Madeleine Kay

SOUTHERN “SPEAK”

I discovered today how to speak “Southern.”  How to make that broad, wide-open, very soft “ah” sound when I say my ”i.”  And when I said it this morning, just the mere sound of it made me smile and feel warm and good.

My friend’s husband is from Charleston and whenever I call and he answers, I ask how he is and he says, “Ahm fahne.  Just fahne” – and I smile every time.  

Well, this morning, while taking my dog Yoda for his morning walk, one of the gardeners here asked me – as he always does – how I am.  This morning however, I responded quite spontaneously, “Ahm fahne.  Just fahne.”  And then I realized – “I did it!  I spoke Southern!” – and was amazed at how good it felt.

I realized that the secret to “Southern Speak” is being relaxed so your jaw reposes in a wide smile.  I realized that northerners like me, tend to speak with their lips tight so their mouths open up and down rather than side to side as southerners do.  I realized the key to “Southern speak” is simply relaxing . . . not thinking too much or trying too hard – just doing.

 On the way home this morning, I became bold and even experimented with “Y’all” – a phrase I had tried unsuccessfully to master last year.  And this morning, I said it perfectly – “Y’all” . . . It just rolled off my tongue . . . no effort, no trying.

No effort.  No trying.  That’s the key – not trying too hard so you become tight and tense . . . but rather, doing what needs to be done and then . . . just relaxing into the thing.

This was especially significant for me this morning – since I have been wrestling with several things I have been pushing very hard for – putting so much effort into them that I have been tight and tense.  This morning, on my walk, I asked God, “The Force,” the Universe, my Higher Self – to show me what I need to do to get beyond this tightness, this tenseness.  

And then the gardener greeted me as he always does.  But this time, I responded with “Ahm fahne.  Just fahne” – and I knew I had my answer.  I had to stop trying so hard . . . and just let go.  

Have you ever noticed how when you are trying really hard to remember someone’s name or think of something, you can’t.  And then, when you let it go . . . it suddenly comes to you.  I was reminded of that this morning . . . the power of letting go.

Happy Week to y’all . . .    

Live  Serendipitously . . . Keep smiling . . . Relax . . . and just let go!


Madeleine Kay
“The Serendipity Lady”
www.madeleinekay.com

Visit my Serendipity Day Facebook page at www.facebook.com/serendipityday

Serendipity Day is now an officially recognized annual event and special day to celebrate – nationally and worldwide!  

Chase’s Calendar of Events – the authoritative guide to special occurrences, holidays, anniversaries, celebrity birthdates, religious observances, sporting events, and more from around the world – has officially recognized, accepted and begun listing Serendipity Day in their annual Calendar of Events as a special day to celebrate.  Librarians, marketers, journalists, and other professionals have relied on Chase’s for more than 50 years to find out what's going on and being celebrated on any day, week or year. 

Chase’s Calendar of Events is the most comprehensive and authoritative reference available on special events, worldwide holidays and festivals, civic observances, historic anniversaries, famous birthdays and much more.  The Los Angeles Times has called it – “The Bible of Special Occasions.”

Serendipity Day is celebrated on August 18th  and was celebrated unofficially worldwide for the first time in 2010.  This year’s celebration is the first official celebration of Serendipity Day . . . and you are invited to join in the inaugural official celebration tomorrow/today . . . on August 18th.

To help you celebrate Serendipity Day, I offering a special discount on my book Living Serendipitously . . . keeping the wonder alive. 

To receive this special Serendipity Day gift, go to www.createspace.com/3476502 and type in promotion code # W7VBWGXK when checking out.          

EnjOy,

Madeleine Kay
“The Serendipity Lady”
www.madeleinekay.com

To learn more about serendipity and how you can celebrate Serendipity Day, August 18th . . . and to receive a free Serendipity Handbook, go to . . .   www.serendipitydayholiday.com

Visit my Serendipity Day Facebook page at www.facebook.com/serendipityday

GOING THE EXTRA DISTANCE

I was reminded once again, this morning, of the importance of going the extra distance, of stretching ourselves and our limits – the sheer joy of unimpeded curiosity and the amazing discoveries that being flexible invites into our lives.

I am in Ottawa now visiting a friend – and yesterday we walked along the trail beside the Rideau River.  This morning I walked alone and my friend went swimming instead.  When I arrived at the point to which we had walked yesterday, I was about to stop and turn around.

I don’t know about you, but I have all these little rituals I create for myself – one of which is always wanting to go at least a little beyond what I previously did.  So, I walked a drop further up to the beginning of a bend in the winding trail.  But instead of turning around as I planned to, my curiosity kicked in and said to me, “I wonder what’s beyond the bend…” (Those were my exact words to myself!!)

