Title from music featured below—”Rocketeer.”
Courtesy of Yediburnular Lighthouse Hotel- Turkey–Yediburunlar means “seven noses,” the Turkish description of the seven bays that make up the Turquoise Coast at the Mediterranean’s eastern end.
It will be eight days to my birthday, what a year it’s been, wow! Talk about journeying through life, unexpected happenings, disappointments, unexpected surprises, trials, endings and yes new beginnings, triumphs as well as, healing. One chapter of my life is coming to and end and another chapter will begin. That’s what life is all about. Learning to live with the unexpected and just taking things one day at a time, and having the courage to live through the difficult moments. I am looking forward to life new beginnings, whatever God has in store for me.
Living Without Fear
Many of us have forgotten when we were young we felt fearless, and uninhibited, we weren’t afraid to explore and try new things and learn new things. If we fell down when we were kids, most of us would get up, brush ourselves off and continue playing. As we got older we develop a deep sense of fear. As adults when we fail at anything we sometimes tell ourselves we will never try again, why bother we say, what’s the point, the situation seems helpless. This is the time when we should re-evaluate our situation and find a solution to our problems, instead of giving up on our dreams. Fear comes from many things, from moving to a new place, starting a new job,ending a relationship, starting a new relationship, taking a flight on an airplane, to as simple as trying a new dish. Often times we make excuses, because we fear the outcome to a given situation. Fear immobilizes us into a situation where we can’t or won’t make a decision—It is also important to know that no decision is also a decision. We become rigid as we get older. We are afraid to let others see the real us, and we worry if we make mistakes as well as, we worry about what others say behind our backs when we are not looking. This we develop from self-criticism and criticism from others, sometimes our parents, friends or associates, say things to us that belittles us and over time we internalized and judge ourselves harshly. Before you know it we develop low self-esteem and we don’t look at ourselves in a positive way.
Looking back on my life over the past several years, I can understand my aunts concern for my sudden change in direction with my life when I decided to get married at a young age. I knew at the time though I was making the right decision for me. If I had lived in fear my life story would have been different, my journey would have been different and my life experiences would have been different, the people that I met would have been different. The things that happen to me, happened exactly as planned by God all custom designed for me, and each journey in life takes me to another journey—another new experience. Think of life like different avenues, and streets. Each one offering a whole new experience in life, but we can only go down one road at a time. On that road many things will happen, you will have setbacks and delays, you will meet some nice people and some not so nice people, there will be joyful experiences and some sorrowful ones. There will be times on your road where you will feel like giving up, and turning back because things are so difficult and unbearable, but you know you must press on anyway. Learn from all of it, and try not to live with too many regrets.
The World is your Oyster
As adults, we need to get back to exploring our inner child that part of us that have that carefree, joyful side to our personalities no matter what our age. Think about all the things you like doing when you were younger. “Did you like visiting the nearby Pond or Lake on a Sunday afternoon?” Did you like going fishing with your dad on a rainy afternoon?” Were you happiest when you created a work of art?” Try to remember what you enjoyed doing and start exploring some of those things. Others around you will think it’s childish but it’s not. It’s a way for you to connect with your inner child that spirited part of ourselves that is not lost in time but is just merely in temporary rest, just waiting for you awaken it once again.
Exploring your Creative Gifts
Try to find the time if it’s even for a few minutes to start something new, try or do something you have never done before. Maybe you always wanted to be a part-time chef, try exploring that today. Maybe you wanted to be a photographer, fashion designer, candy maker, jeweler or you always wanted to write a best selling novel, but never had the time, start exploring that today, don’t wait until you retire. I always hear people say this quite often, “Oh, I wanted to be a florist, or a graphic designer, or a cake decorator but I will just wait until I retire.” Why, wait for tomorrow, it may never come. Start today, just baby steps, when you have a few minutes each day, you will be amazed at how much you can accomplish in a short amount of time. Before you know it you will be on your way to fulfilling a life long dream.
