Tag: Believe

Take Control

“This life is yours. Take the power to choose what you want to do and do it well. Take the power to love what you want in life and love it honestly. Take the power to walk in the forest and be a part of nature. Take the power to control your own life. No one else can do it for you. Take the power to make your life happy.”

― Susan Polis Schutz

       What you do in this life is truly up to you. No one else can live your life for you. We each have our own path we must walk alone. And it is up to you to choose how you travel. You can choose to make your path very difficult to traverse by tying ankle weights to your legs or you can choose to free yourself from the burdens of yesterday and embrace your journey. Free your mind, body and soul. Take the power inside of you to author your own story. Because at the end of the day, this life is yours and yours alone.

Be in the Present

“This is the real secret of life — to be completely engaged with what you are doing in the here and now. And instead of calling it work, realize it is play.”

― Alan W. Watts

         The first step in moving forward and creating the life you crave is to be present in this moment. You need to learn how to live in the here and now. The past is gone and you can’t get it back. While the future has yet to happen. But the present moment is happening right now, so don’t let it pass you by. It’s time to become engaged and connected with the present moment.

Change the Channel

Life has no remote….get up and change it yourself!”

― Mark A. Cooper

      If at any point in life, you get tired of the the show playing…then get up and change the channel. No one else can do it for you. You have to decide when you’re tired of watching reruns and repeat episodes that make up your life and then make some changes.

Overcoming Yourself

“The only person who can pull me down is myself, and I’m not going to let myself pull me down anymore.”

― C. JoyBell C.

      I believe we are each our own worse enemy. You say you’re stuck because of your circumstances- job, friends, significant other, society, etc. But your circumstances are merely obstacles and roadblocks placed in your path . . . and it is you and your choices alone that prevent you from moving past them. The only thing stopping you from moving forward is yourself.

Moving Forward

“Even though you may want to move forward in your life, you may have one foot on the brakes. In order to be free, we must learn how to let go. Release the hurt. Release the fear. Refuse to entertain your old pain. The energy it takes to hang onto the past is holding you back from a new life. What is it you would let go of today?”

― Mary Manin Morrissey

         We often find ourselves saying it’s time to move on, that we’re ready to move forward toward something better. But yet we find ourselves stuck time and time again. Why? Maybe we’re asking the wrong questions. Maybe the right question is, “what is tethering us to our current situation…what is preventing us from leaping with both feet?” When you can answer these questions, you can begin to break free of the chains binding you to the past. In order to truly move forward, you must first release the pain and regrets of yesterday to make room for the rewards of tomorrow.

We Must Carry On

“If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. And so today I still have a dream.”

― Martin Luther King Jr.

         In a world filled with such hatred and intolerance, it is hard to believe in better days to come. With nothing but darkness enveloping a nation that has turned against those it is sworn to protect, it is hard to fathom the Sun will ever shine again. When man has turned against fellow man, it is hard to believe that one day our brothers will no longer have to fear when they walk out the door they will not come home that night. When all hope and faith has been leeched from our weary souls, we must stop and remember those who have come before us. Our brothers and sisters who gave up their lives to advocate for tolerance, justice and equality-the very same struggle we are facing yet again today. And it is on their shoulders that we must stand and say, “I still have a dream” and we will not go quietly into the night.

Play On

“Laugh, even when you feel too sick or too worn out or tired.
Smile, even when you’re trying not to cry and the tears are blurring your vision.
Sing, even when people stare at you and tell you your voice is crappy.
Trust, even when your heart begs you not to.
Twirl, even when your mind makes no sense of what you see.
Frolick, even when you are made fun of. Kiss, even when others are watching. Sleep, even when you’re afraid of what the dreams might bring.
Run, even when it feels like you can’t run any more.
And, always, remember, even when the memories pinch your heart. Because the pain of all your experience is what makes you the person you are now. And without your experience—you are an empty page, a blank notebook, a missing lyric. What makes you brave is your willingness to live through your terrible life and hold your head up high the next day. So don’t live life in fear. Because you are stronger now, after all the crap has happened, than you ever were back before it started.”

By Alysha Speer

        No matter what you’re going through in life, you always have to play on. Even when things are going horribly wrong, you can’t stop – you have to push through. Even when there is no hope, you have to carry on. No matter what storms life brings your way, you must continue to sing your song. For this is what it means to live and not simply exist.

Spread Your Wings

“I have come to accept the feeling of not knowing where I am going. And I have trained myself to love it. Because it is only when we are suspended in mid-air with no landing in sight, that we force our wings to unravel and alas begin our flight. And as we fly, we still may not know where we are going to. But the miracle is in the unfolding of the wings. You may not know where you’re going, but you know that so long as you spread your wings, the winds will carry you.”

― C. JoyBell C.

         Life isn’t about having all the right answers or having a roadmap to follow with turn-by-turn instructions. It’s meant to be a journey of discovery. One where you are meant to blindly choose a door and open it not knowing what lies on the other side. You can analyze a decision backwards and forwards but at some point you must take a leap of faith. Trust in yourself, spread your wings and let the winds take you where they may.

Shifting Your Perceptions

“We are happy when people/things conform and unhappy when they don’t. People and events don’t disappoint us, our models of reality do. It is my model of reality that determines my happiness or disappointments.”

― Stefan Zweig, Chess Story

        In life, we are so often disappointed and frustrated when things don’t go our way.  And when things start spiraling out of control and going sideways, it’s so hard to see outside your situation.  Sometimes circumstances can be so overwhelming that you just want to give up and throw in the towel.  But it is at these moments, you have to stop, take a deep breath and try to look at your situation from an outside perspective.  Then you can say, “Ok, so this is what I had hoped to happen, this is what actually happened, what can I learn from this not so great outcome, and what can I do to minimize any negative ramifications or how can I maneuver around this pothole.”  In this way, you are shifting your perception of disappointment or failure and are equipping yourself with better tools to handle life’s pitfalls.

Life

Some Thoughts on Life by

Louise Erdrich, The Painted Drum

“Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won’t either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up. And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near, let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself you tasted as many as you could.”

       Life isn’t meant to be a cake walk. It’s supposed to be messy, painful and downright heartbreaking. You are here to experience the joys AND heartaches of living. When you take chances, you will inevitably fall and stumble, but that’s part of your journey-your story. So, embrace the fact that life will remain a roller coaster that has its ups and downs, along with its twists and turns before you reach the end.