Author Archives: A Star on the Forehead

A Spiritual Sunday in April

14 Sunday Apr 2024

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“My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.” ― Albert Einstein

Last Sunday we went to church services at the Colby Temple at the Cassadaga Spiritual Community in Lake Helen, Florida.  The service was about one and a half hours, and it went by very fast. 

There was a sermon by Rev. Dr. Louis Gates, the singing of hymns, a healing prayer – there were healers available in the back of the church, so people could sit with them and get a dedicated healer’s energy. 

There was also a guest speaker: Jeremy McDonald.  His talk was also short, but interesting and inspirational, about energy and transformation. 

After the service we sat outside by the lake while waiting for the Afternoon Message service.  During this service the mediums, healers and students go around the room and give messages to people in the audience. 

Michael received a message from a medium. I thought it was on point.  I got a message from one of the students. She got everything wrong.  I am still a believer.  I know that not everyone that proclaims to be a medium is one.  Also, she was a student, so perhaps she needs to refine her gift. 

At the end of the day we enjoyed our time there.  We went home with a positive energy.

“I believe in God, but not as one thing, not as an old man in the sky. I believe that what people call God is something in all of us. I believe that what Jesus and Mohammed and Buddha and all the rest said was right. It’s just that the translations have gone wrong.” ― John Lennon

“The material world is simply an expression of the mind; that’s what so many fail to see. We’re so dependent on what is before us that we discount our intuition. Yet if one dismisses instinct, how can one understand or believe in a world that exists beyond one’s sight?” ― Megan Chance, The Spiritualist

Out and about

12 Friday Apr 2024

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“Women usually love what they buy, yet hate two-thirds of what is in their closets.” ― Mignon McLaughlin

Last Saturday – April 6, 2024

We went to a Goodwill store.  I wanted to get some old frames for me to use for my mosaics.  I hadn’t been to a Goodwill store in ages.

I was pleasantly surprised.  This store was so big and there was so many items.  And so many people too!

I saw some brand new shoes, and some beautiful clothing that looked to be in great shape. I am sure if someone takes the time to go around the store, there are a lot treasures to be found.

I reminded myself that I don’t need or want any additional clothing and shoes, even if it is a bargain.  I don’t like shopping anyway, so I normally just want to run out after grabbing what I went it for. I left with 6 frames and 1 vase for $33. 

The only problem I have with such stores is the smell. The moment I walked in, the smell of old hit me.  After a few minutes I got used to it.

After that, we went to Deland, Florida.  After walking around downtown, we decided to stop for a late lunch at De La Vega Restaurant.

I love tapas, so that was an easy choice for me. But in the end, I didn’t choose tapas (small plates).  I chose to order the Churrasco.   

It was a plate with sirloin steak with chimichurri sauce, with sausage with cheese yucca fries and pico de gallo.  It was delicious!! To drink I had cava.  Michael had vegetarian enchiladas and also thought it was delicious.  Michael drank water.

Churrasco

Afterwards we stopped by Deland Fish House Restaurant to get coconut cake for dessert.  We were going to eat there originally, so I had looked at the menu and spotted the coconut cake on the menu.  Remember, I love coconut and I love cake, so that is a winning combination!

The cake was good, but not something I would go out of my way to get it.  Well, I wouldn’t say no if you offered me some right now 🙂

“One can hardly do anything productive when one knows there is cake in the fridge.” ― Joyce Rachelle

Stop Worrying

12 Friday Apr 2024

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“Worry pretends to be necessary, but serves no useful purpose.” ― Eckhart Tolle

Stop worrying and struggling.  Do the best you can with the tools you have.

Worrying about things that you have no control of,  just makes you anxious and depressed.

Worrying robs you of the joy of the present moment. 

At times I have spent too much time worrying, only for the problem to resolve itself later, without my interference.

Do the best you can and what you can, and then let God/Superior Power/Universe/Nature (whatever you believe in) take care of the rest.

“Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.” – Mother Theresa

 

Fully Absorb Life

10 Wednesday Apr 2024

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“Don’t Just

Don’t just learn, experience.
Don’t just read, absorb.
Don’t just change, transform.
Don’t just relate, advocate.
Don’t just promise, prove.
Don’t just criticize, encourage.
Don’t just think, ponder.
Don’t just take, give.
Don’t just see, feel.
Don’t just dream, do.
Don’t just hear, listen.
Don’t just talk, act.
Don’t just tell, show.
Don’t just exist, live.”

