Tea. Toast. and Trivia.

Episode 31: The Trio on Meditation

Welcome to Tea, Toast and Trivia.

Thank you for listening in.

I am joined by my sister, Sarah and my mother Frances as we consider the idea of meditation. Is meditation simply a popular trend, a fad?  Or will it help us to achieve a sense of well-being?  How do we practice meditation, especially when many priorities compete for our time?

So put the kettle on. We would love to hear your thoughts on TeaToastTrivia.com

I am your host Rebecca Budd and I’m looking forward to sharing this moment with you.

Thank you for joining Frances, Sarah and me on Tea Toast and Trivia. Until next time, may we remember Sarah’s words: “May I be well. May I be happy. May I be loved.”

Safe travels wherever your adventures take you today.

Episode 30:  Living our Creativity

Welcome to Tea, Toast and Trivia. Thank you for listening in.

I am joined by my brother, Brian,  to discuss integrating creativity within our busy routines that compete for our time and energy.

Do we celebrate or minimize the creativity within ourselves?  Brian has a marvelous understanding of the creative process and welcomes you to share your experience with us on TeaToastTrivia.com

Put the kettle on and join in the conversation.

I am your host Rebecca Budd and I’m looking forward to sharing this moment with you.

Thank you for joining Brian and me on Tea Toast & Trivia. Creativity, at its foundation, is all about connecting. When we value our creative efforts, we accept an adventure that transcends time and location.

We are all creators with a capacity to share our personal stories within the greater journey.

One last thought comes from Henri Matisse: Creativity takes courage. ” May we embrace this call to action and celebrate our creative endeavours.

So, until next time, dear friends, safe travels wherever your adventures take you.

My dear blogger friend, Liz, from the blog Leaping Life suggested a fabulous book written by her friend Maggy Pigott,  “How to Age Joyfully: Eight Steps to a Happier, Fuller Life.”  Liz, an intrepid writer, artist and community builder joined me in a huge leap into the podcasting unknown.  We created a podcast from a distance.  How distant is the distance you may ask? It is a very good question. We are linking Edinburgh and Vancouver, which is 7,059 kilometers or 4,387 miles.

So, put the kettle on and join in the conversation.  We would love to hear your thoughts on TeaToastTrivia.com. I am your host Rebecca Budd and I’m looking forward to sharing this moment with you.

Thank you for joining Liz and me on Tea Toast & Trivia.  How to Age Joyfully: Eight Steps to a Happier, Fuller Life is a profound reflection on what it means to embrace every moment of our journey. This is a must-read book for people of all ages. After all, aging begins the moment we are born. Besides being a joyful overview of how to engage within our communities – both local and global, this book provides excellent resources upon which to draw. I will be keeping it close at hand for inspiration and ideas. Thanks, Maggy!

Episode 28: Should We Complain?

I am joined by my mother, Frances, and my sister, Sarah, to discuss the question – Should we complain?

According to many sources – and you know that there are many sources found in a google search –  complaining is detrimental. One article noted that research clearly indicates that listening to complaints of any kind, including venting our personal grievances, will produce a downward trend in our emotional outlook.  Another article warned that complaining could alter our brain.  YIKES!    Why then, do we indulge in complaining?

Should we put on our “happy face” and ignore problems, avoid them, dismiss them?    Put the kettle on and join in the conversation.  We would love to hear your thoughts on TeaToastTrivia.com

Thank you for joining Frances, Sarah and me on Tea Toast & Trivia.  Embracing our moments with gratitude is a choice that will open the pathway to graciously acknowledging concerns and seeking positive outcomes – not only for ourselves but for our families, friends, and communities, both local and global.

One last thought comes from Maya Angelou.  “What you're supposed to do when you don't like a thing is change it. If you can't change it, change the way you think about it. Don't complain.”

Episode 27: Stephanie on Bold Moves

Welcome to Tea, Toast and Trivia.

Thank you for listening in.

I am joined by my workout coach, Stephanie, for a conversation about embracing an active and healthy lifestyle.

Mark Twain once wrote, “The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd rather not.” This was said in jest, with Mark Twain’s famous tongue-in-cheek style. But how many of us believe there may be an inkling of truth in his words.

Stephanie has a refreshing way of looking at her day-to-day routine. A working mother of two beautiful children, she structures her day for planning nutritious meals and physical activity. Well-being is a life-long journey, she says. And it is worth the effort. Everyone is unique and must be guided by individual preferences, depending upon where you are right now. Her motto is “being bold moves mountains.”   For many, including me, that boldness may take the form of baby steps.

So put the kettle on and listen in to our discussion on healthy lifestyles and bold moves.

I am your host Rebecca Budd and I’m looking forward to sharing this moment with you.

Thank you for joining Stephanie and me on Tea Toast & Trivia. Embracing a lifestyle of healthy eating and regular physical activity is a gift that we give ourselves and those who love us.

