“I appreciate grocery shopping with my husband…like food foreplay to a predictably delicious meal.” (Heather Houston 2-28-26)
“I am grateful my husband noticed the low fuel gauge and stopped to fill up the car before heading home from our errands.” (Heather Houston 2-28-26)
“I am thankful for having the energy to clean the kitchen and start the laundry before starting our weekend errands.” (Heather Houston 2-28-26)
“I am blessed to be the one my husband shares his chefy gifts. Today he made Pho that filled the house with beautiful smells. The Pho was amazing!” (Heather Houston 2-28-26)
“I appreciate our bedtime ritual to wind down our day and reflect with gratitude to bookend a perfect day.” (Heather Houston 2-28-26)
“I am thankful my eyesight is still reasonably good.” (Heather Houston 2-28-22)
“I appreciate being able to spend a sick day home with my favorite person.” (Heather Houston 2-28-22)
“I am blessed to have two children who are serving our country in the Army.” (Heather Houston 2-28-22)
“I am thankful I was able to create and working budget.” (Heather Houston 2-28-22)
“I appreciate my partner working tirelessly on a business plan to create abundance in our lives.” (Heather Houston 2-28-22)
Lyrics: I’m a girl watcher, I’m a girl watcher Watchin’ girls go by, my, my, my I’m a girl watcher, I’m a girl watcher Here comes one now, mh, mh, mh I was just a boy when I threw away my toys I found a new pastime to dwell on Whenever I detect members of the other sex I play the game I do so well, oh I’m a girl watcher, I’m a girl watcher Watchin’ girls go by, my, my, my I’m a girl watcher, I’m a girl watcher Here comes one now Hello, there, female, my, my, but you do look swell Would you please walk a little slower? I wonder if you know that you’re putting on a show Could you please walk a little closer? I’m a girl watcher, I’m a girl watcher Watchin’ girls go by, my, my, my I’m a girl watcher, I’m a girl watcher Here comes one now, mh, mh, mh
“You must have room or a certain hour of the day or do where you do not know what was in the morning paper…a place where you can simply experience and bring forth what you are, and what you might be…At first you may find nothing’s happening…But if you have a sacred place and use it, take advantage of it, something will happen.”
Joseph John Campbell (American Writer; March 26th, 1904 ~ October 30th, 1987)
“Before my story began…” (Heather Houston 2-28-22)
1972 Me…at my Aunt Carrie’s Baby Shower
“The request is to create a sacred space. I use my whole house as a sacred space with heartfelt and gratitude inspired trinkets, babbles and pictures throughout it to remind me wherever I am, that I am thankful and loved.” (Heather Houston 2-28-22)
“After reading ‘Rediscovering Your Sacredness.’ I endeavored to create a sacred space in my home where I could concentrate all of my spiritual energies. I choose the quiet of the morning after cleaning the kitchen from the previous nights cooking to sit in the candlelight of my alter to remind myself of my sacredness and to center myself spiritually before my day unfolds. This quiet early morning solitude fills my soul. Even my dog Kiva looks forward to my intentional breathing and words speaking into the sacredness of all beings. The days I miss this devotional time, I feel the energy of the world beginning to build up within me. Similar to Buddhist teachings, I welcome in the world energy and slough it off daily and return it to the Sacred Whole.”
–Ban Breathnach, Sarah. “Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy”. Grand Central Publishing. (1976). Kindle Page 61-63 of 501.
I challenge each of you on this blog series to post comments so we all can grow together.
“I enjoyed watching this film and I had not seen this to the end until dating Neil. Watching again with new eyes was great. Hal has always creeped me out. Now with AI in huge effect, it is even more creepy. We have been reading the book, ‘Sex at Dawn’, which speaks to the evolution of man from Bonobo apes. To see early apes learning about tools in this film was full circle. The last half of the film seems like a mushroom trip. I learn something new each time I see it and look forward to watching again in an altered state.”
“I enjoyed watching this film and I had seen it before when I was much younger. Seeing this as an adult in the present times was a bit surreal. This film really pushed the envelope with the societal issues of the time. Regrettably, not much has changed since then. Those who are racist and MAGA still treat those different than themselves poorly. Spencer Tracy’s final dialogue was brilliant and heavy foreshadowing.”
