Happy Memorial Day

Music: “The Star Spangled Banner” - PS 22 Chorus

“Why do we have an Army in America? To protect our liberty. - Over hill, over dale, as we hit the dusty trail!” 

“Why do we have a Navy in America? To secure and keep us free. - Anchors away my boys!”

“Why do we have an Air Force in America? To inspire our confidence. - Off we go, into the wild blue yonder!”

“Why do we have a service called the Marines? To help insure our National Defense. - From the halls of Montezuma!” 

Music: “The Military Song” - by: Janeen Brady 

Horse Ish

 It seems as though I spent all day today cleaning up dog poo. My sense of smell has been ridiculous since I’ve been pregnant and I don’t really appreciate how good my sense of smell has become at certain times. I gag like crazy and often vomit because of whatever I smell during this pregnancy. 

We have a teacup dog and I was so excited thinking about how I’d easily clean her poop because it’s so tiny. Then, it seems as if everyone in our family got a big dog. So now, when I go on poop patrol it can sometimes feel as if I’m cleaning up horse poop. 

During this pregnancy I pep talk myself about it. I can clean that without getting sick, I think to myself. Then I go outside with the poop patrol bag and scoop it right up and the sight of it makes me gag all the way to the trash can. The kids all watch with amazement, waiting for the vomit to arrive. 

I sit by the spa a while later while the kids swim and all of the sudden get a big whiff of another one. Oh gosh, I’ve got to clean that before the smell of it makes me vomit, I think to myself. I quickly go inside for another bag and go to clean it. Again, gag all the way to the trash can. Will my newfound sense of smell remain? 

Would You Hire a Pregnant Lady

I’ve been applying for jobs even though I’m four months pregnant. I started applying a long time ago and now it’s become almost a sort of routine. My Mom told me nobody is going to hire me while I’m pregnant and I’m really starting to believe that. It seems nearly impossible. Most of what I’ve been applying for I would probably be able to continue on throughout my pregnancy and the birth, first year and so on. One of the jobs I applied for I’d not be able to wait to get back to work! 

I forgot about that application in particular until the Starbucks barista reminded me about it. Then I thought to myself, what if I actually got hired while I’m pregnant? The descriptions I read say that the employer will not discriminate based on factors such as pregnancy, but I’m not really sure I fully believe that. Luckily, I am blessed enough to have a supportive significant other who is happy about me spending time with the kids. 

Of course, I’ve been trying to get a job with Disney. The legal team directed me to get a job with Disney before I could try to get the Beauty and the Beast Ride up and running at the original Disneyland. So I’ve been trying to get a Disney career for a few years now. I just found out recently that Disney careers offers daycare for employees so I’m extra happy about the idea of getting hired. My kids have already agreed to going to Disney daycare and are excited about it. Of course, overall, I prefer a job/career where I can bring the kids to work with me if I wanted to. Is that possible? 

Unrest

 Last time there was a plague, it was followed by the 100 years war. After what we’ve been going through in the world, it’s safe to say I’m a little bit nervous. The reason being when people die, their loved ones go through a grieving process, in which one of the steps of grieving is anger. Many of us have lost loved ones and it seems as if the entire world is going through stages of grief together. This is possibly a reason why the 100 years war followed the Black Plague long ago. 

We, as human beings, this time around, have evolved since that last happened and hopefully, have become sophisticated enough to be able to avoid that type of consequence to the pandemic we’ve been going through. In this situation, are we better together, or are we better alone? 

The Unseen

 Our local Starbucks store has this wonderful wall full of notes. Each note is a quote that can help brighten our spirit. You choose a note off of the wall and read it. I usually get at least one for each member of our family. 

Today mine had this quote: “Faith is unseen but felt, faith is strength when we feel we have none, faith is hope when all seems lost.” - Catherine Pulsifer

I believe God exists within each one of us. When we go through difficult times or read a news story that is horribly sad, etc. it can sometimes cause us to question. The stories, when our collective attention is brought to the situation, could be God’s way of helping those involved. Together, we are better in those regards. What happens to each person is between God and that person. Only God knows how he/she was guided and protected through the moments the rest of us hear about, read about, etc. Faith is in the trusting that God is good and will carry us through the most difficult moments we’ve had to and will have to endure over the course of our lifetime. 

