Not About Me.....Serenity, Money & Earth Hour!

Today's post is not about me...well, I want to write about a few things that are not me-centered--imagine that! :)

Truth is, I'm very tired today and in severe back pain, so I figured the best way to take my mind off my own troubles, would be to discuss what's RIGHT with the world today--or at least what's happening in it not surrounding me!

As you all know, I like to read other blogs, it's fascinating and uplifting (most of the time!) One of my favorite's is Kris Car's CrazySexyLife....and as I was scrolling down her blog today, I found a post from her that she made on Wednesday. It was so uplifting and truthful that I just HAD to share it with you all, here it is:

SERENITY…

You are moving into a time of greater inner peace and tranquility. Peace of mind means feeling secure, and knowing that you’re always provided for. Even if your logical mind can’t fathom how a problem will be solved, peace of mind means that you trust that God (or Budddha or Elvis) will create a miraculous solution. This sort of faith is always warranted because faith is a key component in experiencing such miracles. By drawing this card, the angels reassure you that peace of mind is within you. You can feel serene, even in the midst of great turmoil. It’s a mistake to think that you have to wait until your life is problem free before you can be happy and peaceful. The opposite is true actually. First you work towards serenity and then your life challenges disappear. Serenity is your natural state of mind, and the angels are working with you to actualize this.

I feel very serene. I feel happier than ever! And I feel like I KNOW I'm being provided for, even admist tough economic times. No, I don't watch the news every day, and no I don't spend my life in fear of "what if I don't have enough money for..." because in truth, I always do. SOMEWAY, SOMEHOW, SOMEONE (be my husband, my mother or some other angel in my life) ALWAYS provides me/us with what we absolutely NEED! And usually some of what I/we want! (By the way, I got those $20 Keith Urban tickets I wanted--thank you, baby! I may be in the nose bleed section, but I'm front and center in the nose bleed section, yay! I'm so excited! Thank you, Colin, for the tickets! Our first concert together, I'm so excited!) Anyway, I've noticed that people who run around scared out of their minds of NOT having money are usually the ones who DON'T have money. I'm not saying that one can pinch penny's out of a donkey's ass (as my mother would say), or that we need to be unaware of our finances...but honestly, the more I tell myself EVERY DAY that "I have what I absolutely need. I am provided for. I am taken care of. We WILL be able to afford x, y, z....." 9 times out of 10, that proves to be true. I don't think we can necessarily THINK ourselves rich...and debt/lack of money has certainly consumed me and my thoughts at certain times in my life, I think FAITH is a BIG part of having ENOUGH. And I think happiness is a big part of KNOWING when ENOUGH is ENOUGH. I HAVE food, I HAVE shelter, I HAVE heat/AC, I HAVE a car, I HAVE clothes....this isn't to brag, but rather it's to encourage you all to think about what you DO have. What there IS enough of in your life. Because let's face it. We could ALWAYS use MORE money. Who the heck woudln't want/like MORE money? I mean, money is great! It makes the world go round, well, actually I really do think LOVE makes the world go around, but second to that would definitely be money. Money CAN be the root of all evil, but I promise you, it does NOT buy happiness! Can it buy better sleep at night when you don't have to worry about things you need to pay or bills that are due? Yes, certainly. Can it buy better health coverage so you live a longer, better, more healthful life? Yes. Can it buy the vacation of a lifetime? Technically, yes; but in reality; no. Even with all the money in the world, what we DO, HOW we experience things, how we perceive things and how we CHOOSE to participate in our lives is ultimately up to US. I've known people who had a lot of money and wise completely miserable. Money does not buy true-blue, real and honest friendship. sure, money may help you barrow some people who will act like friends until the money runs out, but I firmly believe that the best things in life do NOT cost a lot of money. I think that's why this recession hasn't affected me too much--personally. I was used to going without certain things, I was used to budgeting and watching what I/we spent. I was used to looking at the smaller/finer things in life that usually ended up being fee. So, the question is: are you experiencing Serenity, or has the economy still got you down?

I know that the Lord provides, always. And if He doesn't do it directly, He will always send someone who will provide it for you. I believe in Angels, and it was nice to be reminded of serenity today. I needed it, and I enjoyed it very much. See, my back is hurting less already! Thank you, Lord! God/Life is good!

The other thing I wanted to write about today is Earth Hour....it begins tomorrow night at 8:30pm and goes until 9:30pm--in your local time zone! It's a global event that aims to turn off and turn out all of those wonderful, useful, yet harmful for the environment, technologies/electricities that we rely upon so much!

I plan to take part in it.

I like to think of myself as very globally concious...or at least environmentally concious. Of course, I'm not totally "green" yet, I do what I can.

Tomorrow night, the lights on the Las Vegas Strip will be out. THAT I can't imagine. That will be a sight to see (or rather not see). I hope the astronauts in space don't lose sight of Earth because the lights in Las Vegas will be out for the hour! (Las Vegas really is the brightest spot on planet Earth--no kidding!)

Anyway, I'm excited about it. Turning off the TV, computer, phone and lights for an ENTIRE hour!!!

UN-PLUGGING from the world to HELP the world! It sounds like such a great idea!

I really don't know why we don't do that more often.

