“It doesn’t make sense to call ourselves ugly, because we don’t really see ourselves. We don’t watch ourselves sleeping in bed, curled up silent with our chests rising & falling with our own rhythm. We don’t see ourselves reading a book, eyes fluttering and glowing. You don’t see yourself looking at someone with love and care in your heart. There’s no mirror in your way when your laughing and smiling and pure happiness is leaking out of you. You would know exactly how bright and beautiful you are if you saw yourself in the moments where you are truly your authentic self.” – Unknown

Last night I had a long talk with one of the most beautiful friends I have, inside and out, and was pained by something she said. It involved body image and shame tied to embarrassing and disappointing others. I was so upset by this 😦 It’s not right! No one should call themselves ugly because it’s about more than our bodies. Obviously I’m guilty as charged in terms of my own self image, and I really do try to work on it. It’s so important to love yourself and feel beautiful.  I was trying to put how I felt into words for her but I just couldn’t get to my point or find the PERFECT thing to say. It was eating me up as I was trying to fall asleep so I searched for quotes, as I always do, to help put into words what I was feeling. I came across this quote and I wish I knew who wrote it so I could give them credit because it sums up exactly what went through my mind as my friend was speaking to me. If you’re reading this, you know who you are, and you are one of the most beautiful women I have EVER known!

Love yourself and see your authentic beautiful self! If you don’t, who will? YOU are beautiful!

“Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.” – Rumi

Every so often, a quote comes along and really makes you stop in your tracks and think. You finish reading it like you would read any other quote, and, right as you are about to move on, you halt and go into immediate reflection. That just happened. To me. With this quote. Brilliant! Eye opening! Just the reflection I needed! And with that, I’m done.  I think that this quote leaves enough to be self-reflected without my extra thoughts.

As Oprah would say, I just had an “Aha! moment”!

“So many Gods, so many creeds, so many paths that wind and wind, while just the art of being kind is all the sad world needs.” – Ella Wheeler Wilcox

“Guard well within yourself that treasure, kindness. Know how to give without hesitation, how to lose without regret, how to acquire without meanness.” – George Sand

I had a conversation the other night with a friend about how truly easy it is to get along with people and have mutually satisfying relationships. Whether this is with your closest friends, acquaintances or co-workers, it all boils down to one thing: kindness. We are all just people, trying to survive and be happy in the same world, all just wanting to be treated by others with kindness. It doesn’t matter our backgrounds, ethnicity, gender, likes or dislikes, etc, there is one thing we all have in common, we have an innate need and desire for to be treated with kindness.

Think about your interactions with everyone that crosses your path and realize that although they may be in their role in your life by profession or just by happenstance, at the end of the day, you have more in common than you think and you each deserve the same respect and kindness from this world. As George Sand says, “Guard that treasure inside you, kindness.”

Sorry for the break in blogging…things got a little busy and my computer crashed for a bit. Have a WONDERFUL holiday weekend!

“Have compassion for everyone you meet, even if they don’t want it. What appears bad manners, an ill temper or cynicism is always a sign of things no ears have heard, no eyes have seen. You do not know what wars are going on down there where the spirit meets the bone.” – Miller Williams

I’ve heard this quote said in a few different ways, but not as beautiful as this. The part that really resonates with me is, “You do not know what wars are going on down there where the spirit meets the bone.” What an amazing use of words to explain the internal battles we all face. I’d like to say that I’m always happy and pleasant to every one that crosses my path, but, if I said that, I’d be lying. No one can be this way. Even the happiest and most positive of people face hard times. It’s impossible not to let it ooze out every now and again, and, sadly, to others that don’t deserve it. But this is just a sign of things “no ears have heard, no eyes have seen.” It’s these internal battles that become too hard to fight alone.

We can ALL relate to this so I think it’s a great reminder that every one else in this world goes through the same rough patches. They don’t mean to seem rude or cynical, it just happens now and again. Give people the benefit of the doubt. Instead of responding negatively and with judgement or disgust, maybe offer them a little extra kindness. It’s love and positivity that they need, not a double dose of negativity. Be compassionate to their battle. I bet one day down the road you will need the same compassion and karma can work wonders 😉

As H. Jackson Brown Jr. said, “Remember that everyone you meet is afraid of something, loves something and has lost something.” Just like you!

