All over the media, in many coffee shops, across various main streets, the mood and the conversation has gone full blown into politics. The three no no’s of any conversation are money, politics, and religion….a little vino added to the mix, and a get-together or fun evening can turn quite volatile. The possibility of all of us agreeing on everything is rare…so when we get together with our friends or family, how about agreeing to disagree?

The 2008 cycle on the political calendar this time seems to be more tumultuous than usual. I recently overheard a conversation where one friend said to another, “If you don’t vote for Barack Obama, I will not be able to continue being your friend.” What’s unfortunate is that they have been friends for over 40 years! The lines seem to have been drawn…there is the Hillary Camp, the Obama Camp, and the McCain Camp…each Camp digging in their heels and basically saying “It’s my way, or the highway.” It’s astonishing the level of disdain and anger that has entered the Presidential Campaign. Agree to disagree? Come the Fall, we will see how much these warring factions are willing to come together. What’s unfortunate is how much these candidates have taken over the relationships between family and friends.

Faith and religion play a large part in the direction of many people….here too the lines seem to have been drawn. A few days ago a friend of mine said to me, “Jennifer, through your website do you reach any Buddhists, Muslims or Jews?” When I replied that of course I do, I talk to people of all faiths, she gave me a strange look and said, “You know, I’m only really comfortable being around people like myself…I don’t like to venture too far off the reservation.” It’s interesting, I wish I had a dollar for every person who I saw on television telling me that if I don’t believe the way they do, I will go to hell. I would be quite a wealthy woman! Which brings us to our next topic…

Money….are you rich? Perhaps, perhaps not. I have an interesting saying to myself, after I pay all my bills and have a little to put away, that anything after that is just more “stuff.” The difference between 2 million dollars and 10 million dollars, is more STUFF. Not that I have 2 million dollars…yet! (tee hee) But quite a few out there are either invested in the stock market, or playing the lottery, or football pools. Being rich may not be such a bad idea after all….yet all I hear on the television with the pundits is “Let’s get the rich!” Keeping up with the Joneses, as the old saying goes, has become one of the ultimate art forms, among some.

Let’s see…how about the next time we have a conversation with someone who disagrees with us, before the dialogue gets too heated, change the subject, pay a compliment, or, commission the old standby….”would you like another cup of coffee?”

Be of Good Cheer,

Jennifer Avalon

© 2008 Jennifer Avalon

Does your life sometimes feel like a “Lifetime Hotel?” Mine too….there are constantly people, places, and things coming and going. Talk about feeling like a conveyor belt…I guess life always makes us grapple with changes.

Each year that rolls around I’m always astonished at the people who have left my life, and the new ones that have come along. Indeed, there are always those that seem to be around…but on the edges there are always the losses, and the welcomes. Even now as I speak, there are two elderly members of my family that are entering the final stages of their lives. As much as I want them to live forever, I understand that there is a time for everyone. Watching how they are coming to terms with their circumstances gives me great strength, dignity, and courage in my own life. They talk freely about how much time they have left, how they want to be remembered, and their wishes for after they are gone. This past Christmas many of my family gathered around the table laughing and joking that we were all “still here,” while out of the corners of our eyes there was a glance, wondering, would we all still be around to celebrate another holiday?

At the same time, new life entered the fold…nothing is more miraculous than seeing the shine in a newborn baby’s eyes…reminding us all what a miracle Life truly is. The children look to us for guidance, for us to show them around Life’s Hotel…the safe places to play, the rooms to avoid. As the merry-go-round of Life spins it wheel each year, it never ceases to amaze me who jumps on, and who jumps off. This time of year in the northeast of the United States, the ground, the flowers, the trees awaken with new life….ready to blossom and bring forth their rainbow, knowing full well that in the Fall, they too will fold up and go away for the Winter.

We all live on the merry-go-round….being told when we got on, and wondering when we too must jump off. The merry-go-round of Life is quite busy, while also quite peaceful. There are no real surprises….we all know that we come, and we go. What happens in-between is what it’s all about.

Enjoy the ride,

Jennifer Avalon

© 2008 Jennifer Avalon