The grass is always greener on the other side.
What is it about us that makes that old cliché ring so true? Last Friday, Kim and I went to an Andrew Peterson concert. It was a pretty small venue, and we got great seats. After only a few songs, I was in total awe. I was mesmerized by Andrew’s musical gifts, melodic harmonies, and brilliant songwriting. I secretly wished that I could be so musically inclined. I was bummed — and a bit jealous — that God had not bestowed upon me the ability to play a guitar in a fashion that wasn’t reminiscent of a train derailment.
I know, I know, I should feel lucky that I have been blessed with my artistic abilities, a fairly good sense of humor, and a homemade alfredo sauce to die for. But I hardly think I’m alone. Don’t you ever sometimes feel like the gifts you have just don’t seem to be as thrilling or important or useful as the next guy’s?
I really like this story about a king and his garden:
A story is told of a king who went into his garden one morning, only to find everything withered and dying. He asked the oak tree that stood near the gate what the trouble was. The oak tree said it was tired of life and determined to die because it was not tall and beautiful like the pine tree. The pine was troubled because it could not bear grapes like the grapevine. The grapevine was determined to throw its life away because it could not stand erect and produce fruit as large as peaches. The geranium was fretting because it was not tall and fragrant like the lilac.
And so it went throughout the garden. Yet coming to a violet, the king found its face as bright and happy as ever and said, "Well, violet, I’m glad to find one brave little flower in the midst of this discouragement. You don’t seem to be the least bit disheartened." The violet responded, "No, I’m not. I know I’m small, yet I thought if you wanted an oak or a pine or a peach tree or even a lilac, you would have planted one. Since I knew you wanted a violet, I’m determined to be the best little violet I can be."
I think that’s a good reminder that each of us has a specific role to play in this world. Like fingerprints and snowflakes, we each have a unique set of skills and talents. If only we could embrace our individuality, know that we were created on purpose, and adopt the attitude of the little violet, who knows how different–and better–the world would be?
Never downplay your gifts. Somebody out there wishes they were as lucky as you.
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Attention bloggers, web site owners, and e-zine administrators: If you’re interested in the idea of making some money with very little effort, take a gander at the brand new Kim & Jason affiliate program.
We’ve had some requests for this, and finally, I am proud to say, it is here. Believe it or not, I am still primarily responsible for the bulk of the coding and maintenance of this web site. This little project took a good chunk of time to pull together. Digging into the back end code sufficiently satisfies my testosterone-fueled itch to tinker with mechanical things (which makes up for the fact that I am fairly useless when it comes to the engine part of a car.)
The commission rate is an obscene 20% (Amazon.com offers around 5%), so you really can’t go wrong. Add a banner or a link to your site and you get a check for any sales that you’re responsible for. If you’re really energetic, you can even link to specific products. I thank you in advance for sharing Kim & Jason with the world.
Related Posts:I love books that give me ideas of things to do to either make my life more fun, more fulfilling, or more simple. Usually these books make their points quickly in short chapters, which happens to be a style I enjoy. Without slamming this title, I picked up a book the other day that seemed as though it was going to give me ideas of things to do to recapture ‘my youth.’ I thought I had found something right up my alley until I read a few of the chapter titles. Some of the ideas were just plain irresponsible and dumb, things such as ‘Yell at someone,’ ‘Pierce something other than your ear,’ and ‘Charm your way into our out of something.’ You get the idea. I don’t think this is the youth that is worth recapturing. Yes, all of us ‘Adults’ were once immature teenagers. I really have no desire to return to the teenage years.
Some people think
that in order to be free from the stresses of everyday life, they also must be free of making morally sound decisions. You know the whole "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" mantra. Does ‘living for today’ mean I should be rude to the teenager in the check-out line…or that I should I go ‘clubbing’ with my girlfriends and act irresponsibly? Don’t get me wrong, ‘being your own person’ and ‘carpe diem’ are great, but I think some people interpret this in strange ways.
What are you passionate about? What do you absolutely, unequivocally LOVE to do? The one thing that makes time fly by like a caffienated roadrunner?
Now for the Ed Sullivan "really big" question: How much time do you spend doing it?
If stress has its death grip on you and you REALLY want to Escape Adulthood (and if you don’t, why are you here?) you need to spend more time on the things you are passionate about.
One of my favoritest bloggers and fellow artist, the French Toast Girl, recently shared in a recent post (January 24, 2006) how painting helps her get through the ups and downs of life. When you’re sick, tired, frustrated, bored, or feeling down and out, your passion has the almost medicinal power to lift your spirit and make your soul sing. It recharges your batteries and makes it easier to tackle the challenges of life.
