Cut Yourself Some Slack

Image Credit: Sid Leigh

Can’t seem to get enough done in a short span of time? Do you put more pressure on yourself than you have to? Let’s face it, sometimes, we get stuck in our overachieving mode and can’t find a way to turn it off. Then, and yes, there is always a ‘then,’ we get so stressed, depressed, and quite often obsessed when our goals go awry. I think it’s safe to say that it’s time to take a step, or two, or three back.

Quite often, we tend to back ourselves into the infamous “deadline” corner and can’t come out because we are so overwhelmed with what seems like an endless list of things to do, squeezed into a time frame that looks appealing but is quite deceptive.

I’ve spoken to many people who find themselves caught in the crossfire of setting aggressive goals, and the reality is more than they bargained for. At this point, they forcefully put their foot on the brakes, instead of gradually slowing down to avoid whiplash. We try to hurry up and rush the process, then learn that silly mistakes can quickly and easily sink our ship sailing towards progress. Impatience will certainly lead to disappointments, and at times, disaster.

Try to examine what led you to this place of overwhelm, which makes you feel defeated. It’s not always by someone else’s design, but even if it was, you can still change the narrative. Don’t be in a rush to impress others who probably don’t care about what you’re doing or your well-being. We stress out over stuff we really don’t need to. Personally, I learned I would have fumbled badly and made costly mistakes if I didn’t slow my roll. There’s only but so much time in a day. Your body has to adapt to rest, relaxation, and repair, or you are no good for nothing. Beware of those non-negotiable-looking deadlines because they could turn deadly if you don’t take your foot off the “gotta get it done right now” accelerator. Find the courage to cut yourself some slack and lighten up. If you don’t, you are liable to self-destruct at any unexpected moment. Then what?

Law of the Garbage Truck

Image Credit: Painter06

One day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport. We were 

driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a 

parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his 

brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches! The driver of

the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us.

My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was really 

friendly. So I asked, ‘Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined 

your car and sent us to the hospital! ‘This is when my taxi driver 

taught me what I now call, ‘The Law of the Garbage Truck.’ 

He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run

 around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of 

disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it 

and sometimes they’ll dump it on you. Don’t take it personally. Just 

smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Don’t take their garbage and 

spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets. The 

bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day.

Life’s too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, 

so…Love the people who treat you right. Pray for the ones who don’t. 

Life is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it! 

Have a garbage-free day!

– Author Unknown

Problems, Possibilities, Opportunities

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When you focus on problems, you get more problems. When you focus on possibilities, you have more opportunities.

I know you hear this often, but sometimes we need to be reminded of the direction our focus is pointing in. Opportunity lies in the possibilities of a problem. Don’t waste precious minutes, hours, or days worrying about things you cannot change. Focus on what you can, and go from there. Have a beautiful day of unbroken promises and unexplored hope.

🌈 Where the Rainbows Speak

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        We have seen rainbows, but have you experienced one? Years ago, my husband was on his way home driving down the interstate. He saw a rainbow had landed on the highway and drove through it. A couple of seconds later, he drove through another, and a few seconds after that, he drove through another. Three rainbows just like that. Although he said it freaked him out, the experience was one I never heard of, but it certainly left an ethereal impression on him. Of course, he joked and said there was no pot of gold at the end of either of them. 😜

        A few days ago, I was on the phone with my “ride or die” friend, talking about the things that were spiritually draining and exhausting us from the craziness that seems to be a steady presence everywhere. From the assassination of Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, to the recent mass shootings and the quagmire with our lawmakers, this unbelievable series of events leave us feeling depleted of energy. My girlfriend and I have frequent talks to avoid falling into that abyss of discouragement and depression. When we began talking, dark clouds rolled in, and the sky opened, pouring down rain with thunder bringing up the background vocals. At some point during our conversation, I didn’t realize it stopped raining, and I found myself walking out on my deck, breathing in the moist air. 

        Suddenly, I looked up, gasped, and interrupted our conversation by blurting out, “Oh my gosh, it’s a rainbow!” Then I said, “Wait, the rainbow looks like there is another one layered behind it.” Then I looked up further and saw another arch of colors that were visible but not as vivid. In trying to overcome our despair during our conversation, my girlfriend and I discovered that the storm had passed when we didn’t notice it, and then the rainbow came out, with help from the sun, showing all of its brilliance, giving us a sign of hope. Talk about an injection of positivity and optimism. What is your most memorable experience when you saw a rainbow?

Everybody wants happiness, nobody wants pain, but you can’t have a rainbow without a little rain.” -Anonymous

Image Credit: Mateus Campos Felipe

What Comes from Life’s Debris?

Image Credit: Felix Mittermeier

“No storm can last forever. It will never rain 365 days consecutively. Keep in mind that trouble comes to pass, not to stay. Don’t worry! No storm, not even the one in your life, can last forever.” – Iyanla Vanzant

        Last week after record-high scorching temperatures, we experienced severe afternoon and evening thunderstorms. Some parts of our area sustained serious damage, with downed trees, fallen branches that did quite a bit of damage, and lots of airborne debris scattered everywhere. In our vicinity, the wind was fierce but not as harsh. Cracks of lightning and the roar of thunder were more intimidating than the wind.

