How can you give that one little dream just a little bit more space in your life?

What is that thing that makes you light up at the idea of doing it?

What kind of activity do you feel that itch-under-your-skin to get done, and done right?

When you’re feeling idle or delayed by some part of the day-to-day, what is it you daydream about accomplishing?

How could you pursue that thing, just a little more?

How could you fit a few more minutes, or perhaps an hour, into your day or week?

How much brighter might your life be with more of your dreams alive in it?

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If at first you don’t succeed, be pleased you’re trying new things.

I spent most of the evening on a new Super Healthy Cupcake Recipe.

It didn’t go well.

Granted, it didn’t go well mostly because of things I did. I over-filled the cupcake cups. I forgot my vanilla is twice as strong as normal, making the vanilla frosting into VANILLA! (frosting).

My little boy was very excited to be part of the cupcake-making process. (The distraction being part of how I lost track of things like that.) He was very much looking forward to enjoying his favorite treat that we made ourselves.

When I got the results into edible-seeming form, he tried it, then tried it again. He was clearly disappointed, but brushed that off and went back to playing. He had been more excited than I at the project, and then I was more disappointed that it didn’t work out.

He did tell me he wants me to keep trying, and that maybe tomorrow or Saturday we can get it right. I told him I’d tweak the recipe a little and do better next time.

After tucking him in, I still kept feeling disappointed the recipe didn’t turn out quite well. It can probably still be a Mostly Healthy Cupcake Recipe, and maybe I can even get it back to Super after I get the hang of it. But I used to be pretty good at making things like this, so it was getting to me.

Finally, I realized that it’s been a long time since I’ve tried this sort of thing. I don’t have the knack anymore, and it took up most of my evening, but I still gave it a good shot. Plus, I’m not planning to give up over it. As discouraging as my time has been lately, that really means something to me.

So as I try to get ready to sleep, I’m reminding myself to take the experience for what it was: I tried something new. Soon, I’m going to try something new in a better way. And I’ll keep at it as I keep getting better.

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Mindfully forgive yourself when you stumble or backtrack on the road of life. You’ll get where you need to be.

You’re not 100% on point every day.

You’ll stammer, you’ll stumble.

Sometimes, you’ll even fall.

So what?

So long as you keep trying every day, both to improve yourself and to mindfully forgive yourself for backsliding, you’ll do all right.

In fact, you’ll do fantastic.

Just keep traveling the road you’re on, resting when you need, and retracing your steps if that time comes.

You’ll get where you need to be.

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Reach for that star. Let the way open up before you.

A star’s reflection
On a clear or icy lake?
Either way, I’ll swim.

 

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Stop Dithering. Start Doing. It’s time.

No more debating.

No more doubting.

No more asking for permission to be yourself.

No more allowing invisible barriers to keep you boxed in.

No more holding back.

Just be.

Just be yourself.

Just be courageous.

Just be free.

That thing you’ve been wondering if you’d ever have what it takes to give it a shot?

Get out there and take the first steps.

It’s time.

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If you could plot your own course for 2016, what Treasures would you put on the map?

The other day, I read “Grab a Pen and Map Out an Epic 2016” by Benjamin Evans III.  It begins:

We have the ability to literally chart out our lives. Every masterpiece, every record breaking hit, every blockbuster was first conceived in thought and then written on paper. Read how I created my dynamic 2015.

After reading about how this Minister drew up a road map for his Epic Year, I thought it would be a great idea to look into what kind of road map I would draw.

I’m still looking. I just can’t seem to write anything down.

At first, I thought that my hold-back on plotting a course was the usual: doubts that I’m not really ready to take the big steps, fear that I wouldn’t have what it takes, uncertainty about what kind of commitments success would bring. That sort of thing.

So I turned to face those inner Funhouse Mirrors, to stare down their distortions and call them out for the illusions they are. But all I found in that Hall of Horrors was one faint reflection asking me, “What if you give it your all, but you’re just a fraud?”

