Shop Unchained

By Susan | November 10, 2009

As a new business owner competing in a challenging economic climate with big box stores with multi-million dollar advertising budgets, it is easy to feel a bit like David in a share of mind battle with Goliath. So I joined a local initiative called Shop Local Raleigh which is encouraging folks to support independent stores like mine. Here is one amazing statistic from them: If each household simply redirected just $100 of planned holiday spending from chain stores to locally owned merchants, the local economic impact would reach approximately $10 million.

That’s a pretty amazing statistic. But think about it. I use a local attorney, accountant, printer, and graphic artist; I source products like handmade cards and soaps from local small businesses; I switched to a local supplier for office products and shopping bags. Where do you think Walmart prints its flyers? Where do you think their payroll and accounting functions are run out of? Bentonville Arkansas is my guess. Local firms procure local goods and services at twice the rate of national chains. Even with my meager budget, I know that I make a difference to my fellow small business owners.

So as you enter this holiday gift buying season, please pause a moment and consider what you buy and where you buy it. We are all scaling back (me included) so your choices are even more critical. For example, when you buy soap from Calm and Sense, chances are you will select one that comes from beekeepers out in Elon, NC who make every bar by hand or the former restaurant owner here in Raleigh who has become a passionate soapmaker. When was the last time a mall store employee could tell you the name of the person who hand blended their products?

So shop “unchained” this year and get to know your local small business owner. We’ll be there to greet you and thank you personally.

For more statistics about local spending impacts check out http://www.shoplocalraleigh.org/learn/facts_about_shopping_local.html

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The ABCs of Life

By Susan | November 2, 2009
In this season of materialism and stress, it is important to put things into 
perspective. Consider focusing on one of these each day in the month 
of November. And maybe you will find that it lasts longer than one month!
 
Allow others to be right
Be content with what you have
Count your blessings
Dream
Examine your motives
Forgive
Go out into the world in peace
Honor all persons
Imagine more
Just breathe
Keep the faith
Love an animal
Meditate
Nurture yourself
Open your mind
Put others’ needs ahead of yours
Quench your thirst for knowledge
Return to no person evil for evil
Strengthen the fainthearted
Thank others
Use your time wisely
Vote
Win graciously 
Xeriscape
Yearn for peace
Zealously support a worthy cause
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Building a Community

By Susan | October 19, 2009

The following was written by my friend and neighbor, Kathleen, who responded to a posting that I put in our community listserv asking for help with a playground project in a challenged neighborhood. I was totally inspired by what she wrote and in honor of National Volunteer Week, I wanted to share it with all of you:

 

“When I saw the request on the listserv seeking volunteers to help revitalize the Lane Street playground, I was truly compelled to spend a little bit of my time helping the community. I decided that I could contribute at least an hour’s work that morning.  Never mind that family and friends were arriving that day from Dublin and London for the U2 show and there was no shortage of things I needed to get done that Thursday morning.  Never mind that I was six months pregnant.   Let’s just say that I was optimistic that I could be of some help.

 

So, off I went.

 

I arrived at the site – a mere two blocks east of the Oakwood boundary – to what could only be described as a sea of people and the best music I’ve heard since my clubbing days.  There were Park District staff, Home Depot volunteers, staff from Marbles, community members: it was a truly impressive mix.

 

I checked in and was assigned to a group of folks building cubbies for the Tarboro Road Community Center which is affiliated with the park.  I couldn’t help but wonder if someone from the Oakwood Garden Club had called ahead and warned them to keep me away from the plants.  At any rate, the cubbies were an important contribution as they would serve as a safe place for kids to store their belongings before utilizing the park amenities.

 

My group was run by three very clever Home Depot fellas who were both personable and focused.  Together we cut, nailed, drilled and created.  All around me things were happening, and fast.  The chain link fence enclosed us in the basketball court, the play equipment was being assembled and the plantings were safely in the ground.  These people were closers!

 

It was only when the lunch table was being assembled that I had realized I needed to get moving onto other less interesting chores before I collected my son from preschool.  I hadn’t noticed that nearly two and a half hours had passed.  And as I left, I felt more than optimistic.  I felt grateful.  I was grateful for the opportunity to help the community, grateful for the chance to meet some interesting and socially-aware people and grateful for the diversion of daily activities. 

 

Now as I pass by the playground I feel personally invested, and I am reminded of that Chinese Proverb: One generation plants the trees, another gets the shade.  Here’s hoping the playground provides shade to many for years to come.”

