Story Library

A Friend’s Advice

Backstory

It makes me so happy to share this story with you. I think you will hear the joy in my voice when you listen. My dear friend Joan was the catalyst for a life-changing decision. I am so grateful to her for speaking up. But you’ll find out for yourself.

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A Friend’s Advice – #640

In a recent story, I told how my friend Joan had encouraged me to let Bill put a ring on it. I was hesitant and she pointed out that time was passing and each day was one we could have enjoyed as husband and wife. She said, “You don’t want to run out of time!”

She was right, so I said to Bill, “About getting married, you want to do it now?” Like in time travelers, we were suddenly signing papers at the courthouse.

I called Joan and said, “On Friday, are you willing to drop everything and come be a witness at our wedding?”

She agreed in half a second. So I got three other dear friends and there we were in front of an officiant, in the presence of God, saying our home made vows.

Bill was asked, “Do you take Annette . . .” and he responded with a really fast “yes,” before hearing the rest of the question. He was oh so ready to be a husband.

It was joyous, it was simple, it was fast and it was meant to be. Our home is full of love and each day is precious. And it happened because my friend Joan took the initiative to encourage us to see what was right before our eyes.

We should all be thankful for friends whose advice and guidance help us make better decisions in life.

P.S.

We are now two years into this new married relationship. Joan was so right. It does indeed make a difference. It feels solid and firm; like it’s real, rather than just playing house. Whatever the future holds, we are there for each other. Trust, respect and love abound. So much deeper, now that it involves the commitment of a husband to his wife and the wife to him.

[Show #640]

Personal Mission Statement

Backstory

I’ve always set goals and made sure my plans were in writing. It does not end when you retire. That may be the best time to map out who you want to be and where you want to go. You have a second chance to scratch things off that bucket list, get organized or mend fences. What will it be?

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Personal Mission Statement – #659

In my working days, I wrote strategic plans and helped organizations decide what their future should look like.

When I settled in the Shenandoah Valley to take things easy, I wanted a PERSONAL mission statement; something I could refer to, to see if my days are being spent on things that matter to me. It’s so easy to get side-tracked and whittle time away, when you’re not in a 9 to 5 job. I wanted to set a course and keep on it.

There’s a quote from Henry David Thoreau. It so inspired me that I have it in a picture frame in my office.

Thoreau says, “If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.”

Thoreau was saying to me – “Your Personal Mission Statement should aim you toward your own version of success and contentment. Yours – not anyone else’s.”

If you are interested in writing your own Personal Mission Statement and would like to see a sample, I’d be glad to share mine with you. It outlines the RESULTS I want to achieve from the things I do each day.

Just send me an email and I’ll get it out to you.

Once you write your mission statement, be sure to post it where you’ll see it every day so you can track your progress toward ”success unexpected in common hours.”

P.S.

To request the sample Personal Mission Statement, send an email to Annette@ConsiderThisRadioShow.com. Hope you enjoy the process of creating your own strategies.

[Show #659]

People Change

Backstory

Bill and I watched a British movie the other night. The lives of a whole family changed dramatically in less than a year. Some of the characters tried desperately to cling to the way things were; others rushed blindly toward change. Contemplation on those fictitious events led to consideration about how fast change occurs in real life.

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People Change – #315

Do you think people can change? I’ll bet you’ve seen it happen in your own life. Someone is grieving and unhappy and really off balance and yet, over time they straighten themselves out. Sometimes it’s the love of another person that helps them move on, or the person himself that may learn to live with the way things are. Or she may find new interests and a new way to participate.

Psychologists say that major changes in life take four years to accomplish.

For instance, a college graduate carries the person he or she was in school into the first four years of their career. It takes that long to lose the essence of being a student and adopt to the professional lifestyle.

They say it takes empty nesters a full four years to think like a family of just two.

It takes four years before the remarried person is totally comfortable with this new person.

Do you agree?

It probably seems the change occurs a lot faster than that. But we’re talking about change to the core. Change of your very being from the previous person you were to the skin and heart and soul of the person you have become; someone who has created contemporary values for their today, not their yesterday.

P.S.

