Reflextions

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Reflections of one’s life can be an awaking all on its own. I have spent the last few days going over what my life has been, what it has become, and what it is now. I encourage you to do the same for it will open your eyes in many ways.

We all have terrible things happen in life, but looking back I realize that the bad times were few for me and the good times many. Some of you will have the reverse occur but look for the good things in the bad things. Sometimes we have a good learning experience from the bad things that have come about in our lives if we only open our eyes and look for it.

Reflections this soon in life has helped me understand a few things, I will pass some of this realization onto my parents since they still both are alive, however, they both are in their 80’s now.  I can make some things known now before they pass, a way to clean the soul, theirs and mine perhaps. That old saying ” IT’S NEVER TO LATE” well, in this case, it can be. I will put this top on my list to do and see that it gets done.

As I looked back into the past my heart was once again filled with the joy of the childhood that I did have, mind you, it wasn’t”Leave it to Beaver” in no sense of the matter. However, my folks both worked to make ends meet but they provided for me very well the best they could and that matters very much. My wife, on the other hand, had that “Leave it to Beaver” type childhood. Her mother was a stay at home mom and was deeply involved in school activities and was there when they came home each day. She has a hard time understanding the way I grew up but I cannot understand her way either. We both came out good and we have raised our own children to be good parents and citizens of this world. We taught them about God, love, honor, respect, caring, faith, and gave them the best education we could, we thought our job was done, but it never is really done, now is it. I hope that they see some time in the future what their mother and I tried to do for them as they grew-up and realize we did the best we could for them at the time. I hope someday they have their own reflections on life.

I just want to encourage the readers to take time and reflect on their own life. If you need to tell someone how you feel then take time to do it but the time is gone. Remeber to look for the good things and disregard those things that were bad. The only thing one can learn from the past is to forgive those for the wrongdoing and release the negative feelings that come from it, give it back to God and let him deal with it. I had a priest tell this one time when I had a major problem with something my mother had done. It worked I forgave her for it and soon was shown why she had done what she did. It was a fault in her, something that she just could not deal with, and I at the time could not understand why she did it, now I cannot blame her one bit. I hope this can help others find their way in the journey called life.

Love yourself for you are a being of God and if you love him with all your heart you will feel his love fill your soul. Life is a blessing, make the best of it, learn as much as you can of it, and teach others what you have learned. The journey is a great one, and the reward is the love and light at the end of this journey. Remeber his own words “forgive those for which they do not know what they have done.”

Only to dream

Dreams, is this a way our mind lets go of things bothering us, is it a look into the future, is it a for warning of things to come, is it our imagination playing tricks with us, or are our dreams all the above?

It seems that dreams have many meanings and is tailored towards each of us. If two people have the same dream it can have meaning for each one differently. Little is really known about the mind and why we dream but none the less we all do this even animal’s dream. When one thinks of it and ask the question of “WHY DO WE DREAM” it really is a misunderstood thing mostly speculation of why. Really with all the technologies we have we still cannot figure out just how the brain really works, of course, we have some ideas but still is more to learn. The dream world can be much more than we all think, a doorway to the future, a doorway to the past, a way to educate your mind from far away, a way to see past relatives, a way to understand the feelings of others that you were rotten too, or maybe just maybe, it is away our souls connect to the source.

Dreams, dreams, dreams, we have so much to learn, but yet life sometimes is a dream.

A family tale

The adventure begins when I was a child, my parents divorced and both my mother and father had re-married I was only four years old and struggled with understanding what was going on. I was really close to my dad when my mother took me away from him and moved to another state. I really missed my dad and I was not sure about her new husband but in time he was a pretty good guy overall. It took my father a few years to find his Mrs. Right, but he did and was married to her for forty-three years when she died of brain cancer. My mother, on the other hand, was only married to that man for three years, single for seven years, married again to another man and was only married to him for seven years. Later on, in life, she found the man of her dreams and they were together for over twenty years when he had a bad fall while walking the dog and died from a blood clot on the brain. Now that we have covered the prelude to the adventure I will go on with the story.

My mother was struggling to make ends meet, she had her very own dress shop in Dallas, Tx and it was not doing very good, it was hard times for many Americans at the time. It was in the mid to late 1970’s during the gas wars as people lined up for blocks, for hours at a time for ten gallons of gas. My mother could no longer support my sister and me and decided to send my sister to live with my grandparents and me with my father. I know she was sick at the thought of it but she was thinking of what was best for us at the time. This is when my true adventure began, little did I know that I would learn to hunt, fish, and camp being with my father. He also taught me how to make things by hand, like knives, grills out of green tree limbs to cook fish on the campfire, leather crafting, model building and some woodworking, too.