Try not to develop a rigid mindset by doing the same thing over and over again. Think outside the box and start doing things you have never done before, be creative in the pursuit of your dreams. I am one of those people that like to think outside the box, I like pushing myself creatively, and coming up with ideas especially when it comes to my Gourmet Cookie Company that no one never really thought about or if they did they didn’t explore it or act upon it. You can do the same by observation really, and watching trends in the marketplace. Observe how others conduct themselves in reference to what you would like to do. For example, if you always wanted to be florist, then visit your local neighbourhood shops and observe how the florist design their bouquet of flowers, ask questions and come up with your own creative ideas. Start your creative journey today don’t wait for tomorrow.
Jamaican Inspiration
Artist Judy Ann MacMillan captures the island on canvas. Here’s a sampling of her work. Featured on “Coastal Living Online Magazine” http://www.coastalliving.com/lifestyle/people/jamaican-inspiration-00400000000476/
Canvas Painting—Montego Bay Yacht Club
An avid painter since the age of 4, artist (and new member of the Caribbean Hall of Fame) Judy Ann MacMillan is an expert at capturing every aspect of coastal culture, from the free-spirited people of Kingston to the relaxing blue-green waves of the Caribbean Sea. Judy was born, in Kingston, Jamaica. Judy Ann’s fascination with Jamaica reflects her emotional connection to the island. She finds childhood memories in the faces of the people and in the natural beauty of the place. "Painting has become the way I express and live my life," she says. “I never know whether painting filled my life because it was empty, or if I emptied my life in order for painting to fill it.” {I love what she said here, very profound, something to reflect on.}
I love music, one can tell from my blog. If you love music explore your love of music by teaching music or dance in your spare time, if you have a background in music then that’s a plus for you. Just do what you love and the rest will follow. Embrace life everyday with open arms. I am happy to be alive today and to have my two wonderful children even though my marriage has ended, and I am currently going through dealing with the issues that comes with a separation, I am ready to embrace that new chapter of my life that I know God is leading me into, and one he has been preparing me for, for a long time now.
Negative life experiences are teaching tools-Learn from them
Live life with abandon, and when negative, and unpleasant things happen to you in life, your marriage coming to an end, you have been rejected by someone, the lost of a love one, or just negative things happening in your life know for sure that God will make everything right in your life. In my last blog article, I spoke about rejection because I do know a little about it, and this week I continue to talk about it, because there are so many reasons why a person will reject you, and I just wanted to pass along some of the reasons why they would, but don’t spend the rest of your life thinking about why they did it, just let it go, it happened, they did it, and it was their decision, not yours, they have to live with their choice. If you got rejected by someone they were either (a)not ready to be in a relationship,(b) They are already in a serious relationship,(c) there was something they didn’t like about you or like the saying goes “He’s just not that into you.”—It’s just plain fact. Another reason is sometimes people who rejects you wants you to beg for their affection or love, which translates to—I don’t respect you. It’s a form of manipulation really. The first main criteria in a relationship is respect. If you can’t respect the person then it sends a clear message to the other person that says, “I don’t care for you, and your not important to me.” Plus it’s not what they say to you when they turn you down it’s how they say it. I think it’s okay to turn someone down gently if your not interested in them, all you need to do is be gracious for someone’s attention because it’s good when someone likes you, but be polite. But if the person dishes it out to you like your a beggar off the street and how dare you to ever think that you could like them and they do it angrily and hang up on you on the phone and very mean spirited, then you didn’t mean anything to them, nothing at all, they just didn’t respect you, especially when they do it with an angry outburst, just keep your dignity intact and move on and don’t call the person back—I wouldn’t, because no woman deserves that kind of treatment. Like Fantasia Barrino Song says, “Let them go ahead and free themselves.” No worries, that’s their decision you respect their decision, and life goes on, it’s all cool. Know that someone else will respect you, and not treat you that way. Sometimes when someone rejects you, they think your not worthy of their affection,—you know what I mean…like someone who might have a big ego, they might believe, “how dare that person think I could ever want someone like them, their not good enough for me.” If they want me then they should beg for my love. I’m just saying, sometimes people think that way and some people have a really big ego.
