Just for Today...

"The saddest summary of life contains three descriptions: could have, might have, and should have."
                                                          Author Unknown

How many times have we done something & said to ourselves, "oh well could of, should of, would of." to make an excuse for not trying hard enough or go after what we really want in life. As if this response will some how make the reality of not getting what we wanted less of a regret. Easing our guilt for not pushing ourselves harder or letting go of the fear that may hold us back. Control the negative thoughts that try to occupy space in your head & change your perspective on things. Relax and move with the flow of life letting go of the fear that controls change or lack of. Life is about lessons not regrets. Sometimes more than one person should have to endure in a lifetime but a lesson non the less. The key is not to give up or regret what we have or have not done, not to sink in the black hole called pity feeling sorry for ourselves. Rather learn how to do things differently. Changing what you can and using your energy wisely not wasting it on worry or complaints. If we don't go through these life lessons then we can not & will not be able to grow into stronger more responsible individuals. Life is to short to regret doing things differently or even attempting them at all. There is a difference in wanting to of handled things differently then there is in having a regret over how you handled something, please don't confuse the two. Be gentle on yourself as you would another realizing that it's ok to make a mistake on your journey. Be open and honest with yourself along the way treating others with respect, compassion and dignity. Say what you mean and mean what you say. Become the change you want to see in the world, the person you would want to spend the rest of your life with and/or the person you would want your children to be influenced by.
"Live, Love, Laugh" is one of my  all time favorite sayings and scattered through out my home to remind me to just enjoy life. ALL OF IT!!! Live much, Laugh often, Love more these are simple things that we can all do on a daily basis to help avoid regret along the way. Remember folks none of us are promised tomorrow, we don't get a dress rehearsal, live as if today is your last. Be a participant in life don't stand on the side lines as an observer. Stand up for yourself not letting anyone or anything hold you back from what you want in life. Be who you are in this moment in time just for today! No Regrets!
As always remember the men and woman of all branches of the military in your prayers for a safe return home soon as they are off protecting our HEALTHY FREEDOMS here at home.

The Leaning Tree

I love how parallel a persons life is to the tree that comes in different sizes, weathered by age and full of notches taken out of its bark because of situations. If you notice it is not afraid to lean on something to help hold itself up just to survive. So then why are we?! Why is it so hard for some of us to reach out and lean on others to help hold them up? Why is it so hard to trust that what we lean on will not let us fall? Why is it so hard to imagine for a moment that the notches we have are life lessons that we may share with another? For me its because I have been burned on different degrees so badly and so often that I'm afraid to lean on others. Seems that when I allow my guard to come down it happens again. Causing me to doubt some of my judgement and question why I continuously put myself out there. Not realizing that what I may be leaning on is not strong enough to hold me up at that moment in time. I realize that I need to push through the fear to get to the other side and I try to take baby steps one day at a time to accomplish that. I have been able to find a couple of people to lean on and am slowly allowing myself to trust they wont let me fall. That my friends is why I continue to push.
I really do believe that there is no such thing as coincidence and that all things happen for a reason. Good or bad. So that we may be able to share our "notches" with others and show them by example how we over came particular life lessons and to be someones leaning post, giving them strength to grow stronger and bigger each day. Just as the tree that leans. While we may all come in different sizes and weathered differently due to our experiences we all have something to learn or share with another. See folks no matter how weathered you are or are not we are forever learning how to do this thing called living life on life's terms. And yes just as the nasty sometimes slippery moss that grows on the leaning tree we will run in to those people that will be just as nasty and slippery. The key is to NEVER GIVE UP, rather continue pushing up or leaning on! I am a work in progress and continue to learn and grow by being open to sharing and receiving. Life is to short to keep our experience, strength and hope to ourselves. I dare you to join me in being someones leaning post, helping them to grow bigger and stronger so they may be able to stand on their own. Step outside of your comfort zone. I promise the lesson you will receive is much bigger then the one you share. I know, I've been there!!
As always please keep all men and woman of the military in your prayers for a safe return home as they are out there protecting our HEALTHY FREEDOMS here at home.

