inspiration: The Art of Grace-Filled Giving...
- 12/20/07 02:54 PM
The frenzy of activity that marks the month of December is unmatched. End of year parties and activities, gift buying, and holiday shopping can rapidly merge into an experience which is taxing and depleting emotionally, physically and financially. In our desire to give materially, we are unaware of the toll that we unconsciously exact on our spirits and our bodies. The truth is that wholesome giving cannot be primarily defined as a material activityalthough it may manifest in a physical material form such as money or gifts. In its highest context, giving is a spiritual activity which can manifest in any number … (15 comments)
inspiration: Christmas...Inspired by Light!
- 12/12/07 12:57 PM
The hustle and bustle of the Christmas Season is upon us. Tis the season to be Merry. Shopping, eating, drinking and giving. Christmas is a festive time of year. A festival set against a brilliant backdrop...dramatic pitch blackness. A darkness of pitch black which blankets even the hint of emerging shadows. Yet, it is remarkable that the ultimate Celebration of Light occurs at the height of the earth's hibernation. A time when the land begs to recede from view and wraps itself within a thick cloak of snow. A time when the day bids goodbye early, conceding to the darkness an early reign. Perhaps this is why … (12 comments)
inspiration: 5 Secrets Tips For Avoiding the Wrong Choice in Your 2008 Real Estate Career!
- 12/12/07 11:11 AM
It's getting to be that time of year again. You know when the shopping starts and we begin to get the itch to preview the latest offerings. We start researching to get the best deals. Sometimes, it's on-line, but more frequently, it's a visit. NO, I'm not talking about Christmas, I'm referring to the time of the year between Christmas and Spring in which agents begin shopping around for a New company! Every year, agents jump ship around the New Year, hoping for greener pastures. I meet agents all the time who have been in a different company approximately every 12-18 months! And they wonder … (26 comments)
inspiration: Oh There's No Place Like Home....Past the Holidays!
- 12/11/07 02:47 AM
This song has been meandering through my mind all day. Oh, There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays...It's a song that we hear frequently on the airwaves at this time of the year. It conjures images of nostalgic warmth...fireplaces blazing, steaming hot cups of cider or hot cocoa, spicy earthy aromas and glittering lights on Christmas trees. The thought of this seasonal cheer has airplanes into the Grand Rapids, Michigan airport fully booked. I think the holidays evoke this warmth because it is at this time that we pause to Celebrate and Remember what makes our homes Special. For some it's the food … (73 comments)
inspiration: A Christmas Gift You Can Drink Too...
- 12/05/07 09:15 AM
I'll never forget the day I left home. My 44 pounds of personal possessions were neatly crammed into one small suitcase. I stood by the car and hugged my family. They would not accompany me on the 4 hour journey to the airport in another city. My heart was heavy with sadness at leaving my family. I was also worried because my brother lay in bed...quite sick with Typhoid Fever, a disease that had ravaged his body with fever for a couple of weeks. Typhoid Fever is a water borne disease. It is almost unknown in the United States where we take clean drinking water for … (18 comments)
inspiration: From Midwives to First Borns & Beyond...Giving Birth to A Career.
- 11/26/07 02:01 PM
Depending on your perspective, this post has nothing to do with real estate or everything to do with it. This is a follow up to a post I wrote about underestimating the value of a penny. In looking for larger, more important looking notes, there have been many small blessings which escaped unnoticed. Thankfully, my "chance" meeting with my friend Patricia Jabbeh Wesley in a grocery store some 15 years ago was not one of them. Patriciahas just published her third book of poetry. As an acclaimed African poet, her entrancing style of writing about her native country Liberia is studied in universities and colleges throughout … (18 comments)
inspiration: Reflections...
