Category Archives: Of Living

Where is this Place?

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All architecture is shelter, all great architecture is the design of space that contains, cuddles, exalts, or stimulates the persons in that place.~ Philip Johnson

Identify both of these places and the city where they are located. Leave your answer by way of comment to this blog. First person to identify accurately these two houses of worship will win a free personalized paperback copy of the award-winning book, Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected.  Family members are excluded from entering!

Hints:

  • They are located in a state west of the Mississippi
  • Each place is distinctively different yet, they are located in the same community, a few blocks away on the same street, making them nearly neighbors!
  • I can hear your brain buzzing with activity trying to figure this out!
  • I visited both of these places last week and thoroughly learning more about each and enjoyed the photography opportunities.

Edifice #1 – I am so grateful for the kind stranger who directed my husband and me to the 10th floor of  a nearby building to capture this incredible shot!

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Edifice #2 (below) – As I entered into this building I couldn’t help but wonder how many people every hour, every day, every month or year pass by this structure having no clue of the magnificence that lies inside the doors. All it takes is one peek to grab one’s attention.

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Aren’t both visually and architecturally stunning? If you joined in on All Things Fulfilling last week, by reading the posting Finding a Good Fit and if you read my memoir Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected you’ll understand the reason why I enjoy seeing church buildings. It has to do with my family history!

Do return to All Things Fulfilling tomorrow. I will post a few more pictures of these two extraordinary places.

 

 

 

Time with the Seniors

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“Language allows us to reach out to people…, it’s the greatest legacy you could ever leave your children or your loved ones: The history of how you felt.”
~ Simon Van Booy

On Monday, June 1st, I look forward to speaking with the Routt County Senior Citizens. Since AARP has determined that at age 50 we are “senior citizens,” we could have a wide range of ages in the group. Many would argue that age 50 is too young to be tagged as “retired.” People go on to live vibrant lives for many more decades beyond that landmark.

There can be gifts in early retirement and even forced retirement, as it provides plenty of opportunity for new beginnings and starting new life chapters. Having the gift of time and thanks to the independent publishing industry an increased number of “seniors or retirees” are taking the opportunity to share their careers, life journeys and life experiences through writing.

senior writing

On June 1st, I look forward to sharing an overview of my memoir, Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected, an anthology of short stories, with the Routt County Seniors. We will also be discussing the value of memoir writing  and how to get started writing.

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This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

 

Talking Personal Fulfillment

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finding-joyLast week when I presented “One Day in the Life of a Writer” to the Junior Girl Scouts, I mentioned that although I write books, my small business geared around publishing provides me with many other tasks that I handle in the course of a normal work day. Tasks such as maintaining a website/blog, e-marketing for independent publishers, responding to reader’s correspondence, scheduling and doing book talks and other promotion are also on my daily to do list. Not to even mention keeping up with ever-changing news about the publishing industry.

Over the next couple of days I am going have a change of work space. You’ll learn more the following week. A change of scenery will provide me with new sources of inspiration as I  sit with many ideas that will be discussed during my upcoming appearance on “Life Changing Talk Radio.”

From www.blogtalkradio/livingaricherlife.com , the program overview for the May 21st broadcast is as follows:

“Most of us have learned we can not find happiness, making it our goal. Happiness is the unintended benefit of pursuing personal dreams and living true to yourself.

When you proactively connect the person you are with the things you choose to do, a deep sense of fulfillment will emerge. Fulfillment is a form of happiness or satisfaction that is the direct result of fully developing your abilities or character.

Personal fulfillment is best described as the achievement of life goals which are important to you, in contrast to the goals of society or even your family. Personal fulfillment is an ongoing journey for most of us. The journey commences when we start becoming conscious of ourselves, our surroundings and our past. But for many of us, finding your path to fulfillment can be buried in the unexpected. How can you find your path to personal fulfillment?”

What I do in my business, personal and professional life is extremely joyful and satisfying.  I am so very grateful that I have been able to create the kind of life that feels good and right.