Actually about a week ago I was watching a show, I believe it was “Entertainment Tonight” and a guy was saying that he lost many good relationships because he was afraid the women would hurt him so that’s another reason too, so instead he would reject them and push them away. Okay, now I remember who it was, gosh! now that I am typing—It was one of the guys from the “The Bachelor show.” He told the reporter he went for therapy because he had so many failed relationships and apparently he was on the “The Bachelor Show” before and they are going to bring him back with the intention of finding him a new partner. As a note, personally speaking, I don’t like the Bachelor show, all these men and women kissing and the men kissing 20+ women, all the women kissing this one guy and sometimes they sleep with the guy, and what? They pass through 6+ partners or more within months I assume, so how many partners do they have by the end of the year? I think people forget these three little letters, “HIV” that’s crazy, I don’t like that. Kissing on these shows to these women is just like flossing their teeth everyday, “it means nothing to them.” Kissing is a intimate connection between two people who really care about each other.” Kissing is the first step towards intimacy, In other words, don’t kiss for the sake of kissing, unless it’s heartfelt and meaningful. Okay, I could say more, but that was just my two cents. Oh, my, gosh!
They don’t even know where their mouths been, I don’t know—I guess it’s just me, and no it’s not because I am boring, or I am not quote an quote, “Modern Enough,” far from it, I just think women should value themselves more, and men too. Yes, I do have old fashion values but it works for me, that’s all. Many people have lost the true meaning of romance. In the Caribbean when I was in my teens I had my first boyfriend at 18 yrs old. and even then, my Grandmother would still be strict with me, she and I had a few arguments about this and I would sometimes cry for hours, oh, my, gosh! But I now know she was just trying to protect me, because she loved and cared about me so much. Every time I talk or write about her tears come to my eyes, gosh, I miss her. I had to be back by 9 pm at night or else I don’t go anywhere for months. In the Caribbean it’s different, even if your a grown man you still have to tell your parents where your going, if you don’t come back as a grown man when they tell you to, they lock you out of the house, my cousin Winston spent a few nights on my Grandparents porch oh, my, gosh! My aunts couldn’t bring a guy home until they were 25 yrs.old+, yeah, they could date before that but, but bringing the guy home was another story, it had to be a really serious relationship first. My Grandfather was a very strict man, disobey him and your in trouble, but he was a kind man, very kind man. I remember, we had in Jamaica a small two bedroom house next to our main house and he let a family live there rent free, because they didn’t have the money to pay him, but don’t disobey him, don’t disobey him, or else, oh, my, gosh!
Anyway, as I was saying I guess there are many people out there like that, which goes back to my point, “Don’t live your life in fear. How many times have I written on my blog about living in fear? Many times, It was fear that cost him those great relationships, fear of getting hurt, fear of the unknown and major trust issue, he doesn’t have any trust in any of these women, he thinks all the women are going to lie to him, cheat on him, hurt him etc, maybe because it happened to him before, but he’s hurting his chances at happiness. I don’t even know if therapy will help him, only time will tell. “Why would a woman go into a relationship with the intention to hurt the man?” I don’t see why they would do that, I’m not saying that some women don’t do that but that’s probably rare . Personally speaking, having been married for seventeen years, now separated, when I enter a new relationship in the future, I would be fully committed because I take relationships seriously and I think most women would agree that they do too. We all are going to get hurt in life, throughout life you will never be able to escape that, it’s how you handle yourself after you get hurt, that’s what matters. I have a daughter, and as much as I would like to save her from getting her heart broken it will happen, but I hope I will be there to help her through it, that’s all we can do as moms, we can’t stop the pain but we can help alleviate some of it.
