What Is Strength?

“The strongest people are not those

who show strength in front of us,

but those who win battles

we know nothing about.”
~ Anonymous

Happy Saturday!

Shine On!

xo

 

Until You’ve Been There, You Can’t Quite Understand

Until You’ve Been There,

You Can’t Quite Understand

At some point in life, we can feel misunderstood and alone as if no one truly understands what we are enduring.  It happens.  We can swirl in strive alone or we can reach out to others.  I have found through my experiences that when we endure hardships, we have a choice.  We can allow them to keep us down or we can use our knowledge to help others.  There’s nothing like the connection when we share what we are going through and find the comfort with someone who understands because they have a similar experience.

On the other hand, if you have not experienced ‘x’ (fill in the blank with whatever hardship you are currently enduring), you may find it difficult to be compassionate with a friend who just doesn’t ‘get it’ because they simply can’t imagine the magnitude of ‘x’ in your life.

Don’t despair dear friends for it happens to all of us.  We all have certain hardships in life that can drag us down, but here you can find a connection of love that endures, supports and helps to raise you up when you need comfort.  You only need to tap into the love of the universe to feel it.  Take my hand.  I understand.

Holidays can be trying times for the best of us.  Grief and loss can sour happy times if we let them.  But we have a choice to allow sadness to swallow us up and sap our energy or we can reach out and look up.  I know it’s not easy, but it is possible.  Begin to feel the festive spirit of love in your life.  You are not alone, ever.  Even when you feel completely misunderstood and alone, you are not.  Faith is a great healer.  Your inner spirit shines with a heartlight full of love when you let it.  Allow your soul to glow with love and peace.  Begin to feel the gratitude for being here in this moment.  Breathe in the source of God’s love for you.  Close your eyes and see the white light of love surrounding you.

Grief comes in waves.  Ride the peaks and valleys of grief as best you can and know that it can be a wild ride.  But know that it is a part of life’s journey.  For without grief, we would not understand the beauty of happiness and joy.

Share your experiences with others as when we connect, when compassion forges that connection, we all become empowered by the moment.  When we lift someone else up by word or deed or even companionable silence, we lift your own spirit as well, we begin to heal and we strengthen our loving heartlights to shine even brighter!

Remember you are loved.  You are cherished.  Life is a season of years with ups and downs.  We remember the good and the bad, but the choice is ours as to what we allow to take our attention.  You are wise.  You are here.  Be kind to yourself and others today for we are all enduring something.  Compassion heals, dear friends.  Shine your heartlight, connect with others and know that you are loved.

Shine On!

xo

 

Behind the Closed Door

Most of us have, at one time or another, come across the following two quotes:

“When one door closes, another door opens, but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.”– Alexander Graham Bell

“When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one, which has been opened for us.” – Helen Keller

but it’s how we choose to deal with the closed door that makes all the difference.

We’ve all had ups and downs in our lives.  We don’t leave this lifetime without some tears, some smiles, laughter, love and disappointments.  It happens.  Life goes on.  Changes come gradually and sometimes they come in the blink of an eye.  Best laid plans sometimes go awry.  But we always have a choice to sit in front of a closed door, pining for something/someone or we can look around to discover that there’s more to life than the past that waits behind the door.

It takes courage.  We have a choice, but sometimes we forget that we indeed have that choice.  Sometimes it’s we who close the door and sometimes the door is closed on us.  Either way, we can sit outside the door expectantly, we can turn the knob to see if it’s locked or we can turn around and see what else there is in life.

At one time or another in this lifetime, I have experienced each scenario above and allowed the door to dictate my reaction.  Nowadays, I am seeing the door in a different light.  My past is behind the closed door and what goes on behind closed doors, stays behind closed doors.

The choice to wait expectantly in front of a closed door is ours alone to choose.  The choice to look around for another door or window of opportunity to see that there is more to life than that one door takes courage, but we already have that courage within us.  We just need to tap into it.

So take my hand dear friends.  If you are seeing a closed door in your life, let’s stop staring at the closed door.  Let’s spin around and view the goodness which surrounds us.  Let’s walk together to see what else life has in store for the possibilities are endless once we take that first baby step.

Keep shining your heartlights.  You are perfect, whole and complete just as you are.  I can see you twinkling from here and I send you a warm, heartfelt embrace.

Shine On!

xo

Celebrating Our Next Chapter

I was lost in the abyss this morning, firmly settled in a quagmire of sadness, hurt and resentment.  Beliefs that I had held so firmly in my mind and heart had unraveled to a point of no return and although I mentally understood, I wasn’t able to make peace with them in my heart.

Until now…

Here’s what helped me ~ advice from a dear friend…maybe it will help you!

A shift is a baby step, it needn’t be a giant step, it only needs to be an awareness of choice that we take.  No matter your hardship – be it financial, relationships or health, you always have a choice.  Sometimes a shift is merely the reminder that we have the ability to choose once we let go and remember we can choose.

Because remember…

We always have the free will of choice.  Celebrate with me today as we embrace the dawn of a new day.  We celebrate our gift of choice and we become the President of our own journey.  Embrace your throne, and your position at the helm of your own perfect lifeboat.  You are the captain, the pilot and the first mate of your own journey.  Rejoice in the knowing of your soul that you are exactly in the right place in your journey on this planet.  Find gratitude in the gift of a new day and a new chapter on which you write as you are the author of your life.

So today…

I declare a celebration for us all.  Souls rejoice in the kind, loving choices we make for ourselves.  Smile and shine your heartlights dear friends.  Be free, let go and stand proudly in the wheelhouse for this is your life to enjoy!

Shine On!

xo

All Great Changes Are Preceded By…

“All great changes are preceded by chaos.”

