Better

Better.

That's my word for the coming New Year, 2013. I saw a few posts in social media where people were asked to pick three words. Well, see, you put me in a position much like the one I find myself in when asked what my favorite movie is, or color, or song. I can't possibly answer those questions with just one answer. I don't think I can pick just three words that would encompass how I would like 2013 to unfold. I can pick three great words, yes. All day long. But they won't be enough, and they will cheat the other, hundred-or-so, fabulous words out there.

So I chose one.

I don't know that I've ever seriously done New Years resolutions. I doubt that I will start now. What I do know is that I resolve to do better. Not just on New Years Eve, in preparation for January 1. But all year, I find myself wishing this. This idea, that graduates from a tiny seed of hope to be better in all things, slowly evolves into a grandiose statement that I sometimes want to shout from a rooftop somewhere.

"I WILL BE BETTER! I WILL CLIMB THIS MOUNTAIN! I WILL MAKE THIS WORLD A BETTER PLACE! I WILL HELP ALL THE PEOPLE AND DO ALL THE THINGS!"

It's a huge world out there, and I am one small speck of a human, on the grid. But, remember that butterfly effect? One small good deed, can send shockwaves across the oceans. I've always believed this.

So what I propose to all of us, are these:

Be kind. Be MORE kind than you ever have been. To complete strangers, and to your own. Sometimes the latter is harder, and I'm aware of that. Try. "we'll take, a cup of kindness, yet....for auld lang syne"

Don't take more than your share. And I mean this. From anyone, from the universe, from the person passing you the plate of food, from the candy dish, from the grocery store, to the sale table in your favorite store. Just take what you need. Pull back a little on what you don't. And if you really believe in me, pull back a lot.

Stop, and take the time to go out of your way to help. If the woman in the wheelchair can't reach the green bags hanging above the celery, help her. Get her a bag, and help her pick out the freshest celery. (I had to add this in, it just happened to me at Kroger, so real life must occur in the blog post).

Call your parents. Every week. If you don't have them here with you anymore, call a family member and just ask them how they're doing. Share your life with them too. It makes their day when you do that. Trust me.

Slow to anger, and slow to judge. Or how about not at all, especially on the judging part.

Listen. To anyone that is taking the time to talk to you. It may be drivel to you, while you're busy working or doing all of the things, but stop what you're doing and listen. Look at them when they're talking to you. Be interested in what they have to say, whatever you're doing can wait a few more minutes.

Eat fresh fruit and vegetables every single day.

Remove one thing from your life that is causing more harm than it's worth. You don't have to tell me or anyone else what it is. Maybe it's a who. Or maybe it's a thing. But do it.

When you go to sleep at night, be grateful for the day.

And finally, have a little faith. In yourself, and others. If that doesn't make 2013 better, well, I don't know what to tell ya.

For the sake of old times, (auld lang syne) and new one's, I'm wishing you a safe, peaceful and prosperous New Year.
With lots of happy in it.

Much love,
Tiffany

PS And I wasn't kidding about the fruit and vegetables! Even Breakfast at Tiffany's will have them!

You.Are.Here.

I stood out on my patio tonight, listening to very little sound, a few leaves rustling with the gentle breeze, in this very warm weather Dallas has been having of late.
I live close enough to the airport that I can always see a few planes going by at any given time of day, and then of course at night I can really see them. It appears that they are flying fairly slow, drawing a line of lights as they ease across my view. But I live just far enough from the airport, that unless they are flying right above me, I can hear no sound.
I was thinking that it looked like the beginning of a movie, no sound, but you see the plane coming in for landing, all lit up so they can be seen as they fly in. I often wonder, who is on the plane, and are they coming home? Or are they visiting family, or coming to the Lone Star State for work? All of those stories, on one plane. It would probably take a while to interview the passengers and write down their words on paper.

So.many.stories.

Patio time, with night sky-watching, always brings deeper thoughts than what I normally have during the day. The world is so vast, so populated, but yet we all share the same moon, and the same sun, and the same constellations. There are probably many people doing the same thing  I am doing, looking up at that night sky, searching for the Big Dipper. But not everywhere. In Paris, it's almost four o'clock in the morning, for example. (It's also 42 degrees there right now, but I won't whine about them being able to have winter weather, while I have the air conditioning turned on). No, really.

Many of us wonder how we matter in this big world that we live in.



I've come to find that we do matter, and not just in our little corners of the world. We might write a few words, or say a few things, to people across the globe, that totally changes their day. My friends and family in Missouri always think of me when the leaves start to burst with those gorgeous Fall colors, because they know it's my favorite season. I'm not always there, but they think of me anyway.

And of course, they think of me when their forecast has snow in it, especially given that I'm not sure that N. Texas will have the kind of winter that I like so much, this year.

During the holiday season, I notice a gentler side to people as a whole. I know it can be a hard time for some. They may not have family around, or have had hard times recently. My wish is, and always has been, that there will be a gift of some kind bestowed on them when they least expect it. It may not be the kind that's wrapped in colorful shiny paper, topped with a big bow. It could be something simple, like a friend calling them to chat, or to have them over for dinner. These small gestures are how we matter.

Giving to our favorite charities, whether it be time or money, is how we matter. Helping a friend, or a co-worker through a rough time, is how we matter. Giving the usually chatty, elderly neighbor, a few extra minutes of our time, even when we're in a hurry, is how we matter.

I encourage all of us to find ways to help those in need this holiday season. Trust me, you will get more out of it than the receiver.

See you soon friend,
Tiffany

PS Breakfast has returned to the patio in the mornings. I might as well enjoy the warm spring-like weather while it's here, yes?