The Navigator

Posts Tagged ‘strength’

I think I’ve posted this in the past but it’s been a while and always a good one to reflect on:

You have been telling the people that this is the 11th hour.
Now you must go back and tell the people that this is The Hour.

And there are things to be considered…

Where are you living?
What are you doing?
Where are your relationships?
Are you in right relation?
Where is your water?
Know your garden.

It is time to speak your Truth.

Create your community.
Be good to each other.
And do not look outside of yourself for the leader.

Then he clasped his hands together, smiled, and said,

This could be a good time!

There is a river flowing now very fast.
It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid.
They will try to hold onto the shore.
They will feel that they are being torn apart and will suffer greatly.

Know the river has its destination.

The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river
Keep our eyes open and our heads above the water.

And I say, see who is in there with you and celebrate.

At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally, least of all, ourselves.
For the moment that we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt.

The time of the lone wolf is over.
Gather yourselves!

Banish the word struggle from your attitude and your vocabulary.

All that we do must now be done in a sacred manner and in celebration.

We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.

I joined Facebook as a way to connect with people, real people.  I wanted to build and strengthen relationships, like most.  I love the real time information that comes my way each time I log on.  I love getting to see what movies people are watching, who they spent the day with, what the weather is like in different parts of the world.  I had a mission and couldn’t be taken off track until a warm day in the fall of 2009.  The day my children began talking about Restaurant City and other similar games and how much fun they were having (or something like that).

I remember thinking things like “what a waste of time”, “I’m so glad I don’t spend my time like that”, and “I’ve got better things to do”.  I was so proud of myself for staying strong, even when I saw all the posts on my wall.  People looking for new loot in Mafia Wars, people cooking new recipes in Restaurant City, people moving up levels in Petville and people needing friends in Happy Aquarium.   Then it happened…

I broke down.  I just want to check it out, I told myself.  I just want to see what all the hype is about.  It’s no big deal.  One look or two, I can walk away.  I’m strong and I’m really busy so I know I it won’t be a problem.  It started innocently enough.  I built a little restaurant in Restaurant City, my first drug of choice.  I decorated it, came up with a creative name and it felt so personal.  I was like a proud mom.  It was mine, all mine.  All I had to do now was come up with better food so people would want to eat at my restaurant.

I watched it grow and grow.  Soon I could plant a garden and nurture that.  I could buy and trade the food items I needed and I could decorate and redecorate any way I wanted.  After all, I was a successful restaurant owner – one of the most successful in my neighborhood.  After a while, my interest dwindled.  There weren’t as many recipes I wanted to develop and the people who came, they just left messes for me to clean up and I was tired.  My employees, if left unsupervised for long would stop working and take naps on the floor.  The bathroom was never clean enough.  It’s hard work running a restaurant, you know.

So I moved on and gave some other games a chance.  I didn’t want any of them to feel left out and I had all these gifts from my friends.  It felt so rude to not accept the gifts, so I just had to do it.  I tried Petville.  Dressed my pet up nice and cute.  Didn’t like having to visit other places, it was kind of a pain.  I tried some aquarium game but couldn’t keep my tank clean.  I tried some other pet game but my pet went to the pound when didn’t check on them enough because they were hungry.  I tried YoVille and didn’t get it.  I tried Farmville and my crops kept dying.  Then I found Cafe World.  Ahhh, another restaurant game.   My workers did what they were there to do.  They never let me down.  The recipes were easier to keep track of.  I was in heaven.  I fought long and hard to have the best restaurant in the neighborhood and then once I had that status, I fought to keep it.  Then I wondered why.

Then I found Country Life.  Such cute animals and for some reason the crops were easier to maintain.  I could even make it rain and watch my crops mature faster.  I was, once again, in heaven. Or was it hell?

You see, like many others, my addictions to these games runs deep.  Why?  I’m not sure.  It might be the mindlessness of it all.  An opportunity to escape?  Perhaps.  The bottom line, I got sucked in like everyone else does. It’d be easy to blame Facebook and on the companies and individuals who create apps for them (I am in awe over their creativity and drive).  It’d be easy to blame those who sent me gifts I just couldn’t resist but I know in the end it was me, just me.   But today, I’m taking back control of my life.  From here on out, I vow to stick to the occasional game I can play for little while and conquer – rather than the never ending, mindless clicking of the games on Facebook that goes on forever and ever.  I realize that my life is so much better without these games and, to play occasionally is not a big deal.  To begin to set my schedule based on when my food will be ready to serve, not ok.  Funny, but not ok.

So if I’ve shared a neighborhood with you, you will be missed but hopefully we can connect in other ways – the ways I wanted in the first place.  If you send me a gift, please don’t take it personally when I don’t accept it.  Today, my life is mine once again.  I’ve got great things to do and it’s time to get busy once again.

Happy holidays to all!  If you want to join my club, feel free.  Perhaps we can start a new neighborhood somewhere…

How do you show up every day – as the real you or someone else?  Take the quiz below and see how happy you are with your “real self”.   Just check the statements that apply to you and then total them up  when you’re done!

