Prayerful Remembrance

Prayerful Remembrance

The word anniversary is derived from the Medieval Latin word,

anniversarium, which means the ~ turning of the year~.

Every day when you awake military families are also waking.

For them it is no ordinary day, today is the turning of the year

of the passing of their loved one.

The turning to this very month has brought them painful emotions.

Then the days count down until it become, 'the day'.

As this day dawns, for some it is the first year.

For others a second and sadly for others perhaps

decades have passed.

Please join me in starting off your day with a prayer.

Dear Lord we ask you to be near this family today.

May they know that there are only one set of footprints

in the sand.............

Yours Our Heavenly Father as you continue to hold them close.

~Amen~

Debra Estep - 11- 2005


 

Mental Tapes and the Law of Attraction

Mental Tapes and the Law of Attraction

It's really a shame that so many interesting topics

are on the minds of only a fringe few in our society.

It would be a great service if more could consider some

topics that when explained they only laugh at or dismiss.

What I am writing about today is the Law of Attraction.

I've attempted to see WHO was the first to suggest there

even exists such a 'law', but I could not come up with

an answer.   If you do know by all means please post

a comment on that back to me. 

A very simple explanation would be this.....

When we think on something or thoughts run through

our heads, those thoughts are sent out as energy waves

into the universe.    We then attract back to ourselves that

which has been in our thoughts.

A good way to attract what

you want is to use affirmations clearly expressing

your desires.   

One example would be the thought, "I am open

to receiving all good".

Thoughts are great, but visual reminders are even

better.    Write down this affirmation and post it

in several places.   

Now what about MENTAL TAPES.   

The mental sound bytes that you hear over

and over in your mind become mental tapes.   

When the tapes run, most times they are so quiet

in the background of our

minds we don't even consciously hear them.

Yet they run and they send messages out

to the universe bringing back  just what

was played out.

Some have tapes that are encouraging and
positive, many have tapes that are
damaging and destructive.

You want examples of tapes.  Hmmmm

Let's cover positive first:

You can do anything if you put your mind to it.
You are a smart girl/boy.

Now negative:

I am fat

I am shy and quiet

You are bad

When you bring awareness to what is playing

in the background of your mind, then you can

change the tape.

I would also like to direct your attention to

a fellow I’ve just recently met from the online world.

I say met, but I mean we have exchanged emails.

His name is Phil Gerbyshak and his web site

is MAKE IT GREAT.

MAKE IT GREAT !

Phil and his insightful words epitomizes

the Law of Attraction.

He also has a book called, 10 way to

MAKE IT GREAT. I’m waiting on a copy to

arrive and will certainly be posting again

after I’ve read his book.

Sometime last year I hung a dry erase board

in my living room. It measures 23” x 35”.

Quite a good sized board.

The purpose is to write things which I want

to keep in my mind and also have my family

relate to.

Not a to do list or a calendar, but an area

where I can post words of inspiration or even

fun and encouragement to my family.

We also listed 3^rd grade spelling words on

there last year. I’m certain that some of the

area will be taken up with 4^th grade spelling

words this year.

A couple of days ago I wrote:

MAKE IT GREAT !   (Phil Gerbyshak)

Kevin was sitting at the dining room table

last night and having a snack. I pointed to

the words and said     “See that” ?

He said……… “Yeaaaaaaaaah”

That is a message I want you to keep in mind

for the first day of school tomorrow.

He laughed and grinned one of those….

“Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh MOM” kind of laughs.

BUT………… he got the message.

I’m very hopeful that Kevin’s mental tapes

will be positive ones through his whole life.

Thank you Phil for your ~ GREAT ~ inspiration.

Please do Google Law of Attraction for

further reading and explanations.

Death Changes Us

That Tuesday morning of September 11, 2001
here in Twinsburg Ohio was a beautiful early fall day.    
The sky was solid blue and totally uninterrupted with clouds.

Officially 2973 are listed as being killed that day.

I was talking to my youngest son 10 year old Kevin

the other day.    I initiated the conversation with him.

