Are You Making Every Moment Count? June 12, 2009
Posted by Chris in Feel Good, Life, Observations, Ramblings.add a comment
Here are a few things that you would never say on your deathbed.
1) I’m really glad I managed to hold on to that grudge.
2) I’m really glad I played it safe and didn’t take any chances.
3) I should’ve told people I loved them much less than I did.
4) I’m glad I looked cool and never let anyone know how I felt.
5) I should’ve had less fun.
6) I should have spent more time at work.
7) I’m glad I pushed everyone away.
Are you making every moment of every day count??
Miracles in the Midst of the Storm October 25, 2008
Posted by Chris in Feel Good, Life.5 comments
Everyone has a point in their life when they are going through a hard time and find themselves praying for a miracle. Sometimes the struggle is health related; sometimes it is a family or relationship problem. It may be a spiritual struggle, or perhaps a problem at work or with a co-worker. Especially these days, the struggle may be financial. Concerns about employment, the economy, paying the bills, and fears of what the future may hold are very real for many people.
While we pray for a miracle it is easy to forget that miracles aren’t always pretty or pleasant. They do not arrive into your life with background music from the New York Philharmonic or the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. They are not illuminated by beams of sunlight shining through breaks in clouds like the background of a cheesy religious Hallmark greeting card. Usually they do not even announce their presence. Instead they slip in and out of our lives quietly and under the radar, often unnoticed because of our preoccupations. They sometimes come to us disguised as undesirable, perhaps even heartbreaking, moments that shake us to the very core of who we are. Miracles are not burning bushes, nor crying statues. They aren’t moments of divine intervention that rid us of all of our burdens in one fell swoop. They do not leap tall buildings and save us from situations in which we were meant to save ourselves. They are not something for which we should sit and idly wait. That is not how miracles work. That is not what they are.
Yet, our lives are overrun with miracles. We just have to learn how to spot them. When you think about it, the fact that we are alive is miraculous. The fact that we have consciousness and thought is miraculous. The things we’ve built, the stories we’ve dreamed, the words we’ve written, the lives we’ve shaped, the society we’ve fashioned, the people we have loved and the ones we hae forgiven, the list goes on… these things are all miraculous.
It’s a miracle when things make us laugh at the very moments we need to the most, and it’s a miracle how something as simple as spending time talking to a child can help us to realize how little we know in comparison to them. It is miraculous when a song comes on the radio out of the blue addressing a worry we’d been carrying around – sometimes for many years. It’s miraculous thinking that there were exact moments when people who would ultimately play major roles in our lives entered into our stories, and its miraculous that there are more of those moments and people yet to come. It is a miracle how we can be stripped against our will of the unimportant material things to which we unnecessarily cling. It’s miraculous that no matter how far off the path we travel, life has a way of setting our courses straight again. It’s a miracle that we are presented with hardships that shape us, and it’s a miracle that we are given (seemingly out of the blue) people and tools to make those hardships more bearable.
We are all, at various points in our lives, forced to endure storms or hardship. During those moments, it’s incredibly hard to label anything miraculous. It’s easy to sit in the downpour and wait for our miracles to come, blind to the fact that miracles are already all around us. The miracle may very well be the storm itself, and the role it plays in who we are to become. The miracle may be in what the storm washes ashore for us, who it brings into our lives, or the miracle may be how hard times have a way of making us remember our awesome capacity for love and acceptance. Out of everything, this is the biggest miracle of all.
On a personal level, miracles shape my day to day existence. They are as unassuming as the many friends who have stood quietly by me while through some very tough circumstances and scary change. They are present in the privilege I have of doing the same for others from time to time. They have been as violent as the events in my life that have brought me to my knees, let like steel purified by fire, I find miracle in becoming better for having gone through these experiences.
Never doubt the existence of the miraculous and divine; just learn how to spot it.
“A Tall Glass of Water” October 17, 2008
Posted by Chris in Feel Good, Life, The Good Life.Tags: Make a Wish, Marilyn Monroe
1 comment so far
I attended a Make a Wish foundation fundraiser last night
and got propositioned by Marilyn Monroe.
Beacon Enjoying the Weather October 7, 2008
Posted by Chris in Animals, Around the House, Family & Friends, Feel Good, Life, Pets, The Good Life, beacon, weather.add a comment
Judy asked me last weekend to post some pictures
of Beacon. She likes to lay in the sun when I am
downstairs watching football.
Beacon pretty laid back today.
My Own Fat the Fat Challenge September 23, 2008
Posted by Chris in 2008 in Review, Life.29 comments
Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate the support and comments. Hide and Watch…… I am going to do this!
My New Office August 25, 2008
Posted by Chris in 2008 in Review, Family & Friends, Life, Places, Real Estate.1 comment so far
Some pics of the new workplace digs.
A Senior Moment July 20, 2008
Posted by Chris in Around the House, Life.1 comment so far
All I wanted was a package of AA batteries.
