Personal Meditation no. 219

“Can you smell the Friday!”

Embrace the Within.

My final Friday of the 2021-2022 school year. And what a mess the past fourteen days have been for all of us and most importantly for the youngest of us. These kids are hurting and looking for a way. And there are plenty of bad examples, unhealthy temptations, and evil intentions around to turn their heads in the wrong direction. And we’ve got to work on being the better examples if we want any chance of shining light on the darkness.

A lot of grown folks are struggling with darkness too over the past fourteen days. I started those fourteen days in a bad space. I was in a mindset of fear. Over the past fourteen days, I struggled, I wrestled, I fought, I failed, I returned, I continued, and I built until I came out a different person. If you knew me fourteen days ago, then you really don’t know who I am today. I find out new things about myself daily as well. And I hope we are all working on that foundation of growth.

And it all starts with making better choices for ourselves. And those choices are not going to be all around you. Most folks are just struggling to survive. I was there as well. I was living unhealthy and swinging at everything around me like an infant. I was angry and frustrated and tired and a victim. BUT, I desired to be something else. I desired a change. I saw that potential to become something else. I knew I could be a winner. I knew I could live abundantly. I just needed to start the change.

And after fourteen days of working on my body, after fourteen days of working on my mind, after fourteen days of working on my spirit, I am in a much better place than I was. I am focusing on how I want to be as a person. I am focusing on making healthy choices for my whole body, mind, and spirit. I am focusing on moving forward and making my life better. There are always obstacles like tree limbs and high winds that will inevitably be part of our lives. These things fall on the just and unjust BUT we get to choose how we react to those obstacles. And I know it’s been a rough fourteen days, however, it has been an opportunity to start making changes. Every day is an opportunity to start making changes.

So, if you don’t like where you are, you can start changing that today. It may take you a short fourteen days to lay the foundation of your new journey and it may take you a long fourteen days BUT it all begins with one day, one change, one choice. And one day soon, you can smell the Friday!

Bless your heart. Have the day you want. I hope you find whatever you’re looking for.

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoGodsNoMasters #MyBodyMyChoice #MakeYourselfGreatAgain #EmbracetheWithin

Personal Meditation no. 218

“It may not be your fault BUT it is still your problem.”

Embrace the Within.

Last night was something. We went to see Charlotte and her school’s performance of Tom Sawyer The Musical and right after intermission everyone’s phones started going bonkers for tornado watch announcements. We made it through the performance with only minor distractions and the kids did great. When I got home with Python, that was when the work began in the dark of night. First there were the multiple limbs down in the driveway that I had to clear before anyone else tried to drive home. Then there were the greenhouses that were lifted and moved by the wind. I had unfastened my two small greenhouses last week to get the plants more space in the sun without the added heat of confinement. Then there was the swamp created by the rain in the chicken run. And finally the tree limb that broke the wire fencing free at one corner of the run. So, there I was last night with Sophia holding a flashlight and me holding another flashlight and a staple gun fixing the problem before another deluge came through.

But the work had to be done or it wasn’t going to get doen. I could have waited until this morning. Kept the chickens inconvenienced and in the coop all day. I could have just driven over the branches and done damage to my car and let them damage the vehicles of the rest of my family. I could have chosen that it wasn’t my problem. That it was too much work. And that someone else would handle it.

And I think a lot of times, most folks really want things to not be their problem. What do I say around here? It may not be your fault but it is still your problem. I didn’t bring down the branches. I didn’t break the fence. I didn’t move the greenhouses. It wasn’t my fault. BUT it was still my problem. I still had to put in the work. Even though I was tired. Even though it was dark. Even though it was a swampy mess. Even though more storms were coming. The work had to be done. And in a few minutes I am going to go out and see the actual damage around here. No plants or animals seemed to be adversely impacted as I walked the plantation last night, however, another storm rolled through while I was finishing up the repairs. So, when the sun starts to rise, I will take a better look at where that limb came from and what else needs to get worked.

There are always going to be problems in our lives. The beauty of the challenges and the problems and the obstacles are that we get to decide how we handle them. We can ignore the problems. We can wait out the problems. We can handle the problems. We can let someone else handle the problems. We get to choose.

Bless your heart. Have the day you want. I hope you find whatever you’re looking for.

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoGodsNoMasters #MyBodyMyChoice #MakeYourselfGreatAgain #EmbracetheWithin