New Year’s Resolutions? Stop, Drop & Roll!

OK. So I haven’t blogged in a LONG time…  I have been super busy and neglecting the things I love to do. I ask that you forgive me for being absent for so long.

The other day I was struck with an idea.  Something that started as a spark and grew from there.  I feel like it is worth sharing and hopefully it will catch on and make a bigger difference then just in my personal little corner of the world we share.

We’ve all made those bold statements on December 31^st that we are going to do something better in the coming year.  Whether it is joining a gym or going to one more often; eating better; quitting a vice you’ve had for a while…  Ultimately a goal that is meant to better your own self.

It’s noble and bold and if you can find the wherewithal to follow through and stick to it, then I applaud you.

I’ve done it myself.  I have made bold promises to myself only to slowly fall back into my old ways. 

So I have been thinking recently and I have a bit of a challenge that I am going to try, instead of a resolution.  Something that I will have to work on daily, if not several times throughout the day.  Instead of taking the radical step to change something overall in one bold move, I want to make small attempts to better myself and therefore those around me.

Drum roll, please................

I am challenging myself to not complain about anything.  I mean even a small complaint about something super trivial that in the end affects nothing.  Like I said, it is going to take work on a daily basis to remind myself not to complain about that thing that is irking me.

In this day and age where social media makes us all feel a slightly inflated sense of self.  When our words can so easily reach so many more people that our physical voice.  We often use that outlet to vent or complain or call people out.  To fight a battle that at that moment seems so important.  I am 100% guilty of these actions.  But wouldn’t it be better to use this tool to spread something to better the world?  Instead of adding to the already overwhelming noise and chaos around us.

The purpose of my challenge is to not add to the noise that so many others are also putting out there.  To not stack more negativity on top of so many other people’s negativity.  In doing so I am hoping that I can re-train my thought process.  At the precise time when I would normally say something crappy about my morning or someone’s bad driving or being tired.  If I halt the negative thought from escaping, I can re-train myself to think about something positive.  Let go of the temporary aggravation those thoughts would bring on and maybe make myself and my life that much less grumpy.

Now, I am not saying my life is bad in any way, shape, of form.  On the contrary, I find a lot of happiness in my simple life with my husband, puppy and little fish family.  But I am still guilty of letting the little things it is “normal” to grunt about take up more time than they deserve.

If I am focusing more on the positive, I believe it will make my life that much happier.  If I am happier, those around me will in turn be happier as well.  Positivity breeds positivity.

I think we could all use a little more love and happiness in our lives and a lot less or the divide that is currently all around us.

So, just to wrap it all up for you, the challenge is to replace those complaints with something more positive.  Add goodness to the world, instead.  A stop, drop and roll for the negativity burning to get out. 

You want to complain.  It’s human nature.  Instead of doing it:

STOP it;

DROP it; and

ROLL on.

Start Today and continue it tomorrow, next week, next month, next year; and so on.

I believe I can do it.  I believe you can too!  Join my challenge!

Make yourself and the world around you a better, happier and more positive environment!

If you like this message, please feel free to share. 

If you don’t already, please follow me. 

I promise to not be away so long again!

Thanks for listening!

Banish Hate

There are three things I think this world could do without... Hate, Ignorance and Irrational Fear.

It's plain to see that weapons are not responsibple for the violence and murder that goes on in the world around us.  Yes, they are a tool, but they are not the sole cause.  They need to be operated by someone and that someone has to be provided a motive to make the decision to kill. 

Changing gun laws and/or giving up more of our personal rights and freedoms for the false security provided by laws is not going to stop violence or murder. Bad people are going to do bads things one way or another, regardless of the laws.  If law hasn't stopped them in the past, law will not stop them in the future.  That is a fact.

I think instead we should work on banishing hate, ignorance and irrational fear from our world, from our vocabulary and from our minds and hearts!

Hate is quite simply as emotional reaction to being treated poorly.  If we stop treating each other poorly, we would stop the development of hate from phase one.  Hating someone will not change who they are or what they've done to justify your reaction.  Hate breeds hate and the sooner we realize that we are ALL responsible, the sooner we can lend a hand at getting rid of it!

Ignorance is just a lack of knowledge, not education.  Some of the most well edicated people can be guilty of ignorance.  Basically not likeing or agreeing with something be cause it is different or not 100% what you would have chosen.  Different does not automatically mean bad.  Instead of shunning difference, perhaps we should be embracing it.  We do not all have to be the same.  That is the beauty of life, we are all uniquely seperate.

Not all fear is bad fear.  But irrational fear is a terrible kind fear.  Whether it is of the unkown or of a group or society, etc.  Fearing it because it is outside of what you know or have experieced just breeds more irrational fear.  If we took the time to understand each other, to see that we all have different struggles and burdens to bare, maybe we would put less stress on closing each other out. 

Wasn't there a time when we cared about our neighbors, our communities, our country as a whole?  What happened to that world?

Now it seems like there is more separation within our country and if the whole world can see us at odds with each other, then why should they stop to try to understand us?  Why shouldn't they hop on the bandwagon of hate, ignorance and irrational fear that they majority of us are already boarding as well?

Maybe this will fall on deaf ears, but I can't help it.  I have this desire in me to make our world a better place.  If my words can cause at least one person to change the way they think, then perhaps they can do the same for someone else. And so on.  Change begets change....

So... let's see.  If we banish these awful traits and work on creating more kindness, acceptance and caring in our world we can stop an act of violence or murder before it is even a seed planted in the mind of someone affected by hate, ignorance or fear.  Maybe if we work on reaching out to others in need instead of closing ourselves off with our own problems, we can build a new sense of community with each other that can spread and change the course we are currently on.