- 11/22/07 05:17 PM
I've never had Thanksgiving roll around so fast and be over so rapidly! This year, Thanksgiving dinner was a "community" effort. Our oldest is back for a short break from college. We decided that instead of mom doing all the cooking, each member of the family would contribute to making Thanksgiving lunch or dinner...depending on how long things took. Well, it turned out to be quite a feast. Our youngest made his famous mashed sweet potatoes and a coffee cake. My husband deep fried a spicy capon and plantains and boiled the green beans. Grandma contributed an African favorite Jollof Rice and collaborated on the … (31 comments)
inspiration: A Tale About the Market...
- 11/20/07 01:18 PM
As children, my mother used to tell us a fascinating story. She would start her mesmerizing tale by weaving our imagination around the excitement, sounds and rhythm of the scene on Market Monday. She held our rapt attention...describing ladies carrying their brightly colored bundles on their heads or on their backs as they walked towards the market to display their wares. Some walked slowly...they had a lot of baggage on their mind. Others expertly balanced their loads on their heads...walking with the erect, graceful posture that one observes all across the African Continent. They all walked purposely. There was much to be … (40 comments)
inspiration: How to Successfully Engage the Sale of "The Angry House!"
- 11/17/07 11:19 AM
Unless you're brand new...you've been in one! Your first encounter may seem quite benign...a listing pops up for a client and the information seems perfect. There are usually no pictures on line...but never mind. The home is in the right area...and seems to be priced right. So, you pop off a quick e-mail and arrange to go over to take a look. That's when things begin to become interesting. The view from the sidewalk may reveal a number of issues which are potential red flags. In winter time...the home may not have seen a snow plow for awhile. You are faced with contemplating … (72 comments)
inspiration: Learning the Value of the Small Words...
- 11/10/07 03:00 PM
I've recently finished reading "The Manual, A Warrior of Light" by Paul Coelho the author of the famous allegorical tale, The Alchemist. In this book, Coelho writes short inspirational essays which are at once delicious fare for the soul in their sheer breadth of beauty and perspective. I struggle to resist the urge to read it voraciously and also meditate slowly...allowing the wisdom to marinate within the core of my mind. In one essay, Coelho makes the following statement: "The Warrior knows that the most important words in all languages are the small words. Yes. Love. God. They are words that are easy enough to say and which … (37 comments)
inspiration: Deja Vu...Have you been by this way before?
- 10/29/07 02:57 PM
They say that Deja Vu comes upon you when you least expect it. It may whisper a bittersweet remembrance in your ear reminding you of a cruel irony...or it may appear as the masked partner in a ballroom dance revealing itself through the drumbeat of a ironically familiar misstep. But however, it barrels back into your life..you never miss it. You've been here before. That you know. But the urgent question is Why? Why do you find yourself back in this space in time, peering through the mist of confusion and regret? Why are there some experiences which just don't seem to … (12 comments)
inspiration: A Six Pack Celebration For 100,000 Points!
- 10/22/07 02:25 PM
If you'd told me a year ago, that I'd be blogging for 11 months and write over 185 articles, I'd have stared at you in disbelief. If you'd told me that to Celebrate 100,000 Points, I'd post my shortest post to date, I'd have been similarily surprised. But here it is...My response to the Six Pack Challenge by Chris Elizabeth Griffin. A fitting way to Celebrate an exercise in inspiration, friendship and perserverance. A heartfelt Thank You to every one of you who is touching my life through this journey. So without futher Audu....(pun intended...here are my faves. :) Blogging Lessons From American … (19 comments)
inspiration: Where's Your Focus?
