A letter to my elected officials

Below is a letter I have sent to my elected officials.  I hope you will take the time to send one to yours as well.  Feel free to use my letter as a structure but be sure to tailor it to your own area and family.

Dear Senators Maria Cantwell, Patty Murray, Congressman Adam Smith, and President Barack Obama,


My name is Cheryl Matthynssens and my sons are members of the Washington Army National Guard and Army. My sons have been serving our country for almost 8 years now.

We have all seen on the news and heard of the difficulties that our elected officials have had regarding the budget and have held out hope that they would come to their senses and resolve this issue in a timely fashion.


That however hasn’t happened. Many service men are now faced with deploying, leaving families behind, without the security of financial remuneration to take care of their loved ones. My oldest son opened his paycheck today and saw a debt balance due for almost half of his pay. In short...he is not being paid because our elected officials, yourself included, have failed to uphold your responsibilities to your constituents.

My oldest son's income is already low even as a sergeant leaving him living pay check to paycheck. He has a child and one on the way. Both my sons are very patriotic They serve this country and have deployed to Iraq at great sacrifice to their families. I know men are deploying even this week and had planned to do so, secure in the knowledge that their families will be financially provided for while they are gone. That security, no that trust...is lost!

Our soldiers should not be expected to continue to do what they do without compensation. Moreover, our government should not ask it of them. Do you work for free Senator? Would you go to a hostile environment and put your life on the line without pay? I think not. In fact, I find it embarrassing that our elected officials have secured their own paychecks during this time without ensuring that the individuals that protect this country get paid as well. That is fundamentally wrong!


This week, I got the privilege of my son calling in a panic unsure of how he was supposed to go into the field when he could not pay for the daycare required to do so. His wife has worked part time and will have to give up the job that they now need more then ever because our government has not paid them. They will have to hope that creditors understand that they will have to hold off on paying the bills this month.


I hope your family is safe and well fed and that you sleep well at night. I wouldn’t be able to if I were in your position. I would be ashamed.

Lastly I would like to make sure that you are aware that my parents, my family, we all vote! We will remember this at election time! Our elected officials have failed us. We will not forget.

One final note. If this is an aide reading this, please do not bother sending me a form letter. It would only add insult to injury.



Respectfully,


Cheryl L. Matthynssens

my son in the army and his daughter

The Price of Happiness

In our society today, we put price tags on happiness.  If I can afford this.. if only I had that. I would be happy.  And if that were true, happiness would be such an easy thing to find.  But the truth is, once we have the 'one thing' we have been coveting, (if we ever get it) we just choose something else we now have to have. 

In America, teenagers talk about that first car.  Oh yeah, the show room model would be nice but most teenagers get excited if it is theirs and it drives.  But soon, that is not enough and the competition begins to have one cooler then Joe.  Then it has to have the latest rims to be happy. The cranking pounding stereo has to be found to be happy.  Yet, this never truly lasts.

Today, I was reminded of this lesson on a simple ski slope.  Our daughter had never been skiing or snowboarding.  A local ski business had a special where you could go up and for $58.00 get a lesson and equipment, everything you needed to try it for the first time.  It was her Christmas present.  I fretted the whole time I was wrapping it up. What if she hates snowboarding? What if she breaks something?  And mentally, the price tag just kept going up. 

We got to that mountain and with great excitement she got her snowboard and boots and headed off to her class. I sat down on a bench on a beautiful snowy Sunday Morning and marveled.  It didn't last long. Twenty minutes into the lesson, I noticed my daughter sitting out of the class.  My heart sank.  Every fear hammered home.  $58.00 wasted for twenty minutes of lessons and her giving up.  The whole time I was waiting to join her, I was mentally seething at the cost and loss of money for something that she didn't even finish.  I joined her on the bench and looked into her eyes.  I didn't see the 58.00 wasted dollars.  I saw a life time of expectation crashing down in on her as her fondest desire had become a nightmare.  She couldn't stand in the boots required for snowboarding without pain in her ankle that she had injured.  "Let's just go home mom." I could hear the heart rending pain as it ripped through me.  I looked back out at that mountain for a long moment. 