What do you think? Are we humans so flexible that we can move from one corner to the next and take it all in stride? Or do we need to give ourselves – and others – time to adjust, become familiar, get into a groove that’s comfortable. Scroll down and jot down your thinking, please.

[Show #634]

What People Think

Backstory

I was in an improv group that performed skits before groups as an alternative to speakers. In one skit, I played a mom, who cared more about what the neighbors thought than she did about her own daughter’s pain. Remembering that performance was the genesis of this episode.

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What People Think – #272

We were just talking about what people think of you. Should you care what they think? Seems it should depend on who is doing the thinking.

A friend recently told me that he likes his wife’s hair because she still wears it fluffy. That’s not the current trend in hair styles. But which is more important – being a trend setter or setting your guy’s heart aflutter when he looks at you in that fluffy hair style that he loves.

As we get older, we sometimes fall victim to what other people think. We seem to let them convince us that they know better about what we should do, or say, or look like. They say that walking on 5 inch high heels is the way to look cool. They threaten that love belongs only to those skeletal enough to wear a size 4. They warn that nobody over 50 can get a job in this new economy. None of that may be true for you. Don’t believe it. Make a judgment for yourself about what is true and act accordingly.

Every day, we are faced with decisions. We can make them based on our own values or based on what others will think. Which will you choose today?

The best advice seems to be the one frequently directed to young people as they mature – be true to yourself. If you can do that, no matter what your age, you’ll probably make out just fine.

P.S.

What experience do you have about what people think? Want to share something with our listeners and readers? Scroll down and write on.

[Show #272]

In an Emergency

Backstory

The emergency in this story really did happen. So did all the action described afterwards. People are there to help. We just need to know how to communicate.

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In an Emergency – #646

The young mother had collapsed. The ambulance whisked her away. Before her husband could get the kids settled and reach the hospital, she was in surgery. It did not go well. There were complications.

He posted what had happened on Face Book. Dozens of get well wishes were posted.

Some urged the family to let them know if anything was needed. Generous people with good intent were doing nothing, waiting to get a call to action. I posted a blatant message.

“Don’t ask if he needs anything. Figure out what YOU would need, at a time like this and JUST GO DO IT!”

My post seemed to be a catalyst. A neighbor drove the kids to school. Some friends came and cleaned the house. Clothes were washed, dried and put away. Prepared meals were delivered. Fresh flowers showed up on the table.

The family glided through the wife’s stay in the hospital, her days in rehab and her confinement at home. It all had a happy ending, thanks to those who stepped up and pitched in.

If someone in your life has an emergency, don’t take a passive stand. Jump in and do something. Walk the dog . . . water the flowers . . . take the kids for burgers. Pour out the love, like Mike and Suzanne’s friends and neighbors did. Thanks, y’all.

P.S.

What action do you think we should NEVER take, if we want to help?

[Show #646]

Winter In the Bubble: The Villages

Backstory

After 25 years in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, we are wondering whether to spend retirement somewhere else. We’ve been weighing pros and cons, like these.

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Winter In the Bubble – #656

We lived in a bubble in the winter of 2018. We spent the coldest, snowiest months of the year at The Villages, a huge community for active adults over 55. The winding streets have beautiful landscaping, flowers bloom all year long, there is nightly dancing to live music, dozens of golf courses, a polo field, eleven country clubs and recreation galore.

It is Florida’s magic kingdom for mature adults.

A 50 page newspaper lists hundreds of events each week by different interest groups. You can go to the card game, the lecture, the swimming pool, the pickle ball court or the talent show.

But it is indeed a bubble. What’s missing? The sound of children playing in the streets, neighbors with hair that is not gray or white, anything messy.

The Villages is pristine and perfect. Over 100,000 retirees call it home. Every resident you meet sings its praises.

Critics say it is too sheltered from the outside world and lacks diversity. Residents feel they have earned this perfection in retirement and they make no apologies for their lifestyle. They volunteer, donate, support churches and tend to local underprivileged kids.

We have to decide whether we’d like to live there someday.

P.S.

What things would you take into consideration when deciding where to spend your retirement? Scroll down and share in COMMENTS. Thanks.

[Show #656]

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