~ Deepak Chopra

There’s been so much chaos in our world lately.  Crime, hate, suffering, and terrorism all seem to consume the news, social media and conversations among ourselves.  Planet Earth has become bombarded with chaos seemingly everywhere we turn.  For me, I am saddened to my core by the chaos of our world as I am sure you are as well.  I am frightened by the violence, death and destruction which has unfortunately become increasingly more erratically frequent, more prevalent and somehow more unbelievably evil.

So, what’s the answer?

I pray Deepak is right with the quote above as it gave me a little peace in my heart today.  Perhaps this chaotic time will bring change for the better for our world.  Maybe we can come together to bring about peace in our lands for humanity and for our world.  Imagine if each of us would shine our heartlights everyday in our own corners of the world.  One day we may even be able to eradicate the darkness that seeks to overcome humanity.

One heartlight at a time…

John Lennon’s voice echos in my mind…take a moment, generate peace in our world and hope for a brighter future along with me today.  You can do it.  Imagine…Shine your heartlights dear friends.  May peace be with you all!  You are loved. ♥

Shine On!

xo

Bend and Sway With Change

The oak fought the wind and was broken,

the willow bent when it must and survived.

— Robert Jordan

I recently found this quote and had to share it with you as it goes along with my last post on How To Embrace Change. When we fight changes with the child-like attitude of “I don’t wanna,” we lose our power in whatever situation is changing.  I’m not suggesting to be a doormat and just let changes steamroll over you.  Oh no!  Not at all!  Neither am I advising you to fight the changes like a warrior, with armaments drawn and ready for battle.

I’m asking you to bend and sway…

Flow with life…

Observe the changes…

Embrace yourself…

Allow kindness in your heart…

Looking for the good in every situation isn’t easy, but you can do it.  Sometimes the good hides when the situation changes for what we deem the worst ~ we lose our job, a loved one passes away, we have health problems, relationships go sour, finances become depleted etc.  It happens to many of us over a lifetime.  We are not given the right to have a perfect life without rough patches.  But we are given the Divine Right to have experiences which grow us emotionally, mentally, soulfully and spiritually which test us and help us to expand ourselves in new ways to be better, kinder and more loving people.

Without the highs and lows in life, we could never appreciate peace.    It comes at a price though.  We have to stay flexible and to stop banging on the closed door in front of us.  Simply look around, observe the whole ‘room’ and find the gift of the open door on the other side of the room.  Yes, it’s that simple dear friends.  It just takes embracing change.

I’ve endured many changes in my life, many of which I did not choose, but I am still here as are you.  Together we can bend and sway with kind, loving hearts.  We can shine our heartlights, connect with others and keep walking on our life journey.  No matter what difficulties you are experiencing right now, know that change is inevitably beautiful and this too shall pass.

♥ Namaste ♥

Shine On!

xo

Our Lives Are All Different and Yet The Same

We all live with the objective of being happy;

our lives are all different and yet the same.

~ Anne Frank

I believe this bears repeating.

The Objective Of Being Happy

Shine On!

xo

Never Give Up!

Remember when you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer,never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn. ~ Harriet Beecher Stowe

Shine On!

xo

There’s No Present Like The Time

~ Babul from The Second Exotic Marigold Hotel

It seems that we all have an expiration date which most of us do not know.  So to live without remembering that knowledge is to hide our heads in the sand like ostriches.  I’m not saying that we should live in fear of death, but to remember that this present moment is indeed a present. A gift that we should not waste.

Life moves quickly these days.  Many people live longer lives, but take less time for themselves.  Rushing to every event, whatever it may be, keeping busy on the computer, the smart phones etc., takes time away from being present in the present moment.  I understand we all have responsibilities, but we must carve out a few moments to simply be in the stillness of the present moment.  To reconnect with ourselves, our families, nature and all the gifts that are ours when we stop the rush in the insanity of life.  To actually take a moment to breathe, to listen to our hearts and minds, to hold hands, to reconnect with loved ones, to simply love that we are here, right here and now, wherever we may be, in whatever capacity life holds for us.

Time is a gift.  Use it wisely.  Don’t squander it on meaningless pursuits.  You can make a difference in your life and in the lives of others. You have the power within you.  Be grateful for the present and use your power for good, for you are loved.

Enjoy The Presents of Presence

Shine On!

xo

 

Why Do We Blog?

There’s no agony like bearing an untold story inside you.

~ Zora Neale Hurston

I think we blog because we all have a story inside of us.  Some of us have quite a few stories within us ~ inspirational moments that turned failure into triumph, sad stories that show our resilience and tidbits of how we’ve had to change to accommodate a new normal in our lives.  By sharing, we can connect with others so that they can see that they are not alone in their strife.  Bonding together we can hold hands and move forward towards the light.

But to keep our stories hidden is an option that some of us choose.  We do this for many reasons.  We hide our strife, our shame, our sadness and put on brave faces to the masses.  We don’t choose to open up and be seen as vulnerable for fear of repercussions.  It’s hard to hold it all within ourselves but over time, the pain becomes familiar like putting on a pair of jeans that may not be flattering, but they are comfy because we have worn them so many times.

Making the choice to open up and to tell our stories can be agonizing.  Crossing that bridge of fear causes many to never open up and thus find a way to heal the stories in our heads.  It takes bravery to be vulnerable for there is strength in speaking your truth without shame.  To share is to run a risk that many don’t choose to take and I understand that feeling.

One must be choosy when we bare our stories for there are those who do not care to understand.  I get it.  But here, I want you to know that I welcome your stories.  I welcome your sharing and I will hold your hand and heart gently as you write.  You are safe and protected here.  Tell your story.  Gently take off the bandage and let’s clean the wound so that you can finally heal.  Open your heartlight and be free!  There is love her for you.

Shine On!

xo