Doing Things That Will Change Your Life | Tracks In The Dust

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26 Feb 2015

Lessons Learned Over Time

There’s this song by The Faces which sings about “I wish I knew what I know now when I was younger”. Now I understand the wisdom of age, but when I was young I was certain I had life figured out. I know now that you can get off course from your younger plans.

Off course: That our ideals are sometimes replaced by practicality, that the dreams are sometimes effected by the reality, that life is full of things to embrace but we often run away from them because of our doubt and uncertainty that they are the right things to be embracing.

So there are lessons learned, and like many of my friends and relatives who are with me on the downhill side of the hill, we have a more complete view of the course we have taken. We can see the victories and the mistakes, the failures and the missed opportunities. But life is still good for many of us. It has its priceless golden moments, it has the love of family and friends.

I have learned many lessons only by my experience. Did someone tell me these things when I was younger? Well yeah, maybe and I just didn’t grasp it. A few of them:

Not going to have a positive life hanging around negative people. One of my sons truly understands this and maybe better than I. It’s kind of obvious, but we often blindly don’t see it. I want to tell my kids over and over, be certain that you are surrounded by people who are positive, who don’t want to shape you like them but let you be who you are. Worth repeating.
If something is broke, fix it… don’t just throw it out. We give up very quickly on some things in life that perhaps we shouldn’t. Like friendships, marriages, diets or breaking bad habits. In today’s disposable society I can understand I guess. Just get a new one. Problem is that it costs something – and not always money- to make that work. We don’t think of that right away.
Time is relative only to you and what you do with it. It is the premise of http://www.tracksinthedust.com. TIme goes fast and dust will shift and your footprints will be gone. But the passage of your time on Earth is what you make of it. Time isn’t really real, it is your part in the spinning world and what you believe will happen after you are gone from it that will make a difference in your life.

Posted in Doing Things That Will Change Your Life and tagged Acceptance, Advice, choices, Decisions, Grace, Happiness, Life, life is precious, Memories, Opinion, Postive Thinking, Reality Check, Self-Awareness, Sprituality, Who Are You

01 Feb 2015

Everyone’s Personal Movie

I am constantly amazed how many cameras there are in our lives today. Everyone has one in their pocket if they own a smartphone, they are there in public places (look, you can see them up there like one big eye-ball staring down at you).

There aren’t many places today where a there may not be a picture or video . In elevators, at parties, in shops and restaurants. Every one brings their selfie to life with the wave of a finger. Some how we have gotten much closer to Orwell’s 1984 vision of big brother it would seem.

I noticed today that there are new inexpensive devices that just hang off your collar or purse. Very small they can be activated in a second and carry full digital video capability . It allows us to be in “our own movie” complete with the reality show friends and strangers who populate your view of life around you. No effort. No getting something out of your purse or pocket. Just a gesture of your hand and you are recording video and sound for your life.

Over the years as I grow older, I realize that there are some fond memories of the past are precious. But in the days of the past no one really thought of pulling out a an old-fashioned movie camera to try to capture the moments. Later when video cameras were available, you still had to remember to have them “at hand” to get the action. Maybe special events where it seemed like a great time to capture the action.

Today there is nothing left to imagine or remember. Just take out the device and push the button. Upload it to the Internet and let it have its permanent place in the “etherweb”. Some of those videos capture ugliness, some capture inappropriate things that should only be a memory, many are not as exciting as those that post them make them out to be. But there they are a permanent entry in the “world-wide web library”.

Comon’- be in my “movie” – my reality TV show of life- complete with fuzzy digital motion that will capture a thread of time that otherwise would have come and gone with nothing but a recollection.

Posted in Doing Things That Will Change Your Life, Learning Lessons Along the Journey Of Life and tagged being remembered, choices, Digital Videos, moments, Orwell, Reality Check, remembering, Self-Awareness, Selfies, Sharing pictures, Social Networking

17 Dec 2014

Family Traditions “German Holiday Songs”

When I was a kid my all of my aunts and uncles, cousins (distant and close) would get together on Christmas day in the afternoon to have the “family” Christmas party. Our German heritage would always mean great German food & pot luck including ham and German potato salad and so many other assorted eats including my grandmothers handed down German spice cake ( potato torte).

After everyone had their fill of great food and a bunch alcoholic drinks had duly been consumed, there was time to sing some songs. The whole family would join in to celebrate. Many were many Christmas traditional tunes “O Tannenbaum” and “Stille Nacht” (Silent Night) were inevitable. But also were a few Bavarian drinking songs ( at least it felt like they were from there). Not as Christmas oriented but certainly part of the tradition each year.