The topic was death.

I started out by saying, ‘Kevin there are something’s

in life that are facts.    Like 2x2 equals 4.   That is a

fact and it’s not going to change.

Another fact is that we all die.    

He blurted in,

‘but you and Daddy are going to die before me’.

I half way laughed out loud and said….

‘yes, it’s most likely we will, but sometimes

children do die first’.

He responded……’hmmmmmmm’

As parents often times we try to protect our

children from pain or hurts.    We do our children

a huge disservice when we attempt to protect them

from death. 

Of course it’s a fine line from having them neurotic

or informing them that death is a natural part of life.

As a child I was not protected in anyway from death.

If there was a funeral or a wake, we attended right along

with our parents. 

I witnessed the emotions of my family as they said their

goodbyes to a loved one.   

I am not saying that I was desensitized to death, but

it was not some deep dark thing that was hidden either.

It was natural.

When those 2973 awoke on that September morning

they had no clue their lives were about to end.

The sheer numbers alone is enough to make us stop

in our tracks and think. 

As the 5 year anniversary of 9-11 comes around,

I would like to ask you to do something in memory

of those people who died that day.

Would you make absolutely certain the people in

your life who you love and care about –

KNOW just how much you do love and care

about them.

If you do this and consciously connect your

actions of love back to September 11, 2001
it will give important meaning to the otherwise

tragic loss of life.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I would like to dedicate this post to anyone who

is healing from the loss of a loved one.

There are 3 very special ladies in my life who

I embrace with this dedication.....

Marine Mom Melanie - her son

Lance Corporal Lance Thompson KIA Iraq 11-15-2004

Air Force Mom Sandy – her husband

Don Trotter 9-9-2005

Marine Mom Carey – her son

Lance Corporal Daniel McVicker KIA Iraq 10-6-2005

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My Thoughts - September 2001

America STRONG AND PROUD

On Monday I looked into the face of a person not known,

seeing only a stranger.

Yesterday, that person became my brother and my sister.

United through this unthinkable attack on our HOME land.

As I went about my day yesterday, from place to place I overheard
conversation all centered on the past days events.

People speaking to one another as neighbors

over a back yard fence.

When we hear : "things will never be the

same again in the United States,"

Let us try to think of that in a positive way.

With much patience and love, embrace a stranger

as we would family. 

This remains the GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD,

and we, the descendants of those seeking a better life

will rise STRONG AND PROUD.

GOD BLESS AMERICA !Debra Estep
September 13, 2001

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

We Are Not Alone

Thousands of people are gone in a matter of minutes.

No Earthly good-byes.

Those who remain are left with memories of times past and

dreams of an envisioned future life.

Like a replay over and over the pictures of that day flash

in my mind.

The men, women and children on the planes whose last moments

we will never really know, were not alone.

The innocent and unsuspecting in the buildings and on the ground,

were not alone.

We witnessed people falling, they were not alone.

The ones who knew and were trying to escape, were not alone.

And finally to those who's lives work it was to rescue, defend and help

a nameless fellow human being, those heroes were not alone.

God and his heavenly angels surrounded them. Although they

could not stop death, the angels welcomed them to a new place.

As the souls passed over they turned to one another as if in a chain

to embrace, and on it went, thousands hovering together.

Many broke away to be near frightened and grieving loved ones.

Many stayed and are still there.

When we stop to wonder how the rescue and recovery people

have spent hour upon hour, shedding sweat, blood and enduring

pain to go on, know that they are not alone.

BUT let me add in the true spirit of New Yorkers,

the angels taking care of these laboring folks are not there

with soft pats on the back,

more like a swift KICK IN THE ASS.

Some angels will remain for a very very long time

as sentinels of God.

In the days and years to come, many people will visit these

Earthly places  New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania.

Some will come not knowing why, only seeking to be near.

Those who come will find comfort and support, as God

and his angels surround them, and they will not be alone.

