Healing in forgiveness

Posted in Inspiration

SunriseAnd we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. 1 John 4:16 (KJV)

Forgive and forget. The forget part is hard. We mull over disappointment, wrongs done to us, wrongs we have done to others. We slog through the murky depths of disappointment. Our focus finds its way to yesterday to the point we don’t give attention to the joys and opportunities of today. It isn’t easy to forget, but it is something we must do to make a difference for ourselves and for those around us. Fears keep us from so much. Anger nails us to the floor of discouragement. Let go and let God is not a panacea; it is faith come alive. He does not forget us. We are crafted with as much thought as the earth and sky. We are unique. Formed for a purpose. Given breath and life. Give back in the ways you can and leave behind anything that holds you back. It is healing; it is restorative; it is joyful.

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Photo: clipart.com

 

Attitude and aging gratefully

Posted in Health, Inspiration8 Comments

Life After a FallLife has sort of been on hold for my husband and me since early May when his femur broke and he had to have surgery. The surgery went well and thanks to great care at Alta Vista Regional Hospital and Vida Encantada, he came home from rehab a week earlier than anticipated. For the first two weeks, we scooted along quite well… until I got a sacral fracture (result of osteoporosis and overdoing it gardening), that really sent us topsy turvy. Since then we’ve both been on walkers and confined to the house, or so we believed because neither of us was confident enough to get behind the wheel.

The experience has given us a whole new appreciation for the ability to drive. We have relied on – and thank you very much nephew Seth and great-nephew Carter, Tom Trigg and Mary Schipper, and Karyl Lyne – as well as Lydia Palomino, who worked us into her busy schedule – for getting us to and from appointments and the store (and sometimes Charlie’s!).

We are on the mend, but I want to especially thank my long-time friend Kathy Allen, whose phone call this week helped me see how much of our isolation came as much from self-inflicted and unfounded fears as it did from our actual afflictions. She didn’t tell me that, but my whining about my plight – which resonated long after the conversation was over, did. If I’ve learned anything from this experience, it is that as you age, fear sneaks in where you least expect it.

Fear of falling is a real thing, especially as you get older. Fear of falling in older folks is greater than that related to robbery, financial stress, or health problems, according to an article on the Anxiety and Depression Association of America website. Click here to read the full article.

Julie Loebach Wetherell, PhD, an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, writes that about ten percent of older adults report excessive fear, and at least three percent avoid leaving their homes or yards. That may not seem like much, but when you consider that the aging population is the fastest growing demographic globally and that by 2050, two billion adults older than sixty-five will be living on this planet, the percentages become more significant.

“Most people who fear falling avoid some physical activities. This fear is a better predictor of decreased physical activity than age, perceived health, number of prescription medications, gender, or history of falls,” Wetherell writes. She notes that fear of falling and less physical activity lead to disability, including decreased capacity to perform daily living activities such as bathing and shopping.

Paradoxically, the fear of falling increases the risk of falls. It also increases the risk of having to enter a health care facility and the loss of independence. Those who had excessive fear but no falls over a two-year period increased their risk of entering a nursing home five-fold relative to those with low fear. Of older adults in one scientific study, fifty-six percent with high levels of fear fell again within the following year, while only thirty-seven percent of those without fear did. – Julie Loebach Wetherell

I confess that fear of falling and making my back injury worse has contributed to our isolation, which, by the way, also leads to feeling discouraged, even depressed. These are not characteristics in my essential make up. Quite the contrary. I always think life will get better, every obstacle can be overcome, and bloom where your planted. I’ve scarcely written a word in the last six weeks that wasn’t related to my daily prayer journal and devotional journal. I dropped out of Pasateimpo Art Academy, simply because I had neither the energy nor the time (or physical ability), to conduct the writing classes I had signed up to do.

I realized after my whine-fest with Kathy, the problem wasn’t my circumstances; the problem was my attitude, which was being shaped by my fears.

