When we moved into our home almost seven and a half years ago, we had a desk built in for me. It is a L-shaped with two file drawers, a pen and pencil (and scissor, highlighter, hole puncher, calculator) drawer, and enough surface space for a laptop, a lamp, some framed photos and files. It is a petite and much appreciated space.
In the fall of 2015, I started my full-time job. These days I do not sit here as often as I once did, but I am grateful for the evenings I do sit here to work, catch up on emails (well, I never fully catch up, so let’s just say, chip away), and write thank you notes.
My favorite part of this area, save for the very cool postmodern chair, is the bulletin board I hung on the wall in front of me. It is filled with photos of the kids, an airline ticket stub, notes from the children, inspiring quotations from my grandfather, Norman Vincent Peale:
“Joy increases as you give it. ”
“Do what you have always done and get what you have always gotten.”
“It doesn’t take guts to quit”
“A smile is a curve that can get a lot of things straight”
“Positive Thinking is how you think about a problem. Enthusiasm is how you feel about a problem. The two together determine what you do about a problem.”
Each time I sit here, I harken back to a time (a photo of my daughter Eloise receiving an award or my son John at 16 months, bathed and in his cozy jammies, looking through a picture book); a trip (a birthday trip to San Francisco to be with some of my dearest friends); or to words of wisdom that center me, reminding me that “all the little things will add to a happy journey” (fortune cookie message).
I only wish this cork board could be bigger as I have many other items to add to it. But it is perfect as it is and gives me the time to pause and do a bit of daydreaming, which has been hard to come by of late with all of life’s demands and distractions.
Read More: Positive Thoughts from Norman Vincent Peale
One of my favorite items on the board is a page of quotations written by our daughter, Amelia Peale Berlandi (now 16) when she was in fourth grade. She wrote, “Shoot for the moon, even if you miss it, you will land among the stars.” Little did she know at the time that that was one of her Great Grandfather Peale’s favorite quotations. Or perhaps she did know, in some wonderful, mysterious way.
