Welcome back! You’ll see by the dates, that I am writing this, my second blog post, pretty much one year from the first. This was not an intentional marketing strategy 😉 – but sometimes you have to follow your own heart. And sometimes you get to ask for a do-over. So… may I please have a do-over on my start?
The past year has been one of immense laughing, learning, creating and unfolding. It’s also been one of crying, failing, demolishing and hiding. And that’s okay. Actually, it’s better than okay. Why? Because I’m here, feeling stronger and more ready to move forward toward my goals than I’ve ever felt in my life – and even through all the seeming turmoil of the previous year I achieved one of the most important goals I’d ever set – I was a foster mama!
I awoke this morning thinking about love and gratitude and knew that today was the day to begin again, because the ideas I’d like to share with you in the coming weeks and months are all about that – love and gratitude.
What if, rather than falling into the trap of allowing your unguarded thoughts to be filled with fear and judgment until one day you wake up in a life you don’t like, you consciously decide to fill them with love and gratitude? I don’t know about you, but that’s a life for which I would gladly jump out of bed! Every. Single. Day.
You’ve probably heard of the word affirmation, although you might have either no idea, or the wrong one, about what it is and how to use it.
An affirmation is not a magic word like “abracadabra!” that you say once and suddenly there are bunnies spilling out of hats. It is not a magic phrase like “You get three wishes, and no wishing for extra wishes!” and suddenly you find yourself riding a silk carpet like a sled through the stars.
Affirmations are statements of possibility constructed in the present tense. Their intention is for you to practice replacing the unbidden, habitual, negative thoughts that whisper to you all day and make you believe you’re negative with intentional, fresh, new, positive ideas that will elevate your thoughts and affirm your right to be happy, healthy and whole. Replace those negative whispers with positive shouts of joy and affirm who you truly are!
Loving, expressing gratitude, affirming your right and ability to have joy in your daily experience – none of these is a one-time thing, each is a daily practice.
Our daily habits help us maintain the status quo. I want your days to be better than average, because days grow into weeks, that grow into years and then a lifetime. I want you to make conscious choices to allow you to live the life you want, rather than settling for the life you got. So right now, take a moment and affirm to yourself:
All of my choices allow me to live the life I want.