My List

If I am truly going to be Relentlessly Looking for Beauty (RL4B), I have to admit that I can't post 500 words about everything I witness. So for those smaller, but no less important items, I'll keep a running list on this page. Plus, if I ever run out of things to write about, I can just grab something from here.

  • fresh-cut grass
  • a waving flag
  • Aspen trees
  • warm rain
  • house plants
  • pajamas 
  • snow on the mountains
  • beams of sunlight
  • people reaching out to each other 
  • book clubs 
  • sweat pants
  • tomato soup 
  • Halloween costume parties 
  • peaceful elections 
  • a church family 
  • warm houses on a cold winter day

Popular Posts

Remember Your Purpose

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I am so thankful to be home.  This does not mean it’s been easy.  We’ve struggled to set up routines and bring in home health three or four times a week.  In addition, I’ve had several appointments with various doctors requiring uncomfortable rides to town and back.   I found myself wishing I wasn’t so busy.   Then I started thinking about the reason for all my meetings.  It was about healing.  Isn’t that my goal? So I’ve taken a new perspective of gratitude and responsibility.  Healing is my job right now and I’m blessed to be able to do it at home rather than in a hospital.  So when I feel like life is too busy I remember my goal and it makes it easier to endure. Where do you find purpose? How can you be grateful for it?
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Where Are Your Tires?

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This past weekend I found so much beauty that it can't be summed up in one picture, or even one post. Granted, we were camping in the mountains of Montana, so there wasn't anything relentless about seeing the beauty, but we were relentless in finding it. When we head to the hills, we like to camp near the trail heads for riding our ATVs. Montana's National Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management have designated hundreds of miles of trails for motorized use (most were historically used for logging and mining endeavors). Though myriad entities have bought acreage in our state, many of these trails which cross private ground were maintained for public use (as long as you stick to the trail!). This is a beauty in itself, especially for a person like me who would otherwise not be able to access these places without a motor and some wheels. On one particularly long and arduous trail, I rode with my dad in his side-by-side (picture a cross between a golf cart an
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Update on Lisa - Guest Post from Kara Nelson, Lisa’s Sister

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  An Update From Kara:  Lisa is in the Mayo Clinic ICU still, but improving. Over a month ago, she came here for a feeding tube placement. And, after overcoming major complications with internal bleeding and kidney issues, she was all set to go home when about a week ago, she came down with a sepsis blood infection and her body went into septic shock. She was extremely fatigued, her kidneys stopped functioning, she had hypotension (low blood pressure), and a lot of fluid retention. Lisa was very sick, and to be honest, we didn’t know if she was going to make it. Doctors treated Lisa with many life-saving medications (up to eight IV bags hung at one time), several rounds of paracentesis (removing fluid from her abdomen), blood transfusions, and dialysis. The sepsis infection is now gone, her numbers are stable, her fluid retention is much better, her eyes are brighter, her voice has returned, and she’s been able to sit up once or twice a day. Currently, she is still on dialysis full tim
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The New Normal: A Global Concert

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It's not a new concept to bring celebrities and musical artists together in one event to raise funds and awareness for a global issue. Just look at the music festivals like Farm Aid, Band Aid, and Live Aid. These events bring people together in a swell of goodwill and celebration to support an important cause. But what happens when concerts are cancelled? When large group  gatherings  are prohibited? This week, Global Citizen had an answer. As an established organization that brings the world's biggest challenges to the forefront, they were in the perfect position to create a virtual concert to say thanks to the frontline workers & ask people to stay home during the COVID-19 pandemic. And I almost missed it. My sister called during the first part of the eight-hour event and told me, "You should turn on the TV. We've been watching this concert and dancing around the house. It's been great!" She sounded so joyful, I was intrigued. I co
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Marking Time With Beauty

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Today is my nephew's fourth birthday, and it has reminded me not only of the changes associated with growing up, but also of how quickly time passes. When I look back on the last four years of my life, it's easy  to focus on what I've lost. Feb 2015 - The long hair that I loved to style has since been cut short due to my fatiguing arm muscles.  - Though I had just gotten my wheelchair, I only used it for certain tasks whereas today, I use it every time I leave the house.  - And I used to be able to take a nap anywhere, be it car, couch, or reclining lawn chair, but now I need a machine to support my breathing every time I want to sleep. But then I look at my nephew and see the beauty I have gained. Feb 2019 - I get a running hug from him each time I visit, and I am able to hug him in return. - He gets excited to show me what he's working on, whether it's building a creation with blocks, describing his imaginative world, or lining up and organiz
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Beauty at the Edge

