A Repeat...

Once in a while I receive a request to "repeat" a blog post. This is one of the repeat posts that I hope you all enjoy the 2nd time around. It was originally posted in May of 2008.

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Greetings Everyone,

I received an email about 9 years ago from a far-away-friend that touched me to the core. It was entitled "Life's Lessons." I printed it out and tucked it away to read when I needed some inspiration. I ran across it awhile ago and, not surprisingly, it touched me as much now as it did then. So, to my friend Lee - wherever you may be, thank you for sending me something so beautiful and for thinking of me. Be well My friend.

Life's Lessons
Sometimes people come into your life and you know right away that they were meant to be there, they serve some sort of purpose, teach you a lesson or help figure out who you are or who you want to become. You never know who these people may be; your roommate, neighbor, professor, long lost friend, lover or even a complete stranger who, when you lock eyes with them, you know that very moment that they will affect your life in some profound way.

And sometimes things happen to you and at the time they may seem horrible, painful and unfair, but in reflection you realize that without overcoming those obstacles you would have never realized your potential, strength, will power or heart. Everything happens for a reason. Nothing happens by chance or by means of good or bad luck. Illness, injury, love, lost moments of true greatness and sheer stupidity all occur to test the limits of your soul. Without these small tests, if they be events, illnesses or relationships, life would be like a smoothly paved, straight, flat road to nowhere. Safe and comfortable but dull and utterly pointless.

The people you meet who affect your life and the successes and downfalls you experience, they are the ones who create who you are. Even the bad experiences can be learned from…those lessons are the hardest and probably the most important ones. If someone hurts you, betrays you, or breaks your heart, forgive them, for they have helped you learn about you. If someone loves you, love them back unconditionally, not only because they love you, but because they are teaching you to love and opening your heart and eyes to things you would have never seen or felt without them.

Make every day count. Appreciate every moment and take from it everything that you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again. Talk to people you have never talked to before, and actually listen, let yourself fall in love, break free and set your sights high. Hold your head up because you have every right to. Tell yourself you are a great individual and believe in yourself, for if you don’t believe in yourself, no one else will believe in you either. You can make of your life anything you wish. Create your own life and then go out and live it.

Happy Halloween

Goodness Gracious.....it's the time of year that the ghouls, goblins, and monsters come out and play their trickery on us poor unsuspecting folk.

I've always enjoyed fall - many of you know that by now (I keep saying it enough). With Autumn, comes the holidays of Halloween and Thanksgiving. Although Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite Holiday, Halloween holds a special place in my heart, mainly due to one person - my friend and coworker Bob Holzworth.

"Sniper Bob" - as he was affectionately known by his co-workers - LOVED Halloween. Bob started planning for this event months in advance. He scoured the thrift stores looking for the "perfect" costume to wear, decorations for his yard and his home, and material with which to build his "spooks." He was known to have decorated - and undecorated - his yard every night because he "didn't want vandals to destroy his handiwork". His Halloween parties (in celebration of his birthday also) are legendary to this day. He loved to laugh, to dance, to joke, and was a true delight to be around. You couldn't help but smile in his presence.

Bob was taken from us far too soon two years ago due to his fight with lung cancer.

I'm pretty sure that Bob, even though he is in a heavenly place now, may be celebrating his love of Halloween in his own particular fashion.

Happy Halloween My Friend.

Yoga cancelled for tonight 10/27/09

I'm covering all my bases and posting yoga information on this site as well.

Due to instructor illness, yoga classes have been cancelled for tonight, Tuesday October 27, 2009.

Students: Information has been emailed to your email accounts on file, posted on Twitter, www.newsdakota.com (local announcements) and also www.betterlifethroughyoga.blogspot.com

I appreciate your understanding and apologize for the inconvenience.

PS: The 1st night of the November session is Thursday, October 29th.

Namaste'

Sherry

It's gonna be a good, good day!

I have happiness in my heart today.

I get to spend the day with my lovely family for the 9th annual Schulz Oktoberfest!

Every year my siblings, in-laws, nieces, nephews,and great nieces/nephews spend a day in October gathering together reminiscing of days past with our childhood memories of Mom and Dad, life on the family farm, and sharing stories and tales of "the good life."

We share food, drink, laughter. I'm proud to witness the love we have for each other. To share in the laughter of happy times, to share the grief of lost loved ones (Mom, Dad, and Earl) through shed tears, and to celebrate the future of our family as we watch the young ones play together and make the start of their own 'shared memories of family'.

Pictures are taken for prosperity sake to document the passing of time and the growth of our lives and family.

Whomever can make it, does - as there is no pressure to attend. And we miss those that cannot attend due to living out of state or life obligations. I know they are with us in spirit and we hope they'll be able to attend the following year.