“Nothing makes a woman more beautiful more beautiful than the belief that she is beautiful.” – Sophia Loren

“Work for a cause, NOT for applause. Live life to express, NOT to impress. Don’t strive to make your presence noticed, just make your absence felt.” – Unknown

I had never heard this quote until today…it brought me to tears! I don’t know if you have a Superman in your life, or maybe you just haven’t thought of someone that way, but I know that I do. Who is my Superman? Eddie Livingston. I’m sorry, let me rephrase, Super Eddie! I work for a non-profit, as many of you know, and, if you don’t, please check us out at http://www.COREgives.org and read Eddie’s story there. Let me start by saying that I love ALL of the children that we are able to support and they will all hold a special place in my heart for as long as I live. That being said, Eddie is different. I got the opportunity to meet Eddie and his beautiful family and gift them face-to-face. I have never had a more gratifying experience in my life. No one was there to see it but me, my Chairman and his beautiful wife, Santa and the Livingston family. There weren’t any professional cameras, there was no pomp and circumstance, no one really even knew I was there. We don’t do what we do for applause, we don’t do it to impress and we don’t strive to make our presence noticed. We do what we do for a cause, to express our love and support and to make our absence felt. I know that we accomplished that this past December in the Livingston home on a hot day with Santa and his “sleigh” (truck) at our side. That’s what it was about.

What I don’t think the Livingston family know is how much of an impact they had on me that day and still continue to have. I don’t think Eddie will truly understand what I have learned from him and his battle. I am FOR SURE that Eddie’s mother and father and siblings have no clue how inspiring their strength and spirit have been to me since that day. Eddie’s mother posted on Eddie “Superman” Livingston’s Facebook page today. The doctor said his scans were disappointing. My heart just melted. Not my Superman, that’s not fair. I can only hope for a cure to be found and for his health to improve, I can’t fix that for him. But I hope that I did do what I AM able to do. I hope that I expressed my love and support and gratitude as well as I possibly could. I hope that my absence, as well as the absence of my Chairman and his wife (and Santa) was felt shortly after we left the family’s home, and hope that for just thirty minutes the Livingston family was able to forget about their struggles and feel unconditional love and support.

I work for this cause because it completes me. It really does. I believe in it to my core (no pun intended) and I believe in my Superman and his family. A family so selfless, that while in the midst of their battle found the time to send ME a get well gift after my knee surgery. Eddie is a fighter and I have felt his absence since I walked out of his front door last December. I’ve learned more from a 4 year old and his spirit than I’ve learned from any class I’ve ever taken. I may have the opportunity to work for an official cause, but we can ALL work towards causes of our own that mean so much. And while CORE may work every day to help these children that truly need our support, I feel that I may be benefiting the most from these inspirational  individuals, their families and their stories. So, thank you! And beat cancer’s butt, Eddie!

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.

It turns what we have into enough, and more.

It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.

It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.

Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

– Melody Beattie

Throughout the day I try to constantly remind myself to be grateful for ALL I have. Until I read this this morning I don’t think I could have put into words why it was so important: Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. This is so true. Life itself is a gift, the most important gift, and, for that, we should be grateful. Everything else that comes with it is just icing on the cake. In a society that has learned to be materialistic and always want MORE, I think it’s important for all of us to remember that we have ENOUGH and when we are grateful for all we have, this state of contentment will unveil the beauty of life in it all.

I love the way that Melody Beattie words this, it’s perfect. So, today, as with every day, I am grateful. I think my favorite part is, “It can turn…a stranger into a friend.” I tend to try and look at all strangers that way and to remind myself to be grateful to meet someone new that has seen the world differently than I have. There is so much to learn from new “friends.” Calling them strangers closes us off from parts of the world we have never experienced, why not be open to strangers and grateful for the chance to see parts of the world we may never get to see? If you get anything from this I hope that you walk away with the line about gratitude turning strangers into friends. I think it’s so important to be open to others and what they can teach us. Be grateful for those interactions that you couldn’t have if you didn’t have life 🙂 Why must we always yearn for more? If we reflect on the basics of what we do have, I think we can truly see how beautiful life is and how grateful we should be for just that.

“Knowing how to be solitary is central to the art of loving. When we can be alone, we can be with others without using them as a means of escape.” – Bell Hooks

I haven’t posted in over a week because life has just gotten so busy. I wanted to share a quote that really resonates with me but I don’t have time to speak to it today. Hopefully it speaks volumes on its own.