Monday Motivation: Dragons

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Monday Motivation: Heart

“Any fool can be happy. It takes a man with real heart to make beauty out of the stuff that makes us weep.”

― Clive Barker, Days of Magic, Nights of War

from Pinterest

The Energies Inside Us

To restore its equilibrium, the brain tries to quiet our sensitized, trauma-related memories by pushing us to have repetitive, small “doses” of recall. It seeks to make a sensitized system develop tolerance. And, in many cases, this works. In the immediate aftermath of s distressing or traumatic event we have intrusive thoughts: we keep thinking about it when we don’t want to, we often tell and retell the event to trusted friends or loved ones. Children will re-enact the events in play, drawings and their daily interactions. The more intense and overwhelming the experience, however, the harder it becomes to “desensitize” all of the trauma-related memories.

From The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog: and Other Stories from a Child Psychiatrist’s Notebook
by Bruce D. Perry, PhD and Maia Szalavitz.

There’s a *Venus* Retrograde I Need to Worry About, Too?!?

photo credit Venus Lotus

At this rate, I won’t ever be getting out of bed. Especially since, right after the end of this *Venus* Retrograde, we go immediately into a Mercury Retrograde.

See what I mean about never getting out of bed? That and all those Friday the 13ths scattered in there…

I guess I can be thankful it only happens every 18 months or so.

You can thank Elephant Journal for helping me discover this cosmic phenomenon.

Apparently:

“In your horoscope, the planet Venus rules beauty, art, social relationships, partnerships, romance, love, values, money, and financial security [that pretty much covers everything, right?]. Whenever a planet is retrograde it’s not a favorable time for initiating activities in the area that a planet rules because your perception is off kilter.

In the case of Venus retrograde, the best thing to do is to: slow down and reassess what—and—who you value. If you ignore this advice, you may find that the actions you take during Venus retrograde come back to haunt you, because of a special set of problems you may not know about [isn’t that kind of just how life is?]. Venus only goes retrograde every 18 months (for 40-44 days), as it will from July 25, 2015 through September 6, 2015. Yet, this important event may have a huge effect on your life.”

Here are 8 things you can do to protect yourself…

1. Hold off getting married or making wedding plans
2. Do not begin a new relationship or break-up from one you’re in
3. Make an appraisal of your current relationship
4. Prepare for an old relationship to return into your life
5. Beware of making changes in your beauty & overall appearance
6. Postpone resolving monetary matters
7. Re-consider whether now is the right time for an investment
8. Cautiously evaluate any luxury items you want to buy

You can click this link to read more detailed descriptions, if you’d like…

So, in short, that’s 40-44 days where I shouldn’t be making these types of decisions? And then the next Mercury Retrograde starts on September 17th?

That’s 11 fucking days, people!! 11 fucking days to get shit done before I have to spend another 21 holed up?

And really not even that!

“The planet Mercury rules communication, travel, contracts, automobiles, and such [technology].  So, when Mercury is retrograde, remain flexible, allow time for extra travel, and avoid signing contracts. Review projects and plans at these times, but wait until Mercury is direct again to make any final decisions.

About a week or two before Mercury retrogrades, finish any tasks or projects at hand.  You can’t stop your life, but plan ahead, have back-up plans, and be prepared for angrier people and miscommunication.”

credit: The Old Farmer’s Almanac.

So… I MAYBE only get four days of relative sanity!?

Then I find out about Saturn Retrograde!?!?!? Which started way back on March 14th and goes until the beginning of August!?

“Saturn is the Lord of Karma. Retrograde motion is a time when karma is sorted out. Therefore Saturn retrograde 2015 is a double dose of karma.

Before we get into this, we need to understand what this word means. Karma is a form of energy that is very real. Like Saturn, it is very closely bound to time. Past, present, and future blur into one. If we have been bad in the past, then at a certain predestined time, an event will occur to teach us a lesson. If we been good in the past, then at a predestined time, an event will occur to reward us for our good deeds.

With Saturn in retrograde motion, the karma will relate to how responsible we have been in the past. The implications will affect our sense of security. This could be in any area of life… … …

… … … Dishonesty and treachery will come back to haunt some people. Victims of lies and scandal have the hope of being vindicated, but sadly, all involved will find this whole processes rather ugly and depressing.”

credit: Astrology King

Awesome!!

