Nothing Is All Good or All Bad . . . Includin Fear

Happy Friday!  It's been quite a while since I've done my V-log so I figured it was way past time that I posted one.  I recorded this little number some time ago, but after watching it, I can see that it fits.  I have been working to embrace everything that is in my life and that includes all of my feelings, attitudes, and viewpoints.  After all, the only way I can truly change is to accept what is and amend what I feel needs amending.  So the prevalent feeling has been fear.  As I shared in Wednesday's post, I have been working to let go of the fear that has so paralyzed me for much of my adult life.  However, when I examine what fear truly is, I had to recognize that all fear isn't bad.  In some instances, fear can just be a signal that you're on the right path.  The road of life is paved with all kinds of unknowns and in the face of the unknown, it's common for fear to arise.  That isn't necessarily a bad thing.  After all, it's not necessary to remove fear in order to act.  All that is necessary is that one possess courage.  And courage is simply acting,  even in the face of your fear. 

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall . . . What the Hell Am I Seeing?!

Happy, Happy Friday! I'm baaack!!  I have been unable to post any of my Happy Friday v-logs lately due to some kind of glitch with Blogger, but thankfully, it has been vanquished.  So here I'm is, back on display.  Now this is an older one I recorded a while ago so you can't see my new do or nothing on this one, but it's still me. 

Any ole way . . . this post has been a prevalent issue in my life lately.  It's all about acknowledgment.  Acknowledging who we are and all the good there is to us.  I know for many of us, we are taught how to not see ourselves clearly.  When we were young, we weren't taught to love ourselves, praise ourselves, celebrate ourselves.  We were taught it's selfish to do that.  But let us do something "wrong" and oh we were taught to make sure the world stopped so that everyone could know what we did.  And that just taught us to treat ourselves the same way.  But for me, it's been a constant struggle.  I have a huge tendency to see myself in the lack category.  I don't see all the accomplishments I have under my belt, all the good things about me.  I tend to see all that I am not, and could be (but not quite yet).  It's a terrible habit I'm working oh so hard to break, and every day, I encounter someone or some situation that brings my attention to it.  Most recently, I have found myself attracted to a man.  *Gasp!*  I know, it's been almost 4 years since one has been able to turn my eye and yet here it is.  And there are some things I want to do differently this time around.  (I'll post more about this in detail on Monday). But knowing that, I know that means I can't go forward doing the same thing.  I attracted men who didn't acknowledge all of my greatness because I wasn't acknowledging it.  And I don't want that anymore.  It doesn't serve me at all now.

But again, any ole' way, that's not entirely the point.  That was just one example.  This thing here is for me and all about me (as it should be).  There are other examples of how this issue has been showing up in my life, but that one just caught me most off guard.  So what about you?  Do you have problems acknowledging your good?  Do you see yourself for who you really are?  Or do you just acknowledge your shortcomings like so many others?  If so, I challenge you to take a good hard look at yourself in the mirror and start to see the good that I bet so many others already see.  Now go out and enjoy your weekend!

Happy Friday!

 

Well, well, well . . . here it is Friday the 13th and I guess I'm falling prey to the bad luck thing it's supposed to bring.  Seems there are some technical difficulties with my video uploading capabilities.  Therefore, I have been unable to seduce inspire you with my Happy Friday video posts. Boo hoo . . . but don't cry for me Argentina, or wherever you are.  It's still a beautiful day in Zamunda and Mr. Rogers' neighborhood.  But now that leaves me in that place of awkwardness.  See what had happened was . . . I don't have anything to say!

See I'm the type of person who doesn't necessarily talk a lot.  It looks like I do because when I do talk, I can go.  But if I don't have anything to say, I don't say it.  So today is one of those days.  I'm feeling really good today. I'm in Virginia for a Sarcoidosis walk.  I just got back to my hotel room after appearing on the local news station to alert the community about the event and give some information about Sarcoidosis.  So now I have a free afternoon to myself.  I miss my kid, I miss my own bed (this bed here SUCKS!), but the room is clean, it's in a beautiful area (Virginia Beach), I'm young, I'm slick, I'm cool, and all the ladies love my activator (Shout out to In Living Color's Frenchie).  Anyway, I'm going to get out into this lovely world and have myself a good time.  I hope you do the same. Hopefully, the glitch will be fixed and I can upload something next week.  If not, I'll drop some pearlies on Monday.  Go out and love somebody today!