I've been blessed to have wonderful family.

It's gonna be a good, good day.

Family faces are magic mirrors. Looking at people who belong to us, we see the past, present, and future. - Gail Lumet Buckley.

Just another Saturday

I got up early and hit the gym for turned out to be an awesome workout. I had the place to myself so I didn't have to wait for machines or weights. I even spent 15 minutes in the sauna! LOVE feeling the heat!

The usual errands had to be done - the weekly trip to Walmart - then home to clean house. I am definitely not a fan of housework, but if I don't do it, certainly no one else will.

The best part of today is the sun! It's out! We haven't seen sun around these parts for a looonnnnnnnnng time. It's amazing what it does for the disposition. Tomorrow is supposed to be super nice - temps in the high 50's - so I'm thinking I may go running outside and let the fresh air shake the cobwebs loose from my brain.


Namaste'

It made me smile...

Every once in a while someone says something to me that causes me to beam from ear to ear.   I was recently told that my blogs are a source of sunshine and laughter. 

 

Imagine that.  I wouldn't have thought that my writing about my every day trials and tribulations would be of interest  but it seems that I have been mistaken. 

 

I like writing, I always have.  My high school English teacher said I had a gift for words and encouraged me to pursue writing further.  I always thought she was slightly off-center, but maybe she was on to something.  I should have taken heed.

 

I've kept journals since high school.  Almost everything that has happened in my life has been written on those pages.  The good, the bad and the ugly.  

 

In times of great heartache, it was liberating to let it all out on to the paper and not worry about being judged about what I was feeling or thinking.    Words bring clarity and a sense of profound relief at being able to let it all go; put it all out there and let the chips fall where they may.

 

In times of great joy, words are a celebration of accomplishments, triumph, laughter and love.

 

Writing is enjoyment for me; the pleasure of seeing words come together to portray an event, an emotion, and the sense of being part of the bigger picture.  Words paint a picture in my mind and leave an impression in my heart. 

 

While my heart beats, I will always take comfort in words and paint a picture with them.

 

Namaste'

 

Sherry

 

 

Another day in paradise!

I just spent 20 minutes on the phone trying to explain to an individual that they were a security risk and were not allowed in to the facility.  

 

In the course of the conversation, the individual said to me, "the application said to be honest about my crimes; I was honest and now I'm denied.  I shouldn't have put anything down and then I could come see my brother. You people are untrustworthy." 

 

 Huh?????  

 

When I explained that the recent nature of the crimes and the shear number of crimes that came up in his background check was enough to get him denied, he went ballistic on me. 

 

Lemme see:

Mother - denied for attempting to bring drugs in to her son (who is in prison)

Father - denied because he's on probation for drugs

Sister - charges pending for drugs.  

 

Do I see a pattern developing here?

 

Yes, I am untrustworthy and out to destroy the lives of all the fine upstanding citizens with criminal histories longer than the length of my arm.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gym Night!

Good afternoon good peoples!

 

I hope everyone is doing fine this day.   I'm tired today after staying up a little later than usual on a Monday night, but all is good.  I didn't have to be in to work until 8:30am this morning (flex time for wellness), so I had a little extra time to ease in to the day and shake the cobwebs off. 

 

I did some yoga, drank some coffee, took a wonderfully hot shower and started the day with a smile.  The smile bit the dust at 8:31am!  Oh well, I had good intentions.

 

Today it seems like everyone wants everything yesterday.  I have had to continually fight the urge to retort "Lack of planning on your part does NOT constitute an emergency on my part."  But then someone says, "I come to you because I know you'll get it done for me." or "You are my go-to gal."  It may be a bit of sucking up on their part, but it works!  I'm not above the adage "Flattery will get you everywhere!" 

 

I taught yoga last night (note to yoga peeps - look at the schedule on the other blog), so tonight is gym night. 

 

I haven't been there for a few days- okay...three to be exact! I'm a little anxious to get back at it and put my body through the paces.  I'm starting to run on the treadmill again and trying to build up endurance.  I need to get the hang of breathing for longer distances and finding a pace that works for me.  I haven't found it and seriously doubt that I will.  It's something to strive for though.   I'm proud of my niece Lisa.   She makes marathon running sound fun (figures running and fun shouldn't be used together).  Then I read her FB post in which she said she had the "worst run of her life on Saturday" and it may be time to "hang up the sneakers".  Say it isn't so Lisa!!     It was cold, snowy and yucky!!  Three great excuses for bad times.

 

Anywho, it's gym night!  Yeah!  I've got some kicka** tunes loaded, my protein drink ready to go, Levi's (workout) program in hand and a extra towel for all of the sweat I know I'll work up.  All I need is the clock to hit 4:30 and I'm outta here!

