Monday's Warm Cocoa, 14 October 2024, "Free Lunch"

“Someone anonymously paid our son’s tuition for the full year!” – Jeremiah Johnson

Free Lunch

“Anonymous.” 

The word stuck as Jeremiah spoke it. He was telling me a story. It was a story of giving.

Nature was giving us the perfect evening. The temperature was in the mid-seventies, there was a slight breeze, and the live music was comforting, without being too loud. All of this combined to allow me to sit back comfortably and listen to Jeremiah’s answer to a question.

“How is your son doing in his new school,” I asked.

“He’s doing well,” Jeremiah responded. “Have I told you what happened?”

“No,” I said. “Please tell me.”

“Our friend suggested we apply to a small private school near our new home,” He started.

Jeremiah, his wife and their son moved to a different state two or three months ago. He was back in town for a Friday and Saturday business visit. It was the perfect opportunity to spend Friday evening together; to hear how anonymous generosity turned into free lunch for kids needing help.

“After our son was accepted into his new school he and I went in to complete his registration,” he continued. “As soon as we finished all of the paperwork. I pulled out my checkbook and asked what amount I should fill in for tuition. You can imagine my surprise to hear, ‘there is no need for you to pay anything. An anonymous donor has paid his tuition for the entire year.’”

“You have no idea who it is?” I asked, because of curiosity.

“No,” he answered, with a peaceful look of gratitude glowing from his face, through the dimming dusk.

That could have been Jeremiah’s final answer to my question. But, he didn’t end the story there!

“When my son and I got home we shared our tale of anonymous generosity with my wife,” he continued.

His wife was stunned and they all shed tears together before they received and inspiring idea.

“We had the money to pay our son’s tuition,” Jeremiah continued. “So, when inspiration hit us, we set our ‘Free Lunch’ plan into motion.”

As a result, another anonymous donor now provides a generous monthly deposit into their son’s school’s nourishment department, to provide free lunch for students needing a little extra help.

“Anonymous!” 

The word stuck as Jeremiah spoke it. He had just told me a story. A story of inspired giving.

Nature gifted us the perfect evening for such a story to be told. The temperature was in the mid-seventies, there was a light breeze, and the live music was comforting, without being too loud. All of this combined to allow me to sit back comfortably and listen to Jeremiah’s explanation of how a “Free Lunch,” has become a reality, no matter what his son learns in his coming economics class.

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I’ve helped thousands of people, as a real estate & lifestyle expert, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve Realesation™. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Both Sides of the Fence, About the Dish, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QOrnyleXDNG8ASRHxr4_CwbcY9FVUUse/view?usp=sharing

"Sharing Breakfast," Monday's Warm Cocoa - 7 October 2024

“Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.” – Dalai Lama

Sharing Breakfast

“Hey, I want to get together for breakfast,” Anu said, as we greeted each other during a 1 Million Cups gathering.

Because we’re friends and I always feel broadened after our conversations together, I quickly responded with, “Sure.” 

I feel broadened partly because of Anu’s wide, welcoming smile, but there’s more to him than his big, infectious grin. This was confirmed again on Friday morning, as the aroma of freshly made breakfast filled our nostrils. Good food seems to be a familiar scent that has become a constant companion whenever Anu and I get together to talk. It isn't the food itself that I most look forward to, but the stories he tells between each bite, stories that fluidly reveal his own, personal, evolving path.

Five years ago, Anu, a geneticist with a promising career, found himself at a conference, a world away from his lab. It was there he met Scott Ford, a man whose passion for transforming the lives of Rwandan coffee farmers ignited a spark within him. Scott's vision, to double the income of these farmers, resonated deeply with Anu, stirring a quiescent desire to make a real difference in the world.

Scott's story, which is itself a testament to the power of purpose, resonated with Anu's own yearning for a life beyond the confines of his scientific pursuits. He saw an opportunity to use his skills and knowledge to empower others, to create a ripple effect of positive change.

So, Anu made the decision to leave his secure job, as a geneticist, to be part of Westrock Coffee's mission. His was a leap of faith, a testament to the transformative power of singular belief. It was a journey that led him to dive deep inside, to discover who he is and what he wants to do with his life.

His time at Westrock opened his eyes to more than the vast potential within the coffee supply chain. He saw an opportunity to reimagine himself, to unlock latent potential, to use his natural and developing talents to assist African farmers.

