Here’s the true secret of life: We mostly do everything over and over. In the morning, we let the dogs out, make coffee, read the paper, help whoever is around get ready for the day. We do our work. In the afternoon, if we have left, we come home, put down our keys and satchels, let the dogs out, take off constrictive clothing, make a drink or put water on for tea, toast the leftover bit of scone. I love ritual and repetition. Without them, I would be a balloon with a slow leak.
~ Anne Lamott, Stitches: A Handbook on Meaning, Hope and Repair
Notes: Photo – Mennyfox55
Live & Learn 
I’m with Anne 🙂
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Ah Annie…the first gift of the morning…
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It is….
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Ahhhh, loved this, and enjoyed reading it just after pouring my coffee, feeding and pottying the dogs and skimming the morning news. 😉 Anne is one wise woman….
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She is…have a good week Lori
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rituals offer us a sense of calm and balance.
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They do. I’m out of sorts otherwise.
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Yes, the little rituals of the day become the glue that holds our life together.
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Nicely put.
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Thanks.
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We need our rituals. I agree with Beth 🙂
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We “NEED” them…. 🙂
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What she states is true, but how could she leave out; reading Live & Learn each morning?
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Ha! There’s more Truth!
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Omg, I’m the Queen of routine….to a fault.
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Wonderful! Resonates very strongly indeed.
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Great….
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I love this….For me, the ordinary moments of life are truly the extraordinary. We don’t need to wait for the big deal.
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Yes…and there’s the point. Right there.
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Good morning as I sit in front of my coffee, checking e-mails! Excellent quote from one of my favorite authors.
Must share- thank you.
Carrie
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Excellent. Thanks Carrie…
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Reblogged this on Carrie's Bench and commented:
Monday morning and the familiar…
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Perfect start to a great week!
Long live ritual…”the true secret of life.”
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Yes!
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It all comes down to our awareness of the everyday ordinary moments that bring life into balance.
Without awareness they are simply habits that keep us in a rut….
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So true Val.
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Some routines are comforting. Others, I find annoying because they are Sisyphean (like rolling a stone uphill only to let it roll down again) – dishes, making the bed, vacuuming.
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So true!
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It’s a grand bliss to cross that bridge, the one from routine to Ritual.
It’s a one way path, no returns.
Beautiful words and delightful photo.
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Deep!
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The great equilibrium.
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Yes!
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When I read this, my first thought was, “how sad, life can be so mundane”. Having routine is comforting, though breaking routine occasionally can add excitement and break boredom.
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Agree!
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I like routines, but sometimes I like to change the order of the routine so as not to become bored
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And, I need to do that more often…
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