Off-Topic Tuesday: Forgiveness and Nest Update

For me the process of growing hair symbolizes so many things.  Among them is the passage of time, and hopefully along with that, more wisdom.

In thinking about the wisdom that I have now compared with when I was young, I think of some of the very important things I've learned along the way.  I also realize how far I've yet to go.

Forgiveness has been a huge theme in my life.  I never really understood until my late 30s just how important real heartfelt forgiveness can be for the mind, body and spirit.

Holding on to anger simply makes one bitter and brittle.  Learning to let go is freedom.

So many people are or have been stingy with forgiveness, as we somehow believe that in the act of forgiving, we are condoning wrongs.  

That's simply not the case.  One doesn't have to condone or approve of someone's actions in order to forgive.  Forgiveness simply means letting go of anger and resentment.  How freeing that is!


Oddly, or perhaps not, I can forgive others more easily than I can myself.  Yet self-forgiveness is vital.

I have a long way to go.  I was just saying to a friend today that just when I think I have this forgiveness thing down, something will happen that will set me back, and it's as though I have to relearn how to forgive all over again.  I wonder if one ever gets to a place where it's not such hard work?  I don't know, but I'll never stop trying to find out.

I'm going to share some of my favourite quotes on forgiveness, from people from varying political and religious backgrounds.  They so often all boil down to the same thing.

"Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned."-- Buddha

"If we really want to love we must learn how to forgive"--Mother Teresa

"Anger dwells only in the bosom of fools."
- Albert Einstein

"Forgiveness
Is the mightiest sword
Forgiveness of those you fear
Is the highest reward
When they bruise you with words
When they make you feel small
When it's hardest to take 
You must do nothing at all..."--Charlotte Bronte (Jane Eyre) 

"The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." --M. Ghandi

"To be wronged is nothing, unless you continue to remember it."--Confucius

"For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 
But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."--The Bible, Matthew (ch. VI, v. 14-15)

 “We achieve inner health only through forgiveness--the forgiveness not only of others but also of ourselves”--Joshua Loth Liebman

"Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much."
— Oscar Wilde

Okay, the Oscar Wilde quote just makes me laugh, however true it might be.


A quick update on the robin's nest on my porch.  The robins were well into building the nest, and had all of their materials laid out below the porch lamp, but they abandoned it before completion.  Perhaps they had a fright from a predator.  I hope they've found a safer haven for their nest.

Off-Topic Tuesday: Birds' Nest and Time to Get Moving!

Nothing says Spring to me like watching birds nesting.  For the last few years, robins have built nests on our porch light.  A nest was started about 2 weeks ago, but it was a gusty day, and the beginnings of the nest blew away.  I thought that perhaps we wouldn't have the pleasure of watching the robins' life cycle this year.

I was very excited to see that it looks as though the robins have begun building again.  These birds are slow though.  The first photo was taken yesterday, and the second was taken today.  

I hope that the nest is completed and that the birds have a successful brooding and hatching.  I'll share photos if and when that happens.



On another note, I stepped on the scale on Saturday, and while I'm two pounds less than my all-time high weight, I'm about 25 pounds from where I'd really like to be, and about 18 pounds from where I realistically think I can be at this point in my life.

Some people can gain twenty pounds and it's almost unnoticeable, but I have the hereditary tendency from both sides of the family of gaining about 80-90% of my excess weight on my tummy.  This is not a good thing.  If it were more evenly distributed, I think I'd feel better about it, but I really don't like the way I feel right now.  I can't fit into my jeans, and my waistline is virtually non-existent.  A year from now, my hair will be inching toward waist length, and it would be nice to have a waist!

This is one of the few things that I've noticed about getting older.  The weight just doesn't come off as easily without a good deal of exercise.  I've been leading too sedentary a life of late.  I get a lot of migraine headaches, so it makes it hard to move the way I'd like.  I've been inspired by some of my friends though, who are in the same boat and who are starting to get more active.

I think I can find a way to do cardio, even when I'm not feeling at my best.  I have a stepper, and I used to love stepping.  It doesn't involve a lot of movements that are uncomfortable for the days that I have migraines, and it's easy.  Whatever I do for cardio now has to be low impact, so this is perfect.

So thanks to you gals who have inspired me.  I'm about to get moving again!

I hope that everyone has been enjoying this lovely April day.