Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Lent: Day 1

Yesterday was the Fattest of Tuesdays. Today is Lent: Day 1.

To answer your initial questions--

1) No, I am not Catholic.
2) I have observed Lent about five times in my life and will continue from this point on
2b) because I find it good for the soul to take something out of my life that I tend to rely on or become spoiled by.
3) I am giving up dresses (buying, not wearing) and Target.
4) Last year I gave up Target and saved hundreds of dollars.
5) No, I cannot keep that hundreds of dollars and buy 46 Target dresses when Lent is over.
5b) The money saved will go to paying off some debt and saving for the future.

You need know to a couple of things about me. I. Love. Target. I. Love. Dresses. Subsequently, I love buying dresses at Target and on Target.com. I may or may not have talked to complete strangers in the return lane at the store about how they should get a Target debit card so they, too, can get free shipping and returns on all items...including but not limited to dresses. 

In my defense, I wear dresses to work. I work at a design school that has a Fashion Design Department. Also, I love Ross and House of Stella (in the Cool Springs area in Middle Tennessee); I spread around my dress-buying love. But have you ever scrolled through the clearance dresses on Target.com? Have you checked out the latest guest designer, Prabal Gurung?

Okay--I fully admit I have a problem. I also fully admit that
I. am. spoiled.
No, blessed. Let's use "blessed."

And that's part of this challenge because sometimes I forget this truth. And my seemingly-silly self-denial won't be easy. I mean, Prabal Gurung's dress line just came out this week. I won't get to grab one in clearance in the coming weeks (if they even last that long). And I'm going to miss my Target dates with my mom. And the thrill of the big reveal of wearing a new dress for the first time: I'm going to miss that as well. But though these things bring me happiness, they aren't my sole source. Here's to 46 days of Publix, Kroger, and the same (beautiful...and lots of them, really) dresses.

I. am. blessed.

Here's to 46 days of that.

 Prabal Gurung design--so you know what I'm missing out on 

 got this number at Ross last week--just in the nick of time

a design by Kaitlyn Phillips, O'More College of Design graduate,
and my grandmother, who had beautiful dresses

Target clearance

 I even wear dresses with jeans.

another Target clearance dress

Friday, January 25, 2013

Just Try It On

I am always honored to guest blog for the lovely and talented image consultant, media coach, author, and public speaker Lori Bumgarner. Find my post on fashion here.


Saturday, January 19, 2013

a pictorial post: 26 ways to find joy in the journey




 1) Count your blessings. 

 2) Dance

 3) Play with someone you love. 

 4) Share a meal.

 5) Go on a walk.

 6) Stare at something beautiful. 

 7) Get into nature.

 8) SMILE!

 9) Go shopping with friends. (Also, laugh at grammer mistakes.)

 10) Put on your most comfortable clothes.

 11) Make funny faces.

 12) LAUGH! (Pandora set to your favorite comedian is a great stress-relief.)

 13) Dress up.

 14) Play with your food. (And hope it doesn't play back. Yuck.)

 15) Get some Vitamin D.

 16) RUN.

17) Hug. Snuggle. Yum.

18) Find a good read.

 19) Vent to someone who will listen and love.

 20) Have a cup of tea.

 21) Put on your boots, and go splosh in some muddy puddles. 

 22) Take a nice bath. 

 23) Get dressed up.

 24) Make a new friend.

 25) Build a fort.

26) Go on an adventure.

Secrets to a Happier Life


Happiness comes easily for some. For others, we struggle to find joy. I don't mean we never smile or laugh--I just mean we usually find it easier to fret, find fault, furrow our brows.

At times in my life, happiness has come only when I made a concerted effort to find it. And I never found it in more; I only found it when I made a simple decision: be happy.

Of course, what starts as a simple decision has to be backed up by action. Changes were made, friends were relied upon, some habits were broken, other habits were taken up: sometimes it takes a lot of work, but the busier I am reaching goals, being with friends, and reconstructing areas of my life toward the positive--the less time I have to think about sadness, or lost opportunities, or failures, or frustrations with others.

Amanda Sekulow, founder of GLAM Ministries, encourages me all the time to tackle the areas of my life I need to and can change, and to accept what I cannot. Whenever I need a dose of inspiration to take on a task, I often text Amanda and ask for a lunch date. Hearing someone else say "you can do it" with the added reality of "though it might be difficult" is the perfect prescription.  

"Dover Beach" by Matthew Arnold is one of the best poems for me to read when I am feeling particularly morose. My saying that, and you reading it, may bring a surprise:

...the world, which seems
To lie before us like a land of dreams,
So various, so beautiful, so new,
Hath really neither joy, nor love, nor light,
Nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain;
And we are here as on a darkling plain
Swept with confused alarms of struggle and flight,
Where ignorant armies clash by night. (ll. 30-37)


Jessa, how on earth does something so depressing help you find happiness? Because. I don't want to be like that. 

I don't want to focus my life on thoughts that the world "hath really neither joy, nor love, nor light, nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain" (ll. 33-34). My one life here on this planet is my chance to touch others, to be a light. What a horrible way to live, caught up in my own dismay. What a waste of precious time.

Most of the time, the only thing standing in the way of my happiness is my attitude.

I'm not saying we cannot have a bad day or one of those cry-your-eyes-out afternoons, but overall, we would be a lot wiser to focus on our blesses and spend less time on our own personal "darkling plain," struggling and clashing instead of loving others--and loving ourselves. 

For a pictorial list of ideas on how to focus on happiness, go here. 

Arnold, Matthew. "Dover Beach." 100 Best-Loved Poems. Ed. Philip Smith. Mineola, NY: Dover, 1995. Print.