The Cocoon

 The caterpillar is sorta like a sperm before it meets the egg. Once it meets the egg, it’s similar to a caterpillar turning into a cocoon. Once the butterfly emerges out of the cocoon it takes a little time for it’s wings to dry and until then it walks around trying to fly. The process can be compared to a baby being born from the womb and taking time to learn how to walk. 

Our caterpillars have now left what they once were to become what they’re destined to be. 

Keep at it

The Forbes article from yesterday inspired me to first of all, set intentions. I set intentions today and when I woke up at 4:45am, my intentions changed from good to great! Something about waking up early helped me to create even better intentions than I’d set last night. Once in a while, that happens, but sometimes when we set intentions, they’re slightly altered or we don’t follow through as we’d planned. If you set goals such as I am going to quit drinking coffee, or I am going to cook and clean every day for a power hour, it often takes several tries to accomplish the goals. If you set a goal and you want to accomplish that goal, keep at it. It might take a little while or several tries until you accomplish what you set out to do. 

Have a Great Day

In an article from Forbes by Nancy Collamer, 5 steps to having a great day are mentioned. 

“1. Set your intentions.

2. Practice distancing.

3. Plan strategic downtime.

4. Focus on one step at a time.

5. Practice gratitude.”

The article also mentioned some key questions I think are worth posting:

“Given my priorities, where do I want to focus my attention?”

“What will I think about this a month or a year from now?”

It can often be a challenge to think that we have control of what happens in our daily life when factors exist that are outside of our control. It is, on the other hand, refreshing to be able to set intentions as well as time to take a break from the expectations we make for ourselves. The theory of we are all doing the best we can, with what we have, where we are helps us to focus on the now.  

Thank you. :) 

Smiling Hope

Sometimes it’s difficult to write when there is so much sadness going on in the world. When do you tell someone we may not understand the way God works for a great while? Or that if you just hang on through the moments you don’t think you can get through, those moments will get you through to the next moments and so on and so forth until it gets better. When do you offer words of condolences when you don’t even know what to say? Or that it gives you hope to see someone else smiling, so when you have the chance to be happy, be happy. 

It can be an arduous task to watch the news, read articles, learn about current events, but oftentimes, our combined awareness is sufficient. When we are called to promote the general welfare, this is what it’s all about. Our combined efforts make it possible for people to get through what they have to go through. If your parents can’t get you a present for Christmas, Santa probably can. How can we promote hope, encourage wellness and practice healthy habits? Wash your hands, wear a mask, stay safe, if you have symptoms, get medical attention, quarantine, etc. 

Free Enterprise

 Free Enterprise is not an easy process. If you look at any successful business/enterprise, it’s foundation rests upon the basic principles given to us by our creator. These are: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness and like I’ve mentioned prior to this post, these rights are ours only if we can keep them. The way we maintain our rights is by respecting our rights as well as the rights of others. The rest of what happens, sometimes only God knows. 

Great businesses/enterprises are built upon this type of foundation. The top priority is usually people and the main goals are usually to help people in some way or another. What happens when we join a great business? Lots of training. Learning about our rights, how to respect them, as well as respect the rights of others also takes the type of practice and training we encounter when joining a great business. 

Slogan Writer

 Talking to a guy at the park yesterday helped me to remember a slogan I wrote for Toyota. It was one of those that also makes me want to go and get a Toyota. Slogan writing came out of nowhere for me and I’m not sure why I decided to start in the first place. I remember sitting down at Disneyland near the vacation club and creating slogans for it. Then I started looking at cars and got inspired to write some more. Either way, I really enjoy slogan writing. 

