The Corner of Spirit & Brave

HAPPY HALLOWEEN- or is it?

10/31/2020

I have never been a big fan of Halloween. In fact, it may be my least favorite holiday.

Growing up in South Dakota, it always seemed to be cold. Snow or freezing rain loved to pick October 31st as a day to visit. I remember bundling up in layers under my costume and at times topping the costume with a winter coat. The flexibility to walk was secondary to staying warm.

My most memorable Halloween was when I was around 8 or 9 and a little Trick or Treater was hit by a car in front of our home. My Dad ran out to help the family while they waited for the EMT’s to arrive. When the ambulance left with the little girl and her Mom, the rest of her siblings came into our home and stayed with us to wait.

It was a simpler time. A time when you didn’t have to question the kindness of strangers. A time when you could leave your frightened children in the care of a family you didn’t know during a moment of crisis - and trust they would be ok.

The children were scared and worried about their sister. My siblings and I gave up our Trick or Treating that year to play games with the children and keep them safe and warm until their Mother could return.

It was late in the night when the Mom came back for the children. I vaguely remember how my Dad had followed up the next day to check on the little girl. I have always wondered what happened to her and how her story turned out. This is an event from my childhood that made a defined memory in the wrinkles of my brain. When I had children of my own, I was extremely sensitive to their safety as they ran door to door.

It wasn’t long after that year that I remember the news warning of someone putting razor blades in apples and giving them as treats. My parents then began checking our Trick or Treat bags and removing anything that looked suspicious.

Why is Halloween my least favorite holiday?
Maybe it was memories of the cold snowy nights running in the dark.
Maybe it was the trauma and fear of that night when the little girl was hit by a car in front of us.
Maybe it was the reality that there are bad people that would try to hurt children by hiding dangerous items in treats.
Maybe it was the battles that occurred after the bags of candy were filled when I tried to keep my own children from eating nothing but candy for weeks.
It could have been any (or all) of these that has dampened my enthusiasm for the concept of Halloween.

And now, if all of that isn’t enough, this year we have the added concern caused by an invisible virus. This one we can’t protect our children from by bundling them warmer, cautioning them about traffic, or checking their candy.

My wish for you this Halloween is that you stay home safely tucked in with your children, telling stories, playing games, and sharing candy that you know is safe. If you do honor the tradition of Trick or Treating, do it with caution and safety.

Maybe next year the temperature will be warm and pleasant, and the climate of the world will feel safe. Maybe once again it will be a simpler time.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~~
Pennie's Life Lesson:
“We all need to feel warm and safe.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

YOUR TURN...
Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below. And please feel free to email me at:
[email protected].
Thank you!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
            All Rights Reserved
Copyright © 2013-2020 Pennie Hunt
This was written and produced by Pennie Hunt.
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THE LEAP OF TRUST

10/22/2020

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You know the feeling.
You slide into the cool sheets, fluff up your favorite pillow, pull the soft warm blankets up to your chin and wiggle and squiggle until your mattress molds around you in safe secure comfort. You close your eyes shutting out all the problems of your world and drift into the luxury of sleep.
All the while trusting.

Trusting that wherever you travel --through pleasant dreams or nightmares, whether your body simply shuts down to rest or your soul journeys to unknown adventures-- at some point you will wake up. Wake up stronger, rested and ready to walk another day. And, if you don’t wake up, you trust that the space you move into will be one of greater comfort than the space where you currently are.

This may be the ultimate leap of trust. To simply close your eyes, giving up all barriers of protection and give yourself fully to the unknown experience of unconsciousness that you know as sleep. A place of total vulnerability.
Trust.

What if you could learn to trust like this during your awake hours?
Grief, sadness, and life events are at times difficult to maneuver. This year has shown us an unimaginable list of these challenging times. You may be feeling overwhelmed. You may be feeling lost and alone. You may feel like there is no end- no way out of the desperation. What if you could trust that you will walk through these times and wake up on the other side with new strength, new knowledge, and ready to walk another day?

Actually, it should be easier. When you trust that sleep is a safe endeavor you do it alone. No one can share the experience of sleep with you. And yet, you do it night after night always trusting it will be fine in the morning. If you are reading this, you know it is true - you went to sleep last night and you woke up this morning.

