Rough Waters

Shores of Peru, South America

"You can't cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water."
- Rabindranath Tagore

Rough waters will keep many from getting too close.

The danger that lurks beneath the surface which is unknown.

Could that danger really exist or do you look beyond the swirling waters to see where the calm water lay?

The same can be said of troubles seen within our own life. You only look at the immediate issue and see the turbulent water of anguish. But it works to your advantage if you try to understand that beyond an immediate problem, a solution will surface.

That is where look for all possibility, looking beyond the usual, beyond your self-imposed limitations.

It is said, "as we sail thru life, don't avoid rough waters, sail on because calm waters won't make a skillful sailor." We learn from what we experience and to believe in oneself is one of the important skills you will strengthen. Trust in your ability to see it through, taking small steps, trying different methods, changing yourself and your condition.

You will pass through the rough waters with new opportunity to rebuild. And the next time you come upon distress, you will be better prepared to move through it. As many of you have come to realize, life is about adjustments. It is setting a goal and understanding that you do not control all that happens in life. So when you encounter an obstacle, you will have better foresight to see it coming.

You won't necessarily avoid it, but you will be better prepared for it.

Believe in yourself, believe in your goals and enjoy the waters of life. And of course, stay inspired my friends.

Cartwheels in Life

"I wish I said this because I often brag about doing a cartwheel, but no one believes me. The only way that they would believe me was by doing it, so I did! Now, I do things instead of bragging about them." - By Briana

As we go through life, there is a tendency to talk about what we plan to do. People ask us and we repeat the story over and over again about all of those thing which we will accomplish in life. The plans, the dreams and success we are going to achieve can fill our conversation with others.

What may not have occurred to you is that you are still just talking.

A point will come when people stop hearing what you are saying. They have heard your stories over and over but they never see proof of existence. The time has come to act upon the dream.

It is time to perform the cartwheel in your life.

Like a cartwheel, your life will get turned upside down. But also like the cartwheel your life will right itself once again. There will be a bit of disorientation along the way, but your head will clear. When you complete the movement, you will tell yourself "wow, I just completed a cartwheel."

There will be no need to tell others about the accomplishment. Others will see it in your eyes and in what it has done for your life. Stop talking and start performing cartwheels, the results will be great.

Stay inspired my friends!

Be a Star

Humming all the way to Reno
You've dusted the non believers
And challenged the law of chance
Now sweet, you were so sugar sweet
You may as well have had 'Kick Me' fastened on your sleeve

You know what you are, you're gonna be a star
You know what you are, you're gonna be a star

Wing is written on your feet
Your Achilles heel is a tendency to dream
But you've known that from the beginning
You didn't have to go so far, you didn't have to go
- R.E.M "All The Way To Reno"

There is a certain amount of sensibility which starts to consume our thought process as we age. With experience over time, each of us develop a sense of what can and can not happen in life. We set boundaries of possibility for ourselves. As we do so, we express those limitations to those we might deem naive dreamers.

The lyrics from the song above speaks to the innocence of youth in which "your Achilles heel" is the tendency to dream. As we grow older we understand not all dreams are realized exactly as we had planned. We lose our will to dream.

In youth, we do not have the supporting experience to turn a failed dream into change. In growing older, we lose the ability to dream of change. An odd twist if we let it happen. The idea is to take your life experience and combine it with the youthful ability to dream of possibility.

Without it, you never choose to step through an open door of possibility.

With it, you walk through the door and believe in new possibility.

A 52-year old woman walked through a door of change by earning a college degree after deciding upon change. She is an example, out of millions of people, who take that step towards new possibility.

It is the innocence of youth that pushes them. It is the wisdom of age which allows them to know it is the right thing to do.

So keep pushing forward, try new things, walk through new doors. Change can happen and in the end, "you're gonna be a star" of course.

Stay inspired my friends.

The Entire Donut

"What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what lies inside of you." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

In the hotels one stays at while traveling, most have a restaurant or breakfast area available for guests each morning. The usual fair of breads, waffles, juices, and coffee are available. Many of these places also have an assortment of donuts. These donuts are of the usual fare, round cakes, so with with sprinkles and others with frosting.

Normally when it comes to donuts, you can either get a standard donut or remains of the hole. Those remains are also known as donut holes. For some reason, you never seem to see both together in the same place. I always wondered why the two are never seen together on the same table. Then again, maybe I let my mind wander off too far sometimes!

When I have seen the two on a platter next to each other made me think about each of us and what is inside versus the outside. Just like the donut, there are many types of people. There are peanut covered ones or colorful sprinkles all over them. There are the plain cake donuts and cream filled ones. There are so many varieties to choose from and sometimes you just never know what you might get until you find out more.

It is the "something" which is inside each of us that truly defines who we are. It is said when you get squeezed with stress or conflict, what comes out is who we truly are. When people see you, the one with sprinkles or powdered sugar, the unknown part is going to be the donut hole.

The donut hole is the part others do not see, the hidden or missing part of a donut.

We keep the donut hole which is whom we are inside, hidden from others. You normally never get to see the two together, side-by-side. But once we reconcile the two and we become comfortable with whom we are, both are revealed together at last. Side-by-side on a platter for the world to see, you, a complete person.

Anyone for a coffee and donut?

Stay inspired my friends.