So I continued, and the vista opened up to a beautiful previously hidden view of the river . . . and to a large turtle that seemed to be stuck in a deep hole in the sand on the embankment, up near the sidewalk.   Fortunately, before I could interfere and try to help what appeared to be a turtle in distress, I was rewarded with the extraordinary experience of watching this large turtle giving birth . . . as she slowly lifted her body, dropped one egg each time, rested, swayed from side to side and then . . . as if to thank me and the woman who had come up and was standing beside me trying to capture the whole thing on camera as we patiently and lovingly cheered her on for at least fifteen minutes . . . the turtle lifted her body one last time high in the air and ever so slowly dropped her fourth egg – just for us . . . resulting in the only clear and complete picture of the entire process
and indelibly etching in my psyche a magical moment of infinite beauty I will long remember.    

And that magical moment reminded me once again of the sheer joy and wonder of curiosity and my fascination with the thrill of the unknown . . . how the willingness to change one’s plan, route or routine; to stretch ourselves just a little beyond what we have already done . . . opens up for us previously unimagined new vistas and feeds and fosters that wonder within us that leads to more and more “Aha” and “Ha Ha” moments in our lives.  How the immense power of curiosity and opening up and responding to the mystery of “the unknown” invites wonder, joy and beauty into our lives . . . igniting a sense of excitement, adventure and discovery every single day.  

So . . . Live Serendipitously . . .

and always keep the wonder alive!

Madeleine Kay
“The Serendipity Lady”
www.madeleinekay.com

Visit my Serendipity Day Facebook page at www.facebook.com/serendipityday

I have a friend who has been working on a real estate land deal for over a year now – trying to sell the parcel.  He has been persistent, tireless and relentless . . . but he and his partners keep running into brick walls; yet he keeps on keeping on.

The major stumbling block for the last few months has been one of the partners’ intransigence over a minor contractual issue, about which the other partners all agree.  But they have not been able to convince, persuade or influence the contentious partner in any way, to change her position.   

So they remain locked in a stalemate that is exhausting, time-consuming, energy draining and resource depleting.  But not having the deal do through is simply not an option for my friend.  He is determined to make it happen . . . whatever he has to do.

When I asked him how things were going yesterday, he told me about the gridlock and said, “I’m going to suggest to my partners that we buy out the partner we can’t convince, write out the minor contractual stumbling block, and sell the property to our buyer.”

“The lesson of water . . . huh?” I replied.

“What do you mean?” he asked me.

“Well, water will always get to where it is going.  If there is an obstacle, it will go over it, under it, through it, around it, or just plain wear it down . . . but it will get to where it is going.  There is no question about that!”

“Yeah,” he laughed.  And since he is a detail-oriented, analytical person (he’s an engineer), he proceeded to enumerate all the benefits of water – it helps seeds to grow: it will find the smallest crack to get through: it will always go where it needs to be, like in the Serengeti Desert, where it is dry as a bone half the year and wet and lush the other half; the importance of letting the water flow instead of holding it back so it lets growth continue . . . and then he went into the principles of a well-constructed dam.

And since I am not a detail-oriented, analytical person – but cut right to the end result – I merely laughed and said, “True, but for me, the real lesson of water is that it will always get to where it is going – no matter what.”

You see, there are so many ways to “get into a house” – through the front door, the back door, the basement, a window . . . just like there are a plethora of ways to accomplish what we want, to find the tiniest crack, like water will do . . . and slide through.  

So if you are struggling with something and have been for awhile without finding a solution . . . follow the lesson of water, which offers a solution-oriented approach – and try a different route, so you can find the opening . . . the way to accomplish what you want – the solution.

Stop butting your head against the wall of the problem . . . and walk through the door (or the window or the crack) of the solution.

Live Serendipitously . . . and enjoy!

Madeleine
“The Serendipity Lady”
www.madeleinekay.com

Visit my Serendipity Day Facebook page at www.facebook.com/serendipityday

LIVING “JUICY”

As I look out my window at this spring’s dense foliage just across the street, I am reminded that being rich has more to do with ripeness and fullness than it does with money.  And . . . I have discovered, maturity does too.

Happily ensconced in the Peter Pan syndrome for years, I am now discovering that growing up, getting older and being mature are really a ripening – a fleshing out and filling up of who and what we are . . . a deliciously exciting process that I never imagined.

