Mindset Shift

I’ve been houseless since we sold our home in April of this year. For the first four months my husband, Dennis, and I traveled the Western United States. Now, we are traveling in Europe for approximately three months. While we mostly stay in Airbnb apartments equipped with kitchens and laundry facilities, we do occasionally stay in hotel/motels when we are traveling from place to place. All this traveling makes it difficult to have a routine, and I have always been a routine oriented person. I feel better when I am able to follow a routine, most people do. So how does a routine oriented person adjust to a constant change in routine?

In January I chose the word change as a central theme to remind me that change would be a distinct part of my life in the months, and perhaps years, ahead. This daily reminder inspires me to become more comfortable with change by learning to accept and adapt to whatever change comes my way. I think this reminder even sets up a mindset shift in how I look at and respond to change. Here are a few key points I focus on in an ever-changing environment:

Falling into a regular sleep pattern and getting a good eight hours is important for my overall health. But when my bed location is changing every few days it can be difficult to settle in and get the sleep I need. If I fall behind and am tired, then it's time for a nap, a sleep-in day, or a day at home - wherever home may be.

Exercising is not only good for my body but for my mind - and therefore, once again, my overall health. While I am walking five to 10 miles each day when not traveling from place to place, those traveling days plus the walking are wreaking havoc with my regular exercise routines. At this point I am doing what I can to hold onto my running and yoga when possible. But there again, sometimes it is more important to rest my body as all the walking at times takes its toll. I can feel the heaviness of my muscles and know they need a rest too - even if it means I may not get to my running or yoga.

Eating well and not overindulging in all the wonderful breads and sweet delicacies is important, too. I know it would not be in my best interest for many reasons, so it really doesn’t bother me to pass on them on a regular basis and enjoy them on occasion.

Focused breathing and meditating is something I start my day with and do for short moments throughout the day. I may be mentioning this point last, but it is what is most important as both focused breathing and meditating calm my mind and feed my spirit. I might even say the breathing and meditating prepares me to be more flexible in my mindset and allow for an automatic shift when necessary - as if I am tapping the shift-key on a keyboard.

Right now I feel as though I am in transition with all the changes. And while I am at peace with change, I am still adapting to it. Perhaps my old routines will be in a constant state of flux and I will fall back to them when we are in one place for more than a week at a time. Maybe all this change is transforming my old norm to a new norm. Whatever it may be, knowing a mindset shift is ultimately what will help me deal with ever-present change in my life, I will be able to be my best self in mind, body, and spirit. Isn’t that what helps us all whether traveling or just dealing with the day-to-day routine of normal in our lives? Now, where's that shift key?

It's been nearly two months since I have posted on this blog. I am working on balancing my writing here with my travel blog posting. With this post I am hoping you will be able to hear more from me now that I am finding my way with the travel blog. If you would like to follow my adventures on a more regular basis, please note the sidebar of this blog - you will find the travel blog and my Facebook and Instagram links. I encourage you to sign up so you won't miss a thing. As always, thanks for following It Is What It Is. 

Michelle

Shift key photo courtesy of C Slack

It Shouldn't Be This Difficult

"It's a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma; but perhaps there is a key."
Winston Churchill

Life being what it is these days, entwined in everything computerized like a Gordian knot, one would think life would be easier and less complicated. But that’s not the case. If you have ever tried to follow up on any kind of error in prescriptions, monthly bills, medical insurance, and on and on, more often than not you will find an endless maze of people trying but failing to understand your dilemma. It’s time consuming, a pain to deal with, and it shouldn’t be this difficult.

Whether it's a glitch in the computerized world or the goings-on in my world, I do find that I may complicate the Gordian knots in my life by inserting my frame of mind, and of course feelings. Patience and taking a step back from whatever the frustration helps me determine if I’ve made this personal on any given issue. The key is to listen more to what I am thinking and what someone else is saying because this helps me with most riddles, mysteries, or enigmas - even the computerized nightmares. While life shouldn’t be this difficult, I’m learning to take care of business by finding the keys that will unlock the Gordian knots in my life.

Michelle

Gordian knot photo courtesy of Jim Belk

Seeing Yourself in a Whole New Light

How you see yourself in your universe affects who you are and how you behave. As the sun, you are at your best. You shine bright and can be your best self. Consider the sunshine of your life as being the positive-filled life you are living. The people and behaviors in your life that help you shine your brightest are the planets orbiting around you. Seeing debris in your planetary system, that’s just the space junk you have gotten rid of, the people and behaviors who dim your shine. Don’t worry, if the junk appears closer than you would like, it will slowly move out of your universe-if you allow it. Oh, and that empty space between the planets is so important. Why, you ask? Because we all could use more space in our lives.

