you only live once – Page 2

What If…

What if you just take the leap and go for what you wanted?

What’s the worse thing that could happen?

Is what if better than If only?

Being able to look ahead and operate from the what if may be a lot more promising than looking back at what was and regrettably sigh, if only. Sometimes we think we have made the only logical decision there is to make in a given situation. However, when we honestly cross-examine ourselves we admit that that logical decision was made from an illogical fear.

There are many of us who only recognize this after the fact, when there is nothing else to do but learn and do better. Some, hold stubbornly to the mistake and refuse to admit the naturalness in making decisions out of fear that we end up regretting. You see, when we think of what ifs, we are thinking of all the possible problems- as if life does not always have problems that we have to deal with. We may think it more sobering to think up all the possible obstacle before they happen so we maybe prepared.

However, we will never be prepared from the real thing, because at the heart of all our logical reasoning is a heart that desperately wants things to work out the way we want it to work out. We may say it doesn’t matter, until it does. Regret is terrible and can be debilitating when you see the possibility of what could have been if only we fought against your fear of what you do not know.

Staying on the shore and watching all the swimmers is not how you learn to swim. Therefore, staying safely indoors and watching everyone else make various attempts and doing stuff, is not how life was meant to be lived. Many persons love the internet because they can live vicariously through someone else. many sit and watch and wish they could be that person, go where they have been and do what they have done. How profound it would be for each of us to realize that what we get is the remains from their yesterday. That while we are there saying some day we will do the same. They have already moved on to the next thing and if we try to following we will get lost in the shuffle to the next thing. While we are there trying to catch up to a lifestyle two days old.

It’s an open field of what can be.

So what if we really take that leap of faith.

What You Deserve.

deserve (transitive verb): to acquire or earn a rightful claim, by virtue of actions or qualities; to become entitled to or worthy of (reward or punishment, esteem or disesteem, position, designation, or any specified treatment).
dailywritingtips.com

“You deserve so much more”. A phrase I often heard but thought little about. That is until I heard it enough to question it’s relevance. By saying that someone deserves something does it make it true?

When we say we or others deserve more, what are we really saying? Are we saying that life has been so unfair because they are not getting the recognition, rewards or riches that they deserve? If so, what can be done about it? Some people die never getting what others think they deserve and some wait their whole lives, never to get that which they deserve.

Some people have so much talent we are sick of them – in a good way. Yet those same people seem to always fall short of the recognition they deserve. Meanwhile you have Miss mediocrity and Mr Procrastination jiving along collecting that which seems to come with very little effort, or talent for that matter. We the observers to all this, are left confused and flabbergasted as this state of affairs, while we bitterly recite the soothing phrase, “you deserve so much more”. We cuddle and console until we are blue in the face but nothing changes. At least not for them!

So, does anyone deserve anything? I “stole” this question from psychologytoday.com. However, it is an important question. Does anyone deserve anything? Well according to them we feel we deserve something, because we feel it is our right to claim things as being meant for us. They say a lot in the article of deserving but the thing that stood out was to replace the idea of deserving with a needs-based perspective. Do we really need fame, respect, wealth and whatever else for whatever reason?

No, you get what you think you deserve, is another train of thought. Here the premise is that the belief you have in your own “special-ness” will cause you to reap good rewards but bad ones if you don’t. Okay, so it is your mindset that is at fault as to whether or not you get what you deserve. Well, if you think this is the case then by all means, start changing your mindset and act like you deserve everything you desire and it will come to you. Visualize and act on the belief you have. If you do not, you will suffer from the imposter syndrome, never feeling good enough, even though you have all the potential and talent in the world.

Personally, I think there are things we all deserve, but will we get it is another matter? I do not believe we deserve an applause for doing the bare minimum, for showing up but not showing out. I also believe that you may look at someone and envision what they deserve but what do they envision for themselves? Do they feel they deserve what you think they deserve? Do they even care about what you are getting so worked up about, on their behalf? I feel we deserve to be happy, to do what we love doing, to get just rewards for work done and to be our authentic selves. You can’t tell someone what they deserve, they must know it for themselves. Why?

