#Reverb10…Core story

Prompt: Core story. What central story is at the core of you, and how do you share it with the world? (Bonus: Consider your reflections from this month. Look through them to discover a thread you may not have noticed until today.)

My core is apparently eclectic and full of love and happiness, and the things and people I enjoy and spend my time on have to be full of this for me to feel fulfilled. Looking over this past month, the theme replays itself over and over: I like to have fun, love animals, family and friends, laughing, and the pursuit of things must involve these endorphins. Of course, hurdles present themselves and we suffer loss, injury and other setbacks, but bouncing back is always an option, and for me, something that tends to make me even more grateful.

My reflections this month have revealed to me that above all, I’m blessed. I’m living in a time and around people in my life where I’m free to chase butterflies and land giggling in the grass while the fluffy clouds pass above me and beckon my next adventure. I’m free to do as I please, give as much of my heart and energy as I can, and get back it back twenty-fold in love and belly-laughs. Blessed indeed.

Reverb…Gift

Prompt: Gift. This month, gifts and gift-giving can seem inescapable. What’s the most memorable gift, tangible or emotional, you received this year?

This year was one of many gifts in my life, both tangible and intangible, emotional, and spiritual. Two strike me, because they are heirlooms from my dear grandparents. One is a case of adorable animal statues known as the “Bunnykins”, of Beatrix Potter stories. My Grandma always said, “Animals look cuter in clothes than people” and when I look at these little figurines, I cannot help but feel her standing near me, admiring them and smiling. Wonderful, this is.

The second is something that arrived shortly before December: it’s what we called the “Christmas house”, which was a sort of gingerbread house my Grandpa made. Inside is a little fireplace, and other Christmas-y items that makes you want to crawl right in and wait for Santa to arrive. I watched my Grandpa spend hours in his own workshop making this, dripping just the right amount of “snow” from the eaves of this little cottage. And now it’s in my home. When it arrived here, I wept — with joy. Wonderful, this is, too.

#Reverb10…Defining moment

Prompt: Defining moment. Describe a defining moment or series of events that has affected your life this year.

I’m a leader of a group (which will remain anonymous) and in being so, I was confronted with a lot of obstacles at the beginning, and well, throughout the year. Between you and me, I think I was supposed to fail, as things were left in quite a mess. I made some hard decisions, but they needed to be made. I made some big changes, but they needed to be changed. There’s been some attrition, but …well, you get the picture. It’s affected me because I wasn’t sure where things would be at the end of the year, but amazingly, the group is still standing and in fact, is attracting some new blood, some new energy. I’ve realized that even though things aren’t as pretty and tied up as we’d hope, we have the ability to set things right and preserve things for the future if we’re prepared to piss off some people. Apparently, am okay with that :)

#Reverb10…Achieve

Prompt: Achieve. What’s the thing you most want to achieve next year? How do you imagine you’ll feel when you get it? Free? Happy? Complete? Blissful? Write that feeling down. Then, brainstorm 10 things you can do, or 10 new thoughts you can think, in order to experience that feeling today.

Fluidity in my work. I’ll feel happy, relieved and a lot more in control of my time. 10 things/thoughts for experiencing that feeling today?

  1. Burning candles
  2. Mindmap
  3. Breathing consciously
  4. Talking and giggling
  5. Organizing
  6. Laughing
  7. Cuddling
  8. Smiling
  9. Daydreaming
  10. Sleeping

#Reverb10…ordinary joy

Prompt: Ordinary joy. Our most profound joy is often experienced during ordinary moments. What was one of your most joyful ordinary moments this year?

Sitting with my daughter and husband, homemade popcorn in hand, watching a very corny and poorly made “scary” movie about the Winchester castle. This kind of time with my family is so special and we don’t get it often enough. This night stood out because of the laughing during the movie that should have been spooky, but instead was peculiar and funny, and we each saw the humor. Such a nice night of connectedness, which we still reflect on.


#Reverb10…soul food

Prompt: Soul food. What did you eat this year that you will never forget? What went into your mouth & touched your soul?

Pho in Virginia. It wasn’t that the food itself was so remarkable (well, it WAS really good), but it was the experience of dining in a place like that with my husband’s family. They’re very traditional American food eaters, so to be in a bustling Vietnamese restaurant with them was unforgettable, probably for them too :)

#Reverb10…a present to yourself

Prompt: Photo - a present to yourself. Sift through all the photos of you from the past year. Choose one that best captures you; either who you are, or who you strive to be. Find the shot of you that is worth a thousand words. Share the image, who shot it, where, and what it best reveals about you.

This one pretty much sums things up. I’m in my element, outside communing with nature and animals. My husband shot the picture while we were in the wine country in Virginia in autumn, getting ready to go out for a horseback ride. It was  lovely that day, misting and cloudy. It reveals my love of animals and how wonderful I think they are in our lives. This little guy was the only thing on my mind. 


#Reverb10…New name

Prompt: New name. Let’s meet again, for the first time. If you could introduce yourself to strangers by another name for just one day, what would it be and why?

Laura: it was the alternate name my folks had picked out for me when I was born. I always wished it had been that; it seemed more timeless to me and it’s a bummer when a name is part of an era. I can’t imagine people are naming their kids “Deborah” right now! Any way, Laura may have been much the same person as Deborah is today, but I sure would have liked writing my “L” like Laverne does ;)