interact with Others
Lucky you! You enjoy your own company as much as you enjoy the company of others. You are a great conversationalist and thrive in the wonderful kinds of connections you know how to have with your family and friends. You also equally enjoy your own company, whether sitting in a favorite chair with your book and soft music playing or meandering in the woods by yourself. You like coming home to your family or your roommate; but if no one is home, you find quiet, solitary time to be just as pleasurable. What a great combination to enjoy being outgoing and to be just as comfortable being reserved. Lucky you!!

Because you are so amiable and relaxed, you are comfortable with almost any group of family or friends. Whether they are pumped up and lively or calm and subdued, you remain at ease. If someone needs to take over the conversation, you are comfortable taking the lead; you can also lay back and let someone else be in charge. If the conversation gets rowdy, your moderate demeanor will often draw it down to a more temperate level. If someone in the group loses their cool, you will most likely maintain your poise, and if they get nasty you know how to keep a civil tongue.

You may find yourself out of balance on occasion. If you're alone too much, you may need to get in touch with someone. If you spend too much time with your family and friends, you may need to sneak off for a day by yourself, to putter and read and clear your head of the noise of too much conversation. When you're at your best, you live with a rhythm of time with others, time alone, time with others, time alone It's a satisfying, comfortable balance. Lucky you!

Negative Reactions Others May Have Toward You
You may occasionally run into problems with other people. Since not everyone is as balanced as you are, close friends and family may get frustrated with you, or you with them. They may be more sociable and outgoing, and find you too laid-back and relaxed. They want conversations to be lively and passionate while you keep things amiable and civil. Or others may be more quiet and reserved than you, and when you're in one of your more animated moments they may wish you would back off. You may be ready to put more energy into a conversation than they are comfortable with.

And your balance may be a problem. Other people may be consistently more sociable or more reserved than you, and find you to hard to read, some may even say you ride the fence. Others may find themselves envious of your ability to be outgoing at times, and at other times comfortably reserved. If you pay attention to pick up these cues you will be in a better position to know how you want to interact with such folks.

Positive Responses Others May Have Toward You
Most people will truly appreciate your flexibility in social situations. They will like you for your amiable warmth and your willingness to engage, and for your ability to sit back and let others take the lead or the spotlight. They will appreciate ways in which you temper what could become intemperate moments; by remaining poised and relaxed when others; temperatures are rising, you keep things civil and sane.

You are as good at listening and following as you are at talking and leading, and people will often appreciate your ability to adapt to the situation. Because you are sometimes outgoing and sometimes reserved, you will make most people comfortable in your presence, and they will truly enjoy your company.

Through the Lens of Inspiration

I'm not sure if its 'normal'...by normal I mean...is it common for every head to think as much as mine does. I wonder if it is just my perceptions that draw so much attention to it. And my excitable personality that brings it all to the surface. There are some personalities that are so calm and reserved and mellow. I wonder...do their minds race around their heads 24 hours a day, too? Or is this just something that makes me a little bit different; a little bit unique. Not abnormal, because I do know that others besides myself think A LOT. I wonder why I feel mine is so...illuminated...magnified...LOUD. Hm.

Anyway...thinking is good. There's a lot of attention drawn to it, but I don't find it a detriment so much anymore, like I used to. I used to think I was crazy (ok, maybe I am...but I'm okay with crazy now. (O: At least at this particular moment.). Nowadays...it is the wellspring of my search for wisdom and truth. The wisdom and truth that is relevant to my world. Sometimes...this wisdom and truth is even relevant for others' worlds. :) (and this is why I decided to start blogging...it can't all be for naught, this mind racing stuff)

I am an aspiring photographer. I love capturing moments. As I've released myself from the starting gates, I have had a lot of trepidations about going forward. I really questioned any talent that I had. I knew that I LOVE taking pictures. I see pictures all the time and wish I had a camera to capture every beautiful and glorious thing I see. But just because I have that vision doesn't mean there's any real value to the population at large for it. It is my inspiration. And others don't have to see it the same way as I do. But when venturing forth as a consideration for a full time employment endeavor, I have to take into consideration its value, because its value equals how I will pay my bills...and that means it has to be of good value. It's complicated. But, over this last year, I have been affirmed over and over and over and over again, that what I see truly does have value. Inspiration is valuable. People live for inspiration and beautiful things. They may not recognize it completely, but our passions are fueled by inspiration, are they not?

