Maggie’s Thought for the Month: Sometimes Your Destiny Is Behind a Closed Door

There are many quotes about finding your destiny. I can quickly recall the quote about when a door is closed, God opens a window. I’d like to think sometimes finding your destiny involves a little door kicking.

Maggie was always sniffing. She especially liked to sniff around things that she couldn’t get into. For example, the basement door in our home was always closed.  I would constantly find her sniffing the crack between the door and the floor- with tail wagging of course. Other times, she would be outside sniffing along the fence that enclosed our yard. If she found something of interest, she would continue to pester me until I investigated the area with her. She would not give up until her curiosity was answered.

Some people believe your destiny is written before you are born. I think life would be very mundane if that was true. No matter what you did in life, the end result would never be your decision. I believe we have many paths to choose from in life. Your results depend on how willing you are to take chances, follow your heart, trust your instincts, and, sometimes, be willing to kick in a few doors.

‘Destiny is no matter of chance. It is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.’ William Jennings Bryan

Maggie’s Thought for the Month: Difficult Choices Are Best Made With Your Heart

Growing old can definitely guarantee two things: you will encounter the responsibility to make difficult decisions, and you will learn to trust your heart more when making those decisions.

Maggie, as a dog, didn’t have the responsibility of making many decisions. Her choices typically comprised of choosing a toy to squeak & chew, finding a cool spot in the house to take a nap, or deciding which squirrel to bark at in the tree. One thing, however, was very noticeable about her decision-making process.  Once she made a choice, she was content.

Adults, when making decisions, like to have all the information regarding the pros & cons. We ask ourselves what may happen with a different choice, or how other people may respond- or think of us. As we grow older, life experiences help us to reflect on past choices & their outcomes. Often, we reach out to friends, family, or mentors for guidance and support.

When a difficult decision is made, it is our heart that gives us a feeling of relief & inner confidence that the best choice was made. Our heart reminds us of unconditional love, pure joy and feeling alive in the moment.

It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. Antoine de Saint-Exupery

If You Like Reality TV, You Should Be Living In A Cave

I recently attended a conference on how the brain works. I learned we gravitate towards events that stimulate our brain to become aware of risky behaviors, distrustful people or the possibility of extinction. We enter a fight or flee mode-used during primitive times to protect ourselves from the enemy. Unfortunately, reality television has brought us back to this primitive time.

If you enjoy the Kardashian’s, Bachelorette, or Survivor- consider yourself a sucker. You have been brainwashed by Hollywood to return to your primitive life-style. People who watch these shows are allowing their brains to connect neurons with experiences that validate it is okay to use others for personal gain, view intimate relationships as something that can be shared with millions of people, or justify that how you win isn’t important- it just matters to win.

I remember a time when television informed us of these primitive behaviors- it was called the news. We were aware that mean people exist, and sometimes bad things happen to good people. However, our entertainment shows reminded us there are more good people in this world than bad, and being good should be everyone’s purpose in life. We laughed at the comedies of Carol Burnette- yet she never had to swear or insult anyone’s lifestyle. We admired the love shown between the actors portraying Charles & Caroline Ingalls and John & Olivia Walton, yet they never made a sex video.  Even MASH showed how people placed in catastrophic environments still tried to maintain civility, and hoped for a greater good to come from a place of tragedy.

Today, I have over two hundred channels to choose from on my television. However, I am finding the majority of the time, there is nothing ‘good’ to watch. I don’t care to see people shoot, insult or have sex with other people. I don’t believe vulgarity or nudity in a film makes it more dramatic or ‘plot effective’-as I heard from one director being interviewed after his film won a Grammy.

I understand that Hollywood is all about the money. After all, they cancelled Cedar Cove, but have no reservations in allowing the next generation of decision-makers to grow up with the Kardashians. I wonder what type of imagery is created when neurons are connecting, while watching selfish people make a lot of money?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone Blooms When They Are Ready

It seems like today’s world has everyone rushing to get somewhere or become someone. We watch the morning news to learn about traffic delays and best alternate routes to get to work as quickly as we can. We ask children that most annoying question-‘what do you want to be when you grow up’, and encourage young adults to start saving for their old age because ‘it comes quicker than you think’.

So far in my life, I have moved to a new residence a total of four times. Every time I moved, I have taken my two Christmas cactus plants with me. Years ago, a friend gave me two tiny clippings of her Christmas cactus and said, ‘they take a while to grow, but once they take root, they will flower’.  After my fourth move, I wondered why I was wasting my time with these plants. They grew some, didn’t look all that pretty, and never once did I see a flower. About six months after my latest move, I was watering the plants and noticed they looked a little stronger. Their green leaves seemed to stand a bit taller and their stems appeared thicker. A year later, around Thanksgiving time, I awoke in the early morning and pulled up the shades in my living room. I turned to the Christmas cactus plants and smiled. Each plant had at least six or seven flowers in full bloom.

