The world needs more of YOU in it! . . . .

Happy Monday!

Happy Friday!

Have an 

A-MAZ-ING weekend!

Take the challenge . . . .

Can you sit for 2 minutes and do nothing? For those of you who have a bit of the Energizer Bunny in you, this can actually be pretty difficult. This simple video , Do Nothing for Two Minutes, challenges you to do just that -- do nothing -- and if you touch your mouse or keyboard during the countdown, you're greeted with a "Fail" message.  

Click here to begin.

Relax, and good luck.

"To do nothing at all is the most difficult thing 
in the world, 

the most difficult and the most intellectual."

-Oscar Wilde


Photo via Google Images

It's a generous gift to the world . . . .

"Someone once said that all the sorrow and trouble of this world is caused by unhappy people. If you realize that, even in your own life, you will see exactly where your own episodes of unhappiness have brought suffering or distress or (at the very least) inconvenience to those around you. People tend to think that happiness is a stroke of luck, something that will maybe descend upon you like fine weather if you're fortunate enough. But that's not how happiness works. Happiness is the consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it. You have to participate relentlessly in the manifestations of your own blessings. And once you have achieved a state of happiness, you must never become lax about maintaining it, you must make a mighty effort to keep swimming upward into that happiness forever, to stay afloat on top of it. If you don't you will leak away your innate contentment. The search for contentment is, therefore, not merely a self-preserving and self-benefiting act, but also a generous gift to the world. Clearing out all your misery gets you out of the way. You cease being an obstacle, not only to yourself, but to anyone else. Only then are you free to serve and enjoy other people."

Elizabeth Gilbert  (Eat, Pray, Love)


Photo via The Steward

Ride on . . . .

Via Notes from The Universe

Photo via Google Images

What do people live for? . . . .

I came across this video over at The Lettered Cottage, and it made me cry.... happy tears.  You will love this video about ordinary people living extraordinary dreams.  Enjoy.

"I hope your dreams take you....to the corners of your smiles, to the highest of your hopes, to the windows of your opportunities, and to the most special places your heart has ever known."

-Unknown

Happy Friday!

Wishing you a weekend

 full of laughter!

Photo via Patterson Maker

It's all how you look at life . . . .

There are several versions of the definition of optimism, my favorite being, "a tendency to expect the best and see the best in all things; to be hopeful and confident that all will work out for the best." Please don't confuse this sort of optimism with Pollyanna(ism), which means to be unreasonably or illogically optimistic. As much as I live the life of an optimist, I am also a realist, so I choose to take on the attitude that recognizes life's challenges, but simply choose to believe that all WILL work out for the best. I believe this with all my heart. People who are optimistic don't deny that problems exist; they learn how to adapt while searching for solutions. I know, I know, there are days when nothing seems to go right! Some days it's very difficult to see the silver lining in the clouds, but it's important that you do, especially for your physical and mental well-being! The staff at Mayo Clinic talks about how optimism can improve your health, so you might want to check that out here. And this one, by Web MD, will give you tips on how to become more optimistic.

Robert Brault once said that "an optimist is someone who figures that taking a step backward after taking a step forward is not a disaster, it's a cha-cha."  (I got a visual on that one, and it made me smile.) 

Optimism is a choice. It's all about how you look at life. Each day we can choose whether to live like Eeyore, Winnie the Pooh's chronically gloomy friend, or to rise above it. We can choose to see the good in front of us, even when faced with bad situations. Hanging outside Eeyore's front door is a sign that reads "Eeyore's Gloomy Place: Rather Boggy and Sad." Choose to hang a better sign on your door!

"The average pencil is seven inches long 

with just a half-inch eraser,

in case you thought optimism was dead."

-Robert Brault

Photo via lovelylivtyler

I promise . . . .

To be so strong that nothing can disturb my 

peace of mind.

To talk health, happiness, and prosperity

to every person I meet.