You Have to Stand Anyway, So You May as Well Stand in Your Own Power

Happy Friday!  So today's groovy video was inspired by my own life.  You see, what had happened was that I was in this sich-ee-a-shun that had had me feeling all swirly in my innards and what not.  OK, seriously, my poke at bad grammar aside, I found myself in a situation where I really had to get up and stand in my own power.  I don't do that very well.  And it's funny because a few weeks ago, I went to one of my favorite metaphysical shops and was pushed toward a really great Runes reader and one of the first things he told me was "You don't do well at standing in your own power.  But that's ok because things are getting ready to start happening that will cause you to start doing just that."  Well I'll be John Brown cause homeboy was right!  And what I've learned is that it doesn't have to be any major event that makes you want to stand in your own power.  Sometimes it's the little things we have a hard time standing up to say.  And I've also learned that it doesn't take a huge display of a dramatic production to stand in your own power.  Sometimes, it's as simple as saying "No."  And I've also learned that it's not about fighting anyone.  When you stand in your own power, you're really just taking a stand for yourself.  It's not about fighting anyone because it's all about you anyway.  The whole point to standing in your own power is to be true to yourself.

So as I explain in the video, my ex is getting married in Mexico next week (a fact he didn't tell me until the beginning of this month but hey who am I?) and he wants our daughter to be there.  Nothing wrong with that, except for the fact that he wants her in attendance and her passport expired.  So that meant she needed a new one, and ASAP.  So an appointment had to be made at the Chicago Passport Agency to get an expedited passport.  Well, he basically left it all up to me to get' er done (shout out to Larry the Cable Guy).  I did the right thing by my kid and took her, but to show you how the Universe works, I couldn't even get it because he didn't give me the proof of her travel or a copy of his ID (since he wasn't in attendance for the appointment).  And so he ended up having to take both our child and his soon to be wife's daughter this morning. (Don't even ask me how they knew they were getting married in Mexico and wanted the kids there, yet didn't make sure they had passports until now).  So er, an-t-way, I was feeling some kind of way because I am a people pleaser.  I have a strong tendency to care about others and put them before myself.  Since I'm growing, it has become more uncomfortable for me to do that and it's causing me to speak up for myself.  On the one hand, it feels really good, but on the other hand, it's uncomfortable because I have to work the nerve up to speak.  I know with practice it'll get easier.  And the same is true for you.  If you struggle with that area, as I, then just know that you can.  I saw Iyanla Vanzant last year and she said "You have a right, a reason, and a responsibility to speak out against anything that goes against what you know in your heart to be true."  This is now my mantra and it's helping me in my fight against no one but myself.

I Love You, But Damn You Make Me Sick!

Happy Happy Friday!  I've been in a little bit of a funk this week.  I've had insomnia for 3 weeks and I think the fact that Sunday is Father's Day has been weighing on me.  When I have managed to get some sleep, I've had some of the most disturbing dreams I've ever had.  All of that funk-i-ness I've been feeling has had me being quite snippy--with others and myself.  I've been especially snippy with my baby girl.  And I don't mean to be, it's just my tiredness and sadness has me unable to give the compassion and patience that I am usually able to give to her.  So it got me to thinking about how we feel about the people we love.  If you know me (and now if you don't), you know that my daughter is the love of my life.  But she can pinch that very last nerve of mine like nobody else!  The only person who surpassed her ability was my father.  And that doesn't mean I don't love her, or that I didn't love him.  I actually like that she does.  It lets me know I'm not a robot and I'm not some emotionally crippled human being who doesn't know how to express the full spectrum of my feelings.  I love the scene in "Grown Ups" where Joyce Van Patten, who plays Gloria, says something to the effect of "There's a lot of hostility that comes with love".  And she is so right.  I  mean we even treat ourselves--the ones we should love the most--hostile.  So why would we expect that we wouldn't do the same to the others we love?  The love is still there, but all great love brings up some of the other stuff and that's good.  It means we're growing.  Whenever there is growth, all that other garbage tends to come up for us so we can toss it.  I like that I get the chance to do some soul cleaning. Hope you do too. Have a fantastic weekend!

Love Don't Love Nobody . . . Or Does It?

Happy, Happy Friday to you! And Happy 1st Day of June!  Not sure if that really means anything, but for a lot of us it's a sign that summer is right around the corner so that seems like cause for celebration.  An-t-way . . .  I don't know where you are, but here in the Windy City known as Chicago, it's kind of cool and dreary.  It's been raining for the past 2 days and for this little ole insomniac right here, this is nothing but the perfect sleeping weather.  Yet for some strange reason, sleep keeps eluding me.  Yawn.  Oh well, what's a girl to do?  Once upon a time, when I would find myself suffering from insomnia, I would be pretty damn depressed and cranky.  Now because I consider y'all family, I'll admit to you that I am just a wee bit cranky, but gratefully, I'm not depressed.  Oddly enough, instead of feeling depressed, I feel especially grateful.  I'm even more aware of all the good things that I have going in my life.  And for me, one of the--if not the greatest--things I have in my life is Love.  I was once a girl who focused so much on the Love I felt I wasn't getting, that it caused me to miss out on the Love that was already there.  I have since matured and learned that you can't get what you are not giving.  I wasn't even Loving myself, so how in the heck could I expect anyone else to Love me?  Glad you asked, makes it easy for me to give you the answer without seeming presumptuous.  Well the simple truth is that I couldn't.  So I was just this sad, lonely, depressing little thing attracting no good ninjas into my hemisphere, allowing them to hurt me (and repeatedly at that); then lamenting over my sorrows; talking about how I hated Love cause Love hated me.  And guess what?  Love didn't hate me!  Never did, never will.  It was I who hated myself.  So I just kept inviting other folks into my space to treat me the way I thought I deserved to be treated.  And guess what?  It wasn't them either!  It was all me!  How do you like them apples?  (I prefer mine stewed, but that's another topic).  Now that I get that School House Rock lesson, all those ninjas who didn't mean me any good have dissipated and a greater batch of Love warriors have entered my plane.  And like Tony, Toni, Tone sang some years ago, it feels good!

