We've become strangers to nature.

Saw this on my cousin Peter's FB wall 4/7/13




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SaraHHouse365 | I go to nature...
SaraHHouse365 | A Successful 2012 Wood Season!

Holder of the Bow.

Source: creativeldsquotes.blogspot.com via Beautiful on Pinterest

Go outside, to the fields, enjoy nature and the sunshine.

SaraHHouse365 | Nature 

SaraHHouse365 | Thank God

I am looking back on this wondering where the heck I found this article, better yet why I felt it was important enough to post. I'm just gonna go with my mood whenever I found this and let it be published. - SH

  Your life is a project…. accumulation

December 26, 201260 Comments

I have written how I consider men’s lives to follow three fundamental phases: foundations, accumulation and maintainance. Don’t overthink this it’s just a convenient mental map to be deployed where useful. So let’s consider the second stage which typically begins upon graduating university or beginning an apprenticeship.

Goal: Max out your manly talents of intelligence, creativity, wealth-generation, physical competence

The accumulation phase could equally be described as “setting yourself up for life” or “becoming the best man you can be”. It’ll typically take you the whole of your twenties. Whereas the foundational phase was building the well-rounded basic skills of life taking advantage of the general education granted to children while side-stepping the weakness inherent in kids of not knowing who they are or what direction they wish to go in, the accumulation phase is about specialisation. Society channels you down predetermined tunnels as a kid fixing everyone on more or less the same generic path. Where foundation is Call of Duty (“follow the NPC”) accumulation is Deus Ex (“augument and choose”). I’ll let you in on a little secret right now:

There’s no money and no status to be had from being a generalist. All the upside is in specialisation.

Specialisation, in the future

1. Choices

What does that mean to you, dear reader? First off you have to carefully marshall your intellectual, physical and emotional resources. Make careful decisions on what skills you seek to acquire.

• The payoff for any given skill is wildly disproportionate to its difficulty
• If something is enjoyable, its probably not lucrative. Expect to make tradeoffs
• Scaleable skillsets are a huge gamble

Consider language learning. It’s a difficult task
involving hundred of classroom hours and, to be fluent, living in a country where its spoken as a native. I had university friends doing language degrees and almost exclusively the only ones who got good jobs did a joint honours with another skill. Spanish on its own will help you navigate South America but it won’t add a penny to your salary unless it’s combined with a real money-making skill such as accounting, engineering or law. Speaking of language, they are not all created equal. Japanese takes approximately three times longer to learn than Spanish or French and it’s only useful for one country. Serbian is bloody difficult and only useful in one small country where per capita income is only $11,000 and they all speak English anyway. Why on earth would anyone learn Serbian unless they are fully commited to living there for years on end? It’s just a dumb waste of effort.

Consider the UFC. That’s the biggest-paying promotion for the sport of MMA. There’s only one PPV every six weeks or so which only has six TV fights per show across all weight divisions. So that’s twelve fighters getting TV-level paydays per show making an annual total of TV-paydays about 104 slots. Assuming you are fighting at that level and get offered a slot, it’ll be a minimum of six week’s training with its attendant costs. Probably 20% goes to your manager and gym. Assuming no medical costs or long injury-related layoffs, fight four times a year, and assuming you win every fight (so statistically 75% of fighters won’t manage even this) you are spending 24 weeks in training and getting by on four paydays. Now go look at how much these guys get paid.

Shocking. Truly shocking. And this is at the most lucrative end of the sport. The top guys do fine (well, not compared to £80k per week footballers but fine compared to normal guys) but look past the top 5 names. Most MMA guys are taking <£10,000 a fight. Drop down to the next level of show and its <£1,000. For six week’s work. I make that in two days sitting at my desk. When I have a bad day at the office I don’t get beat up too.

The lesson isn’t that I’m awesome and fighters suck. The lesson is some careers are far better than others despite being considerably easier and considerably less risk. The 437th-best lawyer in London earns considerably more than the 10th-best London MMA fighter and that income is far more stable. My advice is treat the exciting careers as a hobby.