In the summers we would go on vacation for two weeks at a time usually twice a summer. The first trips of the summer were too many different museums all over the country some small some large. I learned many things about the history of our nation and the struggles of so many trying just to find and make a home. I learned about space travel, wars of all kinds, civil war, Indian wars, world war one, world war two, the Koren conflict, and the Vietnam war. I learned of the great depression, the 1920’s dust bowl, the soup lines, the big earthquake in Alaska, The terrible fire that leveled San Francisco, the gold rush, the Oregon Trail, the Donner party, Custards last stand, the first flight by the Wright brothers, the landing on the moon, the civil rights movement, and the hurricane that leveled Galveston, Tx. I also learned about Native American tribes, when the Spanished explored New Mexico, the first settlement of Spain in St. Augustine, FL, and the gangster during prohibition in Chicago, IL. It was a very good learning experience for me growing up. At the time it was fun and exciting going to all these new places and learning about the history. Little did I know that it would stay with me for my whole life but it has.

The camping trips we did every summer were just as much of a learning experience for me. I learned to fish in the mountain lakes and streams. I learned to cook on an open campfire, I learned how to clean fish, I learned how to find my way around the woods, I learned how to pitch a tent, I learned how to raft down rivers, I learned how to shoot a rife, I learned how to shoot a pistol and I learned how to hunt for food. I was taught to respect the animals for they are for us to enjoy in many ways not just for food. I learned how to clean up our campground, put out a campfire, pack up belongings both for going and coming home. One of my favorite things to do was mountain climb to the top of the nearest mountain to camp and look all around. I felt closer to the creator of this world being that high up. Sometimes I would sit and meditate for hours up there, it was peaceful to the soul. When we took some of my buddies with us, we would play spotlight tag and have a blast. Those times were great and a memory that I will never forget.

Growing up was the adventure of a lifetime and my Father and Step Mother made sure it would be full of memories for me. As a child you do not realize that you are learning all these things, but as you grow up and realize just how amazing it all was. You then understand just how much your parents really did for you. This is my family tale, a tale of life, a tale of love, a tale of honor towards my parents, and of everlasting memories.

A Life Worth Living

 

A life worth living is when you have spent a lifetime with that special person that fills your life with many joys. Finding that right person to be with is so much joy, first the romance and love, then the friendship and trust, then a family comes along and life cannot get better than this, so one thinks! Then comes the grandkids and what a joy that fills your heart like nothing else can.

When all this comes about and old age sets in, you fight for life to live as long as you can to be with those you love the most, family. Without this, life would have very little meaning for me. I enjoy the family that I have so very much and wish for a long life to watch them all grow in time.

I wish I would have taken better care of myself years ago so it would not be so hard now, but I have many reasons to make life last as long as I can. Eating better, exercising, and staying off sugar is a start. My message to you is not to wait until you are old and gray to wake-up, start today to live a healthier life, eat good food, and exercise.

Weekends are hard for me to post much

I would like to post much more but the weekends I work fourteen hour days and have very little time to spend on the computer. Please bear with me as I struggle along to post a little update every now and then.

I an staying on my program but have had little time this week to exercise but I did go swimming once this week. I walked around home depot and the grocery store for a couple hours at each store, so I guess that was some walking.

I have not checked the weight loss this week I rather check that every once and awhile but I do know I have not gained any extra.

Get up and move just a little each day

I am amazed at just how much better I feel now that I am doing some movement each day. I had to start off slow for a number of reasons, one being way overweight, two having a back injury from a car wreck, and three just being lazy.

Way back in 2003 I was injured pretty bad in a car wreck that was not my fault. It messed up my nerves in my back where I could not stand but for a few minutes at a time without my whole right side going numb. A few weeks ago I slipped getting out of bed and did something to my back once again. I hurt real bad for about two weeks but then the pain started going away and I noticed that I could bend over and pick up something off the floor that I had not been able to do since the wreck. Then I noticed I could stand longer and longer as I went along.  I was so excited to know that now maybe I can get up and move more now and maybe lose some weight. I feel like I have been blessed with a second chance and I will do everything I can with it.

Life is looking up for me now and I am much happier these days but I still have a long way to go to meet my goals. I will meet them if I stay with it, and at this point in my life, I really have no other choice but to stay with it.

Today I went swimming with my granddaughters that are five and three years old and they love going swimming. I love playing with them in the pool and watching just how much fun they are having. This is one reason for me to do better and keep my goals the other is my lovely wife, I really want to grow old with her and be by her side all the way for she is my soul mate and best friend.

One Month Weight Loss

I must say I was shocked when I climb on to the scale. I have done very little exercise just a little more walking and swimming just one day a week. However, I have cut out all soda-pop, junk food, fast food, and now I am eating more veggies, fish, chicken, steak, but nothing fried. I have lost 14lbs so far. I can say my back is feeling better and so is my overall body, too! It is amazing what little changes could do, but the big thing to remember is that more exercise will bring better results. I plan is to bring in a little more exercise slowly as I come along.

The food we eat really does play a part in the overall health of our bodies. I remember a saying that my grand mother use to say ” If you feed your body with good food, then good will come of it, but if you feed it poorly then you will feel poorly.” I wonder why we seem to not listen to those that know of it, but we chose to think we no better and do it our way anyways?