If others cannot know their true worth, how will they ever demand what they deserve? Then again how much of it is in our control?

Image result for But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me."

Life is a Lie

Do not believe anything!

Well that seems to be what we should take from all the craziness we are expected to deal with on a daily basis.

It seems that the truth is only that for the person who does not want anyone else to know that they are lying. Fake apologies are now a dime a dozen, and we don’t know how Real looks anymore. We accept lies for truth and reject the truth for what our poor brains can accept as a desired reality – which is not the reality.

It’s now common to hate when we have to face our own shortcomings, because being the victim makes you a hero fit for your own pedestal. We have become suspicious of raw emotions and find comfort it rehearsed parts played by terrible actors. When you see someone who is the right package, it may be that it has been put together with the blood, sweat and tears of their poor victims- this time real ones. Also, if you look closely you will see that there are misfits and tapes where everything should be seamless.

So, here we are years later, with the truth. What do we do with it? Can we go back and reclaim our time from people who wasted it with their lies. Ah, no. Sadly, there is nothing we can do but accept that we have been duped by legions of distractions, ones who came close to derailing us from our truth.

We have become comfortable with the The Dream and life has really become a dream. An alternate reality to capture what we have decided is real.

 Ever drifting down the stream
Lingering in the golden gleam
Life, what is it but a dream? 
       - Lewis Carroll (from "Life is but a Dream")

So Much Beauty

In the early morning light I see so much beauty.
I focus on what's above
Not what is below
and I see a perfect world.
In the quiet of the first blush of dawn I feel life
on the empty streets.
There is no sound 
to interrupt the flow of how things were meant to be.
I marvel at the clear sky that hold untold secrets.
Secrets that will never be discovered - 
they were never meant to be.
There is so much beauty everywhere!

Alone in the dark just before dawn breaks,
I feel so safe.
There is no one to judge nor truth to make up,
nothing but the beauty of the creator.
As the coconut trees compliment the skies 
I alive 
to the wonder of how small I can be 
and how great I Am.
There is so much beauty everywhere!

Nothing has been added yet,
to distort what you see.
Just the fresh crisp air as your company.
The silence has grace form and yes
beauty.
There is no need to be afraid of what you cannot see.
There is so much beauty everywhere!

The most beautiful scars 
with the most beautiful treasures.
The finest presents 
that can never
be stolen 
that can never be bought
owned 
or controlled.
It belongs to no one and everyone.
There is so much beauty everywhere!

In those quiet moments
all wrongs are forgotten
all wounds healed.
All imperfections perfect,
there is no room for lies or deceit.
In those silent moments
you can reclaim your humanity
snatch that reflection and make it real.
There is so much beauty everywhere!

In the stillness of early morning
when the whole world sleeps;
when all you have is the evidence of the Creator,
You can see and breath.

Beauty forgotten. Beauty reclaimed.
  - S. Grant 2020

Tapestry Of Life

Can you imagine being at a place where you can say: EVERY aspect of my life was necessary and perfect, where each painful step you took led to you imperfect perfect and it was good?

Maybe some of us are there, wish to get there or are getting there, but we all what to have that eureka moment.

Image result for “Now is the time to enliven, ennoble and enrich your life's tapestry.

When I was younger I was introduced to Mills and Boons novels and I loved them until I did not. I fell out of love with them, because they all had the same story line. The same predictable start, middle and ending.

So too with life.

People tend to hate the mundane, the predictable and either make up things in their heads or chase the thrills and ultimately spills of life. However, when it comes to obstacles, things that challenge our ordinary world, we cry foul and ask why me. We want things to always be smooth sailing, to go exactly like we want it to go. But it never does, does it?

