Image Credit: Brigitte Tohm
Enjoy the little things and you will learn to appreciate the big ones.
Today is a new day to make a fresh start, so get up and get at it.
Be kind to others, but first be kind to yourself.
Today is a day to rejoice and be glad, so spread love not hate.
I am wishing every one of you reading this post, peace, and blessings, so go on out there and do something fun. Create something magical. Make something awesome!
Image Credit: ArtsyBee
Invaluable…that’s what you are. What will you learn today that you didn’t learn before? So many people are sadly sitting on and squandering their gifts and talents. So many people are simply existing, thinking they have gone as far as they can go in life. Simply carve another path, in a new direction, and then continue to pave and expand your mind, thoughts, and creativity to new heights that will fulfill your purpose. Personal change can provide the platform for unlimited opportunities and possibilities for you.
Image Credit: amy hogan
Image Credit: Circe Denyer
“Because you are not the first to get across the finish line, this does not mean you lost the race. Set your pace for the course. As long as you do and have done your very best to reach the finish line and cross over, then you have succeeded, able and capable, based on your abilities to give it a try.”
With love,
Kym
There were times when I pushed myself to exhaustion, trying to keep up the pace of achievement with others on rules they set. I felt by a certain age, I needed to have acquired certain things and achieved desired results. That is what society led me to believe, and I fell for it. The older I got, I found out that I could not march to the beat of stretch goals made by others for themselves because it was impossible. Plus, we were operating on an uneven playing field. First of all, with some things, I didn’t have the same resources, whether it was financial or personal connections. My circle was clearly different, and I had to operate with what I had, maximize my resources and do the best I could.
If someone or some system ever gave you the impression that you are a failure because you didn’t finish first in a particular race, just remember that some of the most successful, compassionate, and content people didn’t always come in first place. Don’t allow negativity of any kind to steal your joy or your stamina. Instead, they enjoyed the experiences and lessons of the pace and journey they walked, unaffected by a blur of forgetfulness from the mad dash of furor.
Image Credit: Kevin André
As I announced yesterday, my new book, “We Are Poetry: Lessons I Didn’t Learn in a Textbook,” is on its way and will be launching on November 1, 2022. To say that I am not the least bit excited about my upcoming book would be an understatement. This book has been years in the making. Once my curiosity was unlocked, it flooded the gates of my brain cells like a dam that burst open. One question led to another, and of course, the editing-proofreading-writing-editing-proofreading-and-more-writing process seemed endless. Procrastination, however, was also a well-known culprit thrown in there because the challenges of “life” as we all experience in one form or two, happened.
Speaking with many family members, friends, and acquaintances over time, at some point, you feel like you can’t get moving out of “park” and shift your gear into “drive.” There is always stuff that tries to make us sigh and feel discouraged as we walk to the “quit” laundry basket in the corner. I speak from experience.
So, on this day, let me be clear that you have a purpose in this life, and you have already been given the gifts and talents to present to the world. As the old saying goes, “If you don’t use it, you’ll lose it.” So snap out of it! No more moping around. No more allowing yourself to wallow in a self-deprecating pit just because people do not embrace you or your gifts as you embrace theirs. Don’t you be guilty of blocking your own blessings. It’s all in your attitude, so do what you must positively do to stop sinking into self-pity. Just sayin’.
You’re not pretty enough.
You’re not tall enough.
You’re not strong enough.
You’re not smart enough.
You’re not rich enough.
You’re not handsome enough.
You’re not successful enough.
You’re not, you’re not, you’re not…
Then what are you or who are you supposed to be? You may not be able to do a lot of things, but those things should not be on your radar to deter you from them if they are meant for you. What can you do, where you are, using what you have? You don’t have to achieve fame or celebrity status to be seen or to make a positive difference in the world. I’ve posed such questions to myself, especially when I know what is possible but may become discouraged for some reason or another, even if it is of my own doing (like busyness and being distracted).
I have used and continue to use the negativity others may think about me or spew at me by turning it into my personal asset. And if you don’t have something like sufficient education, training, specific skillsets, or collaborating with others, well then, find a way to get what you need (legally of course). Whatever people say to try to cut you down or discourage you by telling you what you’re not, or refuse to point you in the direction where you can grow, then simply take a deep breath and show them what and who you are, where you are. You are your choice!
This morning I watched a squirrel scale through the trunk and limbs of the various trees in our backyard. It approached the end of an oak tree and stopped. I observed to see what it would do next. Would it go back in the direction it came from, or would it try to find another way to get to the nearby pine tree? Well, being the squirrel that it was, it leaped over to the closest branch of the pine tree and began dangling. I gasped because at first, I thought it would fall down to the ground, but I watched it hold on for dear life. “What amazing upper body strength it had,” I thought.