Self

Note to self:

Self you are a great person,mother,sister,friend and so much more.
Self you deserve to be loved as you would love another.
Self not everyone is going to hurt you intentionally, its ok to trust again.
Self you have the right to demand respect from others.
Self your opinion does matter.
Self you are a passionate,giving & caring person.
Self you have a lot of people that care about you & would do anything for you.
Self NEVER give up going after the things in life that are important to you no matter what!
Self what you have to say is just as important as the next person.
Self NEVER stop taking value in yourself.
Self its ok to take a day off every now and again from life.
Self continue to do good and show love to others around you.

Every now and again folks we have to remind ourselves why we matter & to NEVER give up. There will be those around you that will try to convince you other wise. They will only succeed if you allow them to. Its ok to have a down day and not have a reason for it. I like to refer to that as "Just Be" days. Just be what you want to be that day. If its low key or full throttle, then so be it. To often we are so critical of ourselves and feed into some of the negativity that surrounds us. STOP!!!  Surround yourself with people that will help pick you up or if need be hold you up for a minute. I'm blessed with a GREAT group of people both near and far. That being all the fuel I need to keep on keeping on.

As always please keep the men and woman of all our military in your prayers for a safe return as they are off protecting our HEALTHY FREEDOMS here at home. Also please remember those that are going through a challenging time right now in their own life that they may have the strength and guidance for the road ahead of them. God Bless.

The next right thing...

"It is not fair to ask of others what you, are not willing to do yourself." Eleanor Roosevelt

Have you ever gone to do something either for yourself or another person and asked yourself, is this the next right thing to do? Am I doing it for the right reasons? Is this about purity not selfishness? Let's face it often times people do things for others because of what they have to gain from the action. No matter how big or small the gain may be. A genuine person doesn't need to shower others with material gifts. The most precious gifts are things such as paying attention to others, respecting them for who they are, showing love and giving of our time. I recently had a situation where I have done all these things and in the end the person did not return the respect and ending up wasting a lot of time, mine and many others as well. We all offered unconditional love and support no matter what time day or night this person needed. Expecting nothing in return. Only doing it because we believed in this person and tried to help them see what others also saw they were capable of. Was it the next right thing? Yes. Was it for the right reasons? Absolutely. Was it for selfish reasons? Definitely not. When it all fell apart I had to question my reasons, my actions and motives for the part I played in this situation. I stand behind my part, knowing that I truly wanted to help with nothing to gain.

I am a firm believer that how we treat others will come back to us in some form or another. Offering others understanding and compassion changes how we perceive the world around us on a daily basis. The truth of the matter is, our own attitudes often determine what kind of experiences we'll have. For example if you view the world as being shit, then your attitude will be such. Anger and resentment won't bring us peace folks. I promise! There is an old saying I really like; "think it into a reality", meaning that if you fill your head with good things then good things will come and vise versa. The challenge comes when something does not goes as originally planned that we need to find the strength to push through the negative and stay in the positive. Remember what you put in the world will come back to you. The whole world is changed by the tiniest of acts. Do good show love!!

However, wherever and whomever we choose to help is unimportant. There are those in need everywhere. But when we figure out how to sincerely help other people, we'll have also learned how to be happy for a lifetime. See folks I try to surround myself with people who will hold me up when I feel like laying down and giving up. People that show me over and over that its ok to start trusting again. People that want only the best for me so that I can return the favor to be/give the best in return. I am very blessed in that I have GREAT support system. Lets face it life and living is about the "WE" factor not the "ME" factor. We need always remember that life is purposeful, and the events involving us are by design not by chance.

As always please continue to cover our men and woman of all branches of the military for a safe return home one day as they are protecting our HEALTHY FREEDOMS.