Shadows

There are times I see my shadow more often than myself. I see all the bad things I've done and mistakes I've made and no way to amend them. I live in the dark and it feels comforting, but isn't.

It's often hard for me to look beyond my shadow. Especially when it's well defined.

Although I find quite often that if we can ONLY see our shadow... That we are turned away from the light.

Sometimes it is as looking around and seeing all the people in your life shining light on you.

"When you can't see the light... Turn around."

Conundrum

Most of us have felt that we were put on this earth for a reason. Even if a lot of us have yet to figure out that reason, we still feel it.

I often run into the conundrum that I know my purpose in life, but not sure how to carry it. Or am I afraid I won't live up to my own expectations.

Will we ever know unless we try?

We have a these talents for a reason. Fulfill them.

"Know your weaknesses and use your strengths"

Humpty Dumpty

There are a lot of times I feel I could shatter into a million pieces. Never to be put together again. I think we all feel that way sometimes and most of the times that feeling will pass sooner than we can see.

The trick is not to worry about how many parts you break into, but that you start mending them, one by one, till the job is done.

Or, remember that you don't have to fall off the wall to begin with ;-)

"Humpy Dumpty was a quitter"

Scars

We all have scars. Some are superficial and physical, some dig deeper. By nature, we seem to be ashamed of them. We hide them, cover them up and hope no one catches a glimpse.

To us it's an ugly reminder of an injury. A reminder of the pain we felt from the past. To us those scars are as real as the incident that caused them.

The truth is no one in the outside world sees those scars any greater than we see them ourselves.

We let them be bad images of pain from our past, instead of being reminders that we endured and survived to make a better future.

"Scars are not signs of our pain, but signs of our survival."

The little things in Life.

I tend to let little things affect my day.  

Most of the time it's a domino effect for the worse.  Once we wake on the wrong side of the bed, it's downhill for the continuing.  You wake up late, the kids aren't ready, you have no gas  in the tank and the line at starbucks is out the door.  This is gonna be a fun day.

Less often we let the little good things into our life.  The simple things, like watching the sunrise, listening to a child laugh or feeling the love of another person. 

Even if resources are scarce, there are many other that appear when you start looking for them.

"Happiness exists not in the big picture, but the small moments"

Make problems go away.

There are moments I want to quit.  Those are the moments I know I need to try harder. 

Of course you're tired.

Of course you need rest.

Of course you need to run faster.

You can rest when you get to the top of the mountain, until then...  Keep on trucking!

The amazing part is that after you stop concentrating how hard it is, it gets easy!  Before you now it the hard part is over.  Most of that is because you learn that all that hard work you thought was gonna be overwhelming...  Wasn't all that bad after all.

"If you focus on the problem the problem gets bigger.  If you focus on the solution, the problem goes away."

Shine a little Light.

"Bringing Joy to other people, brings joy back you"

Karma.  We don't know exactly how it works, but still most of us believe in it.  What you put into this world, is what you'll get out.  Poets and musicians have been writing about that concept well into the depths of history. 

I need to think about this more when I want to get upset, or only think about myself.  I wouldn't want to put up with that, why would I ask any more of anybody else? 

Yet again we find a concept easy to grasp in writing, but a little tricky to implement all the time.  Or is it?  

"The more light you shine, the more light shines on you."

Life after Life.

I, like anyone, don't know what happens when we leave this life.  I would like to think we go onto another life, happier than the first.  I suppose that's what we all like to think.  

My scientific brain, who has trouble with the common concepts of God, says that the body is made of energy and energy can't be destroyed.  It just changes form.  Transformed, to live a different life.  Perhaps a better one.

People who have figured out immortality, are those who have left a long standing positive streak in history.  It's when one individual is truly inspired by another, and the energy of that person transfers to another and continues to live in them.

Here's to all of us attempting to achieve immortality.

"If your scared to die, you'd better not be scared to live" M.O.E

Make fear work for you.

Fear creeps up in strange ways.  For no reason and what feels like no purpose.  

I envy plants.  They don't seem to have this "Fear Issue".  If nature drops a seed on a rock, nothing will stop that seed from trying to make life work...   On a rock.  

I always try to remind myself of the words of F.D.R., "The only thing we have to fear is...  Fear itself."  Words could never reign so true, yet so hard to implement.  

We create our own fears, whether we intended to as a coping device or whether nature intended it as a survival skill.  

"Fear is what you make of it...  A Hinderance or an Adventure"

Achieving the Impossible

I most often put restrictions on myself.  Some physical, some mental, social and personal.  I most often forget that it is ME putting those restrictions on.  For some reason the impossible seems impossible. 

Somewhere in life we tend to stop dreaming.  Seeing dreams as quaint motivations that will probably never come true.  

How often is it that we put everything we have, every part of our being into achieving that dream?   How often do we let it fuel ardency because we KNOW that's where we need to be?

Our dreams should drive us everyday.   Wake us up is the morning, and tuck us to bed at night.

"Dreaming is step 1 to achieving the impossible...  Hard work is Step 2."  

Cogito ergo sum

"Thinking positively is the key to getting whatever you want."

I tend to forget that quite often and have to remind myself again and again.  Why is that such a hard concept for us to grasp?  Are we inherently pessimistic?  DId society make us this way? Our Parents? God?

It seems odd that the most advanced beings on this planet have to conciously remind ourselves to go out there and live life.

Cogito ergo sum.

(I think therefore, I am.)

Life in the Now

Right here is where we are.   Sounds simple.  Too often we live in the past...  or the future, wasting away the now.  Those are words inspired by the best advice giver I've had the pleasure of receiving advice from.  

What an easy concept...  "Live in The Now", and yet sometimes so hard to make happen in real life.  We are constantly haunted by fears and mis-programmed instincts from the past and where we "Fear" we will be in the future.

"Live Today.  Before it turns in to Yesterday"

"If you don't enjoy the little things in life, you'll die an unhappy person"

The road less traveled.

I'm finding that what you perceive in life is not the truth but what you make of life is the future.  Turning points are hard.  It's the big decision...  Do we go down the path that has been well padded down with feet before?  It looks nice and safe.  Or do we take the path that can barley be seen through all the rough brush and harsh conditions, because it may brings is to something we never imagined possible.

I'll continue to take the latter.   

"Nothing worth doing is easy."

Am I losing my mind?

I feel like i'm losing my mind.  A scary thing.   I never thought it would happen at 30.  I was planning at least another score or two of sanity.  

Oh well...  Se La Vie. 

I suppose the glass half full approach would be to say "I'm not losing my mind, I'm just at a turning point."  Oh shit.  Is this that "Mid Life Crisis" crap I hear old people going through?  I thought 30 was the new 20, so I should have like another 10 years, right?  

Maybe it's time to stop freaking and start living.

"If You Ignore Life...  It Goes Away."