        I think about the debris scattered over our life’s pathway. We face storms throughout various degrees in our lives, whether grand or small, and the effects of how much these storms impact our lives can either strengthen, frustrate, or do their darndest to destroy us. I believe our life storms teach us something about people, about situations, and about ourselves. How resilient are we when a crisis occurs? How do we get through these crises, and how do we rise up as we use the debris to help us rebuild? What will the outcome of our storms be?

        At some point, storms will hit everyone. Yet, not everyone comes out unscathed and survives. Some storms seem to hold your head underwater and attempt to drown you until you wiggle from its grasp and swim up for air. Others clean up and compost some of that debris to fertilize hope and empower progress. Storms will come, and you can’t sidestep them. How do we weather our storms? We can’t always be prepared for the unexpected and inevitable. Yet we can live, learn, and lead because the stories we write orally or verbally based on our storms can be a lifesaver and a hope-builder to many.

Image Credit: Sheila Brown

Hitting a Pothole

Image Credit: Marc-Olivier Jodoin (Unsplash.com)

        This morning I rethought the post I intended to publish. As I spoke to many people over the past few days, family and friends, the more I realized I needed to post something simple, important, and reassuring. To validate this moment of silence and simplicity, I read a post from our blogger friend Cherie White yesterday, asking for prayers on behalf of her husband Mike, who is in the hospital. Please keep them in your prayers too.

        It seems like so many of us are hitting an occasional pothole, knocking us out of alignment with our daily pattern of life and living. We never know when that unexpected curveball will knock the wind out of us. So, I ask you, wherever you may be at this moment, to pause and realize that at times we will encounter potholes along our route. Sometimes we can swerve around them, and at other times we don’t realize they’re there until we are right up on them, plunging into the insidious bump that leaves us screaming colorful expletives because of the occurrence.

        The screams may not take away the pain, but sometimes we have to let it all out for temporary relief from the reverberation of those unexpected potholes in life we cannot avoid. So, for this moment, stop, breathe in deeply, exhale boldly, and remember, this too shall pass. 🙏🏼

In and Out of Control

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            Let today be a “Just let it go” kind of day. We know we are responsible for our actions, and our actions have consequences, whether good or bad, regardless of who we are.

     The action and opinions of others, what happens around you, and disappointments from the past are a smidgen of the things out of your control. Let it go. If you get caught up in the drama of those things that are out of your control, you will drive yourself crazy. So step away from the runaway vehicle carrying a carload of craziness. Pay attention to what is within your grasp, you know, the stuff you can do something about?

        If we eat the meat and leave the scraps, we will feel lighter because we’re carrying around less weight, and promoting personal stress reduction. Consider it as a diet plan where you are cutting down on your intake of food that’s bad for your health. People will be people, but remember, you will always be you. If you don’t take care of yourself, how can you expect to take care of those you love? Just a thought. 🤔

Feel the Rupture?

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            Sometimes a small crack can morph into a gaping hole. Relationships are like that. Sometimes a repairable snag can turn into an irreparable pile of shreds if it is not mended. While it is possible to repair, this can take time. The warning signs appear, yet quite often ruptures are ignored until it’s too late. Whatever the rupture, fracture or snag may be, give it the attention needed, because ruptures, fractures, and snags can stand out like a sore thumb, create a bigger divide, and hurt like a dickens.

Rupture

There is a rumbling
but can you hear it?
And the crumbling, can you feel it coming?
An unchained harmony
or an oncoming busted pipedream
creating a rift so great
so alarming
that we stop, and in a gasp
like a ruptured eardrum,
blood vessel, or ruptured disc
breaking, bursting
a breach of harmony
a sudden eruption
a perfect relationship cracked,
divided, crumbling
can the crack be mended
or leave well enough alone?

© Kym Gordon Moore

Image Credit: Wikimedia

The Poetry of Perseverance

Image Credit: Axel Kuhlmann

“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.

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The Test…Again!

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Well, I had to pause for the cause today. I had another post ready to publish, but something more pressing kept me from going forward with my plan for today. See, I have been trying to do so much, especially this week, with personal time-sensitive projects. Well, I wound up becoming more frustrated because I didn’t accomplish what I wanted to when I wanted to have it done.

So, this morning after getting up, I watched a Sunday morning message, and after listening to the content of the subject, it stabbed away at my frustration. See, I set a time limit on what I was doing so I could move on to the next “urgent” thing on my laundry list. Suddenly, once again, I felt like I was suspended in time, or should I say frozen in time.

Now, mind you, this impatience was not due to external pressures trying to attack my mental insecurities but is from my self-imposed personal and internal pressure I mixed in a bowl for myself. So, even though I am posting later than I typically do, I feel I am posting what I should, at least for the moment. Although I try to have daily self-talks (no, I’m not crazy) and prayer time to guide me through my day, I don’t always follow wise advice for my spiritual balance and esteem.

As I inhale deep breaths with extended exhalations at this moment, I have to recalibrate my direction and wait patiently for the next course to take. Hopefully, the next path will lead me to a sense of divine satisfaction and not self-indulging gratification. Patience is my wise and dear friend, and at the same time, can be tougher than a tough foe. Patience must be acknowledged and exercised when we find ourselves amid haste by rushing unnecessarily to get something done. And so, I pause for the cause, wish you a glorious day, and I bid you adieu. 🌞