My slogan writing is a part of what our country’s economy thrives from: Free Enterprise. Everyone gets to do whatever they do best. If Ford, or any of the other companies I’ve written slogans for end up deciding they want one of the slogans, the hard work could pay off. And if it doesn’t end up going anywhere at all, I have the right to try again. That is what free enterprise is all about and it’s what helps our U.S. economy grow. Walt Disney is one of the greatest examples we have of someone who has found success in free enterprise. 

Ford

 Yesterday we (the kids and I) went into the new Ford office in Upland. We’re going to need a bigger car once the baby arrives so we’re trying to decide what the best possible deal would be. Right now the inventory is low and it is unpredictable as to when it will get back to normal I was told. I wrote slogans for all kinds of different car companies. Mercedes, KIA, Chevrolet, Honda, Audi... and the one I wrote for Ford seems to be my favorite. I’ve been looking at it for the last week or so and falling in love with the slogan all over again. So much so that, with the slogan, I convinced myself that a Ford is what we need. 

After sharing the slogan with the Ford representative in the Upland office, I thought about it all night. What if the whole world was living in a dream? Are our dreams organized into countries and are there rules and guidelines for the dreamers the same as it would be in reality? 

Possibly

 The boys have their caterpillars in the little containers still. They’ve both (the 2 caterpillars) made a J shape at the top of the container and are looking like they’re just sleeping from eating so much. All that was in the container they’re in was food (nectar) and air. They have a sort of silky looking layer of cloud looking material around them and I’m looking forward to observing how they’re going to transform into a cocoon. They didn’t need anything but air and food. 

Sometimes in life we can feel like we’re just inching our way through. Every day is a repetitive cycle of eating, drinking water and sleeping. I guess we can think of this phase as the caterpillar phase while remembering that the caterpillar must go through this phase before it turns into a beautiful butterfly. Our world is in a sort of caterpillar phase. It’s exciting to think that maybe, just maybe our transformation, granted “we’re all in this together”, could be as phenomenal as the transformation of a caterpillar to a butterfly. 

Fresh Salty Air

How Much I Love You

 I love you like I love to wake up in the morning. 

When I wake up in the mornings to realize I have another chance to live my life. 

You’re the deep breath full of relaxation and laughter to my soul.

The reason I have to believe, to achieve. 

The evergreen part of me that oxygenates my spirit. 

My love for you is omnipresent. 

Beautiful Wings

 I got the boys some caterpillars so they could watch them go through the process of turning into a butterfly. I remember playing with caterpillars when I was young. I would pick them up in my fingers and let them inch their way across my hands. Some of them were a really bright colorful green and others were black and fuzzy with orange spots. Who would think when looking at a caterpillar that they would turn into a beautiful butterfly? 

Sometimes I wonder what happens when we die. The Egyptians would wrap a cloth around bodies of the deceased and I can’t help but think it resembles the cocoon of a butterfly. Could the caterpillar turning into a butterfly be a reflection of what happens to us, as human beings, when we die? 

The Apple Tree

 Faith is something we cannot see, but we believe. During our life, we experience times when our faith is questionable. You plant so many seeds, you water them accordingly, but the tree just won’t sprout. You eat  another apple and when you get to the core, decide it’s worth another try. After all, the apple tree is life giving. You plant the seed again, knowing it might be a fruitless pursuit. Planting the seed is having hope and giving your faith the chance to grow. Sometimes all we can do is plant the seed. 

Dream Journalism

 Hi, my name is Dr. Suzanne Sateri. I am a Doctor of Education. Becoming a Doctor of Education did not happen overnight. It required lots of hard work, dedication and practice. I had to be bold and brave enough to take risks that were somewhat out of the ordinary in terms of standardized educational practices. I am currently studying to be a Surgeon of Education. When I was a young girl, I remember playing in the garden and pretending to be preforming brain surgery. With my hands full of mud, I would imagine I actually had a brain in front of me and was helping someone with a team of Doctors, to be able to think at their highest capacity. That was the defining moment that lead me to becoming an Educational Surgeon. 