Maybe you like to paint. Or garden. Or tinker with that old Ford. Or collect stamps like Mr. Newland, my 7th grade history teacher. Whatever it is, do it. That gift is a built-in stress release valve. It also gets you more in tune with God (the one who planted that very passion within you) and gives you a clear head to deal with the craziness that is life.
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Be honest. When was the last time you read a children’s book…minus the audience of a child nearby? It’s been a while for me, but I can easily remember some of my favorites: The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Where the Wild Things Are, George’s Marvelous Medicine, The Twits, and Where the Sidewalk Ends. True classics. My third grade teacher read the Roald Dahl books (Medicine and Twits) to us in class, and I still remember the colorful descriptions painted in words.
Jen Robinson has a pretty cool blog promoting "the love of books by children and the continued reading of children’s books by adults." I was particularly struck by a post entitled, "Why You Should Read Children’s Books as an Adult." She outlines some really great points. Here’s my favorite:
If you read as a child, and loved it, then re-reading those books is like entering a time machine that takes you back to the child you once were. It’s amazing, because the books are still available — you can read them any time. It doesn’t cost much, you don’t have to travel, you don’t need anyone to help you. You can just time travel at will.
Sometimes life can get a tad overwhelming, and the welcome relief that can come from spending a few moments with a children’s book should not be taken lightly. The whimsy, hope, and imagination they contain are good for the soul. When the world seems to be out of control, children’s books have the remarkable ability to strip away the superfluous and make it easy to regain perspective on the important things in life.
Make it a point to dig out one of your old favorites. If you’re not already convinced, check out Jen’s Top 10 list. And if you’re taking The Escape Plan challenge, this might be the perfect solution to #3.
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In this podcast, brought to you from Madison, Wisconsin, we discuss our plan to annihilate Adultitis, interview someone who is joining us on our crusade, reveal the winner of the promotion from our last podcast, and talk about our newest favorite TV show. All this plus a money back enjoyment guarantee. What a deal, huh?
Listen now by clicking on the podcast icon below.
To subscribe to the RSS feed of our podcast and automatically receive all new shows, paste this url [http://feeds.feedburner.com/EscapeAdulthood] into a podcast aggregator like iPodder. Or, if you have iTunes, you can click on this little icon to be subscribed automatically:
Show Notes:
• Check out The Escape Plan…Start with Challenge #1 and turn your Adultitis-stricken life around!
• The Perfect Match: buy any framed print at the Lemonade Stand and get a FREE copy of Escape Adulthood.
• Read all about our recent trip to San Francisco (Kim’s take | Jason’s take)
• Book Jason to speak at your organization.
• Club K&J Subscribers have access to ALL of the bonus videos featured in The Escape Plan (not to mention a slew of other cool perks.)
• Congrats to Ian Tyrrell, winner of last show’s promo and winner of a complimentary Kim & Jason Print.
• Love Monkey. Check out this cool new show on CBS.
• Remember: Anyone who starts The Escape Plan before our next show is automatically entered in a drawing to win a 2006 Kim & Jason Calendar.
Vote For Us: We’d really really appreciate it if you took a few moments to vote for us over at Podcast Alley. Thanks!
Show Music: The Same by Terrace
Show Length: 37 minutes, 50 seconds
Feedback: We’d love to hear your thoughts! Add a comment below or e-mail us.
Related Posts:". . . in all our efforts to provide "advantages" we have actually produced the busiest, most competitive, highly pressured and over-organized generation of youngsters in our history and possibly the unhappiest."
Eda LeShan, US writer
I couldn’t agree more. If we don’t get our acts together, it’s going to be awfully hard to find someone twenty years from now that has a childhood worth looking back on. Shame on us. (See also Einstein on Ritalin)
Related Posts:I was interviewed on a Catholic radio station (Relevant Radio) a few weeks back. Here’s a link for those of you interested in listening. (You can find my ramblings about halfway through.)
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I’d wager a bet that you probably have a list of favorite candy from your youth. Between Little League games and swimming lessons, my family spent a lot of time at the park, patronizing concession stands. (In fact, I was co-manager of the Peru pool concession stand one summer.) I remember being a master at stretching my allowance, claiming an assortment of Pixi Stix, Blow Pops, and Laffy Taffys for just 50¢. I’ve wondered if they still make any of these treasured candies, or if they’re only available on the shelf of my memory.
