Category Archives: inspiring

Fragments of myself

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I have been reflecting a lot lately – looking back at the phases of my life where I defined myself in terms of my relationships with other people.  I even introduced myself with those titles.  I was always a daughter, a sister, a step-mom, a wife (now ex-wife) and it has only been recently that I have begun to describe myself in terms of who I really am – me.

All of those monikers are still a big part of who I am, or was, but they are only pieces of my bigger puzzle.  I have found new ways to describe myself that truly incorporate the essence of me and not just how my being relates to other people.  After years of missing the most integral part of who I am, I have found the proper words to define myself.

puzzle-pieces

(image credit: loridennis.com)

In the past, I had deconstructed myself and put smaller pieces of me into everyone else’s puzzle.  I was happy to be the daughter or the sister.  I didn’t feel lost nor did I feel any sense of being an incomplete person.  I merely slipped into the shadows of the lives around me.  I became an extension of them and the fault of that circumstance was all mine.

After many months of contemplative thought I have become aware of a new sense of self – a confidence to simply extend my hand and introduce myself with only my name.  There is no longer a follow-up delineation of how I relate to anyone other than myself.  I am, in the simplest of definitions, me.

Those fragments of myself constitute a big part of my life but they are no longer words I use to acquaint myself with anyone new in my life.  Eventually those pieces of my puzzle will fall into their rightful place but that place is not the definition of who I am.

Hitting the right notes

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Even through the most troubling of times there is something inherently soothing about music.  The dulcet tones relieve the pressure that reality compounds and the rhythm can make the most difficult situations bearable.

I love most types of music but the sounds I find most comforting are the harmonic blends of The Tenors. The uplifting tones of their four part harmony bathe me in a warm glow and bring me out of the darkness.  The joy they find in singing allows me a moment to pause and reflect on the beauty in the world.

The timbre in their notes carries me to a place of serenity and I am embraced by a feeling of peace.  It amazes me how quickly the stress is assuaged and washed over by a wave of calm by simply allowing the pacifying effect of the notes to soothe my soul.

 Tenors

(image courtesy of: tenorsmusic.com)

Recently, these four talented individuals have collaborated on a song with a good friend of mine, Kenny Munshaw, to raise money for the Big Brothers / Big Sisters organization.  The song is called “I Thank You” and is beautifully written by a genuinely gifted group of people and performed by The Tenors and Laura Kaeppeler.

If you haven’t yet listened to these fellows, I urge you to download their new single and support a great organization.  And I’m sure along the way you will fall in love with their voices and their charming and sincere personalities as much as I did.

I am simply me

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I am me.  There is nothing more or less to me.  When you look at me you see me at face value and I am truly the sum of my parts.  I will never change to be anything other than who I am.

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(image credit: sekutenetwork.com)

I have a great capacity to live my life the way I choose and no outside force will alter my path.  Some may not understand my journey but my path has been laid before me to follow and I do so willingly and without hesitation because this path is taken with the knowledge that I have carved it myself.  My road is created from a belief in who I am.  My road is paved with an understanding of my true identity and I am comfortable having my feet follow its winding path.

My road does not define me, I define it.  It is not sculpted from pettiness or jealousy, nor is it furrowed from frustration.  My road is simply an open path to my happiness and I follow it knowing that this is the journey I was meant to take.  It may not be the road chosen by many but this artery of life is meant for me.  It is unique and the fellow travelers I meet on this stretch of highway were meant to cross my path.

My journey to be me follows the beat of the incessant drumming only I can hear.  The mellifluous sounds keep my compass pointed in the right direction and I am happy to continue putting one foot in front of the other.  I will never again stray from my path because this passage allows me to be the truest version of myself.  It allows me to simply be me.

White rabbits and birthday wishes

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It is the first day of the month and, like every beginning of the month, the first words uttered in my waking moments were “white rabbit, white rabbit, white rabbit”. I’m certainly not a superstitious person but this string of language is a long-standing family tradition.  My great cousin Agnes, a delightful lady with a thick Scottish brogue, introduced me to this tradition when I was still in single digits.  She was in her 80’s and she will be an influence in my life that I will never forget.

white rabbits

The idiom is meant to bring luck for the remaining days of the month but reciting that phrase gives me pause to remember cousin Agnes and the other family members and friends who are no longer with me.  When my dad was still with us, my phone would ring in the wee hours on the first of the month and, before even saying hello, we would say our white rabbits on the phone together.  Call display eventually helped to avoid the confusion of people on the other end of the phone if they happened to call before my dad. He was a very early riser and, as unlikely as that was, it happened once or twice and left a few bewildered callers wondering why I was shouting about albino bunnies.