_____  I am happy with who I am, I don’t concern myself with what others think.
_____  I accept my flaws, with gratitude.
_____  I use my strengths and surround myself with others who are great at things I’m not.
_____  I feel like my life is easy, fun, and a genuine expression of who I really am.
_____  I don’t have to impress anyone but me.
_____  I take care of my body, and I’m generally happy with the way I look.
_____  I am able to see the greatness that I already have, but I’m not trying to impress everyone with it.
_____  I use simple English instead of trying to impress people with my vocabulary.
_____  I see things as they are, not through someone else’s opinion.
_____  I have let go of wanting myself to be a certain way. I like who I am.
_____  I am beautiful/handsome.
_____  I always tell the truth.
_____  I have let go of wanting other people to be or act a certain way.
_____  I am living my life, not the life that someone else designed for me or expected of me.
_____  I don’t have any habits that I try to hide from other people.
_____  I am not perfect, and that’s ok.
_____  I don’t pretend to be someone I’m not, just to suit other people.
_____  There is nothing about my life that I am ashamed of.
_____  I respect other’s rules and beliefs, even if they seem unusual or confusing to me.
_____  My actions match my words, For example, I don’t condemn a musician for his lyrics, then go buy his  CDs.
_____  I am my own best friend.
_____  I am able to laugh at life.
_____  I cooperate with life; I don’t fight what’s been given to me.
_____  I am fully responsible for how my weaknesses may affect me, my life, and those around me.
_____  I have fully accepted both my talents and my faults.

Results 
0-5: You only get one chance at life.  Make the most of it.  How can you be more true to yourself? 

5-10: What if “being authentic” was more a part of your life?  How would your life be different? 

11-15: Not too shabby!  This is a great start and what you can you shift in your life to be more accepting of who you really are? 

16-20: Great!  You’re doing a wonderful job of being yourself.  Sometimes this may be less comfortable for you.  Overall, though, you’re doing well.

21-25: Fabulous!  You are definitely comfortable with yourself and you know how important this is for others around you.  Congratulations!

Are you ready to be your authentic self?  Are you ready to show the world who you really are?  Life will be so much easier, more fun because it becomes an expression of who you are.  So what’s holding you back?  If you are ready, try setting goals for yourself to allow your real feelings and desires to emerge.  You can do it!

Source Unknown

In April, Maya Angelou was interviewed by Oprah and Oprah asked her what she thought of growing older.  And, there on television, she said it was ‘exciting…’  Regarding body changes, she said there were many, occurring every day….like her breasts. They seem to be in a race to see which will reach her waist, first.  The audience laughed so hard they cried. She is such a simple and honest woman, with so much wisdom in her words!

Maya Angelou said this:

‘I’ve learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.’

‘I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.’

‘I’ve learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you’ll miss them when they’re gone from your life.’

‘I’ve learned that making a ‘living’ is not the same thing as ‘making a life.’

‘I’ve learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.’

‘I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw some things back….’

‘I’ve learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision.’

‘I’ve learned that even when I have pains, I don’t have to be one..’

‘I’ve learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone.. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.’

‘I’ve learned that I still have a lot to learn..”I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel..’

Enough said

A few days ago my daughter was watching something on TV.  When it was over, she left the room but didn’t turn off the TV.  I wasn’t really paying attention as I was deep into whatever I was working on at the time.  After a while I happened to notice that Spongebob was on.  Years ago I used to occasionally watch this with my daughter but hadn’t seen it in years so forgive me if I get my characters wrong.

In this episode, Plankton was trying to get Spongebob to make Crabby Patties for him.  Where I took notice was when Spongebob was explaining that the environment didn’t feel right for him to cook.  He told Plankton that he was used to cooking on a certain kind of stove so Plankton got him the stove.  Spongebob was so excited but found that he still couldn’t cook the Crabby Patties.  He told Plankton that he was used to cooking in a certain area of the room so Plankton offered to move the stove for him.  This little guy began to push the big stove around the room, following Spongebob’s lead and direction.  He ended up right back where he started, but much more sweaty and out of breath.

I went back to what I was working on but a little while later, I looked up at the TV and saw that Plankton had re-created the exact kitchen that Spongebob was used to cooking in and yet, still Spongebob couldn’t seem to cook the Crabby Patties.

How often in life do you find yourself looking outside for the answers?  How often do you find yourself saying “if only….”?  How many times do you feel like the conditions are not quite right – that something is off?

I don’t know what happened in the rest of the episode of Spongebob but what I do know is he really didn’t want to cook those Crabby Patties and he was looking for reasons outside of himself as to why – things for Plankton to “fix”.  The beauty is, he had the answers inside all along.

Much like Spongebob, you have all the answers you need inside.  If you spend all your time searching outside for them, you will NEVER find them.  Spend some time today going within.  Close your eyes, take a few deep breaths, and ask what is it you need to know today.  Then take action.

Let me know what comes up for you…

Make it a wonderful day!

Love this quote!

“I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence but it comes from within. It is there all the time.” ~Anna Freud

Shared via Twitter by UCanHealUrLife

Words of wisdom from Barbara De Angelis:

If we did not have problems, we would never learn strength;
If we did not have struggles, we would never learn resilience;
If we did not have delays, we would never learn patience;
If we did not have resistance, we would never learn perseverance;
If we did not have hopelessness, we would never learn faith;
If we did not have suffering, we would never learn compassion.