No more. Time to get back to normal. Ordinary caution makes sense; hiding behind anxiety does not.

Onward and upward.

We met Kathy and Fred for coffee at Charlie’s today. I drove.

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Photo: Life after a fall.

 

The Fence

Posted in Inspiration2 Comments

But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.  1 Samuel 16:7 (KJV)

The FenceLife is, what it is. God’s plan is outside our understanding. The book and movie “The Shack” made me think about the universality of God the Trinity. There is no separate lesson for the rich and the poor, the Middle Easterner or the Caucasian, the Black or the Asian. God loves everyone the same and everyone is welcome. We get into trouble when we start separating ourselves from the rest of the world, aligning our thinking with like-minded folks and begin to believe we’re more “in” with God than those who worship and think different.

There is a religion joke about the guy who dies and goes to Heaven. St. Peter is giving him a tour of the place and the new guy is duly impressed, everything is spectacular, far better than he could ever have imagined. In the tour, they keep going by a high fence with locked gates. The guy says to St. Peter, “I didn’t know there were fences in Heaven. What’s back there?” St. Peter smiles and shakes his head. “That’s where we keep the Catholics; they think they’re the only ones here.”

You could put just about any religion following the words “…where we keep the… ” When we believe we’re better than the next man, woman or faith practice at any level, we lose site of God’s message. God looks beyond the surface; God looks at our hearts.

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Image: clipart.com

Q&A With Tour Guide Kathy Hendrickson

Posted in Travel & Tourism

More than a tour; it’s an experience

If you are looking for someone to lead a tour of Las Vegas, N.M., you couldn’t find a better person for the job than Kathy Hendrickson of Southwest Detours. Her enthusiasm combined with copious amounts of research give clients what they’re looking for, an entertaining experience full of historical fact and imaginative delivery. Her business has gained quite a following since its inception. She introduces newcomers to Las Vegas and inspires repeat clients to come back for a second time around, and bring their friends with them. Southwest Detours is a take-off on the Fred Harvey southwest vacations that introduced America to the southwest with “detour” adventures arranged through the railroad. Kathy has brought that concept to life with enthusiasm and dedication.

Kathy HendricksonORP: You’ve been doing this for a while now. What have you discovered about yourself as you’ve grown as a tour guide?
Kathy: I’ve discovered that I really enjoy being a tour guide! Meeting folks coming from all over the country and all over the world to explore our historic town is a very rewarding career. I find that my background in sales and marketing, when I worked for L’Oreal as an artistic educator, helped me reinvent myself as a good tour guide.

ORP: How do you prepare for a tour?
Kathy: Being on the board of the Las Vegas Citizens Committee for Historic Preservation has been a great tool in preparing for a tour. I can research the archives at LVCCHP to get information about the buildings and homes we will tour. I like to add something other than historical facts. As an example, when I met Nina Strong, the Harvey Girl who worked at the Castañeda Hotel, she told me about her life working there. I use some of her experiences in talking about the Castañeda, which is fascinating for tourists to hear.

Kissing Cousins?ORP: What types of questions do clients ask?
Kathy: Some of the questions are directed to me. For instance, “Are you from Las Vegas?” “How did you find this town and why did you want to live here?” That is a question I get almost every tour!

ORP: Are you ever stuck for an answer? If so, how do you handle it?
Kathy: Most of the time I can answer the questions, but I do get stuck for an answer sometimes. I tell them, “That’s a good question. I will have to do some research to find out the answer.”

ORP: What is the funniest reaction a client has had to the tour experience?
Kathy: I can’t recall a funny reaction to the tour, but I have had some really fun folks on the tour, which makes for a fun day. One of the funniest was after the tour of the Castañeda. I asked two couples to do the Castañeda Kiss at the water fountain. I told them that if they give me a good kiss, they will get a free drink when the Castañeda Hotel Bar is open. Well, the wives didn’t seem interested, but the husbands were. The men grabbed each other and gave me a big Castañeda Kiss. They said they weren’t going to miss out on a free drink!