So that's my share for the day.  And it ties into what today's video is about.  Love is surrounding you every moment of every day of your life.  If you get hurt by someone, please understand that it wasn't Love who did it to you, it was just another soul wandering this human plane trying to figure things out just as you.  Just loose that person and go on with the business of loving yourself so you can receive the Love you know you want.  So what say you?  Do you have a love or hate relationship with Love? Have you been badly hurt and now you're like poor little Bobby from the Wedding Singer wrecking other folks receptions singing "Love Stinks"?  Tell me all about it, cause you know, sharing is caring.

Happy Friday! The Universe is Always Giving You What You Want

So Happy Friday!  Have you been waiting for today?  Are you living just enough for the city?  And if you are, my condolences.  I think it's high time that we stop living with the "I'll be happy when . . . " mentality.  And one of the most common themes of that mindset is the Thank God it's Friday mindset.  This is where you go through the motions Monday through Thursday, then get miraculously happy on Friday because it's what?  The weekend!  Now I can totally understand working hard/grinding and then getting happy when you get a break, but this is something else.  I'm talking about living under the mindset that you can't be happy on a regular basis and that your weekend is your only fun time.  You can have fun every day if that's what you really want.  You just have to really want it bad enough.  T.I. told us all and we sang along, "You can have whatever you like." The problem is that we don't really believe that.  We think that we can only have what we like sometimes, or if we work hard enough, or if we suffer enough, or if we wait long enough for it.  But what we don't realize is that when we think like that, all we're telling the Universe is that we don't want whatever it is we're saying we do want.  The Universe is more than happy to serve us up whatever we want because like Burger King, we can have it our way.  We've just got to stop focusing on all the inconsequential things that keep us from getting what we truly want.  So what do you want?  Do you want to keep living for the weekends?  Do you want everyday to feel like your Friday?  What is it that's keeping you from having it your way and what do you want to do about it? 

Are You Leading With Love?

So yay for me for being consistent and posting another Happy Friday v-log!  I am really committed to doing what I tell myself I'll do.  All things beyond my control aside, I want to live honorably and one component to honorable living is honoring not just your words, but your dreams and goals as well.  While I believe this v-log speaks for itself, it is really just a dream of mine that there is peace in the world.  No I'm not getting ready for a pageant, and yes I know it sounds so cliché; but it's (as the muses from Disney's Hercules would say) is the Gospel Truth!  It really is a hope of mine that peace expands to a global level.  But the only way for that to happen is if we all individually start loving--first ourselves and then one another.  Love is the main ingredient for peace.  And I just don't see us loving ourselves.  We love ideas, things, concepts, and stereotypes, but we're not loving ourselves.  And as RuPaul always says, "If you can't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else? Can I get an Amen?!"  So I hope you enjoy.  I hope you're loving and being loved, and if not, I hope you're at least inspired to begin.

Much Love!

To Tell the Truth

Happy Friday!  I have been soooo lax in my blogging and vlogging lately.  I threw my back out two weeks ago . . . and notice I said I threw my back out not that I had my back blown out--HUGE difference! And while I'd love to tell you I was doing something extra fun when it happened, I cannot tell a lie--especially since that's the subject for today.  I've just been experiencing some back problems as of late.  And even though my back hasn't been faring well,  I have been feeling really good as of lately, and I want that good feeling to travel to everyone I touch.  I can honestly say that I am living honorably and joyfully.  I know I am loved, protected, Divine, and on my way to receiving all the abundance that I deserve just because I am God's special child.  But to be honest, I've noticed that there are a lot of people who don't feel like me.  And truth be told, you probably notice them too.  Now it would be really easy to write them off, and let's be real, some of 'em you just are going to have to, but I figure why not spread my sunshine just a bit before I do. I think one of the biggest ways to inhibit yourself from feeling good and living abundantly is to not live honorably.  And one of the greatest way to live dishonorably is by not honoring and telling the truth.  I really think it's an epidemic these days.  We just don't like the truth in any kind of way.  So I just thought I'd share my two cents on the what I think about it.  Hopefully I said something that made you think, smile, laugh, and wanna pass it on.  If not, well then I love ya anyway!  *Muah*

"You can lie to others, but to lie to yourself is one of the worst things you can do."

~My Daddy!