The Gift of Salt

Just like water... a little salt can be refreshing as well.  

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Salt

“Always have a unique character like salt, its presence is not felt but its absence makes everything tasteless.”

Unknown

Salt.  It’s just a mineral right?

Salt adds so much to a dish.

It can make a bland dish come to life.

Salt can preserve, brine, and scrub things clean.

Salt is an intricate part of human history.

Salt was used as currency in some places. 

The high cost of salt helped start a revolution.

Salt was traded for gold in some traditions.

The virtue of salt in human history is unrivaled to some other culinary additions.

Have a character like salt.

Add some taste and brininess to all that you possess.

Not too much because too much salt might ruin the dish.

Make your life transform from tasteless to a culinary masterpiece seasoned to the perfect degree.

In our home there is always a small container of kosher salt on our counter, I also keep iodized salt, Himalayan salt…. Etc..   If we run out it would be a great catastrophe in our house.  When we cook we throw a little over our left shoulder for a pinch of luck.  Salt is probably one of the most basic building blocks to a recipe.  So much so that folks that cannot have salt there are salt substitutes galore.  Salt has a very long history in humanity.  Phrases like “Salt of the Earth” means someone who can be counted on. In the South being called a Salt of the Earth person was a very high compliment.  Salt in the Biblical sense is to practice good deeds to lead others to both continue the cycle of good acts and lead others to God.  Too much salt is not good in a dish, too little can really cause the dish to not be as tasty.   Salt in history can be traced back quite long ago.  Salt at one point in history was one of the most important trading commodities.  Salt was used as coins in some societies.  This little spice that we can find quite easily and use regularly was once so very important in society.  So why be like salt?  Because we can build up others around us.  Be just enough salt to others so that they can be a better version of themselves.  Not too much as it would spoil their life dish, but just enough.  One practice that a friend of mine imparted to me was to find a stranger and compliment them on their hair, their eyes or their smile.  Just watch how they light up.  After putting that suggestion into practice, wow! Their smiles were infectious.  For those who are in your life on a regular basis.  Try to find a new way to listen by saying, “I hear you saying fill in the blank”.  Just to be heard is what others crave.  My husband is constantly reminding me… the talker… that we have 2 ears and one mouth. Which means we should listen more, right?  Sometimes others just need us to listen.  If you think about all the shows on television, how many of them yell over each other rather than listen respectfully and then give their answer or rebuttal.  Restoring civility requires us to be more like salt.  Salt is needed in our professional life, our personal lives and even in the lives of those we do not know.  In closing dear readers I leave you with this quote.  “People don’t enjoy salt.  They enjoy what is salted.  We are the salt of the earth. We do not exist for ourselves.”  John Piper.  Go and sprinkle a little salt all around you.  

Source:

Forbes.com

Britannica.com

My Books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

Clean it Up!  Wash it Up!

Coming Soon!

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Appalachian Allegory

The Gift of Reflection

What does your soul reflect?  Photo Credit My Husband

Positive Pensées

Kathy King 

The Gift of Reflection

“Be a reflection of what You’d like to receive.  If you want love, give love.  If you want truth, be truthful. What you give out will always return.” 

Unknown

The Gift of Reflection.

To ponder, to mirror, to meditate. 

What is your mirror? 

What is your reflection?

What can others see through your looking glass?

If you were to look at the mirror of your soul would it be a beautiful sight to behold?

No one’s soul is perfect, that is a quite obvious fact. 

But would the expanse of your soul be a reflection of the good traits that humans possess?

A soul is the embodiment of all that we are made of. 

That is why we must take time to see what our reflection is made of. 

Reflect that which is good, noble, and of praise. 

So that you can continue to cultivate this reflection of glassy beautiful water with no haze.

The hazy bits are in the corner, they don’t take up much room.

The beautiful bits are a reflection that convey a most beautiful picture.

Of flowers swaying in the wind, announcing their vibrant colors. 

The sky is a beautiful shade of blue and the weather is not too hot. 

The perfect balance of the soul. 

That is where we need to set our hearts. 

