Sharing Thanks

  I was so thankful to be able to celebrate Thanksgiving with my immediate family in my parents country house in the beautiful Adirondack mountains. Our small gathering of 6 reached out to family celebrations over zoom. We enjoyed playing games, eating turkey and watching the fire from the wood-burning stove, I enjoyed taking quiet social distanced walks in the sleepy historic ski town of Northcreek, NY. When you are in the Adirondack's you can spot a fair number of adorable dog rock sculptures. I enjoyed seeing this rock dog on Main Street in Northcreek over the weekend.  Love the creative folks that find the rocks to build them. They bring a smile to anyone who sees them. There is a fantastic public art mosaic project that was designed and completed by artist Kate Hartley recently. It features all of the wonderful adventures that await you in this mountain area, white-water rafting, hiking, fishing, skiing, and snowshoeing. Ms. Hartley had the idea to transform a blank concr...

  Lilly pads from my walk at Norman Levy Park Finding new ways to adapt and pivot I am thankful to be able to get outside and walk in beautiful town, county and state parks on Long Island. I like to go during the week when there are fewer people to be socially distant from. I enjoy watching the butterflies and birds flights. I love feeling the breeze on my face while soaking in the sun and listening to birdsongs. I am thankful to be able to gather with friends from all over the world for weekly Friday night cocktails and game nights. Laughing and sharing stories with friends have helped me weather these trying times. Its wonderful to hear how people are coping in different states and different countries. It helps me realize the commonality we all share. I am thankful to participate with my music virtually.  To keep everyone safe I have started to give violin and piano lessons over Zoom. It's been a learning curve on how to manage being able to see, hear and coach the students....

Thankful for a new year and decade! Wow, its 2020! January is such a great time to reflect and restart. I read in Arianna Huffington's Weekly Thoughts Newsletter that tiny changes can lead to big results. She recommends reading B.J. Fogg's book Tiny Habits. Fogg a Stanford behavioral scientist writes, "To be effective, change doesn't have to be hard at all-and it shouldn't be. Tiny adjustments that come easily and make us happy are the ones that work best." So I have decided to set small monthly goals in 2020 instead of resolutions that last until about the first few weeks of January. I am an avid reader of fiction, nonfiction, and yes self-help books. I love going to my local library and discovered and took out a book by UK author, Marianne Power called "Help Me!" The pink cover with a stack of books caught my eye at our New Non-fiction display at the library. The title of the book did not disappoint me. I put my books in the backseat ...