Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude.

-Denis Waitley

You're enough as is . . . .

How is it that you see least what those closest to you see most --- that you're rare and beautiful, strong and able, accomplished and successful? It shouldn't be like this. It's time you saw what the rest of us see, that you're already enough as is, that you deserve to see your dreams manifest, and that you've already bloomed into the kind of person you dreamed you'd one day become.

Ok?
 Beginning to see?

(It just takes a little practice.)

If every flower

tried to look like another,

they'd forget that they're special

and unlike any other.

From the book Choose Them Wisely

by

Mike Dooley


Photo via Faces

We get to be here! . . . .

I love what Neil of 1,000 Awesome Things has to say about living life! He says....

"We get to live! We get to be here! We're in the 80% of the world who can read, the 20% of the world with Internet access, and the some-other-percent of the world who as time to stop and think about things like happiness and small pleasures and awesome moments.

I guess I like to stop and remember sometimes that we'll never be as young as we are right now. We only get a hundred years to enjoy everything in this world. Every single person we know will be gone in a hundred years - from grocery store cashiers, to telemarketers who call us at dinner, to the people behind us at movies. We've only got a hundred years to enjoy interior design, horoscope signs, books, buffets, and radio waves, clean sheets and good movie seats, bakery air, rain hair, bubble wrap, and illegal naps.

So I think my personal highlight has been that - remembering and reminding myself how much joy and happiness there really is in the simple things in life. And how important they are to so many of us every day."

Thank you Neil.

Photo by Antti Viitala via One League Artists

The Dash . . . .

I read of a man who stood to speak

at the funeral of a friend.

He referred to the dates on her tombstone

from the beginning to the end.

He noted that first came the date of her birth,

and spoke the following date with tears.

But he said what mattered most of all

was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time

that she spent alive on earth.

And now only those who loved her

know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not how much we own;

the cars, the house, the cash,

what matters is how we live and love

and how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard.

Are there things you'd like to change?

For you never know how much time is left,

that can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough

to consider what's true and real,

and always try to understand

the way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger,

and show appreciation more.

And love the people in our lives

like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,

and more often wear a smile,

remembering that this special dash

might only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy is being read

with your life's actions to rehash,

would you be proud of the things they say

about how you spent your dash?

by Linda Ellis

No prescription needed . . . .

Laughter really is the best medicine. It has been proven that laughing lowers blood pressure, boosts your immune system, and helps you relax, indicating better sleep habits. Some studies even suggest that it may prevent heart disease. CNN recently reported that the positive effects of laughter lasts for up to 45 minutes! Want to burn more calories? Laugh more!  It turns out that 10-15 minutes of laughter can burn 50 calories! It is certainly not reason enough to ditch the treadmill, but every little bit helps, and I can't think of a more fun way to fuel your system. But seriously, who really needs any of these reasons to laugh? It's just downright good for your soul, it feels good, and it's fun!.....(and personally, I secretly believe that a big belly laugh gets rid of all cooties! That's why they call it 'cleansing'..... right?)

I've always thought that a big laugh was a loud noise from the soul saying, "Ain't that the truth!" 

- Quincy Jones

Photo taken myself


Happy Friday!
May you have a weekend full of laughter!

They want to be just like you . . . .

Top graphic from the book Believe

by Dan Zadra & Kobi Yamada

Photo via Getty Images

Text from the book I Believe In You

by Dan Zadra

It's not too late . . . .

One of my favorite authors, Dan Zadra, writes....When you reach the end of your life do you want to be one of the people who are glad they did, or one of the people who wish they had?

Start doing the things today that will matter tomorrow. Don't leave this world without giving it your all. The best inheritance you can leave your kids is an example of how to live a full and meaningful life.

Live your life so that your children can tell their children that you not only stood for something wonderful - you acted on it!

"I don't want to get to the end of my life 

and find that I lived just the length of it. 

I want to have lived the width of it as well."

-Diane Ackerman


Photo via Getty Images

Today, I am . . . .

Embrace Life . . . .

I couldn't help but share this beautiful ad. It's called 'Embrace Life' and it  has exploded around the world with its positive message encouraging people to wear their seat belts. Happy Friday! I hope you have a lovely weekend, and please buckle up.

You have the power . . . .

Photo via Getty Images

Inner beauty is what lasts . . . .

I am a huge fan of the Dove ads and their Campaign for Real Beauty. Their website states: "We see beauty all around us. At Dove we want to free ourselves and the next generation from the beauty stereotypes.......and it's why we continue to create thought-provoking ads, confidence-building programs and messages that embrace all definitions of beauty."
In the following article you will see the importance of offering practical advice on how to help young girls foster healthy self-esteem and avoid body dissatisfaction.

Ideas for Moms & Mentors

Whether you're a parent, guardian, sports coach or mentor, you can make a positive difference to the young people in your life. The following are some ideas and suggestions you can use in fostering healthy self-esteem in young girls. Teach children that their self-worth is not related to how they look. Emphasize their talents and qualities. Don't focus on their physical appearance. Talk to your children about self-esteem, body image and what it means to be beautiful.