It seemed that it would have been so much easier to go back, descend down the oak tree’s trunk, hit the ground, and then go its merry way. It would have been faster and easier, so I thought. But that is not how nature operates. She teaches us that perseverance might not find the easiest way, but it is a surefire way of determination and courage that strengthens our will to keep moving, and exploring. So often we find the easiest way to accomplish something, but it might not always be the best and most productive or lucrative way to get a return on your investment. So whatever you set out to do today, do it courageously, and take a leap of faith.
So the stuff has hit the fan, and the unexpected explodes with the question, “Whatcha gonna do now?” 🤔 In our bewilderment we don’t know what the heck we’re going to do at that moment, but whatever we do, let’s get a little innovative with it shall we?
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade is a proverbial expression used to inspire optimism and a positive can-do attitude in the face of difficulty or misfortune. Lemons suggest sourness or trouble in life; making lemonade is turning them into something positive or desirable. Source: www.theidioms.com
At the rise of some of life’s challenging moments
you tend to become worried and afraid
but encouraging words from an old quote I once heard
“When life throws you a lemon, then make lemonade.”
Suppose life throws you just one lemon
or perhaps several at a time?
Eventually you’ll catch them whether you want to or not
what you do with them is something you must decide.
If you try throwing them back
they’ll keep showing up just a little bit more
learn to catch and use them for your benefit
utilize every part of that lemon, right down to the core.
Consider the possibilities of everything you could make
lemonade, lemon juice, lemon meringue pie or lemon cake
lemon tarts, lemon squares, lemon jello, lemon ice cream
lemon preserves, lemon sauce, lemon chicken or lemon tea.
So remember the next time life throws you a lemon
or even a bushful at a time
you’ll accept the recipe challenge of survival
whenever you’re thrown a lemon
or its cousin that tangy green lime.
© Kym Gordon Moore, ‘Wings of the Wind,” 2013
Like a runaway train about to derail at any moment, we can get lost in overextending our ambitions. Overly ambitious? Trying to be at the top of your game? This is what society deems as working our way to success.
I saw a quote recently that stated, “You can’t be successful if you can’t handle pressure.” So, when I thought about that particular quote, and frankly I don’t know who wrote it, I saw how this could be slightly misleading. Society tells us that if we work hard then we will succeed. But oh contraire. Sometimes the way things look isn’t always what they are. We get sidetracked trying to measure up and reach those levels of success based on the goalposts and guidelines that others construct for us to follow.
The next thing you know your world comes crashing down, shattered into a million pieces that can’t be put back together again. Why? Because the road leading to someone else’s success may not be the one you need to travel down. You feel like you’re coming apart at the seams or feel shattered like broken glass, and you’re walking on the shards barefoot. It seems like you’re burned out and feel you’ve failed miserably. We sometimes feel like we’re free-falling from an airplane that has reached its maximum altitude with no doors or windows and find ourselves plummeting and splattering to the ground without a parachute.
Do you ever feel like a pressure cooker, and your lid is about to explode through the roof at any second now? Is it simply because you’ve taken on too much and you’re overwhelmed because you haven’t accomplished the things on your goals list on your projected timetable? Where do you go, what do you do, and who can you turn to for relief?
Do exit strategies help to alleviate that pressure or add to it? It’s good to push yourself to an extent but not to send yourself tumbling overboard. As that old saying goes, “Life is a marathon, not a sprint.” Do it for you, not to please someone else or on some standardized term and timetable for your life. When the game is over, let it be over. Get your life back and sharpen your pencil to design your blueprint for success. Don’t put yourself under pressure when you don’t have to.
“A river cuts through rock not because of its power, but because of its persistence.” – Unknown
Perseverance isn’t something you say, it’s something that you do. Poetry isn’t merely a slew of words, it’s what the words mean, how they make you feel, and what they make you do.
“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” ~Maya Angelou
Each day we have an opportunity to do better and be better. We are the best ones to answer the question if we are truly living up to our full potential. Our potential has very little to do with getting rich, but it’s about utilizing your God-given gifts and your physical talents to serve and edify. We ask ourselves, what have we contributed today that will be a helpmate to others? Have we used our resources wisely?
You don’t have to be rich, well off, or hold a prominent position to do something charitable or noteworthy. You have an ability. Don’t turn it into a dis-ability.
From Behind the Pen 