Carmela Snelbaker

Author of "Thank You For Your Service, Sheep!"
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  • Tag: daily prompt

    • If We Can Choose Our Demise I Want To Go Out Like This Cat ….. :) Taken By Curiosity

      Posted at 5:46 PM by carmelasnelbaker
      Aug 23rd

      via Daily Prompt: Learning

      With the quiet ticking of the Grandfather clock in the background as I sit here and contemplate the Daily Post Word prompt of the day, it brings a bit of a smile to my lips. I am not sure when I first heard the phrase “Curiosity killed the cat”, but I do know that it was something that my dad said to me often.

      I wonder now if he was saying it as a caution to me. It seems that I have a very natural personality trait of unending curiosity as well as a fearless unstoppable urge to stop at nothing when it comes to advocating or improving a situation for those in need.

      In reminiscing  on the many life lessons I have lived through and learned from. I must admit that the “obligatory response trigger” my heart seems to have, has been known to disturb the calm in my life at times. When I cause my own life disturbance because of reaching out to improve things for others, after the dust settles I am always glad I did.

      So I suppose knowing my inner instincts and personal history, if my Dr. had psychic abilities and could foresee my future “I am sorry, it’s curiosity” may very well be a diagnosis I could one day hear as well.

      I could think of worse ways for a life to end though. If I say goodbye to this world helping another soul, or learning or teaching a positive lesson of Love, I choose to believe it would be a good thing.

      curiosity-killed-the-cat  newton

      So I am with the cat on this one!! Keep looking for answers. “Be Positive”,”Be Brave” (as Wyatt would say) and never stop asking questions, making improvements and being curious. 🙂

      CuriosityKilledTheCat-12234    CuriosityKilledCat

      With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love,   Carmela

       

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged animals, B4Peace, beauty, Carmela Snelbaker, challenges, children, Christianity, compassion, courage, daily post, daily post challenge, daily prompt, dignity, divine guidance, Divine Love, DPchallenge, giving, giving heart, gratitude, helping others, peace, personality traits, pets, positivity, Prayer, respect, wisdom
    • It Is How We Tackle Managing Our Load That Makes All The Difference…..Daily Prompt: Carry

      Posted at 11:51 AM by carmelasnelbaker
      Aug 16th

      via Daily Prompt: Carry

      Everyone on earth will encounter some sort of burden to carry. Weather it is a difficulty we were born with or one that has met us somewhere along the way on our journey in life, either is no worse than the other.

      It is how we tackle managing the load that makes all of the difference in the world. As humans we often look through eyes of comparison. When we loose focus on our own journey and purpose we cause ourselves troubles.

      If we cannot see, we learn to survive with the senses that we have. If we cannot hear we can learn to thrive as well with the senses we do have. We cannot compare our life with no site with that of a person who has site.

      We must be grateful for the gifts we are given. Learn to use them to the best of our abilities and support others and their God given gifts as well. It is in showing this level of respect for others that we honor our own selves and learn to thrive in the contentment that life is meant to bring us. 

      When we give thanks for the gifts that are present and learn to honor and respect the gifts of our peers it is then that any burden we are asked to carry is lighted for both. In sharing and supporting we find peace and contentment.

      When attempting to disguise our difficulties and compete with others our struggles will only increase. We can only shine in honesty and truth. God Loves us exactly the way we are, and we need to learn to loves ourselves that way as well.

      Never try to be a person that you were not meant to be. Simply be you. Be truthful. Be kind. Be loving.

      With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love,   Carmela

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged #carry, animals, B4Peace, beauty, Carmela Snelbaker, challenges, Christianity, compassion, daily post challenge, daily prompt, Dalai Lama, dignity, divine guidance, Divine Love, DPchallenge, emotions, family, God, gratitude, hope, inspiration, joy, kindness, love, peace, pets, positivity, Prayer, Unconditional love, wisdom
    • In The Truest Beauty Of Sharing Of Self You Each Will Get Something More Beautiful Than Words…The Warmest Blanket Of Love and Contentment :)

      Posted at 9:52 AM by carmelasnelbaker
      Aug 14th

      Because I am attempting to share my home with exchange students from other countries, I was asked to put together a home and family profile. In putting words to and explaining the home I live in I found it was impossible to separate the description of the house from the beauty and depth of my parents Love for each other as well as my sister and I.

      I am truly grateful for their Love for us and the manner in which they shared there immense wisdom of Life and Love. Love and Life can be so overwhelmingly complicated that it may take us years to actually completely understand and absorb the gifts it places before us.

      I live in the home that my father built before getting married to my mother. They were married in front of the fireplace within the home and lived here their entire lives.

