Thank you~My Dear Friend~Christine

Relax and enjoy life's journey

Every day you're bombarded with an ever-increasing number of opportunities, yet you don't seem to have enough time to get things done.  If that isn't enough, you believe you're not working quickly enough to keep up with the nonstop flow of information streaming out of your computer. Worse yet, you feel as if you'll be left in the dust if you don't keep up. 

The truth is, there will never be enough time to get everything done, so, don't kill yourself trying.

You can face overwhelming challenges, yet still make each day purposeful by keeping in mind a clear intention of what you want to do.  Resolve to stay focused on accomplishing important tasks. Be willinging to say 'No' when you are asked to add responsibilities that are not in harmony with your aspirations.

Life is not meant to be a struggle but a balance and joyful journey.

DEAR NANCY, YOU ARE A TRUE FRIEND & INSPIRATION TO OUR GROUP. THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO. I RESPECT & APPRECIATE YOU. HUGS, CHRISTINE

Whether phrased as "push your buttons," "get your goat," "get you riled up," or "annoy you," it's no fun to be on the receiving end. How to cope?

1. Don't take it personally. Even when someone criticizes your actions or demeans your very nature, know that they are merely directing their inner turmoil in your direction. Someone else's opinion of you is mostly irrelevant, and basically none of your business. Don't assume that there is any validity to an accusation. Perhaps there is a valuable lesson buried inside the unkindness that merits objective consideration, but negative emotions are best just quickly discarded.

2. Look to the positive people in your life for support. If you balance many positive and supportive friends against one or two negative influences, it is much easier to cope. If you don't currently have enough positive people in your life, begin a focused effort to add positive people to your inner circle. If you don't have personal connections, search for groups of positive people at MeetUp.com

3. Remove negative people from your life. Yes you can, even if it's your boss. You don't need that job so much that it's worth your health or happiness. Everything in life is a choice. Sometimes making a change is important, while other times just knowing that you hold the power to make a different choice is enough.

4. Forgive the offender, not for their sake, but for your own sake. The act of forgiving releases your anger and provides space for rational thinking and action.

5. Be grateful for the wake-up call. Any time that someone or something grabs your attention is a good time to be grateful - even if the message is unpleasant. Something is happening that requires your conscious awareness. Perhaps you have a lesson to learn or an action to take. Perhaps it is time to remove another negative influence from your life.

6. Release any expectations that the unkind person should have acted differently. Life is not fair, and you only cause yourself unhappiness if you hold an expectation that life or any individual should be fair or kind.

Jonathan Lockwood Huie

It is never too late to be what you might have been.

- George Eliot

George Eliot was the pen name of English novelist Mary Anne Evans (1819-1880)

What is age but a number. What you can dream, you can become, at any age.

If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
- Mother Teresa

Let today be a day of acceptance, compassion, and understanding. Let us feel our bond of humanity with each of our planet's six billion souls. Put aside color, geography, wealth, education, political and religious beliefs, and feel the throb of each human heart in your heart. Never let your compassionate connection with all creation be limited by your politics, your language, or your traditions. Know that the spirit transcends all cultural differences and embraces all creation.

"I set my own course through the ocean of life."
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Have you ever watched a school of fish? They move almost as one. Instantly, they all turn. It doesn't appear that the fish in front turn and then the others follow. Rather, the fish at the back of the school turn together with those in front as if the school were a single organism.

Often, groups of people behave like schools of fish. Beliefs, behaviors, and habits spring up almost organically. Some of these trends are short lived like the latest clothing fashion, while others persist for millennia, yet have no more fundamental significance than a school of fish turning left or right in unison.

Be alert and watchful to avoid basing your own life on the beliefs, behaviors, and habits of those around you, however familiar and expected those habits may be.

Someone mentioned to be about a bird  "Bad Hair Heron." Ever had a bad hair day - a day when everything seemed to be going wrong? Perhaps today is a day to soothe your ruffled feathers, take a deep breath, and reaffirm that the weight of the world is really not on your shoulders, unless you choose to assume that burden.

Visualize living a life of grace. What kind of life do you picture? The word "grace" derives from a Latin word that means both pleasing and thankful,  that paints a picture of a life lived with grace. A life filled with gratitude for life itself. A life that is joyful and that inspires joy in others. A life of grace is a great life.  Choose to live a life of gratitude and joy.

Did you know that the average child laughs 400 times a day.  If laughter seems like a distance memory, then it's time the child inside came out to play.

In reality, you have so much more to enoy that the child you used to be--and so any reasons to laugh.  You have that vast library of memories to be brought out and explored--years of joy, adventure, and smiles.  There are mistakes filed away--all good reason for laughter.  There's accumulation of friendship--full of hugs, love and good times.  There's that treasure chest of experience to be dipped into--and so much more meant to bring a chuckle!

And finally, never to be overlooked, there's that secret inner deposit of excitement, wonder, enthusiasm and confidence in all the good times yet to come!

That was beautiful....thank you for sharing.

'Focus on the joy'

How many things in your daily life do you do just for the joy of it?

When you do something just for the 'joy' of it you are not worried about what you get in return, nor do you do it because you 'should' or 'have-to'.  You do it because you want to.

As you infuse your life with this kind of joy, you internalize the message that you cherish, love and respect yourself. Your self-esteem, self-confidence and self-worth all get a boost because you're doing things that are important to you.

Do something just for the 'joy' of it.  When you experience joy, others around you feel it too!