Category Archives: single parent

SOAPBOX of the week: the demise of excess and avarice

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“Society drives people crazy with lust and calls it advertising.”   – John Lahr, drama critic

Supply and demand used to be so simple.  A work-in-progress of balancing out the have’s and have-not’s, meeting needs while doing “good business.”  What you see is what you get.  And it made calm sense.  Now, the offerings are fantastical in design, superfluous in number and sizzled as solutions for immediate happiness.  We’ve grown to not only expect more of such uncategorized stuff, we feel entitled to bigger, better, faster as well!  Greed overshadows need, and guilt counters with acceptable addictions.  It’s another chicken or egg parable, because amidst the overpromising big print, it’s still your choice to suffer the small print which taketh away.  Choose to sedate the urges for more, more, more, for too much will always be too much, folks.

Copyright 2008 by Kimberlie Dykeman
Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.
A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: honoring the bountiful big picture

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“We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned,     so as to have the life that is waiting for us.”     – Joseph Campbell, educator and writer
   
The Big Picture. What does yours include:  Early retirement?  World travel?  Think you’re destined to wear the title of CEO, proud parent, famous author, or couple of the year?  Is everything going as planned?  Fifty bucks says…no.  Be honest: you’ve had a few changes of plans.  A few screw-ups.  Folks, WE ALL HAVE!  But, some of you label these twists as ultimate justification for not becoming the man or woman you were supposed to.  And without knowing it you set a path for “hell or high water”, blind to the countless other glorious options right at your feet!  Finding opportunity in adversity isn’t an opportunity –it’s a necessity.  Plan A or BUST is certain to be the latter…especially when life has so much more to offer that any of your plans ever could.

Copyright 2000-2008 by Kimberlie Dykeman.

Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.

A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: a wish for tireless thankfulness

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A special feast from the book “Pure Soapbox”…  SOAPBOX vignette #57

thanks•giv•ing – n. an act of giving thanks; an expression of gratitude

Hope you’re hungry, because this timely concoction of culinary soapboxing doles out not one, but two servings of epicurean delight to drive home a notion that so very many of us have overlooked, and continue to pass over.

In black and white, the operative word here is giving. Needless to say, the actual form of the thanks takes on as much importance as the act itself. Some slaps on the back are best soft-served with a smile. Still, this world-renowned date for thanks-giving has been anchored in time by our forefathers in an unyielding attempt to showcase its kinetic nature. And so, I ask that you humor me with this two-for-one homage to the aromatic brilliance of a few of connoisseurs of the Canon.

1st Course
“Let us remember that, as much has been given us, much will be expected from us, and that true homage comes from the heart
 as well as from the lips, and shows itself in deeds.”   – Theodore Roosevelt, U.S. President

You are the main ingredient and you’re alive and kicking! You may even have all your fingers and toes, as well as a college education, and the luxury of pushing pause to digest this meal of literary morsels. Burrow in and bear- hugbearhug the irrefutable fact that you are truly blessed, and, in turn, equally limitless in opportunities to show appreciation for the gifts you’ve received.

2nd Course
“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation  is not to utter words, but to live by them.”     – John Fitzgerald Kennedy, U.S. president

Go ahead and dish ‘em out however you choose, stuffed between hors d’oeuvres or piled high atop Mom’s fabulous pecan pie. Fifty bucks says your belly-full sensation of satisfaction comes not from the feast of fruitcake, but from your dynamic expression of thanks for the boundless bounties before you. Fill your Tupperware with these leftovers…and season the rest of your days with provisions that’ll never spoil…regardless of the cook!

 

Copyright 2000-2008 by Kimberlie Dykeman.  Excerpt from Pure Soapbox… a cleansing jolt of perspective, motivation, and humor, published July 2008.
Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.
A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: plug into your own power

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“There is a power under your control that is greater than poverty, greater than the lack of education, greater than all your fears and superstitions combined.  It is the power to take possession of your own mind and direct it to whatever ends you may desire.”     – Andrew Carnegie, businessman

Ok, show me your grocery list of excuses for not being as successful as you want to be.  Never enough time.  Not the right time.  Never enough money.  Don’t have the know-how.   Don’t know the right people.  It’s your boss’ fault.  Your parents’ fault.  What if you screw up?  Ugh!  Truth be told: you’re stuck in the comfortable groove of being uncomfortable…and your fearful thoughts and actions justify a perpetual life of lack.  But it’s never too late to revise!  And to do so, you must choose success.  Rise up out of that rut with a specific vision of all that success embodies. Channel your ideas and actions into a positive new groove.  The power you then radiate will attract abundance and joy…that’s all yours for the taking.

Copyright 2008 by Kimberlie Dykeman
Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.
A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: freedom in forgiveness

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“To carry a grudge is like being stung to death by a bee.”    – Anon.

So the story goes: somebody did you wrong and you’re ticked and keeping score.  To err may be human, you think, but this one’s inexcusable.  Revenge is in order…or at least the silent treatment!  And in one fell swoop, spite invades your body and distracts your mind with anger, resentment and ego and an unyielding agenda for self-preservation.  Your choice to neither forgive nor forget fills your spirit with funk and erases years from your very lifeline.  When you aim to crucify another for wrongdoing, ironically, the bigger wrong is done by you.  Folks, drop the grudge and wipe the scoreboard, ‘cause it’s only time until the show is on the other foot.  Lessons learned in absolution now will save both face and friendship.

Copyright 2008 by Kimberlie Dykeman 

Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.

A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.

SOAPBOX of the week: the beauty of painted bewilderment

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“The world doesn’t make sense, so why should I paint pictures that do.”      – Pablo Picasso

Left brain vs. right.  The creatives vs. the techies.  Realists vs. dreamers.  Subjectivity allows for ambiguity and confuses both sides when it comes to art.  And isn’t it funny how we magnify our opinions of painting and performance –spouting judgment, dismissing importance and demanding explanation.  As if we expect mathematical equation to give us a “why”.  Yet, without rhyme or reason we accept reality TV, love at first sight, dogs wearing clothing, people driving the speed limit, and Hostess Twinkies as “normal” and without question.  Point being, art reflects life, folks.  So embrace the confusion…each of us helps create it!

Copyright 2008 by Kimberlie Dykeman 

Pure Soapbox available nationwide online and where books are sold.

A portion of the proceeds of all book sales is donated to LIVESTRONG.