I patted her on the head and told her to wait there.  I went into the ski school and talked to the instructors.  They were extremely sorrowed to hear that she was giving up.  They made a wonderous offer.  If she would reoutfit into a ski set up, they would set her up with a private instructor.   I girded up for the battle and headed back to Johanna.  It took a little maternal browbeating but we got her back into gear.  They sent over to her the nicest man and he took her by the hand and led her back out onto that mountain.   Her ankle was still giving her troubles and she struggled and fell but she didn't give up. 

The price of happiness was not a $58.00 dollar package.  The price of happiness was a little perseverance.  It sank home as she successfully made it up the rope tow for the first time. That smile was the same smile I saw when she walked the first time, rode a bike the first time, stopped her first soccer goal.  The price of happiness is the smile you give to another because you don't give up on them and  you don't let them give up either. 

Remember or Dwell

It is an amazing thing our mind.  It records everything.. but we only recall with regularlity that which has some kind of an emotional attachment. Unfortunately, that does not have to be a positive thing.  We can attach negative emotions.

Remembering where we have been is an important aspect. It is how we learn.  It is how we avoid repeating past mistakes.  Unfortunately, for many of us, rather then using this tool our mind gives us, we begin to dwell.

What is the difference?
Dwelling is allowing a negative memory to take root and take over.  Rather then moving forward with the lesson learned, we are suddenly angered in the past.  We rehash it over and over and over. We relive that pain and hurt again and again. To what end?? The truth is kind of scary. Because at some level we have become to believe we deserve it.  Only when we realize that we should only have to pay for errors one time, do we stop this hurtful pattern of self abuse.

Dwelling can become so powerful that it can create stress caused illnesses and depression.  Ulcers, heart disease, high blood pressure and many other ailments have been tied to staying in an increased stress state.  And the worst part is, most of us do this to ourselves.

How do I stop this?
 There are two major tools one can use.  First, the old cliche .. Let go and Let God.  The second thing is refuse to allow negativity to control your thinking.  The one thing that is almost possible to take away from man is his thoughts. You may lock away his body and still his mind is his own.  Even under the influence of the disease of addiction, there is still influence on thought.  When you catch yourself thinking in a negative manner; tell yourself .. STOP!  We are trained this word from a very  young age.   It will startle the mind for a brief moment. Then pick up something postive; a story, affirmations or a thank you letter.  Anything that has hope, peace or love within it.  This change in thinking will force the mind slowly to let go of the negative things in our past and move towards acceptance.


Remember.. do not dwell.  There is freedom to move forward with the assurance of not repeating a past mistake.

Make Today. .. just a little better then yesterday and your future will always be moving forward.

God Bless

What you are putting in.. is coming out!

Before you change your thinking, you h ave to change what goes into your mind.
                                              Zig Ziglar

The thing about universal wisdom is that it comes from so many mouths.  The above saying has been proffered a many ways by many teachers. It is in the bible, the Koran and in every self esteem curriculum out there.  TIt is a scientific fact that input is a direct influence on output.  What this means in regards to today's teachings is that if you are not having the success you want in life, if you are depressed, if you are unmotivated and even if you are just really negative all the time; what is your input?  Those things are the output.  What are you reading?  What music are you listening too?  What is your visual surroundings?  These things have a direct influence on what you think and how you act whether you are realizing it or not.

If you struggle with negativity but your only reading the Newspaper and the most uplifting thing you here is a sitcom and the evening news; it is no surprise.  Face it, newspapers publish what sells and saving puppies is nice for the occaisional piece but a full article on it will not sell.  Especially today where people can go online for fluff.

Ways to change this:

1.  Read uplifting stories.  Chicken Soup stories for example
2.  Make sure that even if you like hard core music, you take some time to add in something light and soothing whether it is elevator music, classical or nature sounds.  There are some cool sites you can just listen too like 
http://www.rainymood.com/ that really help with relaxing and stress.
3.  Practice positive affirmations.  "I am becoming happier every day."  "I am enjoying life."  They are most effective in the AM state with a verb ending in ing.  Never use can or will as the brain interprets this as someday down the road.
4.  Look at images of vacation sites.  They say just spending a few minutes looking at such pictures improves mood and stress levels.
5.  Eat right and drink water.  The brain needs nutrition to function and many of today's foods are just lacking.
6.  Talk to your higher power regularly!

Th gist of today.. what goes in.. comes out!  So watch what you are putting into your eyes, ears, mouth and body.

