Monday, May 30, 2011

My Life is My Talk Show



I watched the final episode of O.W.
Had to.  And I was feelin' it until the "J" word, but that's another topic.
What did really impress me was the central message of this last show:
My life is my Talk Show.
 

We don't realize the impact we have on each other. My friend Wendy told me about a man she smiled and waved at every morning for x years upon dropping her daughter off to school, and how he confided in her when he and his family were moving way ... that her smile and uplifting spirit really brightened his morning. And she never had the slightest hint... until he told her.  And it makes me wonder. 


"Everyone has a platform. Mine is a stage in a studio.
Yours is wherever you are, with your own reach." ~O.W.

That we make a difference in each other's lives should be enough.
I'm starting to relax into my life and realize that just being me is the best service I can provide.  It's easy to be myself undiluted with those I love and trust.  But it's even more important to safe little risks and be myself with strangers.  Refuse to see the world as unsafe, but as a world of solvable problems.  

Being me will always be part of the solution.  Whatever the problem.
Being me is enough, and I realize... when I quit trying to please others and just be me, the others I attract are appreciative of the real me.

We all don't have a talk show that stirs controversial hornets nests or sends waves of education.   But we are making a pretty good sized dent in the lives of everyone we know. And most of us don't even think about it. 



"You also have to know what sparks the light in you so that you in your own way can illuminate the world. You have the power to change somebody's life." O.W.

And... that change comes not necessarily from magnanimous generosity or special pre-meditated planning or involvement... it comes from being who we are meant to be.  At least, that's what I believe. 

Are We Enough?
I was all excited to finish this post, feeling up from the tone, and then I had an "I am not enough" moment with someone.  I often feel this way with specific people. So I should look at what it is I think I am missing by not being enough to them. 

What am I missing?
Just validation!  That's it.  And they'd have to give this to me for me to stop missing it.  Which means I'm setting myself up for failure right off the bat.  I am enough.  It's entirely possible I am not what they wish me to be or even need in their lives. But this is irrelevent to my question.  I am always enough. 

People cast us as they need and wish in The Movie of Their Lives. No need to take it personally, cuz we have very little control over it. It's just a part they cast us in, and it's not always even accurate. 


To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting.  ~e.e. cummings, 1955


He who trims himself to suit everyone will soon whittle himself away.  ~Raymond Hull


Again:  Being me is enough, and when I quit trying to please others and just be me, the others I attract will be appreciative of the real me.   Doing otherwise is letting others be a giant distraction to being me. Which is my platform.  My life is my talk show.  What if O.W. had started trying to cater her shows to a different demographic than the obvious one that loves and appreciates her for who she is?  That would be silly and likely fail, right? So why would I try? 




I should just be happy with the talk show I've got.  Just like O.W.   Those who really appreciate me will tune in.  And I can get on with being me, which is the best I have to offer you.

~Shephard :)

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Friday, May 27, 2011

Little Smedley's Tour of The Great Ocean Road!!


 

Every great road trip has to have a mascot, don't you think?  We rescued Smedley from a Tourist Info Gift Shop in Melbourne... and knew he'd be the perfect tour guide along
The Great Ocean Road. 


 

It was just two days really.... with a stop over in Lorne.  But with the help of an event driver during the press junket, we got the scoop on how to tackle such a major road trip in 48 hours. 

 

We had rain, sun, clouds, ocean, cliffs, forests, a kangaroo, snacks, shopping, a best buddy, and amazing vistas. The perfect road trip.


The highway decorations from Melbourne....





I could chart the whole thing for you... or just show you the amazing photos....
   I think I'll do the latter...




There were many stops, and many surprises... always something to look at....






 And the Aussie's take their signage very seriously...




A reststop area... painted with Aboriginal art... love it... 







Driving along coastal cliffs... there's bound to be a lighthouse or two...


Smedley said it was definitely worth stopping... and he was right...


 

A lovely housey cottage along the road to the lighthouse...


 

Wow, right?  

 

Back on the road with our trusty navigator, Smedley...


 

We stopped at a summery campsite along some bluffs....


 

We arrived at the township for the night.... and it was time to take a load off, after 5 hours of driving...


 

Smedley says real Aussies don't drink Fosters.  They drink CROWN.   We agree, it's a better choice. 

 

Is this the strangest sand pattern ever?  
 No actually... the camera is sitting on top of the weathered picnic table...



 

We agreed.

 

Loved the bouquet like trees along the ocean 

 

Smedley introduced me to the BEST CANDY BAR I'VE EVER HAD.  Imagine a Mounds candy bar... flavored with cherry & coconut.  Sigh. 


 

We stopped for the night.  Even Little Smedley had a comfy bed.


 

Flowers are extraordinary in Australia... 


 

By far the biggest attraction on The Great Ocean Road are...

 

Oceany crags jutting up out of the splashing waves... 
there used to be 12 of them, thus the name.
I think there are only 8 now.  
But I was so busy gaping at the views, I didn't think to count!




 

"DIE"  
(they don't kid around)



 I loved the foliage and blooms...




It was a short walk from the visitor's center.... 


Oh, it's not so high up....



Oh.... wait...


 

Too windy and high for Little Smedley.  
He stowed away inside my coat....


 

What's that way out there... some sort of promontory...?  Are those people? (YES)




Yes.  People.  Way out on the tip.

 

Journey out had some stunning views and photo ops...


 

Who is that lime-green chap with Smedley?


 

Just wow.








Looking back at the cliffside we'd started on....



Next stop... quaint town with yummy food?  Absolutely!





It was time to head back to Melbourne... long drive. 


But a beautiful drive... !


Smedley would like to thank you all for letting him 
give you all a brief tour of an amazing road trip!

~Shephard :)

*       *       *

Anyone interested in seeing 
our other adventures in Austrlia, 
click on these:
 




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posted by Shephard @
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