While this may sound silly or woo-woo and could get complicated trying to explain it in more detail, I’m going to skip the complicated part and just say this: I am the sun. I shine bright. At times I can be a planet, but it’s not in my best interest if I require someone to shine the light for me. See, simple, and not so silly or woo-woo.

Michelle

Solar System photo courtesy of Photo Editor

Eating to Live: Smoothie Nirvana

Beet smoothie photo initially published on Facebook.

Since eating well is a key to feeling well, smoothies have long been in my morning repertoire. Back in the 1960s I didn’t feel like eating breakfast prior to leaving for elementary school in the morning. And my mom didn't want me to start my day on an empty stomach, so she came up with what she called a protein shake for me in the morning. I’ve been drinking protein shakes, now called smoothies, off and on ever since. I don’t need fancy-dancy juicers to eat whole vegetables and fruit. I’ve been there, tried that, and decided if I ran a blender long enough on the liquefy setting, I could create smooth and delicious blends of goodness without the cleanup of a fancy-dancy juicer.

Here’s my absolutely delicious beet smoothie recipe...
Roast beets: Simply wash and scrub beets (no need to mess with peeling them), remove beet green tops leaving a couple inches of stems, trim root, and rub beets with olive oil. Place beets in foil and seal up. Bake 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow beets to continue to steam in foil. Remove foil, pop off stem tops, cool, and refrigerate until ready to enjoy. Roasting beets in this way allows the natural sugars to release for maximum sweetness. If you're in a hurry, microwave a beet as you would cook a whole potato. 

1. ½ medium cooked beet
2. ½-1 banana (I use this as the basis for most smoothies as it acts as a thickener)
3. 6-8 oz. yogurt (fruit flavored or plain)
4. 1 c. carrot juice
5. 1 kale leaf rib removed (these days I always add kale or a handful of spinach in all my smoothies, and no you don’t taste whatever green goodness you tossed in)
6. 3 strawberries (any berries or no berries necessary in this concoction)
7. Cinnamon (I use cinnamon whenever I can but you decide how much)
8. 1 slice orange rind (I freeze orange, lemon, and lime rinds in 1/2 inch slices to use in beverages, and the intense flavors are wonderful in a smoothie)
9. Mint leaves or basil or both
10. After blending, stir in ground flax meal if you feel you would like more fiber
11. Sit down, put your feet up, and enjoy smoothie nirvana!

You can throw almost anything you love to eat into a smoothie. Just toss in whatever you have on hand. You don’t need a recipe. You can concoct your own delicious goodness in a glass like a mad scientist and reap the rewards of good health and nutrition. So, what does this beet smoothie taste like? First of all, it doesn't taste like beets or kale, as a matter of fact it tastes like I had thrown in heaps of raspberries and strawberries. Let's just say I deemed it the best smoothie ever! Yum!

Michelle

Beet smoothie photo courtesy of damclark's family photos

The Old Swing

My Grandpa Leo hung a rope swing from an old walnut tree in his yard when I was a little tyke. He hand-cut the wooden seat and extended the long ropes high up onto a large branch. Over the years I spent a lot of time swinging in that old tree. I would pump my legs back and forth going higher and higher until I could feel the point where the ropes would slacken slightly. It would scare me momentarily, but I knew I had reached the highest limits. That I had pushed myself and attained my own personal goal.

My home was a three hour drive from my grandparents, so my tree swinging was limited to our visits. My swing hung always ready for me to plop my behind down and start pumping my legs back and forth whenever I was available. I remember running to my swing as soon as my parent’s car stopped in the driveway when we arrived for a visit. And when my parents began packing up to leave, I always tried to get in one last swing, as if saying goodbye to my friends the swing and the walnut tree. My swing was always there for me whether I was happy or sad. When sad, I knew testing the limits of my swinging ability helped me out of my sorrowful, pitiful self. The fact is - it's hard to swing high into the tree limbs without invoking a smile or heartfelt giggle.

Recently, my husband, Dennis, and I were in Yakima, sharing time with my family. While there, we were able to visit my grandparents home where my cousin’s young family now resides. It had been over 25 years since I last walked into the home that holds many of my childhood memories. It was fun to see the renovations recently made to the old homestead. This home is now over 100 years old and has been lovingly updated by my cousin and his wife. If Grandma Mary and Grandpa Leo could see their old place now, they would agree it is well loved and is now preserved for future generations. It was a fun evening of good food, sharing memories, and sitting out under the old walnut tree.

Later, I got to thinking about the old swing in the walnut tree - a swing my sister, brother, and generations of cousins have enjoyed over the years. And now a new swing hangs ready for a new generation to share, to learn how to test their own limits, and help them move from sad to a heartfelt giggle.

Michelle

Swing photo courtesy of Denis Dervisevic