One last thought comes from Jim Rohn, entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker: “take care of your body. it's the only place you have to live in.”

So, until next time. dear friends, safe travels wherever your adventures take you.

Welcome to Tea, Toast and Trivia, Episode 26

Thank you for listening in.

I am joined by my mother Frances for a conversation about the aging process.

I have never really understood the phrase: you are as young as you feel.  Birthdays come and go, and I feel the same. It’s only when I look back at photos that show a young woman of 18 ready to take on the world that I realize the passage of time.  She recognized the possibilities, while I have lived the possibilities, the marvelous adventures that have come through the years.   And yet, we are the same for we live in the moment, with expectation and anticipation.

So put the kettle on and let’s talk about aging.  Better yet, the art of aging.

I am your host Rebecca Budd and I’m looking forward to sharing this moment with you.

Thank you for joining Frances and me on Tea Toast & Trivia.  Embracing and celebrating aging is a choice and acceptance of  who we are in the moment.

My dear blogger friend, Liz from Leaping Life suggested a fabulous book written by her friend Maggy Pigott,  “How to Age Joyfully: Eight Steps to a Happier, Fuller Life.”  In the coming weeks, Liz and I will be exploring how we can podcast from a distance - from Edinburgh to Vancouver.  Stay tuned for a podcast with Liz on this insightful book.

One last thought comes from  Madeleine L'Engle: “The great thing about getting older is that you don't lose all the other ages you've been.”

So, until next time dear friends, safe travels wherever your adventures take you.

Thank you for listening in.

Robert Louis Stevenson once wrote,

I believe this is true because of Daisy, a gentle, beautiful husky that has become an invaluable addition to our family. Today I am joined by Alisha, Daisy’s mother who, along with her fiancé, Ben has given Daisy a welcoming home. So put the kettle on and join in the conversation.  We love to hear from you on TeaToastTrivia.com

I am your host Rebecca Budd and I’m looking forward to sharing this moment with you.

A special thank you to Alisha.  Check out Daisy’s personal Instagram account, Lazy Husky Daisy.  In September, she will move to Calgary with her parents.  She is going to love the Alberta winters. I can see her playing in the snow.

One last thought comes from Milan Kundara:

Until next, time dear friends, safe travels wherever your adventures take you.

Welcome to Tea, Toast and Trivia, Episode 24!

Thank you for listening in.

I am joined by my sister, Sarah and my mother Frances for a lively discussion on personal growth.  Should we have an intentional plan for personal growth, or do we just let life happen and respond as we go along?  How do we know whether we have made progress?  According to experts, personal growth and development is essential if we are ever to realize our full potential.   Personal Growth, Intentional Growth, Full Potential – these are powerful words, but words that hold many meanings and ambiguities

So put the kettle on and join in the conversation.  We love to hear from you on TeaToastTrivia.com

I am your host Rebecca Budd and I’m looking forward to sharing this moment with you

 ******

Thank you for listening in and sharing this moment with Sarah, Frances and me. Reaching our full potential is a choice and acceptance of the possibilities awaiting our arrival, around the next bend in the road.

As Henry David Thoreau wrote in Walden: Or, Life in the Woods:

Episode 23:  Friendship Through the Voice of Poet Jean-Jacques Fournier

The refreshing taste of an iced fruit tea on a hot summer afternoon in August adds to the pure enjoyment of reading the poetry of my dear friend and poet, Jean-Jacques Fournier.

Jean-Jacques Fournier is a native of Montreal and has been living  in the Eastern Townships (QC) since 2010 with his French wife Marianne. Before returning to Canada, he lived eight glorious years in the South of France, first in Vence, which is situated in the hills of the Alpes Maritime overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Then in Grasse, considered the world’s capital of perfume. It sounds marvelous, does it not?

Jean-Jacques’s poetry expresses the emotional depth and breadth of the human experience.

Join me as I explore the theme of friendship through the voice and words of poetry by Jean-Jacques Fournier

I’m your host, Rebecca Budd and I’m looking forward to sharing this moment with you.

Episode 22: The Power of Listening 

Thank you for listening in on Episode 22 of the Tea Toast & Trivia podcast conversation. I am joined by my sister, Sarah, and my mother, Frances, as we discuss the power of listening. How do we engage our sense of hearing to influence communities, both local and global? So put the kettle on and join in the conversation. I am your host Rebecca Budd and I’m looking forward to sharing this moment with you.

When I first started to blog, and now podcast, I thought it was all about writing and commenting. Over the months, I have come understand that it is more about listening to the voices in the community.  Listening is dynamic, not static.  It is a powerful activity that can influence outcomes and institute radical change. Speaking and writing can only take us part of the way.  Listening is the dimension where next steps are formulated.

Each voice is extraordinary, but when combined in a choir, there is a symphony of elegant and beautiful possibilities.  A last thought come from Ernest Hemingway: “I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully.  Most people never listen.”