Life is Short . . . Eat Dessert First January 29, 2011
Posted by nrhatch in Food & Drink, Happiness, Life Balance.comments closed
We rarely go out to eat these days. And, if we do go out to eat, we almost never order dessert . . . too many calories, we’re too full, pressing time commitments, not healthy, etc.
Today, we decided to eat dessert first!
We went to Stonewood Grill mid-afternoon for dessert and coffee.
We ordered Chocolate Bread Pudding “cradled by a warm bourbon sauce then topped with Häagen-Dazs vanilla bean ice cream and a homemade chocolate crisp.”
But wait! There’s more . . .
We also ordered chocolate fudge cake, topped with vanilla bean ice cream, a fresh sliced strawberry, and a drizzle of chocolate.
We savored these two decadent desserts until, halfway done, we decided to finish the ice cream and take the rest of the chocolate home.
Was it worth it?
Yes! We enjoyed every delectable moment (and bite) of this rare-to-us special occasion. Life is good, but life is short. Bad things happen . . .
Eat dessert first!
No rules. Just write!
Related posts: Laugh When You Can * Ordinary Miracles * Celebrate Life
Tell Me Lies, Tell Me Sweet Little Lies January 29, 2011
Posted by nrhatch in Happiness, Mindfulness, Spirit & Ego.comments closed
Our Egos love it when people praise us and recognize our accomplishments ~ even if they are not entirely sincere in that praise.
We start to believe the good press we are receiving, causing our Egos to inflate ever faster ~ seeking more respect, more praise, and more admiration from those around us.
Egos are greedy. Less is never more.
What happens when someone tells us that we are not as terrific, wonderful and talented as we’ve been led to believe?
What happens when someone tells us that we have room to grow?
If we’ve absorbed all the accolades and attention, however insincere, POP Goes The Ego!:
Each time we internalize and absorb an insincere compliment (by accepting it as true), Ego starts preening and blowing itself up in self-importance.
Enough vacuous comments absorbed, and Ego is stretched to the breaking point, leaving it vulnerable to HONEST criticism and critique.
One harsh word (or look!) and POP Goes The Ego!
When we learn to use an internal compass, we don’t get caught up in the praise game. We know when we are putting our best foot forward, whether or not anyone else notices. We know when we have fallen short of the bar, even if our mistakes are invisible to those around us.
At the Kadampa Meditation Center in Florida, Gen Kelsang Demo, an American Buddhist nun, teaches classes, such as Finding Freedom through Inner Balance:
It is easy to develop an exaggerated concern for the comforts of this life, such as possessions, respect, pleasure, praise and a good reputation. Often our pursuit of respect, praise, and admiration creates anxiety, stress and frustration. We feel over excited when we have them and dejected or discouraged when we lose them.
To our disappointment, we also discover that in and of themselves these things do not have the power to provide the lasting happiness we wish for.
In this series we will discover inner sources of the happiness we wish for and learn how to develop a stable and balanced approach to the things of this life.
On the website, the Center also identifies a few key texts for home study. One of my favorite synopses is from the book, Transform Your Life: A Blissful Journey:
If we are skillful, friends can be like treasure chests, from whom we can obtain the precious wealth of love, compassion, patience, and so forth. For our friends to function in this way, however, our love for them must be free from attachment.
If our love for our friends is mixed with strong attachment it will be conditional upon their behaving in ways that please us, and, as soon as they do something we disapprove of, our liking for them may turn to anger.
In fact, the most common objects of our anger are often our friends, not our enemies or strangers!
That has certainly been my experience. How about you?
Has anyone ever told you that they loved and admired you . . . only to push you away the minute you failed to meet their expectations?
No rules. Just write!
Related posts: The 2011 Sexiest Blog Award * WTF: Watch That Feedback * Let Go, EGO! * A Change Would Do You Good * Why Write? * No Jivin’
Spirit Lights The Way 