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Tag Archives: New Year

Counting My Blessings: Day 8

31 Monday Dec 2018

Posted by RosieJoseph in Friends, People, Reflections, Simple things, The continuing adventure

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Blessings, count your blessings, Cyber friends, Family, friendships, Inspiration, Integrity, New Year, Old friends, Reflections, Sisters, Small things count, T.S. Elliott

“Friendship arises out of mere Companionship when two or more of the companions discover that they have in common some insight or interest or even taste which the others do not share and which, till that moment, each believed to be his own unique treasure (or burden). The typical expression of opening Friendship would be something like, “What? You too? I thought I was the only one.” 
… It is when two such persons discover one another, when, whether with immense difficulties and semi-articulate fumblings or with what would seem to us amazing and elliptical speed, they share their vision – it is then that Friendship is born. And instantly they stand together in an immense solitude.” 
― C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves

We have been taught some hard lessons, after coming here to live in France; but after all isn’t that why you go an adventure, to learn?

Over the past month I have been taught the lesson of integrity. I have written before about empathy and kindness and conscientiousness  but for me I have never thought that you could have too much integrity; after all isn’t it true that if everyone had integrity most of the ‘ills’ in the world would go?

Can you have too much Kindness, Empathy, or Conscientiousness?

But, sadly,  I have come to realise that I have too much integrity, and that I need to start to put myself first with some people, and listen to my gut when it tells me to. Despite  that this lesson contributes to  my blessing today: Friendship – real friendship that I have only come to realise I have because of the lesson I have been taught about integrity! Life moves in mysterious ways doesn’t it?

So my small blesssing of friendship, whether it be with friends that you have made along the way in life, or friends from within your family, is about the people who want nothing from you but  support when they need it, and who offer you support all the way.

I have good friends, not least of them my husband; and I have good friends who have stayed with us on this adventure and supported us in every way. Over this last year we have also become part of a group of like-minded people who just want to help each other; none of the normal back stabbing that goes on; but have simply been there for us, offering work, finding Rich work, and inviting us into their fold; just listening when you needed them to. That is a blessing, and this year seems to be the year when we have finally found like-minded real people with no agenda. It has been a hard slog to get here; but to quote T.S Elliott we have found people where this has happened when we have talked to them:

“What? You too? I thought I was the only one.” 

To see my husband come home from work every day and giggle about his day has been a blessing; and it is these people who have enabled that. Here they all are at their Christmas ‘do’ and you can see the camaraderie from the picture.

 We have been to countless gatherings over this season, gatherings where people would ‘give you the top brick off the chimney’, and we have been blessed for that. Perhaps that has been the gift of the season: For us to meet people like this; because we made two new friends on Saturday that serendipity had stepped in and sent our way. I truly felt that moment of ‘what you too?’ with them.

There have also been my cyber community of friends, those who share each other’s posts because they think they are so good others should read them; those who send small words of comfort, even though I have never actually met them – I know that to have you in my life I am blessed.

Then let us not forget the old friends, some who have come back on the scene only recently who need me now as they were there for me, and I will be there.

Our French friends who have embraced us inti their lives, words cannot begin to describe their kindness.

Then there are the ones with whom we had great fun this summer, and laughed every day, nearly all day.

But this is my final friendship blessing:-My Sister, who I have come to realise (finally) truly only wants the best for me; and tries so hard to keep to the promise she made. I know that now, and I will never forget that again.

We can’t let the past dictate our present and future, we have to see what we have now, because that is the only moment.

So this is my blessing lets raise a toast on this New Years Eve to real friends, new and old.

Moisy

It’s New Year folks a time for reflection, please share this thread and let’s get everyone counting their blessings.

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And so the New Year is here with premonitions, omen’s and belief.

05 Friday Jan 2018

Posted by RosieJoseph in Reflections, The continuing adventure

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Big socks, blogs, Book, buds, furry friends, Greek Mythology, hamster wheel, LIfe, Maire, Moira, Mold, Mould, New Year, premonition, publishing, Reflections, research, serendipity, springtime, The Fates, writing

I always love this time of year. It is something New, in fact the biggest new thing we will get this year, a New Year!!!  A time to reflect, and consider a way forward, perhaps a new way forward, an opportunity to change your life in fact. The opportunity is always there if you want it.

I started this post over two days ago, but just got caught up in other things, mainly some research for my book;  because, although it is written, I thought I would read some blogs about the topic I have written about. Other people’s stories that are similar to my own. But you see my book is about ‘our’ story, it is not just ‘my’ story, and as I have researched I can only find blogs on the singular and not the plural perspective; and I realised that there is, still, nothing out there like ‘our story.’