I found this picture on a very helpful website just click here for more information.

Eating Habits

Many of us are so busy with life that we tend to eat poorly, stopping at your local burger stand for a fast bite of food, to sitting in front of the TV eating potato chips because it is fast to fill a craving or a hunger. I am guilty of this myself at least now I can say I was guilty of this. I have changed these habits because I had no longer a choice, I did these things for so long at the cost of my overall health, but I can tell you it really is not that hard to do when you have to do it. I am rarely hungry these days because I eat so often, mind you, it is small quantities at a time and it keeps me full. I eat something about every two hours, a handful of nuts, a piece of fruit, a small salad, or a tuna fish salad wrap with a whole wheat tortilla. I have been speeding up my metabolism by eating this way and it is causing me to lose more weight. I have noticed that it also helps keep my blood sugars lower and it helps with lower blood pressure, as well.

We all have choices that we make every day and I wish I would have made better choice long ago but now I am on the right track and plan to stay with this for the rest of my life.

I do most of the cooking in our house now, this is so I can control what food I eat, how much of it, and the fresh ingredients that I make it with. I am always looking for low fat, low calories, low sodium, and low to no sugar recipes for new ideas. Rarely do I follow a recipe for every letter but I do ad-lib a whole new one from them.  That is what makes it fun and exciting for me. I do enjoy cooking and it is a passion that is also a hobby. I made today a wonderfully baked sirloin with small red potatoes, asparagus, and brown slice mushrooms baked on a sheet pan in the oven. It makes just enough to feed two to three people if you cover the sheet pan completely with the veggies cooking them first for about thirty minutes. Then add the steak to the center of the pan pushing the veggies to both sides and cook steak for two and half minutes on each side for a nice medium well steak. Try it, but add olive oil and spices in a mixing bowl with your veggies before placing them on the cooking sheet pan, then cook. If you add parchment paper to you sheet pan first the clean up is fast and easy when you’re done. You can do this with fish, and chicken even pork chops just remember your cooking temperatures for each type of meat. I will post a list of temps for each meat product in a later post.

The good food can be found at your local produce market, meat market, or grocery store. You can eat well at a much overall lower cost than the fast food joints. If you go to most burger stands these days and order a meal then you are paying ten dollars or more. If you buy food and prepare it for your self the savings are great. I can make about four meals out of ten dollars with drinks included. The health benefits are so much better for you, too.

From Everyday Dishes .com

Mahi-Mahi Fish Tacos

Prep time

10 minutes

Cook time

10 minutes

Passive time

45 minutes

Total time

65 minutes

Makes

6 -8 tacos

What you’ll need

• tacos
• 1 lb mahi-mahi fillets
• 2 Tbsp lime juice, about 1 lime
• 1/2 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 6-8 corn tortillas
• toppings
• cabbage, shredded
• cilantro, chopped
• onion, diced
• avocado
• salsa
• sour cream
• lime, wedges

Let’s do it

1. Place fish in a 9″ x 13″ casserole dish then set aside.
2. Add onion, lime juice, garlic, chili powder, oil, salt, and pepper into a blender or food processor then pulse until completely liquefied.
3. Pour mixture over fish then turn to coat all sides of fish in marinade. Allow fish to marinate for at least 45 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat indoor or outdoor grill to medium heat.
4. Remove fish from marinade. Grill for 3-4 minutes per side, depending on thickness. Cook fish just until nicely browned and flakes easily when pierced with a fork.
5. Remove from grill then break into pieces. Add the desired amount of fish to tortilla then fill with your favorite accompaniments.

For more wonderful food Ideas from everydaydishes.com click on the link.

The wake up call

I was not feeling very good one day and thought that it would go away with time so I gave it some time to clear up but it did not, instead, it was getting worse. I thought I should make a doctors appointment and see what is going on, so I did just that.

The outcome was not as bad as I thought it would be but still, it was bad enough. I have high blood pressure, and my sugar glucose numbers were sky high. I thought to myself how did I let this happen to myself, I am over three hundred pounds, I drink about three liters of soda-pop a day and I eat junk food every once in awhile. The fast food trips for hamburgers was an everyday thing and now I am falling apart. I think to myself, what am I going to do to change this after all these years of damage I have done. All this just because I was lazy and felt like I needed the sugar for energy.

I knew I had only a small window to change this if I planned on living long enough to see the grandchildren grow up into young adults. I needed a plan, I needed to research what I could do to turn this around. My doctor was very helpful and gave me information with contacts to a program that will teach you how to eat and control the weight to help the sugar levels. For me, the problem with this program is it is for a complete year and I do not want to tie myself up into a program for that long. I needed to do this for myself and by myself if I was going to be successful at it.

This blog will be about my journey to better overall health and I encourage you to follow along this journey with me. I will be giving out good recipes for healthy food to eat, drinks that are good to drink with no sugar added and you can follow along with the weight loss that is occurring along the way.