Those simple words this morning were more important because today would have been my dad’s 77th birthday.  Saying those words on the first of this month was like my phone call to Heaven and I could hear his voice in my head saying them back to me at the same time. Though the distance that separates us is immeasurable, he is still never far from my heart.

In those brief moments when darkness still envelops the morning I find a sense of peace in those words.  Those two words, repeated three times in the haze of my waking moments, weave new threads into the blanket of my history.  That phrase warms my heart with memories of people and places that have been etched into my past.  That simple string of words uttered three times in a row will be with me paving the way into my future.

May the next thirty-one days be filled with good things for all of us.

Happy birthday Dad.  xo

Oz never did give nothin’ to the Tin Man…..Trifextra challenge

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The most unlikely friends.  Each of them thought they needed something they already had.  We always seek the things we are afraid to see in ourselves.  Be brave, be clever, have a heart.

Annex - Haley, Jack (Wizard of Oz, The)_02

(image credit: doctormacro.com)

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Written for this weekend’s Trifextra Challenge:

This weekend we’re asking for 33 of your own words about a famous trio. The trio could be from literature, from history or from pop culture. Just make it yours and have fun with it. Good luck! – See more at: http://www.trifectawritingchallenge.com/#sthash.y3vJUsW9.dpuf

Now leaving your comfort zone…please fasten your seatbelt

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This post was inspired by this post.  Thanks Guap for getting the wheels turning again!

“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone” ~ Neale Donald Walsch

Risk and reward.  Two words that represent how life really begins when you take that chance and step off the ledge of your comfort zone.  Life in a safety bubble is just that, safe.   No adventure tale every begins with the lead character being stuck in the confines of their comfort zone.   With risk comes adventure and the potential for really harnessing an energy that you never knew existed.

We create and shape our comfort zone for a reason.  It brings us the solace that we crave.  But frequent trips outside of that comfort zone can open up a world of possibilities and give us a sense of freedom.  It can allow us the opportunity to perceive things about ourselves that we never would have otherwise discovered.  And it doesn’t have to begin with a great leap of faith.  Small changes in our routine can lead to a monumental swing in our level of acceptance and can eventually increase the size of our comfort zone.

It is a given that stepping out of that comfort zone will lead to some anxiety and discomfort but the small pains we face to grow our experience will be well worth the gains we appreciate on the other side of the journey.  We need to re-wire the built-in mechanism that regulates our level of apprehension when it comes to trying something new.

Change is frightening but change is also cathartic.  Real personal growth can only occur if we allow ourselves the opportunity to expand our horizons, to go beyond the constraints with which we bind ourselves.  Reaching beyond that level of comfort will allow us the chance to gain more confidence and gain a sense of power from our attempt to evolve.

Take that first step towards the ledge, and then take another.  Slowly you will gain the confidence and know that the precipice that faces you is not as daunting as you first thought.  The fear that you embrace can only hold you back from finding out what awaits you once you take that plunge.  Perhaps the thing that scared you the most will hold the key to you truly feeling like you can conquer the world.

The blessing of blogging

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I had a voice message yesterday on my phone that was overwhelmingly special.  A dear friend who has been struggling with some health issues left a message for me that brought tears to my eyes and I listened to it a few times because it was so sweet.  She had been having a bad day and, without getting into detail, she was directed to my blog and phoned to tell me how much she loves what I write.  She has been a follower for a while, but for some reason she was drawn to it yesterday and called to tell me how much it means to her to read what I have written and how my words seem to mirror her own.

During those times that I am consumed with words, when I am overcome with the desire to write, I never really take the time to consider how my writing can affect other people.  I’ve always written to free the ideas but never thought about how those ideas are absorbed on the other side of this blogosphere.  It was really heart-warming to get that message and realize that words convey many messages to many people.