“Grateful to spy another eagle on my commute to work.” (Heather Houston 2-21-26)
“I appreciate a work day with few interruptions as I was super productive today!” (Heather Houston 2-21-26)
“I am thankful that the local BBQ joint had not run out of BBQ by the time I placed my order for our dinner.” (Heather Houston 2-21-26)
“I felt blessed to have an easy commute home so I could start the weekend with my love.” (Heather Houston 2-21-26)
“I appreciate my husband’s willingness to watch ‘2001 Space Odyssey’ for our Friday night movie…supporting my 1968 movie watch party!” (Heather Houston 2-21-26)
“I am grateful that my partner only accepts my authentic beingness and refuses to listen to my story.” (Heather Houston 2-21-22)
“I am thankful to have sick days banked to be used for tomorrow.” (Heather Houston 2-21-22)
“I am thankful to have a partner who loves me even in my darkest moments.” (Heather Houston 2-21-22)
“I am blessed to a safe warm place to live.” (Heather Houston 2-21-22)
“I am thankful to live in a democracy which protects my basic freedoms.” (Heather Houston 2-21-22)
Driving to home eastbound, I spotted a beautiful bald eagle perched on the railway wind gauge pole facing me toward the south at the midspan point of the bridge. I feel so blessed and in the “FLOW”.🦅
Lyrics: What would I give For just a few moments What would I give Just to have you near Tell me you will try To slip away somehow Oh, I need you, darling I want to see you right now Can you slip away Slip away Slip away Oh, I need you so Love, oh, love How sweet it is When you steal it, darling Let me tell you somethin’ now how sweet it is Now I know it’s wrong The things I ask you to do But please believe me, darling I don’t mean to hurt you But could you just slip away Without him knowing you’re gone Then we could meet somewhere Somewhere where we’re both are not known And guess can you slip away Slip away Slip away I need you so Oh, can you slip away, baby I’d like to see you right now, darling Can you slip away now, baby ‘Cause I got to, I got to see you I feel a deep burning inside
Carl Jung (Swiss Psychiatrist and Psychoanalyst; July 26th, 1875 ~ June 6th, 1961)
“If you consciously work to bring more gratitude, simplicity, order, harmony, beauty, and joy into your daily life, your world will be transformed whether you believe a Higher Power is guiding you or not. But if you commit to your spiritual awakening as the most important part of the process, something marvelous will happen. Life will not feel as fraught, as frazzled, or as fragmented as before because you’ll realize that the spiritual, the creative, and the practical can’t be separated. They each count. They each mean something. They’re all connected.”
“…ready ourselves with spiritual openness. …Spirituality is the sacred center of which all life comes, including Mondays and Tuesdays and rainy Saturday afternoons in all their mundane and glorious details.”
“Before my story began…” (Heather Houston 2-27-22)
1972 Me…at my Aunt Carrie’s Baby Shower
“I am excited to discover myself newly while at the same time love the being I already am. My thoughts today are on the people of Ukraine. I also have a pang of fear wondering if my son has been deployed to bolster the Ukrainian cause. If so, I send him all my protective motherly love to keep him safe. I love you Porter!”💝 (Heather Houston 2-27-22)
“Seems full circle as we began bombing Iran and hoping my children are not deployed anywhere near the Middle East. The “Sacred Center of Life” is the BEing present within the moment. My husband made Pho and the gloriousness was not just the first bite. It was the intentional shopping, the smell of the cooking beef bones, the cooking of the aromatics, and the final boil of the broth…all leading to the first sip of soup that unfolded the sacred beautiful creation. Relish the daily routine intertwined with the beauty of living in the moment.” (Heather Houston 2-27-26)
–Ban Breathnach, Sarah. “Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy”. Grand Central Publishing. (1976). Kindle Page 61 of 501.
I challenge each of you on this blog series to post comments so we all can grow together.
“I am thankful to have spied 2 nesting eagles circling over my car with a full wingspan.” (Heather Houston 2-26-26)
“I am grateful to get in 6 walks around the block to give me self-care breaks, sunlight and fresh air.”(Heather Houston 2-26-26)
“I appreciate little traffic on my commute home so I could reunite with my loving husband.” (Heather Houston 2-26-26)
“I am blessed to have fish tacos for dinner…SOOO GOOD!” (Heather Houston 2-26-26)
“I am thankful my husband cares and supports my sleep needs. My sleep hygiene is EPIC!” (Heather Houston 2-26-26)
“I am thankful that when I took my car in to have the tires looked at due to the low inflation indicator in my car, Les Schwab found a crew in the rear passenger tire. It was repairable and no charge.” (Heather Houston 2-26-22)
“I appreciate Les Schwab checking my brakes and advising me that the front calipers and pads look new and that the rear calipers were having freezing issues. One never wants to learn about auto issues, but now I can shop around for a reliable European mechanic to begin a relationship for future needed work.” (Heather Houston 2-26-22)
“I am thankful that when shopping for the ingredients for the Sri Lanka Chicken Curry dish we planned to make for dinner that all the needed ingredients were available.” (Heather Houston 2-26-22)
“I am grateful to be my partner’s sous chef when we make a new dish. I love cooking together.” (Heather Houston 2-26-22)
“I am thankful to have designed a new cocktail to compliment our dinner that had a Sri Lanka flavor profile…Sri Lanka Summer.” (Heather Houston 2-26-22)
My Distilled Life 