Is it a rollercoaster
or a wall poster
the essence of perception
perhaps an objective observation
There is no relation
to before here and after
there is a correlation
to continue to move faster
slow faster slow faster
When you are on the floor
perhaps look up for more
when you find yourself sitting
one must keep on knitting
eventually stand up
and continue to walk
eventually you can run
looking forward never back
then suddenly you stop
silence stillness day and night
decide to stand and look around
and suddenly you are found
in a moment of steadiness
the moment of readiness
Life is about living
life is about loving
life is about falling
life is about standing
life is not a one man sorrow
or a soul that remains hollow
you stand, you breath, you see, you feel
and it all becomes part of life
and from that moment on
you live

Let go of overwhelmed

“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goals.”
Henry Ford

What are the Mountains in you life? Do you have goals you wish to achieve that appear impossible? Have you ever attempted to succeed only to fail?

New goals can become daunting, they can become our biggest motivation or obstacle. Obstacles will always be a part of daily living, especially when setting new goals. The ability to reach those goals can appear impossible when confronted with setbacks and detours. When the task at hand becomes overwhelming, the ability to turn mountains into mini goals is imperative to achieve your definition of success.

When confronted with Mountains to overcome in order to reach your destination you must divide them into mini goals. Leave your self no other option but to move forward and push past the discouragement you will encounter, do not allow yourself time to become overwhelmed by your surroundings, the ability to succeed is ultimately your responsibility.
It is healthy to take time to regroup, reconnect, reanalyze, reenergize step away from the noise to find yourself, but never quit.

It is your life, no one else can live it for you.

When you compare your success to that of others, you will fail. The minute you decide to break your tasks into segments and steps to arrive at your destination is the minute you decide to become an active part of your achievements.

I had tried out for basketball and failed, my choices where to either watch my life pass me by and decide failure is my only option, or learn from the experience and return to my life as an achiever, nothing less than.

You have to push past the noise, self doubt, nay Sayers and discouragement and leave yourself no other option.
You have to learn to believe.I had to take time run, get in shape, practic pass, shoot baskets, whatever it takes.  Basketball taught me that in order to achieve a goal, you must be willing to learn from failure, put the time in, shed excuses, block out the unbelievers and look ahead, never look back.

When you accomplish one goal, however small that goal maybe, give yourself credit, you deserve it.

You can choose to stand on the sidelines and watch or you can decide to move forward.

Practice and persistence breeds excellence. It does not mean it will be perfect, without setbacks, or obstacles, it means you decided to set goals, move forward and breakdown the barriers one step at a time.
Learn from what did not work, turn your mountains into mini goals, create a plan of action and look ahead.  The future is called future for a reason, the past does not exist, it only lives as long as you provide life to it.  Learn from the past, leave it where it belongs and always take a step, however small that step is it will bring you closer to the future you care to live.

Live, learn and press on.

Poetry allows for the development of writing thoughts into words, much like an artist. It is a form of expression of the mind written into paragraphs. It has always been part of my life, it requires no perfection only expression.

New endings are beginnings

and beginnings only come from endings

what appears to be history

is often viewed as mystery

what force that may sway

or moves forward lead way

Is it the scent of a Rose

or a chemical pose

Do you dare write the prose?

or run like a horse?

the endings are often beginnings

and beginnings can only result from endings

for there is always a future

after the suture

as you cut off what weighs

and look for what stays

new endings become beginnings

and beginnings are born from endings

In the End

there is no endings

Evolution

Let go of dismay

“You can only loose something that you have, but you cannot loose something that you are” Unknown

The routine of daily life can be filled with multiple obligations. We have bills to pay, jobs, homework, housework, raising a child, hobbies, volunteer work, grocery lists, the lists go on and on. It is a talent and wonder to find the time to eat, sleep, socialize and look half way “presentable.” However, if you have a goal in mind, and you want to succeed, you must find your inner center and motivation.

The ability to create your own kind of paradise is within you. The place where regardless of the perceptions, obligations and organized chaos, peace is found. The place beyond all negative self talk and experiences.   The kind of place I am describing, is that place that centers you, and allows your energy to relax, recharge, and remain motivated to meet your goals, regardless of your surroundings.

 
I had several obligations in my younger years. I had to get up at 5a.m. water plants, cook breakfast for myself and brother, work on the weekends with my father, keep up with school work, and wake up earlier to catch a bus to school if I wanted to play basketball. I had obligations at home, and had to find the place within myself, to remain motivated and committed to something I enjoyed doing.

I had to push past the negative talk, obligations, routines and excuses if I wanted to be part of something I enjoyed at the time. The lessons I learned from those obligations, was the ability to develop a center of focus and motivation at a very young age. I have allowed myself to be out of center at times, but I have learned to let go of those instances within me and allow time to refocus.

“All true artists, whether they know it or not, create from a place of no-mind, from inner stillness.”
Eckhart Tolle

This place of inner peace, is a place where no negative thoughts are allowed.  It is a place where presence and stillness remains.  I don’t contemplate how far I have come or how much further I have to go, or if I made the wrong or right choice.  It is a place for me to let go of any distraction and choose to remain, centered and motivated.

There is no perfect person, place or thing.  There is only realization.

When you choose to become aware and make the decision to live, you give life to yourself and those around you. The ability to find the energy of stillness, rest, motivation and forward thinking in your surroundings, is not a mystical code. It is a conscious decision and understanding that you are alive and you matter.

