Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NS_ROi0iiZwWell…
Weather, decent livelihood and family. (check?)
Doctrine, virtual friends and a blog. (check?)
Health, friends and a robust imagination. (check?)
…a Book of Secret Rules (aka the Secret Book of Rules). completo!
Well.
Yeah, even for the Doctrine, this is peu là-bas, but as our european friends are inclined to say, ‘well, just make the best of it, ok?”
While we have met the requirements of the Ten Things of Thankful bloghop, we are still a little short in the standards, which, for New Readers and/or participants, are brief yet quite demanding: provide Ten Things that you are thankful today for and convince us, (the other participants), that you would be willing and comfortable telling us (this) List, were we all to find ourselves at a cocktail party or cookout some day.
(If I may), the value of this gratitude exercise, for me, is in gaining an additional perspective. We live our lives and do things and get things, have things happen to us and do things for other people, but, for the most part it is ‘on the fly’…we simply do it. This bloghop requires us to remember or recall or recollect or even just notice that something good happened (to us, to our family, our friends even our dog). This ‘separate-from-the act’ makes all the difference in the world (imo). (Last week I was talkmenting to Kristi (‘K2’ Kristi, though in this case, I could very well say the same thing and get the same reception from ‘Kristi’ Kristi)… in any event, her, (K2’s Post), had to do with ”re-framing’ bad things that happened in her week, into things that she felt grateful for (I don’t think she would say it quite that way, but hopeful you get the idea). In any event, in my Comment, I used the word, ‘witnessing’. I hesitated in my decision to use this particular word. My perception is that this word, in general usage, has a certain religious connotation. My understanding of K2, from the admittedly limited view of a blog visited once or twice a week, is that religion is a very significant aspect of her life, (as it is with many), so I was concerned that my usage of this term, while not all that far from her’s, is decidedly non-religious. A long way of saying, ‘to be able to witness an act of seeing the good in what appears to be the bad is a rather beneficial thing’. (yeah, I know, thats the short way to say it?)
This …perspective is one the most valuable things I get from participating in this here bloghop here, the opportunity to witness people acting the way that people are capable of, but don’t always manage to maintain.
(…I remember when I first ‘met’ Lizzi. I’ve told the story a number of times, at least the part where I was ‘met at the door and grilled mercilessly’ by my co-host (and Friend of the Doctrine) Christine. But the thing that was happening (at that time) was that Lizzi was just starting on a gratitude list thing. And, knowing that she was a clark, I understood her desire to ‘do something to help herself’, but I was totally knocked out by how she kept doing it, writing list after list, while she was in a place (one that, unfortunately, all clarks know for too well) that writing a Gratitude List was the last thing that made sense. But she did.)
cool
I still love that we do this every weekend and has made me train myself daily to find a little piece of good to be thankful for each day indeed. Happy Saturday Clark and hope you are having a great one so far :)
Janine
thank you Janine… totally get what you say.
Good schtuff.
Will try to call in this evening – :) Will be visiting the in-laws, so I don’t know how that’ll work out but I’ll try.
Cyndi
cool… (probably wouldn’t work to put them on speaker-phone, huh?) lol
And so cool, this post. Well done mf’r (in deference to characters from Mr. Tarantino)
You undoubtedly realize the challenge you present. To others. To write a TToT.
I am thankful for this bloghop because it places at my perusal so very many different blogs all in one place! Today, being “Saturday” I am lazy.
I have a song in my head and verily along David Lee Roth says “gimme something to write on”.
I say, gimme something to click on….thanks.
It’s all in the frame, my friend….
zoe
what was it that Perls was reputed to have said? ‘tru dat!’
How awesome would it be to all end up at a BBQ together?! I am loving this weekly exercise in gratitude. Such a simple concept yet I need something to hold me accountable to do it and this group is that something. I love writing my own and reading the others. It’s a great way to end one week and enter the next. I hope one week I’m adding gratitude for finally understanding this Secret Book of Rules aka Book of Secret Rules thing.
Jen
(don’t tell any of the others) but the SBoR is one omy favorite parts of the TToT. that and the acronyms
Really, Clark!? How would one know that? No one would have suspected you to be a fan of acronyms and the SBoR… huh… go figure! I want you to know that with all the nutty this week I forgot to write my list today, realized it, and wasn’t going to… until I read your post… thanks for the help…
so cuuuuuttttte hahahahaha
zoe
man! given my propensity for last minute, relying on me for deadlines… er might want to re-consider lol
I trust you clark… dunno why but …. well… its your clarkiness I think… If you recall this is the second time you saved my TToT butt.
http://rewritten-redo.blogspot.com/2013/11/omg-1-wakefield-doctrine-or-i-wouldnt.html
Dear zoe…now I get it! Isn’t there another SUPERHERO, someone we are all familiar with… A person who appears mild mannered and genteel, who goes undercover by the…
name of…clark??? !!! Is it possble? SURE IT IS!
hmmmm…. He DOES wear those glasses sometimes….I thought the S on his chest just identified his secondary scott…hmmmmm….. but with such a noticable shortage of phone booths do you really think it’s possible????
yeah, he probably has a fold up phone booth from some other galaxy! Not a prob. I wager!