One of the things I miss about Texas is the Super Wal-Mart in Hillsboro. It was a weekend ritual for many years to go to Wal-Mart, even if we didn’t need anything. I am sure that in the process of supplying my little lakehouse at Lake Whitney’s Arrowhead Resort, I have probably single handedly secured Wal-Mart stock for shareholders all over the world. The Wal-Mart in Hackettstown, NJ is but a 5 mile ride from my new house, and while it isn’t a Super Wal-Mart (the nearest jumbo version one is 350 miles away – go figure), it is still ok for basic staples at a good price. (Look people, no lectures about how Wal-Mart is putting people out of work and drying up the mom and pops – the price is right)
$187 and change later, I left Wal-Mart with a trunk full of treasures. A remote control weather station (identical to the one Gary and Mel gave me for Christmas a few years ago for the lakehouse) was a key purchase and one that I think is necessary for the winter. A few rooms in the house don’t have ceiling fans – its not a northern thing here I guess , so as I was strolling down one of the isles a genuine imitation copper finished fan on a pedestal just jumped into my cart – it will be perfect for the upstairs guest room. And, while I realize that Wal-Mart isn’t known for fine clothing, how could I pass up the Dallas Cowboys t-shirt? I couldn’t imagine it even existed in the shadows of all of the NY Jets, Giants, Mets and Yankees garb, and I think part of me just wanted to start a good ole fashioned Texas Stadium style Dallas Cowboys riot. No one took the bait, I moved on. Next isle, wveryone should have some Velcro and double sided tape on hand. And, those environmentally friendly light bulbs were also on sale. I am as green as the next guy. There were a few other things that I can’t remember off the top of my head.
Next stop, The Home Depot for a few add-on light units for the Malibu low voltage light system in the front yard. I decided a couple of the trees need to be lit from the base. Those of you who know me well know that, whether inside the house or outdoors, I am all about mood lighting. Canned lights glow behind the tropical plants in my house, indirect lighting accent the top of the kitchen, clear bulbs are always used because everyone knows that frosted bulbs look ghetto – that type of thing. Anyway, this house is going to be perfect for Christmas because it is pre-wired with outdoor weather-proofed electricity in the flower beds on BOTH sides of the sidewalk . With plenty of 120v AC out front, look out Clark Griswald – you won’t even touch me this Christmas. I have a vision and a basement full of lights – - and an image to establish in the neighborhood. Can winter come soon enough? I think not.
Next stop, Chester Full Service Car Wash. I guess in New Jersey the car washes are not allowed to drive your car. Must be an insurance thing, and that is just fine with me. If you want it washed, you have to drive it yourself through the car wash, and then the finish guys do their thing. I opted for the hand wash because, well, I was in the Silver Bullet. I don’t let my baby go through a REAL car wash. It was fun to see that it does still turn a few heads. You don’t see many SRT-8s here. $25 bucks for a full service hand wash, tires, and shampooed mats – - I thought that was a pretty good deal. I cruised the main drag of Chester slowly upon departure. Look at me! Vroom Vroom
3 hours after my adventure started, I was home with a clean car and a trunk full of loot. The fan is spinning perfectly. The landscape lights in the front yard were easy enough to put in, and I can’t wait until dark to see what they look like. I will take a picture for the blog, but I am already thinking I may need MORE. And the weather station…. I found the perfect place for it on the wall by the downstairs guestroom bath. It is right by the coat closet which will be convenient during the winter. Programming these things isn’t too hard. Attach the remote thermomenter to somewhere safe outside and push the reset button after you put a couple of AA batteries in…..
Uhhh, oh yeah. The batteries. Ooooops.
Gotta go!
Keeping it Real July 19, 2008
Posted by Chris in Life, Observations.3 comments
I have been posting entries to my website, MySpace, and my blog for about a year and a half now. I pretty much post whatever it is I am thinking about or experience – kinda letting the spirit take me in whatever direction. I have such good friends and visitors to this site and I have never had any issues with rogue comments. Until today. Today I received the most hateful message posted from someone I hope I don’t know, and I instantly deleted it from the blog. As soon as I pressed “delete” I regretted it.
I have never waivered on free speech. I have always felt strong about resisting moderation of speech in society, yet I just did something that I have always deplored. I guess I feel so strongly about open communications because the world is already censored and digitized. Every day we see words polished and positioned to market us to do and think in ways that are predictable to those who are spending the money to seduce us.
So, for now on, if anyone comes on my site and goes off like a nut job, their posts will remain for all to see and judge. I am not going to freak out , but just accept it for what it is. Hopefully by just taking it for what it is will help me learn more about myself. It simply doesn’t matter what other people think about is. Its completely and totally irrelevant to living our own lives and experiencing freedom beyond our own imaginations. And here is the good news. Evil minded people are few and far between. I’ve had one bad experience in a year and half which tells me that the vast majority of people are kind, gentle, and compassionate.
The lesson? Don’t close your heart when you are scared off by someone who is absorbed in themselves. Instead, turn away and seek friendship elsewhere. You are worth it, you deserve it.
Hi there! December 20, 2006
Posted by Chris in Life.add a comment
Welcome to ctclark.com, my new small corner on the huge world wide web. Although I have been involved in marketing technologies for many years, this is my first venture into cyberspace on a personal level. If you are an old friend, or even perhaps a new one, thanks for stopping by. Over time, I hope to build this site out and have some fun with it. In the meantime, feel free to drop me a line!