Kathleen

 

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Dreams

By Susan | October 13, 2009

Back in the day, colleges sent out letters to inform students whether they had been accepted. The thickness of the envelope told you whether it was a “yes” (additional forms to fill out and probably the instructions for turning over your life’s savings ;-), or a “no” (really, how many words does it take to say they don’t want you?). My niece went on-line the other day and found out she had been accepted to the University of Texas at Austin, her first (and practically only) choice. She is filled with excitement at this next step in her life.

 

Other than marriage and parenthood, I can’t think of any other moment in life that is so full of anticipation and dreams. A few freshmen know what they want to major in but most use the first years of college to discover what they are good at and what they can be passionate about.  If they are lucky, that self-discovery takes them on a path of fulfillment and challenge. If they are even luckier, they find jobs that turn into careers and bosses that turn into mentors, they put their heart and souls into companies that actually behave like “our employees are our most valuable asset.”

 

An 18 year old doesn’t yet know of life’s realities. The world is opening up for them and they go forth like they are Neil Armstrong stepping on the face of the moon for the very first time. They stumble, they might even take a step or two back, but the lure of Possibility is usually strong enough to help correct their course. They learn endurance and tenacity. Their dreams are the most exciting thing in their life right now. And my wish for Meghan, and all the others, is that their dreams come true.

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A Peaceful Path

By Susan | September 26, 2009

The labyrinth awaits the sojourner – almost calls her by name.

Will you enter my simple boundaries and journey my paths

One step at a time?

~Suzanne Moody

 

Last week we were treated to a “walking meditation” by Judy Homer (www.soulbasedcoaching.com), who has worked extensively with labyrinths as a meditative tool and who brought her canvas here to the store. “What IS that?” my customers asked, looking warily at its bright pattern trying to discern its intent. “Try it” I replied. That night as the late summer sun set, we lit candles, turned on music and settled into a different rhythm for our silent meditation. As one who can barely chew gum and walk at the same time, I found I had to concentrate on my steps a little too closely, so the hand-held labyrinth was more my speed. Sitting comfortably with the beautiful wooden board on my lap, I closed my eyes and let the music replace the usual chatter in my head. My finger traced the unfamiliar grooved path, going ever slower so I wouldn’t miss an unexpected turn. I found my entire body swaying with the gentle arc of the path, my finger enjoying the sensation of smooth touch as my breathing slowed to match my progress. Or lack of progress. Suddenly, I wasn’t in a rush. I could enjoy the surprise of the design, the feeling of calmness if my finger slid out of the groove and onto a different part. Not the path I had intended? No problem, this path is interesting too! Without my eyes being able to anticipate where I was going, I was relying on instinct and the pleasure of the journey. If only every moment in life were as forgiving!

 

A twist inward.

A transformation outward.

A fresh view from fatigued eyes.

All part of a simple design of much complexity,

With the whole greater than the sum of the steps.

All the while traveling…..

One step at a time.

 

To learn more about Suzanne Moody and to read the entire poem, go to http://www.lessons4living.com/index.htm

Posted in Events, Relaxation, Stress Relief, meditation | 1 Comment

The Life In Your Years

By Susan | September 14, 2009

“It’s not the years in your life that count, but the life in your years.” Abraham Lincoln

 

I recently signed up for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s October walk to raise research funds for the childhood cancers that claim tens of thousands of kids every year. I will walk in honor of Jacky, my son’s dearest friend – and I can say oldest as well because, despite being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma at 13, she was fortunate to be treated at one of the country’s top oncology centers, with a special strength in childhood cancers, and today at 21 she is a healthy, happy young lady poised at the beginning of her adult life.

 

But I attended a presentation yesterday by a mother who lost her 8 year old daughter to cancer last year. Instead of wallowing in grief, she has formed a non-profit that provides spiritual and emotional support to children and their families — something shockingly rare in our state-of-the-art cancer centers. Her description of her daughter’s courage during the terror of chemo, of her losing every strand of hair, of having to look her mother in the eye and ask if she would die, broke my heart into a thousand pieces.

 

All I could think of was how lucky we were that Jacky survived. Survived to dance at her prom, have her heart broken by her first boyfriend, attend college, and dream of a future. No matter how many more days, months or years she has ahead of her, each is a gift that might not have been made if it weren’t for a cure. What’s that song by Tim McGraw? “Live like you were dying”. I think Lincoln would agree. But I think he would also want us to strive for an end to childhood cancers.

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You Have Won a Million Dollars!

By Susan | September 4, 2009

Ah, spam. What did we do for amusement in the days before emails that promised us a better body, a healthier love life, and money that we didn’t even have to work for? This might be a rhetorical question, but have we turned into a society that truly thinks you get something for nothing? A slimmer body without the work and sweat of exercise. Sincere friendship simply by clicking the “accept” button on Facebook. And millions in my bank account simply by replying to an email.

