beatrixjansen's Blog

My best liked season,Spring is only weeks away and it is the perfect time to really enjoy the "Simple Pleasures" and "Magical Moments" around us.It is a time for joyful discoveries.
Isn't it a wonderful feeling,to see the flower bulbs you planted way back,suddenly burst through the earth and blessing you with beautiful flowers?
Discovering,that a favourite plant,you thought was dead, is showing small ,new leaves is exciting.
Birds are coming back singing their most beautiful songs Butterflies in the most gorgeous array of colors are fluttering around and are a pleasure to behold.Squirrels are chasing each other ,jumping from tree to tree.
Isn't this a wonderful world?
Spring symbolizes hope. Nature is a great teacher.Just like the "awakening" of Spring,we can awaken the desires and goals buried deep inside of us and share these wonderful gifts with the world.This will enrich our lives and the lives of those we touch everyday
What a wonderful world indeed we live in.

Last Friday I had the pleasure of being invited to the USA premiere of a Dutch movie titled: "Love is All." The movie
was excellent,it was both humorous and profound.
I met with friends and enjoyed a very pleasant evening.The message of the movie was, that in the end all that matters is Love.It looked at love in the lives of several people ,both singles and couples.
What happens in the beginning and at the end is of no consequence, what happens in between is what really matters.There were wonderful messages throughout the presentation.We laughed alot and also had tears in our eyes
at times.Driving home and thinking about some of the episodes in the movie I realized,that indeed "Love is all."
The intense feeling of connection with nature, is love for God's creation.The magical moments spent with friends , is love.The feeling of joy watching a magnificent sunset, is love. Looking into my dogs' eyes and seeing so much pure devotion, is love.I can keep on going,
In the end these are the feelings,that stay in your heart and soul. When the time comes for us to leave this earth,what do you think you will recall? All the money you made or how successful you were, the big house you built? I don't think so,At that moment I believe we will recall the things that touched us most,the love of our family and friends,the good and fun times we spend together,the people ,who cared enough about us to give us their support,the friend ,who helped us through a difficult situation with love and dedication as long as needed.When we see that homeless person and our heart goes out to him,,that's love.When we give a smile to a stranger and his or her eyes lighten up.That's love.This is the kind of Love,that Jesus talked about. That's why ":what happens in the beginning or at the end doesn't matter." What matters is how we live our life in between the beginning and the end. What matters is how much love we spread around in that space. At the end that's all we will remember and take with us.For me the most important is to know,that I gave love freely and with joy.When we experience the simple pleasures and magical moments in life,that's pure love in action.

Recently I watched a documentary on Public Television about the relationship between man and his pets,namely dogs and cats.
I have three dogs ,they are rescues., All the dogs I've had were discarded or abused or let go .They are the best friends I have, because they don't care what I look like,how much money I have, if my house is small or large, they are with me no matter what.They don't judge me or criticize me. They truly accept me for who I am. I remember after my house was destroyed by hurricane Andrew,my two dogs at the time didn't care,that I was homeless. When I couldn't find a place to stay with them I decided to come back into my home,even though it was deemed unsafe. No hot water,no electricity,a makeshift roof by a caring soul,a small ,folding bed borrowed from a friend.
It was November and cold. The plastic replacing the roof was making so much noise during the night and when it rained ,the only place dry was where the bed was.
The three of us huddled together on that bed, I still don't know how we did it, because ,the bed was pretty narrow.They were by my side though through thick and thin.
All the pet owners in the film had such a wonderful connection to either their dog or cat and it gave me such pleasure to see grown up men showing so much love and tenderness toward their pets.
The expert trainer in the film explained,that cats appeal to our mind side and dogs to our emotional side. And she explained that the way we treat our pet has a lot to do with our personality.A husband and wife had a complete different relationship with their dog.The dog could get away with anything by him, but as soon as the wife came home,she imposed rules and the dog obeyed. By asking questions the trainer found out,that the husband was the middle child and loved to be carefree and the wife was the oldest of her siblings and had to be the responsible one.
There was one man that explained that he was saved from drinking himself to death because of his cat. While he was drinking himself to destruction for hours,no matter what ,when he opened the door,the cat was sitting there waiting for him.The cat cared about him drunk or not and this act of unconditional love
made him decide to stop drinking and get his life together.
The pleasure my dogs give me some people might not understand and I can't explain it and it is ok..My two males are by my side no matter where I am, When I am taking a shower,one of them is lying in front of the shower door until the sound of the running water stops. When I am in the kitchen they are lying right there watching me. For me the only difference with us humans is,that they cannot talk with words,but when you really care about your animal friend you can understand them perfectly.They love you for who you are,unconditionally. It touches me very deeply,when I see a homeless person walking with his dog.The dog doesn't care,that they live under a bridge,he just loves this man and stays by his side no matter what.The joy my dogs give me daily is a priceless gift.

