Conservative

con·serv·a·tive   adjective  1. holding to traditional attitudes and values and cautious  about change or innovation, typically in relation to politics or religion. 

Keywords: Tradition, values, cautious or cautions... "typically" in relation to politics or religion. And what's wrong with tradition or values? That old saying "if it's not broke, don't fix it" comes to mind. 

Typically, tradition, if we take a long hard look at it, works and doesn't need to be changed or fixed. A tradition is formed because the method in which something is done, is what works best. Something as simple as a recipe becomes tradition because that specific recipe creates the best result. 

Why change it if its the best possible way to make whatever it is that needs to be made? Traditions are carried forth from generation to generation and in most cases deviation from these traditions are unheard of.

And why? 

Because traditions hold truth and protect against most failures. Traditions are a mostly guaranteed success so they're held with great value. Values hold everyone to a specific standard, and well, lets just be honest, people don't like standards. 

People want to set their own standards and to hell with anyone who doesn't agree, right? Think about it... if everyone sets their own standard, there is no value. Values aren't just how we determine a course of action.  

Values aren't just ways to set boundaries so we don't lose sight of the course of action. Values are just what the word says. "Value"  There is a set value for everything from money to our thoughts to our words to our actions. Setting a specific value on your course in life gives value to your being and to those you encounter along the way. 

Imagine if there was no value in a hello or a helping hand, or in a particular moment of tough decision making. Imagine if there was no set standard. If values were non-existent would there be an expectation for men to act as gentleman or a women to behave like good young ladies? Would there be manners to teach our children such as "Yes Ma'am, Yes Sir, Please, Excuse me, and Thank you"? 

Would there be a kindness between people such as one opening a door for another, offering a seat when there seems there are no more seats available, letting someone go ahead of you in the grocery line? Values set a very real and very much needed standard. Cautious or Cautions... is it not right to be cautious? 

Should we all just throw caution to the wind, do and say and act as we please with no regard for others or outcomes? Is not necessary to consider all consequences before making decisions, spewing words, or participating in certain actions? Caution gives everyone the opportunity to pause. 

Taking time to pause could have an incredible and invaluable benefit on everything one does. Today there is very little time to pause. For everyone, from stay at home moms to high powered business executives, time to pause has become a thing of a long ago past. 

It's an old tradition that used to carry much value, and now it seems as though its the most unachievable, and the most forgotten course of action. 

There is a sense of urgency that has taken over our day to day processes. 

Whether it's returning a phone call or a text message, accepting an invitation to a dinner, or deciding whether or not to invest in the market or join an activist group, there is an unbearable amount of pressure to hurry up and make a decision. Evident on a current TV show, where we see people have invested their money, time, energy, hearts and souls into a product or brand they created to help others. 

They present this creation to a wealthy panel who will pick it apart and then offer that person a specific opportunity but the catch is "take it or leave it, with no time to pause". Without reflection, without thought, without taking time to pause, decisions are made and regrets ensue. Traditions carry value and give us a reason to be cautious. 

Being conservative in actions, words, decisions mean taking time to reflect, weigh the outcome and give consideration to methods which have carried through the years and proven to be most effective. Being conservative, whether it's in how much you salt your food at dinner or who you choose to follow politically, isn't about disagreeing, judgment, or placing oneself on a higher pedestal than another. 

It's about reverent respect for the past standards which were created and set, so that future decisions, actions, choices and so much more could create more positive outcomes. 

It's the ability to absorb and process requests, new ideas, mistakes and negativity in effort to achieve and provide answers, solutions, and positivity. In reality this is just scraping the surface of what conservationism means. It's a portion of the basis for how I choose to live, act, think... it's a foundation for many like me. 

The building blocks behind being conservative stack taller and hold more weight through tradition, values, and caution, but without these how can anyone really decide what route to take in all the different circumstances of life?  

It is a comfort to know a foundation was created for methods and creations that have come and gone, holding true for the methods and creations of the present, and for those yet to come. 

Give tradition consideration in your endeavors, determine the values needed to give it meaning, and cautiously reflect before making a final decision. 

This is the perspective of a conservative... me. 

I will rejoice in it!

Have you ever heard that phrase "today is the day the Lord has made and I will be glad and rejoice in it."? It’s actually a scripture from the bible, Psalm 118:24. It's an encouragement in just 17 words. 

I find myself saying it on the pretty days like today. 

The sun is shining, the air is crisp, clothes are on to wash, the house is.... well... it's not clean. I haven't even begun that fun little task, but none-the-less it's a pretty great day so far. I know for some of you your day may have started with a little less enthusiasm, but that's ok... it's not over yet. 

Check this out!!

There's a day time talk show that ends with these words "take a little time to enjoy the view". While I most definitely am NOT a fan of this show, sometimes I find myself watching because after all it is important to see the different views around us. 

And just how many views are there? Well, numbers really aren't my forte so I'll leave the counting and totaling to someone more qualified, but I will share with you one of my views. 

And here it is: My visual view is of my backyard. Two dogs, one yellow and short haired, one gray and long haired. They're running and barking, at what I have no idea. 

The leaves all over the ground are brown and look quite crunchy. The grass is yellow. Its taller in some places and shorter in other.

Cure for Stinky Dogs, Guaranteed!

 A question of, to grow or not to grow, seems to the be the general theme. My rose bushes are hanging onto every bit of the sunshine they can absorb and its easy to see them stretching out towards the warmth. 

