Have a Little Fun

The past few weeks have been very interesting for me to say the least. From being terrorized to having dear friends deal with real tragedy, it has been an emotional roller coaster. Through all of these circumstances I have been reminded of what is, and always has been, important to me. Near the top of the list, of course, is having fun. Along with the emotionally trying situations there have also been some fun, weird, and rewarding events as well. 

First of all, about two weeks ago I decided to shave my head for the summer. Joining me in this endeavor were Glen and Matt. I had no idea that I would be that into having a shaved head, but I LOVE IT. I may never go back. Maybe it will just be a summer cut but we'll see. I am pretty into it.

Also, a few weeks ago Wendy, Shelby, and I went to one of our favorite vacation spots in the world, Pigeon Forge, TN. Yes, the famous home of Dollywood and countless variety shows that no one has ever heard of. The capital of high culture in the mountains of eastern Tennessee. If you haven't experienced Pigeon Forge or Gatlinburg, TN. you are seriously missing out. Try to imagine Branson, MO. without the lake but in the mountains. By the way for those of you out west, there are REAL MOUNTAINS in the south and the east. 

Any way, on this trip we experienced two things that I have never done before. One thing we did is the Zorb. Check out the link, it is awesome. It is a huge ball that you get inside of and get rolled down a hill. The other thing we did is called Fly Away. It is kind of a sky diving simulator. You are inside a tall padded room with a fan underneath the floor that blows at about 120 miles per hour. I have never been sky diving before but it was definitely a fun sensation. All three of us loved it. The entire trip was a blast and we were able to just completely relax. We played miniature golf, went to an aquarium in Gatlinburg, and drove up for a day in Knoxville. It was a wonderful week for all of us.

Finally, after a couple of strange days after we got back, we started preparing for the Traaseths from Minnesota to visit. The Traaseth family are a fellow unschooling family who we met at the Live and Learn conference a couple of years ago. Shelby really connected with Kyra, a girl close to Shelby's age. Over time we have gotten to know the family better. Wendy and Shelby visited the Traaseths a couple of months ago at their home in Bemidji, Minnesota. Now, through a wonderful series of events, it appears the Traaseths are moving to Georgia. Wendy,Shelby, and I have always talked about how fun it would be to have a like minded family that lived close to us. Now, not only is that happening, it is a family that we love and they may be moving into our neighborhood! What a wonderful turn of events.

The lesson in all of this for me is to remember to remain aware of where I allow my attention to go. When I focus on my faith and knowledge that the universe is all rewarding and filled with love and life, things go better than I can ever imagine. When I am focused on my hurt, fear, and anger it feels like the shit never stops hitting the fan. I suppose that is true when my head is lodged so far up my own ass that the only fans I have are covered with shit. The point is that I love my life 99% of the time. The 1% that I don't, I have no one else to blame but me.

Everyday it is vital that I find a different version of shaving my head. Whether it is trying something new like Kathy, taking leaps of faith like Kelli and Tim, or facing life with the courage of Marcos and Ashley, I have examples all of the time. So friends, let's keep each other fired up. Let's do what we love and you know the rest!!!

Love, 

Clint