It’s the time of year when my big garden hat is handily located right inside our back door. Each time I step outside to “garden”—code for sitting in a lawn chair and enjoying a good book—I plunk it on top of my head. When I come back in I take it off and put it right back in its place.
In the United States (probably other countries too), My hat’s off to you is an expression we say to someone who’s done something we respect and admire.
In France, chapeau means hat, but chapeau! (with an exclamation mark) is used to express appreciation and approval.
Who is your hat off to?
“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.”
— Laurie Buchanan
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© 2012 Laurie Buchanan– All Rights Reserved
Tuesdays with Laurie 
My hat is off to you and your beautiful blog!
Deb – Thank you!
Gosh, Deb got here first with the “perfect” answer! So, besides my hat off to you and this blog–chapeau!–my hat’s off to being present with this new bird-chattering sunny leaf-bursting day.
Kathy – We just ended a bird-chattering sunny leaf-bursting day with a flash-in-the-pan thunder storm — pretty cool!
My hat is off to you and your beautiful blog!
Bkjagadish – Thank you!
My hats are off to the guys who created the technology that allow me to follow your posts. 25 years ago, I would’ve just known you to be an amazing spiritual person living in my hometown. The technology allows me to stay connected – and continue to receive your insights – even though I’m physically 1800 miles away. You have a way of posting things that speak to me in the way I need to be spoken to. 🙂
Elizabeth – I’m so glad to know that Speaking from the Heart resonates with you – thank you for letting me know.
Hi,
That is a great idea to have your hat so handy, and laying back and reading a book sounds good to me. 😀
A bit of trivia:
Aussie slang for hat is a – Wig warmer.
Aussie slang for respect or admire, we use the word “Onya” which means – Good on you or Well done. 🙂
Magsx2 – I love the Aussie trivia you shared with us — thank you 🙂
My hat is off to each and every person who finds something good in each and every day! And to you, for making me think about it.
Carol – I, too, admire people who find something god in each and every day. They make our world a much better place 🙂
This brings back warm memories of our Dad who would tip his hat to us as an expression of his appreciation and/or approval and other good things. A lovely gesture, metaphorically and literally. Tipping my hat to you Laurie, and to what you do here.
Colleen – I’m so glad this post stirred warm memories of your dad 🙂
Laurie what a great idea as always as I wave my hat in the air across the miles to you first and foremost. But there are many others, wonderful beings who have the courage to step into the best each day has to offer like the retired doctor who at 91 years old planted two long rows of garden that I photographed a few weeks ago. She did this the day before flying with her 95 year old husband who was also a doctor clean across Canada. She wanted to help out and make things a little easier for her daughter. Her husband was transplanting 500 tomato plants in the greenhouse at the same time. She had booked the flights herself so that they would arrive at midnight. I thought this was clever as the large airport should be at its quietest. They are still both avid readers and I am sure if they couldn’t sleep that they read. I was told just the other day that they are now busy helping plant the garden in the east.
Terrill – Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful story here with us. I hope to see the photographs of the garden over at Creativepotager in the near future.
My hat is off to good people who help others through both word and deed (listening, being present, standing in solidarity, creating community, encouraging, hoping), and that includes bloggers like you and others.
Mark – I, too, admire people who help others with positive words and deeds 🙂
My hat is off to teachers of all sorts – writers, school teachers, parents, piano teachers.
Heather – Oh me too. Parents and teachers hold the future in their hands — children.
Amanda
Graduation this past weekend
Now the traveling girl with a great job with benefits!!
Kim – My hat is off to Amanda too 🙂
I agree with Deb’s “chapeau!” … I’ve been honored first to have worked on the same floor as you with our former employer and then to have known you as healer,spirtual traveler, and writer/bloger. it is a reminder to me that we don’t always fully know (maybe never) those on the road with us. I also just sent a “chapeau!” to my niece Morgan who is graduating with high honors this weekend from Ela College. And, I honor all those who have worked directly and indirectly for social justice and peace! Audrey
Audrey – My hat joins yours — Chapeau! — to Morgan 🙂
My hat’s off to you, Laurie! And to all the other wonderful writers who make sitting in a lawn chair to enjoy a good book (or a good blog post) a frequent possibility!
Barbara – From one voracious reader to another, my hat’s off to wonderful writers too 🙂
Chapeau to you Laurie! My hat’s off to you for your generosity, encouragement and sharing my Brain Color book and work with your Facebook Friends! It’s exciting to put on my gardening chapeau at this time of year. Digging in the earth is grand for igniting my Blue Brain Creativity!
Sheila – My hat’s off to you for the up-and-coming Premier Performance of the Princess Shayna Musical.
My hat’s off to you for having a most darling spirit!
(and for taking that wonderful picture of your hanging hat :))
Anne – Thank you!
Cool! I didn’t realize that “chapeau!” had the same sort of connotations as “hat’s off to you”. Thanks for the tidbit!
Today, my hat is off to every artist, author, dancer, or other creative spirit that makes a go at earning their living that way. It’s not always an easy path, but their courage and determination in moving forward is truly an inspiration!
Dana – yes, Yes, YES! My hat’s off to creative spirits too 🙂
Hi Laurie,
Like most here, I lift my hat to you, and to all who make the effort for others. As you know, respect is a big thing in my life.
