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No Eraser

2 May

“Life is the art of drawing without an eraser.”  John W. Gardner

Everything in our lives is continually changing. The situations we face today will be different than what we’ll face tomorrow. Some days are easy and full of fun, and other days are more complicated and try our patience. We can’t control most of what comes to us, but we always have control over how we react and what we do. We can do anything we like but once we’ve done it, it becomes a permanent part of our lives. There is no way to go backward and change something in our history whether it happened years or moments ago. Everything we do will be there forever. There is no re-do option, there is no way to rewind, and there is no eraser. Knowing that, the best we can do is think about our choices before we make them so we make the best decisions possible. If we react quickly to a situation without thinking we may create more complications and problems. Instead of simply reacting and jumping to an answer we can choose to step back for a moment and find a way forward that will bring true resolution. No matter what we do our choice will stay with us from that point forward. We always have the opportunity to change our direction if we’ve chosen the wrong path and to amend our decisions if we’ve chosen what doesn’t work. What’s done is done and will remain but we can modify our way forward and re-direct our course.

If we’ve made bad decisions in the past and have been continually reminded of them, we may believe we won’t ever be able to move forward. Everyone makes mistakes and sometimes those mistakes have far reaching consequences. When that happens, we may struggle trying to untangle what we’ve created and our confidence may suffer. If we’ve made a mess, we can clean it up. If we’ve chosen badly, we can choose another way. Although we can’t change the past, the future is wide open and ready for any decisions we desire. Nothing can stop us from being successful and finding the right road going forward.

Guilt and shame are heavy burdens to carry. They grow heavier if we’ve negatively impacted not only our lives, but the lives of those around us. When we feel bad about choices we’ve made, when we’ve hurt ourselves and those around us, we may believe we will never be able to fix the mess we’ve created. But life is fluid and every day brings the opportunity for change. There isn’t any problem too difficult for us to solve and we can find the right road when we’re ready. Success is always there for us and we can find it.

Today if you’re dealing with complications from a decision you’ve made and aren’t sure how to go forward, take your time and think about what you really want. What’s done is done and if you need to re-route your way forward you can. There are lots of roads available to you. There isn’t anything you can’t do. Decide what you want most and plan your way forward. You have everything you need to be successful.

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Not Getting Up

27 Apr

We all experience good times and bad times as we navigate through our lives.  Sometimes it seems we can do no wrong and every choice we make brings a positive result.  Other times we may face situations that fail no matter what we try.  We all face moments when everything goes wrong.  Everyone falls down from time to time but falling down never means failure.  Failure comes if we decide not to get back up.  If we decide we’ve had enough and quit, if we turn away and give up, only then do we fail.  We can accomplish anything we want to do if we are willing to do what it takes to get it done.  Some plans don’t work out, sometimes we struggle trying to find the way through and sometimes the situation is far more complex than we knew at the beginning.  We can always change our plans and choose another road.  We are in control of our lives and if our first choice doesn’t work out we may decide to change our plans.  Making a change isn’t the same as giving up.  Giving up happens when we really want to achieve something, and quit.  It’s always possible to modify our way forward but we will never find success if we stop trying.  There really isn’t anything we can’t do but we have to be courageous enough to face the wind and determined enough to modify our direction when complications arise.  We have all the courage and determination we need and if we press forward, no matter what comes, we will win.

There is no way to know what will come to us in the future.  We can try to prepare for unplanned eventualities and complications but sometimes the road takes a hard turn we aren’t ready for.  Even if we find ourselves in foreign territory and are unsure which way to go we can regroup and take the time needed to find the way forward.  We are smarter and more capable than we think we are and we have everything we need to succeed.  If we trust ourselves and take our time we can work miracles and change the course of any path until we reach the destination.  No matter how many times we fall, we can get up and start again.

If the road has been long and difficult and we feel the fatigue of the struggle, we can step back for a time and rest.  Most goals we want to achieve don’t have stringent timeframes attached to them.  If we need a break we can take it.  After we feel restored and ready we may begin the journey again.  With diligence and continual effort forward we will reach the destination we are seeking.  We have enough strength to go keep going and we will win.

Today if you’ve been struggling trying to move forward and you’ve fallen down, get back up.  Take a moment to step back and think about the way forward.  There is no road too long for you and no complication too difficult for you to solve.  You can do anything.  You can work miracles.  Remember who you are and pull from the strength inside you.  You have everything you need to win.  Nothing can stop your success.

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The Long Long Road

18 Apr

Some goals we want to achieve are easy to accomplish and we get them done quickly. We know what we want, we know how to get it and we simply do what is needed to get it done. It’s great when we complete a goal and can move forward but sometimes the objective is more elusive and takes more time. If the goal is complicated or difficult we may have to work toward it for a long time. Bigger goals tend to take longer but our greatest satisfaction comes when we work hard toward something we really want and finally achieve it. While we push forward there will likely be problems along the way, we may get pulled from our focus by other things, plans may go awry, and we may take a wrong turn and have to head back a few steps to find the way forward again. When we’re trying to get something we really want, if there are a lot of difficulties going forward we may become frustrated and think about giving up. Most things in life worth having require effort and often the bigger the goal the more effort it takes to accomplish. We can pace ourselves to travel even the longest road. Endurance is sometimes just a question of patience. We can get through any challenge by taking it one step at a time. There is no goal we can’t reach and no road too long for us. We can do what it takes to accomplish any goal we set and we will succeed. If we keep our eyes focused on what we want most, no matter what confounds us we will find our way forward.