We bemoan those dreadful experiences, but at the same time, get a thrill out of retelling them, over and over and over again. We want to only be around good people and do good, yet somehow we find ourselves with the wrong crowd often doing the wrong things. This, after just promising that the last mistake would be the last mistake while doing the current mistake that will soon be the last mistake. In essence we confuse ourselves.

Image result for Life is a tapestry woven by the decisions we make.

But you know what? It all matters. The terrible mistakes that you have and will continue to make. It all matters. When you look back at everything you have and are yet to experience, there will be plenty bittersweet moments that you will be glad you experienced.

Yes, life I think is like a tapestry.

I mean I have not seen many tapestry at all – if any in real life. But from what I can see we all have varied experiences. There are things that did not come together as we envisioned or planned, but they are a part of our story. Moments we wish we could relive because they were the exemption to the rules. Perfect – or so they seem-moments; remember people, perfect is relative.

Our tapestry though filled with imperfect stitches can be a masterpiece if we remember to let God direct the pattern that the final product will take. No one said that the pieces have to match, they just need be the layers that you become as the tapestry is woven by your actions.

We all need to remember this:

Every single thread of our lives is vital to our tapestry and arranged by the wisdom and power of God.

What is Life?

What is life?

 But the essence of something wonderful that ends too soon. 
A moment
 in a thousand other little moments wrapped in comfort food.
The whisper of a promise, 
half fulfilled.
The knowing of not knowing but knowing there is a mystery to uncover.
The thrill of discovery.
The agony of loss.
To be born and know life is to find the rainbow.
To live it is to know the rainbow has no end or beginning.
 It just is.

To count:
1
2 
3...
Like counting gains of sand.
It's a happiness that shifts this way and then that way
never to be contained.
Never for sale.
It's the joy of knowing that every fiber of your being 
has power shooting from each limb.

To know death but not fear it.
To be small, yet stand tall.

What is life if not a dream?
When bad days become good days and 
you hold both in the palm of your hand.

Lovepainjoygriefsmilelaughrunwalktalkeatsucceedfailnoregretsjustbe
Just
breath...
1
2
3...

What is life?
Too many answers.
Too little time.

What is life?

Make it matter.

      - Simone Grant

Brown, Gray, and Black Butterfly Perching on Human Finger

Motivation

“When there is no enemy within, the enemy outside can do you no harm.”
African Proverb

Is it then true that the only locked doors we have are the ones we construct in our minds? Is it as simple as this?

It’s hard to know what’s true, but what is true about each of us is that our minds are the most powerful and valuable possession we have. It is also true that if we do not use our minds for good, it will turn on us. It will produce what we plant there and can either build or destroy our dreams.

Image result for May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.

It’s hard to know what to do when you’re the only one complaining. When you’re the only one who see something more, just out of reach, if only so many eyes were not looking at you, judging, waiting to tell you, “you see, it was all a bad dream, it will never be”. It is hard to keep going when you do not trust the process and your doubt s block your vision. It makes you sick to your stomach, when you look away from the Light that has kept you for so long, and look instead into a bottomless pit. You may smile, but we know that behind that smile is a helpless quivering mass of human frailty and fragility.

Do not quit they say, even when you are staring death in the face. If you do then you will surely die. Do not give up. even if physically, your body betrays you, because if your mind does that too – let’s not imagine that!

Let us not imagine, with a damaged vision, where we do not want to be. Instead let us focus on where we want to be so we can get there. Focus on what you can be and not what you are, especially in the eyes of others. Outside of God, your future depends on you and no one else. Anyone can give you advice but no one knows you better than you can know yourself. Be good being you, and do what you are being led to do by the Holy Spirit, even if no one can understand, that’s okay.

It is good to be an outsider, because you will always add something interesting to a predictable mix. Decide to follow the path that is for you and confidently go forward. With any storm you face, God will bring all that is good.

Also, here’s a secret you may not know or have forgotten:

In the midst of life we do not die but become transformed by the renewing of our minds.

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