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To give you a little lift and a little more life…

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“It’s summertime and the livin’ is easy”

Lyrics from “Porgy & Bess” by Gershwin & Heyward

Sometime around the middle of June, I realized that it was really summer, the time of easy livin’ but I was finding my summer livin’ not so easy. The extremely hot weather meant that I got up earlier so I could walk my dogs or work in the yard. In the evening, I kept working longer because it was too hot to go outside. What happened to my plan of taking life this summer a little easier? As soon as I had an extra space in my schedule, I filled it up with “to do’s”. Finally, I had enough!

So I vowed to at least slip in some easy livin’ time and thought I might share my ideas with you. Maybe you can enjoy some, too. I realized that whatever I did had to be simple, with not much planning or expense and these had to be some things I could just slip in when I was getting cabin fever. So here are a few ideas :

Easy Livin’ Coolers

· Went to free “Movie on the Lawn” at a local church. We brought lawn chairs & church supplied popcorn & drinks. It was definitely old-fashioned fun with a old somewhat corny movie that encouraged clapping & cheering. Lots of churches & parks are doing this- check around your area.

· Spent a wonderful hour at my local library reading magazines. Read things I’d never seen before. There is something about a fresh shiny magazine to enjoy that we just don’t get from magazines on the Internet.

· Slipped in some time to just browse some favorite local shops, The Bag Lady & Green With Envy .

o Read the cards, found some great ideas for gifts

o Chatted with friendly staff and was very impressed with the creativity of displays as well as merchandise.

o Bought a trinket to remind me to “take it easy.”

I’d love to add your ideas to the “Easy Livin’ Coolers List. Send me a comment & I will include it.

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MIDLIFE, MILES AND MIRACLES

This is a story about a midlife crisis that resulted in internal and external miracles…and the many miles that were traveled along the way.

Midlife crisis is usually joked about as the time when people buy the fancy sports and find a young, good-looking person to ride in it. But even if you don’t approach this time in that way, midlife is certainly a time to reexamine your life, make some big changes and perhaps go in a different direction.

This is the story about how one woman is doing that & is inspiring others to create their own “new journey”.

The Inner Journey

About three years ago, Soulo Entrepreneurs member, Tamela Rich came to me to help her deal with the loss of her business and to help her find a new career direction. Tamela did a lot of inner work to connect with what she really wanted to do. She had long loved to write but had, like many of us, not seen using her talent as a viable business. But as she connected with her passion, her energy returned and doors began to open for her.

She created a successful business writing for financial markets. And after having dealt with her own crisis, she decided to write about the trade offs everyone must make in life. With the financial meltdown still playing out, she’s researching the book by talking to financial traders across the country about their trade offs  – personally and professionally.

She also wanted to have some fun, live a dream, and make a difference…All great midlife goals

So next week, she will start riding across the country to conduct her research, not in a shiny sports car, but on a shiny new motorcycle. Along the way she’ll be raising money for The National Breast Cancer Foundation.

The Outer Journey

Of course, there were a few obstacles to realizing her dream. Minor ones like she had never ridden a motorcycle.

She had little money of her own, didn’t know many people around the country, and a few other “minor”  challenges.

Oh yeah, and she didn’t have a motorcycle or the means to buy on

And some people who asked her,  “What are you thinking? “ and other discouraging remarks.

The Dream

But she had a dream and out of that dream has come some miracles –like the new BMW motorcycle and the dozens of “little” sponsorships from friends. strangers and businesses across the country. In the spirit of “If you build it, they will come,” her dream is coming tru

Biker Babe

And on June 26, she will start her “outward journey” with lots of support. plenty of contacts, a book contract and a new bike. In the process, she has inspired all of us to reconnect with our passions and find a way to make a difference in the world…especially our own.

Tamela gives a new meaning to “You Rock, Biker Babe!

You can follow Tamela’s travels on  Roadtrip.TamelaRich.com

History, Heritage and Hope

If you look deeply into the palm of your hand, you will see all your ancestors.

All of them are alive and present in your body.

You are the continuation of these people.

Thich Nhat Hanh

We can gather strength today from the women who came before us. They often had challenges that we can’t imagine. Remembering them can give us strength and hope. If they did it ,so can we.

Women’s History is so important yet it is often overlooked. Since whoever is the “victor” usually writes the history, women’s contributions are often not recorded and therefore not celebrated

We can’t Honor what we don’t know.

We can’t honor what we don’t know. The contributions of women are unsung and they are usually too busy to record it themselves.

For most of my life, I didn’t think of my friends and the women in my family as heroines, but I have come to see them that way today.

I’m very sure there are women in your life whose lives deserve recognition and appreciation, including yours.

Remembering them gives me hope and courage – they faced and overcame so much. I am very grateful that their stories and their heritage have been passed down to me.

The Red Taffeta Petticoat

In my Thanksgiving letter, I wrote about my grandmother, who grew up without electricity and lived to see a man on the moon. She lived through two wars with two sons in service, weathered the Great Depression, and buried 3 husbands but still loved to dance in her red taffeta petticoat. And she thought she was nothing special.

My mother had cancer at an early age but felt she had to live to take care of her kids. While pregnant, she experienced a world war that carried two brothers into service. She had never worked outside her home but started a florist business at age 42 when my father became ill. Through very hard work she was able to send me to college. She loved to laugh and spread beauty, through her flowers, to many people. And she thought she just did what anyone would do.

We are not alone.

I know so many women like them who think they are nothing special but they truly keep the world going. And they pass on their example of courage and love of life to us.

We cannot honor them any more than to remember them and pass on their stories and their joy. And to remember, when we feel overwhelmed, that we are part of an amazing heritage and we can’t do any less. We are not alone.