Tag Archives: my life journal

FINDING THE TIME

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Time seems to be a subject that keeps finding me this week. I read a brief article about how one of society’s biggest challenges is not having enough time in our days and so I began thinking ( I know, a dangerous situation). Whether we are baby boomers or young couples with growing children, time is an element we all struggle with. Something connected popped up when I saw a video about how to create an extra 15 minutes per day to do with what you will. How do you do this you ask? I think it’s pretty simple; either set your alarm 15 minutes earlier or…and I witness this every day, get up when your alarm goes off. So many people that I sleep with (that was supposed to be funny) set their alarm and hit the snooze button and then simply lie there listening to the radio prattle on while pretending to get a few more minutes of rest. What could be more un-restful than snooze alerts and radio voices. Constantly tossing to try and get a few more ZZZZ’s and knowing the end is near – yuck. OK, so the method of finding 15 more minutes is easy – get out of bed, but to me, the bigger issue is now that you have created an extra 15 minutes – what do you do with it?

So, I started with a list of things NOT TO DO. No TV, no email and no social media – my gawd how will you survive??? Keep going dear reader, the answer awaits. My friend Howard Parsons, The Reinvention Equation, would highly recommend meditation and what a change that would create in your life – incredible. But there are also other pursuits like some stretching or yoga that would produce positive results in your life, too. Some of us might use the time to write – aha! Would that make a difference in the world?

BOOMER TUNES ALERT

While driving home the other night, this song came on the radio and it’s one of the greatest party songs of all time. As I was singing along I realized that, other than the chorus, I have no idea what the lyrics are and I doubt that you or anyone else (including the band) does either. I googled the lyrics when I got home and they make no sense but that does not diminish the greatest party tune ever. Give it a listen and I know that Bruce Mazur and I could still sing the hell out of the chorus, couldn’t we Maze? Come back afterwards for more thoughts on time.

Louie Louie

 Just before you started dancing and singing I was talking about how to make use of your extra 15 minutes and how you can use it to make a difference in the world. Regular readers of this corner will remember the series of posts that I did about creating the story of your life – your Legacy Bio. Yes, you could use your 15 minutes to start working on that. Think that creating and sharing your story would not make a difference in the world? You would be so wrong. I promise that creating your story will change your life and the lives of your family and friends. Want proof?

Jillian Lee is a mother, wife, library manager, and a very talented filmmaker. In addition to that, she is one of the most courageous persons I know. She has spent much of her time telling the stories of others and has now decided that she must share her own story as well. As followers of this blog, you know how I feel about the importance of recording your story. You know that it will bring completion to your life in addition to the possibility of offering so much more than mere cold facts to your family and friends. I generally talk about writing your life story but there other ways to do it and other reasons to do it too. Sometimes there are parts of our lives that we need to face that become cathartic when revealed and allow us to heal ourselves. That takes tremendous courage and even more so when you are brave enough to let it help others by “putting it our there.”

To see and hear courage in action, I suggest that you view Jillian’s YouTube video and subscribe to her channel for updates. It may inspire your next step to offering your own life story for your benefit and the opportunity to make a difference to those you love.

Jillian Lee

And finally, time sometimes creates a sadness and loss for us. This past week, a friend from Winnipeg of almost 40 years passed away. Pat Pinchin suffered a serious heath issue for many years but I can honestly say that I never once saw her without a smile on her face. I’m sure there were moments when physical pain took a toll on her but she suffered in private and never let it affect her friends. RIP Pat and much strength and peace to Rick and Jeffrey.

– 30 –

CREATING A LEGACY BIO part 20

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If you could be reborn as absolutely anyone, any historical figure, any famous personality, any one at all, who would it be?

What is it about that person that you want to be known for?

Alright, let’s suppose you are reading this from the hereafter. You have the opportunity to revisit this little corner of the universe and say anything you want to anyone you want.

Who do you want to say something to?

Why do you want to say it to them?

What is it that you want to say?

Can you distill your personal life philosophy or essence down to 3 sentences – try it here.

FINALLY:

We all have various things that we are grateful for in our lives. Name 10 things that you are most grateful for:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Today, there are many many ways to physically or digitally create a personal memoir and we will discuss a few ideas and some cautions.