Anyway, I have another little fear sometimes that makes me nervous before a photo shoot...that I might not capture something as well as the client would like me to. Or that the inspiration will not be there. Or that my camera will malfunction. However, I have learned while shooting, that there is absolutely nothing accurate or relevant about that fear. I have NEVER been inspiration-less during a shoot. If I put the camera up to my eye, the inspiration is there. EVERY TIME. The shoot never unfolds how I would expect it to, but it doesn't mean it was a failure. Because failure in this regard would require that I be some kind of a fortune teller...to see what I'm supposed to do, absolutely, and then do the opposite. And I'm not a fortune teller. So I can't be a failure.

Yesterday I was thinking about how true this is of life. If I'm going to shoot a wedding, I know that I'm going to shoot a wedding. I can anticipate that there will be a beautiful bride and a handsome groom, and a lot of family and friends and happy faces. There will be details to capture and fun stuff, and emotional stuff, and maybe even some hard stuff. But how it actually unfolds is a mystery. And what I actually capture is really only partially understood until I begin to look at the pictures I've captured. They then come back to life for me, but they bring an even fuller life to the recipients of the pictures when they receive them.

We get one day at a time and we can make plans about what those days are going to contain, but what they hold will never be known until the moment it is realized. While we are passing through it, we can realize a certain element of what it contains, but as time passes, it becomes more fully developed into something more; we can piece it together for a larger picture. And then when others are involved, and it is shared, it becomes even larger. All completely relevant and valuable...and completely unanticipated at the same time. Those who fear what tomorrow brings, are being robbed of the fullness and excitement of the ambiguous moment. How much inspiration is lost because we fear what it 'might' turn out like or look like?

My anxiousness for photo shoots is slowly dissipating because even those shoots that I don't think went well, evidence themselves otherwise. I did a shoot last weekend with puppies. THAT was an exercise in a whole lot of things! (I will take pet pictures, but probably won't become a professional pet photographer...) :O) But when viewing the photos afterwards, I realize that even while my inspiration was being stretched completely outside of its comfort zone, and I was concerned about the outcome, I have success. It's all about perspective. We only fail when we believe we have.

So...I will view this life through the lens of inspiration. And not be fearful of what I have captured. Because it will ALWAYS be a beautiful thing. :)

The Unpopularity of Love

I have struggled quite a lot with expressing my faith outwardly on a public forum. At first it was about acceptance and potential judgment and you know...being an on fire Christian is not always a popular thing. But that fear has been set aside. It is who I am. I live, eat, breath...Jesus. And I'm grateful for the freedom to express that.

I watched a short snipit of 'Trading Spouses' last night before I put thy lovely to bed. A Christian mama was traded with an 'alternative lifestyle' mama and I was frustrated and amazed at the same time with this episode. First...the Christian mama...is the reason why Christianity is so unpopular. Judgment reigned. She tried to press her beliefs onto the family she was visiting and the young boy (he must have been around 9?) was visibly disturbed by her. The amazing thing is that the alternative Dad, the one you might EXPECT to be judgmental and harsh, was completely accepting of her and cried when he couldn't understand what was distressing his son so much. He wanted him to accept her and give her a chance. WOW. The Lord works in mysterious ways, but just because we have Jesus doesn't mean we have some superior authority over the lives of others. And just because someone looks differently on the outside doesn't mean they are awful human beings. We are all God's children. Individual and different and valuable all the same. It hurts my heart to see/watch people hurting each other. LOVE one another.

I accidentally bumped into a website yesterday that shocked me. A man who has been a Christian for 23 years decided to unravel his faith and the faith of his family, and become athiest. I can't wrap my brain around that decision. Because walking with Jesus brings more hope and joy than I have ever known in my entire life. What devastating thing happened that would deter him so extremely? He made a list...and it had everything to do with how the 'church' has dictated his faith. My heart breaks into a million pieces. The church was designed to love and encourage one another...not try to stuff them into a box that they feel should be the way that God would have them behave. God is not this way. God is good and loving and pours out His goodness to us. God made us each individually and He speaks to each of us individually. None of us fit into a box. PEOPLE are fallible and struggling and broken. And broken people hurt each other. But if we can accept all broken people for who they are and love them anyway...because God loves them; because he loves US...how many more people could see the face of God? If we just let people be different and value them for the gifts that God has given them, and encourage them towards those gifts. And allow people to be fallible, because not one of us is perfect. We all have struggles and insecurities and we've all been hurt to our core. The peace I find in my heart now doesn't mean I've somehow elevated my 'status' among my peers. What my peace has done is want to share it...and LOVE people because that is how I received my peace...by being loved. And really...loving people is so easy when we look at them through a window not tainted by our own broken image. And through this image, freedom reigns.

