audacity

Have you heard a person described this way---They are soooooo audacious!  Saturday question--Are we audacious? The definition of audacious that I'm trying to write about in this "It's Saturday" is--taking extremely bold or daring risks. 

RickyRick says—"Where do you need to be audacious? Where do you need to trust God? Maybe we need to take the initiative to step out in faith, think big, or take a risk. When you’re following God’s dream, we can know he will honor the big steps we take in faith.” You believe that? Are we audacious or a chicken?

I read while eating my oatmeal with half a banana on it--“The best way to measure how much you've grown is not by inches or the number of laps you can now run around the track, or even your grade point average..... It is what you've done with your time, how you have chosen to spend your days, and whom you have touched this year. That to me is the greatest measure of success.” ~ R. J. Palacio’s opinion! Jeanne and I wrote out some goals we had for our winter in AZ before we departed for AZ last fall.  We recently reviewed how we did, and we feel we did quite well, our opinion! Some very important, interesting, challenging opportunities we did. We are thinking we used our time pretty wisely…but we always can do better. Next year we will “hit those decks a runnin' and spin those guns around….

FredieTheFreeLoader asks—"Are you going to read any books in the next year? Are you going to take any seminars? Are you going to grow? Are you going to develop any skills? Are you going to learn any relationship skills? Or are you just going to be the same 10 years from today as you are right now?” I have learned a lot this past winter in AZ from many sources.  Here are a few ideas I have learned from observing folks:  Some folks are really nice to others and those other folks are really nice back to them. Some folks talk about other folks’ lives and don’t talk soooo much about themselves (i.e. and some never talk about anyone except themselves—ouchy ouchy). Some folks are soooo humble and some quite arrogant. Some folks are great listeners (i.e. give their whole attention) and some are terrible listeners (i.e. when someone else is talking to them they don’t look them in the eye but might fiddle with their phone etc.—ouchy ouchy a.k.a. self-glory seekers, narcissistic, mecentered). And some folks' stories are tooo much in detail and are toooo long (i.e. they go on for ever, very boring)! Saturday question—Which folks do you think are audacious?

Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the English poet said--"The light which experience gives is a lantern on the stern, which shines only on the waves behind us." Soooo do we need to look what we have done so we can correct the mistakes and play better in our future? So does our experiences give us reference points from which we can learn and grow? I think soooo, my opinion. BUT do we do it? 

When some of our family was in AZ, we played The Horse Racing Game. We really had a good time, especially our 12-year old grandson, Jimmer. We gave all the players $10 worth of dimes and we played for keeps (i.e. now that makes a big difference). It would even have been more exciting if we all had to play with our own $10. It seems that when we have a horse in the race and we are spending our own money, well, the race is way different ain’t it! When we put the chips back in the box it’s not quite as important, my opinion!

My mentor would say to me—erv, the world measures success in how much money you have but not all folks do. Charles, anybody can be a Charles says—"Curiously, however, few ever address what most folks want (but seldom find) in their pursuit of success: contentment, fulfillment, satisfaction, and relief. On the contrary, as the Executives’ Digest once reported, ‘The trouble with success is that the formula is the same as the one for a nervous breakdown.’ And what is that? Work longer hours, push ahead, let nothing hinder your quest—not your marriage or family, not your conscience, not your health or friends. Be aggressive, if necessary mean, as you press toward the top. At the risk of sounding ultra-simplistic, I’d like to offer some counsel that stands 180 degrees in contrast to all the above: Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you’ (1 Peter 5:5-7).” LuckieEddie says—As for me and my family, we are going for the money, yes we are; we really like money and what it gives us! Money money and more money is the answer; it says that on TV soooo it must be right!

We had morning coffee with some old friends (i.e. old in more ways than one) this week on their patio overlooking the golf course in their 55+ community this week.. TheMN-Enginner and MaryTheNurse asked Jeanne how we met and then they told us how they met some 60 years ago. MaryTheNurse said he took me into the linen closet in the hospital where I was a student nurse and he was a orderly. She said he was an disorderly orderly!  They are audacious folks alright!

I learned from some audacious friends recently by how they showed their generosity in expressing their happiness for us. They didn’t have to be this way, but they did. We were just amazed and touched. We really shouldn’t have been surprised as they are such good folks with good hearts; our kind of folks but we still were!  I tell you what, we have really been eating good! Thanksamillion. I read while eating my oatmeal with half a banana on it—"We are to minister to folks by serving them (i.e. many times with menial tasks, unspoked tasks which some would consider unimportant, but we should also serve with big, important tasks and unexpected expressions.” That just might be audacity! “When we do the common things in life in an uncommon way, we will command the attention of the world.” ~ George Washington Carver's opinion.

WorldClassLarry, a regular flame thrower, says—"Many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally. Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets. The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day. Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so...Love the people who treat you right. Pray for the ones who don't. Life is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it!” The guydownthestreet says--To get into the final four, the rule is simple, win to get in!

We went to a spring training game between the Rockies and the Cubs. A foul ball came our way and came down into Jimmer’s hands. He tried to catch it, but it bounced out of his hands and into the lap of the lady behind him. He was crushed, really crushed. For a 12-year old baseball enthusiast, that was hard to take. Have you ever been crushed? Da! The ball always doesn’t bounce our way now does it. It takes an audacious person to go forward sometimes. Many folks cannot or will not!  Ouchy ouchy! The old lady could have given him the ball, but she decided not tooooo. It was her decision! Saturday question—Have you ever been the old lady? SusieQ who know who she is, says—You make many right decisions, and everyone likes you and then you make one bad decision, and no one does! Life ain’t always easy folks; don’t kid yourself! BUT, maybe the old lady had a good reason why she didn’t give Jimmer the ball, could be! Maybe the old lady taught Jimmer a good lesson in that life isn’t always fair; the only thing that is fair is the Butler County Fair and that’s in June!

Is an audacious person sorta kinda analogous to an anomaly? I don’t know! Sooooo what kind of person are we anyway?

Have a FUN day my friends unless you have other plans. (-:

erv

MyFriendJean said--It takes as much energy to hold out a helping hand as to point a finger.