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A NEW YEAR TO GROW & ENJOY!

     Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine.

     I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back. From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible.

     How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word "refrigeration" mean nothing to you?

     How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched 'Jeopardy' on television?

     I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, "How about going to lunch in a half hour?" She would gas up and stammer, "I can't. I have clothes on the line. My hair is dirty. I wish I had known yesterday, I had a late breakfast, it looks like rain." And my personal favorite: "It's Monday." ...She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together.

     Because Americans cram so much into their lives, we tend to schedule our headaches. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect!

     We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get Stevie toilet-trained. We'll entertain when we replace the living-room carpet. We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college.

     Life has a way of accelerating, as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken, and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of "I'm going to," "I plan on," and "Someday, when things are settled down a bit."

     When anyone calls my 'seize the moment' friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips. She keeps an open mind on new ideas. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of Rollerblades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord.

     My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years. I love ice cream. It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my stomach with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process. The other day, I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy.

      Now...go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to--not something on your SHOULD DO list. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, whom would you call and what would you say? And why are you waiting?

     Have you ever watched kids playing on a merry go round or listened to the rain lapping on the ground? Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight or gazed at the sun into the fading night? Do you run through each day on the fly? When you ask, "How are you?" Do you hear the reply?

     When the day is done, do you lie in your bed with the next hundred chores running through your head? Ever told your child, "We'll do it tomorrow." And in your haste, not see his sorrow? Ever lost touch? Let a good friendship die? Just call to say "Hi?”

     When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift--Thrown away. Life is not a race. Take it slower. Hear the music before the song is over.

(SUBMITTED OFF THE WEB BY JUDE BAGATTI. ATTRIBUTED TO GEORGE CARLIN)

e thank these guests for making 2004 such a great year at S.O.U.L.: Lorna Owens, Randy Gage, Melissa Frases, Gloria Ramirez, Lynn Marks, Chuck and Michelle Salerno, Lauren Lane Powell, Amy Carol Webb, Inner Voice, Sheila Barish, Nicole Henry, Jon-Roi Vega, Joy Martone, Shirley Merrett-Hall, Lawrence Furman, Omian, Kathleen Crocker, Marcy Roban, Maritere Santiago, Reverend Jody Rowe Staley, Ann Hoffman, Dave Willocks, Katie Lower, Arlene Hathaway, Lisa Karesec, Reverend Kevin Ross, Diane Collins, Juanita Mazzarella, Marta Luzim, Karen Lewe, Sarah Walker, Graham Wood Drout, John Dennison, Josie Ravenwing, Chelsea Barnett, Jed Shlackman, Jeanette Isabella, Dashi Chu Koccia, Sarah Walker, Hope Littwin, Carla Ramirez, Wendy Jaffe, Ernesto Ortiz, Jean Bonnen, Swami Brahmavidyananda Swamu, Elaine Ferretti, Denise Gibel, Michael Smith, Piersun Hedgpeth, and Janice Feld. And we especially thank our Program Director Nancy Moody who found all these great guests, and was able to schedule their appearances!

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FormerSoulmate Mitch Mitchell made his transition in December at his home in Pennsylvania. Survivors include his partner Frank, and his parents. S.O.U.L. extends our deep sympathy to them. We will always remember Mitch for his courage and gentle heart.