Flowers in the Desert.

Life is easy when, well...life is easy. When everything lines up nicely and everything seems to go right, and the sun shines, and you get a goody from a friend out of nowhere, and you get a discount at the store, and gas prices go down, and the baby is being sweet on the mama, and there's love in the air, and when someone gives you compliments and...and...and... But life isn't like this all the time. The only constant and consistent thing is ups and downs and change. By running all the ups and downs together it probably would look pretty even. Something about the law of averages or something. Average it all out and life is pretty good. I can't complain, really.

I'm not sure why there's so much more focus and discontent with the downs. I accept them for what they are - temporary. I suppose the process of moving through those times is the thing that builds character. How they are managed. How I choose to either react or respond. Funny we don't have to justify how we react or respond to the GREAT things in life. Perhaps the heaviness of the downs is what brings on so much focus. After a while things get too heavy and I just want to drop them. I don't feel I have the strength anymore to carry it; whatever 'it' may be. I think when I'm carrying heavy stuff, it seems I'm the only one working. Kinda like single motherhood...when I'm carrying/juggling baby (unhappy baby), purse, diaper bag, grocery bag, keys to unlock the door, and I don't have enough shoulders/straps and arms and I start dropping things. Hopefully I don't drop the baby. These moments I find myself feeling the most alone. Lord have mercy, sprout me a couple more arms and a bucket load more of patience! But...we're not the only ones working during these times, even though it may seem like it.

I've been a bit blue and listless and kinda like the life's been sucked out of me as of late. Feeling pretty alone. The irony about these times for me is that when I reach out, nobody is around or available. If someone is available, I don't feel connected somehow. It's kinda like I NEED to be in this alone spot. I've been placed her so that I become very secure in who to draw my strength from. And that's not from myself or from my friends or family. The Lord is my strength.

I've been practicing being still. Trying not to place a lot of focus on the 'stuff' that manifest themselves and create an even heavier load/mood. Just working on one moment, on day at a time. This too shall pass. The last three days I have been very pleasantly surprised by things... Since I'm feeling very alone and trying not to focus on myself, but focusing on myself nonetheless, I pray and reach for God in my limited capacity, but He seems so far away. I always feel like I'm the only one working. I'm alone. I'm reaching; waiting; praying for some evidence of sunshine through the current cloud.

Two days ago a friend of mine sent me a text message out of the blue that says the Father is very fond of me. Hm. Yesterday another friend sent me a message that said that Jesus loves me. Hmm. Another friend texts me that she's thinking of me. Today, another friend of mine sends me a text that says she senses my heaviness and has been praying for me. Hm... It occurred to me that even though I am not certain the source of my blues, that the Father sees me. He feels me. He is with me. I am not alone. I'm not the only one working. I felt very distinctly the hand of God reaching down to me to comfort me. I'm not the only one reaching. He is with me, confirming His presence through my friends. This is the joy of the Lord. While external circumstances or internal mood may be less than ideal, there is still an underlying joy that He will ALWAYS come through in just the way we need. He knows just how and where to insert a sunbeam through the cloud. It doesn't FIX what is happening...but it sure makes the journey a little bit more pleasant. Even in the desert there are flowers along the way.

Been Thinkin' About...

Moods. Somewhere along life's journey I learned that moods were bad. Moods are wrong. I do realize today that moods are normal. If you don't have moods you might need to check your pulse. But it never fails that when my mood declines a bit, that I start to beat myself up. And then I think too much about how I shouldn't be moody and I put on a happy face and then I think about how fake I am and how I look to others and yada yada yada. How annoying!

I've never been a person who lashes out in my moods. I always lash IN. But in my lashing IN, I carry the burden of so much responsibility in the way that others feel. I question every word I say; every move I make. Insecurity reigns. It's awful.

I know that this particular mood is hormonally induced. Stinks being a woman sometimes. But it seems half my life has been and is battling this particular mood swing. I don't feel worthy. I don't feel hopeless, but my self-image declines and I wonder who in the world would/could ever love me, let alone accept me even in the slightest with all my imbalances (there's really not that many, but my little mole hill becomes a mountain under the microscope of this mood). Why would anyone choose to be with someone who is so off balance? Have I mentioned how awful it is?