The sun cascades through the trees hitting the ground in a sort of calico pattern revealing some of the winters beauties while the trees shade the not so beautiful.

click pic

My bird feeders are empty but nevertheless the eastern blue birds are back for another season of nesting. They know I'll have their feeders full in time. 

The bird bath fell over during winds from a recent storm; Ill have to prepare it in time for our feathered visitors as well. 

Winter takes its toll no matter how aggressively cold it is or isn't. Just my backyard can tell you it's desire for spring to return. 

As I look around my house, I wonder if winter has hit inside as well. Ha! 

Some days it's super easy to get things tidied up and sparkling but today I look around and think, "where did all this dust come from, with splatters of dog hair swirled in it?"

Four different pairs of shoes tucked under end tables, with socks stuff inside, books and notebooks sit on my dust ridden coffee table, and my coffee cup on another table. 

There's plenty that needs spring cleaning inside just like outside. These signs of life, inside and out, are something I will rejoice in! 

There is life in my home creating messes and leaving imprints of happiness and fullness. 

Get organized with these!

And there is life outside, in my own backyard, building and growing and holding on for another day for which to rejoice! 

This is a simple view from me to you today. Take a little time to look around and enjoy the view. 

**LUXURY HAIRCARE**

Truth in a dramatic post: WARNING

I'm obviously not the only mother battling her strong willed daughter who seems to be a replication of herself.

I realize these battles are the growing pains of not only the child emerging from yet another womb into the new and overwhelming world of adulthood but of the mother giving birth, with birthing pains consisting of the tearing of a bond and the tug and pull of fear, tough love, hovering protection, and arms length rejection.

Standing by watching mistakes being made, the mistakes you could have prevented had only a syllable of advice been received.

The hurt and disappointment a mom feels isn't curable with a glass of wine or a hot bath though both of these are my go-to band-aids when she and I have yet another falling out.

My favorite bath bombs here!  

There isn't anything anyone could do, except her. If she'd just realize that I'm her mom and I've always been the one who's protected her from hurt and failure and disappointment because all of her life I've seen what she couldn't, and immediately have taken the necessary measures to protect her.

I've made all the decisions for her that would benefit her, not harm her. I've put all of her needs first and made every effort to ensure that her life was full and happy and memorable.

Her decisions to blatantly ignore any suggestions, advice, voice of concern, expression of fear for her choices hits like a punch from Mike Tyson straight in the gut.

When you need some comfort, Chocolate!

Her decision to take the advice of everyone else around her, lean on the shoulders of those whom only have a desire to maintain a friendship by telling her what she wants to hear instead of the truth is like being bitch slapped across both cheeks.

When she tells you what you have to say doesn't matter because she's going to do things her way whether it's the right way or not, because she wants to learn for herself, feels the same as vomiting so violently that your airway becomes blocked and another gut muscle wrenches in a horrid attempt to puke but you can't inhale or you'll asphyxiate.

Yeah it's just like that.

This is the battle that everyone says will pass in a couple of years and she'll wake up one day realizing that I was right all along, she'll come running into my arms and a relationship will emerge new and shiny. Oh how I crave that day.

I don't want any accolades for being right or wrong or whatever.... I just want my daughter back.

The one who trusted me.

The one who knew and held onto the truth that I'd always have her back, protect her, guide her in her best interest, the one who believed that I was her safe place, the safest place on earth away from all the hurt and disappointment the world has to so graciously offer.

Unrealistic you say?

Well I'll admit I agree, but as a mom its what I hold tightly. 

I dream in technicolor for my children.

My rose colored glass sometimes clear up and I see the bigger picture, tweak my decision making, and shift gears but for only whats in the best interest of my children.

Rose Colored Glasses, click here!  

Growing pains, people call it.

They say its a part of mother's learning to let go, to let her children learn to grow up. Some say its repayment for the hell we may have put our parents through at the same point in our young lives.

I don't know what it is except excruciating.

Its a constant whiplash of emotions. Inside you're desperate to see and talk to this human being you've dedicated your entire life to. You're desperate to be chosen over the others that have infiltrated and filled the spot you used to occupy in their life.

Being removed from that place in your child's heart is like having a skin cancer removed with no anesthetic. And watching someone else fill that spot knowing they will never fill that place like you have and can is like having a root canal in every single tooth in your mouth without being numbed.

Its an exhausting existence this back and forth battle of pure desperation. She needs you and you see it in her eyes but her pride holds her back and her genetic disposition of stubbornness builds a wall of resentment and discouragement. For both of you. I don't know why it has to be this way.

I hope and pray for the answer.

Don't know what to pray? Here's some help!  

The right words to fix whats broken, to reach that place deep down that has grown cold and gone dormant between the two of us.

And just when you think there's progress and you think you're seeing the sunrise on the horizon of these dark days, suddenly like a vapor it disappears.

You're left out in the cold wondering which way is up and how soon you'll see a glimpse of hope again.

Does this really have to last years? Does it have to take so much time for the birthing pains and growing pains to subside and the new relationship emerge?

I miss her. I miss her so very much.

If only she could see it and know it and feel it. This black hole in my life where she's torn herself away, then may be she'd come back and fill that void again. Nothing else will do it. Nothing else could.

Nothing else should.

**LUXURY HAIRCARE**