Nicolas Taleb writes well on the risk/reward payoffs of scaleable careers. The general self-improvement advice is choose a business / career where you can scale upwards. Acting, music, software are classically scaleable careers. If you can be Seinfeld (syndicated worldwide), or have Gangnam Style (200+ million youtube views), or write the next Angry Birds then you can rest on your royalties. The problem is survivor bias and winner-takes-all. The very nature of a pyramid business structure is that only one pharoah is buried in it. Freakonmics has a great essay on how the scaleability of the drug dealer business model means almost everyone earns less than minimum wage and sustains themselves on the dream of being the one Mister Big. Don’t gamble your life’s trajectory on being that one guy. If you truly believe you’ll overcome unsurmountable odds buy a lottery ticket. And stay away from battlefields.

Yes, that’s me

In summary, choose your career wisely. Don’t be afraid to switch careers before you become too committed. Your risk appetite likely differs to mine but here’s my dream list of career conditions:

• Based on a real skillset that is difficult to learn (e.g. accounting, medicine, architecture)
• Most of the population is literally unable to compete (e.g. requires too much abstract thinking, training period is too stressful, entry costs are too high, apprenticeship is difficult to obtain)
• Nature of the job cannot be adequately offshored or automated because it relies on high-trust thinking, verbal knowledge, quality decision making, and personal contact (e.g. law, computer programming)
• Stable income stream with a large pool of commoditised jobs (e.g. accounting, contract law, computer programming, consulting)
• EDIT: I haven’t read this book but it looks like a great resource for choosing a career: “Worthless”

2. Excellence

Once you’ve started on your career your main goal is to become really good at it. Shine your star as bright as you can. Take real passion in excellence for its own sake. Ignore all those office-politics TV shows and books that would convince you advancement is all about who you know. No. Right up until you hit senior management advancement is what you know.

Springtime is the season for new beginnings.

SUBSCRIBE  |  FORWARD TO A FRIEND |  VIEW IN A BROWSER  |  EMAIL US |  704.333.1112 SUCCESS INFORMATION WITH A DEFINITE MAJOR AIM  APRIL 12, 2013  ISSUE 325

Dear Readers: Springtime is the season for new beginnings. The ground breaks through with life. Trees blossom, bulbs sprout, grass greens, blue skies linger, sunlight warms the earth, and the soft breeze touches our senses with a bit of nostalgia. Since time immemorial this ritual has prepared the earth’s residents to begin again. This “something” that awakens inside us, encourages renewal. Falling in love with life requires action not inertia. Getting outdoors and greeting the season head on with rake or spade in hand enables each one of us to feel as if we have made a contribution to the planet. In Indiana I anticipate the arrival of the pussy willows, the return of the robins, the scent of lilacs, the blossoming of the cherry trees, the sprouting of the peonies, and the smell the first time the grass is cut. And, I do not have to leave my home to experience any one of these. These are rituals of spring for me, and fill me with wonder. Rituals create much needed patterns in our lives. They reverence the good things. By creating rituals in our families and work environments, we honor the people that fill our lives. Celebrating birthdays, holidays, landmark dates, special one-time occurrences and honors, as well as the more mundane things such as the first robin of the season, unite us as a group. Begin today by thinking which days in the calendar are special to you and why. Ask someone about their special dates too. Next, share your dates and remember them when the day arrives – not just for yourself, but for the other person too. I love the greeting card quote that states: “Friends are angels who lift our feet when our own wings have trouble remembering how to fly.” Be an angel and lift someone’s spirits by remembering for them when they forget! They will never forget you because of it! Be Your Very Best Always, Judy Williamson

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SaraHHouse365 | It's Never Too Late...to find balance!
SaraHHouse365 | I go to nature...


Credits: Napoleon Hill Foundation email

I go to nature...

Source: beautyofplanetearth.tumblr.com via Margie on Pinterest

SaraHHouse365 | Where Nature has not been rearranged...
SaraHHouse365 | Those who do not know nature have been cheated...

