It is difficult for me to help friends who really get their feelings hurt so easily. I live in constant fear that I will say or do something that will upset them. I have friends who are like that. They wear their feelings right on the chin, and no matter what any one does or says, they right away take it as a personal jab at them. When in fact, it is not meant that way at all. Things are said that are not geared to them at all. It is hard to deal with that, and when I am with friends who do get hurt so very easily, I come away feeling like I have been in a race. It exhausts me.

On the other hand, how pleasant and pleasurable it is to be with friends you know who are always the same. No matter how they feel, or how things are going that day, they are the same people you know and love.

I know the world is made up of all kinds of people, but I find I want to gravitate toward people who share the same kind of goals, the same feelings; not getting hurt so easily, who just have a good time together. There is so much stress in life, that you just need to be with someone who can make you feel good about the way things truly are -- whether in your life, or in your everyday life in general.

1. Look Behind you.
We are many times admonished to not look back, but in some instances I think it is very good to do so. If I want to appreciate where I have come from, and in order to get to my goal, I look behind. I look at the times, places and events that shaped my life. The experiences of the past, good or bad. Not that I want to dwell on any one thing to the extent I refuse to go ahead. But today in this fast paced world, the past, the people who have blazed the trails for us, the elderly, the middle aged; many who have experienced the depression, and the wars have so much to talk about and share that we would be better for their experiences. We need to learn from the past, history. I heard an advertisement recently that had some young girl saying "history...oh I hate history .... it is so yesterday." Just look where we came from. Our ancestors, our leaders over the decades and centuries. Many many times we repeat history; it comes full circle. Look behind you and appreciate how we got to where we are.

2. Look around you. Look at how privileged we are in this country. Look at the world we are in. The glories of nature. The trees, the fields, the flowers, the skies. We know someone great set it into motion, and gave it to us over the ages to enjoy, to live off of, to build our homes, businesses, schools, universities, libraries, hospitals, farms. Look at our neighbors, our associates, our coworkers. Look around you at the people who have given so much to so many, and it is not the leaders, but rather the ordinary hardworking person. The teachers, the preachers, the farmers, the nurses, the doctors, the postal people, the grocery store owners/workers, the office worker, technical workers and so many more I have neglected to mention, but you know who they are, who you are. Look around and appreciate what you have right this moment, at this very time.

3. Look Ahead. Where do I want to be 1 year from now, 5 years from now, 10 years from now. Do I want to be totally satisfied where I am now. Have I learned all that I want to learn? Do you feel you have reached the point where there are no new experiences, opportunities ahead for you? No matter where we are in life, there are always goals, opportunities to reach for. If you don't look ahead, then you really miss out on what you might be able to do. I cannot be satisfied by saying I cannot learn anything else. I want to look ahead and learn how to do something different, or perhaps even more study time. Recently I took up a hobby of scrapbooking, and it definitely is a hobby. I have often heard people say, well I cannot do that. I could never be able to get in front of a group of people and talk, or show someone how to do something. Look ahead and prepare yourself to do just that. My brother-in-law is 70-years-old, and he is learning how to use the computer. I think that is great. Look ahead at what you want to be able to do in the future.
If you are young enough, save your money, build for your retirement. If you don't own your home, strive for that goal (which is what I am trying to do). Who knows if I try hard enough I can achieve that. But you don't know if you do not look ahead. Looking ahead to the future is a good thing too.

Looking back to what our history was.
Looking around to appreciate what you have, and at our world around us.
Looking ahead and preparing to be even better.

Life is just too short not to try to do things with our family and friends. I was just thinking the other day about different places my parents used to take us on Sundays. My dad was a dairy farmer, so the only day he was able to take us places was on Sunday. He still had to milk cows in the morning and in the evening, and so we had to be back in the evening. I always thought that was really wonderful that my dad sacrificed so much to give us that time to see things. We even drove 6 hours one time to go see the Indian mounds in Chillicothe. We got back late, and we all ended up in the barn helping dad carry the milk, sweep, and bed down the cows. We went to area museums, we went to covered bridges, to various lakes and we went to Lake Erie to name a few things. You hear so many people say that they just don't have time for their families. My dad really did not have the time, but he made the time to see that we got enjoyment, education and time together. Mom would pack a picnic lunch and we would sit on a blanket on the grass. I think back on all those times, and I remember fondly and lovingly how mom and dad took the time and energy to do that. To this day, I still like picnics and short trips and try to do them as often as possible. Life is just too short and too difficult not to take the time.

Recently I was in the store to get toothpaste. You know an easy thing to do you would think. I never knew there were so many choices of toothpaste in my life!!! Picking the right toothpaste is not as difficult as making life choices.

In our lives, we make choices every day. What choices I do make can affect me for the rest of my life for good or for bad. We chose what profession we wanted to prepare for, what education we wanted, perhaps our life partner, whether we would have children, a move to a different town or state. No matter what choices I make, if they are good it makes life so much easier. However, if a choice I made turns out to be not nearly as good, it is always good if I can say to myself, I made the choice, and it was not good, so I have to move beyond it, and try to make the best of it. That is a tough thing to do at times. Some choices made are not easy to overcome -- it may take years in fact to overcome them. But in the end, we still have the choice to decide to get beyond that burden.

Spring is here finally after a long winter. It is still chilly, but at least the sun was shining and I could get my walk in at the park.
Spring is one of my favorite seasons. It is a new birth, and everything is springing up and peeking through. The birds can't sing enough right now. It really helps me get through the winter knowing that if I can just make it through one more snow drift, that spring is around the corner. We are so fortunate in this life to be able to enjoy the sights around us. Spring gives us new hope, and new direction. Spring encourages us to get moving, go out in the sunshine, sweep out our cobwebs, and enjoy the world that is about us. I cannot wait to see the daffodils blooming and the buds coming out on the trees. It is truly beautiful to watch all of these things, and know there is a mighty hand making this all come about.
I hope everyone is well today, and I hope that life is treating you kindly. Take time to love your family a little more, and to make someone smile. Call a friend you have not talked too. Send an email to someone you have lost track of for a long time. Sit down and talk with an elderly parent, friend, relative, and make their day hopeful and happy too. It is so good to know that we can make someone just a little bit happier for being in their life. There are so many people out there needing a lot of encouragement.