ORP: What is the Castañeda Kiss, and how did it get started?
Kathy: The Castañeda Kiss started last year when a couple on a tour walked in front of the building by the water fountain. I said, “Stop there and give me a kiss.” I took a photo of them and the woman said, “Now that was a Castañeda Kiss!” The more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea, and the Castañeda Kiss tradition was born.

ORP: What are the benefits of hiring Southwest Detours?
Kathy: There are a lot of benefits to hiring Southwest Detours! For instance, the Montezuma Castle/UWC offers student tours on selected Saturdays, but only when students are available and there are no student tours on holidays or in the summer.  Southwest Detours does tours on demand and we are there all year round, every day of the week. Also, the Castañeda Hotel is not open to the public yet, so we can offer tours inside the building, which is a fascinating historic place. We also do tours at the Plaza Hotel, some historic homes and a few buildings on NMHU campus. Southwest Detours will give you the history of each place as well as a chance to explore inside and outside. We also offer movie site tours and will be adding ghost tours soon.

At the CastanedaORP: What do you tell clients about Southwest Detours when they call to book a tour?
Kathy: I ask them if they want a private tour or if they want to join a group. Some folks prefer a private tour, even though it is more expensive. I suggest a group tour because I think it’s more fun to tour with other folks and some of my tourists become friends with folks they met on the tour and keep in touch with them. I also ask them what they are most interested in seeing and how much time they want to spend. I can then suggest the best tour to fit their needs, as some folks are only in Las Vegas for the day.

ORP: Talk about how you improve your tour skills?
Kathy: I improve my skills by constantly looking for interesting articles on the history of Las Vegas, Montezuma, UWC, Castañeda Hotel, and of course, everything on Fred Harvey history.

ORP: Do you get repeat clients and if so, what is their reaction to the ways the tour has evolved?
Kathy: I do get quite a few repeat tourists, as they sometimes like to come back with their friends. I also get a lot of referrals from tourists that I have given a tour to. I never give the exact same tour, as I try to add something new to it each time and they all seem to like it. Please LIKE Southwest Detours on Facebook to read all the great comments that folks have shared about the tours.

ORP: What do clients most want to see when they visit Las Vegas?
Kathy: The most requested tours are the Castañeda Hotel, The Montezuma Castle and the Historic Plaza Hotel. We get a lot of Fredheads in Las Vegas, as they are very interested in Fred Harvey history. (NOTE: Fredheads are aficionados of all things Fred Harvey, the entrepreneur who took hospitality to the next level across America.)

ORP: What is the best thing you can hear from clients?
Kathy: Last week, a man on the tour from Los Alamos area told me that finding Southwest Detours was like finding a pot of gold. That is probably the best thing I have heard so far! I do get some great comments, and I think most of the tourists are so happy there is a tour guide in Las Vegas to show them around and take them into buildings they otherwise would not have access to.

ORP: What does the tour consist of?
Kathy: Each tour can be different depending on what the tourist is wanting. A typical tour starts at 10 a.m. in the lobby of the Plaza Hotel. From there we travel to Montezuma and tour the Montezuma Castle/UWC. I give them the history of the Montezuma Hotel starting when Fred Harvey managed it. I also tell them about the UWC which is an amazing school with a mission statement of peace through international education. My husband and I are very involved in the school as getaway parents, which is one of the reasons I am privileged to do tours there. If the Dwan Light Sanctuary is open we will also tour there. Sometimes, we break for lunch afterwards and then go on to the Castañeda Hotel tour, which was Fred Harvey’s first great track-side hotel.

ORP: Do the Harvey Girls continue to have a role in your tour?
Kathy: Yes, very much so! The Las Vegas Harvey Girls usually join me for group tours, consisting of 10 or more folks. Last month, I had a group from the Albuquerque Senior Center and a Las Vegas Harvey Girl came along.