― Roy T. Bennett

Birthdays… who needs them?

09 Tuesday Apr 2024

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“There is still no cure for the common birthday.”
― John Glenn

Last month, in the midst of finishing an audit, tax returns and other work deadlines, I turned 58 years old.

58 is just such a foreign number to me.  I don’t feel it at all.  Perhaps it is denial.  

My twin sister and I celebrated by going to dinner at Sergio’s, our favorite Italian restaurant. We went with Michael and our cousin.  It was fun, we had delicious food and talked about a trip that we plan to take together in the summer.

Birthdays have a special way of reminding us that this one life is finite.  Our days here are numbered and we owe it to ourselves to make the most of all our days.  That is my plan.

I don’t always succeed.  Some days feel wasted.  I am one of those people that want to see results, that feels that I need to be always productive.  But life is not about results, it is about “ing”, the doing, the living, the trying. And that could be just ‘nothing”.

On those days that feel wasted, I look back, and I see the details.  I look at the nothingness of the day and I see the immensity of it. And I am grateful.

Life is in those little details. Life is the experiences, but also the down time. Yes, it is just as it sounds:  I am justifying and giving permission for me to do nothing 🙂

“I have a peculiar capacity for doing nothing and yet enjoying myself.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, The Adventures of Elizabeth in Rügen

 

Eclipse – April 8, 2024

08 Monday Apr 2024

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“If we surrendered
to earth’s intelligence
we could rise up rooted, like trees.”
― Rainer Maria Rilke

Two photos from today’s eclipse:

This first one I took in New Smyrna Beach, Florida.  I just pointed the phone to the ski.

New Smyrna Beach, FL

 

This second one was taken by one of my sister’s co-worker in Manhattan, NY.  He put the special glasses in front of the camera.

“Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” ― Anton Chekhov

 

Forever editing

08 Monday Apr 2024

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“Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.”
― Gandhi

Hi friends,

Just saying hello, and a promise to do better.

I have been writing a lot since my last post, but, as you can see, I have not been publishing.  I am back to my old habit of not being able to hit the Publish button.  I am caught in that vicious cycle of forever editing.

It seems that a post is never good enough for the world to see.  I know it is silly.  No one really cares about grammatically perfect posts… well, I think. And yet, I struggle with that.

I still plan on finishing some of those posts.  Yes, I said that before.  I am still cleaning my Drafts folder, but in the last month, I just managed to add more to it.

I do sound like a broken record.  I have been at this very moment before.  Some old habits are hard to break, and the “writing a post and not publishing it”, has become a very bad habit that keeps wining over me.

My new old plan is to just hit publish when I get to the end.  I need to stop the forever editing cycle. So be prepared for short posts.  Perhaps some days I will just post a quote or a picture, just to develop the habit of publishing every day or at least every other day.

“Old habits never die. They just get harder to justify.” ― Kalan Chapman Lloyd, Home Is Where Your Boots Are

 

 

Skiing in Breckenridge

13 Wednesday Mar 2024

Posted by in Daily Life, Finding Me, Reviews

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“I feel the need to endanger myself every so often.” ― Tim Daly

After returning from Florida, we spent one week in NY then went skiing in Colorado.  Breckenridge was divine.  Too bad we cannot be on vacation forever.  Real life was here waiting for me. 

The audit headache continues.  The new auditor that we had to hire is proving to be more difficult than the actual regulators.  He has given me information that is different than the regulation that I know.  At this point, with 2 weeks to go, I have no choice, but just go along and get this done.  After this audit is submitted then I will have decisions to make.

Right now, after putting out a fire, I am taking a break to have coffee. I am using this moment to tell you about my skiing vacation.

I am sharing some of the pictures from Breckenridge below.  Here are some of the highlights and lowlights:

