This morning my dog, Ollie, made my world a better place - I awoke to find his head resting on my chest and looking at me something like in this picture. It didn't cost him a cent to make me happy and he did it out of unconditional love for me - he was asking nothing in return. Isn't it wonderful - we can make this world a better place without it costing a cent too.

Here are some great ideas to change the world.............

• Write a list of what you are grateful for RIGHT NOW and share with friends.
• Smile! And say hello to 5 strangers.
• Lend an inspiring book that you own
• Choose a small area that you can clear of litter - maybe your desk, a bus shelter or ...?
• Send a thank you note to a person or business helping the world.
• Strike up a conversation with an elderly or young person.
• Leave a snack for an unsuspecting co-worker or friend

 

Here is a simple way to bring about a more beautiful world. There are a number of sites that will donate to worthy causes. Advertisers pay to feature on the sites and the income generated by the site is then donated. On Click to Give you have the opportunity to support children, animals, breast cancer research and homelessness. It is an effortless way to make a difference and there is a cute page that keeps you up to date with how your daily clicks have helped. So far, for example, I have donated 3.5 cups of rice, amongst other things. This site, different to many others, actually gives you points which you can exchange for gifts including pens, notebooks, t-shirts and bags. Whilst I have reservations aabout this idea - surely the money spent on the gifts could also be donated - it may just suit a younger person who is still learning about the simplicity and beauty of giving to others. Please check out the site and if you have any thoughts, positive or negative, about this small way of helping others, I'd love to hear from you.

 

Many years ago we went on a holiday with my in-laws and extended family - a big group of us. We rented a lovely old house in North Wales. My mother-in-law valiantly mastered the AGA while the younger ones explored the rambling old house and discovered the many sheep around the property.

We all had a great time and when Sunday came round some of us decided to go to church. We had a choice of two in the village – the Welsh speaking chapel and the English chapel. Being of Welsh heritage it was tempting for me to choose the chapel that would stir me with beautiful singing and the harmonious lilt of the Welsh language. Instead I chose the option that would mean we could all understand and join in the singing and service.

As we walked into the chapel we found we were the first members of the congregation to arrive. The minister greeted us at the door and as a lady played gently on a small pedal organ we bravely made our way to the front pews. We had to brush away a few cobwebs so we knew we weren’t taking any of the regulars’ favourite pews.

We were still the total congregation when the minister left his ‘greeting’ place and moved to the pulpit, welcomed all visitors (i.e us) to the service and proceeded to announce the first hymn. Our feeble voices didn’t exactly raise the roof but we did our best and at least it was in English!

The service continued with the lady at the organ (later we discovered she was the minister’s wife) reading the Bible passage and taking up the collection, and we listened intently to the sermon before singing once again.

At the end the minister, with tears in his eyes, told us that they prepared and lead a service every week despite the fact that it was often just the two of them in the church. They didn’t want to miss the opportunity of being there for even just one person who may step over the church threshold. This delightful man and his wife were faithful to what they believed was their calling despite not having the benefit of seeing any results.

These dear people are almost certainly gone to glory now and I trust will be receiving their reward for their faithfulness and dedication.

Whatever your beliefs and understanding of this world and life itself, there may come a time when you have to ‘stick to your guns’ - a time when you are so sure you are right even though this may make you feel unsafe, unpopular or unloved. But hold fast to the feelings in your heart and you will triumph – either in this world or the next.

A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.

Josh Billings

 

This photo is of my very disappointed dog. He knows I am going out and he is not! He will miss me but won't hold any grudges. When I return he will nearly turn himself inside out as his tail wags so fast in greeting. Ollie will also answer to "oliver", "oscar" "olliie wollie" "my little caramel dog". He can hear the toaster coming out of the cupboard or biscuits coming out of the packet. He is my best friend now, always and especially when I am eating cake. He won't let anyone touch me but if it is a kiss he wants to join in. His inquisitive nose sniffs out every bag I bring into the house.