As we navigate ahead if we don’t move forward as quickly as we want we may begin to doubt our ability to succeed. Doubt may make us question every step we’ve taken so far or even the decision to try at all. We may start to believe we could never accomplish what we’ve set out to do and wonder why we ever thought we could. If we listen to doubt we may convince ourselves we will never succeed. But doubt is often just a result of fatigue and if we take a rest and step back for a time we may re-evaluate our way forward and when we’re ready, begin again. There really isn’t anything we can’t do. We can plan our way forward and fearlessly continue on.

We can design our lives any way we want them and we can change things any time we like. If we aren’t happy living the way we’ve been living we can turn our course and choose another road. It doesn’t matter if others agree with us and it doesn’t matter how hard it is to make the change. We are perfectly capable of getting the lives we most want and we can turn our course at any time. We deserve complete happiness and if we don’t have it now, we can do what is needed to get it. Our lives belong to us. How we live them is our responsibility. We can accomplish anything we like and have the lives we desire most.

Today if you’ve been on a long road toward a goal that has been hard to achieve and you are beginning to doubt you will succeed, remember you have everything you need to win. You are strong enough and wise enough to do anything. Keep pushing forward. The goal is just ahead. One more step forward is all you need. Take one more step and you’ll be there.

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Stepping Out

17 Apr

“Too many opportunities out there to spend your life in a box. No matter how nice the box is.”  Dolphin Tale 2

Our lives are ours to design and we may do many things and go anywhere.  There are opportunities for us to try new things and open new doors.  When we feel settled and our lives have routines we may become complacent and neglect to notice what else is available to us.  We can make any decisions we like and if we want a small life we may certainly have one.  We can keep things close, never venture far from what we know and only step on the paths we’ve paved over time.  If we never step out or venture away from what we know we will never learn anything new.  There are countless opportunities for us to enrich our lives, endless roads we could travel and limitless experiences awaiting us.  If we open the door a little wider and take a step out of our comfort zone we will see things we don’t imagine and find wonders in the world and inside ourselves we never dreamed existed.  We are stronger and more capable than we think we are and there really isn’t anything we can’t do.  No matter how comfortable we feel in our lives we can always reach for something more.  Life is all about learning.  Staying locked up in a box – even a very nice box – will keep us from becoming the very best we could be.

Life is full of surprises and even if we try to keep our routines the same and prefer predictability, sometimes things will happen that shake everything up.  Unexpected complications take us someplace new that opens our eyes to fresh possibilities for the road ahead.  We can determine to re-set our lives back exactly the way they were before the tumult began, or we can choose to see things in a new light and try something else.  If we seize every opportunity for growth and step onto new paths we’ll develop more depth of understanding about our lives and the world around us.  We’ll be enriched by the possibilities of change.

If we’ve been doing the same things the same ways for a long time the idea of change may be daunting.  There is comfort in repetition and suddenly stepping off the paved path we’ve been on may be a challenge.  But staying on the same road can only give us the same experiences and the same views.  There are countless new things we could see and do, and stepping out will open our minds and enrich our lives.  We are capable of so much more.  We can stretch and reach for new goals, go to new places and build new dreams.  The world belongs to us.  If we open our arms and stretch there is no end to what we could do.

Today if you’ve been keeping your life the same and staying close to what is comfortable, think about trying something new.  Step out and see what’s possible. You are capable of so much and the world is there for you.  Open the door a little wider and stretch a little farther.  You can go anywhere, do anything, and make all your dreams come true.  There isn’t anything you can’t do and find success.

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Letting It Go

11 Apr

Pain is a part of every life. Sometimes things go wrong, people make choices that hurt us, or unexpected developments derail our lives and we suffer. It’s impossible to live a perfectly happy existence every single day. We will get hurt from time to time, people will offend us, our plans will go awry, and we will fall. Although it’s unpleasant when we’re going through it, we can overcome whatever happens and find joy again. Sometimes if something truly disastrous happens, something that hurts us so badly we feel broken, we may struggle to keep going. When the pain is intense and it’s hard to face the future, we may hold on tightly to what has happened. It may seem holding onto the pain helps us hold onto what has been lost and we can hold on so tightly we hold ourselves in place indefinitely. If we can’t let go we can’t move forward. What’s done is done and what we do next is up to us. There is nothing, no matter how horrible or disastrous it may be, that can control our lives unless we let it. We can face any situation clearly, feel the sorrow for the loss and then let it go. Letting go does not diminish what has happened. We can grieve for what we’ve suffered and then move forward with confidence knowing we have overcome and will find happiness again.

It’s possible to get stuck going over the same scenarios again and again looking for answers. Sometimes it’s important to know why things went wrong if we’ve made a mistake so we learn from the experience and don’t make it again. But other times we suffer loss through no fault of our own because of situations out of our control or decisions made by others. If there was nothing we could do to prevent the loss, there is nothing to be gained by reviewing it over and over. Every experience teaches us something but we can only learn the lesson if we are willing to see it objectively and then move forward. We have all the courage we need to face whatever comes to us and we can rely on that courage to move forward and begin again.

The road ahead is filled with many experiences and events. In our darkest hours if we take one step forward there will be something new waiting for us. There are countless doors we may walk through that will bring us happiness and satisfaction. They’re all there just ahead waiting to be opened. If we stay where we are and hold onto what is gone we cannot get there. Our lives are precious and each day, each moment is a gift that once passed can never be recaptured. We can go forward a little at a time and as we gain strength discover limitless arenas of happiness waiting for us. Life flies by in an instant. We don’t need to give another moment away to something that has been lost. We can move forward into the sunshine and be happy.

Today if you’ve been holding onto a big disappointment or pain that hurt you deeply, you can set it aside and let it go. You have so much to offer and there is so much happiness waiting for you. Take a step forward and begin again. There is sunshine just ahead and light to find the way.

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