I for one am tired of seeing so much negativity around us.  We are all responsibile for this change.  Not just me and not just you.... Every single human being roaming this planet.  Positive change may start with just one person, but it can spread more easily than negativity if we all put in a little effort.  Do our part.

And that's my two cents!

Making it happen!

I just finished reading my first post of 2012 and I am happy to say that i stuck by my intentions for the year.  There were some slip ups where I let my negative emotions get the better of me, but I quickly reminded myself that I can only control me... so as long as I am OK with how I handle the bumps in the road, then that is all that really matters.

I have dubbed 2013 "The Year of Better" in the hopes that everyone can benefit from something good to come.  I believe fully in the pay it forward frame of mind and I believe within my heart of hearts that small acts of kindness are what our world needs everyday.

One drop of water can cause a ripple across an entire lake.  One act of kindness can reach across the world.  It's time for us to take back this world and make it a better place, but we've all got to contribute if it is going to work!

On a more personal note, I am making my motto this year MAKE IT HAPPEN!

I have some personal and professional goals that I am going to work towards making them seriously happen for me this year.  I have been tossing around the idea of starting my own business and I am going to do what I can to start the long process of what needs to be done and how to do it.

I have some other more personal goals for myself this year and I don't want to jinx these things, so that's all the details I will share at this point in the game.

I just want to use this year to get me closer to accomplishing these dreams.  I may not complete them all this year, but that's OK.  I am going to try to squeeze all the life out of these next 358 days that I can and hopefully look back on them on December 31, 2013 and be proud of what I did and who I was the entirety of this year.

So in this Year of Better go out there and Make it Happen!

Happy Trails!!

A New Year to Dream...

Sometimes what you are wishing and hoping for is just not what you are meant for.

Accepting this may be one of the more difficult things I'll have to do in my life.

But moving forward to find my true purpose is the first step in the journey.

So, here is to a new year.

A new dream.

And continued happiness, no matter what comes my way.

Positively Freezing

In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the "Frankenstorm" and the following nor'easter which I have dubbed "The Bride of Frankenstorm" many have lost their lives, their homes and everything they owned.  My heart breaks when I see the photos of the areas hit the hardest.

My town did not suffer a lot of damage to homes, but we had and have many trees down, telephone poles down and even wires down still.  I lost my power at about 7pm on Monday October 29, 2012 and I, along with may in my town, our surrounding areas and the state are still waiting for it to come back on.

My husband and I started by passing the time leasurely.  It wasn't so bad.  You make time for things you normally don't think to do when you are distracted with work and television, etc.  We played board games, we had some fun nights drinking by the fire outside.  We even stayed up into the wee hours of the morning reading out loud to each other.  So needless to say, despite the hassle of being without the many conveniences of electricity, we found ways to spend some quality time with each other, our friends and our families.

Last night, November 7, 2012, NJ got hit with a Nor'easter.  It was also my nephews 12th birthday.  We spent some time in the warmth of my sister's house, had dinner and cake and just hung out.  When we went home it was cold and it was dark. We turned our normal pots of water on to boil and warm up our home.  Lit a bunch of candles for light and a little more warmth.  Settled in and watched a movie (via generator) before going to bed.  Even once in bed it wasn't so bad, under 5 blankets and tucked between my dog and my husband.

This morning however marked day eleven.  It's not the uneeded conveniences I miss. It's being warm in my house.  Getting out of bed and being able to see your own breath puts a damper on getting ready for work.  It got me down this morning and it was the first time this whole situation brought me to tears and made me want to throw in the towel on trying to remain positive and functional.

Now, even saying this makes me feel guilty and selfish because I know there are many hit by Sandy that are way worse off than I am. But it doesn't change the state I was in this morning.  Doesn't change that I am still just as frustrated by the fact that not only myself and my family are suffering but that so many others are suffering too.

I know that the power companies and public workers are working extra hard, away from their own families and possible damaged homes.  I know that we have received thousands of extra helping hands from all over the country to help get us all back up and running.  And I know that it is going to take time due to the massive amount of damage suffered all over the state.

But I am only human and I made it 10 days before letting it get the best of me.

Today I am looking for the ray of light to hold onto.  Clutching the small silver linings that are available to me and appreciating all those offers of help and places to stay.  We are loved by many people and we love them immensly in return.

According to some neighbors PSE&G claims to be aiming to have us back up and running by tomorrow November 9, 2012.  I am hoping and praying that is the case.  And I am hoping and praying that everyone out there has some comfort in friends and family no matter what they've lost. 

Keep positive and spread light... we could all use some!

Bumpy Roads

Life’s road is full of bumps, road blocks, detours and accidents… but if you are too busy looking out for the next pot hole you will miss all the beauty beside you, in front of you, behind you and within you.

There are always going to be difficult times and we suffer through them knowing that it is only temporary.  

Life changes frequently.  It’s your willingness to keep moving forward and your ability to adapt that will ease these times of strife so that you can reach for better days.

We can’t throw in the towel every time life hands us a challenge.  We have to fight to find a our own detour through each challenge.  Accept that you cannot win them all and enjoy every minute of the struggle as much as you will enjoy each moment between them.

If we waste too much time wallowing in the disappointment of the trying times, we miss out on all the good that goes on around us.

So I say we should all accept life’s challenges head on but live our lives in spite of these bumps in our road! 

Just a thought...

For once, let's not compare you and I. Let's not argue wrong or right. 

 

Let's just accept that what works for me may not work for you.

 

But that it is entirely OK in both cases. No judgments. No apologies. 

 

No need to convince each other to think differently. 

 

Let's just be and live peacefully.