Are You Divergent?

“Becoming fearless isn’t the point.
That’s impossible.
It’s learning
how to control your fear,
and how to be free from it.”
― Veronica Roth, Divergent

Have you read the book or seen the movie?   I had never heard of it until my sister-in-law told me that she and her daughter had watched it after reading the book.  So, when it came on TV one night, I popped some popcorn and snuggled on the couch to watch.  I am so glad that I did.

I will not give away the story, but I will tell you that the lessons learned in the movie about fear are amazing, thought-provoking and interesting.  The belief that we are suited to a type of work, pigeon-holing ourselves by one major human virtue is a challenge for those who fit into more than one and therefore are called divergent.  Divergents are believed to be dangerous by the simple fact that they have more than one equally prominent virtue.

Bravery ~ Selflessness ~ Intelligence ~ Honesty ~ Kindness/Compassion

So which one of the virtues above would you pick if you had to be only one?  Or would you be considered divergent?  Have you ever felt out of place and divergent?  What did you do?  How did/do you handle it?  Please share below as I would love to hear your story.

Shine On!

xo

 

It Matters How You Speak

Raise your words not your voice

It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder. ~ Unknown

Since it’s Monday AND time for Rabbit Rabbit click HERE if you don’t know what I’m talking about and never heard of the 1st of the month tradition, I thought I’d give us all a good reminder for the week.  It includes speaking to yourself as well as how you speak to others.

Have you ever noticed the way in which a sentence’s meaning can be changed simply by the tone of voice?

Repeat after me:

I love you. (simply said without changes in tone or cadence)

I love you. (emphasis on I)

I LOVE you. (emphasis on Love)

I love YOU. (emphasis on You)

I love you? (emphasis on question?)

I…love…you

Which do you prefer?

Speak kindly.  Be honest.  Raise others up by what you say and how you say it.

Use your words to help, not to hurt.  If you don’t have anything nice to say, stay quiet please.

Watch how your life transforms when you notice and speak positively.

Shine On!

xo

I can’t find the delete button!

It was bound to happen one day ~ a slip of a finger and voila ~ a post published empty of words.  I don’t know about other bloggers, but sometimes I pre-write my posts when I find a picture that speaks to me and then in the morning, if I am not inclined to write about the Daily Prompt, I have a few posts to choose from ~ but this one, I had just found a picture of a phone when instead of hitting save, I hit publish!

YIKES!  An empty post!

Has this ever happened to you?

So, now I’m stuttering, if that’s even possible for a writer, because, I’m not that proficient in WP to find the erase button to  take the post away!  Where’s the REDO button or DELETE?  I guess I’ll have to forge onward with this post…ok, I’m ready.  I can do this.  Hold on tight my friends…this may be a wild post!

There’s something to say about this learning experience.  Have you ever said something that you didn’t mean?  It just escaped your lips without thinking?  Have you ever thought aloud only to find that you truly did say your thoughts out loud?  Have you ever spoken your mind only to have your listener not agree with your opinions?  Have you ever said something you wished you could take back?

I have.  And I’ve been the listener who wished she had never heard some things as well.

So what do you do when you make a faux pas?  Stick your foot in your mouth literally?  Pretend you didn’t mean it even when you did?  Laugh it off?  Act as if you didn’t say anything and look at the person with doe-eyed wonder at what they are upset about?  Turn around and change the subject?  Get angry at them for bringing it up?  Blame it on someone else?  Blame it on an illness?

I’ve seen all sorts of coping mechanisms to this problem ~ none of which helped the situation in the end because whatever was said in the heat of the moment, hangs in the air like the stench of a road kill skunk.  So what do you do?

First, try to move on.  Can you forget what’s been said to you?  Can your listener forget what you’ve said?

Was it the truth?  Was it your truth?  His/Her truth?  Was it a deal-breaker?  Or was it heart-breaking?

Can you pretend you’ve never heard it?  Can your listener?  Or was it something that once that cat’s been let out of the bag, that’s it?

This has been a hard post for me due to the nature of the beast and the fact that I was totally unprepared to write about it.  Perhaps it’s a good lesson for me to be more aware when I am looking through my photos/cards, in order to spark some inspiration for a post!

To me, honesty is the best policy ~ and a heartfelt apology is the best I can do!

So please forgive my mistake in hitting publish today!  I wish all of my mistakes were as easy as simply apologizing.  Perhaps they are? 

Perhaps that’s what’s needed when words escape you.  Simply speak from the heart, from the honesty that lies within us all.

Speak as you wish to be spoken to ~ ahh that’s the answer!

Shine On!

xo

PS.  All puns intended when SPEAKING about the phone, answering it etc! 🙂