      This is the home I grew up in. I treasure the many beautiful memories my family built here and the fact that I can continue sharing life’s journey and build more positive memories and wisdom with my children, grandchildren and others as well.

      My father was a custom home builder as well as a furniture maker. Many items within the home were made by my father’s hands. My mother also used her talents and love to make beautiful things that filled the home with details, beauty and proof of her longing to provide not only a loving environment but a place filled with the warmth of Love.

      Like a warm blanket that someone wraps you in when you are cold and afraid, this is what my parents have built and left for me. I long to continue to share that level of Love with others as I continue to live here and share their home with my grown children, grandchildren and with others.

      who you get to share it with

      Our family has a very deep understanding of how precious each day of life is. Our family has lived through the most difficult challenge anyone should ever have to endure. My beautiful Grandson Wyatt was diagnosed with Mitochondrial disease and lived with and died from the disease in 2013.

      He was 11 years old when he joined Jesus in Heaven. He taught us great beauty that is impossible to put words to. He continues each day to send us wisdom from heaven that we share with others by keeping his story and life active in our hearts daily.

      Love for a grandchild does not stop when they become an Angel in Heaven, it multiplies by a thousand and we actively use it by extending his Love to others. By doing this we feel him with us each day and God wraps us in that warm blanket of Love to help us continue our journey on life without him.

      Inspirational_Quote

      I warms my heart knowing that our Angels in Heaven were able to share such great Wisdom and Love with us while we were graced with the beauty of their presence here on earth with us.

      Today I read a beautiful post from a fellow blogger who gracefully shared her son Jacobs story and journey. Each time we share our loved ones story is another chance their soul has to touch the earth with their wisdom.  I am truly grateful for the wisdom of each treasured soul I meet.

      Below is a portion of a poem from the Wieckling Blog that I felt the need to share. You can read Jacob’s families post as well as the complete poem by clicking on the link above.

      “I fancied that I heard them say, “Dear Lord, Thy will be done!
      For all the joy Thy child shall bring, the risk of grief we run.
      We’ll shelter him with tenderness, we’ll love him while we may,
      And for the happiness we’ve known, forever grateful stay;
      But should the angels call for him much sooner than we’ve planned,
      We’ll brave the bitter grief that comes and try to understand!”

      Thank you Mom, Dad, Wyatt and Jacob for continuing to share your wisdom with others here on earth.

      With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love,  Carmela

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged #blog4peace, #complicated, B4Peace, beauty, Carmela Snelbaker, children, Christianity, courage, daily post challenge, daily prompt, divine guidance, Divine Love, DPchallenge, emotions, family, God, grandchildren, gratitude, hope, inspiration, joy, kindness, love, Mental health, peace, positivity, Prayer, respect, wisdom
    • Wisdom from a Rabbit…..Thumperian Principle

      Posted at 7:51 PM by carmelasnelbaker
      May 28th

        

      Bambi-thumper-adult

      “If you can’t say something nice, Don’t say nothing at all”

      I am not sure what made me do research on where the phrase “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all” originated from but I was surprised to find out that Mrs. Rabbit reminded Thumper that this is what his father told him in the Walt Disney movie Bambie. You can see the  video clip here.

      According to Walt Disney, mother and father rabbits teach their youngsters kindness, the use of gentle words and actions (anti-bullying manners). The Movie Bambie was released in 1942.

      I found the article fascinating as it explains, that the three youngsters who become friends Thumper, Bambie, and Flower (the skunk)  also exhibit another moral lesson in the virtues of tolerance and an easy disposition. Link to text here.

      I found an equally surprising lesson reflected in Albert Einstein’s quote below.

      “Everyone is a Genius. But if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid” ~Albert Einstein~

      What makes people dwell on differences and challenge, protest, and attempt to set themselves apart from others instead of learning and teaching to coexist with others in a peaceful manor?

      There is a beautiful song 525,600 minutes. How do you measure a year in the life? Do you want to find yourself with only a few minutes left in your life only to look back and see that you used so many of your minutes up angrily protesting against someone doing or simply attempting to live differently than you chose to do?

      When we are taught or  choose to compare ourselves with others and believe we are superior to, and greater than our peers we choose to live negatively. Criticizing others, always attempting to appear better than others, not being supportive or showing interest in others well being and success, leads to a negative, angry, stressful, restless, and irritated existence.

      When we are taught or choose to be comfortable in our own skin, appreciate and encourage the differences of others, find our own special uniqueness’s follow and develop those to the greatest potential and support others in their choices and differences, we will lead a peaceful, harmonious life filled with Joy and Peace and free from restlessness, agitation, and anger.

