Such Great Heights

This spring has been beautiful with mist and sunshine producing a rainbow over Tacoma at least once a week, and there is a pot of gold under it, I swear.  Einstein blessed us all with his philosophy, "in adversity there is opportunity." The adversity is nearly a vague memory, even my attachment to it. Now the opportunities that continue to unfold are taking my life to such great heights!

Such Great Heights Top Ten List:

10. Inventing a new exercise regime resulting in my trainer guiding me to beat all of the men at the gym to gain the most lean muscle mass during the Fitness Challenge. My weightlifting and yoga with SkyAnn has become an incredible spiritual practice with affirmations between weight sets like, “I am one with God,” and “I am strong, powerful and focused,” held in warrior two position with an archer movement. This focus has direct application to getting results with my home and work.

9. Amsterdam in August. I am actively pursuing affordable ways to broaden my experience of the world. The planning is paying off. Another consultant offered to do a brief home exchange. Details to come…

8. The guest cabin is finished and officially a revenue stream that produces financial stability with a renter that also enhances my quality of life. My long-time friend, Sam Dollar, friend of both Graef kids and all around good guy is great fun and help to have around. The cabin is there if Grandma ever wants to come live with me. It could also be a future office as Credit Union Strategic Planning continues to grow.

7. Quality family time at Camp Seymour with Dylan, one of the best weeks every with my son. We canoed, climbed a giant rock wall, and made new friends. My co-cabin leader Kelly, ended up becoming one of my dearest friends. She’s from New Zealand and a real kiwi.

 (My camp uniform)

(Dylan smiling on a big canoe.)

 

(My cabin pranksters: We stole the boys' shoes, including Dylan's.)

6. Credit Union Strategic Planning is rocking. The Congressman’s Office called us to offer official Congressional Recognition for the American Debt Relief Challenge. And after adding Scott as our CEO the quality of work continued to exceed expectations. The reward is in the referrals. We will be speaking at the national Community Credit Union Conference as experts on The US Treasury CDFI grants in Boston in October. Landing the largest individual credit union grant from the Obama Administration’s Recovery Act Funds had a little something to do that.

5. Recovered pictures from Africa. After the 2006 World Trade Center Tacoma  Goodwill Mission to Africa debrief at the University of Washington with Congressman Adam Smith, my hard drive deleted my photos. I was bummed. Most of the trip was spent studying poverty reduction and visiting credit unions and cooperatives. A conversation this week with my brother and viola, he had backups the whole time!

4. Paying off debt. It feels good to be complete with my word. Money is just a means to exchange value. I value my word and am being100% complete with my word, beyond legal obligation. (Even paying cheating ex-boyfriend who I don't legally owe money. I did care deeply about him and have the respect to bring closure for myself.)

3. Being a role model for friends who see I made it through a hard time to show them they will get through it too. Two friends have called me on the brink of taking their lives during the last year. Both have thanked me for being there at the critical time, being unwavering in my demand that they deal with it head on, and being so honest about my own challenge last year that they weren’t embarrassed to talk to me. Several other friends have sought assistance with starting their own businesses. It feels good to be a reliable friend.

2. My brother desires to plant another garden this year. Scott and his boys want to help build the fence. Whitney is committed to lead the old concrete removal and I will have a new back yard when we paint the back house to get ready for a refinance. The goal, thank my grandmother for believing in me by getting her name off the loan.

1. I feel like myself again and life is rocking. And with that comes the realization that I am best when I am fully being me. And with that comes the knowledge as a parent to support Dylan fully being himself. 

(Dylan during a recent trip to Washington DC visiting Cousin Simon.)

 

I am motivated to action by my awareness that what holds us in the same place is only what we do not do. And wow I am not in the same place now I was at this time last year. I got rid of all of the negative influences. Took action on every opportunity and am making life the reality I desire to live…

Happiness is Love

Dylan was happy to see me today. His little kid kisses were full of thanks to have mom back.  With no grant deadline or travel in sight, it's good to be back to normal life, being a mom and folding laundry.

I confess that I am guilty of  being a road warrior and grant junkie. For the past month we  traveled cross country from  Sonoma, CA to Columbus, Oh and NYC. This past week we submitted all of the poverty reduction U.S. Treasury Grants we labored over during 18 hour work days-  and held our final meeting in Louisiana, literally the beautiful bayou. The people, they were warm like an apple pie right out the oven. An old minister and college professor schooled this white girl on how to play dominoes. Scott (one of my business partners and a dear friend) and I left after eating the best gumbo, being embraced by a group hug and farewells from our new friends.

After sleeping for 14 hours, I woke this morning absolutely delighted to run errands to replenish the basics like TP and garbage bags, do the dishes and enjoy the connection of laughter, hugs and random conversation with the kids, my brother and the people round home that I love. It's amazing what being MIA from your own life will do to your TP supply. (Ponder that for a moment. It is meant to be odd.)

During the travel, I picked up a magazine, The Atlantic, founded by Ralph Waldo Emerson, who I admire for his logic, poetry and science based spiritual philosophies. Tonight, online I was steered to a video by the Atlantic about a Harvard research team that followed 269 Harvard students, 10 men through their entire lives starting in 1930 to document the keys to happiness and how to live well. The men are now in their 80s. The video is short and well worth the watch up to the final seconds.

I found the video while searching for the folloing quote:

“I am the happiest man alive. I have that in me that can convert poverty to riches, adversity to prosperity, and I am more invulnerable than Archilles; Fortune hath not one place to hit me.” 

