A birthday list for August

25 years ago yesterday, my maternal grandmother died on a beautiful day on a farm hidden in the mountains of Virginia. A loss that was incredibly sad, yet at 11 years old was hard to grasp the enormity of. Four years ago yesterday, we buried my paternal grandmother in a sleepy town in the Pine Belt of Mississippi. A loss that was incredibly painful and deeply impacted my life. My love for both of my grandmothers has always been deep and they both have made an indelible mark on my life. What you don’t fully grasp at 11, at 32 you grasp more than you would like to grasp. And my paternal grandmother’s loss at 32 also brought about grief about having lost my maternal grandmother at 11 and realizing on a deeper level what I had missed. I do not have the words to accurately portray the importance of all four of my grandparents in my life. I am who I am because I have been deeply loved by wonderful people who have taught me so well. And for that, I am eternally grateful.

Today, is my birthday and I have made a list of some of my favorite things. As always, I hope that you enjoy this list and find something that you like. Have a wonderful weekend, and stay cool!

Favorite book(s) –

Favorite quotes (from said books) –

  • “You have a consistent character yourself and you wish all the facts of life to be consistent, but they never are. For instance, you despise public service because you want work always to correspond to its aims, and that never happens. You also want the activity of each separate man to have an aim, and love and family life always to coincide – and that doesn’t happen either. All the variety, charm and beauty of life are made up of light and shade.”  Tolstoy

  • “Tell the angel who will watch over your future destiny, Morrel, to pray sometimes for a man who, like Satan, thought himself, for an instant, equal to God; but who now acknowledges, with Christian humility, that God alone possesses supreme power and wisdom. Perhaps those prayers may soften the remorse he feels in his heart. As for you, Morrel, this is the secret of my conduct towards you. There is neither happiness nor misery in the world; there is only comparison of one state with another, nothing more. He who has felt the deepest grief is best able to experience supreme happiness. We must have felt what it is to die, Morrel, that we may appreciate the enjoyments of life. Live, then, and be happy, beloved children of my heart, and never forget, that until the day when God will deign to reveal the future to man, all human wisdom is contained in these two words, - ‘Wait and hope.’” Dumas

Favorite songs (top 3) –

Favorite place to travel –

Favorite movie –

Faith, Family, For Purpose, Friendship, Good Books, Health, Ideas, Information, Personality, Priorities, RelationshipsLauren Allenbirthday, memory, memories, joy, happy, family, friends, learn, grow, love, music, art, books, literature, movies, weekend, fridaylist, listlove, weekendpostComment