A Little More Cheer

On with the dance! let joy be unconfined;
No sleep till morn, when Youth and Pleasure meet
To chase the glowing hours with flying feet.~George Gordon Byron, Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage

This particular day in this particular year, it is the Friday before Christmas week. Many folks will be taking the week off, travelling to family and generally winding down.

This time of year also marks the celebrations, the parties, the food and the wine. We overindulge a bit too much on the food, the spirits and spending as well. I would ask that you be careful in your overindulgence. Be careful of the drink and the drive afterwards. Watch the food and your weight by exercising moderation.

I say all of this because I want to see each of you in the new year. I want to be able to walk our paths together. I want us to grow old together.

This time of year is also a time when we love a little more. It is a time when we are a little more forgiving. It is a time when we are a little more giving. It is a festive time, a joyous time and one that marks our memories with happiness. Life seems to be just a little easier.

So enjoy this time of year and remember how it makes you feel; remember how it makes others feel. Then try to stretch that feeling out into the new year just a little bit further.

Your walk will be lighter, the wind will always seem to be at your back and the sun will warm your face. Have a great Christmas and Holiday season everyone.

Life Not Of Confusion

"I simply can't build my hopes on a foundation of confusion, misery and death... I think... peace and tranquillity will return again." ~Anne Frank

If you have never read The Diary of Anne Frank, then you must foresake reading my book (Live the Journey) and get that one. It is a book that although bittersweet in how it ends, the book is more full of hope and inspiration then anything I could write.

Under the cruelest of conditions that existed and happened to the Jewish peoples in Germany during the reign of Adolph Hitler, hope survives in a young girl. Regardless of the situation, Anne Frank kept the light of life inside.

After they were found and eventually sent to Auschwitz, a woman who was with Anne at that time said, "On arrival at the camp, everyone's head was shaved; yet a woman who was with Anne at that time said of Anne; "You could see that her beauty was wholly in her eyes. . . . Her gaiety had vanished, but she was still lively and sweet, and with her charm she sometimes secured things that the rest of us had long since given up hoping for."

All of us go through varying levels of despair, confusion, and just bad times. The situation can seem unbearable to us such that we don't feel like continuing.

But know that even within the situation you find yourself, you can keep the light of hope and happiness alive. Whether you be old, middle-aged or a 14-year old Anne Frank, the beauty of life comes from within.

Don't live a life of confusion and negativity. Live a life of hope and happiness. Keep the fire burning inside. And when you do, the light will be seen in your eyes. Your life will shine the path to something greater.

An Imperfect Path

"March on. Do not tarry. To go forward is to move toward perfection. March on, and fear not the thorns, or the sharp stones on life's path." ~Khalil Gibran

It's a pretty straight forward path that we all wish we could walk down. Life without any issues. A smooth, well laid course of bricks to walk upon is the one we wish for. Yet we all know that the path we take will not be quite so easy. The journey itself can be rough.

The path will be built of many different rocks and pebbles. It will be built with the stones of experience and circumstance that come our way. Not all of the pieces will fit perfectly together. The many shapes and sizes will frustrate our ability to continue the walk.

Our path will never look perfect when we turn to look back. Yet looking back is only to see where we have come from. To see the hard work we have done building our path of rocks. And it will look beautiful in our eyes.

As we turn then to look towards our future, we know the work will be hard. We know that the path will not be perfect. But we do know that the path will be unique. It will be wonderful. The path will be ours.

Help

"When you're drowning, you don't say 'I would be incredibly pleased if someone would have the foresight to notice me drowning and come and help me,' you just scream." ~John Lennon

I came across the above quote from John Lennon, part of the famed rock group The Beatles and found it an interesting view on life. Screaming through the pain tends to overwhelm our ability to ask for help.

I remember my own experience years ago. The pain of need is your sole focus. It can become so powerful that you forget to eat, sleep. In general it is the sole thing in your life that even blocks out your ability to ask for help.

My life was heading in a downward spiral and couldn't even see it happening. But other people did. Other people entered into my life and gave me focus to see that I did need help. I'm not ashamed to say that I read as much as I could and also sought professional advice.

The advice I sought was online as well as a few books. The advice I sought came from family, friends and professionals. The important thing that I wish to impart on you is to ask for the help. It isn't a sign of weakness, it is a sign of strength. Knowing your weaknesses will only give you new life to overcome anything.

The Beatles sang, "But now these days are gone, I'm not so self assured,
Now I find I've changed my mind and opened up the doors." You can open up more doors in your life by asking for the help you need when you need it.

Help is out there waiting for all of us. Ask for it when you can, others will step in when you can't.