Be a healthy role model for your children.

• Don't make comments about anyone's size or weight, especially as a "joke".
• Make sure that your child knows that you love them regardless of their size or weight.
• Treat fat and thin, tall and short, dark and fair (etc.) children the same.
• Build self-confidence and self-esteem through a range of activities, both physical and non-physical.
• Build good self-esteem in all children for who they are and what they do, not how they look.
• Feel proud of your child, regardless of their size or weight.
• Be creative and assertive in finding the right clothing and equipment for your child.
• Encourage healthy eating and physical activity for the entire family.
• Don't feel guilty or ashamed if you or your child is fat.

Work toward identifying and resisting all forms of discrimination. Remember that prejudice against size and body relates to prejudice based on sex, race, sexuality, class and physical ability.

"Outer beauty is constantly changing, 

and no matter who you are, 

you won't have it forever. 

Inner beauty is what lasts." 

 -Elle S., Colorado

Make no mistake . . . .

Finding the positives about your self can be difficult, even when you consciously focus on the task. But make no mistake: At the core of every human being is a uniqueness, individuality, and distinctness that demand to be expressed. You are no exception. However deeply your individuality may be buried...no matter how lost or non-unique you may feel, you are in there. Once you have found your way back to the you that has been buried under a mound of world experiences and self-pounding, hang on. Hang on, because you aren't going to believe what is about to happen in your life as you claim the power of refining your personal truth, knowledge, and personal power.

-Unknown

Photo via Google Images

Be true to you . . . .

What do you want? Have you made it a priority? You can't give all that you have to give, to yourself and the world, unless you are first true to yourself. Sound selfish? Good! Selfishness doesn't mean you don't care for others, and it doesn't mean you don't lend a hand where needed. It does mean that you understand that your fulfillment, happiness, and laughter count.....big time! It means realizing that your greatest responsibility as a human is not to save the world but to save yourself, because no one else can or will. And it means honoring your own passions, instincts, and desires so that you can always hear the call of your dreams and respond.

Then, as your dreams begin coming true, others will benefit, even people you don't know. Your life begins getting easier. Your vibrations are raised. You begin living with a newfound lightness, projecting an aura that shines onto the darkened paths of others. And the world does, in the end, become a much better place, thanks to the example you've become.

Be true to yourself

in the games that you play,

or it could be your dreams

that you one day betray.

From the book Choose Them Wisely

by Mike Dooley

Photo via Imgfave

Reach out, it's all there . . . .

Top photo via Google Images

Bottom photo via Imgfave

Don't give up . . . .

Via The Pursuit of Happyness

Footpath to peace . . . .

Photo by Andreas Lind via Agent Bauer

Don't fight it . . . .

How is it, that with so many brilliant beings on our planet, so few recognize that when one's life encounters turbulence, choppy waters or setbacks, it's always a sign that things are about to get wildly better than they've ever been before?

Don't fight it! 

This is really, really, good news!

Via Notes from The Universe

Photo by MAT NEIDHARDT via One League Artists

For your viewing pleasure . . . .

Beauty comes from within,

but sometimes,

well, you just have to enjoy the view!

Happy Friday!

Wishing you a lovely weekend!

Photo by Nils Odier via Agent Bauer

Let's hear it for "more girlfriend time" . . .

 I received this email from a good friend of mine and thought it was worth sharing.....

 ... I just finished taking an evening class at Stanford. The last lecture was on the mind-body connection--the relationship between stress and disease.  The speaker (head of psychiatry at Stanford) said, among other things, that one of the best things that a man could do for his health is to be married to a woman whereas for a woman, one of the best things she could do for her health was to nurture her relationships with her girlfriends.  At first everyone laughed, but he was serious. 

Women connect with each other differently and provide support systems that help each other to deal with stress and difficult life experiences. Physically this quality "girlfriend time" helps us to create more seratonin--a neurotransmitter that helps combat depression and can create a general feeling of well being.  Women share feelings whereas men often form relationships around  activities. They rarely sit down with a buddy and talk about how they feel about certain things or how their personal lives are going.  Jobs? Yes.  Sports? Yes.  Cars? Yes.  Fishing, hunting, golf?  Yes.  But their feelings?--rarely.  Women do it all of the time. We share from our souls with our sisters, and evidently that is very good for our health.  He said that spending time with a friend is just as important to our general health as jogging or working out at a gym. 

There's a tendency to think that when we are "exercising" we are doing something good for our bodies, but when we are hanging out with friends, we are wasting our time and should be more productively engaged--not true.  In fact, he said that failure to create and maintain quality personal relationships with other humans is as dangerous to our physical health as smoking!  So every time you hang out to shmooze with a gal pal, just pat yourself on the back and congratulate yourself for doing something good for your health!  We are indeed very very lucky.   Sooooo let's toast to our friendship with our girlfriends. Evidently it's very good for our health.

Photo by James Strack via One League Artists

Have I told you? . . . .

The gift of silence . . . .

