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A source of peace in my car with a very clever 4 year old…

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Any body that knows me and my 4 year old knows that we are the ladies of GADGETRY. I love computers more than I love PBJ sarnies…. and left to my own devices I could live of PBJ sarnies for at least a month. I digress…. Back on track in 4, 3, 2 and now… so my kid loves Angry Birds, much to my annoyance. I’m a bit sore because although I’m a geek, the gaming gene is not in me. She gets it from her father. So of course when I was on http://www.WPCentral.com today and saw that Angry Birds Roost was now live on Lumia devices I was overjoyed. ( I have the Nokia 900 for business and I LOVE IT… LOVE IT…. LOVE IT…. LOVE IT. iPhone killer in my opinion.) For moms with long commutes and highly technical children, this could be a small Blessing in disguise. I tend to let her play games on her Nook Color, but on the days I forget, I have to turn over that Nokia 900 if I don’t want a “4 score and 20 goldfish ago” speech from my 4 year old…. which will end in tears. So, all of you Nokia Lumia mommies out there… you know what to do! Download Roost and sip your homemade latte(s) or Tazo teas in peace, while your kid works through their aggression by launching rabble rousing birds through the air at solid objects. Enjoy!

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I should tell you… it’s not the game, it’s just all things Angry Birds. Giggle!

Isaiah 32:20 (ESV)
Happy are you who sow beside all waters, who let the feet of the ox and the donkey range free.

Well the month of happiness is almost over, so as a token of all of you riding the “happiness” train with us for October, we are posting some goodies to help you maintain your happiness throughout the rest of the year. Enjoy the posts.

Gayatri mantra is one of the most effective mantra for harmony and happiness. It is also known as the mother of the Vedas in Hinduism. Chanting of the gayatri mantra removes all the obstacles, to increase the growth, wisdom and development. It is the superlative mantra. Gayatri mantra will protect you from harm wherever you are, make your intellect shine, improve your power of speech, and dispel the darkness of ignorance.

“I do not trust people who don’t love themselves and yet tell me, ‘I love you.’ There is an African saying which is: Be careful when a naked person offers you a shirt.”  ― Maya Angelou

When I met my husband, I was 29. I didn’t believe in forever, I lived for the now. He held my hand. Told me how beautiful I was while making me feel magical and special. I couldn’t imagine life without him and I always wanted to be with him. It was he that started me to invest in forever.

Fast forward one move to America later, one house built later, one miracle baby later… It was the forever that held me in place while my marriage crumbled aimlessly around me. I kept dreaming of those sunrises we’d see in Devon. I kept dreaming of someday visiting Rome as a family.

Forever seemed attainable for me.
Then as he walked out… My belief in forever ended and I was so filled with sorrow, beguiled by pain of having my unconditional love discarded… I immediately stopped believing in forever, because now I realize my forever wasn’t real.

I lost forever in my marriage…
I lost the love in my marriage forever.
Forever.

Or being loved with a your flawed glory?  I imagine that love… Gut wrenching love is a life force, a beauty felt deep in you heart and a reason to smile every morning. I envy that love… As I have always wanted it… Even when I thought I had it.

Today… I came across this quote and posted it as my FB status. I was very moved…

“Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor, the enemy of the people. It will keep you cramped and insane your whole life, and it is the main obstacle between you and a shitty first draft. I think perfectionism is based on the obsessive belief that if you run carefully enough, hitting each stepping-stone just right, you won’t have to die. The truth is that you will die anyway and that a lot of people who aren’t even looking at their feet are going to do a whole lot better than you, and have a lot more fun while they’re doing it.” – Anne Lamott (Bird by Bird)

This was posted on Facebook and I could not get my breath. It was refreshing but it was powerful. Being forced into a situation where I am now a single mother, being raised by a single mother when my parents divorced at the age of 5 …. I have never seen single parent hood as the root cause of problems in America. While agree that a two parent family is best for some situations, living through a divorce has now taught me that good role models and good co-parent from mom and dad can help make single parenthood just as dynamic as a two-parent family. We are in the land of America, where with love, a great support system, good education, hard work, imagination, creative and pure moxie anything is possible. This picture lit up my heart and changed my mind about single parent hood… regardless if you are married or divorced, a parent is still a hero, an idol and a role model for greatness.

I love talking to my friends on the telephone. It’s like having a little piece of home (Chicago) in my living room, or kitchen or back porch.  You can hear the laughter, the funny looks when you say something grotesquely inappropriate and the smiles.  A chatty phone call where you catch up, dish or just talk about the doldrums of the day.  Friends are the family we get to pick and through out my life, I’ve made choices that were spectacular. 

Go hug a friend and feel happy!