Bye Bye Contessa (WT602)

Bye Bye Contessa (WT602)

Blog

WT 602 Bye Bye Contessa

Yesterday was a day of mixed emotions for Ross and I.

It was the day we said goodbye to our beautiful Contessa, our home for almost 3 years as we travelled around Australia.

It was sad to see her for the last time as she sat in the dealer’s yard, knowing that this was the end of another chapter and adventure for us.

And we are also extremely grateful for such an easy sale.

Life is always working for you, even though at times it may not be to your preference.

Having returned to Newcastle to run a leadership experience in November/December, we had initially planned to return to South Australia. We figured we had another 2 years before construction on our apartment would be completed.

As it turned out, we were extremely lucky that Contessa had been booked in for a service and was still under warranty (by 3 months). The service centre found that there had been water damage from a fault in the plumbing design and if out of warranty could have cost some tens of thousands of dollars to fix.

The service centre was also completely booked out for about 6 months so we would have had to have found alternate accommodation.

Fortunately, we had made the decision to stay in Newcastle for the 2 years and had found somewhere to live. The dealership also offered to buy Contessa provided the repairs would be covered by warranty.

Wow! Who could have known that?

Indeed, on the morning of the day Ross was taking her to Sydney for her service, I felt an overwhelming sadness as I emptied our contents. “Say goodbye to Contessa Ross”, I said. “She’s not coming back.”

“What do you mean she’s not coming back?” asked Ross. “Of course she is, she’ll be back in a few weeks.”

“No she won’t” I continued. “She’s going to be sold, so say goodbye.”

Little did we know that morning that that was exactly what was going to happen.

She didn’t come home and she was sold and today I took one last look and one last photo of our amazing girl who sheltered us and shared our wonderful adventure for the past few years.

Life is always working for you, even if at times, it’s not to your preference.

What’s happening for you?

Have you noticed lately that you “know” things before they occur?

What preferences are not pleasing you at the moment, that could ultimately turn out to be for your best?

I’m so very thankful for the time we had with Contessa and the travels and adventures and I trust her new owners will love her as much as we did.

P.S. Invite your friends to get the Weekly Thoughts delivered directly to their inbox. Go to https://shirleydalton.com/weekly-thoughts.

Christmas Comes Every Year Whether You’re Organised or Not (WT548)

Christmas Comes Every Year Whether You’re Organised or Not (WT548)

Blog

WT 548 Christmas comes every year

It’s Christmas morning and I’m a little late with our Weekly Thought.

Firstly, wishing you a very happy Christmas or Holiday Season.

It’s been a big big year for all of us and with all the challenges, there are still so many things to be grateful for.

I’m grateful to be on this journey with you. What an adventure we are having.

This adventure called Life.

It’s not about the destination because we’re all headed to the same place; back to where we came from.

It’s about the adventure; it’s about the journey.

As I reflect on my journey, I am grateful for some wise words of wisdom from a group of amazing ladies that I volunteered with, in a tiny charity called Make Today Count.

Our little charity supported people and their families who were dealing with a life threatening illness.

We each had our special gifts to contribute to the organization and the people we supported.

My gift was the ability to organise things and get things done.

It was during one of our committee meetings that I was beating myself up for not having completed a task.

“Shirl, Christmas comes every year, whether you’re organized or not”, said one of the ladies.

This stopped me in my tracks. It wasn’t even near Christmas but she was right.

Here it is today and I’m a little late with the weekly thought.

I was a little disorganized this week and Christmas Day arrived anyway.

My encouragement to you this week is to take the ladies’ advice. The message and the learning I took from them is not to get all hung up about what’s done and not done. Things happen, whether we’re ready or not. Things happen whether we’re organized or not.

It’s called life. You may as well enjoy it.

Want to get the Weekly Thought delivered direct to your inbox (every Friday morning Aussie time)? Register here: https://bit.ly/sdweeklythought

Hi Ho It’s Off to Work We Go (WT531)

Hi Ho It’s Off to Work We Go (WT531)

Blog

off to work we go

It’s been miserable in Tasmania the past few days. The weather has been wild. Lots of wind and rain and snow in the mountain areas.

“So what?” you might think.

Well it doesn’t stop the penguins, plovers or pademelons from their daily routine.

I’ve been so impressed watching the wildlife as we travel around. It doesn’t matter what the weather conditions are, they’re out fishing and foraging for food.

They don’t complain. They don’t wake up and moan, “Oh, I don’t feel like it today. I think I’ll have a doona day. I think I’ll stay in bed. I’ll ring in sick.”

Nope! That doesn’t happen.

Hi Ho it’s off to work they go.

David Bayer often references nature when talking about mindset. He’s on a mission to end all suffering. Now that doesn’t mean physical suffering; he’s talking about our psychological suffering, which of course comes from our thinking.

If you look to nature, there is no (psychological) suffering.

Watching the animals has made me aware of how much I look for excuses to not do things. It’s also made me away of how much my “stinking thinking” causes my misery.

As I sit here getting buffeted from side to side in the motorhome, the wind seems to be getting stronger and stronger. I am grateful. I am grateful I have you to write to and I’m grateful to be inside, out of the weather, even though I now have to go out because the motorbike just blew over and hit the motorhome. OMG!

How about you?

Are you causing yourself misery?

What can you be grateful for?

Next time you find yourself in a less than optimal state, how about you remember the animals. Don’t dwell on your thinking and just get yourself into action.

Want to get the Weekly Thought delivered direct to your inbox (every Friday morning Aussie time)? Register here: https://bit.ly/sdweeklythought

Pin It on Pinterest