All I could do was (mentally) shrug and ask it in return, “If all I’ve got leaves me a fraud, then who isn’t?”

My subconscious Trepidation didn’t have an answer for that, so it (subconsciously) shrugged back at me, and finished fading away. Leaving me again alone with my questions: What would make 2016 my truly Epic year? Out of all the things I enjoy doing and events I think would be sort of neat, which do I really want to pursue?

So for the first steps in my Truly Epic 2016, I’m writing my future self a note, congratulating me on realizing what concrete goals I most want to pursue, so I can begin plotting that course. Once I build myself that compass, I’ll have taken the first step in drawing the map.

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The first step is knowing you are already strong enough to overcome.

I have recently been diagnosed with a very-reparable issue with my spine.  I was told that with support and treatment it could be fully recovered within 9-12 months, on average.

I wasn’t happy to hear the news, but I wasn’t upset, either.  I’ve had pain that I didn’t realize was from something that could actually be fixed in a year or less. I’ve lived with frequent (or even constant) pain for almost two decades now thanks to hyperacusis, so that was a welcome idea.

The real reason I wasn’t upset though is that I have already struggled with and overcome other health issues.  My hyperacusis has become much better over the past year, and I am no longer very limited by Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. These haven’t gotten better all on their own.  They have only improved as I improved my own confidence in my ability to overcome, and my belief I was strong enough for the journey.

To turn the corner, I had to accept that I was already strong enough to win out against the challenges I faced. I had to recognize that I didn’t need anybody or anything to fix me, because I wasn’t broken. I just happen to have a body that doesn’t work the same as most others, so it’s up to me to master the skills of living within it. I had to find that space within me that held that strength, that wisdom, and let it guide me forward. After many years of riding a roller coaster of upswings and downswings, somehow I finally learned to hold on to that center.

My helper on overcoming this latest challenge also believes that only we can heal ourselves; medicine just helps us in the process. She reminded me of how often people give up hope before overcoming their challenges, and asked if I might write down some things about how I overcame my own. I didn’t think I really had that much to say, because I can’t really think of things to say that I haven’t already read elsewhere.

That said, I do remember being helped by reading of others’ journey, and also that I tend to discount my own road as being pretty day-to-day, as it happens to be the one I’ve spent my days in. So I’m going to shrug at myself, and see if I can’t try to share some things about what I’ve faced, and how I’ve overcome.

I think I’m strong enough for that. 🙂

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Give yourself room to grow. Your roots can’t spread out if you won’t explore new ground.

It’s tough trying something new, especially when we’re excited to succeed, yet dread failing. I don’t know what’s tougher: those initial tries where success feels doubtful, or overcoming all the barriers to even starting it at all.

We also have inertia to overcome, which can feel like the highest barrier at all. Maybe we’re comfortable where we’re at. Maybe we don’t feel strongly enough to break out of our shell and risk embarrassing ourselves, or even just wasting our time.

The problem is, the only time we waste is time spent stuck in the same old rut, not growing, not expanding, not fully exploring what it means to be our own unique selves. The bigger problem is how much it’s just basic human nature to find those ruts and cozy down into them for as long as we can. I’ve come to feel that when I least want to move forward into something new, that’s when I most need to take even small steps down a new road. That’s the only way to snap myself out of it and keep moving.

If there’s something you’ve been meaning to try someday, now is the time to find out how you can make it a better part of your life. Commit to taking some of those steps forward, and schedule specific times you can fit some of them in.

If you can’t think of anything you’d like to pursue, try picking a topic you’re interested in, and start to research what different resources are saying about it. Allow others’ viewpoints to both inform and challenge you, as you work to expand your way of understanding this topic. This is another great way to explore new ground, and grow ourselves as human beings.

Whatever path you choose, please choose one that leads you to grow in new ways. This world is better only through the people who inhabit it, and therefore it benefits all of us, when each of us finds ways to better ourselves.

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