What I may not have shared is a bit of family history. In 1874, my 16 year old great grandfather (the son of a yeoman farmer in England) refused to “doff his hat” to the lord of the Manor. This made life so uncomfortable for the family, that they paid for my grandfather’s passage to the colonies (as far from England as he could get). He left London on Jan 16th 1875, on the barque Dilharee, and arrived in Auckland NZ 105 days later, a stranger in a strange land.
So hat lifting has a very prominent place in the lore of this line of the Howards of New Zealand.
Ted – I love the story of your 16 year old great grandfather. It seems that you’ve got quite a bit of his wonderful blood coursing through your veins!
Darn, at least Deb and Kathy said what I wanted to–my hats off to you!
Hugs,
Kathy
Kathy – Thank you!
sooooo, in the spirit of redundency I will chime in and say “my hat’s off to you Laurie”. Why? Well, why not for gawds sake. . . you manage to post regularly with the enthusiasm and wild abandon of a wise woman. You enrich the lives of many by merely “showing up”. But most especially Laurie, you seem to do it all so effortlessly that on many a hair-raising day I have actually had the thought. . .”what would Lauries Buchanan do in this situation”. From my perspective, you’ve managed to stretch the odd 15 minutes of fame into a career And to my way of thinking, that alone is a good enough reason for me to surrender my hat to you.
Alison – Oh dear, I’m blushing. Thank you!
Wow! I want to say what she said! lol Beautifully spoken, lifebydesignwithalison! My hat’s off to you as well! 🙂
Deb – thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU!
Well said! I echo Deb’s sentiments!
You know I wear a hat…I have lots of hats. I sort of collect them and hang them off of any and everything but mostly my head as I spend the best part of my days outdoors. I’m taking off my good Justin to you, Laurie! From your days of visiting and chattering on Pages of Gaia, to forging ahead into the the new world of WordPress, you have not faltered once. You have freely offered your wit, wisdom and graceful talent with words to your friends and neighbors and have brightened many days for for us. So here is a tip of the sombrero to my friend Laurie for her faithful attention to her writing and her faithful readers.
Sandi – Thank you so much for your kind words. You know I love to write and take photographs. Like a “twofer” — blogging is a natural outlet for both 🙂
I missed the wave of hats yesterday somehow or other? I don’t even recall seeing the email, so here I went a lookin. and there are hat’s off to you and so many others.
My hat is off to all the men and women who raise up each day, embrace it for all that it is worth, creating joy and harmony in the world, even if it is just the community around them.
My hats off to you Miss Laurie!
Jeff – My hat’s right back off to you, kind sir 🙂
Isn’t it neat how you start your blog post about putting your hat ON to garden (or better, read outside) yet the expression everyone seems to like the most is ‘my hat’s off to you.’ So interesting. I’ll try to be different and say that when I wear my (life is good) baseball hat (and no, I don’t play baseball and I don’t even watch the game!) while sitting on my deck, in the CA sun, watching the hummingbirds and pondering the world and the words in it, I shall think: hat’s on to you!
Roughwighting1 – I love your shift in perspective! Thank you for the “hat on!” 🙂
Well, my hat is always off for people who are tireless in pursuing their goals and in positively affecting the cause of humanity. My hat will always be off for those single parents who must perform in overdrive to raise families and to those who dedicate their lives to their children’s education. These are the kind of things that should keep many appreciative onlookers with nothing on their heads.
But Hat’s off to you Laurie for yet another meaningful, marvelous post here at SPEAKING FROM THE HEART.
Sam – yes, Yes, YES single parents, God love ’em!
Thank you Sam, for making me feel as if you are tipping your hat to me as well! I’ve been told I’m ike the energizer bunny….constantly pursing my goals no matter how many obstacles appear in my path. and I’m also a single parent of three teenage boys, all honor roll students! ‘Nuf said! 🙂
Hi, Laurie — finally catching up with my blog reading. The summer session at school is keeping me very very busy, but I keep the e-mail notification in my e-mail box as a reminder! My hats, unfortunately, all burned up in that fire on New Year’s Day, and I had some very nice ones. Fortunately, one hat that I somehow have with me is a John Lennon hat from the 1960’s. I tip that hat to all the people I see in counselling for having the courage to face themselves so they can have better and happier lives.
Barbara – Well how darned COOL that you still have a John Lennon hat from the 1960’s?! Like you, my hat’s off to each and every individual who is in counseling, and all heart-based counselors, as well. I know you’re one heckofa busy bee right now — thank you for making the time to visit Speaking from the Heart.
I enjoyed many of your articles so much which make me flounder for proper words to put what I actually feel !!… WOW ! at last I found something that I wanted to say in the words of
lifebydesignwithalison !!!!…. And here’s once again i am lifting my hat to you and yes, yes….. to lifebydesignwithalison also !!!… Thank You both !!…
Bkjagadish – Your words are exactly perfect. Thank you 🙂
Hi Lori, glad you liked my why i write blog – i certainly pay attention to your posts; it’s been amazingly busy; hugs
Hats off to you Laurie for making me smile 🙂 And “hats off” to all my friends who warm my heart.
Ann – Thank you 🙂
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Readers – My friend Sam Juliano attended a play this weekend, STOREFRONT CHURCH that points to the question: “What is the relationship between spiritual experience and social action?” Head over to his Monday Morning Diary (May 21) to find out more:
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