Rebooting

      Our anniversary weekend was just like rebooting a computer.  We could have stayed home.  We would have been alone there, too; but instead, we left our familiar surroundings and together we went somewhere new. Though only two hours away, it was new to us.  The gorgeous, Georgian Manor Inn, a bed and breakfast in Norwalk, Ohio was the most elegant of surroundings.  When we arrived the housekeeper greeted us and showed us around.  The only thing familiar was the person I was with and the clothes in our suitcase.  The town, the home, the furnishings, the sights and the stories were all new.
      That evening after dinner at a local restaurant, we drove to a lovely concert hall in Sandusky, Ohio to hear a world renown mezzo-soprano singing with the Firelands Symphony "Love Songs Through the Ages".  The next day after a superb breakfast and conversation with the innkeepers, we went to the home and museum of Rutherford B. Hayes for a tour and stimulating conversation.  We explored some antique shops and again had dinner at another local restaurant.  We were being inspired!
      The drives we were making to our various destinations gave us a look at Northern Ohio snow.  Not that the snow there is any different than in Central, Ohio; but snow-covered fields and small towns look different that a snow-covered city.  They just do!  Snow always reminds me of a clean slate and that is precisely my point!
     The computer is the same when you reboot it or restart it.  It always is amazing how rebooting works!  Somehow the computer that was slow and inefficient begins to work again and I, for one,do not understand why. Erasing a slate or white board does not mean throwing away the chalk or markers or the board itself. A clean slate makes it possible for the board to be useful once more.  Snow falling on the ground does not change the ground, but seems to give the world a fresh, pure look and does some wonderful things for the future productivity of the land. Going away for a few days together can be renewing for a marriage, family or friendship!  It is like rebooting the computer, erasing the board or covering the ground with snow. Rebooting is simply refreshing, to make fresh once more!
    "If I had but two loaves of bread, I would sell one of them and buy White Hyacinths to feed my soul."
- Elbert Hubbard  (1856-1915)

                                                                   

Looking Backward

     I consider myself to be forward thinking and I hate to look backward.  It seems to be so counterproductive to a focused, positive and joyful life.  I have known people who used the past as an important player in the games of regret and blame. Why would a forward thinking person looking for joy ever want to look toward the past?
     It has been said that those who do not remember the past (history) are condemned to repeat it. Something that is broken needs to be fixed and someone offended needs to forgive.  Yet how can we do that without drowning in remorse?
     Reflection and meditation are powerful tools to make improvements in life.  What did I do right and what did I do wrong?  How can I make a situation better and find success?
     Today is our twenty-eighth anniversary.  It was a sunny, snowy Saturday in February very much like today that we made those vows to love and honor. I was lying on my bed basking in the sunshine today, when my son came it to talk.  I started telling him about our wedding day.  I told him about the beauty of the day, the details of the story, our hopes and our expectations for out lives.   Somehow it was like pushing the reset button or rebooting (not rebutting) a computer. In revisiting the expectations, I found myself feeling very hopeful and full of joy. Anniversaries, holy days, holidays are like that. We remember the past to reset and  reboot  (not rebut).  Looking back reminds us of who we are and how we can find a joyful future in refocusing.