Tag: passion

Lipstick, Fitness, and Things Like Horror Movies

“I hope they’ll know how hard I tried to live in love, to love in depth, let wonder take away my breath, to give until there’s nothing more, this is what I want to be remembered for. Everything else you can set it on fire.” ~ Colony House

“I want your lips to be the first thing people see when they walk through that door!” my boss exclaimed while we young ladies were gathered around for a staff meeting. I’ll never forget that line or the fire in her voice as long as I live. Think Devil Wears Prada with the southern allure of Dolly Parton. At the time, I was in sales training at a high-end makeup and formal dress store for brides and beauty queens in a large micropolitan area just outside Brad Paisley’s southern comfort zone. I’d always loved makeup and dressing up, but the energetic owners of the store gave a new meaning to my previously held visions of a glam up. Plump, vibrant, impossible-to-resist lips were a requirement. Lips that could sell anything. I won’t deny the power of the right lipstick, but maybe I didn’t want my lips to be the talk of the town. In all FAIRness, I love a bold COLOURPOP. It just seemed VANITY to me regarding what my priority was supposed to be; not a genuine smile, but sales lips. I learned a lot during my time there. About fashion, cosmetics, and the not-so-glamorous side of sales. Life lessons that still resonate and fill me with gratitude many years later…

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Letter to Helen

To my great-grandma Helen ~ Mother of my grandma. Matriarch of the family. Lady of mystique.

Dear Helen ~ You don’t know me, but I’ve heard stories about you all my life. I’m your daughter Sheri’s oldest granddaughter. I wish I could have met you; you’re the missing person I’m often wondering about. The older I get, the more I think about you and your impact on our family, and how at age 36, I’m a year older than you were when you were gone way too soon from this life. I often wonder how different our lives would have been had you been here with us. I think your story in particular is why I feel emotions so deeply. Why I have always thought about life and death so seriously. Why I want to live life to the fullest amount of joy and passion possible. We aren’t guaranteed a long life on this earth: we only have this present moment…

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Terpsichorean Motion

“This is your time, this is your dance; live every moment, leave nothing to chance. Swim in the sea, drink of the deep; embrace the mystery of all you can be.” ~ Michael W. Smith

An idea has been oscillating in my head as of late. Of movement, nature, and time as one divine thing. Ticking clocks, the sound of Irish pipes, love songs, and a sky filled with stars. And a coming of age and innocence. Some thinkers perceive the ancient Greek goddess/muse of dance as a metaphor for the cosmic dance to which the entire universe moves. Terpsichore. “Delight in dancing” is what her name means. Yes, she’s a myth, but imagine: a powerful, radiant woman personified as the passion and rhythm of this universe. A force of orderliness that can’t be escaped. That is a beat to which I can sync.

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The Plight of the Musically Inclined

I love to play the piano.  I play the piano at our house with frequency.  But sometimes…people at my house just don’t want me to play.  I walk into the living room and sit down.  I play two notes but then get shot down, which really puts a damper on my spirits.  Sometimes, I…ever so slowly…so as not to cause a commotion…walk into the living room yet don’t even make it to the piano bench before I hear someone from the kitchen say the phrase in an annoyed tone, “No!  Not right now, Mal!”  So.  I get frustrated that I must refrain from playing.  And it makes me want to just run in there and hit the keys in anger. Playing the piano is an outlet for my soul.   Continue reading “The Plight of the Musically Inclined”