Trust and Truth

 

Truth never damages a cause that is just.

Mahatma Gandhi

How can you trust without honest and open dialogue about concerns?

It is a delicate balance.  But for me, it is impossible.

As masters of our own destinies, the choices we make should be on a solid foundation.  When there is doubt and the little voice in your head sends warning signals, the doubt must be addressed.  Otherwise, everything from that point on is sitting on shaky ground and those concerns and doubts will live on forever.

When an opportunity presents itself, we must decide whether to be true to ourselves and open our eyes to discover a blessing or a curse.

Better to be safe than sorry.

All this has brought one of my favorite songs to mind - Detective|No Doubt.  The lyrics are like that little voice in my head . . . intuition is a good thing!

Detective|No Doubt

Lyrics

Peek in, sneak about
Peek in, sneak about
Peek in, sneak about
Your broken hearted detective

Hey girl, save the liar
Can't you see his pants on fire?
Hey girl, save the liar
Can't you see his pants on fire?

My back it hurts again
It aches like history
Cottonmouth and all lit up
You're smiling back at me
But I feel you must have failed me
Once again, you've let me down
My confidence below my knees now
I need to find you out

Peek in, sneak about
I'm gonna snoop and call you out
I caught you, your hands are red
Now I'm your broken hearted detective
(Hey, hey, hey)

Hey lover, why the gun?
Hold on, I'm almost there
It's too late, you killed the trust
Don't act so unaware
So why are you so destructive?
Do you realize what you've done?
You can't bring it back to life now
What are you running from?

Peek in, sneak about
I'm gonna snoop and call you out
I caught you, your hands are red
Now I'm your broken hearted detective

I don't like the way I feel
I just want you to be real

Hey girl, save the liar
Can't you see his pants on fire?
Hey girl, save the liar
Can't you see his pants on fire?
I'm rummaging through your closet
Imagining all the worst thoughts

Peek in, sneak about
I'm gonna snoop and call you out
I caught you, your hands are red
Now I'm your broken hearted detective
Peek in, sneak about
I'm gonna snoop and call you out
I caught you, your hands are red
Now I'm your broken hearted detective
Peek in
Peek in
Peek in
Peek in
Peek in, sneak about
I'm gonna snoop and call you out
I caught you, your hands are red
Now I'm your broken hearted detective

Writer(s): Gwen Stefani, Thomas Dumont, Tony Kanal

read more

Opportunity

Sometimes opportunity doesn't knock,
it just taps lightly — listen.

An opportunity is defined as a situation in which it is possible for you to do something that you want to do.

Opportunity doesn't always knock, it all depends on luck, fate, and destiny.

read more

Anything is possible

For the weak it is unattainable.

For the fearful it is the unknown.

For the bold it is opportunity.

The future has many names. 

Victor Hugo

Living life in the now, knowing that there are opportunities all around us, can earn a happy future.  It is all about keeping an open mind and always keeping the future in mind, while learning from past mistakes.

The fearful can realize that the unknown holds opportunity, while moving ahead cautiously.  From experience, I know that the fearful can also be bold when opportunity presents itself.  Knowing and truly believing that just about anything is possible in the future gives the fearful hope for the future.

Past experience found me finding long distance relationships on the other side of the world.  Fear of the unknown and moving on kept love a world away . . . a safe haven . . . lonely, but not really alone . . . proceeding toward love with extreme caution, yet at the same time proving that the opportunity to find an attainable love connection was out there for me when the time was right.

Those closest to me worried that I would live a lonely existence behind a computer monitor the rest of my life urged me to get out into the real world . . . one that I was not ready for.  I tried.  I failed miserably!

The message I'm trying to get across is to seize opportunities in your time and in your way.  Be true to yourself with lots of patience.  Fear of the unknown is not a bad thing . . . you can move on boldly and cautiously at the same time, knowing that anything is possible when you believe in yourself, trusting and listening to your instincts.

Who knew that a chance #followfriday on Twitter would lead to an awesome relationship, friendship through emails, chat and phone calls for a long time would lead to the most perfect love I could ever imagine.  

We were married two weeks ago.

The future has many names . . . name your future.

read more

Dreams and moral support

"I am grateful to have the choice over the direction of my life.

I choose to surround myself with only those who believe in me and my dreams."

Source: The Daily Love

It is awesome to have dreams and ambitions.  Not so awesome when you are surrounded by those who try to tear your dreams down for whatever reason.

We must follow our dreams . . . within reason . . . otherwise the question "what if" will be a haunting echo in the night.

Ultimately, the choice is ours.  My worst disasters have come after "the dream" was laughed at and I had to proceed just to prove that I could do it.  My choices were possibly made for the wrong reasons, but the failure was mine.

Understanding that there are people in this world who are fearful of taking a chance, don't believe in innovation or flat out don't believe in your dream should be considered when making the decision to follow your dream.

The concept of a light bulb must have been hilarious back in the day, but Thomas Edison believed in his dream . . . or maybe he surrounded himself with those who gave him lots of moral support to go for it.

Better to surround yourself with people who believe in you, no matter what!

read more

Opportunity in the middle of difficulty

In the course of life, we are often taken through difficult life circumstances.  Sometimes it seems to be a roller coaster that never stops.

‎"In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity."

 Albert Einstein

The other day, I posted this quote on my Facebook page.  Some commented that finding opportunity in the midst of difficulty is hard.  My response was "I've seen so much difficulty in my life that I learned valuable lessons from . . . as a result I look for opportunity when confronted with difficulty."

