Tag: faith

A Wish For My Children: May We Live Simply

Posted on May 14, 2013 by

Mother’s Day at Lake Tahoe, CA: A wish for my children

 May you live simply.

May you remember the basics.

May you resist the urge to overcomplicate life.

Simply breathe and move

and speak with care,

offering all the good you hold in your heart.

And then let go,

in love,

with faith and an open hand.

Let life bloom in its own sweet way.

And trust that

all will be well.

~ C. C.

 

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Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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The Opposite of Life is Indifference-So What Are You Doing About It?

Posted on April 3, 2013 by

Apathy

Apathy or indifference? (Photo credit: Toban B.)

The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.

The opposite of art is not ugliness, it’s indifference.

The opposite of faith is not heresy, it’s indifference.

And the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference.

– Elie Wiesel

Be honest, now. Wouldn’t  your life more meaningful if you just stood up for…

your self?

your child?

your job?

your beliefs?

for something?

for someone?

So why don’t you? Why are you indifferent?

Apathetic?

Scared?

Worried about what someone might think of you?

What if that’s what Elie Weisel thought?

Or Helen Bamber,

Founder of the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture, Amnesty International, the Helen Bamber Foundation and campaigner for human rights?

Or Camila Batmanghelidjh,

The founder of Kid’s Company, which offers practical, emotional and educational support to vulnerable inner-city children?

Or Margaret Chan,

 Director of the World Health Organisation, battling international viruses, and championing improvements in all of our most pressing diseases?

Or Shirin Ebadi,

Iran‘s first female judge, founder of the Human Rights Defenders Centre and the first Muslim woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize?

OrLubna Hussein,

Sudanese writer and women’s rights campaigner, who asked to go to trial after being arrested for wearing trousers?

Never heard of them, you say?

Well, the world had never heard of them, either,

until

they fought for

love

peace

faith

and made a

DIFFERENCE.

Now it’s our turn.

Love and...

Love and… (Photo credit: dutchamsterdam.nl)

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Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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Let It All Go, And Flow…

Posted on March 20, 2013 by

freeimages.co.uk nature images

image courtesy of freeimages.co.uk nature images

Let go of the ways you thought life
would unfold; the holding of plans
or dreams or expectations – Let it
all go. Save your strength to swim
with the tide.

The choice to fight what is here before
you now will only result in struggle,
fear, and desperate attempts to flee
from the very energy you long for.

Let go. Let it all go and flow with the
grace that washes through your days
whether you receive it gently or
with all your quills raised to defend
against invaders.

Take this on faith: the mind may never
find the explanations that it seeks, but
you will move forward nonetheless.

Let go, and the wave’s crest will carry
you to unknown shores, beyond your
wildest dreams or destinations. Let it
all go and find the place of rest and
peace, and certain transformation.

~ Danna Faulds

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Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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On the Corner of Dream Ave. and Believe St.: Stepping Out Of Our Comfort Zone

Posted on February 20, 2013 by

“To the degree we’re not living our dreams, our comfort zone has more control over us than we have over ourselves.”

                             ~ Peter McWilliams

comfort zone

From angelvillanueva.com

What is on the other side of change?  How often, when we find ourselves happily cruising down the  road of life, do we stop and think about what’s next? The superstitious among us might not want to jinx a good thing-why think about what might be around the next bend? Why not just keep on chugging forward? Don’t rock the boat? The grass isn’t always greener on the other side, right?

I’m wondering if maybe it actually is.

As Peter McWilliams, author of Do It! Let’s Get Off Our Buts and Life 101: Everything We Wish We Had Learned About Life in School—But Didn’t says, if we really want to live our dreams, perhaps we should think what’s just beyond the horizon or around the corner. Pushing ourselves outside our comfort zone means a momentary loss of control-scary for some of us, exhilarating for others.