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Linda, thank you for your message.  I hope God hears all of your words, and the ones I added in, and I hope the sun shines on your beautiful face for a very long time.  xo

Pay It Forward

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I just watched the movie of the same name again with a young Haley Joel Osment and was as overwhelmed with the movie today as I was when it first came out.  What a concept.  For those of you that have not seen the movie, I highly recommend it – and for those of you that have seen it, watch it again.

A young boy’s social studies assignment is to come up with a concept that could change the whole world and to put it into action.  His idea is so simple, yet so possible.  It begins with one good deed done for three separate people.   Instead of that favor being repaid, the favor is paid forward to three other unsuspecting, but deserving people.  The ripple effect of such a simple gesture could be remarkable!

The trajectory of human existence could be put into a whole new orbit.  The onus is on you to start the ripple – the rest is putting your faith in others to continue the journey that you began.  Imagine if the human race could single-handedly make the world a better place to live by putting our faith in each other and believing that such a small gesture could make such a vast difference.

It is certainly worth pondering for more than just a fleeting second.  What if the favor you bestow on someone today could start that ripple?  Kindness begets kindness…what we sow, so shall we reap.  But what if we let others reap what we have sown, and pass on that kindness to someone you may never cross paths with?

Pay it forward.  Impart your generosity to someone less fortunate with only one covenant.  They need not pay you for the kindness you have shown them.  Ask them instead to look favorably on someone else in need of that same benevolence that you have shared. The world can seem like an unfriendly and threatening place, but if we could change the outlook on life for three people and they, in turn, do the same, perhaps we can make a difference and make our world a much better place.

Our senses

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We are a species of senses.  We rely on sight, touch, taste, sound and smell to allow our perceptions to travel to our brain where they are realized and understood.  And when we see something that we find pleasing to the eye we are immediately captured by the look of it.  Whether it be a piece of art, the car of your dreams, a stunning photograph or the look of another person, our brain reacts to the ocular stimulation and we become mesmerized by the vision.

More often than not we become so focused on the things that are evident to the naked eye that we forget to take into account the sense that our heart feels when it is equally captured by something.  It is simple to covet things we see –  a random object that catches our attention and we want so badly to have it for our very own.  But the things that catch your eye can be deceiving – they can change over time and ultimately hold none of the rapture that they once did.

The things that capture your heart are worth a million of the trinkets that once held your visual attention.  Life is about passion and harnessing that ebb and flow of energy that makes our hearts full.  By pursuing the things that truly capture your heart you are embracing the genuine happiness you feel when you follow that intense feeling.

Believe in that passion, whatever it may be, and know that the special things that capture your heart are well worth the effort to pursue.  We get one chance at this life.  Never forget that the five senses will create lasting memories but make this life the best you can by trusting your gut and following your true passions.

Learning from Ancient Wisdom

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Buddha said it best – “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful”.

Truer words could not have been spoken. How can we expect success if we cannot find joy in what we are doing? Whether it be our career or our personal lives, for us to be truly successful in any relationship we must be authentically satisfied with the path we have chosen. We must relish every part of our contentment and let that euphoria help pave the path of our success.

We will never attain great success if we cannot first achieve that absolute feeling of satisfaction that comes with doing something we love to do. So many go through the motions of a daily routine just to get to the end of their day. It is the few and far between that thrive in their lives because they truly love where they are and what they are doing.

I feel that success on many levels. I am, maybe for the first time in a long time, truly happy with my life. I am independent, I am good at my job and love being there and I have many family and friends that are there to remind me of my happiness if I temporarily falter from my bliss. Sure there are many days that do not go as well as intended, but at the end of those days I am still able to see beyond the lower points and know that tomorrow holds the hope of being better.

I sincerely love what I do. My job allows me the opportunity to meet many new people and I crave those relationships. And my writing affords me the freedom to express myself in ways that I cannot during my work day. I have the best of both of my worlds.

My genuine happiness is composed of all of the aspects of my life. And my true success is the fact that I can embrace that happiness and excel at what I do. Regardless of others opinions of my achievements, my happiness remains intact and my prosperity breathes new life every day.

Find your happiness. Within that feeling of contentment lies the path to your true success.