Dalai Lama said, “Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.”

Anu's life, is evidence to the power of inspiration, purpose, and friendship, as well as a reminder that even the smallest act of kindness, a conversation over a cup of coffee or breakfast, can have a profound impact on each one of us, as well as on the world. He’s still a geneticist, splicing his unique skills with others to create a future where African farmers are not just producers, but partners in a shared vision of prosperity.

Who will you share breakfast with?

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I’ve helped thousands of people, as a real estate & lifestyle expert, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve Realesation™. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Both Sides of the Fence, About the Dish, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QOrnyleXDNG8ASRHxr4_CwbcY9FVUUse/view?usp=sharing

"Every Day" Monday's Warm Cocoa, 30 September 2024

"Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value" – Albert Einstein

Every Day

Mark was sitting comfortably across the table from me. We were there together, well, just to get together. He was talking about the big shift that happened in his life.

“I don’t live to accumulate things as a sign of success anymore,” he said. “I came to realize that the only real impact a person can have in life comes through building one-on-one relationships.”

If there was any doubt about Mark’s sincerity it all vanished, as his eyes became misty as he tried to continue. There was a noticeable hitch in his voice as he tried to speak again.

“I’m sorry to get emotional,” he said. “it’s just that that this is so important to me. It’s become the way I live my life.”

That’s when Albert Einstein’s words, “Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value,” came to my mind.

Mark wasn’t even aware of this epigram running through my mind as he continued.

“I’ve made my life simple by focusing on one specific goal every day,” Mark continued.

He went on to say that he follows the same key value-creation ritual every day.

“I look for one person to make a new, genuine connection with each day, someone who is often over looked,” He clarified.

Mark actively seeks at least one person he feels could have their day made brighter by an honest, personal engagement. He often seeks people who are actively engaging with the public, yet are mostly ignored. A good example of this is a person working at a gas filling station. The person working there to make sure all of the pumps are working well.

“There are so many people who are surrounded by people for the majority of their work day, yet they’re seemingly invisible to those round-about them. I take time to actively engage with them. I’m not always successful. There are some who just don’t want to have any interaction. But, I try. If I can’t make a connection, I know I tried, at least.”

If he can’t make a true connection with the first person he tries to engage with, he knows he hasn’t met his goal for the day. When that happens, he simply keeps looking for another opportunity. And, he doesn’t limit himself to one per day. He’s always looking for others to connect with.

“The only thing we can leave behind, when our life is finished, are the people we’ve impacted through relationship,” Mark said just before his eyes filled with more emotion-disclosing mist.

“I came here today to be with you. Let’s talk about what you need now.”

Mark was still sitting comfortably across the table from me. We were there together, well, just to get together. He was teaching me about the big shift that happened, and keeps happening, in his life.

What kind of change will come to your life as a result of embracing Mark’s goal of creating value by making a personal connection with someone you don’t know yet, every day?______________________________________________

I’ve helped thousands of people, as a real estate & lifestyle expert, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve Realesation™. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Both Sides of the Fence, About the Dish, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QOrnyleXDNG8ASRHxr4_CwbcY9FVUUse/view?usp=sharing

Monday's Warm Cocoa, 23 September 2024 - "A Red Plate"

Lachlan McKnight continuing the Red Plate Tradition

A Red Plate!

Lachlan lives in New York City. That’s a long way from Ogden, Utah, where his great grandmother, Carol Butterfield lived most of her life. And, Lachlan never met her. She passed away long before he was born. Yet, his mother personally knows her as Grandma B.

Grandma B had a close relationship with her grandchildren and she holds a special place in the hearts of my children. That’s because of her munificence. She allowed us to share her home for a couple of years while we planned and constructed our home in Erda, Utah. My kids were very young then and as a result she created a bond with them that lives deep in their hearts. I can see her impact, even now as all three of my girls have spouses and live far from their high desert homestead.

I saw her impact again this week as I received a photo of nearly-two-year-old Lachlan standing on his cooking stool, smoothing frosting on the birthday cake he and his mother were creating for his father. Birthday cakes are a common tradition. So, that’s not what caught my eye here. It was the red plate sitting under that being-prepared cake that merited a stuck-stare.