The root of the word education means “to lead forth, or to lead”. With my hands muddy, once again, I plant a new seed and wait for the roots to grow. The natural process of planting a seed comes with not knowing when and how the roots are growing, steady and strong underneath the surface. We plant the seed with the faith that it will grow, whether or not we witness every process of that growth. It strives to be connected with the light in the darkness and once it emerges into the light, it grows toward it. Sometimes, after a while of becoming strong in the core, what was once a seed becomes a tree and produces fruit that we might even be able to enjoy. 

Writing the Dream

 I was reading the self-care tips from Pixar characters today and wanted to pick at least one as a topic for today’s blog. The one I’d like to focus on is “write in your dream journal”. I’ve read a little bit about classes where the teacher asks each student to introduce themselves as who they wish to be instead of who they think they are at the time. The teacher called each person Dr. and they each dressed as if and acted as if they were who they dreamed of being. 

I imagine this is what writing in a dream journal would be like. 

Kinder Math

 

Nature

 One of the most important things we can do for our good health and well-being is to be able to enjoy some time in nature. Most of the time, people’s creations are enjoyable but there is nothing like the creations from the Almighty. 

Writing

 Lately I’ve been watching these inspirational videos on YouTube and I thought one of them was particularly important. I spent some time lecturing the Introduction to the Constitution a year or so ago. This, for me, is such a fun topic to learn about and discuss because the more I learn, the more I am moved to tears of thanksgiving. In the quiet space of my walks, in my mind, I go over and over the concepts and each time I learn something that enlightens and inspires me to the core. 

First we learn that we, as humans, have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, given to us by our creator, the almighty. Then we learn how to keep these rights for ourselves and the one way to make that happen is by respecting not only our rights, but respecting the rights of others. Our constitution is literally founded upon the golden rule. 

I watch our military and important people within and stand in awe and admiration as I begin to understand the bigger scope of it all from my perspective. The inspirational movie scene stays in my mind as I hear the past President’s words repeat, “but only if you can keep it...”. It was an example to explain the concept of, “And we of right, ought to be free.” We have these rights, but only if we can keep them. 

Thirty and Thirty

 Today when I was focused on the “power hour” (30 minutes cleaning, 30 minutes cooking), I started cooking, after watching a short bit of the video I posted in the last blog and almost an hour later, dinner was ready. I washed a few dishes while I was busy making dinner and when all was said and done I realized that I’d made the power hour into at least two hours. Just like attending a party and staying longer than planned, I extended the time I was planning to spend taking care of business. This was the type of gift I needed to give myself and my family. 

The Power Hour Starts Tomorrow

 I’ve decided tomorrow I need to begin a “Power Hour” tradition. 

The power hour will be divided into two 30 minute sessions:

30 minutes of cleaning

30 minutes of cooking 

The power hour needs to be done 5 days a week. 

Here is a way to start off simply. 

Instacart

 I recently got a job with Instacart. I shop for people’s groceries and deliver them to their house/apt/condo. I’ve been on a few deliveries and have been enjoying my new work. 

Goals

 I’ve been reading several articles my Google Assistant pulls up for me that are health related. There are a few consistent answers when it comes to creating a more healthy lifestyle. 

1. Eating good foods. 

I went on a walk today to implement what I’ve been learning and on my walk I saw some fruits on a tree hanging over the fence. It looked extremely delicious so I picked a few and put them in my pocket. When I got home, I washed them, ate some and shared some. They were awesome! Little snacks like that will make the difference. 

2. Exercise.

Since I am pregnant I am somewhat limited to what type of exercise I can do. I tried to shoot the soccer ball a few times from the 18 yard line with my kids and later vomited. I can walk, thankfully, so I walk. A family pass to the gardens or amusement parks are a good deal because they provide extra motivation to exercise. 

Freedom of Speech

I read something that said if we are able to express ourselves with our words, we are able to let go of negative emotions that might otherwise be detrimental to our health. Freedom of Speech is a sensitive topic lately because we have learned that the words we speak, write, read, etc. actually do have some type of water weight to them. TBC...