Day 12: Out with the old, in with the smiles!

I noticed something interesting today. I’ve spent the last week really focusing on shifting my attitude, my thoughts and the energy surrounding my job. As the thoughts were transformed, I began manifesting a new reality for myself. Any time I thought something negative about my job, I said, “Cancel, cancel, cancel, delete, delete, delete.”

I’ve also been doing a lot of work to delete memories that no longer serve me. Sometimes we have negative memories that we are still learning and growing from, but I’m releasing the ones that serve no purpose. As I’ve released those memories, I’ve made way for some amazing times.

Today, I saw this new energy, this renewed love for my job manifest itself into an amazing new memory. A public service announcement was filmed today to spread awareness about the unemployment rate for “Today’s Veterans.” Rockie Lynne was kind enough to give us his time and talent for the cause. 

As I was reviewing the script, I found myself in awe that I was actually getting paid to do this. Last month, I was so caught up in what was wrong with my job, that I failed to see the lives that were touched, the progress that was made and the missions that were accomplished. 

That’s my pep talk! Time for the old to get out, so we can make way for the new!

Michael Harner has some amazing CD’s out that will help you with your meditation or journeying.

If you have other resources, please feel free to share the love!

Keep smiling and stay warm out there!

Day 11: Remember and release

Now that we have a list, it’s time to break it down. 

I’ll give you an example, I have an old friend that has really hurt me. I love this friend. I just want the conflict to be gone. What can I do?

I can let it eat me up. I can be angry and play the blame game. I could keep worrying and thinking. I could turn my back completely and totally disengage. But remember our quote from yesterday?

You can’t see spirit anywhere, if you don’t see spirit everywhere.

All of the above responses aren’t the way that spirit would want us to react. You need to think with your heart. 

First we are going to visualize this person. What’s the real issue here? Did you do something or did they do something? In 5 years, will this thing matter? 

My friend chose to only be friends with my ex-husband after our divorce. She’s the Godmother of my son and I am to her son as well. In an effort to match my ex up, she chose to introduce a potential girlfriend to my son. It hurt me that she thought it was ok to bring blind dates to meet both my ex and son at the same time. She then told me that she and ‘everyone’ else were laughing at me. That hurt.

What did I do? I closed her off during the divorce. I was at an Army school and she offered to fly out for the weekend. It was an inconvenience to me, so I shut her out. I wasn’t ready to deal with it all. I just wanted to play Army and leave my worries in Minnesota.

So, where does one go from here? 

Burn, baby, burn! As you release, do so with gratitude. Now is the time, my friend. It’s time to sculpt your life. 

I’m so proud of you. Thank you for joining me on this journey.

SMILE!!!

Day 10: Create better connections

Do you have people in your life that weigh you down? I think we all do. It’s fine, as long as you’re acknowledging who you choose to connect to. As usual, I have a visual for you!

People, whether we like it or not, sort of embed themselves in our hearts and souls. Some of them are deeper than others, but they’re all still there. The challenge is to get where they are running parallel with us, in a supportive role. When I say supportive, I don’t mean that we are sitting on our shoulders or weighing them down, just that we become a network. We build each other up. Instead of just going along with our lives, we need to engage in our network. Love each other, support each other. I hope that explains it a little better.

Here we have this poor little orange. By the way, this is you. hee hee

If you were to push this orange, it would most likely roll over. It’s wobbly, it’s unstable. All of these pins a.k.a. people are connected. They’re are sucking juice from this orange, but there’s not much support or love. 

In the next photo, you'll see that we’ve discarded some folks and kept some as well. But those who remain are now a network of loving and support people.

I know this visual may seem a little far-fetched for some of you, but try visualizing this while writing in your journal today.

In your journal, write down some people that you need to let go or maybe set boundaries with. Or their might be people that you need to connect with more. 

Do this step with love. 

I don’t know the exact quote, but Dr. Wayne Dyer said something that has stuck with me. 

You can’t see spirit anywhere, 

if you don’t see spirit everywhere.

When you’re going through these names, keep your angels and spirit close. Put thought and love into. Don’t just discard people, but think about how you can move forward on a better path.

Tomorrow we’ll talk about how to move forward, but for today let’s take the time to decide who we want to work on.

Keep on keepin’ on, lovelies, and keep loving life! You are so worth it!

Day 9: Ready, set, review!

Ready, set, review!

Yah! Are you feeling the effects of your hard work? Well, time to look back and see why or why not that is!

For me some days were rough, some days were amazing, but life keeps moving and it’s not about how hard we get hit, but about how we handle the punch.

Credit: Dajon N. Ferrell

So, for today let’s keep it simple. There’s still work, but it’s all about review! Pull out your lists of sustains and improves and go down the list. 

Are there affirmations you could be saying? Have you moved anything from your list of improves to your list of sustains? Do you have anything you want to add to either list?

I truly appreciate all of you. I’m grateful for the capability to share my thoughts and for the audience that keeps coming back for more! Happy Monday and keep smiling!

Day 8: I will be light!