30 Challenges | Day 16

30 Challenges for 30 Days of Growth

April 16, 2013

16. Watch less than 30 minutes of TV every day.

– Entertain yourself with real-world experiences. Great memories are the product of interesting life experiences. So turn off the television (or the computer if that’s how you watch your TV programs) and get outdoors. Interact with the world, appreciate nature, take notice of the simple pleasures life has to offer, and just watch as life unfolds in front of you.

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SaraHHouse365 | 30 Challenges for 30 Days of Growth

SaraHHouse365 | 30 Challenges | Day 7: Treat Everyone Nicely

SaraHHouse365 | 30 Challenges | Day 9: Life Lessons

SaraHHouse365 | 30 Challenges | Day 11: Get rid of one thing

SaraHHouse365 | 30 Challenges |Day 14: Wake up early

what it's like to have 400 oak trees counting on you ...

stolen from google images

Last night as Adam Levine commented, "this is the most stressful thing I've had to go through" on The Voice, my father replies, "Haaa, he doesn't know stress until he knows what it's like to have 400 oak trees counting on you for their lives, waiting to be watered.....uphill both ways."


unbelievable. he's unbelievable.
#shtuffmydadsays

where Nature has not been rearranged by the hand of God.

SaraHHouse365 | A 2012 Successful Wood Season

















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Source: tripoddiaries.com via Jessica on Pinterest

101 Ways To Live Your Life To The Fullest

“Your time is limited, don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living the result of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinion drown your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition, they somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs (101 Most Inspiring Quotes of All Time)

How do you feel about your life today? Are you living every day in exuberance? Do you love what you’re doing? Are you excited every single moment? Are you looking forward to what’s coming up next? Are you living your best life?

If your answer to any of the above is a no, maybe or not sure, that means you’re not living your life to the fullest. Which really shouldn’t be the case, because your life experience is up to you to create. Why settle for anything less than what you can get? You deserve nothing but the best. In the past years of my life, especially since after I pursued my passion in ’08, I’ve been living every day to the fullest, filled with joy, passion and rigor. It’s an amazing experience that I want you to experience that too.

This is a list of 101 timeless principles I use to live my best life, and I hope they’ll help you to do so too. As you live in alignment with them, you’ll find yourself becoming more conscious, more alive, and more importantly, experiencing life on a whole new level. Be sure to bookmark or even print out this page and refer to it daily to guide you to your best life.

Here are 101 ways to live your life to the fullest:

1. Live every day on a fresh new start. Don’t be held back by what happened yesterday, the day before, the week before, the year before, and so on.
   
2. Be true to who you are. Stop trying to please other people or be someone else. It’s better to be an original version of yourself than an exact duplicate of someone else.
3. Quit complaining. Don’t be like the howling dog, always howling and never doing anything. Stop complaining about your problems and work on them instead.
4. Be proactive. Stop waiting for others around you to do something and take action yourself instead.
5. Rather than think “what if”, think “next time”. Don’t think about things you can’t change (namely what has happened and thoughts of other people) or unhappy things because these are disempowering. Instead focus on the things you can action upon. That’s the most constructive thing you can do in any situation.
6. Focus on WHAT vs. How. Focus on WHAT you want first, before you think about HOW to do it. Anything is possible, as long as you set your mind, heart and soul to it.
7. Create your own opportunities. You can wait for opportunities to drop in life. Or, you can go out there and create your own opportunities. The latter is definite and much more empowering.
8. Live more consciously each day. Stop sleepwalking through life. Your life is something to be experienced, not coasted through.
9. Be committed to your growth. In the Map of Consciousness, there are 17 levels of consciousness – from Shame to Enlightenment. The higher level of consciousness you are in, the richer your life experience. Achieving higher consciousness comes from your commitment to growth.
10. Know your inner self. This means knowing who you are and what you represent. Be clear of your personal identity.
    