Contrary to what I thought when I was younger, maturing and getting older are not at all limiting; they are an expanding and a broadening.  They are not a drying up; they are a ripening and a succulence.  A succulence that comes from something more organic and whole than just hormones.  A succulence that comes from being integrated – whole, complete and substantial.  

When I was younger, I was afraid I would lose something if I grew up or “matured,” but I haven’t.  Instead, I have expanded and broadened and been enriched . . . and in that, I have become rich – overflowing with abundant life and a pregnant, almost pubescent richness that I never could have imagined, a richness and a fullness that make me feel  radiant, full and lush . . . like the thick undergrowth of a Tahitian island.    

I am discovering more and more that – like an orange when squeezed if ripe, what comes out of it is the sweetest, tastiest, most thirst-quenching juice – when life presses on you or me or “squeezes” us – if we are ripe – what will pour out of us is the sweetness and fullness and richness that is within us . . . bathing us in their sweet-scented aroma and continuous flow.  

So I invite all of you to join me and celebrate getting older, growing up and maturing – to learn, as I have been learning . . . to savor and enjoy the sweet nectar of maturity . . . and to live juicy.

Live Serendipitously . . . and always enjoy!

Madeleine
“The Serendipity Lady”
www.madeleinekay.com

Visit my Serendipity Day Facebook page at www.facebook.com/serendipityday

A STORY

Things are not always what they seem – which is an open invitation for us to delve deeper, care more, let go . . . and be non-judgmental.  I was reminded of this twice this morning while walking my dog Yoda (blond terrier mix like Benji – only cuter).

While waiting for Yoda during his intensive and thorough foray into every flower, bud and leaf on the bushes in front of us, I noticed what looked like a coin buried in the sand of the parking area in front of the cottages where these bushes were.  I bent down and picked up the dull bronze penny, cupped it in my hand since I had no pockets and walked home with Yoda . . . frequently looking at it as I ran my fingers over its slightly textured surface.  

When we got home, I put it down to wipe Yoda’s paws, and when I picked it up again – I noticed it was not a penny at all . . . it was a dime.

Now that may not seem “earth shattering” to you – but it was to me, for it is in the small, seemingly insignificant things and events of our lives that we grasp and come to understand the larger ones.

So, seeing that it was a dime (when I was so sure it was a penny) stopped me in my tracks and made me say “Wow!”  For even though I know things are not always what they seem and that appearances can sometimes be just that – appearances and not the underlying and larger reality – it was just such a direct, concrete, simple, “almost acting out” of this principle right before my eyes, that it stunned me.

You see, one of my neighbors, who has always been healthy, robust, agile and energetic,  is undergoing heavy duty chemotherapy and is rather lethargic, slumped over and sometimes drags his feet now.  I have been avoiding him, not knowing what to say or where to look (certainly not in his eyes) – and when I saw him slumped over as he was walking yesterday, I said to myself, “Oh, my God,” and thought the worst.

Well this morning, another neighbor mentioned him and verbalized this same response to his appearance, holding up a mirror to me of my own perhaps false, certainly unfair, assumptions.  This prompted me to tell her not to let appearances seem to be reality, for she will mirror that reality to our neighbor, who will see it in her eyes.

You see, my mother, (who is completely cured, healthy, healed and radiantly alive now) was deathly ill a few years ago, with three different cancers consecutively, plus a blood clot on the brain afterwards; and by all medical standards and prognoses, she should have been dead at least three times.  She looked like the perennial “walking death.”  She looked hollow, frail, ashen, and every other ghastly adjective you can think of – and everyone, including her doctor – gave her up for dead.  They avoided her and never looked at her, certainly not in the eye, just like I have been doing with my neighbor.  

But after my penny changed into a dime this morning, I now want to not only not avoid my sick neighbor, I want to go over to his house, look him straight in the eye and tell him not to care what other people think they see when they look at him; not to let that be his mirror – not to let that appear to be reality.  I want to tell him that reality is whatever we want it to be – that we create our own reality by our perceptions and often re-create reality by our vision and the strength of our will, just as my mother did.

I want to embrace him – with the love I have been withholding from him out of fear – and I want him to look into my eyes and see the mirror of a new reality . . . of everything that is possible, no matter what appearances seem to suggest.  I know this is so . . . because I learned it from my mother.  

Blessings to you all.  I hope you are enjoying the wonders of this glorious spring . . . with all its possibilities and its promise of new and exciting realities.

Live Serendipitously . . . and Enjoy,

Madeleine Kay
“The Serendipity Lady”
www.madeleinekay.com


Visit my Serendipity Day Facebook page at www.facebook.com/serendipityday