For more information about Southwest Detours go to www.southwestdetours.com
Book a tour by e-mail: tours@southwestdetours.com
Book a tour by phone: 505-459-6987

 

Are We There Yet?

Posted in Books2 Comments

Mona Peralta ConkleRecognition of women’s contributions to the past and the present began in 1978 as Women’s History Week in Sonoma County, Calif. The week including March 8, International Women’s Day, was selected. In 1981, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Rep. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) co-sponsored a joint Congressional resolution proclaiming a national Women’s History Week. In 1987, Congress expanded the celebration to a month, and March was declared Women’s History Month. After more than 200 years of American history and eons of world history, it was about time.

In the early ‘90s, when I was an associate editor at the Las Vegas Optic, in celebration of Women’s History Month I wrote a series of articles about area women. The list included a doctor, banker, forester, writer, educator and public servant. Each had quite a unique story to tell and I enjoyed the interviews tremendously.

What I most enjoyed about writing the articles was gaining a better insight into the passion these women had for whatever they did, and leaning how much they had contributed to the community. They were – and continue to be – heroes. Prior to the ‘60s women occupied a stereotypical role in society, at least on the surface, but I grew up around a mother who believed she could do anything, and did. She had her challenges, a special needs daughter among them, but she understood at gut level that the only true obstacles were the ones she created for herself.

She worked in a nurturing field, around people much like my sister, constrained in life by ailments or mental deficiencies beyond their control. She also worked with clients who had committed a crime, who were incarcerated in the state mental facility rather than in prison. Their cases warranted a second look at their ability to know right from wrong and whether they were mentally stable enough to stand trial.

Mom was a fireplug of a woman, short and fiesty, who never hesitated to stand toe-to-toe with men twice her size. She faced them down and lifted them up. Many of her clients kept in touch with her after they left the facility. As a counselor she gave them a sense of their own worth. She helped them see they were more than their circumstances.

Mom did the same for her children, encouraging us to see outside the box long before the phrase became a cliché. She was and is my hero and my role model. She died years ago, but her legacy remains. She will never be written up in a history book but her history with our family shaped who we are today, and I thank her for it.

–Mona’s daughter

PLAN FOR SUCCESS

Posted in Business, Write Stuff

Money Maker

You’ve decided to go into business for yourself. Congratulations. Now what? There are dozens upon dozens upon hundreds of websites that will tell you how to go into business. Many are advertising sites that lure you into trying their particular method. Most are targeted toward already successful businesses looking for ways to hone areas of specific need, like marketing, website development, human resource development and advertising.

As a start-up, your best and most affordable help (free) are sites like the Small Business Administration website where you can find tried and true processes for just about every concern related to developing your business idea into a successful enterprise, and Inc, a site full of informative, well-researched articles about managing and building a business.

Where does business development start? You would think the answer to that question is to have a great idea. True, but it also must be a workable idea, one that serves a need not adequately met in the existing marketplace. Starting a business is more of a challenge in small towns located close to large metropolitan areas. That doesn’t prevent a creative thinker in a small market from being successful. Going back to the question of “where does business development start,” it begins with planning.

Business Opportunity

Let’s say that an in-depth study of buying habits of people who live in your zip code shows all their pet supply purchases are at pet shops in a large city sixty miles away. That might lead you to think opening a pet supply store in your small town is a great business idea. Before you forge ahead, remember this, not all pet supplies are purchased at pet stores. Most are purchased at grocery stores, feed and supply stores, and through animal care clinics. The pet supply niche may be filled locally through those outlets. The first step in business development is knowing your idea has legs and will stand up under considerable questioning.

Questions to consider:

Why am I starting a business? The answer should be more than, “I want to make money,” or “I want to be my own boss.” What need will this business serve that isn’t being met? And by the way, being in business for yourself does not mean you are your own boss. You become the employee of your new enterprise and your time will be dictated by many factors beyond your control. As a responsible owner/employee you will put in far more hours than when you worked for someone else.

