Whatchagonnado?

2018 is drawing to a close.
Whatchagonnado?

You can fixate on your woes.
You can focus on your failures.
You can flounder in your falters.
Or . . .
You can embrace your imperfections.
You can grow from your experiences.
You can learn from vital lessons.

Whatchagonnado?

Make wise choices, friends.
Life is far too short
to wallow in madness, mayhem,
and misinformation.

Auld Lang Syne

Literally translated from Scottish lore as:
Old Long Since
More understandably translated as:
Days Gone By or Times Gone By.

However you make sense of it,
take a moment and ponder on
the blessings and the moments
that have meant the most to you.
Celebrate those times.
Celebrate those moments.
Celebrate those memories.
And whether you raise a glass
or not,
keep within your heart
the deeds and actions of others
that have made your days
a little better.
Celebrate THAT!

Pondering . . .

It is my belief
that we are placed in this world
of wonders and beauty
with a special ability
to appreciate them.
If you are lucky,
you can share what you see
with someone else.
If you are blessed,
you can show someone
what you see.
And the greatest gift,
beyond the wonder
and the beauty
is to share yourself;
your laughter,
your heart,
your self.
The wonder and the beauty
that is you.


(I took a little of a quote from someone else
and really, truly made it my own!)

Best Present Ever

The best present
I was ever given
was the gift of learning
to embrace my self.
To realize I am human.
I am not perfect.
I no longer try to be.
I fail. I fall short.
I am humbled daily.
And I love it.
It is so enabling.
This is me.
I am broken and beautiful.
I am shattered and strong.
I am flawed and fabulous.
Best
Present
Ever

Christmas Memories

This is written about the beach,
but holds much more meaning
that the picture it creates.
Enjoy!

The tide recedes, but leaves behind
bright seashells on the sand
The sun goes down, but gentle warmth
still lingers on the land
The music stops, yet echoes on
in sweet, soulful refrains.
For every joy that passes,
something beautiful remains.

Hold memories in your heart
and the love remains forever!

Prisms

This quote is from Sterling K. Brown:

Empathy begins with understanding life
from another person's perspective.
Nobody has
an objective experience of reality.
It is all through
our own individual prisms.

I am who I am
because the course of my life
has forged me into this person.
Your journey
is your own personal adventure.
My prism, as I choose it,
provides colors and rainbows
and facets
of unbelievably incredible beauty.

What does your prism show?

Decorate

Firmly plant yourself
in faith and ethics and morals.
Water yourself
with affection and fortitude.
Drape yourself
with kindness and joy.
Embellish yourself
with adventure and education.
Light yourself
with hope and generosity.
Surround yourself
with laughter and love.
Give of yourself
providing shelter and security.

Step Outside

Nothing is more damaging
to the adventurous spirit
than to live
in conformity, security and conservation.

Step Outside
your comfort zone,
your norm,
your parameters,
your bubble.
Explore.
Learn.
Dream.
Wander.
Go.

Praise

I cannot stand the theory
of giving everyone a trophy,
especially just for participating.
I think it breeds complacency
and a lack of energy and enthusiasm.

I do, however, advocate intently
for praise . . .

You look great today!
What a great speech!
Super sweater!
What a stunning smile!
Awesome kicks!
Nice job!
Thanks for holding the door!

It doesn't take an ounce of effort
to be a decent human being;
and if we all tried just a wee bit harder
to do just that
the world would be an entirely different place.

Forgiveness

I did not write this in its entirety.
I have embellished a few things here and there.

Forgiveness is not easy.
At times,
it feels more painful
than the wound we suffered.
It is more draining
than reacting to the infliction.
It is more severe
than witnessing and wiping tears.
It is more brutal
than removing the inciter.
And yet,
there is no peace
without forgiveness.
We must absolve
the wrongdoer
to save ourselves.

Wander

While you can,
when you're able,
wander!
See what's out there.
You don't have to go far
to find beauty and adventure,
but if you can experience
different things,
different people,
different places,
do it.
The extraordinary
is everywhere.
Go wander
and find it.

What You Sow

More than you understand,
what you sow
so shall you reap!

Plant seeds of kindness.
Water them with generosity and love.
Nurture new growth with positivity.
Fertilize with integrity and tenacity.
Shine on it with praise.
And when that flower blooms,
admire its beauty
and encourage it to spread
far and wide.

Be the reason
there is beauty in the world.

Look For The Good

A vast majority of us
succumb to human nature
and we gripe.
We complain about traffic.
We complain about low wages.
We complain about long hours.
We complain about high costs.
We complain about sniffles.
We complain about weight.
We complain about struggles.
We complain about a great many things.

How about . . .
we Look For The Good?!

We've got a car.
We've got a job.
We pay our bills.
We can get well.
We can exercise.
We can overcome.

We are miracles!
Created to do great things.
In existence to help one another.
Look For The Good!

Peace

When life is hurried,
I wish you calm.
When life is loud,
I wish you quiet.
When life is draining,
I wish you strength.
When life is maddening,
I wish you pleasure.
When life is weighty,
I wish you light.
When life is cruel,
I wish you love.
When life is hectic,
I wish you peace.

SWAK

Sealed With A Kiss

Today is National Write a Letter Day.
Take a moment,
find some paper,
grab a pen
(or pencil or heck, even a crayon)
and scribble a few lines.
Somehow,
a little love in an envelope
makes a person smile,
perks up a day,
changes perspective,
lightens the weight of worries.
To know that someone is thinking of you
is a beautiful gift.
Share the love.

Choice

If you've been gifted with the opportunity
of a brand new day,
the rest is your choice!

Choose happy over crappy.
Choose laughter over tears.
Choose hope over angst.
Choose praise over criticism.
Choose good over bad.
Choose right over wrong.
Choose compassion over indifference.
Choose help over hurt.
Choose confidence over doubt.
Choose jubilation over desperation.
Choose love over hate.

The circumstance does not matter.
The choice is yours.

Joyful

Christmastime, I realize,
can be a painful and lonely time
for some folks.
There are people
that I wish were still here,
that I wish were still part of my life,
that I wish were closer.
The joy, however,
comes with memories,
with lessons learned,
with voices and laughter.
As much as there is always
something to be thankful for . . .
there is even more to be joyful about.

Wait for it . . .

Sometimes
life doesn't give you
what you want,
not because
you don't deserve it,
but because
you deserve
so
much
more.

Do!

Hello fans!  :-)
What do you do
when you see something wrong?
I'm not talking about jumping on
every single hashtag fiasco that goes on.
I mean something local, personal.
Something that really touches you -
deep in your heart.
We don't need to have big bucks
to make a difference.
We don't have to have
the power of the masses.
Sometimes,
the simplest and kindest of gestures
make the biggest, most immense impact.
What we attempt to mend in others
we usually mend within ourselves.

I was away. Now I'm back.
I will be away next week, as well.
Just so you know.

Tendrils

As in a good foundation,
the tendrils we share with others
are kind of amazing.
We are bound together by
laughter, love, memories,
pain, struggle, hope, faith.
Sometimes, those tendrils become
fragile and frayed.
They may break.
Some are so thick and so strong
there will never be a nick.
But they are there.
Dusty, hidden, twisted, gnarled.
But there.
I am so blessed by the tendrils
that I have offered and
those that have been offered to me.
We are knotted.
We are connected.
We support one another.
We help in each other's growth.
Be aware of what your tendrils
are tied to.