When Things Get Ugly...How to STILL have a Lovely Day!!!

Well, now! Just when I decide to change the title of my post to match all other social media, I get the chance to put my words to action. A new blogger, and very busy one, I hadn't been here since the day the blog was created. When I logged on, the first thing I noticed was that my profile pic looked fuzzy. Upon closer examination, I discovered that it had been altered to change what I'd thought was a pretty nice smile, to one where I had buck teeth. What? Surely, I'm mistaken. I click on my profile for a closer look and yep, no mistaking it now. The pic is a poor reproduction of the professionally shot original and there has definitely been a streak of white added to enlarge my teeth. Hum...

My first thought was one of curiosity. How did someone get into my profile to change the pic? All answers, assumptions and similar experiences welcomed! My second was, "why mess with someone else's pic?" That touch-up was UGLY! My third one was to head over to FB and tell all my 5K friends about my interesting experience. The fourth and final one is to share it here and let you (and whoever had enough time on their hands to break into my profile) that I'm still smiling, albeit with no more buck teeth. 

Often it's not what happens to us, but how we react that determines what kind of day we'll have. Some would have considered it justified had I gone into a rant, fired off a anger-filled tirade to the  Blogspot police and called this creative culprit every name but what is written on his birth certificate. Why in the heck would I want to generate negative energy for something this minor? With thousands of folk dying every day, millions getting injured, thefts, robberies, war, famine, this is barely worth mentioning - except it did give me something to blog about, which I totally hadn't planned! I look at this and similar incidents this way - if the worse that happens to me is someone practices their creativity on my blogspot pic...mine will continue to be a very Lovely Day!

Friends Are Forever...

Last night...I heard from my friend, Foot!!!

At first glance, this may seem like a regular thing, an event that happens every day for millions of people all around the world. You're right, it is. But hearing from him was very special. You see, on  May 9, 2014, my friend Freddie "Lightfoot" Woodley earned his angel wings. He went to the other side. 

I think at some part of my being, I've always believed that when bodies die, the spirit remains alive. I can remember my dad talking my great-grandmother a "seer," who'd comment on such spirits walking along the dusty country roads of Arkansas. When my grandmother earned her wings, she came to me. It was a month or so after she'd left us. I'll never forget the "dream." I saw her walking across a beautiful meadow, luscious green grass and colorful flowers. I was younger, my heart felt childlike, as I watched her walking toward me. I was so happy to see her!!! She looked younger, too, and so peaceful. As she neared me, no words were exchanged between us. She reached out to me. I placed my hand in hers, and we went walking back across the meadow with smiles in our hearts. That was more than ten years ago. She hasn't come back to visit me again, but she's welcome any time!

So last night, I'm "dreaming." I put the word in quotes because it's really another realm - similar to dreaming - but not quite. There may be a word for it. If so, I don't know it. But in this  state I "called" him, and told him that I'd seen his place, or I heard he had a new place, or something like that.

"You mean my place up here?"

At these words, I became aware that Foot was on the other side and I was talking to him. I was both the observer, looking at what was happening, and the observed, participating in the experience. There was a tingling feeling all over my body. I answered simply, "Yeah." It's all I could think of to say.

"Ahh, it's nice up here, girl."

"Really?"

"You know what I really like about it?"

"What?

"It's so quiet."

I tried to stay there, talk more, hang on to the moment, but I must have gone back into my sleep state because the next thing I knew I was being awakened by the sun. The morning went on as usual. It wasn't until I got a phone call from my brother, listening to casual chit-chat and laughing at nonsense (he was watching Gunsmoke...really, dude?) that I remembered. Foot. My brother from another mother. Another creative soul who I've known for three decades, now in Paradise, living large.

He came for a visit, and to tell me things were fine. I already believed this. It's what everyone who's ever gone to the other side and come back has said. Still, it was great to hear it from him directly. With the world-class musicians in the heavenly band, I'm not at all surprised to know that for him...it's nice up there.

Freddie "Lightfoot" Woodley, and another good friend, LadyMac McMorris, 

jamming at a private party.

Welcome To My Wonderful Woo-Woo World...!

Shalom! Welcome to my woo-woo world where life is one great big adventure and every day is a dance! 

What is woo-woo you ask? That's the term I use to define my less-than-conventional , non-traditional lifestyle: a belief in Spirit, angels, full-full glasses, dreams, rainbows, fairy tales, miracles, thoughts becoming things, words creating the world we live in...stuff like that. It's the belief in Oneness, that Spirit (God) is all there is and that everyone and everything is connected. It's the knowledge and awareness of how mind/body/spirit are always interacting and working to keep these elements operating in harmony, to be made whole. It's holistic living! 

Everything is possible in the World of Woo-Woo so there's no telling how this blog might flow. One thing for sure...it will all be positive. And it will reflect who I Am: creative artist, lover of Spirit, lover of travel, lover of beauty, lover of nature, chef in my own mind, amateur photographer, pseudo hip-hop/spoken word artist and woman with opinions. Yes, plural! :) 

So whenever you're looking for something entertaining, inspiring, educational or an escape from the humdrum of the day, chances are you'll find a little of what you're looking for in my wonderful woo-woo world.!