Grateful

 Grateful

Being grateful is your gateway to peace. When you can sit in any moment of your life and find something that is beautiful about it, then you can find the meaning is every situation, even when it's the hardest thing you've gone through. Being grateful doesn't mean you are pushing aside all of your other emotions but it does mean you see and feel the deeper meaning in what's going on and finding the space that is making you expand and grow. Being able to say thank you in amongst the pain and the sorrow will open the door to growth, to love, and ultimately to peace.  It's easy to find things to be grateful for when life is easy. The true test is to be able to find gratitude in amongst the heartache.

Throwing Shade

 

Throwing Shade

Wanting something better for yourself is normal. Wanting to reach your potential is what you should be striving for. Realizing that you do not have to throw shade (digs, jabs, whatever you call it) at others as you reach your goals, that is key. When you come for another person's character, even in the subtleness of ways, what you are doing is really showing the flaws in yours. If you stopped for a moment, you would recognize that those that came before you were actually building the foundation in which you were able to soar. Without that platform, your leap would have been far greater. Celebrating your accomplishments while also sincerely celebrating those that built the foundation (and with an understanding that you are adding to that foundation for those that will came after), then that is the definition of true success.

Friendship

 

Friendship

There are very few things in this world that can steady you like a solid friendship. It's the kind of connection that no words are needed, you just know when you are needed. Many people talk about the importance of soulmate relationships and this is one of them.  Friendship, in its truest form, is saying to another person -

• I see you, 
• I love all sides of you,
• I support you and will be your cheerleader throughout life,
• I will push you to reach your potential, 
• I will not let you go through darkness alone,
• I will sit beside you when your world crashes down,
• I will laugh with you at the absurdity of life,
• I will stand in front of you when you need a shield and behind you when you need support.

Make sure you take a moment today to connect with your friends still here and those friends who have passed on and are now your guardian angels.

Rise

 

Rise

There is a hard fact in life. Many people will choose position, a title, status, or more money even if it means stomping over you to get there. Somewhere along the way people became a commodity and are no longer viewed as the greatest asset. Even worse, when you feel something is off in your gut and confront a situation, you are met with only what can be described as a dance routine of gaslighting. 

No matter what the situation, it's time to change the narrative. Always know your worth. Know that no matter what is said, you and you alone know your truth. Although it's hard at times, never let the bastards grind you down.  Instead, rise like the Phoenix you are and trust that your gut will guide you to the next right thing.

Love

 

Love

Love is an incredible gift. Feeling loved and being loved (by anyone) can fill you up with such love yourself. Love comes in so many forms.  Love can be support. Love can be a shoulder to lean on. Love can be a healthy physical touch. Love can be laughter. That's the amazing thing about love, it can keep building and shifting forms but ultimately, it's still love at its core.  The true gift is to turn that love into unconditional love; meaning I will love you with no "but".... (healthy love that is).  Now this kind of love is harder but the love is that much greater and profound. When you can maintain love at the core, you will be guided differently, you will pause before you respond to something, you will look for the deeper meaning in any given situation, and above all, you will understand that true love, unconditional love, has no ending.

Betrayal

Betrayal

Being hurt by another person, a group of people, a situation or worse yet, yourself is just so painful. Feeling that level of hurt and disappointment, especially coming from those you trust is just downright heartbreaking. Trust is sacred and when that's broken, well we too can feel broken inside. It's saying to someone else I am handing you my vulnerability and asking you to guard it and when they don't, you feel like you didn't even know them really in the first place.  But why do we feel the need to trust other people with all that we hold so sacred in ourselves? Is that we feel we can't even be trusted with how we feel or maybe is it that we just don't really know how to trust ourselves fully? Sometimes the hurt comes from outside and sometimes it actually comes from within ... or maybe even a little of both.  Either way, there is work to do and guess what? It doesn't require another soul to do it - it only requires you! Betrayal doesn't require an apology from that person (heck most of the time you never get one anyway) and it doesn't require you to hold that anger until the end of time (let me know how that's going if that's currently happening).  The only thing required is grace, love, and ultimately forgiveness of yourself.  Being betrayed is the hardest thing. Picking up the pieces can be even harder but the person you will become who finally understands your worth and truly decides to trust your own self with your greatest power - your vulnerability ... well then you just may become the unstoppable person you were meant to be all along.

