Category transcendence

FMM 1 12 18 Liminal Messages

“You die, but most of what you have accumulated will not be lost; you are leaving a message in a bottle.”~ Umberto Eco. “I thought you had stick-to-it-iveness.”  When I came to the USA from the UK, I was a recently graduated state registered nurse, the proud accomplishment rewarded after three years and three months […]

FMM 12 29 17 Breaking Out

“Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.”~ Edward de Bono. I just awoke from a terrible dream.  I won’t bore you with the details, but it involved having multiple simultaneous responsibilities and no way to accomplish all of them in any meaningful way.  Oh yes, […]

FMM 12 8 17 Synergy

“And death shall have no dominion”~Dylan Thomas.  One of the beauties of being transplanted from one culture to another at an early age (as I was) is that you learn very early to walk the line between two worlds. And it doesn’t seem strange.  Children who learn to speak one language in the home, and […]

FMM 12 1 17 Choices

“Not what we have, but what we enjoy, constitutes our abundance.” ~Epicurus. In the 1980’s, Jamaica went through some challenging times.  The Prime Minister (Michael Manley, a self-declared Socialist) had aligned himself too closely to Cuba’s Fidel for the US to be comfortable, and actions were taken to squeeze the country.  The IMF and the […]

FMM 11 24 17 Don’t get it Twisted

“When you practice gratefulness, there is a sense of respect toward others.”~Dalai Lama.  Things were different when I was growing up.  I see how easily I have moved into the ‘older generation’ category, reminiscing about how things used to be.  But I remember the first time I wore long pants in the dead of winter […]

FMM 11 17 17 Push me Pull you

 “The countenance of one man brighten up another; iron sharpen iron.”~ Joseph Hill. One of the problems with parenting is that you are mostly making it up as you go along.  Children don’t come with a handbook.  The way you were raised may influence you, but the world, the times and the social mores can […]

FMM 11 10 17 Blind Spots

“There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self.” ~ Aldous Huxley. My brother was the only boy in our family, he was born after three girls.  I was told that my purpose in life (I came after him) was to prevent him from being […]

FMM 11 3 17 Perfect Harmony

 “Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.” ~Thomas Merton.  My father loved music.  He also loved to sing. And he sang in a beautiful tenor voice, although he could provide a little bass if necessary.  Many people share at least two out of those three qualities!  He grew […]

FMM 10 27 17 Points of Light

“People find meaning and redemption in the most unusual human connections.”~ Khaled Hosseini. Language is a tricky thing.  Even when you think you speak the same language, words may have very different interpretations. People from the English-speaking world have to learn to avoid saying ‘football’ when in America.  If you live in the US, although […]

FMM 10 20 17 Exceeding Expectations

“Put your heart, mind and soul into even your smallest acts. This is the secret of success.” ~ Swami Sivananda.  I always wanted to be a nurse.  I had two dress-up outfits as a child. One was a cowgirl outfit. It came with the sheriff’s badge, a waistcoat, skirt and holster with gun.  Oh yes, […]