Okay, yes, we NEED lights. We NEED electricity. God wouldn't have given the gift of inventing to someone (Thomas Edison and the Lightbulb, THANK YOU!) if we didn't need it. And I'm certainly not saying I want to turn off my electricity every day. I like it, and I need it. And it's not a horrible thing.

Lights/computers/phones--they're all quite necessary at times; but not ALL of the time!

Candles are great and quite useful! And since they're already one of me and my husband's favorite things in life, I'm sure hanging out by candlelight will be a real De-Light! (sorry, just had to say that!)

Actually, I have a real plan for tomorrow night!

I'm going to spend EarthHour one of SEVEN ways:
*Meditating/praying,
*Writing: HAND-writing something. Either a letter, a couples' journal entry, reflections of our wedding day, or perhaps, what I SHOULD do...hand-write our thank-you cards. All of this, if I choose this, will be done by candlelight!
*Enjoying a mutual/couples massage with my husband
*Playing a board game by Candlelight (we've played a board game in a while)
*Checking flashlights and emergency kits
*Or, TALKING (in the quiet candlelight) with my husband! Imagine that!
*Or, doing other marital/newlywed 'things' with my husband! :)

Most of these tips on how to spend EarthHour I obtained from my local paper. Which I love! Every week, I get a Valley View News Circular...it's a tiny paper that only deals with MY part of town and is extremely local! I read it each week to see what's going on in my little part of Vegas. Events, happenings and reports! It's very cool!

Anyhow, when Colin & I were on our honeymoon and were pretty much UNPLUGGED from the TV/computer/phone, it was FABULOUS!

We got along so well, and I think being UNPLUGGED from all of that had a lot to do with it. I miss that.

Sure, I missed keeping in touch with my friends and I felt very 'out of the know' with what was going on in the world, but you know what, I liked it. The world went on without me being "in the know" and that was kind of nice.

It was nice to not have to be up to date on everything, or anything, for that matter. To take a break from the world and shut it off, and out.

It was fantastic, actually. And I think we as a society need to do more of that.

I'm not talking about ignoring what's going on in the world, or becoming ignorantly unaware of things. I'm not talking about not caring or not dealing with things that obviously need handling. I'm talking about putting down the excessive need to "be up" on things, to know, at all times, what so-and-so is doing and how plans a, b & c are coming along. It's nice to let go of of all that once in a while!

So, I'm actually hoping to talk my husband into having an 'Earth Hour' once a week from now on; okay, honestly, I don't think he'll go for that. But, perhaps, once a month!? That's definitely my goal! Have an Earth Hour ONCE a month--DISCONNECT for ONE HOUR...from all electronics; lights, TV, phone, etc....

I'm sure it would be good for the soul! (And probably our marriage too!)

This isn't to say that I want to give up my electricity/lights, TV, phone and computer(s) completely; like most of the world, I've become dependent on them too! And I like them. I actually think they're incredible tools that HELP us stay connected and in touch. And ensure ourselves that we don't become totally unaware of what's going on in the world. It's good to know, most of the time.

But what I'm realizing more and more with each passing day is this: it's the PEOPLE that matter most. It's the CONNECTIONS you have with those you love; whether friends or family members-that matter most. It's your significant other and the relationship between you two, that matters most. It's your love for those people, and your pets, and the love and joy and companionship that they give back to you--that's what matters most!

And in most cases, while a phone/computer may be a great tool in easing the physical distance/miles between you.....NOTHING but NOTHING beats a REAL hug, a REAL kiss, a REAL pat on the back or face to face conversation! NOTHING!

So, that's my pledge. I'm going to join the globe with Earth Hour tomorrow night and then I'm going to have my own Earth Hour once a month!

Maybe every 5th, 7th, or 15th, 21st or 29th...or whatever date I choose! Granted, I can't MAKE my husband do anything, as he is his own person and I am mine, but I know he does care about our environment and one of our common interests is "going green(er)." Maybe if is I say "turning everything off for one hour once a week or once a month will help save money on the power bill that's already going up $x a month anyway...yes, I think I'll put it that way. It will better my odds of getting him to agree to it.

But, who knows, perhaps that man of mine will surprise me and want to join me in my WEEKLY/MONTHLY Earth Hour from now on. At the very least, I hope he joins me tomorrow night. I think it's important. It's important for our planet, for our environment and I think, it's important for humanity--on a person-to-person, get re-connected, no really- without the technology, kind of lvel!

I'm looking quite forward to it and I hope you will join me! I'll post a link to Earth Hour at the bottom of this blog.

In the meantime, I'm going to go. I don't have much else to say and although I want to write about our wedding, this post isn't all about me. For today, I'm done with self-indulgence. Well, not really, perhaps I'll go take a nap, yeah, that sounds REALLY good right now! (There's another idea for Earth Hour...take a nap, or go to bed early....no technology or electricity required!)

Thank you Lord for this life, the peace, serenity and enlightenment! For this life and these friends and this family, for my husband and his job and our home! For our bills ultimately being taken care of each month! And for the wedding of a lifetime. (Sorry, I just can't get over how beautiful it was!)! Thank you for it all! Please continue to bless us and those we love!

Until next time...

In Light N' Love,
-Sarah Liz :)

EARTH HOUR:
http://www.earthhour.org/home/

CRAZY, SEXY LIFE by Kris Carr:
http://crazysexylife.com/