Finding Joy in Life’s Challenges

Life has its challenges. It’s how we handle those challenges that defines us. Check out this short movie with inspirational quotes on finding the joy in your challenges. Enjoy!

Using Creativity to Practice Good Self Care

What is your ONE THING? You know when you do it over and over because it puts a smile on your face, helps calm you down, connects you with your inner wisdom (or Spirit some might say), allows you to express yourself fully and without limitation, and is something you are so passionate about, you light up ever time you think about it, talk about it, and do it?

For me, that THING is songwriting. Sure, I have lots of other interests and things that give me the same (or similar) benefits. But songwriting is my first true love and one that’s always there for me, no matter what.

While it took me a really long time to be able to express WHAT songwriting does for me, I’ve certainly enjoyed the benefits for a really long time. I realize that songwriting has been my own form of self care since I was a teenager.

Songwriting helps tap into feelings and thoughts that hide and get trapped in some deep, dark places. I sometimes write and don’t know what a song is about right away. But then once it unfolds, I realize it expresses exactly what I needed to say. I’m also able to express myself in safer ways with songs because I can use metaphors and poetic phrases instead of being very direct. I love the power of words to be subtle and strong at the same time.

You may (or may not) consider yourself a songwriter, but I bet there’s that ONE THING, a creative way you have to get to those deep feelings and thoughts. Think about it. Here’s some possibilities:

• Poetry
• Writing
• Journaling
• Dancing
• Songwriting
• Singing
• Playing a musical instrument
• Painting
• Sculpting
• Drawing
• Scrapbooking
• Pottery
• Crafting
• Sewing
• Graphic design
• Photography
• Cooking
• Baking
• Fashion

I challenge you to identify what creative activities you do that allow you to take good care of yourself by allowing you to express yourself without inhibition. Feel free to share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.

Photo: Colores © by Enzo Ferrante

Loving What Is Even in the Face of Crisis

Crisis can bring people together into a sole purpose. It can blur the lines of unforgiveness and shift your perspective so dramatically that your “never” turns into “maybe” and your “always” becomes “not anymore.” It can be gut-wrenching, surreal, and unfair as hell. And it can be a wake-up call or a thing to endure and leave behind. At the least, it can challenge you in ways you never imagined.

I tend to get emotional with personal crisis, taking time out to feel my feelings, no matter how painful they may be. However, I have learned over the years (and yes, it does take practice) to bounce quickly and often from a position of pity and “poor me” to one of action and “where do I go from here?” Each moment offers this opportunity, even if we don’t recognize it.

While you may not be going through a personal crisis, you may find yourself at a crossroads, a choice point, a place of needing to decide between two paths. I suggest you first get quiet and sit with yourself, not in that “should I do this or that” place, but in a place of loving what is, which may be confusion, pain, or indecision. Not knowing is at least knowing that you don’t know, which is an important first step in many journeys.

Here’s some other ideas you might try:

1. When you feel a strong emotion (sadness or fear, for example), surrender to the emotion by breathing it completely in. Feel your body’s reaction to the emotion. Allow it to come. And know that it will pass.
2. When you start to feel fear creeping in, stop and say to yourself, “I love the part of me that is afraid to…(I doubt you will have difficulty filling in the blanks)” It’s easy to feel fear but accepting it can be another story. Try it and see what happens.
3. Look for the lesson (or lessons) you can learn from your situation. While whatever has happened may not seem fair or bearable, look at it from different angle to see what good can come of it.

We all go through times of tragedy in our lives. The more we can learn to accept that it will come, the more we will be able to move through it when it does.

Photo: Yin Yang – Symbol © by DonkeyHotey

Inspirational Quotes from Inspirational Women

I love quotes. Especially quotes from strong women. Enjoy this little movie sprinkled with inspirational quotes from inspirational women.

Ready to Say YES to YOU?

April showers may bring May flowers, but sometimes there’s a bit more to it than that. If you’ve ever had a struggle and overcome it, you know that growth doesn’t just happen without some growing pains. We might be able to practice some great self care rituals, get some good routines going, but then get side-tracked because of how our journey is affecting others. In other words, when you start to make some positive changes, people around you may not be as excited as you and start to do things that pull you back into old patterns and habits. Sound familiar?

If women are “programmed” to do anything, it’s to please others – don’t rock the boat, don’t make waves, and be a “good girl.” But what happens then is that you can get railroaded, treated like a door mat, and find yourself right back where you started, confused and even more frustrated than you were before you started making positive changes.

If you’re ready to start saying YES to yourself and move past always being the “good girl” (rather than the happy girl), please join me for May’s FREE Teleseminar…“Getting Over the Good Girl Syndrome: Learning to Say No”

In this teleseminar, I’ll cover:

• The Price You Pay for Being a “Good Girl” and Why “Good” Isn’t Always a Good Thing
• What Support Really Looks Like (and How to Tell if You Have it or Don’t)
• 3 Steps You Can Take to Say YES to Yourself and NO to that which Doesn’t Serve You

Don’t delay. Sign up today. The live call is coming soon. But don’t worry, if you can’t attend live, you can still sign up and get access to the recording. Simply go to the REGISTRATION page and enter your name and email to get signed up.

How to Celebrate Mother’s Day if You’re NOT a Mother (but Wish You Were)

As I was writing a recent article, “How to Celebrate Mother’s Day When You Don’t Have a Mother,” I felt compelled to also address Mother’s Day for those who aren’t mothers but want to be. I have several friends who have had (or attempted to have) children through alternative methods: surrogacy, IVF, adoption. And I have a friend who is currently in the midst of deciding if she will do whatever it takes to be a mother or give up her dream to become a mother.

Watching the struggles these friends have endured has been difficult. These are strong, confident, inspirational women. Many have suffered through the pain of miscarriage and felt utterly alone in their grief. As one pointed out to me several years ago, Hallmark doesn’t make cards for those grieving the loss of an unborn child.

What these women have had in common is the drive to become a mother. They just knew that was their ultimate calling. And it gets me thinking about what it means to be a mother, especially a mother without a child.

• Mothers are nurturing. They care for people around them, tend to their needs, provide compassion, empathy, kisses on boo-boos (real or imagined), words of encouragement.
• Mothers are teachers. They guide others to think for themselves, learn the tough lessons, and navigate unchartered territories. They can find lessons in every situation and realize that what they do is often much more important than what they say. They are role models.
• Mothers are supportive. They are the cheerleaders for those around them. They provide gentle nudges when needed but allow you to make your own mistakes and learn from them.

To all those mothers out there who don’t have children, I encourage you to see that you have all the qualities of a great mother and that everyone around you benefits. We see how you nurture us, teach us, and support us, and we are grateful. Thank you for being a light in our lives.

Slide © by kimubert