More Baking....and more thoughts of Jane

I've been doing more baking. Molasses cookies, chocolate chip, sour cream coffee cake, raspberry squares. It has been keeping me busy. I find myself wondering, how many of us do what we have to do and not what we want to do? I know, we all have things we have to do. That's a given but what about the things we want to do? How do we fit that in? Our recent loss of my sister-in-law Jane has had a profound affect. She was very strong and had her opinions about things. She has made a lasting impression on so many people. I am one of those people. I think about her every day. I think about how much she loves her children and her husband and family. She ate good food, bought locally as much as possible. That applied to food and products. She wanted to support local businesses as much as possible. She cared about the earth and recycled. She loved to grow flowers and vegetables. She loved to preserve food for winter and make jams and jellies and canned pickles. I think that love and joy is what hit me the most. Jane loved each new day. Even when she was very sick, she made the most of that day how ever she could. So, I find myself thinking, quite often, about making the most of each day and being happy going through it. Not every day can be happy. We all have things. The way that I want to proceed in life is with joy. I want to be doing things because I want to do them not because I feel I have to. And, I think a less stressful existence would be a good idea. When I find myself really stressed, I long to get rid of it by doing something enjoyable. Sometimes there is too much work. Even when the work is what you love and it's something you don't mind, it can be stressful. Maybe you have to do too much or do that task so many times that the joy is lost. My goal is to go for the joy! I guess this has little to do with baking or the bed and breakfast or the gift shop. That really doesn't matter to me today. I have found joy in sharing these thoughts and that's good enough for me.