SPARKS OF OPPORTUNITY & STRENGTH

Sparks

 

Entering the seventh decade of my life a few days ago has me thinking about aging. According to AARP and a Harris Poll, old age now begins at 74, which means I am not yet old. My mother, however, died at age 45, my sister at 66 and my dad at 76. That does give me pause for thought. With this in mind, I have decided to take Betty Friedan’s quote to heart.

I think most of you who follow me are old enough to know of Betty Friedan. If not, here’s some information.

Betty Friedan (nee Bettye Naomi Goldstein) [February 4, 1921 – February 4, 2006] was an American feminist writer and activist. She was a leading figure in the women’s movement in the United States. Her 1963 book, The Feminine Mystique, often is credited with sparking the second wave of American feminism in the 20th century. In 1966, Friedan co-founded and was elected the first president of the National Organization for Women (NOW).  NOWs’s aim was to bring women “into the mainstream of American society now [in] fully equal partnership with men.” Friedan was a strong supporter of the Equal Rights Amendment and the author of six books.

March is Women’s History Month and recognizing Betty Friedan for her accomplishments on behalf of all women seems appropriate to me.

Sparks began as a blog hop, created by our friend, Annie (McGuffy’s Reader). Annie has been taking a “break” from blogging, so there is no hop. Unfortunately, during this break, Annie has been the victim of a hacker. This has continued to keep her off-line and caused her much distress. Kitties Blue and I ask for your continued prayers for Annie and her family as they try to reconcile this mess and get their lives back to normal.

Many of us believe in Annie’s vision: “If we allow our light to shine, we can see where we are going. It is then that we can begin to truly see each other clearly. Together, we can light up the entire world!”

Happy Color

If you are curious about the image for today’s Spark, here’s the info behind it. I created it with a free app I have on my iPad. The app, Happy Color, works similarly to the old paint-by-numbers art my mom used to do when I was a kid. If you like to color, but like me, just don’t have the time, I think you’ll enjoy this. Seven new image outlines with numbered sections are loaded each day. These become part of a massive library, which includes mandalas, flowers, butterflies, quotes, people, nature and a variety of other subjects. Some images are easy and can be completed in a matter of minutes and others so intricate as to take a couple of hours. I find the “coloring” to be restful and have a feeling of accomplishment when I finish one of the images.

I have no affiliation with Happy Color. I just enjoy it and think some of you might as well.