When you think of the concept of someone having a soul, where does your mind immediately tend to think of?  Is it your spiritual part of yourself that in some belief systems is immortal? Is it emotional intensity or intellectual energy that is imparted both on a human level and on an everyday task level?  I would argue that souls are color blind.  Souls are the essence of us. That is why it is important to feed our soul a diet of edifying activities albeit through what we watch, what we say, what we read, who we surround ourselves with. That even flows over into what music we listen to. Music in some cultures is believed to be a great healer.  It is also regarded as food for the soul. It is part of our soular existence.  Think of our souls like our physical diet.  If you eat french fries, chocolate pies, hamburgers, chocolate, cookies, fatty meats each and every meal each day would we really be healthy.. or on another level even feel very good.  Of course not.  Diet is about balance.  As much as we are loath to say it.  While an occasional sweet or indulgence is fine a diet of indulgence does with great alacrity cause us physical and mental pain.  What do you feed your soul?  This is a very serious question.  A soul that is on a diet of negative thoughts, words, deeds, and even media will inevitably become murky and even stagnant in their purpose.  A soul that takes the time each day to meditate on positive aspects of life or read a scripture, even if it is for a moment, will dip into the murky waters that have set in and make them clean.  Sometimes the murky takes a few times of scrubbing to make those corners clean but the practice of cleaning our souls will over time produce a beautiful reflection of purposeful soular activity. As I caught a little bit of the news this morning I could not help but see the faces that were etched in anger. They were yelling, some were hitting one another, stomping on others.  Why? Well, as I have said before we live in a fallen world. If that is your diet, that is what your soul will create on the outside. It can’t be sustained.  C.S. Lewis is probably one of my favorite writers of all time.  One of his most poignant quotes was “You don’t have a soul.  You are a soul.  You have a body.”  That is why my dear readers it is imperative to feed our souls a good diet so that we can have a most beautiful reflection that shines from the inside out. 

My books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

Clean it Up!  Wash it Up!

Coming Soon:

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Appalachian Allegory

The Gift of Tenancity

This is Schloss Laufen on the Rhine on the border of Switzerland and Germany.
When I visited this place my first thought was, "Wow, that had to take some nerve to build a castle on top of a raging waterfall in the Rhine."  That is tenacity. 

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Tenacity

“Tenacity is setting a goal so big you can’t possibly achieve it, then growing into the person who can!”

Are you tenacious?  

Do you hold on tight?

Do you never give up without a fight?

To be tenacious is to have a steel will. 

Tenacity is needed to make it through this ride we call life.

To try and not give up when all around you is nothing but strife.  

Tenacity is hard when all around you see, is bickering and arguing and hearing folks say, “Me! Me! Me!”

Take the tenacious parts about your life that are good and keep calm and carry on.

It is the tenacious person, the person that can see the good even when that good part is minute. 

Being tenacious can be a great teacher imparting wisdom and patience.  

So try being tenacious and you might see life’s endless possibilities.

Are you tenacious?  Do you stick with it when the going gets tough?  So many items in life are disposable these days.  We want the “quick fix’” It is almost as if longevity, fortitude, investing time, love and resources into one object will make it last a lot longer.  If you were to look at a lot of successful businesses and read about those who began said businesses you will hear one common thing.  They did not give up even when the going was quite tough.  Tenacious people work smarter.  They see a problem and think, “I have tried to do this a certain way many, many times to no avail.  Why don’t I approach the problem differently than before and see if I get a different outcome.” Tenacious thinkers are problem solvers.  What in your life have you tried over and over in the same method with little to no results?  Step back, take a breath, and try to approach the issue a different way.  I am sure that you have heard in your life, “We have always done it that way.”  I would argue that those who have achieved some sort of success with their goals have approached their situations in a myriad of ways until they achieved success.  Tenacity is knowing that you will not achieve your definition of greatness overnight.  There will be days when you take two steps and there will be days you will take ten thousand steps.  The point is, you took the steps.  Take exercising for example.  I have met a few people who actually love exercising (why?), but most of the time in all the years I worked in fitness, folks are not keen to work out.   I started telling my clients you made it here!  You have won part of the battle.  Next time we will add a few more repetitions, a few more squats, a few more exercises until you feel that you can reach your goal.  When our little son was about three we had a baby shower for my twins who had just been born.  We were given a lovely lemon cake to take home.  It was in a big round plastic container.  Our son kept scooting a chair to the counter to try and get the cake.  He was obsessed!  My husband ended up putting the cake on top of the refrigerator knowing that this little precocious man would certainly not be able to reach it.  I was tending the twins, my husband was tending to other things around the house.  I thought he was watching our 3 year old.  As I put the twins in bed our son came into our bedroom rolling the plastic container like a ball.  I said, “Good grief, how did you get that?!”  I went into the kitchen. He had figured out that if he scooted the chair by the counter and climbed up on the counter he could barely reach the cake.  He devised that if he used a wooden spoon he could knock the cake off the top to the floor, get off the counter, slide onto the chair then roll the cake to me.  He could not hold the container because it was very, very big.  His little arms could not hold it.  Well, I would call that tenacity!  One last quote to share.  “Often it’s tenacity, not talent that rules the day.” Julia Cameron.  Truer words could not have been spoken.  

My books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

Clean it Up!  Wash it Up!