To make all my friends feel that there is

something worthwhile in them.

To look at the sunny side of everything and make

my optimism come true.

To think only of the best, to work only for the best

and expect only the best.

To be just as enthusiastic about the success of

others as I am about my own.

To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the

greater achievements of the future.

To wear a cheerful expression at all times and 

give a smile to every living creature I meet.

To give so much time to improving myself that I 

have no time to criticize others.

To be too large for worry,

too noble for anger,

too strong for fear,

and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

To think well of myself and to proclaim 

this fact to the world,

not in loud word, but in great deeds.

To live in the faith that the whole world is on my side,

so long as I am true to the best that is in me.

-Christian D. Larson

Photo via Anthropologie

Photo via Sunday in Bed

Love what you do . . . .

Loving what you do isn't about having the perfect job, the best home, or the smartest kids. And it's not about having a life without problems. In fact, it's not about having it all. It's about doing. When you focus on what you do and not on what you have, you do it better, you have more fun, make a difference, touch more lives, and feel a sense of fulfillment that only doing can give you. The greatest irony, however, is that life becomes easier when you're having fun. This doesn't mean you have to learn to enjoy what you're doing. Things change, and so might what you decide to do from time to time. But it does mean that wherever you are today, you can start focusing on the doing and have fun making a difference in the lives that you touch.

-From the book Choose Them Wisely

"When our eyes see our hands doing the work of our hearts, the circle of Creation is completed inside us, the doors of our souls fly open and love steps forth to heal everything in sight."

-Michael Bridge


Happy Friday!
Have a lovely weekend!
Photo via .la douleur exquise.

Share your smile with someone today!

Photo via Google Images

Mid-week stress reliever . . . .

Relax & enjoy.

Song:

 "Please Don't Go" by Barcelona

Find something nice to say . . . .

Are you ready? Let's try this! Give five heartfelt, honest to goodness compliments today. It costs nothing but a little time, energy, and the desire to make your life and the lives of others better. Compliments are defined as gracious words, given freely, which create happiness for both the giver and the receiver. Who doesn't love a good compliment? It's amazing that such a small, simple skill like giving away compliments can change the way you view yourself and the world around you. 

Each time you give a compliment, you focus completely on the other person. Be sincere. Actively look for positive traits or attributes. It's not that hard! By doing this on a regular basis, i.e. 5 times a day, you begin to see how richly multifaceted people really are. People's positive traits jump out at you. Your thought processes shifts from looking for the worst in people to looking for the best. Being proactive spills over into your life. You see the possibilities, not the obstacles. Compliment giving is a jump-start for looking at the world in a positive, refreshing, stimulating, and creative way. 

Not sure what to say? Give these a try.

From the book:

Find Something Nice to Say 

by Kathy Chamberlin & Debby Hoffman


Photo by Sweet Monday Photography

Happy Monday!

Make it a great day!

Photo via Everyday Health

Happy Friday!

Have a lovely weekend!

Photo via Happy Things

Just try it . . . .

Are you constantly disappointed by others? Are your expectations so high that when they fail, you find yourself judging them? If you're slow to forgive and move on, you might need to disappear for a few days to reflect on the grace that's been extended to you. If you are finding that you can no longer extend grace to others, it's time for a break.


Learn to focus on the things you like and appreciate about your friends and family members instead of obsessing about the things that annoy or upset you, and you will be amazed at what your new focus reveals. 

Just try it.

Photo via The Steward

Graphic via Sunday in Bed

The power of words . . . .

All the pain of a human life is caused by words, as is all the joy. We create words to define our experience and those words bring attendant emotions that jerk us around like dogs on a leash. We get seduced by our own mantras (I'm a failure . . . I'm lonely . . . I'm a failure . . . I'm lonely . . . ) and we become monuments to them. We must stop choking ourselves with words, as to liberate ourselves from our own suffocating mantras. Make an attempt to clear these negative words from your mind. They have the power to sabotage your own happiness, and YOU have the power to change that. Replace these mantras with self-encouraging words (I believe in myself . . . I'm grateful for this day, and what I can do with it . . . I believe in myself . . . I'm grateful for this day, and what I can do with it . . . ).