Who is my ideal customer? In the example of the pet supply store, it’s more than, “people with pets.” What is the demographic you are looking for? People to whom pets are family? Affluent customers who can afford more upscale purchases for Miss Kitty or Mr. Ambrose the Beagle? If your biggest expected sales are pet food, rethink opening a pet supply business. Buyers can purchase pet food just about anywhere, including online.

How is my business idea, product or service different from what’s already out there? The answer to this question will be weighed in the balance of what you provide, the marketplace you are part of, and the economy. There is every reason to expect restaurants will survive in a time when more and more people are eating out. Such is not the case. Restaurants have a high fail rate. Oddly, competition is not the biggest reason cafés and other types of eateries fail. It stems largely from a failure to plan and fully understand the complexities of owning and running a food establishment. Those that succeed have these factors in common: a commitment to excellence in food and service, finding a niche and sticking with it, and providing a pleasant and welcoming ambiance. The same philosophy applied to any business sets the stage for success.

Location, location, location. Where you establish your business is right up there with knowing your marketplace. Being in a mall environment does not guarantee success. Being in a supportive business block or neighborhood with high traffic and the assurance of referrals ranks with great customer service.

Can I afford to go into business? All businesses require start-up costs. Even if you’re opening a one-person plumbing business, starting a landscaping service or providing auto repair, your qualifications as a top-notch service provider are worthless without tools and a base of operations, both of which cost money. Consider carefully your source of business funding and your ability to remain solvent for the first three years without repeatedly taking loans to sustain operations. You can’t borrow your way out of debt.

Profitability. When can you expect to start making money? This will vary based on factors such as maintaining inventory, rent/mortgage costs, overhead for employees and benefits, and unknown factors like illness or economic downturn. Profit is anything over and above expenses, including paying the owner.

There are many other issues you must consider, among them:

• How many employees will you need;
• Sources of inventory or supplies;
• Product/service pricing;
• Legal structure;
• Taxes, insurance, liability;
• Over all management philosophy;
• Marketing strategy.

A good business plan is a great place to start. See here and here for free business plan instructions and templates.

You cannot eliminate all the risks associated with starting a small business. You can improve your chances of success with good planning and insight. This article is drawn from multiple sources, including the SBA website and Inc.com. It is intended to give entrepreneurs food for thought.

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Image: clipart.com

I am an indie author of six books and two chap books of poetry. Check the BOOKS tab to find out more. Follow me at www.vandermeerbooks.com, https://www.facebook.com/vandermeerbooks, Amazon Author Central. I’m also a member of the Las Vegas Literary Salon, a group committed to sharing the work of local writers. Follow LVLS at lvnmlitsalon.org. Thanks for reading and sharing this post.

Tasty Casserole for a Crowd

Posted in food

 

Centerpiece
Add a bit of flair and color to the table with a bright centerpiece

Potluck Pleaser:
Enchilada Casserole
Serves 12
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees1 Lb Lean ground beef
1 Small onion diced
1 Small can diced Ortega green chile
Garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbls Olive oil

2 Cans Old El Paso Enchilada Sauce (mild, medium or hot)
1 C Beef Broth
1 C Carnation Evaporated Milk
4 C Grated Colby-Jack cheese
24 Corn tortillas

Sauté diced onion in olive oil. Add ground beef and season with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Add diced green chile and cook through. In a large pot bring enchilada sauce to a boil. Add cooked ground beef, beef broth and milk. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and add 2 C of cheese. Stir to prevent sticking until cheese in incorporated through the mixture. Remove from heat.

Spray a 6 x 9 oven-safe dish with Pam or similar spray oil. Dip six tortillas in the meat mixture and line the bottom of the pan. Spread about 1 cup of the meat mixture over the tortillas and sprinkle with cheese. Repeat the layers until all the meat mixture and cheese is used up. Bake in 375 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.