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For the last two years, I have gone to Moab, Utah to camp and ride the trails. One of the Jeep roads goes through Hurrah Pass, and it took us on a winding path through steep canyon walls. We happened to look up just as we rounded a corner and saw a red rock, precariously balanced at the edge of the cliff. Shawn and I both felt it's beauty as we reached for the camera. When reviewing the pictures at home, I chose to print a set of small, blank cards with this image and superimposed the line There is beauty at the edge . Then I stored them on a shelf with my other greeting cards for later use. Two weeks ago, I opened my card boxes, looking for the perfect one to give to a close acquaintance who was retiring earlier than she had planned, and my hands gravitated toward the balanced rock. Sitting down to gather my thoughts, I wrote that though she may feel as if she had been pushed to the edge, my hope for her was to find some beauty in the experience. A few days after her ret
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Beauty on the Bad Days

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Last Sunday, I had a serious case of the blah's. I had slept okay, but my energy level was on the floor and I was out of breath with the tiniest movements. I was lugging around extra weight from PMS fluid retention, made worse by my enlarged heart failing to keep pace with its pumping efficiency. I wanted to stay in bed. But I didn't. I put my complaints to the side and went to church, knowing from past experience that I never regret making the effort to attend once I'm there. However, once the service let out, I was keen to get home and eat my lunch in front of the television. And I was secretly hoping that my husband would abandon his plans of going for a ride in the mountains, so I could put on my sweats and lose myself on the couch. But he didn't. Instead, he loaded up our UTV (side-by-side) and asked if I was ready to go. At that moment I had a choice to make: I could beg off, citing my frumpy feelings and let him do one of my favorite things without me, OR
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Noticing + Gratitude = Beauty

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Part of relentless looking for beauty is noticing and being grateful for the things in your life that are often overlooked. It's why I've incorporated a gratitude practice into my daily routine, and it helps give me perspective when I'm going through a valley. When making my lists of things for which I am thankful, I try to add new items each day as a way to broaden my awareness. Of course I'm still grateful for my husband and family, but I want to push myself beyond the obvious and put some intentional thought into my practice. However, sometimes I get stumped! When that happens, I go to my senses for ideas. What do I see, taste, smell, feel, or hear that fills me with gratitude? Here's an example: Sight : Sitting in my kitchen, I see curtains on my windows, and I'm grateful for the privacy, warmth, and darkness they provide. Taste : I'm eating a delicious, homemade salad, and I'm grateful for fresh produce, tangy dressing, and flavorful se
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Answered Prayer at Mayo Clinic

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I have been doing dialysis over a month for acute kidney failure. Each day labs have been reviewed and checked for progress and each day my kidneys were still not functioning. During the last week, the labs indicated my kidneys were showing signs of waking up. Thursday’s dialysis was postponed followed by Friday’s and Saturday’s.  On Sunday, right after viewing church on line, the kidney doctor came in and announced my kidneys had improved enough I no longer needed dialysis. All at once, I smiled, clapped my hands, and my eyes filled with tears of profound gratitude.  I was overwhelmed by the positive impact it would have on my plans to come home.  However, I still have a big obstacle yet to overcome in healing my severe pressure wounds. This and physical therapy will be my main focus as I look toward discharge.   Thank you for your continued thoughts and prayers. They’re working! Love, Lisa
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The Beauty of Accepting Help

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I could not have made it through this weekend without help. My grandma passed away last week   at age 95  in Missouri, where she had lived for over seventy years.  To attend her funeral services I had to figure out how to get there with my limited physical abilities and my necessary medical equipment.  My usual companion is my husband, Shawn, but he was unavailable to leave town. My parents were making the thirteen-hundred mile drive, but that would be five or six days in a car, round trip; not feasible for my schedule or my body! My only other choice was flying, but I knew it would be near impossible to travel by myself. This is where the first helper stepped in - my sister, Kara. She found us flights leaving early Friday morning and returning late Sunday night and gladly agreed to haul my luggage and push my wheelchair in addition to managing her own belongings and her two-year-old son. Upon arriving at the airport, it was clear that we were going to need help.   Items to c
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