What does this have to do with the New Year? This is the year that I am going to make change, I AM going to publish my work, and I AM going to help others with regard to the topic of my book, and I AM going to make change for Rich and I.

I have had a strong premonition, picture really, in my head of our house with a new front door (sadly I cannot save the one we have, she is too far gone and is now on ‘death row’.)

BLUE STARS

It will be a double glazed UPVC because, do you know what? I have come to realise that sometimes we just have to be realistic with regard to what we need to live out here; especially when living on the pinnacle of a hill with the wind and the rain lashing our poor house at every turn. (It has been a wet winter, so we have a very mouldy house!)

I also have a strong picture of Rich and I being in a better position by the end of the year, I don’t know why but it really is so strong that I am going to go with it.

For me there have been a few omens:

The New Year literally blew in and blew the other one right out  But the tarp on the roof held firm and despite a small leak over Christmas (it is what it is!) there were no leaks no matter how hard the wind blew.

I took the puppies for a walk in the hooley because I love the way the wind seems to blow all of the cobwebs from your brain, and I looked around at all the shoots and the beautiful green hills, and I thought let it blow, just let it blow because it is all part of nature and I love being surrounded by it at every turn.

I noticed that Spring is  on it’s way, the fields are already green and there are shoots appearing on my clematis, even though I planned to cut them back hard in January; I still need to do that!  There are catkins are on the trees,  and the little fluffy boots on my willow tree are starting to come through. Another reminder that things continue on whether we want them to or not, and we just have to go with the flow.

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But it has also reminded me that life is passing so quickly, we are five days into the year now! And I need to stop pontificating and just do it, make some slight changes to my book and send it to some more publishers.

In addition I picked up a couple of other blogs that are about the same topic as my book, it was as if they were sent to me to help me realise that I really do need to get my book out there. My heart goes out to the people who are struggling as I was.

And then, today, a weird thing happened: long ago I signed up to a dictionary site and they had sent me the meaning of my name! It was the word of the day. How weird is that?

Now I always thought that my name, Moira,  was a Celtic name, because my dad was Irish, and I believed that it came from Maire, which means Mary, and also drop of the sea.

But today I learnt that it actually derives from Greece and is, in fact, another name for ‘The Fates’, the white robed figures in Greek mythology that represent Destiny. Most people who read my blog will know that I do believe in fate, that someone else is doing the driving where life is concerned (The mini bus of life) and that Serendipity is my favourite word (Oh Serendipity! My beloved friend.) So to find out that I am actually named after ‘The Fates’, for me is a really strong message, that this year my fate will change – in a positive way. That the New Year is bringing with it  a message – ‘Change your fate girl, and believe in yourself, because that person who is doing the driving is trying to tell you something!’ If I am named after Fate then surely I can now change my own!

So I sit here now, starting a days writing with my blog because it always gets the juices flowing. I am surrounded by  furry writing companions, both of who I am blessed to have with me, Molly Kitten being eighteen this year, and Harley who as you know from my blog almost died in December but who is here with me today; what wonderful companions to have!

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I am writing this post because if we had not chosen to have this adventure, to jump of that cliff! And if I still lived my life in England, I would be going to a job I hated today, I would have my heating on even if it was not cold, I would be caught up on the Hamster wheel and probably be stopping at a shop to buy something that I didn’t need on the way home to make myself feel better. I would go home to my beautiful house (surrounded by houses and people) and I would get stressed on the drive home. I would not try to write my book because, although not happy with my life, I would tell myself I was content because I was warm, and had regular income, and forget that I was not free to be me.

Instead I have time to look things up, do research, do my writing, look out at my window at this….

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I have my big socks and slippers on and I don’t have the fire alight yet because instead I am wearing my fleece. I don’t have secure income but I do have security in my belief that if I let it go what I need will come my way, and it has not been wrong yet. We only have two months of the winter left and we have survived so far without putting up with crap from people that we should be putting up with crap from. Yes I have mould on my walls, which I wash off!! It doesn’t kill me, but my old life was!

And now I am in a position where my book is written, I know that I have to believe because changing my life and going on this adventure has proved to me that if you believe you CAN make it work. No, it won’t be the same as it was in my old life, but I don’t want it to be; otherwise what would be the point of an adventure?!!

Hope that this year holds good things for you all too, but they may not be what you think they are going to be…..

If you like my blog please share it, I was thrilled to get nearly three hundred views on my last post – wonderful and thank you all….

 

Moisy

https://www.etsy.com/shop/PetiteFrenchfancies

 

 

 

 

 

 

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