 

Aren’t we still willing to work for the important things in life? I remember interviewing candidates for a job I had open in my department and these fresh-out-of-college newbies didn’t ask about the job requirements, they asked about the vacations and perks. Granted, I worked way too hard for companies that in the end cared more for CEO bonuses, so I am not advocating unthinking loyalty or sacrificing life and health, but I long for a ethos that says that hard work is what pays off, not luck, patronage, or deception.

 

I have devoted a few blogs to thanking people who have made a difference in my life and fortunes, whether through their attitude or acts. It’s hard work starting a business and I will not be successful without help from others, and I would never forget to count those people as part of my blessings. And I would rather earn a million dollars than win a million dollars because I think there is satisfaction in knowing how I got there.

 

How about you? Would you rather earn it or win it?

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It Matters to This One

By Susan | August 18, 2009

There is a parable that has been around in many forms and it goes like this:
A terrible storm brings great crashing waves to a seaside community. The day after the storm there was a beautiful, calm morning with the sun growing hotter as it rose in the sky. Starfish were washed up on the sand by the storm for far as the eye could see. A young boy walked down the beach picking up one starfish after another, throwing each one back in the life-giving sea. He knew the hot sun would soon be death for them.

A man walked up to the boy and said, “What you are trying to do is hopeless. There are so many starfish and so little time until the sun is too hot. You may as well give up. What you are doing doesn’t make enough difference to matter.”

The boy spoke as he picked up another and tossed to back to sea. “It matters to this one.”

At times it is easy to be discouraged by the depth or breadth of need around us. Many excuse their lack of involvement by saying “I don’t know how to help” or “I can’t make enough of a difference so why bother trying.” That’s why I love this parable so much; it is a humbling reminder that the simplest act can make all the difference in the world to the creature that receives it. Whether you can afford to donate thousands to animal shelters or just adopt one cat or dog, you are rescuing animals from certain death. Whether you can donate one can of soup a week to a food pantry or get up and serve a hot breakfast for the homeless, you are filling a stomach with food and with hope. And whether you can adopt an orphaned child or just teach the one you have that they deserve love and respect, you make the world a kinder place for all.

What are you going to do that matters?

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Seeds of Dreams

By Susan | August 12, 2009

The soil is rich and fertile, fed by the generations before, watered by tears, warmed by smiles.

 

The seed is placed gently and deliberately into its home; great care taken to select just the right spot because after all, a dream is growing.

 

Days and months and years go by. Memories and experiences are added that nourish the growing seed and protect it when it needs strength.

 

The seed emerges from the ground to face the world. Gentle, encouraging words are kind to it but occasional fierce days challenge the bud’s tenacity.

 

Slowly the seed transforms itself; whether it emerges as a beautiful flower, a nurturing food, or a shade tree doesn’t matter, all seeds are worthy of growing into the dreams they are destined to become.

 

Spring becomes the summer of the seed, time for the full ripening of the dream’s potential.

 

Summer becomes fall; the surrounding earth cools and starts its gentle reminder that all things, no matter how beautiful or good, must come to an end. No matter, the seed has blossomed into something that will always be remembered for its breathtaking beauty or its delicious taste or its sheltering shade.

 

Fall slowly but inexorably turns into winter; before the dream is at its end it sends its energy, its hopes and dreams, back into that same soil that once sheltered and fed and encouraged it; there it is captured and held and waits for the next seed of a dream to be planted.

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Conversations

By Susan | August 4, 2009

Yesterday’s newspaper contained a small article, buried near the back and easily missed, about the discovery of the remains of the first American serviceman killed in the war in Iraq in 1991. Navy pilot Scott Speicher had been missing and presumed dead for almost two decades but the US government still had him on the MIA list. In a twist of fate, my neighbor knew Scott and his wife when they were stationed in Jacksonville and had spoken months ago about the family’s pain at not knowing for certain what had happened to him. Their wait is over.

 

My own father has been dead for 14 years. And while the date and circumstances are certain, I have to admit I still get glimpses of men that look like him from a distance and for the briefest of moments and against all logic, I think it’s him.

 

I suppose we all think that our loved ones are taken too early; we long for more conversations and celebrations. An adult when my own father died, I still hadn’t found all the words I wanted to say but I had said most of them. This young man’s children were probably too young when he died to even remember him except through stories and photos. Their conversation ended before it had ever begun.

 

We go through life thinking we have all the time we need to build relationships, atone for mistakes, say goodbye. Every once in a while, it is good to have a reminder that things that need saying should be said now. What does your conversation look like?

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