I dunno, why does he drive everywhere…. I mean wouldn’t you just fly?
I’m not convinced… but then again I am a clark… everything IS possible… but he drives so badly!…I mean really… he goes through all those stop signs…would someone dedicated to truth , justice and the American way… well okay…. maybe the American way IS to ditch stop signs…hmmmm…. I gotta think about this one!
Zoe, he is in DISGUISE when he does those things!
he HAS TO drive crappy! It only proves what I am thinking!
ouch! ouch! ouch! doubled over, hurting stomach laughing soooo out loud!!!!!
You actually listed 10 things! You did it! Still not conventionally, but you DID it!
Dyanne
thank you, it is harder than I would have thought, but a little at time!
in reference to what Jen said, I would be putting mayonnaise on my french fries at a barbeque with you guys.
Thank you for the witnessing, clark. I remember a scene in Glory which stays with me forever, where they testified before they went into battle. do you know what I mean?
thanks, anyway!
jeh
jean
(lol excellent PF reference!) my favorite is Keneth Branagh doing the Feast of St Crispian’s Day speech in Henry V ( a little more militaristic than I intended in the use of witnessing, but the concept of ‘identification’ is real big around here of late… not, of course in the literal… recognition sense, but to know, on a more basic level than intellectual that a common experience is shared)
having said that, I should get to youtube and find that speech lol
I remember you referring to it, and I remember the warm, happy feeling it gave me to hear you recount it as such, because it was one of the first times I felt a bit of unclench, a bit of a lessening of fear, a bit of hope that perhaps, just maybe, it was ACTUAL.
And increasingly, with things which have gone by, and ways in which the friendship has developed, gradually and slowly, the fear has lessened and lessened until (in this case, and ya gotta love how straightforward and “Oh WHY can’t I be that unabashed about it” they are) it’s nearly gone. Assuaged. All of it.
So now I just have The Fear with certain clarks. But whatevs. I’ve been being spoon-fed some really, really good common sense by my darling ‘Merican, because SHE KNOWS. And she’s helped HUGE.
Perspective.
It’s all about perspective.
And if I could figure out how to put a check next to that, I would.
perspective is better thought of as being a process, as opposed to a product, a skill to be acquired through practice, instead of an inborn ability
ya know?
well said! xox
This was, indeed, probably the shortest list of ten individual items I’ve ever seen on here. I think the presentation was very Clark-like as well, to the point , relatable, and clear, with out much rogerian ado. I agree that this list is therapy. It’s way to easy to focus on the (oftentimes few and minor) bad things in life and forget all the good things, from the basics like health, family/friends, a jobs, to the small things in life like watching a butterfly or seeing the trees bloom. Have a great weekend, Clark!
Stephanie
it’s funny how doing this (TToT) alters how I see (doing) this TToT… I agree with you and the others and that is the amazing part! not that I am in agreement with you, but I am more able to believe that I can be in agreement with others… (only semi-deliberately obscure and dense on this one…. late commenting, proceed at your own peril!) lol
Living with gratitude is all about perspective, indeed!
Jennifer
I am coming to appreciate that… increasingly with this bloghop
I find there is always good out there, I am just more apt to miss it without my ongoing list.
I think I get that… having a list give ‘shape’ to a part of reality that may not have a lot of repeated experience (at least to me)
No worries about “witnessing.” I knew what you were saying, and didn’t read religious content into it. Mormon culture has its own lexicon anyway. If I speak of “wards”, “stakes” and “branches”, for example, other Mormons would recognize I was talking about congregations of various sizes; the rest of the world would be trying to figure out what hospital wings, camping tent gear, and trees had to do with my church. :-) In any event, I agree with you that it is really nice to read the different perspectives of the people who participate in the blog hop.
You’ve made the list of 10, and executed the secret rules perfectly! Bravo!
“H… (backs quietly towards the door)
I appreciate the idea of “nurturing” a grateful attitude. It helps.
agree completely… thank you for stopping by the Doctrine, if any questions, do not hesitate to ask (commentally-speaking, of course)
When you’re having a sh*t week, one thing to be thankful for is more than enough. And when I mean one thing, it always ends up being wine…because when you have wine, all the things become things to be thankful for.
I’m not an alcoholic.
Wait…
Denial is the first sign…
Dammit.
hahaha
Big cool. Huge cool and finding the thankful when it’s not obvious is, I agree, the very best most awesomest part of this here hop. Plus, your checks are cool. :D You are cool.
lol takes one to know one*
*exceptionally talented wordsmith is the phrase you are looking for!