Grandma B had a red plate birthday celebration tradition. And, she taught my children this simple tradition. When we would sit together to celebrate a loved-one’s birthday she would pull out her special red birthday plate. It was a plate only used for this specific practice and it was placed in front of the person whose birthday we were celebrating. It set this person apart, allowing them to feel special. And, it worked!

Our children looked forward to having the red plate identify them as being special. They knew we were all celebrating their presence in our lives. They knew they were loved.

That love-bond expanded as our girls married and their Grandma B gifted a cherished red plate to them. They received the gift with anticipation and gratitude, knowing it was different from all other wedding gifts they would receive. It was a gift from the heart, requesting a continuation of the red plate tradition. An ask that they would use it to let their current and to-come-loved-ones taste everlasting love.

Lachlan was born in love and lives in New York City. That’s a long way from Ogden, Utah where his great grandmother, Carol Butterfield lived most of her life. And, Lachlan has never met her. She passed away long before he was born. Yet, his mother has passed Grandma B’s generation-spanning love to him. Lachlan knows of and participates in Grandma B’s red plate tradition. 

Who would have thought that a simple red plate could play such a role in celebrating love and tie generations together?

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I’ve helped thousands of people, as a real estate & lifestyle expert, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve Realesation™. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Both Sides of the Fence, About the Dish, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QOrnyleXDNG8ASRHxr4_CwbcY9FVUUse/view?usp=sharing

It's a Great Day - Monday's Warm Cocoa - 16 September 2024

“It is a great day!” – Landon Johnson

A Great Day!

“These are my favorite,” Landon said as he opened his brown paper bagged lunch. “I don’t get to eat them very often,” he said as he opened a bag of nacho flavor Doritos corn chips. “So, when I do have them in my lunch I eat them first!”

Sitting down to eat a picnic lunch on a Friday is also something Landon and I don’t do very often. And, this day just happened to be a perfect weather day. It was a bright day set with billowy floating clouds, punctuated by a bright blue sky and a comfortable temperature, all combining to create a perfect setting.

“Have you had a good day?” I asked.

“It’s a great day!” Landon answered.

“What’s made it a great day?”

“I get to spend time with you,” He responded.

His words hit with the force only capable of being generated by the unexpected. You know what its like. It was as if someone had suddenly jumped out from and around a blind corner, shouting boo! Such a thing causes an adrenaline rush which jolts your entire body. Then, when you see the initiating party, and it’s a friend, comforting relief rushes in to push the high pressure out, to usher in a comforting, soothing low pressure. It’s effect is an all-encompassing feeling of peace and joy.

Such peace and joy were now securely implanted, as a result Landon’s surprising words. And, all other external factors, the puffy clouds, deep blue sky and pleasant temperature, were instantly and simply relegated to, nice picnic embellishments, facilitating and opening the way for the full appreciation of a cherished moment.

“These are my favorite,” Landon said as he opened his brown-paper-bagged lunch. “I don’t get to eat them very often,” he said as he opened a bag of nacho flavor Doritos corn chips. “So, when I do have them in my lunch, I eat them first!”

Sitting down for a Friday picnic with Landon is also something I don’t get to do very often. And, this day of picnicking was a perfect-condition day. A day with billowy, floating clouds, punctuated by bright blue sky. It was an impeccable setting. But, they weren’t the characteristics making it a great day.

What made it a truly great day, the most important element, was spending attentive-time with a loved-one.

Well. Okay, the fingers and mouth covered in a dusting of tasty nacho chip seasoning added a lot to the ambiance too!

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I’ve helped thousands of people, as a real estate & lifestyle expert, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve Realesation. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Both Sides of the Fence, About the Dish, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vQ1IEEKnTvQfoeb_CB_ftokpGvpCnJc8/view?usp=drive_link

Again, in the Future? Monday's Warm Cocoa - 9 September 2024

“Lynn? Is that right?” – Brianna Carey

Again, in the Future?

I had a question roaming my mind, after seeing people I had met in completely different locations over the past few days.

“Hi, I met you two yesterday at a lunch event a couple of days ago,” I said in greeting.

“Yes,” they responded, before reintroducing themselves.”

“Interesting, meeting them here again unexpectedly,” I thought.

I kept walking and in a moment someone else approached me radiantly.

“Lynn?” She asked. “I’m Brianna.”

I must have looked a little baffled, because she immediately reached one of her hands to remove her sun glasses. I recognized her immediately.

“Oh yes!” I rejoined, as her husband Mark came up to greet me as well.