Coming Soon:

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Appalachian Allegory

 

The Gift of Crochet

This is the table cloth my mother-in-law made us...  the table was getting ready for a holiday meal.

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Crochet

“A good life is like weaving. Energy is created in the tension.  The struggle, the pull and the tug are everything.” 

Joan Erikson

To wind, to weave, to string together.

To bind, to create, to bring the threads together.

To stop, to relax, to take a little time.

To create a design of beauty that calms your mind.

To loop, to finish each small section.

Makes for a finished product that shows dedication.

Crocheting is much like life.  

We string together varying circumstances day in and day out.

Some may be happy, some may be joyful.

Some events may be filled with self doubt. 

Some situations may give us grief and anger.

Each situation is part of the threading.

In the end if we are persistent, we can take all these daily machinations and make a beautiful crochet project that can sustain us.  

To help us to learn, to grow and even succeed to master the art of spirit, soul and life crocheting.

Recently I pulled out a very intricate table cloth that my late mother-in-law made for our dining room table.  The stitching is so intricate and beautiful, the project took my mother-in-law months to complete.  This spurred my mind to ponder how life is much like crocheting.  So many different circumstances have been weaved into our lives over time that the stitching can either make a masterpiece or a misshapen woven mess.  How can we start making our life, our influence a beautiful crocheted pièce de résistance?  The process starts by finding something positive or joyful in each circumstance, no matter how hard that may be.  When the process of crocheting starts, it begins with a single thread. The thread is lopped in the crocheting hook and then made into a chain.  After the chain is made, the chain is made into rows or rounds.  If our outlook is bleak, that stitching may not look so great. With everything going on in the world,  folks are divided at the moment.  How do we start a new chain?  Find the grace, find the kindness, find something that gives the gift of commonality to yourself or someone else who might need it.  There are some situations where you are going to have to stop the stitching and start all over again.  There are going to be sometimes when you have to let go of that certain stitch or situation.  That is ok.  As you continue to crochet a life of meaning, joy, positivity and purpose you can graduate to a more intricate stitch.  Make the circumstances and even more extensive creation.  When researching crocheting, there are literally thousands of patterns and each one was different, some were hilarious.  The 70’s mens shorts were quite amusing.  Sweaters, hats, purses, fish!  There were teapot cozies, dresses, blankets.  You name it there was a pattern for the crochet.  In all of the patterns a theme was present throughout the instruction.  It takes time, patience, a whole lot of weaving in and out.  There are many colors and patterns in each one and in the end produced a masterpiece to the maker.  How are we crocheting our life?  One final quote to share:  “Instead of worrying about what you can’t control, shift your energy into what you can create.”. Roy T. Bennett.  

My books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

Clean it Up!  Wash it Up!

Coming soon:

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Appalachian Allegory

The Gift of Darkness to Light

I took this on one of our early morning walks...

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Darkness to LIght.

“In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present.”

Sir Frances Bacon

Do you feel encompassed by darkness?

Do you feel the weight of its might?

The light just can’t permeate, you just want to give up the fight.

You try to find your way, you crawl and use your hands. 

You feel around in the darkness. 

You try to stand. 

You are not sure you can find your footing.

You squint your eyes to see.

That one little pin prick of light, that will guide you to luminosity.

You stand and pray.

You hope and dream that this light will come to be. 

Your prayers lead you to firm footing, and you think that you just might see…

A small bit of shining as your eyes adjust to the dark, could it be?

Your spirit is bolstered, your heart starts to beat with a quick pump and a start.  

You take those ginger steps towards that small source of light. 

It becomes brighter and brighter as you squint with all your might. 

The prayers, the tears, the heartache, the storms.

You see them start to dissipate.

As the light just comes a little brighter with each step you take. 

When you have your sure footing your steps become more sure. 

Dear One, it is most certainly darkest before the dawn. 

Of that you can be sure. 

Don’t give up, pray, stand up in the dark.

So that when the sun begins to shine you know you made it even when times were dark.

Give thanks, feel the light, know your strength. 

You can do this, you are stronger than you think.

