I recently discovered a tote bag I got a few months ago when I was a workshop facilitator a local women’s conference. The bag remained among my unpacked workshop materials and unsold books until a few weeks later when I finally got around to putting things where they belong. In the conference tote bag was a perfume sample in a generic looking white tube with seven words in gold letters: Kate Spade *New York * Live Color Fully. I am not really designer-conscious, but I took an interest in Kate Spade years ago when I learned not only is she from my hometown of Kansas City, Missouri, she also attended my all-girls high school, St. Teresa’s Academy, several years before me. I tried the sample. I loved it. I ordered it online.
Much to my surprise, when I got the box, it was so different than the unremarkable white sample tube. The colors were vibrate and beautiful! Anyone who knows me knows I love color and these were my colors: orange, fuchsia and yellow—much like the color palette of I Speak Life! The colors of the packaging and the name of the fragrance, in its simplicity, struck me: Live Color Fully.
What does it mean to Live Color Fully? I don’t know what the design and marketing team for Kate Spade intended, but here is what I’ve decided it could mean.
Live Consciously
Live in the moment. Be consciously aware of what you are experiencing at that moment. A friend of mine recently posted on Facebook how she went to a coffee shop with her younger daughter while she waited for her older one to finish dance practice. Her daughter had something to occupy her and my friend planned to work. Instead, her daughter wanted to engage in conversation. Disappointed that her plans were thwarted, but she savored the moment knowing there could be a time in the near future when her eight-year old might not have the same interest and enthusiasm to converse with her.
When we live in the moment, we should also be aware and conscious of how we feel—the good and the not so good feelings. Life can deal some blows and we have to keep functioning. When was the last time you took inventory of how you feel, how something or someone made you feel. Some of us carry such a load that if we stopped to think how we feel, we are afraid we would fall apart. We can only heal when we acknowledge where we are.
Enjoy the precious moments and take time to process the others.
Live Beautifully
Notice beauty. Notice it in God’s creations—in nature, in people, and in you. Do whatever it takes to make yourself look and feel beautiful. Treat yourself to some fresh cut flowers. Wear the pretty robe at home when there are no guests. Use the nice dishes every once in a while. My mother constantly saved things for another time. As a kid, I never knew when exactly that time was. I remember that she had a beautiful make-up bag that she would not use. She said it was too pretty to use and didn’t want to get it dirty. To which, her aunt, my great-Aunt Sally said, “When it gets dirty, buy a new one.” Even at 10-years old, that made sense to me. Life is not a dress rehearsal, so learn to enjoy the beauty and be beautiful right now.
Live Thankfully & Graciously
When we live lives consciously noticing the beauty, it is easy to live thankfully. I’ve learned to thank God for the smallest of things. A part of living thankfully is showing grace and kindness to others. We don’t have to go from 0 to 100 when someone cuts us off traffic, or cuts in front of us in the check-out line, or when our kids or spouse have done that same thing for the 1000th time. We can be gentle and gracious in our responses, the same way God responds to us in our disobedience.
Live in the moment.
Notice God’s beauty.
Be thankful for the big and small things.
Be gracious to others.
Make 2016 the year to Live Color Fully!
