Merry Christmas 2015
Christmas
2015 brings some reflections for the year.
I wanted to share important lessons in life I have learned over this
year and lifetime. I hope that you enjoy
these lessons.
Lessons in life
1. Always and I mean always put God
first in your life. Life has a way to
teaching us lessons and challenges but with God first, you have a firm
foundation to fall back to and he will never leave you or forsake you.
2. Never break a promise. I have four
grandchildren and I try very hard to follow through with the promises that I
make to them each day. I try to stay
impeccable with my words. Fulfilling
promises as an adult is hard but it brings about lasting relationships.
3. Celebrate each day and holiday as if
it was your last. Dance in the rain, weep
when you feel the need, laugh all the time, smile at people on the street, help
someone in need. It will uplift your
spirits.
4. Enjoy and embrace the special
memories you make with family and friends. Spend time planning and implementing
those special moments.
5. Be trustworthy and honest. Even if the people around you are not it is
important to our health and well-being to be honest and others can trust our
feelings, actions and words.
6. Love yourself. Be honest with yourself, trust yourself and
finally respect yourself. Hold your head
high and fall in love with you.
7. Embrace change it is inevitable.
8. Reach high for your dreams and goals.
Set your dreams high and always work towards fulfilling your dreams.
9. Remember that all good things come to an end,
grieve, cry, share memories and then it is easier to move to the next
phase. Do this with the understanding
that you will never be the same person again.
Loss changes us forever. There is
a better door waiting as we push through the grief.
10. Embrace the blessings and
accomplishments no matter how small. I
thank God every day for each blessing he has shown me. Sometimes it’s a penny, sometimes it is a
child that has accomplished more than they dreamed possible by riding one of
the ASPIRE horses, perhaps it is a donor that has a loving story, sometimes it
sharing a song with my granddaughter, sometimes it is sharing a special moment
with my grandson, sometimes it is sharing a special moment with animals,
sometimes it is cherishing moments with friends, sometimes it is setting quiet
and listening to the sounds of nature, and sometimes it is rising to the
beautiful sunrise, sometimes it is sitting by the lake and reflecting on the
times you remember so dearly. Embrace
these moments.
11. Remember to take good care of your
body. Live well, eat well, exercise
often and reduce stress, breath and slow down.
Take the time to take care of you.
12. On this Christmas remember the reason
for the season. We celebrate Christmas
to remember the birth of Jesus. Spend
time with family and friends but remember to make some time to celebrate the
reason for the season. Celebrate with peace and letting your light shine.
On this
Christmas 2015 I will celebrate at Christmas by the Lake. I will enjoy all this year has brought from
special memories with grandchildren, honor my faith and spirituality, I will be
thankful for the blessings I have received in 2015. I will cherish the many memories with the
animals and humans that have passed before us.
We are so fortunate to be in a place to touch literally thousands of
lives. It is a blessing to watch a
children accomplish so many goals atop our beautiful horses. It is a blessing to watch a senior reach out
and love on Pixie and Cody. It is a
blessing to give a senior the last wish of seeing a horse. It is a blessing to provide a camp to so many
wonderful children. It is a blessing to
have the community and beyond to support our programs. It is a blessing to have so many dedicated
volunteers helping in every way they can find time.
I will close
with saying thank you to my husband, my children, grandchildren, friends,
volunteers, riders, and families, board of directors and all those seniors and
children’s lives we have touched the past years. Thank you for allowing me into your homes, allowing
me to spend time with you, allowing me to be part of your children’s
lives. Thank you to all the wonderful
donors that have made it possible to make a difference.
Thank you to all the staff for helping this
year. Special thanks goes to AARP and our
staff person for the great work that he does in the barn.
Please know
that I am blessed and grateful for everyone that has touched my life this year.
I have learned many life lessons.
Thank you to
Sonny, Bo, Snickers and Blue. You are
running free and I am grateful for the memories. Thank you to our human friends that have
touched my life and now are feeling the hands of the angels and feeling the
beauty of heaven.
Thank you to
the beautiful horses that have dedicated their life to ASPIRE: Benny, Ginger,
Maverick, Cody, Pixie, Sarge, Rika, Erika and Chex. Thank you to our beautiful
barn cats Mouse, Bob and Sassy. Thank
you to our energetic dog Josy. She has
challenged us and taught us many lessons.
I wish you a
very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Marilyn and
Don Moore and ASPIRE