- 10/16/07 02:03 PM
Every Monday Morning, real estate agents at Audu Real Estate congregate at the companies' corporate office for a weekly ritual. Bolstered by cups of coffee and armed with notepads, they wait in expectation for the games to begin. You never know what will happen at an Audu Real Estate weekly meeting! On any given week agents can be found engaged in an animated discussion about the Code of Ethics, obtaining indepth knowledge about short sales & foreclosures, reading and discussing a well regarded author, or taking a field trip outside the office to view Parade Homes. It's 2-3 hours of power packed learning which agents say leaves them … (30 comments)
One of the most unfortunate consequences of "easy money" is that it makes otherwise healthy, and intelligent people lazy...just plain lazy. I'll be upfront with my position on easy money. It's a myth, a trick...an exercise in smoke and mirrors that produces financial hallucinations. It doesn't exist...and never has. The myth of hitting the easy money jackpot or reaching the easy money Nirvana persists for a number of reasons. Most notably, our intense desire to wish it to be so. Deep within the human spirit there exists this relentless drive to make things easier. I think it started when Adam was driven … (54 comments)
This article in the Christian Science Monitor brings back memories. The sight of a baby perched peacefully on its' mother's back is something you see ALL over Africa. In West Africa, the term used for this makeshift type snuggly is a Lapa...in South Africa, the term is a Kanga. Just about every baby on the Continent has had it's share of "Back Time." I'm referring to a period which can encompass as little as 3-6 months or as long as 3 years. A time when mother and baby connect because they are together almost all the time. Safely snuggled against mom's back, the African … (23 comments)
inspiration: Welcome to My Neighborhood...A Post 911 Reflection.
- 09/10/07 12:05 PM
I was on the phone talking to a mortgage lender and about to head out the door when the doorbell rang. Peering out the sidebar of my front door, I saw 2 individuals. A well dressed lady was on the stoop and an elderly gentleman leaned against the brick wall that framed my entryway. When I opened the door, the lady said, "We brought you your mail, it was delivered to my parents' mailbox...and my father would like to meet you." I looked at the elderly gentleman, my neighbor... whom I was meeting for the first time. He smiled and tried to extend his hand from the … (25 comments)
inspiration: Reconnecting With What's Important.
- 09/08/07 12:18 PM
If you were in Grand Rapids, Michigan today, you know that it was one of those days in which only those forced to work or those obsessively dedicated to work are doing so. A brilliant blue sky framed picture perfect clouds. It's the sort of day that makes one think of picking up an ice-cream cone along the boardwalk in Grand Haven. But, alas, I was one of those working. After my listing appointment, Renee, a Client Specialist with our office, and I headed out to catch a bite to eat at the Schuller's Bookstore cafe. As I settled down to eat, I glanced a couple of tables … (31 comments)
inspiration: So, How do the Messies Manifest & Morph About Around Your Home? (Part 4)*
- 08/20/07 12:30 PM
The fact is that almost all of us are messy in some area of our lives. For some, it's an extreme problem. But for the vast majority of us, our version of messiness carries a unique message if we care to listen and observe. Messiness may be about an area over which you feel you have no control and therefore fail to organize. Or it may be a means of exerting control. I have come to the conclusion that some teenagers bedrooms manifest this kind of chaos to protest against the freaky neatness of their parents! How we choose to reveal our messiness also says something. … (16 comments)
inspiration: So, How do the Messies Manifest & Morph About Around Your Home? (Part 3)*
- 08/20/07 10:17 AM
Some of the most intriguing cases of messiness I've witnessed had nothing to do with piles of junk. I once listed a home that stank. What was peculiar about the home was that it was beautiful. The living room featured white Italian leather sofas. The burnished wood floor was in excellent shape and tasteful pictures and decorative accessories adorned the wall. However, due to the fact that there were some large dogs that did their thing in the basement each day, the odor had permeated every room in the home. The owner no longer noticed the smell, but everyone else did. When … (8 comments)
inspiration: So, How do the Messies Manifest & Morph About Around Your Home? (Part 2)*
- 08/20/07 09:31 AM
Apparently, messiness is a topic of interest and concern to a lot of people. It is interesting to view the number of entries on google devoted to "self help" for messy people. An inability to keep things neat has long been regarded as problematic for many reasons. These include difficulty in maintaining order and organization as well as concerns for health and hygiene. However, I think the manner in which we maintain a mess can tell a lot about an individual and offer some insights about what may be going on inside. This is a conclusion I have come to; Messiness is a highly … (8 comments)
Grand Rapids, Michigan real estate information including houses for sale, rent and home buyer/seller tips. Also includes wisdom and insights from Lola Audu, CRS Associate Broker.
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