Unconditional Love

The Greatest Single Cause of Poor Self-Image is the Absence of Unconditional Love
                                                                  Zig Ziglar

It is hard to believe sometimes in life's struggles, but we really are our own worst enemy.  The most dangerous streets we walk in this world is in our own head.  You know.. those thoughts like ... should have... would have.. could have .. and the worst.. what if.


Your higher power is not in the business of creating faulty products.  There is nothing wrong with you that you are not choosing to keep as yours. It is like we have this bag of nasty smelling garbage and yet there we go, lugging it around on our shoulder.  Give yourself permission to be a human and make mistakes.  But also be responsible enough to take the time in a situation and ask what could I have done different to get a better outcome.  Then.. learn from it!!

Most important.. keep in mind.. your higher power does not make Junk!

Help me band together to plant 10,000 trees!

I am excited about Avon's program to PLANT A TREE WITH AVON and help create a better future for our next generation. Avon announced that they are planting their first 1 MILLION trees in South America's Atlantic Rainforest - often referred to as "the lungs of the earth". I would love if I could gain 10000 people to plant these trees with me.93% OF THE ATLANTIC RAINFOREST IS GONE, which has a devastating effect for everyone - everywhere. Deforestation is second only to the burning of fossil fuels as a source of carbon dioxide emissions that cause global climate change. Every $1.00 contributed through Hello Green Tomorrow plants a new tree. Join me in helping Avon in planting millions of trees today for a better tomorrow.The trees planted through the Hello Green Tomorrow program will support the United Nations Environment Program Billion Tree Campaign.You do not need to order any Avon products to contribute a tree. There is a quick order option on my website - Just put in the number - 552216.There is no shipping charges if you are not ordering any other products. If you also would like to order products - you can get free shipping for 30.00 or more orders. That free shipping code is: FS30REP.

http://youravon.com/smarketing

Balanced Life Includes Healthy Weight Loss Practices

Learning how to balance life is much like learning to eat a balanced meal. It needs variety, healthy choices and lots of color. However, due to a feeling of being out of control, many unhealthy weight loss practices are not only harmful but can lead to actual disorders.

There are a number of very dangerous eating disorders that effect people of all ages, races, sexes, and economic statuses. While you may hear a lot in the news about anorexia and bulimia, one of the lesser-known weight loss disasters sweeping the nation is binge eating. Binge eating is very bad for your body and can cause heart disease, diabetes, and a number of other medical conditions, which actually could result in death. Therefore, it is important to learn about binge eating and to seek help immediately if you think this could be a problem for you.

Binge eating is basically a form of overeating at its worst. There are times when we all overindulge in good foods, such as at a holiday or when eating out at a restaurant. However, a binge eater faces overeating problems more than a few times a week. Binge eaters often find themselves overweight and unhappy, which can make the situation worse.



Binge eaters will overeat to the extent that they feel sick. In many cases, they will eat thousands of calories in one sitting, and many of the foods they are eating are not very nutritional and include comfort foods. Binge eaters may enjoy sweet or savory foods, and may also have a problem with alcohol. In one day, a binge eater may eat more than the normal person will eat in a week. Foods that a person will binge eat vary and can even change for a particular binge eater from day to day.

Unlike people who are suffering from bulimia, binge eaters will not induce vomiting in order to rid themselves of the food they’ve eaten. Therefore, binge eaters tend to be overweight. In some cases, a binge eater may eat non-stop for an entire day, but then spend the next three or four days starving him- or herself and exercising vigorously in order to stay at the same weight if possible.

Binge eating goes hand in hand with a number of other physical diseases, but it can also effect a personal mentally and emotionally. Many binge eaters start because they turn to food for comfort as a way to work out their problems, which is unhealthy. Binge eaters are also usually very emotionally charged about their body weight and may experience depression because of it, regardless of if they are overweight or not. Binge eating is not only dangerous for the binge eater, but can affect everyone in his or her life. If you or someone you know is suffering from this disease, it is important to seek help as soon as possible. This is not a good way to lose weight.



Life must be given variety, mindful attention and as you know from the theme of this blog, balance! Eating should be no different, eat slow and with mindful attention to each bite. Eat a safe and moderate variety. Live life to the fullest, it is too short to be spent in regret.