 

Namaste'

 

Sherry

 

 

 

 

 

 

I had tears...

in my eyes as last night as I said my goodbye to Wendi. I tried to be strong and I was, right up until the point where I gave her a hug and looked in to her eyes. Mine filled with tears as did hers. All I could say was, "I love you sweetpea". I hope she knows that.

My brother had an open house yesterday for his daughter, inviting both sides of the family to come say farewell and good luck. It was a wonderful day filled with laughter, good food, good drink, and even better company. I was able to see four of my five siblings (Ron is in Mexico). My niece Lisa was able to attend as well. She stopped in on her way back from Fargo after running a 1/2 marathon.

The following are some pictures from yesterday.
This is Wendi, the guest of honor

And this is me with my marathon running niece, Lisa Marie.

This is the three "Schulz" girls together.

Wendi will do fine, I know that she will - she's a Schulz, and we Schulz girls are pretty strong individuals - sometimes to a fault. We take charge of our lives and make things happen, be it right or wrong. We stand by our decisions and make the best out of life as much as we can.

Wendi, here are some final words from me to you.
1) Take each day as it comes. Don't live beyond today and deal with each moment with strength and character.
2) Never be too proud to ask for help. Our strength gets us through the tough times but sometimes we just need a friendly shoulder to lean on. It doesn't make us weak, but all the more strong.
3) Approach life with laughter in your heart. (Laughing through the tears make them less painful).
4) Don't forget who you are, where you came from, and the values that your family has instilled in you. You come from a strong, stubborn German heritage. When the going gets a little tough, those stubborn German values and work ethics will get you through.
5) Never forget that you are loved, unconditionally.
6) Be true to yourself, always - for in the end, you are all that you have.

I love you Wendi girl...

October

In celebration of the hard freeze, the crisp morning air, and the grace and beauty of the falling leaves upon the gentle days breeze,  

 

 Namaste'  Sherry

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October gave a party;
The leaves by hundreds came -
The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples,
And leaves of every name.
The Sunshine spread a carpet,
And everything was grand,
Miss Weather led the dancing,
Professor Wind the band.
~George Cooper, "October's Party"

One more thing on the schedule...

 

This will be posted on both blogs...

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I had an interesting conversation with some of my students tonight before class started.  We were talking about how hectic life is (becoming) and how stressful it is when "one more thing" gets added to the schedule. 

 

I can appreciate this thought as I, too, often have to breath and take a step back to evaluate the important things (priorities) in life. 

 

I'm going to address this as coming from the "female" point of view, as I do not have men currently enrolled in my classes.  So men, please be patient.  If you have thoughts on the subject, feel free to comment.

 

As women, we are the caregivers of our world.  We make sure that everyone is fed, clothed, the laundry done, homework done, the household is running smoothly, and - in many cases - we work full time jobs outside of the home.   We put others needs and wants before our own.  We are often the first person up in the morning and the last to go to bed at night because, "I can do one more load of laundry" or "I need to get this 'one' thing done for tomorrow."  

 

When it comes to scheduling time for ourselves however, we tend to put ourselves on the backburner until everyone else is "taken care of." 

 

And when we do schedule in time for ourselves, whether it be yoga class, Pilates class, the gym, a massage, a manicure, etc., we oftentimes feel guilty for taking the time away from our other responsibilities or family.  

 

It's a difficult tight rope that we walk everyday, and it is often stressful on us. 

 

I often hear comments of "I didn't want to come tonight, but I sure feel better now that I have" as students are walking out the door. 

 

Ladies, it is important that we take care of ourselves. 

 

Our mental, emotional, and physical health is essential to our wellbeing and also to those that we "take care" of.    How many times have you been sick with a cold or flu, and your family still looks to you to "take care of them"? 

 

I understand the difficulties of finding the time for yourself as I have some of the same issues.  But throughout the years I have come to learn a lot about myself.  If I don't take care of myself, certainly my husband, family, friends or coworkers won't either.  I am in charge of myself.  

 

I urge you to find the time - it doesn't have to be much (15 minutes, 20 minutes, 1/2 hr or an hour) - to do something that you want to do for yourself.  Exercise, read, cross stitch, have coffee with the girls, watch a movie, anything -  just do something that brings the focus on to you.  Then  schedule it in so that everyone knows "this is your time."   Everyone in my life pretty much knows that Tuesdays and Thursdays are Sherry's "yoga nights" and the "I'm Busy" sign is out and displayed proudly! ~S~

 

Think enough of yourself to put yourself first.  

 

Namaste'

 

Sherry

My Resignation

I ran across this last night on the internet and thought it worth sharing.  I know that we've ALL felt like doing this at some point during our lives.   Enjoy the read and smile.  And.....Tag! You're it!

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My Resignation