We can learn a lot from Ollie and his 'simply beautiful, simple living' thoughts on life:

• Live life in the present tense. This is a good thing.
• If you really believe you’ll get a biscuit, you will.
• Bark at yourself every once in awhile.
• If it makes your tail wag, it is good. If it makes you throw up, it's is bad.
• You don’t always have to bite. Usually barking is enough.
• Sometimes begging works, unattractive as it may seem at the moment.
• Don’t judge.

I often wonder if we will meet our animals again in heaven and when I read this it made me cry:

"The Rainbow Bridge"

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine. Our friends are warm and comfortable. All the animals who had been ill and were old have been restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days gone by. The animals are happy except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had been left behind. They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, his legs carrying him faster and faster. You have been spotted and when you and your special friend meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face, your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life, but never absent from your heart...

...then you cross the Rainbow Bridge together...

- Unknown

 

• Find a box, A4 size is good. Pretty it up to match your decor and sit it next to your phone. Have you noticed how often a bill arrives with the last page almost blank? Or the address page inside a magazine or catalogue is blank on the back. Pop all scrap paper into the box along with every pen and pencil you find as you tidy up. You will never again need to hunt for paper and pencil to write down messages or shopping lists.

• Buy a lemon tree in a pot. It will sit in any small sunny spot.

• Do you have a lot of errands this week? A little simple organisation on a Sunday evening can save you stress, time and money. Write down places you have to go on certain days. Write down places you have to go but not on any particular day – see if you can match them up to make as few journeys as you can.

• This is a ‘biggie’. Trying to save for a house deposit, my son and his wife considered managing on one car. They decided to give it a go, sold one car and put the money in their savings and now carefully consider each journey they have to make in the one car. Both have bikes for short trips. It is working well and the money spent on fares and an occasional taxi easily offsets the amount saved on petrol, insurance and repairs for the car they sacrificed. If you only have one car anyway consider if you really need that.

• Check the temperature of the water heater. Keep it down to about 48C/120F

• Are you a beer drinker – or maybe your partner is? Father’s Day is coming – what about a homebrew kit?

• The warmer weather will soon be with us - plant herbs ready for your simply beautiful salads.

• An oldie but goodie! Trawl your local charity shops this week – they are trying to sell all their winter stock so plenty of bargains to be had.

I have seen the following a number of times on the internet and thought it worth sharing here.........

According to stats compiled by Oberlin College, if everyone did this one simple thing, it could keep 250 million pounds of recyclables out of the waste stream.

Stop, right now -- and go clean out your car.

Just three minutes is all you need to properly dispose of all the wrappers, soda cans and plastic water bottles that are tumbling around in your floorboard.

I know it sounds like a small thing, but wouldn’t you normally handle this nuisance chore while you’re filling up your car or stopping at a convenience store for a cold drink? In the absence of a proper recycling bin, where does all that trash end up?

Get it, now?

By thoughtfully disposing of these recyclable items, you’ll keep them out of our already clogged landfills.

Three minutes is all you need to make a difference.

Isn’t the planet worth three minutes of your time?

The Tyger

William Blake

Tyger! Tyger! burning bright,

In the forests of the night,

What immortal hand or eye

Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

In what distant deeps or skies

Burnt the fire in thine eyes?

On what wings dare he aspire?

What the hand dare seize the fire?

And what shoulder, and what art?

Could twist the sinews of thy heart?

And when thy heart began to beat,

What dread hand, and what dread feet?

What the hammer? What the chain?

In what furnace was thy brain?

What the anvil? What dread grasp

Dare its deadly terrors clasp?

When the stars threw down their spears,

And watered heaven with their tears,

Did he smile his work to see?

Did he who made the Lamb, make thee?

Tyger! Tyger! burning bright,

In the forests of the night,

What immortal hand or eye

Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?