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11. Discover your life purpose. Set the mission statement for your life; one that will drive you to life your life to the fullest.
12. Live in alignment with your purpose. What can you start doing immediately that will let you live 100% in alignment with your purpose? How can you live true to your purpose within every context/situation/environment you are in, every second of the day?
13. Set your life commandments. Define your personal commandments to live your best life. What adages and principles do you want to follow in your life?
14. Discover your values. Values are the essence of what makes you, you. Read article #11: Discover Your Values in Personal Excellence Book (Volume 1) on the importance of values, my values and how you can create your own.
15. Hold yourself to the highest conduct. Every one of us have our own set of ethics, principles and moral codes. Live true to them every day. Also, live in full alignment with your purpose (#11), commandments (#13) and values (#14).
16. Design your ideal life. What is your ideal life? Design it. First, assess your life at the moment via the life wheel. Then, ask yourself what it takes to live a 10/10 life (in all 10 areas – career, health, love, social, etc…). What is the life that will make you the best person you can ever be? Set your BHAGs – big, hairy and audacious goals! There are no limits in life – only those you set for yourself!
17. Stop putting life on hold. Are you putting any parts of your life on hold? What is one area of your life you have been putting off/avoiding/denying? Uncover it and start working on it.
18. Create your life handbook. Your life handbook is your life-long personal manual to live your best life – from your mission statement, your values, your long-term goals, short-term goals, personal strengths, blind spots to address, plans, among others. Create your book first then build on from there.
19. Set your goals. After you design your ideal life, set your 5-year, 3-year and 1-year goals. The more specific your goals, the better! Read the 10 principles on how to get winning goals.
    
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20. Take action on your goals and dreams. Create an action plan with your strategy, plan and immediate next steps. ESPER: 7-part Goal Achievement series is a great tool to get you started.
21. Create your bucket list, i.e. things to do before you die. Then, get out to achieve them.
22. Don’t do things for the sake of doing them. Always evaluate what you’re doing and only do it if there is meaning behind them. Don’t be afraid to quit the things that don’t serve your path.
23. Do the things you love, because life is too precious to spend it doing anything else. If you don’t enjoy something, then don’t do it. Spend your time and energy on things that bring you fulfillment and happiness.
24. Discover your passion in life. What sets you on fire? Go out there (and explore inward) to know what you love to do.
25. Make your passion a full-fledged career. Then, start pursuing it. Stop working in a job you are passionless toward. Quit your job when you are ready to do it full-time.
26. Turn your passion into a huge success. Turn your passion into a multi-million dollar business. Better yet, make it a multi-billion dollar one.
27. Learn from criticism. Be open to criticism but don’t be affected by it. Criticism is meant to help you be a better person. Learn from it.
28. Be positive. Is the glass half empty or half full? How about neither? It’s actually all-full – the bottom half is water, the top half is air. It’s all a matter of perception. Take on empowering perceptions, not those that bind you. If you can see the positive sides of every thing, you’ll be able to live a much richer life than others. Purge unnecessary negativity from your life.
    
    
29. Don’t badmouth other people. If there’s anything you don’t like about someone, say it to him/her in the face – otherwise, don’t say it at all. It’s not nice to do that.
30. Be empathetic. If everyone only see life from his/her own perspective, we’ll forever be close-minded and insular. See things from others’ shoes.
31. Be a compassionate person. Show compassion and kindness to everyone around you
32. Develop 100% self-belief. Believe in yourself and your abilities. Remove your limiting beliefs and replace them with empowering ones (In Days 26-27 of Be a Better Me in 30 Days Program, you identify your limiting beliefs and replace them with empowering ones). If you don’t believe in yourself, how can you expect others to believe in you?
33. Let go of unhappy past. This means past grievances, heartbreaks, sadness, disappointments, etc.
34. Forgive those who may have done you wrong in the past. “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and realize it was you.” – Lewis B. Smedes
35. Let go of attachments. Don’t fixate yourself with a certain status, fame, wealth or material possessions. These are impermanent and will ultimately disappear one day when you die. Focus on growing and living life to the fullest instead.
36. Let go of relationships that do not serve you. That means negative people, dishonest people, people who don’t respect you, people are overly critical and relationships that prevent you from growing.
37. Spend more time with people who enable you. Hang out with people who you compatible with, like-minded people, people who are positive, successful, strong achievers and positive for your growth. You are after all the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with.
    
