Soul Runnings

Francis Street Singers Concert, June 07, 2015 Ok, I am actually writing this on Day 28. Yesterday was a very busy day.  But it ended up being a very good day! I started the day with a 2 mile walk with my daughter Taylor and her dog Honey. Honey is a German Shorthair Pointer mix that Taylor and her husband Mike recently adopted. She is two years old. A very sweet dog. Her original owner had crate trained her. She responds to many vocal commands.  Love this dog!  But she has a lot of energy. Needs to walk six miles a day!  Well, she is fitting right in around here! Only problem is she tugs on the leash quite a bit when we walk. She is friendly to other humans and dogs, just gets overly exuberant. So Taylor and I had a nice walk and talk amidst her exclamations, "No, Honey. Heel!" lol But it was an extraordinary day on the trail.  We saw a mother duck cross our path, just several feet ahead, leading her little ducklings into the swamp.  We saw ...

It is going to be hot this weekend.  Did I mention that in my last post? Did I also mention I dislike hot weather? I love cloudy, drizzly and 60-70. Yup, I love Portland! So, I teach all day today in a big, old stuffy church. 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Then I am doing an extra choir practice for the choir I accompany. Our beloved director has broken his arm, and I want us to be as independent and prepared with our parts as possible. So all he has to do is smile and wave his good arm! It is the 60th Anniversary Celebration of the Community Music Center, where I teach piano and accompany the Francis Street Singers. Our concert is tomorrow.  It is going to be 91 degrees. Did I mention I hate the heat? Oy. So I woke up this morning and decided it was time to be nice to myself.  There is a lot of tension in the air on hot days.  There was a lot of tension surrounding the music center, preparing for a concert.  I reminded them it is a celebration. Now I n...

I hit the ground running today, literally!  No time to blog until just now before bedtime. I did a short 1 mile round trip jog/walk.  Unfortunately, I did not wake up early as planned. Still dealing with a lot of aches, pains and stiffness, especially in the morning. But I noticed today that my energy was pretty balanced. I ate healthy all day.  Didn't feel as tense and impatient as I have been feeling lately.  I am a little worried about the hot weather this weekend. On Saturdays I teach piano all day in a church. It is an older building and it is usually stuffy. I think I will bring along a little fan.  Sunday is the 60th anniversary of the Community Music Center where I teach piano. I have six of my piano students playing solos from 1 to 6, and then I will meet with the Francis Street Singers, the choir I accompany. We'll warm up at 6 p.m. and then sing at 7:00 p.m. Will be a long, hot day. But I am looking forward to it. This is the end of spring ...

I'm not asking any questions, nor am I going to overanalyze this. But today I am feeling really good! I started my day with some stretching and a big glass of water. Then I sat down to practice my piano.  And I felt focused and stronger than usual!  I am not achy. My head does not hurt. I feel energized and enthusiastic for whatever life throws at me today! Went for my 2 mile walk. I had to talk to a colleague on the phone, so today it was just a walk.  But I feel good - did I say that already? My breakfast was one hardboiled egg, 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, 1/2 plum and hot tea. I made a tater tot casserole for lunch. My son and my son-in-law are both off work today. I think it makes me happy to cook for others.  The casserole is actually pretty healthy. I used ground turkey and added spinach,zucchini and mushrooms. Well, I did put some pepper jack and cheddar cheese in there, so it is not extremely low cal.  But it is wholesome. And yummy! I will do ...

I just returned from about a 1 1/4 mile jog/walk on the trail.  Halfway through it began to sprinkle and then rain.  And I had a good cry. My tears felt acidic, but the rain washed them away. I was thinking about how difficult this is.  And I was thinking about how I encourage my students when they become frustrated. I tell them it is ok to make mistakes.  That we are learning and experimenting and that challenges are so much more fun then easy, which is boring. So I tried talking to myself.  Then I realized I don't have anyone to encourage me. I feel very alone. But I live my life this way. I love my students, my family, my friends, but I am an introvert. I require a lot of solitude. So I prayed. And I realized that God is my encourager.  I can ask his son Jesus to walk with me, to hold my hand. I can ask His Holy Spirit to enter my heart when I am discouraged and lonely and sad. And the rain kept pounding on my miserable head. But then it let up. ...

....I feel horrible!  Every joint aches. I am tired. I feel depressed and frustrated. Mornings are usually bad.  This morning I decided to allow myself a sleep in day. I am still planning on running the trail.  But I feel like I need some time for my mental health. I originally woke up at 5 a.m. Wide awake.  I knew it was too early and I would not make it through my day of teaching and rehearsals. But I grabbed my Kindle and checked email, Facebook, breaking news. We have to keep our windows closed at night here - my bedroom window opens to the deck. There are break-ins in this neighborhood. It was stuffy in my room. I fell back to sleep. I had horrible, vivid dreams. I opened up the window and turned on the fan this morning about 9:00 a.m. The cool breeze helped. I pulled out my Kindle and read some more emails. Then I started reading about ketosis which has been on my mind since I have been attempting a low carb diet.  I looked at a few blogs....