Join us in the discussion on May 21rd by going to www.blogtalkradio/livingaricherlife.com . If you are in the East coast listening area, tune in at 9pm, 8pm Central time, 7pm Mountain time and 6pm Pacific. You can call in with your comments and your questions #855-345-4714.

This blog is brought to you by the award-winning author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and Short Stories: Lessons of Heart & Soul.

 

 

Life Created Just for You!

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“It’s not the circumstances that create joy. It’s you.” ~ Unknown

Have you ever stopped to consider your personality portrait? What makes you who you are?

Here are 16 personality portraits and each type has it’s own code:

ISTJ – The Duty Fulfillers        ESTJ – The Guardians      ISFJ – The Nurturers

ESFJ – The Caregivers      ISTP – The Mechanics   ESTP – The Doers

ESFP – The Performers   ISFP – The Artists  ENTJ – The Executives

INTJ – The Scientists    ENTP – The Visionaries   INTP – The Thinkers

ENFJ – The Givers    INFJ – The Protectors      ENFP – The Inspirers   INFP – The Idealists

Your personality type, in part, determines how you react to the world and people around you. When I read the profiles I find I am a little bit of this, and a little bit of that which makes for a complex mix of what fulfills me in life. Want to know more? Read this article and click on the description of each personality type.

Finding what makes us happy and what fills us up in life is the secret to personal fulfillment. The good news today is that we can take steps in our own lives to create a life that is filled with joy and happiness!

On May 21st, I hope you will join in the conversation because we will be talking about this very subject on blog talk radio  www.blogtalkradio/livingaricherlife.com. Call in with your questions and comments! #855-345-4714

ePost Card_Living a Richer Life_Sue Leonard_May 21, 2015

 

Spirit Not Withstanding

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“A cloudy day is no match for a sunny disposition.” ~ William Arthur Ward

What’s a girl to do when she’s a bystander because she is too young to be a Junior Girl Scout? She creates her own sense of fun, and I loved it.

Look at the joy on this little girl’s face! I’m calling her the “Dazzling Earring Girl.” She went about her way finding a  creative use for the paper roses I had made and given the Girl Scouts while she was waiting for her sister to complete her craft project.

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One never knows where life will take us and “Dazzling Earring Girl” might just have the tag line “jewelry artist” under her name in the future!

You know what I like about the Girl Scouts? Please excuse my bias because I was both a Brownie and a Junior Girl Scout. In my opinion, it is an organization that endorses postive values that parents can teach their children about keeping their values straight in life.

I hope this little girl in the picture remembers to always to seek the light! The good news is on this Thirsty Thursday her joy will dazzle other people. Glad she joined us!

This blog is brought to you by the award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard. For information on her memoir and book of short stories. On Sunday, May 10th I’ll be honoring Mother’s Day on All Things Fulfilling.

 

Fulfilling a Promise to Girl Scouts

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Good Morning! Happy May Day!

On March 24th I sent out a handwritten invitation to a very special group of youth –Girl Scout troop #12622. Here’s what the note card said:

You are cordially invited to “One Day in the Life of a Writer.” Join me at my writer’s desk in the Girl Scout meeting room on May 1, 2015  from 3:30 – 4:30 pm.

Well, the big day is here! I couldn’t be more excited to share my experiences of “One Day in the Life of a Writer.”  Here is what our program today looks like: 

  • A Peek into a Writers Day
  • A Tour of a Writers Desk
  • A Reading from an Authors Award-Winning Book

Girl Scout promise

Did you know the World Association of Girl Scouts is 10,000,000 “girl guides” strong and there are troops in 146 countries?I’ve asked each girl from troop #12622 to bring a question that they’ve always wanted to ask a writer but have never had the chance. On Monday, the questions and my answers will be published so Girl Scouts in other countries can learn more about what it’s like to be a writer.

I was a Brownie and a Junior Girl Scout in the 1960s where I grew up – in the heart of where north, meets south, on the Mason-Dixon Line in the State of Maryland. I can hardly wait to meet Colorado Junior Girl Scout troop #12622  – ages 9 and 10.

