Embracing the Lull

I've been embracing the lull that happens this time of year.  Winter is still here and the weather continues to be chilly, windy, cloudy and snowy.  Yet each day I witness a promise of the next season.  Have you noticed how light the days are becoming?  I open the blinds earlier each day.  Yesterday I did the dinner dishes with natural daylight.  These tiny events make February a great month.

Holly and Frodo seem to be in a lull as well.  Our evenings are 'mostly' quiet and everyone's behavior is exactly as we predict it should be.  Frodo continues to run down the hallway around six pm and give a specific bark to her.  I think he's asking her to come out and play (which means he wants to chase her).  She of course completely ignores him, for now.

Our furniture arrived!  My body doesn't know what to think about it.  I'm sore in different places but so far it's a good sore and nothing terrible is developing.  Every morning I walk into the family room and admire the newness.  The pets don't know what to think about the furniture.  Frodo refuses to sleep on it like the old sofa.  Pesky Holly wants to scratch the chair.  Luckily she is easily diverted with a fetching game of mousey.  Sometimes she acts like a dog when she fetches and retrieves.

I've been focusing on gratitudes and swatting away stray thoughts that would rob me of serenity.  As you know that is a work in progress for me.  I write out each day and imagine what I would like to do and accomplish.  Having a plan makes for stress free afternoons. 

I'm behind listening to all of my audio podcasts.  Yesterday while knitting and catching up on podcasts, I listened to the knitmore girls podcast and Jasmine discussed how she was being intentional.  I've been contemplating her ideas and thought about myself and my own intentional living.   I can intentionally choose to be worried or I can choose to not be worried.  I can choose focusing on a stress or not. 

I know this:  focusing on my creative pursuits gives me the building blocks to setting an intention that makes my life better.

My grandmother (mom's mom) was quite cheerful and happy not matter what life threw at her.  She had a complicated childhood and worked hard to be a mother while working full time.  She chose happiness and it showed.  I have fond memories of her always laughing and embracing the very best in life.

My other grandmother (dad's mom) was also cheerful and happy.  She laughed about everything and anything too.  She had six children then went on to be a foster mother to an additional 36 babies.  What an open heart to have!

I wonder if either grandmother sat and thought about choosing intentions? 

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