inspiration

Me Who, What, Huh?

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A Jolt can with the text "America's most ...

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I guess it happens in your early forties, but suddenly, you find yourself questioning everything around you – the universe, society, career, friendships … and how you have lived your entire life.  The only thing not being questioned is family – because you are stuck with it.  Somehow, nothing seems to make sense, or at least, have the same meaning it had.  It could be a dramatic experience for many, or an exciting period in your life.  You can analyze everything to exhaustion and become depressed, or you can just enjoy the sudden jolt of enlightenment that seems to break you in  halves.

Eventually, like everything, it will pass, and you will emerge once more.  Depending on what you made of the experience, you will emerge strong or vulnerable – but no matter what, it is still you.  I am convinced that midlife crisis happens for a reason – it is necessary to ground you once more,  just as the “terrible twos” or the “challenging teens.”  Will it happen around your sixties, eighties …?  Who knows.  Me Who, What, Huh?

Shakespeare a Day 14

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The Death of Desdemona, by Eugène Ferdinand Vi...

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“Had all his hairs been lives, my great revenge had stomach for them all.” – Othello, The Moor of Venice

This line is full of emotion, vengeance and anger – both strong and powerful emotions that can take over the best of our humanity.  It only takes a moment for those emotions to undo the best in us.  As humans, we experience a ray of feelings and emotions that can shape our behavior; the real power rests in how we deal with them.

My favorite authors are the ones that can tell a good story but also let me feel the emotions through the words in the page.

Shakespeare a Day 10

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Puck and the Fairies (from Midsummer Night’s D...

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“Lord, what fools these mortals be.” – A Midsummer Night’s Dream

One just ought to look around; but as fools as we might be, we are also capable of greatness, of beauty, of art, of soulful awe, of kind deeds, of self-less sacrifices, of loving deeds, of creativity.  And that is how we cannot deny our divine traces.

Shakespeare a Day 8

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“He hath a heart as sound as a bell and his tongue is the clapper; for what his heart thinks his tongue speaks.” – Much Ado About Nothing

Love it!  Our bells ring of love, hate, joy, sadness, passion, hurt, envy, anger, awe, spirit …  What ever melody we play inside, notes play on the outside.  Might as well become instruments for good, praise, and the highest Love.  In the end, the music we send out vibrates back to us.

Shakespeare a Day 7

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Malvolio and the Countess

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“But be not afraid of greatness; some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon ’em.”  (Twelfth Night, or What You Will)

This one is a very popular line and we have heard it a lot.  What I like about it is that it makes greatness accessible to all.  Despite our doubts and fears, we all have greatness in us – if we could only let it thru, let it shine.  We are works of art by a Creator of all things (my personal belief) and most times, we forget about that. 

We mesmerize while observing works of art at a Museum, while reading a poem, or a brilliant piece; however, we don’t do the same when we look in a mirror.  Why is that?  It puzzles me too.  Maybe it is because in failing to recognize this greatness we protect ourselves from being afraid of it, from letting it out – from stepping up to the plate and becoming great.

Shakespeare a Day 6

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Portia

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“The quality of mercy is not strain’d, it droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven, upon the place beneath: it is twice bless’d; it blesseth him that gives and him that takes.” (The Merchant of Venice)

Mercy – The definition of mercy according to the American Heritage Dictionary

  • Compassionate treatment of an offender, enemy, etc; clemency.
  • A disposition to be kind and forgiving.
  • A fortunate occurrence.

Are we merciful with ourselves or do we beat ourselves up with self-criticism about our lives and work?  Whether we are the ones who take or give, mercy knows no difference.  However, it is up to us to look inside and understand the part that takes and the part that gives, and upon that understanding we might be able then, to be more merciful to ourselves.  It is then, that Creativity  will flow.

White Blanket of Dreams

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The snow inspired me today, so I decided to write a few verses.

Frozen branches 

White blanket of dreams,

one by one falling.

Covering my Universe,

Hearts of many, minds of few.

Ice age in frozen time,

one by one dreams are falling

as snowflakes unique

white blanket of dreams.

If I ever wake up from dreamland that’s thawed,

flowers of ice would grow amongst us.

One by one dreams are falling,

Petals of ice, frozen desires.

Hope you enjoyed my attempt at poetry 🙂

What Makes You Dance?

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Eadweard Muybridge's phenakistoscope "A C...

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I have a sign that reads, “Sunshine makes the flowers dance.”  The sign is full of primary colors and has a busy bee attached to it. I have it located way above my visual line, on top of the frame of the door, in the room where I work.  It is at that height for a reason.   When my eyes get tired, I tend to look up and then to my right; the first thing I see is that sign, instinctively I read it.  It is a way to remind me to dance thru life, to enjoy the things that make me dance, and to push those buttons as often as I can.

When I push those buttons, I end up feeling refreshed, inspired, and renewed.  It makes me feel like dancing. 

Have you ever thought of the things that make you dance?

The Measure of Success

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Success sounds like a distant word for many, unattainable to others, as far as the stars, to most.  This is far from the truth.  Success is just a state of mind and appreciation.  It is what you think is happening in your life after you put effort and work into something. 

Maybe, when we think of success we think in terms of comparing ourselves to very successful people – millionaires, hollywood stars, best-selling authors, novel prize winners … and so on.  However, the true measure of success is very personal.  When we measure our success in terms of another person’s success, we are denying ourselves.  We are saying to ourselves that we don’t matter as much, that we must be like someone else to be happy, that our dreams can only be measured by the dreams of others – who have attained theirs.  We should see the success in others as fuel to propel our own, as mentors, as inspiration, not as a ruler or measure stick.

I have learned to celebrate my small successes and big ones all the same.  I have learned to appreciate every effort and its results, because learning to appreciate small and big success in our lives helps us attune ourselves to receive the fruits of our labor, the blessings, and all the great things to come.  When we learn to see and celebrate the good happenings in our lives, only growth can follow, and we are aligning ourselves for bigger and better things.

Slow Down to Synchronize

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Rose und Eis

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Maybe we have read about the importance of synchronicity in our lives, at some point.  There is much written on it, and many philosophies base some of their principles on it – the law of attraction …  However, sometimes we forget to realize that to be able to appreciate synchronicity in our lives, we must slow down the speed of our lives.  Simply put, when we are running through the path at high speeds, we fail to see the beautiful red rose hiding in the bushes, or the gorgeous butterfly atop the daisy.  We will miss the sweet aroma of the lavender field nearby … we can end up missing the best opportunities of our lives. 

I have been guilty of living at high speeds in the past, and I missed synchronicity at its best.  I had to crash, stop, look around, breathe, stand up, and start walking slow again; and I have to admit that I am happier now, and have been able to appreciate the blessings of learning to recognize synchronicity in my life.

I dare you to slow down and find those miracles working right now in your life.