I am amazed,that there's still a lot to be said about laughter.
I never thought,that there is so much more to laughter,than the act of laughing itself.
Laughter and relationships for instance.Don't underestimate the power of laughter to strengthen your marriage Laughter can't cure everything,but it can sure help. It is free and saves you money from having to go into therapy or visit a marriage counselour.
Do you and your husband or partner laugh together? Laughter is healthy for a marriage or partnership, both emotionally and
physically. Couples who can laugh at themselves or at their situation usually feel stronger when facing problems.
Laughter and humor relieve tension, lift spirits, and bring couples closer together
A few suggestions on how to increase Laughter and Humor in Your Marriage:
1.Be aware of the humorous moments in each day.
2.Make it a habit for each member of your family to share at dinner something funny that happened to them or whenever you get together as a family.
3,Having a sense of humor as a couple can help keep your relationship fresh.
4.Sharing funny jokes and cartoons with each other.
5.Remembering funny times in your past together.
Laugh yourself to a stronger, healthier marriage or relationship.

Every Sunday morning one of my real pleasures is to watch and listen to Joel Osteen.
Yesterday the title of his message was:" The Healing Power of Laughter".A few blogs ago I wrote about "The Magical Healing Energy of Laughter" and after listening to Joel today , the importance of laughter hit me again.
Laughter ,truly is medicine for the soul and the body. The healing power of laughter is stronger,than any medicine we can take. People have come of medicine,just by engaging in laughter daily,not just smiling,but laughter ,that resonates through your whole being.
Joel mentioned,that the average child laughs about 200 times per day and an adult about 4. We need to reconnect with that child within,
Laughter will add years to our life, it will improve our immune system,lower our blood pressure,make us sleep better,increase creativity by triggering the right side of our brain, release endorphins, our natural tranquilizers.
How long has it been since you laughed so much,that you couldn't stop? And that every time you remembered that incident you burst out laughing again?
In these times,more than ever laughter is needed.
Sometimes we are so busy pursuing after our success,that we become too serious.We all desire to stay healthy so we can enjoy our successes.So let's deliberately find time to laugh alot, but laughing so much,that it hurts,but it is a "good" hurt.
Just watch one funny movie or sitcom daily and see how you will feel after one week.And as I mentioned in my other blog, if you can share the laughter with someone else it will double the pleasure and the healing.

Coming from an island surrounded by the most beautiful ,clear ,white sanded,blue ocean,I have always been fascinated with sea life.
As a young girl, I remember standing behind my house and watching a whole school of sharks swim by, the fins sticking out. At the beach,going for a swimming in that crystal clear water, it was a wonderful sight to see all kind of fish swimming around you ,The colours and shapes were absolutely beautiful. Sometimes whole schools of small colourful fish would swim right underneath you.Once in awhile you would see a huge sea turtle slowly swimming by or a swordfish jumping several feet out of the water. To this day I am fascinated by the magic of sea life and I love going to sea aquariums where I can enjoy God's magnificent work of art in action and His gift to us. I am always in awe of these amazing creatures sharing the immense ocean together. It's a "Simple Pleasure" and it is free for our enjoyment.

When you decide to go out for a walk and you notice things around that inspire you and sometimes even give you goosebumps, it is a wonderful experience. It lifts up your spirits; and doubts and misgivings you might have had before disappear.
Want to double your pleasure and feelings of joy ? Invite a friend or friends to go on a walk with you . .
Why not get a few like-minded friends together and decide to meet once a week,every two weeks or even once per month and share moments of pleasure.You will give your friends a wonderful gift and you will double your own joy by sharing with others.