Sir Thomas Browne

Life reflects back to us our own attitude. We experience what we expect to experience, because it is what we create. When we face adversity and view it as opportunity. The attitude shapes our sight. The adversity passes and we are left with: The Opportunity.

The Harvard Study's concluded that happiness is love. I believe our happiness comes from our way of being. When our way of being is loving, that is what the world reflects back.

As I center on this with faith in a loving God, I am the happiest woman alive.

$500,000, Einstein, NYC and a Long Lost Friend

It's my favorite work of art, because it comes to life in person. I haven't visited it in over ten years. It took $500,000 to get there and I arrived at the MET with the man who stole my heart as a boy seventeen years ago in high school.

The art is Autumn Landscape by Louis Comfort Tiffany. The $500,000 is a US Treasury grant Melina, Scott and I (Credit Union Strategic Planning) landed to help immigrants in Harlem to lift themselves out of poverty. Did you know that immigrants are the poorest of the poor in the U.S. for three generations? And my renewed friendship is with one of the finest people I've ever had the pleasure of calling a best friend. Back in high school he bagged groceries at the store and I worked at the restaurant across the street. Back then he was my first crush. Now he is a remarkable father, brother, son, veteran, and more remarkable friend than I could have imagined. We hadn't seen each other for over 15 years- so of course we met up in
NYC (smile). Like me, he works to help people. And our friendship is a gift, like all things in life- even hardships. His sister remarked that the timing of our friendship was good for him. She had no idea of the good timing in my life for a positive male influence to reaffirm my faith in men treating women with respect. We both lifted each other up and that is where happiness comes from: Our way of being.

Everyday my faith (in a loving God) is affirmed by life. It's occurring to me that the spirit of God in us, the way we are made in the likeness of God means that when we create anything in life it is divine. We see this in the inspiring works of art that are created by Tiffany or the feeling of awe from inventing an opportunity to be a positive change agent in the world. I'm also astounded by the story of Jesus having faith to die on the cross for our sins, and it's profound beauty in reflecting the good that can happen in our own lives and the world when we embrace fear and take a leap of faith to turn adversity (Any hardship. See the 911 memorial cross in the picture) into an opportunity for humanity, kindness and love. As I look at the challenges I've faced this last year, and how the circumstances were altered by surrendering to God and choosing faith instead of fear, I see the gift of a graceful and powerful life.

And that is what's going on in life right now. To that end Melina and I offered Scott Butterfield ownership in Credit Union Strategic Planning and the position of CEO. He accepted our offer and we immediately picked up clients in Alaska, California and Louisiana. The word is out that we are saving small credit unions and helping consumers.

And the H1N1 I picked up in Ohio (yup mom and I got really sick) laid me up at my mother's house, just long enough to let her make me homemade chicken noodle soup, for us to love one another and appreciate all the health and happiness we take for granted.

So I'm jumping on a plane from Ohio back to Tacoma tomorrow. Dylan's sock hop is this weekend and I'm certain to have a great time with the kids and my friends Jenny, Karl and Ayana. Life really couldn't be any better- with the exception of maybe getting to spend a week or a month with my Grandma Jeanne. Guess I'll have to come back to Ohio next month. That I will work on until then, Thank you God for all of the blessings in my life..

Last week before school

It's the last week before school starts and what does that mean for kids? It's the last week to help mom out! (hehe) Actually, Dylan's been at his grandparents in Portland for most of the Summer. It has been a joy to have him back.

I've grown as a parent during these few short months. I realized we needed a few rules, boundaries and for me to clearly communicate my expectations- so he could exceed them. And boy was this the best idea I've ever had. He loves that I am letting him know what to expect up front. So much so, that he looked forward to his chore of washing the car, told me that it was his bed time and offered to make me coffee in the morning.

I can't imagine the coffee making is a permanent thing, but I believe the respect is sustainable. I realized that being consistent with bed time, home work time and expressed rules and consequences is actually showing him respect. We reap what we sow.

It's going to be a great year.

Leap of Faith

I jumped out of a plane yesterday and it was spiritual. In fact I'm jumping into a whole new life. At first I was terrified by all of the life changes. That fear was debilitating. Can I manage the huge home construction project as a single mom? Can I make my business soar without a loving partner to back me up? Then I decided to take control and turn that fear into faith. I tackled the challenges one at a time- and with faith each step I took turned into a giant successful leap. Yesterday I went skydiving to change my entire mindset. It was AMAZING! Remember this is your life and fear can only paralyze you, if you let it. Im choosing to live an empowered life. I am letting go of my fear to make my dreams come true. See my bliss. ( My smile is nearly blinding in this video.) It is in you too.





Separately, I recieved amazing news today. This blog was named #29 on the list of 100 Incredible Philanthropy Blogs by Bible College Reviews.

The review said, "With many people out of work and struggling to make ends meet, charitable giving and philanthropy is more important than ever to help people domestically and around the world get on their feet and lead better lives. If you’re interested in learning how to give back or want to find out more about people and organizations dedicated to philanthropy, the web is a great place to start. These blogs will help you get a clearer picture of philanthropic projects large and small, and ways that you can get the greatest result from dedicating your time or money."

And goes on in the list to describe my blog, "This mom uses this blog as a forum to talk about the community projects they work with in their hometown."

I've been writing much more about spirituality and God's connection to my decision to create an enjoyable life and actively contribute to community. My wonderful church Genesis Global Spiritual Center has guided me to a much more graceful life. I am grateful for the beautiful place of unconditional love it is in my life and community.