At one time I managed a small charity shop for a major aid organization. Many kind and generous people donated quality goods to sell and others became regular shoppers. Unfortunately only 50% of donations were saleable and it shocked me that people would use us as a dumping ground for their rubbish – we received old thongs (flip flops), torn and dirty clothes, headless dolls, single shoes and worse. Op shops have to pay thousands of dollars paying for disposal of these useless items.

What has concerned me more is my recent reading about the damage that can be done by well meaning donations of goods to third world countries. There is the potential to ruin the local economy. Flooding the market with free goods could bankrupt the people who already sell them, destroying the villages’ ability to be industrious and productive.

Donating goods often appeals to people who wouldn’t normally give to charity and feels a more practical and immediate response to those in need. But if we think through some of the ramifications we can see how money is almost always a better option.

Far too many examples of inappropriate donations came from the tsunami. Winter hats, coats, and gloves to southern Thailand and canned pork and skimpy clothing donated to Muslim communities. After the tsunami, a group of students shipped donated school supplies to Thailand. The person picking them up paid more in clearing customs and shipping them to the affected area than he would have if he’d bought them from the local marketplace. Purchasing goods locally puts money into the economy. Thousands of people donated clothing. So many clothes were donated to India that truckloads of them were just dumped alongside the road. They became a choking hazard for the local cattle and government staff had to be diverted from the recovery effort to dispose of the donations. After disasters baby formula mixed with contaminated water can lead to severe diarrhoea and potentially death due to dehydration.

However all is not lost. Alive and Kicking is an organisation that offers a ‘buy one, get one free’ option that addresses all these criteria for donated goods. The footballs they sell and give to local communities in Africa are made locally by people receiving a fair wage. They are made of local materials suitable for local conditions. The website offers these guidelines:

1. Ensure there is a legitimate need, that cannot be met by the local economy, for any products being donated in kind

2. Seek guidance from local people to ensure products are designed to fit local needs

3. Carefully plan to whom and how products are donated to avoid creating unrealistic expectations

4. Produce or source the products under fair wage conditions, in the region to be assisted, to ensure both the bought and given gifts have an economic impact on the area

5. Where possible, ensure the materials and component parts for the gifts are also sourced from local producers

I will certainly be thinking carefully about my choices when making donations in future.

• Always pray.

• Be kind.

• Count your blessings.

• Dream.

• Express thanks.

• Forgive.

• Give freely.

• Harm no one.

• Imagine more.

• Jettison anger.

• Keep confidences.

• Love truly.

• Master something.

• Nurture hope.

• Open your mind.

• Pack lightly.

• Quell rumors.

• Reveal your heart.

• Seek wisdom.

• Touch hearts.

• Understand.

• Value truth.

• Win graciously.

• Xeriscape.

• Yearn for peace.

• Zealously support a worthy cause.

Sometimes a product comes along that is so simple that you wonder why no-one has produced it before. The Hughie sink is simple and sensible. I recently purchased a silver coloured one to sit in my kitchen sink. It catches the water that gets tipped out when someone drinks only half a glass of water, the water used to rinse a piece of fruit or clean vegetables, the cold water usually wasted when you run the tap to get warm water and so on. For a good value cost of $25 I could choose from a selection of lovely colours but although tempted by pinks and blues I decided to buy the silver to blend in with my kitchen stainless steel sink. The difference between this and a plain bowl is in the design - a plug and drain to allow watering the garden, a pouring spout and lockable handles for easy transport.

Now I have one Hughie sink I want more! I see the potential to save even more water if I have one in the shower and another in the laundry sink. They are great gifts for the gardeners and campers in your life. Hughie Products also offer charity fundraising options - a great alternative to chocolate drives!

Why is this called a hughie sink? It is in memory of Hughie Alexander who battled the elements as a dairy farmer for 60 years. What a simply beautiful tribute!