    
38. Build genuine, authentic connections with people around you – strangers, friends, family, colleagues, business partners, customers/clients, etc. Spend more time to know them better and foster stronger connections.
39. Connect with an old friend. There is no end to the number of friends you can have. Reach out to people from the past.
40. Do a kind deed a day. What is something you can do today that will make the world a better place? Go and do it.
41. Help other people who are in need. Voluntarism is one outlet. You can also start with your friends and family.
42. Help people when they least expect it, without reason. You don’t need any reason to help others. Do it because you want to. Share the love with everyone.
43. Go dating (if you’re single).
    
44. Fall in love ♥
45. Review your life. Set a weekly review session to assess how you are doing for your goals and your life. Review your purpose once every 3-6 months too so you know you’re on the right path.
46. Overcome procrastination. Procrastination is a huge waste of your time (and your life). Get rid of it once and for all.
47. 30 minutes a day. Set aside at least 30 minutes every day to work on a quadrant 2 goal that, when you achieve it, will bring about the biggest source of fulfillment and happiness in your life
48. Get out there and make new friends – whether in your workplace, online, friends’ friends, social groups, etc. Read: 10 Tips To Make New Friends
49. Make deeper connections. Beyond making new friends, aim to make deeper connections out of them. Read: How To Have More Best Friends in Life
50. Be your advisor (from the future). Imagine you’re the future you, 5 years later. How would you advise yourself? Write it down. Now, apply them. Check out Future Prediction Exercise article in Personal Excellence Book (Volume 1), which teaches you to predict your future, then learn from it.
51. Write a letter to your future self. Actually, write 3 letters – for yourself in 1, 3 and 5 years. The longer the letters, the better. Envision how you’ll be like in the future. Make each letter a minimum 2 pages long. Now, seal them and put them in a safe place. Set it in your calendar so you’ll know to open them when it’s time. This will inspire you to work your hardest and achieve your maximum results in the time period.
    