The other day I found OldTimeCandy.com and was delighted to see that they’ve gone through the trouble of locating most — if not all — of the candy you remember feasting on as a child. From Red Hot Dollars to Super Ropes to Slo Pokes, they’ve got it. What’s especially neat is that they offer gift packages that contain an assortment of candy from your childhood, whether you’re 30, 40, 50, or 60 years old! The store is run by a couple of baby boomers — Karen & Donny Ray from Olmstead Falls, Ohio — who have a love for candy and a passion leading people down memory lane.
More proof of success being found by folks with an over-sized childlike spirit. Pretty sweet.
Related Posts:I’m not one to really follow the lives of celebrities. Honesty, I feel like celebrities are the high school “cool kids.” Why do we care about them? I’ll admit that I know much less than most people about the latest Hollywood gossip.
Even though I’m pretty clueless in this area, I sure seem to hear a lot about celebrities contracting the disease called…Exhaustion. The list is astounding really – Colin Farrell, Ashlee Simpson, Mariah Carey, Ruben Studdard, Eminem. The list goes on and on. Recently Helen A. S. Popkin, a MSNBC contributor, wrote an article joking about this trend. She writes:
“Currently, there are many worthy causes pulling at our purse strings: tsunami and Katrina relief efforts, AIDS funding, National Enquirer subscriptions, etc. But certainly every American is willing to spare extra tax dollars to protect and preserve the famous. “Exhaustion” isn’t going to cure itself — especially since “exhaustion” has no specific cause or definition.”
Although sarcastic, Helen has a good point. There is a problem here. Exhaustion doesn’t just happen like a natural disaster. But let’s face it, who’s not exhausted…and we all do it to ourselves.
A fellow blogger, the Valley Girl, makes an interesting point:
“I’m enough of a hypochondriac to be up on my popular diseases and medical maladies so I’m reasonably sure that exhaustion is a symptom not a diagnosis. I couldn’t imagine rushing into the E.R. at the end of a grueling day and screaming, "Quick, someone get me a stretcher, I’m EXHAUSTED!”
So, I think I’m starting to see the problem. These doctors diagnosing all of these ‘exhausted’ celebrities have not yet heard about Adultitis. (Maybe because they have it, themselves.) It just so happens that “exhaustion” is a major symptom to Adultitis. People are getting misdiagnosed, which is quite a shame. You know what ‘they’ say – the first step is admitting you have a problem.
After I identified my Adultitis a few years ago, I felt like I was on my way to recovery. It really wasn’t until just recently when we started The Escape Plan that I’ve been able to be more immersed in a conscious mindset of thinking and acting in a more childlike way. It doesn’t come naturally…at least not for me. It’s kind of like if you were prescribed physical therapy on your leg. If you don’t actually do the exercises your leg will not improve. You have to actually make a conscious effort to do the necessary activities.
We are almost halfway done with our 40 days of challenges. It’s been a lot more difficult than I had first predicted, but I’m gradually starting to see little changes in myself. It’s also been very inspiring reading what other Voyagers are coming up with for their challenges. I finally feel like I am really fighting my Adultitis…and sometimes I even feel like I’m winning.
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Every month, one Club K&J subscriber is drawn as the winner in the Supremely Wonderful & Exciting Loot Lottery. This month’s lucky recipient is Eleanor Sodergren! She wins FREE Shipping for a year! Congrats, Eleanor!
Join Club K&J for your chance to win this month’s prize Loot Lottery!
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The entertainment award season is upon us. Question: Why don’t more comedies get nominated for the big awards?
Answer: Because the people voting for the awards are stricken with Adultitis.
The Golden Globes actually consider comedies (maybe that’s colored by the fact that they also include television shows in the mix) but most of the funny movies never stand a chance when it comes to the biggest prizes. That’s why Jim Carrey, Robin Williams and Will Ferrell have to take on dramatic roles in order to even be looked at for major film awards. But even then there’s a prejudice because of the comedic background. Just once I’d like to see a movie like Dumb And Dumber, There’s Something About Mary, or Anchorman mentioned in the list for best picture.
But that will never happen. The voters, in their Adultitis-laced clouds of pretension, are above such a consideration. They like their films serious. Artsy. Dramatic. Nuanced. High-brow. To them, comedies are the bubble gum on the shoe of great cinema.
What’s interesting is that many dramatic actors (like Robert Deniro, Meet The Parents) will tell you that comedy is harder to pull off than drama. Not to mention that funny movies are actually better for you, at least according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. The study found that funny films increased the flow of blood to the heart, creating a result similar to a bout of aerobic exercise.
Hmmm…so laughing is good for you. Maybe the Academy should try more of that. It’s too bad we can’t acknowledge more of the films that expertly pull those heart friendly laughs out of us.
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