There is another saying that I think about often . . . "When life hands you lemons, make lemonade."  Opportunity exists everywhere, you just have to keep an open mind and seek out the good from the difficulty.

When it comes to health issues . . . a serious issue can be a wake up call to change the way you conduct you life.  It could be the prelude to something even more serious.

There are warning signs everywhere . . . pay attention to them, they can be future life difficulties.  Use those signs as an opportunity to make the necessary changes in your life.

Have a beautiful day filled with peace, love and happiness :)

read more

In search a dream . . . another meaning of peace

It is about personal freedom . . . the kind that many of us take for granted.  There are civilizations that exist in this world where personal freedom is just a dream.

"We on this continent should never forget that men first crossed the Atlantic not to find soil for their ploughs but to secure liberty for their souls."  

~ Robert J. McCracken

As a grateful American, I admire what my ancestors went through to come to the "new country" . . . packing up all their personal belongings along with a dream of a better life for their family and future generations.  Freedom and opportunity . . . risking everything to set forth into the unknown.  How courageous.  I often wonder if I would go through that extreme for the sake of a dream.

The people of Egypt are weighing heavy on my heart and mind as they enter into the unknown, risking their lives for the dream of freedom and opportunity for themselves, their families and a better life for future generations.  Having many long-time online friends from Egypt, getting to know them through the years and hearing their stories has given me a personal connection to what is going on in their world at this time.  I worry about them and the whole situation makes me sad . . . and I understand their plight . . . they are doing what they have to do.

Peace may or may not come after the storm, but it is a risk they are willing to take.  We will all have taken chances during our lifetime in search of a dream, no matter how big or small.  My prayers are with them . . . and for a peaceful world that we may or may not see in our lifetime.  I pray that we do . . . we are all in God's hands.

The events of the past week have really had me thinking about these friends and what they must be going through at this time.  My fascination with Egypt started as a child when I first discovered the love of books and the library that opened up the world to me . . . and my interest was in the rich history, the artifacts.  It broke my heart when I heard that there was a fire at the Cairo Museum that would potentially destroy treasures of the past.

read more

Quality of Life and the Adventurous Attitude

What is adventure?  

Adventure could be defined as an activity that involves the possibility of risk, danger or exciting experiences. For one person, it could mean jumping off a bridge attached to a bungee cord, feeling the rush of rising and falling as the bungee cord does its thing.  Yet another could perceive adventure as a serene day at the beach.


Adventure could simply be seen as an attitude . . . a journey towards finding our unique potential . . . sometimes hidden by fear and worry.  It is how we approach the day-to-day obstacles of life, how we perceive and act on them that determines the level of adventure and quality of life.


Attitude adjustments that involve backing away from fear of the unknown and embracing the new challenges as an exciting adventure allows us to seize those new opportunities that present themselves with a positive mindset.  


Embracing adventure is acknowledging faith . . . a testing that faces the unknown without fear.  Stretching past the comfort zone allows us to find that unique potential within ourselves.


The adventurous attitude perceives everything in a positive light . . . life is awesome until it isn't . . . then you confront, face and solve the problem.  Until then, it isn't a problem . . . so why worry about the thing unless it has happened.


Speaking from experience, fear and worry is an obstacle from living life to its full potential . . . isn't life without adventure merely waiting to die?  


Readers of my blogs will understand what I am saying . . . since becoming a widow, my life was one of waiting to die, locking myself away from the world . . . get it over with, I didn't even want to try to be adventurous since I may get hurt in one way or another.  Warped thinking plays into the scenario . . .


Of course depression plays a huge role in attitude . . . but you can deal with it, fight it . . . turn it around no matter how many times you have to get back up when you fall down . . . find adventure in life again.  I did . . . although I still have to deal with the fears, some days better than others.


Love this quote . . .

"Most of the important things in the world 

have been accomplished by people who have 

kept on trying when there seemed to be 

no hope at all."  

Herbert Myer

read more

Resolutions and the new year

If we make our goal to live a life of
compassion and unconditional love,
then the world will indeed become a garden
where all kinds of flowers can bloom and grow.

Dr. Elisabeth Kuebler-Ross



My year ended with one of the most chaotic days I've had in recent past. As the ball dropped last night, it amazed me that I had made it without crashing asleep by midnight . . . I had to, it is tradition to see the ball come down.

Many thoughts came to mind in the last minutes of the old year, in particular, last year was the year that finally turned my life around in so many ways. Guess you could say it was my year to return to "normal" life and stop waiting to die after becoming a widow.

God has richly blessed me!

At the moment the new year was born, my thoughts flashed to the future . . . one that has so much hope, promise and finally, the opportunity for everything I have dreamed about. Symbolically, the new year is a new chapter in one's book of life, a new beginning that emerges from one second to another.

This season crept up on me and flew by, leaving me with no time to think about resolutions. For the first time in a very long time, my mind was occupied with so much more than "what if" and hope. The things I had hoped for had already arrived . . . I'm living the life I so desired.

Resolutions are typically broken before February rolls around . . . at least mine have been in the past. The decision was made last night to not make any resolutions.

The quote at the beginning of this post is how I decided to live my life last year . . . it is an ongoing goal . . . as are the three little words I have strived for my entire adult life . . . peace, love and happiness . . . it is all that really matters in the scope of a lifetime.

Happy New Year my friends!

read more