Today I was pondering the phrase, “It is always darkest before the day dawneth.” This phrase was uttered by theologian and historian Thomas Fuller. He uttered this phrase when he stood on Mt. Pisgah.  Moses stood there before his death to see the promised land. There are times when I feel that we are in a very dark time in humanity.  We have so much as compared to other places. Yet, well… we think it is too little. Recently I read a book about places in Appalachia where there are folks who cannot read, they don’t have running water or heat. They are destitute in poverty.  Right in this country.  It really caused me to convert my, “Ugh, I have to go to the store.” to “I am so blessed to be able to go to the store.”  This past year in our home has been dark, there have been health issues galore with several family members, other traumatic events as well.  Top it all off with the news cycle, social media, the division of folks. It just seems dark, right? You often hear people equate dawn and sunrise.  When in fact they are completely different. Dawn is when you can detect a little light in the sky.  Sunrise is when the sun makes its first peaks over the horizon.  I have shared many writings about my dark:30 walks with my husband.  This morning it was early, cold, and honestly I did not feel like doing it.  What a great attitude, right?  But in my move towards changing my line of thinking I stopped.  I thanked God that I woke up, I could walk, and as we were coming down the driveway, I saw the first pin pricks of light announcing the dawn. A lot of the time we have to tread some darkness to bask in the full light of day.  What is the real point of this musing? Keep going, keep the faith, keep praying, keep that strength.  Crawl, walk, stumble towards the light.  When the path is clear and lit, you know you have made it.  Let us pray for our world.  Let us pray for those who are in the midst of harsh war. Let us pray for our country. Let us pray for each other.  I leave you all with a quick story about Cpl Duane E Dewey.  He fought during the Korean war.  Earlier he had been significantly injured by a grenade during an attack during the night.  They were outnumbered and outgunned. Cpl. Dewey saw a grenade land in the midst of the soldiers.  He told everyone to get back and he selflessly jumped on top of the grenade. He was lifted off the ground and still survived.  When he was taken for treatment, they also found a gunshot wound in his stomach.  He was the recipient of the first Medal of Honor ever presented by Dwight D. Eisenhower.  Cpl. Dewey thought nothing of saving his whole squad in a very dark time.  We probably won’t ever be faced with a situation as dark as this (God willing)..... But we can appreciate his bravery of climbing from deep darkness into light.  Keep searching for that pinprick of light.. Eventually your path will be gloriously illuminated. 

Sources:

Uso.org

Bookbrowse.com

My Books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

Clean it Up!  Wash it Up!

Coming soon:

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments

Appalachian Allegory

The Gift of Leaving a Gift to Your Future Self

I like to look at this photo as a gift. A nice walk in NY on a beautiful fall day. 

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

The Gift of Leaving a Gift to your Future Self

“Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one!”

Brad Paisley

What is a future gift for yourself?

What could it be?

It does not have to be anything monumental, perhaps a small thought or quote for just you to see.

There may be days when you need the gift, particularly when times are hard. 

The present could be a fond memory to give you the little bit of temerity to keep on going when the day seems bleak. 

Cultivate a gift for your future self. 

Make it part of the recipe of your life. 

When it is time to open the gift, it will be right there for you to help you cope with life.

My husband has said to me many times over the years, “Did you leave a gift for your future self?” The first few times he said it I honestly was confused at what he was saying.  I asked him what that meant to him.  He explained that in life we get tired, we get bored, we get angry, we just have those days where we literally feel the phrase, “I got nothing.” That is the time you should pull out that gift to your future self.  For my husband, it would be organization. He is quite possibly the most organized person on the planet. If I do not know where something is located, he does.  His penchant for organization is both annoying and endearing. When he is weary and feeling down he has a “bug out bag” that has all his clothes cleaned and pressed, his toiletries ready precisely where they need to go and his shoes and socks ready to receive his feet. This concept made me ponder what could be gifts that we could leave for our future self when we just are exhausted, annoyed, angry, or any range of emotions where we need to take a step back?  Obviously your gift does not have to be organization.  Your gift could be a little basket with your favorite tea, a book, and some chocolate.  Your gift could be various quotes stashed all over where you live to remind you that you can make it through this. Your gift to your future self could be that prayer or scripture that gives your spirit a little boost. When we invest in ourselves particularly when you are low, this activity fills you back up so that in turn, you can give to others. I have a friend who constantly struggles with negativity. He constantly deals with trusting others to be good humans, so much so that he is unwilling to entertain new friends or even open up to family members who love him very much.  Recently he discovered the concept of leaving a gift for his future self.  For him, he starts his day with scripture, daily affirmations and positive thoughts through music. While he still struggles with his distrust of others, his attitude has markedly changed from where his emotions were 6 months ago.  For him, he had to give himself a few moments of gifts for his future self daily.  Find your future self gift, wrap it up and put it in a safe place for when you truly need restoration and respite.  I leave you with a quote from the Dalai Lama “If you feel burnout setting in, if you feel demoralized and exhausted, it is best for the sake of everyone, to withdraw and restore yourself.” 

Source:Good Housekeeping 

My books are on Amazon!

The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot

Clean it Up!  Wash it Up!

Coming Soon:

Appalachian Allegory

The Case of the Missing Honk Honk

The Case of the Missing Ornaments