Today is an important day in the US – September 11th.  I remembered seven years ago being on Broadway and 21st Street in New York City standing in one place watching the bellowing smoke coming from the Towers.   Everyone around me was so quiet!   When I looked around, I saw the dazed looks on everyone’s faces.  No one knew just how historic this moment would be in each of our lives and the lives of those directly impacted by this horrific act. 

My health is the #1 priority in my life.  I don’t always treat it so, but my intention is to keep myself focused on my number one priority.  It’s a learning curve for me, and every day I wake up reminding myself that  “today my health is the most important focus for me.”  When I go to bed, I ask how did I treat my physical being today.  Was I neglectful, a little respectful or did I center my energies in treating my body as a priceless gift.

How often I have said to myself “let it go Pat” when I was agitated or upset about something.  I’ve also said “let go” to others when they were holding on to a negative thought.    How does one “let go?”   We are attached to our emotional stuff and don’t always know how to release the emotions and free ourselves.

What do you think about change?    We all have our reactions to change…some things we are ready to let go, others we hold on to dear life.   All around us change is occurring without our permission.   As the seasons change, so does our lives.   How do you handle change from the outside?  Even more important how do you initiate change in your life?

My niece had a boy….beautiful baby.   Yesterday, we all gathered for the Jewish ‘bris’ which occurs on the 8th day of a boy’s birth to bond him within Judaism and to celebrate the naming of this beautiful child.   As I reflect on the experience for me and for those around me, I realized every situation has room to learn about loving ourselves.

I’ve spent the second half of my life in two separate NYC area homes.  Because I was no longer moving around, I’ve managed to include several good people in my life.   My friendships cover the span of 30 years to the most recent of 4 years.   

We have sat over many cups of coffee and tea, and, of course, glasses of wine, and shared desserts.    All those hours together we spoke about nothing to deep concerns or issues that plagued our well-being.  That’s what you do when you build a friendship.

Today is my birthday! I do love to celebrate birthdays – whether it’s family, friends or mine. Are there any other August 3rd birthdays out there? I wish you a special day…indulge and take good care of yourself.

Yesterday, my friend Karen took me out for our traditional ‘birthday lunch.’ We always make sure we stop long enough to celebrate our friendship and be grateful that we have each other in our lives.

In this hectic, sometimes chaotic life, we push ourselves to do more without the satisfaction of ever completing our ‘to do’ list.     Do you subscribe to the thought that more is better?  I Can!  Yet, I also know this is trouble for me because there is never enough.  So…I made a decision!

I’ve decided that the top 3 activities on my ‘to do’ list must be done…no matter what. I get to decide what is most important for me to do in a day.   The night before I designate my 3 top activities for the next day, and ‘first things first’ is my slogan when I start the new day. 

I sometimes wonder how much of what I’ve learned in life comes from experiences with people or through reading books. I know there is no way to tell the difference, yet as I look around my library of self-help or self-growth books, I am who I am today partly because of the thousands of words within those books. Those words have seeped into my inner being and helped me form many of my beliefs around life.