Serve with Spanish Rice and tossed salad.

For a Green Chile Enchilada casserole variation:
Replace beef with 2 to 3 C of chopped chicken
Substitute El Paso Green Chile Enchilada Sauce for red.
Use chicken broth instead of beef.

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Image: clipartcom

 

Change is good, isn’t it?

Posted in Business3 Comments

Icon mailOkay, I’m updating my website with a new theme… an EASY to upload and format theme. Don’t. You. Believe. It.

I know once I get there – there being a finished and fine tuned website – I’ll feel sooooo good about it, but right now my poor husband dare not ask me a question or I’ll snap like a hungry horse at the rag end of the trough.

So my goal is to have a site that looks more like a magazine and less like a blog. I’ve been working toward that goal for some time, but now I’m getting close… and yet at the moment so far, far away. I don’t follow written instructions very well.

Did they mean this, or did they mean that?

I’m in the noodle it around until I figure it out camp, which means quite a lot of redoing.

So, if you happen on this site and it looks like something going through birth pains, you would be quite right. It is a work in progress, as am I.

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Image: clipart.com

Book Review: Song of the Lion

Posted in Book Reviews, Books2 Comments

Song of the LionIn author Anne Hillerman’s latest book, Song of the Lion, Bernadette Manuelito emerges as a savvy heroine who does her job with intelligence and wit while stoically ignoring the irritation of not being respected by a fellow officer. It is not luck or pride that motivates Manuelito, it’s doing the right thing at the right time for the right reason, including trusting her instincts in a life-threatening moment of peril.

Manuelito and her husband Jim Chee, work for the Navajo Tribal Police where facts and evidence add up to answers. That doesn’t discourage Manuelito from using her intuition and connection with old ways, or Chee from showing respect for honored traditions.

Put that cultural identity and awareness into play when the two unofficially work a case, and the result is a compelling story. A car bombing outside a school gymnasium that kills an unidentified young man sets the story in motion. Add in the complication of developers wanting to make dramatic changes on tribal lands and the groups for and against the proposal. Mix in a little sabotage designed to sideline the negotiations. Season with a surprising connection between the case and Manuelito’s friend and mentor, Joe Leaphorn. What you have are all the ingredients for a fast-paced story featuring familiar characters doing what they do best. Manuelito proves to be a dedicated law enforcement officer with an unbeatable spirit.

I recommend Song of the Lion to anyone who likes a good tale woven throughout with interesting, well-drawn characters.

Praise for Song the Lion from Booklist: “Hillerman seamlessly blends tribal lore and custom into a well-directed plot, continuing in the spirit of her late father, Tony, by keeping his characters in the mix, but still establishing Manuelito as the main player in what has become a fine legacy series.”

Hillerman is an award-winning reporter, the author of several non-fiction books, and the daughter of New York Times bestselling author Tony Hillerman. She lives in Santa Fe, N.M.

Title: Song of the Lion
Type: Novel
Author: Anne Hillerman
Publisher: Harper Hardcover
Publication date: April 11, 2017
Price: $27.99

Hallelujah! Christ arose!

Posted in Inspiration1 Comment

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. 1 Peter 3:18

Empty Cross

On this Good Friday, it is important to remember: one tragic, ill-advised and cruel event changed everything. Despite all the ways God’s loved people have misconstrued it all, despite the multiple religions that claim to know it all, despite every doubting Thomas, Christ’s act of sacrifice rings through the ages. The people at the foot of the Cross did not know that in three days Resurrection would happen. They only knew their friend and teacher was dead at the hands of jealous and fearful men. The first Tenebrae service I ever attended was shatteringly emotional. I’d never seen the altar striped, the Cross draped in black, the light extinguished. The worshipers leaving in silence and reflection. Even knowing the outcome would be Resurrection Day – Up From the Grave He Arose – it brought home what was done to Christ the Savior. It brought home what He did for me.
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