You could simply print off the templates found here and using a pen, fill in the blanks as best you can and maybe add a few pieces of paper where necessary to expand some areas. Messy, not very professional and hard to read would be the words that first come to mind with this approach.

You might take a different step and create a Word document on your computer, retype the questions presented in the templates and enter your answers, creating additional space where necessary. This would allow you to import other documents, photos, drawings and anything else that adds to your story. You could save the document on your computer and additionally, save it on the cloud.

You might be more comfortable creating a video and using the templates as a guideline to speak your answers and also add photos, song downloads and other videos. You could make it as involved or simple as you like. There is lots of software available through Microsoft, Google and many others to help you create this work. Once again, save it onto a memory stick, your hard drive or the cloud.

There are lots of book creation websites available where you could create one copy or a hundred copies, as you see fit. They have the capability of adding photos, etc. and are a “hard copy” of your Legacy Bio to share as you see fit.

You might prefer to create a scrapbook that incorporates your answers to the template questions along with hard copies of photos, documents, awards, newspaper clippings and so much more. This would entail a lot more work than simply “filling in the blanks” but it would be an incredible treasure for your family.

You could keep it very simple by using a 3 ring binder to capture your Word document and any additional information you care to add and put it in a cardboard file box along with any other mementos you wish to share for future generations.

Here’s the important caution: remember 8 tracks, vinyl records, home movie cameras, MySpace, daisy wheel printers, and the Jetsons? None of us has any idea what the communications landscape will look like 50 years from now. Consequently, I would strongly recommend that whatever you decide to do, make a hard copy of what you want to share. Writings have survived for thousands of years on everything from cave walls to dead sea scrolls. Even though language is a constantly evolving art form, it will always be able to be understood. Cloud saving, memory sticks and the like may not be usable a generation from now. After all, how would you play your original Elvis 45’s today? “Ain’t Nothin’ but a Hound Dog” indeed.

CREATING A LEGACY BIO part 19

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The story of your life is your opportunity to set the record straight. It is a legacy that will be cherished by its readers, an invaluable addition to your family tree and a personal history that clarifies your place in time and space. These 20 templates may seem daunting to some and incredibly skimpy to others when it comes to presenting your autobiography but you can choose how you approach the subject of YOU. Fill in all of the blanks, some of the blanks, or expand to capture the other details of your life not covered here. We will spend some time in the final segment looking at various options for creating the physical Legacy Bio and how and when to share it with others.

Life is full of moments, some good, some bad, some embarrassing, and a few that are inexplicable. There are moments of strength and courage and a few that we would take back if we could. Following is a list of prompts to show some of those moments in your life. You may want to use one word answers but it is far more fun if you include an explanation:

Did you ever:

steal something

appear nude – on purpose

have to go to the emergency room

tell off an authority figure (teacher, boss, policeman, customs agent, etc.)

fail a grade

skip a grade

find yourself giggling uncontrollably at a funeral or wedding

appear on TV

pick something up from the floor and eat it

pretend you were someone else

hitchhike

skinny dip (who with)

pray for a miracle

witness a miracle

break a bone

bungee jump

swim with sharks

pet a dangerous animal

shoot a gun

risk your life to save someone else

join any cults or weird organizations

meet someone really famous

hit on someone you shouldn’t have

run away from home

Have you ever been told that you have an exact “double”? Is there someone out there travelling the world who is a duplicate of you?

Let’s suppose that you could clone yourself – would you?

If you created a clone, what characteristics would they have, what strengths, life goals, successes, or challenges would they have?

If you had an “evil twin,” describe who they would be, what they would do and what their life would be like. Have you ever been tempted to live that “evil twin” life yourself?

If you could see 5 years into the future – would you do it?

What would you want to know?

What would you NOT want to know?

We are rapidly coming to the end of our personal memoir templates – one more next week. If you were to set aside one hour per week to complete this project, you would be creating a valuable, interesting and story of your life to be shared with the many people who are interested in your life and times. What an unselfish act of love that your are creating. If you decide to share and assist someone else in creating their own Legacy Bio, not only will they be forever grateful, so will their family and friends. What a wonderful thing you would be doing for someone else. As you position your own life within the context of the history that has happened around you, you bring a personal connection for the reader that cannot be found in any other way. Just do it!