And as I, the writer, sit from my home in Ohioto you the reader, where ever you may be, we are united.

We are not alone.

Debra Estep
September 21, 2001

------------------------------------------------------------

Debra Estep - painted September 5, 2002   (Watercolor - 15x11)

FUN--damental

I was over at EM Sky's Mind Unbound blog and reading
on her life blog entry On Being Kiddish


EM  wrote....
"I haven't been bringing enough of that fun to my business--
or to my blogging. Well that stops now."

She delightfully went on to say........
"As of this past weekend, I'm saying "NO" to boring
and I'm saying "YES" to having fun".

I wondered to myself, what was it about EM that
allowed her to post or reveal such intimate thoughts.

Ahhhhhh - SELF ESTEEM

I have been listening to an audio book by Carolyn Myss
on the subject of self esteem.  It's EM's self esteem
that allowed her that personal freedom.

I jumped over to Amazon.com to look up the exact title
of Myss's book.

There was the title in black and white:
Self Esteem: Your Fundamental Power

Self Esteem: Your Fundamental Power - Caroline Myss
A reviewer writes....

What is self-esteem? A type of confidence?
Or something far greater?   On Self-Esteem, Caroline Myss casts
a new light on this often misunderstood subject,
redefining self-esteem as an actual "core power" that is
essential to our evolutionary progress.

BAMM....... you see IT.    FUN    right there... FUN

The basis of fundamental is ---------  FUN !!!

As EM continues her exploration of FUN in her life,
I’m going to draft right along with her and also
keep my sites set on my own…….
FUN-damental power. 

EM's Blog

Hello Future Generation

Today I am sitting down and writing to my biological future

which has yet to arrive.    I know, it’s a stretch to think of you

as a person.    Well it’s a stretch for me at this time, but still

you are on my mind.

As I look backwards there is very little that I know of

my own past generation.    Both of my Grandmothers passed

when I was a child.   Sure stories are shared, but to know the

thoughts of these women, I am not privy to that information.

Had they kept a journal or diary, I might know their thoughts

as the people that they were.

If you are reading this, it means that my blog has somehow

survived me.    I don’t actually know if that will happen, but

for the sake of chance I feel the need to reach out and offer

you this disclaimer of sorts.

If you start out reading from the birthday of my blog, back

in early 2005, I just want you to know that my expressed ideas

and thoughts were never set in stone.

Let me explain on that a little.    The entry on any specific

date was indeed my opinion or thoughts on that day.

Life is dynamic.   Everyday that I wake up, I am not

the person I was yesterday, and so my thoughts change or

evolve right along with the day, thank goodness. !

In these days ( August of 2006 ) blogging is in it’s early

stages.   The beauty of blogging is the sharing of personal

thoughts and ideas that give us windows into the soul

of another person and even perhaps a window back in time.

Let Your Light Shine

Know that you are a ray of ~sunshine~ in my life.


Photo courtesy of Jon Sullivan - www.pdphoto.org
public domain

With heartfelt thanks and blessings for sharing. :)

People Art Book

Every single person I know has a page in my art book
and I even have a self portrait page.


Wow...... does it shock you to learn this ?


Some of you who know me well might be thinking
has Deb drawn a picture of me ?


Actually, my art book is a mental one.
It's really a shame that the line.....
"So and so is a work of art", more often than not
is implied in a negative sense.
You and I are indeed great works of art in progress.

Picture each page containing an intricately
designed connect the dots.


The pages are fluid, they change all the time.
As I learn bits of information about you the
picture changes and illuminates an area that
was not previously visible.

This art book has nothing to do with judgement,
it's about understanding, learning and filing bits
of you away to hold in my memory.

When we share thoughts, sometimes I am not
in agreement, but I listen with patience and a
little more of you becomes clearer.
I then turn the page and see myself and I am
delighted to see how I've changed for the better.

There are times when I read your words,
they so resonate to my heart......
I see our pages side by side and for a
magical moment we become twins.

Books are a treasure in my life and this
book of people art is the most treasured of all.