Be The Change

The sun is out and it is a gorgeous fall day! It rained all weekend and frankly, I loved it! We had a fire going, I did lots of cooking and baking, seasonal decorating, and of course there were chores to do. Dave had drill this weekend so I'm sure he's feeling like he had no weekend at all.




As the holidays are fast approaching, what are you planning to do for holiday gifts? I sent out an e-mail that I received from my Aunt Jeannette about centering your gifts around local merchants. This goes beyond just shopping at local stores, but buying services from small businesses for people who could really use them. Dave has always been really good at this, not only shopping at little mom and pop gift shops, but he has given me a facial, a massage, and gift certificates to the nail salon where I like to go. BEST GIFTS EVER!! I love the idea of gift certificates for auto service, car washes, and finding businesses run by young people. Think babysitting -Uh, this one is GREAT! Computer work done by the people who know computers better than any of us old folks - high school kids. What about a local bookkeeper to track your small business (or family) finances? It just may be more affordable than you think.


Finally, I'm using this forum to shamelessly plug my original art, RiverLights Originals. All of you know I spent much of this summer painting river rocks and photographing them under water. Some of my images are of rocks out of the water as well. I even took one of my favorite rocks to New England and came home with some beautiful fall images. I've posted pictures on my blog and you can also find more on my Facebook page at RiverLights Originals. I have note cards ($1.00 each), calendars ($20 each), prints (4x6 - 20x30), and prints on canvas and metal. They really are quite nice.


With that, what are your holiday plans? Will you be traveling or staying close to home? Whatever your plans, I wish you peace and positivity. When you encounter poor customer service or the Scrooges that are bound to make themselves heard, be the change you want to see. Find something positive in every interaction and shake off the dark sledge that wants to hang on and weigh you down.

We all have so much to be thankful for, find a few things today and concentrate on the good. Happy Monday!