I know today and can acknowledge this 'temporary' state of being. It doesn't define who I am. People probably don't see it much unless I point at it. I may become a little bit distant, but those closest to me know that I just need a time out. And its really that simple. They don't all suddenly decide that since I'm having a mood that they can't be my friend anymore. It's really a terrible perspective to have. It's a burden that has gotten better over the years, but still plagues me.

I think the worst part about this particular mood is that I focus so much on MYSELF. It is my life endeavor these days to think less about myself and more about how I can help another. Perhaps there is a testimony in here somewhere about how even though I have moods that edge up to depression at times, that I am still free. Jesus saves me from the agonies of the world...and myself. This mood is biological. I'm not going to be judged because I have a body that happens to be woman that happens to produce brain altering chemicals that swing me off balance a bit.

I was listening to the radio this morning and was so inspired by a story I heard. Janine was a prostitute, drug addict, and drug dealer for 18 years, but by the Grace of God was saved 7 years ago. Have you ever spoken to someone who is in the middle of a life this devastating? They are angry. They are dishonest. They are not at peace in their souls and they let everyone know about it. Her voice over the radio was the voice of an angel. I would bet that she still has demons that might creep up on her from time to time, but the miracle that has happened to her that changed her life was Jesus and all the hurt and turmoil was gone. And now she seeks to reach out to others who are where she was. Amazing and heart warming story.

All of that to say that if I stay inside my little bubble of self, then the world looks pretty dismal. My moods are not the big picture. My mood is just a speed bump that I have to consider navigating over slowly. The world is not about ME and what happens to ME, but what I can gather from ME to help another. I am but a vessel to bless another. I found this video this morning that really speaks to this. It really puts things into perspective about my current state of being. I may be miserable at the moment and having a little pity party, but oh how I take my life for granted. So today I'll be focusing on ignoring ME and my mood and seeking out blessings for others. What can I do for you today?

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Youniverse

I found this fun website...click on pictures and it will tell you about who you are. It's a pretty accurate reflection of who I am. Give it a whirl!

What it says about me:

Moods: Easy Rider
You can be both calm and peaceful, and you like to feel free to explore your environment. You can be a little nostalgic and you love revisiting familiar places and memories. When it comes to art, you're definitely unconventional. You like to think differently, always from another perspective. You have a good sense of humor. You like how music helps you unwind, and switch off. Music transports you far away from the everyday grind.

Fun: Thriller
You love to be far away from your everyday life. There's nothing like catching some rays and slowing down - you know how to take things nice and easy! For kicks, there is nothing like a little affection to give you a buzz. There's always so much flirting to be done! When it comes to holidays, you reckon they should always be indulgent (they even used my word 'reckon'!)- a very special treat and a chance to recharge your batteries in luxurious surroundings, as well as spending quality time with family and friends.

Habits: New Wave Puritan
Simple pleasures make your day. You love relaxing, unwinding and living a pampered life (I'd love to live a pampered life...it doesn't mean that I do, currenlty :O)). You care about your health and make sure you're putting the right stuff in it (Okay, I do try really hard to...). As for the home, you're a bit of a traditionalist. It's not just about function - style is definitely a priority.

Social: Thoughtful
For you friendship is all about being there for one another. It's so precious to know that there are a few special people in the world that you can always rely on. When you think of freedom - the great outdoors spring to mind. Getting back to nature is a big draw. It's the perfect place to find peace and quiet.

This was kinda fun. There are more tests on the website...I think I'll go take s'more! :O)

Psst...

Run on over to my photo blog...Lotsa new pics!

My comments have been enabled so do let me know what you think!

:O)

Long weekends

This weekend was a really good long weekend. Really, probably the best long weekend I've had in a very long time. All weekends should be like this.

Friday was a short day at work, so I ran around running errands and feeling productive. Saturday I went white water rafting in the frigid cold. Sunday had church and spent some time purging my garage and putting everything in its rightful place. Monday I did more of the same with some good chinese food and a fun photo shoot. I got to sleep in on two of the days. So...lotsa resting, playing, working.

And this morning it took me a half hour longer to get to work than usual. Skool is back in session. Everybody and their brother and sister are on the roads now. Which means I'll have to get up earlier now. Which means I REALLY need to be disciplined about going to bed earlier. Just not enough time in a day sometimes.

So...nothing else to report. No Inspiration Speaking to me this morning. :)