It’s perfect timing for me. I finally took the leap last week. I gave up my Blackberry and got an iPhone.  I’m hoping to audition for the band by year’s end.

“Each of us tends to think we see things the way they are, that we are objective. But this is not the case. We see the world, not as it is, but as we are – or, as what we are conditioned to see.” – The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

I’m re-reading some books that were impactful at some point in my life. As a new college graduate, I read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and took away some great lessons. As I’m reading it now, different points seems to jump out.

After sharing the quote above, Stephen Covey talks about how there are times in our life that we experience a paradigm shift, sometimes suddenly.

Recently I spent a week at Disney with my family. One day we came upon a street band in one of the parks. My kids perked up and listened, but my attention focused on a woman across the crowd dancing with reckless abandon with one of her kids. I mean, she was really into this…and she really lacked any rhythm. I snickered and pointed her out to Joel. He grabbed his FLIP video camera and starting shooting as we laughed. Surely our friends at home would enjoy a good laugh over this.

But suddenly as some of the crowd moved, we noticed the buttons and t-shirts the lady and her child were wearing…”Make a Wish”, as in “The Make a Wish Foundation.” As we looked closer, it became obvious that her child was very ill. Joel put down his camera and starting trying to delete the recording. I was speechless and embarassed.

In one moment, we went from viewing this lady as kinda nutty to seeing the situation for what it really was….a mom totally focused on enjoying a “Wish Come True” day (among what could be a limited number of days) with her child.

We were wrong. It makes me wonder how many times in life I don’t see things for what they truly are. Maybe I’m too busy judging or too caught up in my point of view to really see the whole picture.

Watch in its entirety. The finale is not to be missed.

I have a new secret indulgence, and surprisingly, it has to do with Martha Stewart. I can’t get enough of Fine Living Network’s show “Whatever, Martha!”

As a card-carrying member of the anti-Martha generation, it was only by accident that I stumbled upon a show all about Martha. What intrigued me was that it featured Martha’s daughter, Alexis, and her best friend actually watching and making fun of Martha’s shows. At first I found it funny but soon I started to feel sorry for Martha. How bad does your life have to get for your own daughter to make a living out of brutally critiquing your clothes, hair, and occupation?

Even though it all seemed so vicious, I just couldn’t stop watching. On this episode, the girls were making fun of Martha’s well-organized linen closet which Martha proudly proclaimed to be “a basic responsibility of every homemaker.” And they threw in so many personal (and frankly, interesting) anecdotes. Her daughter mentioned that Martha always told her, “The only thing I want for you in life is to be happy…as long as it’s on my terms!”

It wasn’t until the end of the show that I saw “Created and Executive Produced by Martha Stewart.” What?? Martha created a show to mock herself! Now I’m not naive enough to miss the fact that this all comes down to money. This is, of course, another audience and another revenue source. While I couldn’t care less to watch Martha Stewart make jewelry from dried corn, I find it irresistible to watch someone make fun of it!

But I’d have to think that there are few of us who would NEVER open themseleves up to the ridicule that this show dishes…regardless of money. So I can watch this show guilt-free knowing that Martha condones it, and I can finally say something good about Martha. In some bizarre capitalistic way, she actually knows how to laugh at herself.

I don’t really care to learn to bake luscious layer cake or to make fortune cookies out of felt, but I would like to learn to lighten up a bit and have a good laugh at myself! So thanks for the lesson, Martha.