Let go of DOUBT

If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome.
Michael Jordan

Believing in yourself is one of the best gits and attributes you can give yourself.

When you learn to believe in yourself, you begin to develop with confidence. It takes time, work, and preparation to learn to understand how to develop into a better version of yourself.

When we give up on the notion of comparing our progress to that of the next person and instead focus on the progress we can accomplish by improving ourselves, we make the decision to become a better version of ourselves,  from the inside out.

Stop Comparing yourself, be yourself, BELIEVE in yourself.

They say confidence is the best outfit a woman can wear. I say confidence is the best outfit a man or a woman can wear, it requires not perfection but acceptance of understanding where your weaknesses are, working on them and improving on your strengths.

If you believe in yourself, you can achieve anything you set your mind to, from self improvement to career advancement.

Gift yourself the opportunity to believe that you are worth your goals, whatever they may, learn to turn obstacles into opportunities and always believe in the fact that at any given moment you have the opportunity to make your life the best version of itself.

Lesson Learned in Basketball

Life is not a game, but the lessons I learned in basketball can transfer to benefit confidence in life

You cannot improve if you don’t try

Practice creates improvement

You cannot move forward if you don’t believe you can

Set small goals each and every day, improve one skill at a time, and the accumulation will manifest itself in the end

Let go of yesterday’s missed shots, mistakes, and lack of improvement, today is always a new day to start

If you don’t make it the first time, evaluate what is important to you, how bad you want it, practice, improve and go for it, Nike slogan, Just Do it

If you worry about not making it, you are holding yourself from the ability to learn and grow

Be Fearless

Mentors, guides, coaches, teachers are available if we choose to have an open mind and learn

What you give you receive, make sure you give honestly, openly, draw a line if it does not grow you or give you confidence, Believe

It takes time and practice to improve your personal skills, it takes a team to accomplish a goal

You are accountable for your choices, every day, choose to be better

It takes energy to criticize others, it takes energy to build others, you decide how to spend your energy

There is always room for improvement

You can celebrate your success and learn from your failures, in the end they are both imperative for improvement and leadership

An obstacle is an opportunity, it all depends on how you choose to see it

I don’t have to be perfect, but I can always be better

Learn from those you admire without comparing and improve yourself

Let go of FEAR

Do the thing you fear most and the death of fear is certain.
Mark Twain

     Have you ever felt scared to try something new? Have you ever been told you are not good enough to do something? Have you ever told yourself, I’m not good enough?

Criticism can overtake the development of an idea if allowed.  It can become reality if not filtered.  Critisim is not a negative component of development if viewed externally.  It can be used as a direction to improve as long as it is not internalized as reality.

The courage to hold your ground and be brave in your goals requires an understanding of your identity, direction and goals.  These three factors develop resiliance.

Sounds like a one track mind?  It is not, you always leave yourself open to learn, change, grow, but do not allow the fear of failure and dissapointment to overtake.

The ability to let go of fear, crticism and rejection allows room for the reflection and creation of your goals.

The choice lies within.

Let go of I can’t

If You Think You Can or If You Think You Can’t Either Way You are Right.
Henry Ford

I have heard a lot about superficial beauty and the capabilities of my existence because I am a woman.  I have also encountered the predetermined limitations of goals, dreams, ambitions.  The breakout of standards and achievements society imposes is fundamental to growth regardless of the circumstances.  The lack of “breakout” would rip our lifetime of important figures in history. There would be no politicians, leaders, singers, actors, authors, poets, teachers, activists, peace seekers, entrepreneurs, journalists, doctors, nurses, dreamers.  The important changes that occur in any culture for the betterment of the world. The peak of self definition is to arrive to the realization that when we stop comparing ourselves, when we stop closing our own doors, when we free our minds to the moment, and stop seeking external validation to honor our existence we open the doors to, I can.

The body we are given in this lifetime is the only body we are gifted.  It is a shell that can crawl, run, breath, speak, sleep, live. Life gives each one of us the same amount of minutes, hours, days, months and years.  It takes growth to encourage, love, live, achieve, succeed.  The hurdles in life are realistic, the setbacks and pitfalls in life’s circumstances are unavoidable.  The biggest mountain we will ever encounter is the one predisposed by our self imposed limitations.

Feeling comfortable in your own skin is the best gift you can give yourself, the power to believe is in you.  We are created with flaws and imperfections, they are meant to build character. The reason pencils have erasers. One’s flaws are not superior to another’s flaws.

History is our best teacher.  The major transformations in our cultures near and far capitalized our existence not in times of war, but in times of prosperity and peace.  Stars cannot shine without darkness, it is a balance.  The mindset of I can permits the ability to accomplish tasks at a small or grand scale.   Hate and War do not heal, Love heals and it allows the continuation of living a life with a greater purpose in peace, harmony, motivation, inspiration, acceptance.  There is a frame within our minds that should be untouchable, the place where no criticism or negative thinking should be allowed to live and be nurtured.  The word I can’t does not exist.

We can close our eyes, nose and ears to imperfections, predisposed notions, and negativity or we can choose to open our eyes, breath in life, and hear the voice of possibility.  The choice for change is within each and everyone of us.  The choice and change starts within me.

I can/I can’t

Give Can’t a second of your life, give Can the rest of your life.

Live, Laugh, Love, Motivate & Inspire