Monday Motivation: Silence

Again, I defer to Om Swami…

… Once upon a time a farmer lost his watch while working in the barn. This was not just any watch but his most favorite possession. His late father had given it to him decades ago. He searched for it frantically, in every nook and corner of his barn. He turned the hay upside down but it was nowhere to be found.

Somewhat distraught, hardly had he sat down when he heard children playing outside. He asked them for help and promised a reward of $20 to the one who would find it. Excited, eager and hopeful, the children rummaged through the whole area, practically combing every haystack, yet they couldn’t find it either. They gave up and went back to playing. The farmer thought he would never see his watch again.

“Can you give me a chance?” a small boy tugged at his coat.
“I don’t mind,” the farmer said, surprised to see a little contender. “But, other children and I’ve already searched everywhere.”
“I know,” he said. “I would still like to try.”
The farmer had nothing to lose so he let him in and carried on with his chores in the field.

A mere twenty minutes later, the young boy went running up to him.
“I found it!” he said, and, opened his hands revealing the watch.
The farmer picked him up in his arms, and said joyously, “How on earth did you find it?”
“I just sat on the ground and listened to silence,” the boy replied. “After a few minutes, I heard the watch ticking. The rest was easy.”

We are desperately searching for our lost possessions, emotions and love, turning the world upside down only to feel tired a bit later. And then we sit down, we wonder, we worry, we muse, we reflect, we accept, we relax. In that state of mind, life appears like the young boy and hands it back to us.

Sometimes, the greatest way to search is to not search at all. When you don’t search and just let it be, then you hear the watch ticking, you hear how life’s bubbling over and you see the beauty in everything. When that happens, you realize that everything you already have is a prized possession in its own right, the present moment being the greatest of all…

Everyone Is Beautiful!

Beauty vs Ugliness
by bachatera

I love Paulo Coelho. His words of wisdom often hit me right where it counts. He doesn’t always say what you would expect from a philosopher and he often addresses current issues (Internet Trolls).

Here is another of his wisdoms that I would like to pass on to you all. Short and sweet and to the point.

You are beautiful simply because you exist

Forever and always every single one of you is so very beautiful!

Pay more attention, because here I am

by Paulo Coelho

We forget that the world is what we imagine it to be.
We stop being the moonlight and become, instead, the pool of water reflecting it.
Tomorrow, the water will evaporate in the sun. And all because, one day, someone said: ‘You are ugly.’ Or: ‘She is pretty.’ With those three simple words, they stole away all our self-confidence.
And we become ugly and embittered.

At that moment, we can draw comfort from so-called ‘wisdom’, an accumulation of ideas put together by people wishing to define the world, instead of respecting the mystery of life.
This ‘wisdom’ consists of all the unnecessary rules, regulations and measurements intended to establish a standard of behaviour.

According to that false wisdom, we should not be concerned about beauty because it is superficial and ephemeral.

That isn’t true. All the beings created under the sun, from birds to mountains, from flowers to rivers, reflect the miracle of creation.

If we resist the temptation to allow other people to define who we are, then we will gradually be able to let the sun inside our own soul shine forth.
Love passes by and says: ‘I never noticed you before.’

And our soul responds:
‘Well, pay more attention, because here I am. It took a breeze to blow the dust from your eyes, but now that you have recognised me, don’t leave me again, because all of us desire beauty.’

taken from THE MANUSCRIPT FOUND IN ACCRA

Click Here for my other feel-good re-posts and quotes from Paul Coelho’s blog.

Practice Makes Perfect

It’s so cute! Ever since Thing #1 started Beauty School in September, she’s been calling me every morning when she gets to school and every evening when she gets out.

I am not saying it’s unwelcome, just unexpected, and I think I like it, but we’ve never been phone-talking-type people so this behavior from her is strange and a little difficult to get used to.

I don’t think she’s calling me because she misses me or that she wants to hear the sound of my voice (although that thought does please me greatly), she’s simply calling me because the bus drops her off almost 30 minutes before school starts and she gets to the bus stop in the evening 15 minutes before her bus leaves.

I am SO proud of her. She just adapted to this new life like it wasn’t new to her at all.

She has to take public transportation — something completely new to her. So new that I asked Loverman to go with her on the bus for her first day. He actually did it! (I am not surprised that he did it, that’s why I asked him to. He likes Thing #1, too). Then he found things to do and waited around ALL DAY for her to be done with classes so he could walk back to the bus stop with her and make sure she knows exactly what to do. On top of it, he told her that if she ever has problems (like getting on the wrong bus or something like that) not to hesitate to call him and he will do anything he can to help her. Mr. Doom-n-Gloom hasn’t said anything to her about it at all — and he’s her REAL father!