Living in our comfort zone is safe.  We know what to expect, and we often feel guaranteed of the outcome.  That is, well, comforting.  Whether it’s the salary we earn from a job we don’t feel passionate about, or a relationship we are used to, a weight we feel is ok, or a dream we think we’ll never achieve, staying put is only a guarantee that the part of life that is comfortable will likely stay the same.

But is that living our dreams? Are we simply designed to be content, with only the renegades among us willing to take a risk?

12 7 iNDONESIA TRIP 110Last summer, I traveled to Indonesia-a place I never considered as part of my life travel itinerary. That experience propelled me to take dozens of risks, including getting incredibly cozy with a Komodo dragon. I remember the palpitation of my heart, the baby steps I took, first touching the back, the tail, and them finally getting close enough to his face to brush my lips to his scales.  Recently, the Jakarta Globe’s story of a Komodo attack that left two people in the hospital prompted discussion among our travel group: were we courageous, or simply stupid?  I say, courageous.

I think of the pioneer women who traveled across the west without any clue of what lay before them. They stuffed their wagons full of all the comforts of life, sure that their china, linens, furniture and even their beloved piano would not only safely make the trip, but also provide the much desired civilization they left behind.  Leaving their comfort zone often meant following their husband’s dreams, not their own. But they went anyway, knowing they might never go back. I’m sure komodo dragons weren’t on their worry radar, but undoubtedly the fear of the unknown, the fear for their children, and their second guessing of their decision as they huddled over a campfire for the hundredth time must have seriously tested their strength.

The curveballs life throws today’s women is similar.  Many of us follow expected gender roles, marry, have children, and put our careers second to raising the family.  Others forgo the traditional route, choosing instead to follow their dream job at the expense of what our mother’s generation could barely fathom.  Still other women try to balance both, exhausting themselves between juggling babies, bosses and never feeling wholly present in both worlds. Like the pioneer women, we ruminate over our choices, wondering if we’re on the right path.

Stepping out of our comfort zone, regardless of our social, marital or work status, requires a leap of faith; sure that our future can be more than this, that our life is ours to create.  It requires courage, determination, and often, a bit of impracticality.  Taking calculated risks that push us towards our boundaries, to find out what is on the other side of change, is scary.  Like a rocket shooting off into the darkness of the universe, sometimes we must trust that the plans have been laid, but the process might bow,flex and bend us into places we least expected to land.

Power-shift

Power-shift (Photo credit: Brett Jordan)

With all our feminist advances, women today have no guidebook to navigate motherhood, marriage and the myriad of opportunities in front of us. I say that’s a good thing.

Consider that your comfort zone is perfect for where you’ve been and where you are right now. Consider going at your own pace, placing opportunities in front of you like a master chess player, sometimes hoping that the risky move won’t be noticed by the opponent and will propel you to the win.  Prepare for the setback, the capture, and the ultimate possibility that the grass really is greener on the other side. Think of the words author Neale Donald Walsch wrote, “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” Where do you want your life to begin tomorrow?

What are you waiting for? Where do you want to go in life? What have you got to lose?

Take that leap.  Step outside yourself. Take control of your dreams. Experience a little discomfort-it means that life is happening.

Let me know what changes.

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Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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Take a Walk With Me…The World Is Holy

Posted on February 16, 2013 by

“The world is holy. We are holy. All life is holy.

Daily prayers are delivered on the lips of breaking waves, the whisperings of grasses, the shimmering of leaves.”

~ Terry Tempest Williams

Take a walk with me.

When I need to be alone, this is where I head.

IMG_3522

When I need to remember to look closely.

IMG_3525  IMG_3518

When I need to hear prayers whispered to me,

IMG_3527  IMG_3538

and see the color, witness the adaptability and the tenderness of the world outside myself.

    IMG_3537  IMG_3531

When I need to be reminded that life is a study in contrast.

IMG_3517

and that we are merely the recipients of her beauty.

The world is holy.

We are holy.

All life is holy.

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Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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