I wish we would give everyone the time and patience to bloom when they are ready. Like my Christmas cactus, people cannot be rushed to find their special purpose in this life or hurried to grow and be strong. We all need to enjoy where we are in the present, learn from our life experiences, and take what we need to help us blossom into the person we are meant to be.  Everyone will bloom when they are ready.

Linda Massucci is the author of the Manciano Family Saga. The first story in the trilogy, ‘Legacy of Grandpa’s Grapevine’ is available for purchase and has been entered in the Mark Twain Award for First Novel published by an author. The second story in the trilogy, ‘Mama’s Bookends’, will be released in 2016.

Linda loves to travel and writes about all the wonders of America on her travel blog: Travels with Sissy. If you know of a destination in America Linda should visit, please let her know. She can be contacted via her website at www.lindamassucci.wordpress.com

Linda also loves dogs! At the beginning of each month, she writes ‘Maggie’s Thought for the Month’. Each lesson reflects on how her dog Maggie looks at life, and how humans would enjoy life so much more if they did the same. Maggie loves to get likes on her blog, so please be sure to leave one on Facebook via www.facebook.com/lmmassucci or www.twitter.com/@LindaMassucci

Maggie’s Thought for the Month: Footpath or Freeway- What’s Your Choice?

Every January finds people making resolutions. If history taught us anything, one would realize a new year is just another day on the calendar. You can start to make better choices any day of the year. It all depends on the path you take.

Maggie liked to walk the trails in the state forests. She enjoyed the sounds of nature: running brooks, squirrels chatting, and the crunch of leaves under her paws. She could walk an entire trail and never see another person or dog- and she liked that! Even when a jogger passed by, it was far enough from her personal space; she never barked or chased.

When I walked Maggie on the more popular paved trails we find in so many communities, her response was much different. She would bark at the many cyclists passing on our left, show her teeth to the other dogs strolling by- size did not matter, and never was very kind to anyone with a stroller. Maggie enjoyed being outside & walking with me. However, this walk wasn’t as enjoyable as the trails in the forests.

The path we take in life has to be the one that fits our needs. Some people may prefer the freeway to arrive at their destination- quick, fast-paced, and lots of people to enjoy the ride. Others may prefer the footpath-a quiet, steady-pace, with little fan-fare. One path is no better than the other.

How does one know what path to take? The one that finds us enjoying to be ourselves.

“It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

The Will to Win Doesn’t Matter

Last week, I heard a quote from Paul ‘Bear’ Bryant- ‘It’s not the will to win that matters- everyone has that. It’s the will to prepare to win that matters’.

What a great lesson to teach our children and remind ourselves as adults. We all have a struggle in our life, a mountain to climb, or an obstacle to overcome. So often, we concentrate on how much we want to conquer our battles or receive that promotion. How much time do we actually spend preparing to win? When life becomes difficult, do we will ourselves to give up? Do we provide encouragement to others to keep preparing, or do we comfort them into accepting their present situation is their destiny?

Preparation is difficult, stressful, exhausting and sometimes extremely slow to show results. It also develops a strong work ethic, confidence, perseverance and gratitude. The person who continues to prepare when the odds are against them is the person I want on my team. A strong person isn’t the person who always wins. The strong person is the one who has the will to continue to prepare to win, even when the odds say they won’t.

It is human nature to complain and become complacent in our present situations. Fortunately, we were all given the will to overcome our life struggles. The willingness to use it is a choice. How will you choose to live today?

‘We all have unfair situations and things we don’t like. You can get bitter, discouraged and sour, or you can see it as fertilizer and say, ‘This difficulty is not going to defeat me, it’s going to promote me. It’s not going to hinder me, it’s going to help me. Don’t just go through it, grow through it.’ Joel Osteen

Maggie’s Thought for the Month: Every Season Has a Routine

The changing seasons always bring a change in routines. The arrival of spring means washing windows & curtains, removing leaves from plants that provided warmth during the winter, raking & reseeding the lawn, and cleaning patio furniture. Our lives also provide us with seasonal routines.

Maggie, like most dogs, crave a routine. They feel safe & smart knowing what is coming next, or what is expected of them. Maggie always knew when it was time for our daily walk, when I was coming home from work, and when it was time for dinner. We could be in the yard, but at 5:00 she would nuzzle my leg and start walking towards the house- it was time to eat! Maggie would also show guests the door at 9 pm- it was bed time, they needed to leave.

Every season of our life allows us to choose a routine. We enter this world trying to understand all that is new, attempt to make sense of everything by providing consistency & uniformity to our lives, and towards the end- we reflect on our choices, hoping they provide some guidance & security to the one’s we will leave behind. Our ‘routines’ become our story.

To live is to choose. But to choose well,
you must know who you are and what you stand for,
where you want to go and why you want to get there.
– Kofi Annan

---