Graphic from the book Be

by Kobi Yamada

Sensory Deprivation . . . .

I want to go dancing and wear a dress that swirls and floats around me, and laugh. I want to feel the shimmer of silk as it glides over my arms and down my body, the joy of fingering its whispery softness. I want to sleep in my own bed and luxuriate in the cool crispness of clean sheets, and rest my head on my own pillow. And go to sleep when I want to, with all the lights out, and wake up when I'm ready. I want to stretch out on my couch under my blue-plaid afghan and listen as my favorite music seeps from the speakers and into my being, watering the parched landscape of my soul. I want to sit on my porch and sip hot coffee from my stoneware mug, and read the newspaper, and hear the dog bark at blowing leaves and trespassing squirrels. I want to answer the phone and call my friends and family and talk until we catch up on all the words we've saved for each other, and laugh. I want to hear the train hoot through Loveland, the gravel crunch in the driveway, and car doors slam as friends come to visit. And the tinkle and clink of silverware on china, the hiss and gurgle of the coffee maker. I want to feel my bare feet on the cool whiteness of my kitchen floor, and the soft blueness of my bedroom carpet. I want to see the colors, all of them, every color ever spun into existence. And white, true white, pristine and unblemished. And acres of green trees, and miles of yellow-ribbon highways, and yards of Christmas lights. And the moon. I want to smell bacon sizzling, a steak broiling, Thanksgiving dinner and my father's tomato vines. And fresh laundry. And the ocean. But more than all of this, I want to stand in the doorway of my son's room and watch him sleep. And hear him get up in the morning and see him come home at night. And touch his face and comb my fingers through his hair, and ride in his truck and eat his grilled cheese sandwiches. And watch him grow and laugh and play and eat and drive and live. Mostly, mostly, live. And put my arms around him and hold him until he laughs and says, "Mom, that's enough!" And then be free to do it again.                    

-Deborah E. Hill

The above article was written by a woman in prison. Can you imagine having all the beauty of what life has to offer taken away? 

Don't take life, 
and all it has to offer
 for granted.

From the book Highlighted in Yellow

by H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

and

Rochelle Pennington


Photo via Google Images

Words to live by . . . .

Happy Friday!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Enjoy what you've earned . . . .

A lot of time I wasted

wishing I could be

the opposite of everything

my mirror showed to me.

But then one day I realized

the only thing to do

was try to be a better me

and not another you.

Life is a "package deal." If today you were a bit wealthier, skinnier, smarter, or cuter than you already are, there might have been prices to pay in other areas of your life. Maybe you wouldn't be as insightful, spiritual, or compassionate as you are today. Or maybe you wouldn't laugh as much, help as much, or roll exactly the way you do now.

Get the picture? The events and circumstances, challenges and accomplishments that have shaped your life, that have left you wanting more of this and less of that, have also honed your finer senses and polished your character as nothing else could have. You are the package! Enjoy what you've earned. Bask in your radiance. And understand that your differences from others are also your advantages. It's what you're made of! But realize they helped form the magnificence that you are today. 

From the book Choose Them Wisely

by Mike Dooley

Photo via Getty Images

What is your YouTube? . . . .

From the time we are in grade school, we're taught to think that the best answers and ideas are in books or come from someone else's head. What the world really needs to know right now is what kind of dreams and crazy ideas are in your head! 

In 2005 three college guys wished they had a simple way to share videos online with their friends, so they threw together a simple invention - a way for virtually any video to play on any web browser, and started their own little company called........

                                     

One year later they sold their company to Google for $1.6 billion, and Time Magazine named their idea "Invention of the Year."

It's easy to come up with big ideas. Just think of something that everyone agrees would be "wonderful" if it were only "possible", and then set out to make it possible.    -Armond Hammer

From the book 5

Where will you be 5 years from today?

by Dan Zadra

If you believe . . . .

Photo via Getty Images

How sweet the surprise . . . .

-Unknown

Photo via Google Images

How do you want to be remembered? . . .

A friend of mine lost a family member over the weekend which sparked a thought about leaving a legacy. I'm not referring to a financial legacy. I'm talking about an expression of your personal values, priorities and intentions, and what kind of impact it would have on your family and friends. Have you thought about what stories your loved ones will tell about you after you've gone?  What kind of significant meaning do you think you'll pass on to those you leave behind? We all want to live a life that matters. When I think about all the people I have known that have passed, there are several who have touched my life in such a way that their legacy actually acts as a guide for me.  With one person in particular, I am reminded of his courage, what it took for him to face everyday obstacles, and how he did it with such grace. With another, I think of how it was no effort for her to put others first. It came naturally for her, and she wouldn't have had it any other way. These people made such a lasting impression on me, that it has helped determine MY actions. That is a wonderful contribution! Personally, I feel that if you can put something in the world that wasn't there before; particularly something that could possibly make a difference in the lives of others, then you are well on your way to leaving a meaningful legacy. We worry about a lot of things in this life that ultimately don't matter, and today I'm just reminded to think about the things that do.

Photo by Jeremy Underwood