    
52. Declutter. Start from your computer, then your table, your room, your bag/wallet, and your home. The more you throw the unwanted and old stuff away, the more room you’re creating for new things to enter.
53. Keep learning. There is something to learn from everything you see, hear and experience. This includes your mistakes and past misshaps (if any). Learn to interpret each event objectively. Focus on what you can learn from it so you can apply them moving forward.
54. Keep developing yourself. Equip yourself with a huge breadth of knowledge. Learn different skills, pick up different hobbies, study different fields.
55. Keep upgrading yourself. Equip yourself with a huge depth of knowledge. While you can usually only level up to 99 in video games, in real life you can level up to infinity. Go for further studies if need be. Develop your skills. Level up. Build your >10,000 hours in each skill.
56. Try new things. What’s something you’d normally not do? Get out of your comfort zone try something different. It can be something simple like taking a new bus route, trying a new food item, picking up a new hobby, or something bigger like studying a different field, picking a new skill, traveling to a country you’ll never visit, etc. You set your own limits.
57. Get yourself out there. This applies for everything. (a) Get out there geographically. Go out, travel and explore the world. Set sail into the sea. Go backpacking by yourself and visit as many countries as possible. Get on a road trip and visit the different places that come out. (B) Get out there situationally. Stop sticking to routines and comfort zones. Try something different. (c) Get out there in life. Stop watching TV and living vicariously through the TV characters. Go and live the life of your dreams.
58. Be the absolute best in what you do. Go for the #1 position in what you do. If you want to spend your time doing something, you might as well be the best in it. Strive for the best – you don’t deserve anything lesser than that.
59. Don’t settle. In the same lines as #58, don’t settle for less. Don’t settle for someone you don’t like as your partner. Don’t settle for a job you don’t like #25). Don’t settle for friends who make you feel like a lesser person (#37). Don’t settle for a weight you are unhappy with. Go for what you really want.
60. Stretch yourself. What are you doing now? How can you achieve more? Set bigger goals. Explore your limits and break them.
61. Embrace new ideas. Don’t mentally limit yourself; Let your mind be a breeding ground for new ideas. Read: 25 Brainstorming Techniques.
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62. Create your inspirational haven. Turn your room into a place you love. Do the same for your work desk. Get rid of things that make you unproductive. Surround it with things that inspire you and trigger you to action. Read more: How To Create An Inspiring Room
63. Behave as your ideal self will. All of us have an ideal vision of who we want to be. How is your ideal self like? How can you start to be that ideal self now?
64. Set your role models in life. With role models, you become much better than you can be by yourself. I personally am inspired by Tyra Banks (for her passion for helping women build their self-esteem and changing notions of beauty), Ivanka Trump (for her success, intellect and beauty), Donald Trump (for his success and drive in life), Oprah (for being who she is), Lady Gaga (for her talent and not being afraid to be different), and many more. Seeing them and what they do reminds me of what I can be and what I can do, so they drive me on to greater heights.
65. Get mentors and/or coaches. There’s no faster way to improve than to have someone work with you on your goals. Not only will they drive you to achieve more for yourself, they’ll also share with you important advice which you can use to create even more success for yourself. Many of my clients approach me to coach them and the net result: they achieve significantly more progress and results in their life than if they had worked alone.
66. Uncover your blind spots. The more you uncover, the more you grow, the better you become.
67. Increase your consciousness. The more conscious you are, the more evolved you become.
68. Ask for feedback. As much as we try to uncover our blind spots(#66), there will be areas we cannot identify. Asking for feedback gives us an additional perspective. Some people to approach will be friends, family, colleagues, boss, or even acquaintances, since they will have no preset bias and can give their feedback objectively. Day 17 of Be a Better Me in 30 Days Program: Get Feedback From Others is about getting feedback from others so as to uncover our blind spots.
69. Generate passive income. Create passive income streams so your income is not tied to the time you spend on your work. Of course you’ll still continue to work, but only because you want to and not because you have to.
70. Help others live their best lives. There is no better way to grow than to help others grow. Ultimately, the world is one. We are all in this together.
71. Get married / Start your family / Have kids!
72. Improve the world. There are many things in the world that need your attention and help. Poverty. Disaster recovery. Illiteracy. Children in need. Depleting rainforests. Animal rescue. Endangered species. How can you do your part?
    
    
73. Spearhead a humanitarian cause/organization you are passionate about.
74. Give more value than you receive. There is so much unspeakable joy that comes from giving. And when you keep giving, you’ll find that you actually receive a lot more in return, in spades.
75. Be big picture focus. You can either set your eyes on the big things or get hung up by the nitty gritty details. The former will help you get a lot more out of life than the latter. Focus on the big rocks in life and put first things first (Quadrant 2 tasks). Practice the 80/20 rule – focus on the 20% things that give you the 80% fulfillment in life.
76. Be clear of your end objective. What is the end goal you seek? Is what you’re doing bringing you there? If not, put it aside. As long as you keep taking on things that meet your end goal, you’ll eventually reach there.
77. Go the 80/20 route. For every goal you have, there are different paths to achieve it. Pick out the 80/20 path, i.e. the most effective path that brings you there the fastest with least amount of effort.
78. Prioritize (80/20 actions). As you embark on the 80/20 path for your goals, focus on the important tasks and cut out the less important ones. That means do the 20% actions that give you the 80% results.
79. Live in the moment. Are your thoughts wandering around all the time? Calm your mind down. Be present. The only time you’re ever living is in this moment. Meditation helps to remove mental clutter.
80. Relish in the little moments. Snuggling under warm covers on a rainy day. Ice cream on a hot day. A kiss with your loved one. Being with your best friend. A walk by the park. The breeze on your face. Quiet, alone time. Watching the sun rise/set. Soak in all these little moments of life. They are what make up your life.
81. Take a break. Being the best also requires you to take breaks when needed. Make sure you rest when needed. Doing so lets you walk the longer mile ahead.
82. Stop wanting things a certain way. I wrote a 3-part series before on the downsides of perfectionism and how to overcome them. Be firm on your end goals (your objective goals) and your ideals, but let go of the fixation that things have to be a certain way. You’ll realize it’s by doing that that you achieve what you want.
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83. Focus on creation. Think about what you can bring to the world, and create that.
84. Don’t criticize or judge others. Respect others for who they are.
85. The only person you can change is yourself. Stop expecting others to behave in a certain way. Rather than demand that others around you change, focus on changing yourself. You’ll be happier and live a more fulfilling life this way.
86. Embrace gratitude. Be grateful for everything you have today, and everything you will get in the future.
87. Express gratitude. Let the people who’ve touched you know of your gratitude toward them. You’ll be surprised what a little act like this can do. If you don’t tell them, they’ll never know.
88. Let loose and have fun. Sing at the top of your lungs. Dance in the rain. Run barefoot and feel the ground underneath your feet. Release of your self-imposed shackles and be free :D.