My focus for our family this year will be to recall and embrace those family traditions that got us to this Christmas. I hope that my children will better understand the rich and varied heritage that got us to the yule-tide celebrations we do now.

There was a song called “Mein Lieber Antone“. Thanks to my brother I have the words for it, but have not been able to find the actual tune on any search I have made via the Internet.. I would be grateful if anyone had any information about it.

The other song was a song about a Schnitzelbank. With assorted other farm implements (among other German things). A traditional drinking song for sure, complete with the sing-along poster as each time you added something you had to repeat the rest. What great fun, and definitely with a beer or other concoction in your hand while singing it.

Here is the poster we sang from:

Here is a rendition from You Tube ( so you can get the idea).

What were your traditions? What songs did you sing over the years that have become the standards for your personal soundtrack?

Posted in Doing Things That Will Change Your Life, Life's Sound Track (Music) and tagged being remembered, Christmas music, Christmas Past, family and friends, German Drinking Songs, German Holiday Songs, Holiday Songs, Memories, moments, Music, Self-Awareness, Sing-a-long songs, Songs, Traditions

26 Nov 2014

Thankful for Our Children

My wife has said before that as a parent you may not always like your kids, but you will always love them. There may be some sense in that for many of us. As our kids get older and become adults they have had plenty of time to formulate their own idea of the order of their lives. Sometimes they make poor choices ( and you wonder if anything soaked in during those younger years), sometimes they take things for granted or create problems that are not really there.

One thing I have learned as my kids got older ( they are all over 21 now) is that they are forever entwined in their childhood personas. When they were born, from the day they could actually respond to things around them, my wife and I could tell that each of our four children were unique in their own way. They had their own way of looking at the world from virtually the day they were born. And all the life lessons and teaching you could apply would help to shape the edges, but their personality was something they were born with.

So as adults my wife and I can still see it. We had 3 sons in a row, and each one of them had their own perspective on things. While one of them was Intellectually reason out the simplest of problems ( even at 3 years old), another one of them got easily frustrated and would work to plan to manipulate his surroundings , the third was laid back and things would roll off and he would work through things in such a simple way and just smile. My daughter was our last, she was earthy, of the earth she loves animals more than people, enjoys nature and adjusts to things overtime when she finds the balance.

One thing they all had in common was music, my children did not all become consummate musicians ( however one of them has composed a number of great songs playing all the instruments and vocals). But music was meaningful. It is the canvas in which our lives would speak through sound and emotion. It ties us together in so many ways.

So this holiday season, when my adult kids will all be visiting our home we are thankful. We are grateful that we have had the opportunity to experience being a parent and proud of what they have become.

Posted in Doing Things That Will Change Your Life, Learning Lessons Along the Journey Of Life and tagged Acceptance, Change, choices, Compassion, Doubt, Faith, Family, Growing up, Memories, moments, Postive Thinking, Raising Children, Sprituality, Thankful, Thanksgiving

24 Nov 2014

2 Comments

Why Don’t You Say Hello!?

There are times when it seems we are just not connected to what’s going on around us. There are certainly times when I pass by someone on the street or in a store and they seem to be so deeply into “their world” that it can take pause to wonder if they realize they are in public.

Strangers avert their eyes, They don’t want to appear to be eager to talk or interact in any way. With news of such violent times all around us, it is probably to be expected that many do not want to initiate something that could result in harm or anguish.

It’s a shame though really.Being connected to the world means you can understand it more. Being connected to each other would help to prevent the very fear of the unknown that roots in our aversion. It is ironic that we can be so transparent on social media, where there is an electronic physical space between all of us, but face to face, it can seem so different.

Not everyone is like that. It is refreshing to see someone you don’t know who may catch your glance and say “good morning” or “hello” or something. Just an acknowledgment that we are all moving along in this timeline together. It doesn’t mean we have to be fast friends, or relate to each other on any subjective level. Just a polite smile and a “hello”.

It may be a little easier at the holidays. “Happy Holiday’s” or “Merry Christmas” seems to be okay and has some more appeal than just looking away. But then even-so, we may be addressing someone who doesn’t celebrate the season. But no matter, it is just the fact we intended to make contact, intended to recognize that there is another human-being going through waking hours and making an effort to live life.

Like all of us I’d guess, I struggle with a lot of burdens (health in particular) and I have a lot of opinions on things, but I am not trying to throw them to someone else with a simple “hello” or “good-day” – just seems the right thing to do. It can give comfort to the fact that we are humankind. Well for the most part anyway 😉