Sometimes we tell ourselves—actually let me rephrase that by saying sometimes our “Subconscious tells us we don’t deserve to be happy.” So, every time this guy falls in love, he tells himself, oh, she’s going to break my heart, which she won’t in most cases and then he just sabotages his own happiness and do crazy things like breaking off the relationship or in his own words, he rejects them. Fear can render a man prisoner for years—please try to live your life without fear, otherwise you will never live an authentic life. Personally, I would never in a million years, tell myself that I will never find love again, never. Why? Because I trust God, that’s it—that’s all it takes for me he will bring me someone when he’s ready, that’s all it takes, I have passed my life over to God and he will handle it for me. Trusting in God all the time and not living in fear—that’s the key for me. No one including myself will ever beg someone to love me, because I love and respect myself. You will feel hurt, when someone rejects you, where you might start to question your own worth, your own value as a person. If your not a woman who doesn’t have confidence in yourself a rejection could wipe you out emotionally and physically. That’s why it’s important to have confidence in yourself as a woman and been emotionally strong.
I would suggest that if your a woman and you find yourself in that situation, don’t beg or force anyone to love you, don’t do it, and pass on the message to your daughters if you have a daughter like myself, have confidence in yourself and know that someone who really loves and wants to be in a relationship with you won’t want you to beg for their love. Do you know why? Because they will respect you, and basically sweep you off your feet, so to speak, it’s that simple–and in turn they will let you know that they love you and you will know if they are sincere. If your married or in some form of relationship and your spouse or partner rejects you or doesn’t want to be in a relationship anymore—then you have to move on with your life, and let them move on with their life as well.
So, enjoy Robin Thicke’s song “Lost without You.” I love this song. If your a woman, we women know we can’t all have someone in our lives who serenade to us, oh, my gosh! This song though, shows the sweetness and the affection that comes from true authentic love, the video tries to show respect between both partners and a kind of carefree love, that most people desire but not everyone will have it—but true authentic love– it’s out there for you if you maintain a positive outlook in life. All women can enjoy this song whether you are in a relationship or not. If your not in a relationship then it reminds you that there is still real love out there for you, real true romance still exist.
Dreams are illustrations……..from the book your soul is writing about you—Marsha Norman
Stormie Omartian Prayer of the Day
www.stormieomartian.com
When You Need Peace and Contentment
Dear Lord, I need to have a deeper sense of Your peace in me today. Take away all fear, doubt, and concern from my heart and replace it with the peace that only You can give. Thank You that Your peace will guard my mind so that I won’t give place to thoughts that are not beneficial to me. Thank You that Your peace will guard my heart from unproductive emotions and feelings that only serve to shatter my life. Thank You that the depth of Your peace is greater than I can imagine, and when I live in it, it makes me whole.
The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:7
This Week I am Featuring two(2) of my favourite Male
Artists. Enjoy!
Featured Musician This Week Ryan Tedder
See more about Ryan here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_Tedder
31-year-old Ryan Teddar singer/songwriter has been married since 2004 to Genevieve as seen in photo. {I think Ryan and Robin Thicke have a similar singing voice hear for yourself}.
*I Love, Love, Love this Song, I can’t stop playing it, beautiful! Go ahead and turn this song up and sing, yeah! It’s the kind of song you want to play over and over again. This video doesn’t have a cover, but go ahead and click on it, it should still play— These guys sing the song “Like a G6” as well. Enjoy!
Watch Video on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcmKbTR–iA
Featured Musician Robin Thicke:
Robin Thicke seen here with wife Paula Patton. You can visit Paula’s site here: http://www.paula-patton.net/
Paula Patton and Robin Thicke welcomed their first child, Julian Fuego, into the world. Paula became pregnant in Fall 2009. Thicke, 32, and Patton, 34, are high school sweethearts who will be celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary in June.
*** Featured in this Video is Robin’s wife Paula, lucky girl she gets serenaded by her husband and also gets to act in the video—Love this song. If your in a relationship then pretend that’s your partner singing to you and if your not in a relationship like myself–picture a future partner wherever they may be singing to you—it’s all about positive thinking, oh, my, gosh Enjoy!
Watch Video on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DdCoNbbRvQ
Watch Video on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXvmSaE0JXA