I would like her to get a job, but her school schedule kind of disrupts any kind of regular schedule she could have. She has been filling out applications for jobs on-line and there is a Dunkin’ Donuts opening by our house in a few weeks — maybe one of those can pan out.

This weekend, her homework was to fill out 12 postcards with friends’ names asking them to come and check her out. She came to me at 10PM Monday night asking if she could have some of my friends’ addresses and I told her to just go on Facebook and ask some of her friends — in less than 10 minutes she had more than enough responses to fill out all her postcards. I think that really helped to get her excited.

(But I am not opposed to posting and endorsement for her here and on my Facebook page 😉 ) If you don’t mind getting your hair cut and/or colored, nails done, or a facial by a talented and blossoming student (and you live in North Denver), please let me know and I’ll hook you up! The rates are totally awesome and Thing #1 just started working “the floor” this week. She would be super-excited to have “regulars”, or even just to have someone ask for her by preference. And, Guys, don’t think that you’re excluded in this either. She is thinking about going to Barber School after this because she would rather spend her days in a Barber Shop than in a Beauty Salon (boys are just funner to hang out with than girls, I guess).

So far, she has buzz-cut my hair (I shave the little curly hairs at the back of my neck — but she says that’s her favorite thing to do), done Thing #2’s nails numerous times and braided cornrows in my hair. I know that isn’t much, but she’s been practicing on her mannequins for the last 8 weeks and she just started with “real” customers two days ago. Just remember that:

“Brushing Lady”

Brushing Lady
by Ivan Koulakov

Brushing Lady

Oh, Lovely Lady,

Legs crossed, brushing your hair

Flaxen locks a-glow

… … …

I can’t help but peek

As you sit there, unaware.

Ah, to be your Beau!

Did Weight Loss Cause me to be an Asshole?

I read an article that stated “going organic can make you feel smug about yourself — and act nasty to others”.
Here it is: http://news.yahoo.com/does-eating-organic-food-jerk-150500363.html

It made me look at myself because I have just lost a TON of inches (I won’t say I lost weight, because I have only lost 30 pounds). I went from a size 20 to a size 14 and I am extremely proud of myself! But now I look at the way people dress in a totally different way. I’ve become quite intolerant of fat people who are completely unable to see how bad their clothes look (thank you to What Not To Wear for that, folks…).

I used to look in the mirror and see myself as a fat person no matter what I was wearing. There was nothing big enough to cover the rolls I was seeing – there were pantylines in ALL my jeans… So, I can’t stop asking myself when I see these people:
“How can they dress like that and not know what they look like?”

By the way — I have an agreement with both of my daughters that if I EVER look inappropriate when I go out in public, they NEED to tell me! I sure as hell would tell them!

And, to top it off (pun intended), is it too much to ask that a girl puts on a bra that FITS, or just to put one on? Goodness gracious! It’s like some females want them to just pop out when they lean over to pick up something. I’m sure you’ve seen some of them (and I really don’t mind looking at a pretty set of gazongas)!

I DO understand that it’s inconvenient to get fitted for a bra (and apparently clothes that fit properly). There’s really only one person on this planet that I feel comfortable “poppin’ the titties” out for, and it’s definitely not the stranger working in the lingerie department at Sears! But, does it really hurt to go in and have a few measurements done to make sure the “girls” have a comfortable and, in some cases, reinforced home?

And, I totally understand about not having enough money to buy new clothes! We go to the thrift store instead. My friends are astonished at the awesome things that I wear – most of it for under $5.00. For Example: my 17-year-old daughter got a beautiful prom dress there for $8.00 and she was more than proud to wear it to her Junior Prom – in fact, bragged to her friends about where she did get it! And it fit her just fine (glamorous is a much better adjective): no “muffin top”, her boobs were totally reigned-in, and she didn’t even look like a hooker! I was such a proud mother!!!

Deep down I know that it’s not appropriate to tell people that they look scary, or to tell them they can get a new, clean, decent-looking outfit at the Salvation Army down the street. So, I just keep telling myself: if those people aren’t out there wearing bad clothes and looking hideous, I could very well take the place of the worst-dressed person in the world! So, I will be happy with what I wear and use the others as my What Not to Wear version of every day life.