All other life experiences, no matter how devastating they are, no matter how challenging they are, no matter how life changing they are, can be shared with others. Even if you feel alone, you don’t have to be. You can ask for help. You can reach out to others in similar circumstances. You can reach out to someone who is struggling. You can reach out to someone who seems to have life under control. You can hold someone’s hand and they can hold yours.

Tonight when you cozy into your cocoon of sleep, ponder this concept. Think about the leap of trust you take every time you close your eyes. AND, think about how wonderful it would be to live your daily life trusting in that same way.
Who will you reach out to today?
Who will you trust?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~~
Pennie's Life Lesson:
“Take the leap of trust moment to moment understanding that you will make it through the challenges of life. Trust that you will be fine.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

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THE LOST DAY

10/12/2020

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I lost my day.
It began in the normal way.
Alarm.
Glass of water.
Cup of coffee.
Work out.
Shower.
Then... I lost it.

My day became an endless loop of wondering what I should do. Not wanting to do anything. Feeling disappointed in myself that I was not accomplishing, achieving, or making an impact, I walked from window to window looking out at the world feeling lost. I did not have a plan for the day. I was uneasy. Restless. Uncertain.
And then, it was over.
I lost my day.

Now, holding a brand-new day in my grasp and enjoying all that comes with it, I look back on that day and realize I occasionally experience what I call A Lost Day. A day lost in time that I wasted.

I’m not talking about a day spent reading or relaxing, which I find necessary to rejuvenate both mind and soul and is far from wasted. A Lost Day is spent spinning and twirling in indecision. Not being able to focus on a desire. Feeling like I hold no control over my life or the world outside.

In my self-analyzation, I uncovered this...
I was raised in a military family where it was ingrained in my DNA to work hard, accomplish, and achieve. I often find myself at the end of a day spewing a list of "completion." From laundry to writing, I do a mental review of what I did to add value during the day. Could it be possible if I don’t “do” I must not be of value?

Our minds are funny little puzzles consisting of pieces created at birth with more picked up as we journey through life. We maneuver the unchangeable ones to create a frame. All other misshaped pieces are turned and tried until they fit together to create the picture of our lives.

Over time we may crinkle and bend a piece or two and might even lose one, but the frame remains the landing pad. The secret code of our belief system’s DNA.

Here is the thing...
Although I was raised with the core value of hard work and accomplishment, I was NEVER taught that without doing that I was not of value. That became one of the internal puzzle pieces that my mind created and connected to another piece as I built my life. So of course, when I have a day of spinning in indecision, I feel useless and wasteful. I experience the frustration of a Lost Day.

Now to make it even worse, during this time of uncertainty in our world, many of us may think we have lost a day, a summer, and possibly the entire year. Our thoughts and movements are tempered with caution and restrictions. Holding control of our feelings, actions, and focus is more difficult than ever before.

Our mind is trying to process the events that we cannot control in the world, by organizing these events like they are jumbled puzzle pieces. We believe they should fit together in a logical form - but they don’t. It is no wonder how easily we can lose a day spinning in this loss of control.

For me, the next time I experience a Lost Day, I will at least understand what is happening. I will try to lean into it with the knowing of why it is happening and the understanding of how my emotions are reacting.

As I write this, I sit in self-satisfaction for solving the puzzle. Finding the piece that skews my life picture and creates a Lost Day.
Today I accomplished!
I achieved!
I made an impact - if only in my own life.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~~
Pennie's Life Lesson:
“Pay attention to the puzzle pieces that create the picture of your life. Don’t force pieces to fit where they don’t belong.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~~

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The Angel Highway

10/6/2020

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It was June 11, 2018. The weather was great. The air was clean. The sky was blue. It seemed like a normal day. I had a dentist appointment, did some shopping, and called to tell my husband I was heading home.

The stop-and-go traffic on the interstate soon turned to a complete stop. There was a long space behind me, but in my rear-view mirror, I saw a vehicle coming toward me. I pumped my brakes in hopes of the driver seeing my brake lights. Closing my eyes, I held the steering wheel as tightly as I could, thinking, “So this is how it’s going to be.” I KNEW I was going to die.