When you have spoken the word, 
it reigns over you. 

When it is unspoken you reign over it.

-Arabian Proverb

Photo via Google Images

Today, we begin again . . . .

"Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn't arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I'm going to be happy in it."

-Groucho Marx

Make it a great day!

Top photo via Sunday in Bed

Bottom photo by Bug-a-Lug

No worries . . . .

Do not be anxious or frustrated if you don't know what it is you want. We learn to find what we want, and where we need to be, by experiencing what we DON'T want and what DOESN'T work. Continue to refuse to settle for those things that you know you don't want in your life, and the things that won't work for you, and you will steadily move toward where you are supposed to be.

Happy Friday!

Wishing you a lovely weekend!

Photo via tinywhitedaisies

A sweet animated video . . . .

....that reminds us of 

the important things in life.

A special Thank You to my friend Sharon, 

for sharing with me!

Repeat after me . . . .

"You need to learn how to select your thoughts just the same way you select what clothes you're gonna wear every day. This is a power you can cultivate. If you want to control things in your life so bad, work on the mind. That's the only thing you should be trying to control. Drop everything else but that. Because if you can't learn to master your thinking, you're in deep trouble forever."

Repeat after me........

I will not harbor unhealthy thoughts anymore.

"(My mind) is a peaceful harbor, the entryway to a fine and proud island, (which is my Self), that is only now beginning to cultivate tranquillity. If you can abide by these new laws, my dear thoughts, then you are welcome in my mind -- otherwise, I shall turn you all back toward the sea from whence you came."

From the book Eat, Pray, Love
Photo of Julia Roberts via Google Images

Pure Pleasures of white . . . .

Billowing drapes in a warm breeze.

Fresh snow on a sunny day.

Bubbles in a warm bath.

Tiny white lights .... used anywhere, anytime.

A man's dress shirt (worn like this).

The blank pages of a new journal.



Pearls.

The frothy top of a cappuccino.

When soft, white flannel sheets are this inviting.



Photo credits:
#1 One League Artists - Stylist-Helena Blok
#2 - #6 Google Images
#7 Photo by Jessica Sprenkle via flickr
#8 Google Images

Say thank you! . . . .

Photo via Smashing Magazine

Whatcha thinkin'? . . . .

Wishing you

happy thoughts this weekend!

Photo by Corrie Bond

Discover the perfection of life itself . . . .

You probably already know that the need for perfection and the desire for inner tranquility conflict with each other. Whenever we are attached to having something a certain way, better than it already is, we are, almost by definition, engaged in a losing battle. Insisting on perfection, rather than being content and grateful for what we have, means we are focused on what's wrong with something and our need to fix it. When we are zeroed in on what's wrong, it implies that we are dissatisfied and discontent. Whether it's related to ourselves -- a disorganized closet, a scratch on the car, an imperfect accomplishment, a few pounds we would like to lose -- or someone else's "imperfections" -- the way someone looks, behaves, or lives their life -- the very act of focusing on imperfection pulls us away from our goal of being kind and gentle. Catch yourself when you fall into the habit of insisting that things should be other than they are. Gently remind yourself that life is okay the way it is, right now. This strategy has nothing to do with ceasing to do your very best, but rather with being overly attached and focused on what's wrong with life. It's about realizing that while there's always a better way to do something, this doesn't mean that you can't enjoy and appreciate the way things already are.

As you begin to eliminate your need for perfection in all areas of your life, you'll begin to discover the perfection of life itself.

Photo via One League Artists (Stylist GUILDFORD GRACE)

Try to focus . . . .

Photo via  .la douleur exquise.