Live the questions now....

I was in one of my favorite places the other day (Barnes & Noble) when I came across a magnet that, once I read it, I knew I had to buy it.

I don't really like to cover the entire refrigerator with a bunch of magnets or, for lack of a better term, crap, because it looks junky to me. I have what I call, a traveling fridge. The magnets that I do have, are from places that I've been, like Paris....Hawaii, Charleston....

I've always liked to read things that make me think, even if it's just a short inspirational message. This one is pure gold, so I'm sharing it with you.

"I beg you....to have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don't search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live.....everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way....into the answer" -Rainer Maria Rilke

I havent read truer words in a long time. It was like an "a"piphany! See what I did there?

I had to research Rainer Maria Rilke, I haven't heard his name before. I believe I've stumbled upon another favorite.

See you soon friend,
Tiffany

PS I'm happy to report that Breakfast at Tiffanys has been on the patio most of the week. I hope this beautiful weather stays in N. Texas. It's fall after all!

A "picture" of who we are, cemented in cyberspace forevermore...

In a friends recent events, an unfortunate loss occurred, and a friend of hers, a young woman, passed away. It's always sad to read stories like these.  "Gone too soon", the inevitable feeling that washes over us as we share our condolences and feel so sorry for their grief.

I was watching a Dateline special recently about a man that went missing. A few years later, his remains were found. Throughout the entire episode, his Facebook page kept appearing on the screen. It made me look, and sure enough, it's still there.

The woman that passed away also still has an intact Facebook page. The privacy settings are secure (thank goodness) but her picture is almost haunting now, her smile radiant as she holds her dog and grins at the camera. I say haunting only because I know she is gone.

I've been thinking about this for a few days now, what we say and write and do, leaving our "paw print" on the internet. A "picture" of who we are, cemented in cyberspace forevermore. If you have a Facebook page, go back and read your status updates over the last few months. Are they a true picture of who you are? Do they include what you would want everyone to know about you, if something unfortunate occurred and that was all that was left of what you've said?

This is probably why I don't do negativity in Social Media. It doesn't make anyone feel good, first of all, and secondly, what if that was the last thing I said? I wouldn't be a fan of that at all.

I've talked about our "signature" before, here: http://momentsofapiphany.blogspot.com/2010/03/may-i-borrow-pen.html  where I said "Your outlook on a day to day basis, begins and ends with your signature". I still believe this.

As I was writing this post, I did what I asked you to do. I went back and looked at my Facebook updates over the last few months.

The conclusion? It's Tiffany in there all right. I don't need to do any house cleaning. Oh but Zuckerberg, if you're listening, I'd love to add some music to my page, okay?

See you soon!
Tiffany

PS This whole "eating clean" idea has sparked some pretty interesting breakfasts of late. I wouldn't have dreamed of putting oatmeal in a fruit smoothy for example. Quite tasty!

Are we meant to be with just one mate, for eternity?

You know the old saying, "penguins mate for life", right? I've always loved the idea. I've seen this very thing unfold in my own family. My grandparents were married before they were twenty years old and were then married for over 50 years.












Imagine that. A lifetime together. It almost seems unreal to me in this day and age. I don't think I'm jaded, and I'm definitely not against marriage. It just seems so easy these days to bail, when the going gets tough in a marriage, or relationship even.

I've had several people that are in healthy marriages, or committed relationships, tell me that it's a choice. A conscious choice to remain monogamous to their partner/significant other/spouse. I completely understand that, and believe it. It is a choice. I believe it's also hard work. Many people have told me that as well. Although single right now, I've been inside of this hard work before, and it can be tough.
I think fairytales have planted seeds in our little girl brains (I'm speaking for the females here obviously) that provide wonderment, and awe inspiring ideas of what our futures look like with that perfect mate. I know that life doesn't always mimic the fairytale. But, I still believe that it can.


I won't live in a castle per se, or will I?


I spent time in a castle in France two years ago. Someone has to run that place don't they?



My point is, it may not be Cinderella riding in a coach, wearing glass slippers and a sparkly gown, on her way to a ball every evening, held at the castle she will live in one day.


It may be an apartment on the Upper West side in the city, with no yard, with no grass to speak of to walk barefoot through, and no room for a pet. Or, it could be a small house in the country, outside of the small town you grew up in. Maybe a cottage next to the ocean. (I told you I can dream big people)


It could be an apartment in a city that is so jam-packed full of people that you're grateful that suburbs exist. *cough*

I think your fairytale depends on you, and your choices. Daily choices after the big choices. Carefully selecting who you want to spend time with, to allow a relationship to grow. Do you believe in love at first sight?
I don't. I believe in fluttery feelings at first sight. Definitely. But not love. That takes a little time to determine.

I may get flak for this, but I don't know that we are made for just one person for eternity. I'm not against those that feel they are, and they are living that very idea. I'm one hundred percent in support of them. I've just learned so much from a few different relationships that I've had, where I wouldn't change my own story for a thing. Ah well, we all have our own book don't we. Every chapter, every sentence, even the characters, are our own.

I pretty much live my days with full knowledge that this day, and the other day, and tomorrow, brings promise and gifts.
I haven't learned otherwise yet.

See you soon friend,
Tiffany

PS Tea, scones, crumpets, fresh fruit.....for Breakfast. That's what they have in a fairytale don't they? See. We can create our own.