I wear black underwear! I know you didn’t really need to know that! I made a decision to keep to one colour and style years ago when I purchased the most comfy, attractive and easy to launder pair of knickers in a major retail store. Every time I travel overseas my pants are disposed of day by day instead of washing them, leaving room for more overseas goodies! On my return I then buy a new dozen pairs to keep me going until I travel again. It is a routine that works well. I remain comfortable, don’t waste money buying uncomfortable undies which I can’t wear and don’t waste time trying to match up with other garments.

You may think this is too (excuse the pun) anal. I call it simple living. I was inspired many years ago by the story of a lady missionary who took this idea even further. She found a simple shift style cotton dress which suited her life in a hot African country where she lived and worked amongst villagers. She looked particularly beautiful in blue so she purchased half a dozen identical dresses in her favourite shade of blue. Her choice allowed her the simplicity of going to bed each night not wasting thinking time wondering what to wear the next day.

When I was in Vanuatu, I loved the bright colourful dresses the Ni-Vanuatu ladies wore. They are styled such that whatever your size or shape you look pretty and feminine. You just pop it on in the morning and look great all day. No need to concern yourself about matching accessories.

In the beginning, people of Vanuatu dressed up very scantily. Women covered their lower half of the body while keeping their breasts bare. Men in Vanuatu cover the lower part of their body with pandanus. The arrival of the Presbyterian missionaries in the early 19th century in Vanuatu introduced their own sense of fashion and modesty.

The Presbyterians asked the people to dress up conservatively and insisted that women must cover up their bodies. Since then, the preferred costume for Vanuatu women has been the multi-colored floral dress, which is known as ‘Mother Hubbard’ or ‘Island Dress’.

The Island Dress provides a sense of identity, as it was the combination of national costume and every daywear. “Your color is colorful. It makes a man happy and laughs a little bit. It swings around everywhere, my island dress.” is the Island Dress song that every woman of Vanuatu knows by heart.

Well that week went quickly! Monday again and time for more sustainable living ideas to consider this week:

1. Shop at a Farmer’s Market. Strawberries are especially lovely at the moment – big and juicy. www.farmersmarkets.org.au
2. Put a jar or unused moneybox in the laundry. It is amazing how many coins drop out of pockets!
3. If you are at all interested in the environment you probably already have ‘green’ shopping bags. But do you remember to take them shopping? Put a compact folding bag in your handbag today. Check there is a good supply in the boot of each car in the household, some in your bike pannier and any other mode of transport you use. If this stretches your supply there are many charity organizations that sell environmentally friendly bags.
4. Cancel Magazine Subscriptions. It is easy to get tempted by ‘free’ offers to win you over to a magazine subscription. Review those magazines you subscribe to – do you eagerly anticipate the next issue? If so then it is giving you joy. Do you just flick through or even leave the magazine unused? Are you disappointed with many of the issues? Then cancel and just buy the issues that interest you from the newsagent. Better yet, read at the library and photocopy articles you wish to keep.
5. Consider digging up part/all of your lawn and replace with vegetables.
6. Remember those yummy strawberries I spoke of? Hunt out a recipe for strawberry jam and make the most of their beauty right now by storing away some home-made jam.
7. Minimise power useage. With Spring nearly here, try to cut down on your heating – wrap a throw round you when you relax in the evening and open windows and doors to let the August winds blow fresh air through your house.

It is a week since I added a blog. During this time I have been reminded that 'things are not always what they seem'. Briefly - I went to the doctor with a suspected heart problem to find that my heart was in perfect condition for my age. My thyroid, however, wasn't. Recent problems of forgetfulness, confusion, clumsiness and weight that couldn't be shifted despite a healthy lifestyle were not due to old age, altzheimers or not being vigilant enough with my diet but due to the interestingly named 'Hashimoto's Disease'. What a relief to get this diagnosis and how exciting to know that with modern medication, I shall soon be able to get my figure back and remember my kids names or what I had gone to the shops for.