      Everyone has a choice in life. You can choose to bring Joy and Peace into your life and others, or you can choose to create distress and anguish within yourself and others. Those who live their lives in Love, wishing no harm for others will prevail. Living in fear and lies will never bring you Peace and Joy.

      fork in road

      The world would be so much more enjoyable if everyone chose to learn from and about each other rather than judge and condemn each other because of differences.

      No moment is ever wasted if it is spent communicating with another soul. When we exchange words in kindness without expectation we receive great rewards from the Joy that we experience from interacting and showing respect to another human soul.

      In order to comprehend the deepest understanding of Love we need to totally be free from shame by standing in total and complete truth. At this level it allows us to feel worthy of accepting  Divine Love, Respect and Understanding, it is only then that we feel complete and can in turn share this level of Love and Respect with every living being on earth.

      With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love,   Carmela

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged #blog4peace, animals, B4Peace, Carmela Snelbaker, compassion, daily post challenge, daily prompt, divine guidance, DPchallenge, family, gratitude, inspiration, joy, kindness, love, peace, positivity, respect, Unconditional love, wisdom
    • Pensive Beauty and Recovery

      Posted at 9:44 AM by carmelasnelbaker
      May 19th

      shutterstock_100149452

      Imagine the beauty of a group of people working, living and interacting side by side totally absent of negative competition, supportive of each other and allowing each other to flourish in a peaceful environment. As beautiful as the thought of individuals blooming and flourishing next to one another in total Peace is, what would it take to actually make this happen?

      If you ask one hundred people to explain beautiful you may get one hundred diverse answers. This has also been proven true when asking a group of individuals who witness an event to explain details of the incident. How can it be that two individual that experience a moment in time when asked to describe the moment in detail relay it as two completely different situations?

      I am not sure there is one correct answer for this. Have you ever experienced a moment in time when you caught a scent in the air that triggered a memory?

      In a moment in time the smell of a familiar fragrance can transport you back to a memory that you experienced in the past. Whether the memory is a fond memory or an unpleasant one “the memory” is written within your previous consciousness in a way that only you would be able to explain.

      What may fill one person with good feeling may fill the person standing next to them with bad feelings. What may make one person flourish, may hinder the next person.

      I want to believe though that Peace is attainable among human beings apart from total uniformity of thoughts, opinions and perceptions.

      In diversity there is also beauty. The quote below helps to envision a thread of hope for changing ones past experiences for the better.

      The most authentic thing about us is our capacity to create, to overcome, to endure, to transform, to love and to be greater than our suffering. ~Ben Okri~

      I often laugh when I have a moment of forgetfulness. I joke that “every time something new enters my brain, something old must fall out.” In the case of traumatic memories or patterns of negative behaviors, it would be a blessing if we were able to easily make this happen.

      I believe the true beginning of healing can not begin until we stop trying to live in survival mode….. believing that we are the only one that knows what we have to do to keep going. As long as we are in “survival mode” we are relying on our own learned behaviors that have been imprinted from our past situations. In doing this we are trapped in a vicious circle of our own demise.

      When fear traps us into thinking that we are the only one that we can trust our journey is life will be very limited and lonely.

      It is not until we honestly examine our hearts, our life situations and attempt to truly understand how our own actions play a role in every situation we encounter, only then will we be able to play a significant part in our own recovery and journey to experience true Joy and Peace.

      We cannot do this on our own. As much as we want to believe that we are the only ones that can know what we need to do, we can not be more confused and wrong. Our view of events is distorted and we are reacting in a defensive manner.

      Pray for your heart to be open to the true picture and pray for understanding and help feeling and accepting the Love and Wisdom of God. When you realize you do not have to be perfect to be Loved, that the person you are is the exact person who God made and He loves you exactly as you are, this is when you can except help from others, things will begin to change for the better and you will flourish.

      If we feel insecure from within it is impossible to see and appreciate beauty.

      When we know and experience unconditional Love from God it is impossible to not share this same Love with others.

      I once heard someone say “a flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it, it only blooms.”

       meadow-76358_1280

      Pray for a world where people can live side by side and bloom and flourish in selfless Beauty and Peace as the flowers do.

      With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love,  Carmela

      This post was written in response to the daily post: pensive

       

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged beauty, Carmela Snelbaker, daily post challenge, daily prompt, diversity, Fear, flourish, gratitude, hope, inspiration, joy, kindness, love, Memories, Mental health, peace, Prayer, PTSD, resiliance, respect, survival, Unconditional love
    • Standing Firm In the Midst of Chaos

      Posted at 9:18 AM by carmelasnelbaker
      Apr 10th

      Might it take being in the midst of chaos and pain that opens a heart and mind to a greater and deeper understanding of the love and connection that we share with every living being on this earth?

      If this is truly the case no wonder so many people walk around this earth filled with such anger, hate, and animosity toward each other and themselves as well. This is a level of pain no one ever wants to endure. It would be much easier to simply continue on and remain at the same level of existence and conform to a continuance of being, rather than working toward a better existence.