Use Your Voice

Use Your Voice

Too many of us dull our light to make other people shine brighter.  You have thoughts, insights, and maybe even feedback that is important. Yet most of the time you second guess yourself and instead of voicing your thoughts, you remain silent or worse, end up agreeing with someone else who had the courage enough to speak up.  Somewhere along your journey you got the memo that if you agree, conform, be "good" then everything will be okay ... but then somewhere deep down inside that feeling does not resonate.  Staying silent slowly chips away at your soul. Why? Because your voice MATTERS in this world. You were not meant to just "go along to get along". You were meant to have the whole human experience and that means sharing who you are with the world. Stop making yourself smaller and invisible. You have much to contribute and it's time you allow yourself to speak up.  Sometimes all it takes is giving ourselves permission to be the one to say the thing that no one else will ... and that may just start a ripple that turns into a beautiful waterfall of change.

Birthdays

 

Birthdays

Birthdays are a time to not only celebrate but to reflect. It gives us time to pause and take inventory of our life. What is going well? What haven't we accomplished? What do we need to do differently? What do we need to stop doing altogether? What do we need to start doing that we have been putting off? Birthdays, just like New Year's (or truthfully it can be any day you choose) is a time to take inventory and plan a path forward that continues to support your growth, your goals, and your dreams. 

Remember ...

You are never too old to to create the life you have always dreamed of. 

You are never too old to leap for that dream. 

You are never too old to pick up that instrument.

You are never too old to make new friends.

You are never too old to join a supportive group of people.

You are never too old to try the spin class ... just start slow :)

You are never too old to fall in love.

You are never too old to create new habits.

Birthdays give us the opportunity to let go of the past, embrace the present, and forge a new future - one full of curiosity and awe.

Choices

 

Choices

Our lives are filled with choices from the time we open our eyes to the time we shut them again for the night. Choices present themselves all day long from what we wear, to what we eat, to who we spend our time with and everything in between. Sometime life just feels like one big choice and we get so tired of having to decide which way to go. If you really stop and think about it though - well that' the real beauty of life isn't? It's all a choice so if you are not happy with a part of your life, realizing you have a say in the matter is soul shifting. The revelation that you are not stuck, that you can alway make different choices will change not only your perspective but your life. These changes can be small or significant but either way they are impactful. Maybe for today, you just make one different choice and see how your life starts to shift. 

Exhale

Exhale

Have you ever held your breath for a few seconds and then deeply exhaled? What do you instantly feel? That would be relief! For a second your body relaxes, your shoulders soften and you realize the only thing you need to do for the next few seconds is just breathe and be in the stillness.

Life is like holding your breath at times. The pressure can slowly build and if we don't release it, it can get to a breaking point, well let's be real honest, YOU will get to a breaking point. Most of us live our lives releasing just enough pressure to not boil over but not enough to really bring us back to calm. We run from thing to thing, task to task, putting out as many fires as we can either in our personal lives, at work or most likely both while never taking moment to release the pressure ... and then we do it all again the next day.  

But there is always a moment to choose to exhale, fully and deeply exhale.  Let this be your moment ... and just maybe allow yourself to lean into that.

Grief

 

Grief

The dictionary defines grief as deep sorrow, usually from the loss of someone or something.  Grief is more than just deep sorrow though, it's feeling the deepest part of your soul in an aching anguishing pain that takes your breath away at times. It's feeling the fear of what comes next not knowing how to even focus on anything, no less the moment in front of you. It is all encompassing, it takes away your ability to taste food the same, hear sounds the same, or feel the same in spaces that once gave you comfort. It's a numbness that flows throughout your body like the waves in an ocean carrying everything from uncertainty, sadness, calmness, uncontrollable tears, and even anger.  There is no roadmap to grief. The only thing you can do is be gentle with yourself and others experiencing this level of loss. Understand that grief looks different for each person and give room for that, especially when it comes to your own feelings and emotions. Don't let other people's definition of grief and how to handle it become your own definition. Maybe if we allowed ourselves to take the time to truly grieve a loss, we would understand the love that was there at an even greater capacity.