It was my granddaughter Ruby’s school play today and she was playing Goldilocks! My mum would have loved this, it’s a good job I didn’t go because it had me in tears. Apparently the head and deputy head plus some mum’s in the audience were crying too. 😭

Is it really only three years since I joined WordPress! So much has happened I feel like a completely different person!

1. My first job was working in an Orange Juice factory, but I got canned.  Couldn’t concentrate.

2. Then I worked in the woods as a Lumberjack, but just couldn’t hack it, so they gave me the axe.

3. After that, I tried being a Tailor, but wasn’t suited for it — mainly because it was a sew-sew job.

4. Next, I tried working in a Muffler Factory, but that was too exhausting.

5. Then, tried being a Chef – figured it would add a little spice to my life, but just didn’t have the thyme.

6. Next, I attempted being a Deli Worker, but any way I sliced it…. couldn’t cut the mustard.

7. My best job was a Musician, but eventually found I wasn’t noteworthy.

8. I studied a long time to become a Doctor, but didn’t have any patience.

9. Next, was a job in a Shoe Factory.     Tried hard but just didn’t fit in.

10. I became a Professional Fisherman, but discovered I couldn’t live on my net income.

11. Managed to get a good job working for a Pool Maintenance Company, but the work was just too draining.

12. So then I got a job in a Workout Center, but they said I wasn’t fit for the job.

13. After many years of trying to find steady work, I finally got a job as a Historian – until I realized there was no future in it.

14. My last job was working in Starbucks, but had to quit because it was the same old grind.

15. SO, I TRIED  RETIREMENT  AND I FOUND I’M PERFECT FOR THE JOB!

A man is driving down the road and his car breaks down near a monastery.

He goes to the monastery, knocks on the door, and says, “My car broke down. Do you think I could stay the night?”

The Monks graciously accept him, feed him dinner and even fix his car.

As the man tries to fall asleep, he hears a strange sound. A sound not Iike anything he’s ever heard before.  Mystical and spiritual, full of beauty.

The Sirens that nearly seduced Odysseus into crashing his ship comes to his mind.

He doesn’t sleep that night. He tosses and turns trying to figure out what could possibly be making such an intriguing and seductive sound.

The next morning, he asks the Monks what the sound was, but they say, “We can’t tell you. You’re not a Monk.”

Distraught, the man is forced to leave.

Years later, after never being able to forget that sound, the sound, the man returns to the monastery and pleads for the answer again.

The Monks reply, “We can’t tell you. You’re not a Monk.”

The man says, “If the only way I can find out what is making that beautiful sound is to become a Monk, then please, make me a Monk.”

The Monks reply, “You must travel the earth and tell us how many blades of grass there are and the exact number of grains of sand. When you find these answers, you will have become a Monk.”

The man sets about his task.

After years of searching he returns as a gray-haired old man and knocks on the door of the monastery. A Monk answers. He is taken before a gathering of all the Monks.

“In my quest to find what makes that beautiful sound, I travelled the earth and have found what you asked for:

By design, the world is in a state of perpetual change. Only God knows what you ask. All a man can know is himself, and only then if he is honest and reflective and willing to strip away self deception.”

The Monks reply, “Congratulations. You have become a monk. We shall now show you the way to the mystery of the sacred sound.”

The Monks lead the man to a wooden door, where the head monk says, “The sound is beyond that door.”

The Monks give him the key and he opens the door.

Behind the wooden door is another door- it is made of stone.

The man is given the key to the stone door and he opens it, only to find a door made of ruby.

And so it went that he needed keys to doors of emerald, pearl and diamond.

Finally, they come to a door made of solid gold. The sound has become very clear and definite. The Monks say, “This is the last key to the last door.”

The man is apprehensive to no end. His life’s wish is behind that door!

With trembling hands, he unlocks the door, turns the knob and slowly pushes the door open. Falling to his knees, he is utterly amazed to discover the source of that haunting and seductive sound…

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But I can’t tell you what it is because you’re not a monk.

It’s very rare nowadays that I can pick up a book and I know without doubt that I’m going to enjoy reading before the end of the first page. I really enjoyed this book, it had everything that I enjoy reading about. Positivity, spirituality, hope and common sense.

Following Bridget’s inspiring life, written with frankness and honesty. I just wanted to curl up and read it in one go but time restraints did not permit. However it is a book that can be picked up and put down and by doing that I prolonged the pleasure of reading it.

It follows the life of Bridget and the triumphs and obstacles placed on her journey and how she pushed through the challenges of ill health with determination. I felt like I had been alongside side her when she described her travels enjoying each experience that came with each holiday. I felt the heat, I could smell the smells, I was there.!

I read this book whilst going through a difficult time myself and it really did help me. So thank you Bridget, I’m no gardener but I can appreciate yours and I can’t wait for your next book.

Elaine 🌹