  • We got upgraded to first class on the flight there. On the return we were upgraded to Delta comfort only, but still we had tons of room and a great flight.
  • The shuttle from and to the airport worked out perfectly. We didn’t want to rent a car or to take a chance with Ubers.
  • I was inflicted with altitude sickness for 2 days. I missed one day of skiing. Still, the good 4 days more than made up for those 2 days.
  • The weather was perfect!! It snowed overnight a couple of days, and also on the last day there.
  • It was not crowded on the mountain. There was no wait on the lift lines.
  • My new ski boots are amazing. Easy to put on and remove it, and so comfortable.  Comfortable boots makes such a difference.
  • My new ski goggles, with room for my prescription glasses, was a game changer.  In the past I was pretty much blind on the mountain.  Now I can read the signs, use my phone, etc.
  • My new skis are great, and it means that I don’t have to deal with the hassle of renting. I will still rent when bring my own skis may not be convenient.
  • We ate out 4 evenings. I am highlighting 2 of the meals here.  The best and the worst.
  • The best meal was at Mimos Fancy Tapas. Everything was delicious and perfect. From the service to the ambiance.  We will definitely return next time we are there.
  • The worst meal was at Mi Casa Mexican Restaurant. The food had no flavor and the service was inattentive. Will never return and will warn others about it.
  • Michael wanted to stay in Breckenridge an extra week. I have to keep reminding him that I still have a job. So, we came back.

Skiing continues to terrify me.  I still struggle with it.  I feel out of control. I panic.  Still, I continue… because… I absolutely adore it! Go figure…

Now my focus is on getting this audit done.  We will probably go back to Florida, and also go to Brazil at some point in the next few months.  So much to do, so little time available to do it.

I hope everyone is having a great March! 

Delta’s delicious breakfast

Best food at Mimos Fancy TapasBest Food at Mimos Fancy Tapas

Mimos Fancy Tapas

Mi Casa – worst food ever – flavorless

Tom’s baby-the largest piece of gold found in Colorado

On the chairlift , feeling grateful

My happy place

A gorgeous snowy day

Ten Mile Station lodge

Ten Mile Station lodge

“I am jealous of those who think more deeply, who write better, who draw better, who ski better, who look better, who live better, who love better than I.” ― Sylvia Plath

Driving, Routines and Failures

01 Friday Mar 2024

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“The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routines.” ― Mike Murdock

I am now back in NY. We left at 2am Saturday morning and got home before 8pm.
The driving was not too bad. We stopped every 4 hours to switch drivers, gas up, eat and walk around.

There were two instances that reminded me that I really don’t like driving:

1- Road Rage. There were two people break checking each other, and then they stopped at a traffic light and one of them got out of his car.  I am glad the other driver didn’t engage.  The light turned green and he got back to his car and off they went.   

2- Accident: A little car thought it could sneak in ahead of a truck as the lanes merged  on the George Washington bridge.  I was driving next to the truck and behind the small car.  No one got hurt, but the small car had to be towed. Remind me not to ever take the upper level again. There are no trucks allowed in the lower level.

Back in the NY home, it has been hard to get back into a routine. I was in Florida for only 6 weeks, but it was enough to make me feel a little lost now.  I specially miss my bike.

Even my baking has suffered.  I tried making the pound cake again, but it was a failure.  A tasty failure, but still a failure.  My mistake was trying to add a few drops of vanilla extract after the machine had started mixing it. 

Lesson learned.  Do not open the machine at the wrong times. I will be making pound cake again… after I return from Colorado 🙂

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” ― Thomas A. Edison

About happiness… and 1 Year Anniversary

25 Sunday Feb 2024

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“Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be.”
― Abraham Lincoln

From the moment I read the words “happiness is a choice”, I decided to be happy.  I do not remember where I read that, but the lesson has stayed with me.

I make that choice every single day.  Some days are easy. Some days not so much.

Some days are all sunshine, butterflies and cupcakes.  Some days not so much.  Some days, it all seems to be falling apart and I struggle not to fall into the victim mentality trap. 

At those moments,  I really have to work hard to remember that I can be happy no matter what is going on in my life and around me.

Happiness is not something to be achieved or acquired, but is learning to appreciate all we already have in our lives.   

“For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

One of best and fastest way for me to achieve instant happiness is to make a gratitude list.  Counting my blessings puts me in a happy mental space. Smiling and being grateful for being alive is pure happiness. 

Chocolate cake and fresh bread with butter also help 😉

But all kidding aside. I work hard at not having my happiness tied to a person, circumstance or an achievement. I am happy just because I make that choice. Every morning I wake up and I make that choice.

Life is about choices. 

***

1 Year already!!!!!!

On February 23, it marked one year since meeting Michael face to face – we started exchanging messages on February 8.

Michael has made my life more fun, more adventurous, and indeed happier. 

BUT, I was happy before him.  He was happy before me.  I don’t expect him to make me happy.  He doesn’t expect me to make him happy.  We are just happier together!

And we plan on being happier together forever!

“You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life.” ― Albert Camus