Unexpected meetings didn’t end then! The bustling First Friday festival continued all around. And, a moment later, someone else approached saying, “Hey, I met you at $1 Million Cups, didn’t I?”

Was all of this meant to be? After all, there are many stories where people have walked their own paths, leaving memories and people behind. Then, later in life, they stumbling across each other again, restoring memories and bonds together.

Fate, if you believe in that sort of thing, has an interesting way of connecting people and potentially surprising with the unexpected. One never knows!

So, I continued marveling as the evening progressed. And, I decided to focus on and enjoy the surprises. 

Brianna, Mark and their two young kids walked past my office again a few minutes later. I invited them in to enjoy an ice-cream bar. We talked more. Then, right after they left, Mark sent me a text message asking to schedule a get-together one day in the coming week.

Focusing on the present certainly opens possibilities of keeping, building and creating more possibilities in the future than you and I can ever imagine. After all, there isn’t any reason to dwell on what could happen later in life, if you’re not building relationships in the present.

Some may say, “What happens, simply happens.” But “again, in the future” can only happen if you’ve invested in relationships today.

This morning, I saw a couple of men, strangers, standing on the sidewalk just outside my office door, with a shifting, uncertain gaze, so I stepped out to see if I could help them.

“Can I help you find something?” I asked.

“We’re looking for a place to watch the game?” They answered.

“Then you’ve found it,” I said, “Come on in. What game are you wanting to watch?”

They told me. I changed the channel and they made themselves comfortable for a couple of hours. 

Again, in the future? Who knows!

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I’ve helped thousands of people, as a real estate & lifestyle expert, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve Realesation. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Both Sides of the Fence, About the Dish, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vQ1IEEKnTvQfoeb_CB_ftokpGvpCnJc8/view?usp=drive_link

Monday's Warm Cocoa, 2 September 2024, "Sparks of Joy"

“We have a pond.” – My Grandsons.

Sparks of Joy

Yesterday was quite blustery. The expected morning rain never materialized. But, not to be completely stingy, while still being unpredictable, Mother Nature sent promised rain in the afternoon. It rained for a couple of hours and the darkness of the rainclouds caused many to feel as if evening had arrived early.

Perhaps the late afternoon felt even a little darker, and more like evening, after working for the entire day. Nonetheless, it was dinner time, albeit an early dinner, and rather than giving an extra jolt of energy, the food seemed to confirm that an evening shutdown was the proper order of things. Yet, one dinging notification arrived in-between bites.

“We’re heading to our property. If you want to come by, you can.”

The weather outside was not as dismal as it had been. But, its gloomy, roiling internal remnant remained, causing a hesitation to accept the kindly invitation. You know about such inner debates. We all face them.

One side said, “I’m tired and don’t want to go out.” The other side responded with, “Remember that article you just read about “micro-acts of joy?”

“This is the emotional illusion that we’re susceptible to over-prioritizing moments of unpleasantness,” Dr. Emiliana R. Simon-Thomas, the science director at UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science says. “Shifting your perspective is an exercise in looking at those difficult moments from a high vantage point, and reimagining how this unpleasantness might be a catalyst for some growth, or some new learning, or perhaps a positive outcome.”

Who can’t benefit from a positive outcome in today’s world? I sure can. So, I decided to give it a try by accepting the invitation and shifting my location.

After a short ten-minute drive, I saw one little grandson lying belly down, with his head peering over the edge of their pond’s dock. He was talking with his older brother, who was in the water swimming. They were getting ready to climb on their family’s paddleboard, so they could giggle more and paddle around together, under the now bright azure sky. I sat on the edge of their pond watching them play in the water-laced-sunshine.

Sunshine filled my heart instantly! Because of being part of two boys’ simple, joyful micro-act. 

“This is how ‘moments of unpleasantness’ can change in an instant,” the poignant words of the article embedded, as the two boys came rushing toward me, squealing joyfully in unison.

“We have a pond!”

We, all of us, have access to such humble sparks of joy. Let’s let them flame-out illusionary unpleasantness through acceptance and seeking-out of simple, micro-moments of happiness.

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I’ve helped thousands of people, as a real estate & lifestyle expert, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve Realesation. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Both Sides of the Fence, About the Dish, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vQ1IEEKnTvQfoeb_CB_ftokpGvpCnJc8/view?usp=drive_link