Do return to All Things Fulfilling on Monday because I promise to do my best to publish the girl’s questions to the author along with my responses.

This blog is brought to you by the award-winning author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and Short Stories: Lessons of Heart and Soul.

Girl Scouts where girls grow strong

 

 

 

 

Pumped Up About Life

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Today, I promise you happiness in your day if you take a couple of minutes to watch this awesome video. It is the very definition of a few people living life pumped up, spreading joy to others. It is what Thursdays, thirsty for good news is all about!

That’s all I’ve got for today. Something special is on my calendar for tomorrow. Return and I will tell you about it.

 

A smile is a curve

 This blog is brought to you by the award-winning author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and Short Stories: Lessons of Heart & Soul,  Sue Batton Leonard.

 

 

Old Souls vs Young Souls

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 “Remember our souls are like snowflakes, all different and all beautiful.” ~ Unknown

I volunteer about six hours a week at a local consignment store called  Lift Up run by all the churches here in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. I love it! It’s so interesting to see what comes in to the donation center. We volunteers often talk about the differences between what people value.

Did you know there is actually a science behind why we like what we do and what gives us feelings of fulfillment? This article is interesting. To sum it up there seems to be a relationship between whether we are old or young souls to many of our preferences -such as the books we read,  perhaps what we writers chose to write about, art, music, fashion, food and maybe even our belief system.

Have you ever read characteristics of what defines an old soul as opposed to what defines a young soul? Personally, I think this concept does play into many of our choices, right down to the things that we chose to share on Facebook.

Old soul, new soul or somewhere in between  I am not sure there is a preferred way of being to navigate this world in which we are living. I’d have to delve much deeper into the research in order to decide that for myself. However, as I read the description of “an old soul” there is a there characteristic that can’t connect with. It has been said that “old souls feel old.” I am on the opposite side of the spectrum of that feeling.

Thank heavens for favors, big and small.

Have a nice day
This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard. The author of Short Stories: Lessons of Heart & Soul and Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected.

 

For this Child

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On April 10,  1988, a week after Easter, my husband and I had our son baptized in the church where I grew up. That day started an awakening of sorts for me. I stood on the altar in front of the baptismal font, promising to raise our son as a Christian.

for this child

I also began to realize the awesome responsibility I had to my son to raise him the best way that I possibly knew how with my husband. That included a desire to share my beliefs with him as he grew up. I knew that adorable little infant would face a complicated journey called life, and having a foundation of faith, I felt would be important.

Several times over recent years I have blogged about how our society has changed since the decades of my growing up. In my opinion, there seems to be a lack of accountability to a “higher being.” One wonders whether this fundamental has changed our American culture.

I am curious. If you are a parent, did having children change your faith in small or big ways? Please post your comment.

This blog is brought to you by the author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and Short Stories: Lessons of Heart & Soul.

Childhood & Belief

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“Children see magic because they look for it.” ― Christopher Moore

Little-Boy-movie-poster_1In select theatres across the country, the film Little Boy was released last Friday. This movie is among others that I have put on my list of upcoming movies to see. It is a story about the separation of father and son due to war in 1940. Although this is a fictional story, it is a tale that will ring familiar with families who have been faced with parent and child relationships strained due to military duties.

It has been said of this drama, written and directed by Alejandro Monteverde, a Smithsonian Institute award-winning filmmaker, that the power and value of holding tight to life-affirming belief as seen through the perspective of the little boy, “will warm your heart and lift your spirits.”

A review from Slant Magazine written by Ed Gonzalez  gives the movie what I would call a marginal rating  stating “Little Boy is the filmmaker’s naïve desire to convey life experience to such a sentimentalized degree that the world comes to resemble only the sham of a Norman Rockwell painting.”

In light of Gonzales’ remarks I ask   – Doesn’t having faith and hope get us through life’s most difficult circumstances? And shouldn’t the short, sweet childhood years be like an idealistic or quixotic Norman Rockwell painting?

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard. Her publications include Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and Short Stories: Lessons of Heart & Soul.