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Sunday, January 13, 2013

a mentor's lessons, never forgotten

One May morning in 2001, I delivered the Salutatorian speech at my high school graduation. It was in honor of my middle through high school band director, Mr. Daryl Jack. I've known him eighteen years now, and beginning of 2013 brought the end of his life.

When I was contacted by another former field commander (I directed the marching band in 2000.) and requested to salute his casket at the end of his funeral, I did something out of the ordinary for me. Far, far out of the ordinary. But I felt a specific calling--to speak at his funeral. So I was bold and asked the funeral director for permission to do so.

And he said yes.

On January 5, 2013, I sat behind the stage as the funeral began, biting my lip and ignoring reality as I hoped my ability to fight back tears would sustain me once again. But I was feeling vulnerable.  I had almost lost it in the parking lot simply looking at the band room doors. So I prayed.

God. I need to do this. I need to have the strength and peace to deliver these words to honor this man. Please help me not to cry. When I am done, I can sob my face off, but just let me finish.

I kid you not--I immediately felt peace.

But then my throat got an itch.

Okay, God--me again. One more thing. Now please clear this nervous itch so that the words are strong and clear. That's really it this time. Thank you.

And He granted that request as well.

The minute I walked off stage, seeing my mom and older brother sitting with the current band, I began the waves of sobbing, which roared up again when the band (present members as well as graduates from many years before) began to play "Amazing Grace," the same variation with the same saxophone solo I had played nearly thirteen years before.

What do you say when you want to honor someone who touched your life for eighteen years? Who brought passion and wisdom to music, one of your greatest life loves? How can you come up with words that will do justice? You cannot. You don't. You quote his.

And I did.

Below is what I shared last week at the funeral of one of my greatest mentors. I apologize for the lengthy post, but I think reading the life lessons he instilled in me--and hundreds of other band students--will be worth your time. On a final introduction note, I gave Mr. Jack a typed and framed version of the main points from my speech in 2001. Today, I learned that my gift was still in his band office, found by his best friend as he gathered Mr. Jack's belongings to return to his children. I hope Mr. Jack knew that I still live his influence even twelve years after having him as my official teacher.

***   


When I first heard Mr. Jack was seriously ill, I had mixed emotions. I couldn’t concentrate on the sadness for a while, with Christmas break coming to an end and a house full of sick babies. Life can have a way of getting in the way.

But I did begin remembering. I had band with Mr. Jack from 6th-12th grade. That is 7 years with the same teacher: in class, through practice, on band trips. You cannot be that involved in someone’s life without hearts becoming attached—especially when one of those hearts was Mr. Jack’s.

When I graduated in 2001, I gave a speech—in this same room…to some of you—called “All I need to know in life I learned in band.” I found that speech, along with a lot of photos from an imfamous band trip to San Antonio that included seven hours in the airport because of a flight delay. I’d like to share an updated portion of that speech, with some of the lessons I shared that May nearly twelve years ago, and one new one that came to me this week. These are either direct quotes or incredibly close paraphrases from Mr. Jack himself.

1)   Whether you think you can, or think you can’t—you’re right.
·      In high school, I had this as a Post It on my mirror—with the words “think you can’t” crossed out. This morning I put it up on my fridge. Some of you may have seen the Instagram or Facebook post. Our confidence levels affect our performance levels.
·      Mr. Jack gave me confidence.
2)   Practice doesn’t make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect.
·      I know you’ve heard the saying, “practice makes perfect,” but it’s just not true. If you only give something partial attention when you are rehearsing, you aren’t going to perform at 100%.
·      Mentors give us shape, smooth out our roughed up edges, encourage greatness. Mr. Jack—who is still my mentor—taught me how to achieve greatness through diligent practice.
3)   Don’t give up just because you fail.
·      I used to audition for Middle Tennessee Clinic band, and I never made it.  I usually only tried out every other year, because it took that long to get over the defeat—but Mr. Jack kept telling me to go back and try again. Just because you’ve been given no reason to believe you can do something, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take that chance. Mr. Jack believed in me, even when I failed. That faith made me believe in myself.
4)   Remember to breathe.
·      When I would get nervous before a solo or audition, Mr. Jack told me to use more air. So simple, right? Breathe. Life can become chaos—Mr. Jack showed me the importance of remaining calm while giving something my all.
5)   Early’s on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable.
·      I know most of you remember this one. What an important quote! Mr. Jack gave me practical life lessons on punctuality that I still hear in my head every time I’m running late.
6)   And, finally, family is more than your siblings and parents.
·      I can remember the band being singled out over the school intercom by a former principal for moving chairs in the cafeteria. Mr. Jack jokingly told us to stop being so inclusive and kind to one another. When our tables were full, we didn’t turn away a fellow band member. We pulled up a chair.

We’re a band. We’ve laughed together, sweated together, worn the same band jackets and hats as the generations before us, traveled together, had meals together—and today, we grieve together.

Because we are a family who has lost our father.

It’s not wrong to cry today, and it’s not wrong to be glad to see each other—we are coming together again, though, in a way, we never fully left each other. We have been forever united by our mutual love of 8 to 5, heal to toe (which still helps me walk carefully when carrying a full beverage), common time, “Rocky Top,” and, most importantly, of Mr. Jack, who loved us as well and will forever be the man who gave us confidence, taught us about greatness, believed in us, told us to breathe, made us punctual, and was a teacher, friend, and band father we will never forget. 

 I had to stand on the director's podium to reach him. Here is Mr. Jack giving me my senior gift (Duck Tape--which held together my first vehicle and my first saxophone case) and the Patrick S. Gilmore award.

 following his direction as I play my senior solo

incredibly surprised and completely honored by the Patrick S. Gilmore award
Spring 2001

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