It made me realise that every time I interact with someone, things may not be what they seem. The always grumpy person in the post office, the snappy bus driver, the obese person walking by who we just can't resist turning round to look at and the child who appears a brat - all may and probably do have issues in their lives. The grumpy person may be in chronic pain, the snappy person may have a difficult problem to work through, the obese person may have health issues and the child could come from a dysfunctional home. I am a 'smiler' and a people person. I often speak with and smile at people I connect with in town. Sometimes people look at me as if I am a little bit strange (if only they knew - giggle!) or they do not respond in the way I expect. But I do not know how their day, week, year, life is really going. We all say 'fine' when we are greeted with 'Hi, how are you'. If we gave true answers we would all be in constant conversation relating our worries, pains, irritations and feelings about the day.

Because of my experiences this week I am going to make sure I look beyond the faces of people I meet.

How did you do last week? Are you up for another 7 ideas to contribute to a more sustainable world? Will you join us in making our world simply beautiful?

Ideas for this week:

1. Buy a mushroom kit - grow your own mushrooms.
2. Keep needle and thread near the iron - repair rather than re-buy.
3. Make soup with leftover vegetables the day before you do your next shop - chop all together, add 1 or 2 stockcubes and seasoning. Add water and boil until tender. Blend until a chunky thick consistency.
4. Line dry laundry - good for the environment, your clothes and your pocket. Electric dryers are hugely expensive to run. Even if you line dry and finish off in the dryer you will save money
5. Find something to re-purpose - there is very likely something in your cupboards that is either not being used or no longer suitable for its original purpose. Blah to Tada is one of my favourite re-purposing blogs. If you make something you can give as a gift or use instead of buying new, even better.
6. Organic/natural food - can you replace one food item on your shopping list with an organic, natural or local alternative
7. Find an opportunity to car pool with someone - going shopping? Find a car-share buddy. Going to a meeting? Who else is going - perhaps you can travel together?

Be Creative! Have Fun!

“Sunday is the golden clasp that binds together the volume of the week”

 

Re- this re- that, there is no end to the re-somethings we are called to do in our society today. All very noble. Re- purposing is one of my favourite because you end up with something unique, something that your creativity has produced. Go into any op shop and you will find a myriad of re-purposeable items. As it is currently the end of a season, the op shops are desperate to get rid of winter clothes rather than have to store them till next year, so they are even cheaper than usual. A woollen or fake fur coat, when cut up, would make several teddy bears or soft cuddly toys. Drab winter dresses and coats often have gorgeous buttons. Padded table mats turn into fabric purses and pouches for make-up, spectacles or lingerie. Large art or children's books often have beautiful A4 or bigger size pictures/prints which can be framed. Oh yes and those frames! Look at this great idea:

Simply paint a gorgeous old frame and put a sheet of coloured paper or pretty fabric under the glass to make a Stunning Dresser Tray.

But you don't even have to shop for items to re-purpose. When I visited a friend I was impressed by her 'new' display cabinet with a modern all white display. I was astounded when she told me how she put the look together with bits and pieces from her home and a pot of white paint.

So what do you have around your home that can become a piece of art or beautiful useful item? What about a piece of old carpet neatly fitted into the base of your saucepan cupboard to stop the clanging and crashing? Or an empty plastic squeezy sauce bottle well cleaned and filled with pancake mix to make neat even sized pancakes? And what about this for the ultimate in re-purposing?

 

Having some of my 'loans' paid back from KIVA I decided it was time to choose another person to loan $25. Whilst looking through the current list of people in countries such as Peru, Indonesia, Turkmenistan and Mali, all asking for small loans to either keep their small cottage industries going or support their families and communities in some way I came across Kheng Roeurn from Cambodia. Roeurn is a 35-year-old village woman who has had a job as a rice farmer since she was single. In addition, she currently sells fresh fish that she gets from her wholesale supplier and from fishermen. She runs her business in the market and earns approximately $3 a day. Her husband frequently works in the farm fields alongside her. I felt that today my $25 should go to her. And when I checked in again this evening I was pleased to see that 'friends I have never met' joined with me in supporting Rouern. So thank you Roshini, Christopher, Shellie, Catherine, Michael, Mihir, Pam and John all from USA; Tyri, Stine and Nicolai from Norway and the Speaker's Spotlight in Canada for giving dignity and financial support to someone who works hard to survive and support her family.