The jolt of the car hitting me somewhere between 65-75 MPH slammed my car into a concrete construction barrier. The front windshield instantly shattered and pushed into my face. Then it seemed as if I was silently flying forever as my car flew 35 yards. I thought that maybe I was already dead and when I landed, I would be someplace magical.

My car hit bouncing several times landing on its top. I was suspended upside down held by my seat belt and crushed in a position so tightly I couldn’t move. My head was crooked and pushed into the caved-in roof of my car. I was covered in glass and debris. I was afraid to open my eyes. I could hear steaming, hissing, and sounds from my car. Now, I was certain if I wasn’t already dead, I would die soon. This is not a feeling you can prepare for. This is not a feeling you forget.

A driver stopped and began yelling to me, “Are you ok? I can’t believe you are alive, there is no way you could have survived this- you should be dead!” This began a stream of similar comments from the EMT’s, firemen, and the ER doctors.

An EMT named, Sarah, climbed through the broken back window to reach me. She talked to me keeping me calm and conscious. When the sirens of the fire trucks came closer, she said, “Can you hear that? They are coming to help you and will know how to get you out!”

A heavy, hot blanket was put over my face as the firemen used saws to cut my car apart. Five of them pulled me out and laid me on the hot asphalt. Shaking from shock and blood running down my face from a blow to my head, I was rushed by ambulance to the hospital.

One distracted moment from another driver took away more than a year of my life and changed me forever. I was told, the distracted driver appeared unhurt and went home to her family and her life.

Post-Traumatic Stress is real. The nightmares were horrific as people were always trying to kill me and shouting,
“YOU SHOULD BE DEAD!”

A siren instantly put me back in my car, upside down, the seat belt digging into my neck and waist, my head lodged in the sunroof. The smell of hot asphalt or the heat of a road brought back being pulled out of the wreckage and laid on the road surrounded by smells of antifreeze, gasoline, and transmission fluid.

Headaches from my concussion and neck pain from the whiplash made it impossible for me to sit at a computer or look at a screen. I couldn’t read. I couldn’t write. I couldn’t do my work.

I could remember every millisecond of the collision, but I would walk right by someone I had known for years and not recognize them. I would have times when I was extremely quiet and times I would rattle out odd stories.

I could no longer do the things I loved – play with my grandchildren, yoga, riding my bike, or swimming. I would wake up with my back hunched in pain and it could take two hours to gain an upright position. My balance was impaired and while walking my leg would buckle or go sideways as if it had a mind of its own.

I saw the world as if I was looking through a fishbowl. Everything was skewed in a very strange way. Months of ophthalmologist and neurologist visits later I do not have the same vision as before the collision. That is something that cannot be corrected or ‘fixed.’

I never planned to drive again. It took time before I began driving back roads to get places avoiding other cars. The interstate was a source of visceral fear.

The highway patrolman who investigated my collision said several things happened right or I would not have survived. It was a small car that hit me low and hard catapulting me into the air. A larger vehicle would have hit straight on and the outcome would have been devastating. I had swerved slightly left when I stopped in traffic, which kept me from being accordioned between the line of cars ahead of me and the car that hit me- this could have caused many deaths. And I was wearing a seat belt.

For more than a year, my life revolved around physician appointments, physical therapy, sleeping, and pain.

Personally, I believe that my dad, my son, and an entire team of angels held me in the car that day. Now I call that stretch of interstate, The Angel Highway. Now when I am on it, I say a prayer of gratitude that I am alive and send blessings to my angels, family, friends, first responders, and medical professionals that helped me through this journey.

The National Safety Council calls October 2020 Distracted Driving Awareness Month. According to the CDC, each day in the US, distracted driving accidents cause 1,000 injuries and 9 deaths. I am one of the lucky ones. I guess I have a few more lessons to learn and teach in this life.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Pennie’s Life Lesson:
“If you are going to drive, wear a seat belt and put away your phone.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

YOUR TURN...
Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below . And please feel free to email me at:
[email protected].
Thank you!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
            All Rights Reserved
Copyright © 2013-2020 Pennie Hunt
This was written and produced by Pennie Hunt.
Feel free to forward and share this post.  Please keep the entire message intact, including  contact, logo, and copyright information.

4 Comments

HAPPY HALLOWEEN- or is it?

THE LEAP OF TRUST

THE LOST DAY

The Angel Highway

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