      Making a choice to part ways by standing firm against manipulation and intimidation is not an easy journey, but it is a journey that is necessary. No one should ever be asked to stifle their voice, beliefs and opinions.

      Denying emotional responses to another is deeply abusive. Where there is control there is no love only fear.

      In our lives we will come across many chances to compromise or stand up for what we believe to be right. As human beings we improve ourselves by increasing our level of consciousness by continuing to search for wisdom and enlightenment and living a more spiritual and Love based life.

      Focus on the good. Stand up for what is right and choose to live in Love and not fear. People are fascinating. Our individual experiences and our individual opinions are what make us unique. Every time we meet someone new is a beautiful chance to learn and grow from each others’ experiences. Every human being on the earth has a story to tell. As we open our hearts and share our experiences we not only are teaching others by sharing what life has dealt us but also helping ourselves lighten the hurts that we may be carrying with us from those experiences.

      I recently read an article on emotions the following paragraph is taken from their text. Be strong and chose Love, by opening your heart to divine guidance you will gain the strength to do what is right. It is your choice to make.

      There are only two basic emotions that we all experience, love and fear.  All other emotions are variations of these two emotions.  Thoughts and behavior come from either a place of love, or a place of fear.  Anxiety, anger, control, sadness, depression, inadequacy, confusion, hurt, lonely, guilt, shame, these are all fear-based emotions.  Emotions such as joy, happiness, caring, trust, compassion, truth, contentment, satisfaction, these are love-based emotions.

      “Pain is not a sign of weakness, but bearing it alone is a choice to grow weak” -Lorie Deschene

      With Respect, Love, Joy, and Hope,   Carmela

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged courage, daily prompt, DPchallenge, family, God, gratitude, inspiration, kindness, peace, positivity
    • Turning a Meltdown into Songfest :)

      Posted at 4:20 PM by carmelasnelbaker
      Aug 9th

      This post is written in response to the Daily Post challenge

      Yesterday I wrote a post about a position I held years ago. Residential group homes have several individuals who need varied levels of support to assist them in leading an ordinary life in the community. The job responsibilities are usually similar to that of a mom, dad or legal guardian to a child or young adult. The abilities of the people living in the home can vary greatly. Some individuals may need assistance with physical mobility issues only and some may require supports with behavioral issues. I was taking care of a very active 6 foot man who generally had a very jovial and kind spirit. He however, had a diagnosis of explosive disorder and very short fuse when it came to hearing the word no. This seemed to trigger something inside that usually sent him running off with his pointer finger in the air making shooting sounds, pshhhhh, pshhhhh, pshhhhh. If his “traveling road show” happened to interfere with a housemate’s peace and quiet and they spoke up in a negative way things could quickly escalate into and out of control situation.

      As a caregiver or parent when we are in charge of a group of individuals there are usually many times in a day when you use the word no. You don’t realize this until every time you say it someone gets agitated and rushes of saying “Why you, pshhhhh, pshhhh, pshhhhh”. The Behavior Plan was to react with positive redirection. I quickly found that using the fewest words worked well for me. Simply saying the name of an activity that he liked could redirect his thought. “Ghostbusters” and then proceed to putting the movie on worked. There were time however that this wouldn’t be interesting to him. If he asked for “orange juice” and we didn’t have it in the house “buy some at the store” worked well.  “Put it on a list” or “dinner first” were also workable solutions.

      There were times when his agitation would escalate to grabbing others, pinching and scratching and even grabbing in a choke hold manner. He was very capable of major property damage as well. Knocking over large TV sets breaking glass and tearing down curtains. After getting to know him well and building up a friendship and trust my favorite and most successful go to method of calming him down was to quickly position myself between him and the person or object he was going toward and taking his hands or wrists and holding them while looking him in the eyes and singing the song “He’s got the whole world in his hands”. He liked going to church. He loved singing this song, and he liked it when you placed his name into a verse. “He’s got _____ ______ in his hands”.

      We should all put some thought into how often we respond with a quick no and think of possible ways that we can answer or respond without using it at all. Toddler years when they are exploring their surroundings are a perfect example. Although it is necessary to redirect them from harm at the end a day of many “NO’S” they often fall to the floor into a major meltdown kicking and screaming. Offering positive options instead of simply a NO can be much more enjoyable for parent/caregiver and child. Be sure to try it and pass it on to promote peace. 🙂

       

      With respect, hope, joy and love,   Carmela

       

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged behavior, Carmela Snelbaker, Child, daily post challenge, daily prompt, joy, love, meltdown, parents, peace, possitive reinforcement, respect, toddler
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