Monday, July 31, 2017

Learning Opportunity at the Poudre River

"You gain strength, courage, and confidence 
by every experience in which you
really stop to look fear in the face."
--Eleanor Roosevelt

Reflections from an ever learning sojourner...

I believe that some of the greatest life lessons with the most growth potential initially come wrapped in not so pretty and very messy packages that we would prefer not be gifted to us.  A few days ago, I was given one of these learning opportunities.  

Two of my children, Braden and Madison, were home for a few days' visit and Braden's fiancĂ©, Alyssa, was also here with him.  We thought it would be a fun adventure to buy some intertubes from Big O Tires and tube down the Poudre River in the Poudre Canyon.  My husband, Michael, and I had seen people doing this last summer and it looked like so much fun!  We even scoped out the river the day before to decide the furthest possible point of entry to avoid the spillways and take a look at the speed of the current.  At that time, I made mental notes that there were a couple of areas where the rocks were too abundant and jagged creating turbulent rapids, and that I preferred not to tube through those.  I also made a point to express to the family that we had to have good shoes on to protect our feet from the rocks.  My expressed concerns about the rapids and jagged rocks and the importance for shoes were a little poo pooed at first as if I was being overly cautious, but I paid no mind to the skeptical looks I received from some of my family members.  I'm a mom, and it's in my nature to protect those I love and to be wisely prepared for the unknown, especially because in the Poudre Canyon there is no cell phone service whatsoever (with any provider).  So unless you find that rare call box somewhere along the long stretch there is no ability to call for emergency personnel in case of an emergency.

Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Life Happens in the Now


Reflections from an ever learning sojourner...

Life happens in the now.  

Though we can find joy and sorrow and gain valuable wisdom from our memories, there is no active life in what has already passed.  That life has come and gone and cannot be undone.

Vibrant life cannot be found in daydreaming about or dreading the future.  We know nothing about that future, near or far, because it is not guaranteed and not yet a reality.  Dreams and ideas can be used to inspire our actions in the present, but that doesn't change the fact that the future is still simply a fantasy in our mind.  

Dynamic living occurs by engaging in this very moment, with this very breath, and in the current circumstances of life.   It is in how we wholeheartedly live this moment that redeems the past and in which the future is forged.

What will I make of my life right now?
© MaryAnn Broussard