A successful 2012 Wood Season!

In 1997, my dad purchased 18 acres just north of my parents home in Melby. Every fall since '97, we have been using  the wood off "The 18" to heat the homestead. These past 3 days, my brother and I have assisted Dad in gathering yet another year of firewood. This year I decided to snap a few pictures to share this family tradition that started with that real estate purchase 15 years ago.

Every year we (my siblings and I) looked at it as a chore. The cutting, the splitting, the hauling, the loading and unloading, the stacking.  We  complained, we nagged, we dragged our feet, we did everything to avoid this dreaded task. The last few years have been anything but. In fact, I look forward to it! I enjoy the process as a whole more than ever now!

I don't know if it's because I've spent the last two years in the LA area  with a go-go-go type of lifestyle or if it's just with age, you learn to appreciate things differently. Probably a combination of the two. Either way, it is so refreshing to get out and enjoy the woods these last couple days. Nature offers so much. In between the chainsawing, there's a beautiful silence. There was a couple times I had to walk a distance in the woods a lone and it offered such a beautiful time to take in all that God has given us through nature. The silence reminded me of an important lesson I learned towards the end of this past summer. I was living in California still and a friend from home and I were discussing a topic via Skype. I really wasn't able to add much to the conversation because I needed to think about it. I promised I would think about it and get back to him on my thoughts. It felt like I never fully was able to get back to him on it - I was always trying to find the time and place to think. He on the other hand, who lives in a rural setting and spends quite a bit of time in nature brought some pretty major issues up. He was really able to think it out. How the heck? Where in the world did he find this? It wasn't until my next visit home where I got to visit him and experience his day to day living  that it hit me. I took a walk down an old dirt road near his house and when I got back approaching the driveway, I was amazed at all the thinking that I had just accomplished. There was no distractions. No cars, no other people, no crosswalks, no earbuds. Just nature. It was my thoughts, that old dirt road and God. It was beautiful.

Nearing the end of my walk, I sent him a text along the lines of now understanding where he got his thinking done. I added I thought it was somewhat unfair. I was joking but there was a ton of truth in it too ;)

The past couple days in the woods have reminded me of the peace that nature can give you if you allow it. I appreciate the life in the trees we took and I'm looking forward to planting more in their place. (Note to self: Apply the life of trees to the game of hunting in next blog to explain to some of my anti-hunting friends)

I overheard my dad put it like this, "There is no better day than a day in the woods."

A hidden work out!

Now I know how the Amish can intake 4,000 calories/day and still remain fit!

The work is done. Time to celebrate.

To a successful 2012-2013 wood season!

SaraHHouse365 | I feel those who do not know the outdoors
SaraHHouse365 | Where nature has not yet been rearranged

I feel that those who do not know the outdoors have been cheated. - AZ

June 2012

I was praising my good friend Andrew yesterday on how he is always unselfishly giving to others by taking the time to show them the outdoors. He has a huge heart for people and an even greater passion for nature.
His reply:

"I feel that those
who do not know
the outdoors have been cheated." - Andrew Zickur




SaraHHouse365 | Nature
SaraHHouse365 | Helping Others