Hello all! I’ve really been inspired by music lately. It seems as though the perfect songs have been playing at the perfect time. It’s fun! You should try it!

Ask your angels for guidance about a situation or person. If it’s a person that you’re asking about, visualize the person and say their name out loud. Then press the ‘next’ button and see what comes up.

So, back to the subject at hand: music! I’ve always been inspired by it, but lately it’s been serendipitous!

This song has been my most recent eye-opener:

It can be easy to get caught up in your own trials and tribulations, but how we make a difference is by stepping outside of our cocoon. 

I will be light! What does that mean to you? What kind of a light do you want to be? 

No gesture is too small. It could be anything from buying a cup of coffee for someone that most definitely needs it (*wink*) or maybe it’s being a team player at work or helping your co-workers shine! On the day my divorce was finalized, I received a card from a co-worker just telling me to be strong. That little gesture spoke volumes.

A co-worker of mine made a huge difference over the holiday season. After returning home from a run on a cold Thanksgiving day, he was reminded that there are many Veterans calling the streets their home. He decided to do something about it. He raised awareness and money by sleeping outside in a tent for most of December.

For your journal today, ask yourself these questions:

• How has somebody shared their light with me? 
• How can I share my light with others?

If you run into those lovely life challenges, simply sing this song:

“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine!

Hide it under a bush? NO! I’m gonna let it shine!” 

Matthew 5:16

SMILE, lovelies!

Day 7: Think good thoughts

Boy, oh, boy! Day 7 was quite the challenging day for me. I know it had something to do with the full moon, but some of my recent decisions also dictated the day’s less-than-stellar outcome. 

That may have been why it was so hard to take in. I had to accept responsibility for manifesting the day’s events. It wasn’t out of my control. I had let it spin out of control. 

Dear friends, we all make mistakes. We’re all human. We’re always growing and learning. The difference lies in how you handle it. You could sit and continue to drag yourself down. You could rebel and blame it on everyone else. You could deny, deny, deny. 

As I learned from a wise Army major, first you need to breathe. It’s hard sometimes. Believe me, I know it. 

“Why is she telling me to breathe,” I asked myself. “Doesn’t she know how much this hurts?”

I went home, shut my bedroom door and cried. I listened to some uplifting music. The following song always lends me perspective.

Feeling better after a little musical therapy, I decided to take some time to sit and break it down. Get real with yourself. 

Once again, I’m going to go Army and flip it After Action Review (AAR) style. I’m going to mix it up a little though, so work with me, Army folks. Hee hee!

What happened? What could’ve happened? How will I sustain the good parts of the situation? How will I improve the lesser parts? Be brave and give it to yourself straight! I’m fortunate enough to have leaders that won’t let me fail. They will take the time and set me straight when I’m blinded by the chaos.

Whether you have that in your life or not isn’t as important as you being honest with yourself.

Regroup and carry on. This is a GREAT time to pull out your vision board and work on it. It will help you turn your challenges into lessons. 

Any fact facing us is not as important as our attitude toward it, for that determines our success or failure.

-Norman Vincent Peale

In the book ‘Positive Imaging’, Peale states that affirmations need to be filled with gratitude. Imagine them as if they have already come true. 

Write them down. Record them. Say them out loud every day!

And for Pete’s sake, don’t take yourself so seriously, awesome you! Smile--it’s contagious!

Day 6: Love is a verb

When you hear the word love, what do you think of? I think of Logan and then, although I don’t want to admit it, my mind wanders off into soul connection, true love territory. Questions starting with ‘what if,’ how and when start to surface. I question love. 

Great news, folks! Love is a verb! 

“My friend, love is a verb. Love — the feeling — is a fruit of love, the verb.” 

-Steven Covey

Spread the love! Are there road blocks on your path to loving people? 

Remove the blocks. I think it was Avianna Castro that challenged her friends to remove any blocks you have on Facebook. Release it. Let it go. It’s actually very liberating. Do it with intention and you’ll be amazed. 

I ‘unblocked’ an old friend that I hadn’t spoken to in years. He contacted me almost immediately and I realized that I hadn’t completely released the pain that I felt he had caused. I emailed him back. I just explained how I felt and why I was upset. He was understanding and apologized. He then shared a few life updates and that was that. 

Simply love, my friends. The more you release, the more fluidity you give to your love.

Get your journal and write out some love affirmations. Here are some examples:

• I love therefore I am loveable.
• Love comes from within me at all times.
• I love myself unconditionally.
• I accept love from others.
• The Universe has an endless supply of love. The more I give, the more I receive.

Now that you’ve reigned in the love, try one or both of these exercises. 

• Write a letter to someone you need to forgive.
• Write a letter to someone who believed in you even when you didn’t believe in yourself.

Whether you deliver the letter(s) or not is up to you. 

Remember that we aren't perfect. There WILL be rough days. Don't feel bad if you're having a "french fry dipped in Frosty" type of day. Acknowledge it, cancel the negative speak and affirm your truths.

After a day like today, I think I'll reward myself with some vision board time! 

You are loved for you. Let your love light shine brightly and keep spreading smiles!