 

If I am asked if I am rich, my usual reply is 'not with money but with friends and family I do feel rich'. Imagine my surprise then to discover that I am indeed financially rich - in fact, together with my husband, I am in the top 0.95% richest people in the world. Checkout how rich you are on the Global Rich List 

I received a thank you letter from Melkie, one of my sponsored children. He lives in Indonesia and it was his birthday recently. He told me what he bought with the birthday money I sent him. With the meagre sum of $25 Melkie is now able to have a new school uniform, school shoes, church clothes, a chicken, pencils and school books and a snack (I hope the snack was a little treat for him). It takes so little to enrich another person's life. And it comes right back at you because Melkie and Roeurn have both put smiles on my face today.

The frog does not drink up the pond in which he lives

Native American Proverb

As a late winter cold snap blows its way across Eastern Australia, it may be a good time to again mention one of my favourite charities - Kogo. Knit One Give One is based in Victoria and collects and distributes warm hand knitted garments to those in need. I try to have a parcel of beanies to send off at the beginning of winter but winter is a good time to snuggle in and knit more.....

Here is an excerpt from their recent newsletter...

"I want to share with you some of the feedback that I get from the organisations that we supply:

From one of the women's refuges: "On receiving your boxes of scarves, beanies, booties and jumpers - it was overwhelming, the items are just absolutely beautiful and just hearing the "thankyous" and "Oh aren't they beautiful" of the women was lovely. There are no words to say but thank you so very much"

From Anglicare Victoria Mission House: "What a joy to be able to pass on such beautiful things to needy mums and newborns"

From Uniting Care Harrison: "Please accept our sincere gratitude - the time, effort, skill, care and thougtfulness of all volunteer knitters and coordinators is greatly appreciated"

From Ozanam Community Centre: "As you may be aware we are a drop-in centre in North Melbourne for Homeless and marginalized clients. Given that many of our clients sleep rough, the scarves and beanies are fantastic in this cold Melbourne weather"

From Community Information Glen Eira: "As the winter chill begins to bite kogo comes to the rescue once again"

From Emma who volunteers with the "Rosie's" foodbus: "The recipients of kogo items were overwhelmed that people in the community had spent their own money, handknitted scarves and beanies and then given away these NEW garments to complete strangers just because they care about those who are less fortunate"

If you can find it in your heart to knit and give away even just one scarf, baby jacket or beanie, know that someone less fortunate will use and appreciate it very much

 

Royal Flush 

Unfortunately I am not in the market for one of these but I wanted to share this gem of an idea. Washing your hands and letting the water that you use flow through to ultimately flush the toilet seems brilliant. Sometimes the most simple or obvious ideas get passed over in favour of complicated engineering, but this is............

Simply Beautiful, Simply Living at its Best!

Everyone is talking about it - global warming, caring for the environment, sharing resources, treading lightly on the planet. It is a subject close to my heart. Do you feel it is all too hard to change habits of a lifetime? Sustainable habits are so easy to achieve. I challenge you over the next week to choose one of these challenges each day and keep it going all week. At the end of the week, try another week and before you know it, you will have new sustainable habits in place. I will add other ideas in weeks to come.

1. Cook dinner from scratch rather than buy packet mixes or ready prepared meals.
2. Washing Day - wash in cold water.
3. Use a timer in the shower - shower for 3 minutes only.
4. Join Freecycle -  www.ozrecycle.com and list something in your home that you no longer need.
5. Set up a compost bin or worm farm - put the kids in charge!
6. Make a set of re-useable cloth table napkins. Use these instead of buying throwaway paper serviettes.
7. Bake a loaf of bread.