Your Independence Day
“… without equality there can be no democracy.” Eleanor Roosevelt Two hundred forty-five years ago, on July 4, 1776, thirteen of Great Britain’s North American colonies declared their independence from a ruling monarch because they believed, “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Independence means freedom from being ruled by other people or things. Imagine a world where each individual can celebrate personal and national independence days. Wikihow describes some great steps, including: Becoming your own hero Accepting life may not be fair Saving money Planning your day around you and more. This post’s quote is from Mrs. Roosevelt’s October 12, 1944 “My Day” essay where she wrote, Long ago, there was a noble word, liberal, which derives from the word free. Now a strange thing happened to that word. A man named Hitler made it a term of abuse, a matter of suspicion, because those who were not with him were against him, and liberals had no use for Hitler. And then another man named McCarthy cast the same opprobrium on the word. … We must cherish and honor the word free or it will cease to apply to us. Interestingly, “equality” blends the words ‘equal’ and ‘quality,’ suggesting that individuals and nations will be enriched where all are equals. Onward and upward everyone, and, Happy Independence Day! Enjoy Lots of Goodies Next Week Did you know that July 3rd [today] is Compliment Your Mirror Day? Here are ways to honor this special time. June 22 was the United State’s Kissing Day. In case you missed it [or want to celebrate worldwide], July 6th is International Kissing Day, which has great health benefits. Read more. Although all of July is Ice Cream Month. July 7 is dedicated to Strawberry Sundaes. Here are fabulous recipes. Image Source Eleanor’s Insights Collection Succeed and Soar’s “Eleanor’s Insights” series is illustrated with my photographs of ‘wild places.’ This week’s Featured Art reminds me of a song that compared freedom to how wild grass grows and wind blows. I love the glittering green of these grasses and their dances as they sway with the wind. Art is available as prints, framed and on canvas as well as on journals, greeting cards, weekender bags, shower curtains, puzzles and much more. Shop Here
The Future Belongs to You
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Eleanor Roosevelt Of our finest fantasies, Rev. Jesse Jackson said, “Dream big dreams! Others may deprive you of your material wealth and cheat you in a thousand ways, but no man can deprive you of the control and use of your imagination. Men may deal with you unfairly, as men often do; they may deprive you of your liberty; but they cannot take from you the privilege of using your imagination. In your imagination you always win!” Anthony Herrera said, “The best helper is a dream of what your life will be.” Rand Bennett added, “Make time for the things you love, the things you are passionate about, the things that you dream of.” ThriveYard describes a big dream as, “a bold vision of the future, a vision that both scares and excites you at the same time. It brings out your passion, imagination, creativity and a willingness to take and embrace risk.” Here’s David Khalil’s big, beautiful dream, “My goal in life became about accumulating wealth for myself in order to give it away. I had to increase my talents and capacity to achieve greater dreams and goals.” Here are 33 Ways to Help Beautiful Dreams Come True. which include writing your personal ‘I have a dream’ statement. What is your big, beautiful dream? After finishing Succeed and Soar’s Albert Einstein wisdoms series, I wanted a woman’s wise words. I’ve always been inspired by this post’s featured quote and love closing with more encouragement from Eleanor Roosevelt, the first lady who saw the United States through World War II, diplomat and human rights activist, The future is literally in our hands to mold as we like. But we cannot wait until tomorrow. Tomorrow is now. Onward & Upward! Sandra Gould Ford Presenting arts experiences to encourage, refresh, enrich creative thinking and inspire. Celebrate! June 27: National Bingo Day Bingo began in Italy in 1530 as a lottery. This fun way to make friends and, maybe, some money finally reached the United States 400 years. Enjoy a game or two. History of bingo. Also, June 27: National Sunglasses Day While this event exists to remind about protecting our eyes from the sun’s ultraviolet rays, National Sunglasses Day is also a chance to look really cool while staying safe. July 1st: International Joke Day Jokes are written or spoken words that make people smile or laugh. To be armed and dangerous with jokes, here are over 100, which include: What do you call a pig that does karate? A pork chop. July 2nd: World UFO Day exists to explore the possibilities that extra-terrestrial life may be visiting earth. While the History Channel’s Ancient Aliens Series provides lots of a persuasive info, a Pentagon Task Force has just issued a report on what it calls UAPs, Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon So, July 2nd looks like a great time to watch and discuss the original, 1950s movie The Day The Earth Stood Still or Independence Day, Close Encounters of The Third Kind or War of The Worlds. Eleanor’s Insights Collection Succeed and Soar’s “Eleanor’s Insights” series is illustrated with my photographs of ‘wild places,’ with no signs of people, except this debut image. Can you see me? This week’s photograph was taken while exploring Utah’s amazing Canyonlands. As I looked for images to accompany Eleanor Roosevelt’s words, this picture with desert and barren mountains meeting vast sky was ideal, even though –oops! — the sun slipped the shadow of my hands holding the camera into the lower right. Art is available as prints, framed and on canvas as well as on journals, greeting cards, weekender bags, shower curtains, puzzles and much more. Shop Here
Life Well Lived #2: Independence
Too much of a good thing can be wonderful. —Mae West On a Wise Walk as part of the Cooper Siegel’s exercise program, I spotted Mae West’s [bio] words among many quotes printed throughout the Pittsburgh Mills Mall. Her thoughts about good things were always planned as the second ‘Life Well Lived’ post, which happens to coincide with Independence Day. In researching West, I learned that fashion icon Andre Leon Talley said she was the pioneering “sexual gangster” who blazed trails for Cher, Madonna, Rihanna and Beyonce. Among Mae West’s many, most quoted quips are: A hard man is good to find. Is that a gun in your pocket or are you happy to see me? I’ll try anything once, twice if I like it and three times to make sure. She began making movies in her forties. One year, her earnings came in second, a bit behind fabulously rich William Randolph Hearst. This wealth let West buy a building and remove the ban that denied entrance to a black friend. In the United States, July 4 celebrates this country’s Declaration of Independence from British rule. This day can also spark individual declarations of independence from inhibiting beliefs so that lives well lived can be built on more personally healthy and pleasing foundations. NOTE: The videos offered with each post are chosen for visual interest, inspiration, ideas and brevity. This week, enjoy Mae West. These financial resources are offered in my region. Check for similar support in your area. Small Business Assistance Pennsylvania grants ranging from $5,000 to $50,000 are available to qualifying enterprises that have suffered financially due to COVID-19. The first of several rounds opened June 30 and runs for ten days. Information & Application. Emergency Funding for Artists of Color. $500 grants are offered to artists living in Southwestern Pennsylvania’s nine counties. Funds can be used for rent, groceries, childcare, bills, etc. Apply here. Please share with those who could benefit. Each week, a featured item is offered at 25% off [plus any discounts offered by my Galleries]. This week, “Lacy Purple” is on sale. Also “Baby Grapes” from last week. Shop here. Thank you to everyone who visits the galleries and for your purchases. They support Succeed and Soar. NOTE The original image was shot with a Nikon Coolpix camera. The jpg was “developed” in Adobe Photoshop Elements 14. In addition to enriching the color saturation and vibrance, the image was processed through a filter that gives the Watercolor effect.