Ripples................

You are a Ripple. No, No,No......I didn't say you HAD ripples.....I said you ARE a ripple. Everything you do, say, listen to, act on has a ripple effect. It first affects those closest to you, then it begins to seek and find the universe. I wonder if you realize this? And if you do, does it make a difference in your words, and actions? You gossip....it ripples. You belittle.....it ripples. You praise.....more ripples. What is your career or job? I have tremendous ripples because I touch 135 young souls a day. And I'm sure that some days my students drown in my ripples. I also blog...duh...and have about 700 views a month on my blogs.....more ripples. I'm writing a book from my blogs that I hope is more like a wave than a ripple. So, you see, I understand my effect. Do I always say and do the right thing? Well...of course.....mmmmmhmmmmmmmmm. About as much as the next person....okay fine.....more than likely LESS than the next person. But when you stop and think about your life......realize that you ripple. Ripple like you mean it!!

Surround....

May I just offer a small observation. If you surround yourself with successful, happy, joyous folk, then these things can't help but rub off. If you are challenged by the achievement and want to and desire of your friends, family and co-workers, then yes indeedyyyyyy, you will feel the need to step up. If you observe winners, the craving to be one, will suddenly seep into you. But here's the rub, deal, instructions. You have to look on with gladness, and open mindedness, and not fear and envy. No, you can't become those people, nor should you want to. You may not even be in their fields of work. But winners are winners because they've chosen to work at their craft. They decided a job well done is just that. They carved their niche. So instead of listening to the nay-sayers, the gripers, the I don't want to-ers, find those who step up to that plate and hit a home run. And then, after a while, look behind you. I'm going to bet that people are lined up to learn from you!

Re-Evaluate

I think it's imperative that we reevaluate ourselves and our lives from time to time. Kinda like cleaning out the fridge. Something in there maybe doesn't smell quite so fresh, look very appetizing or has some weird thing on top. Well, let's look at our lives like that. You can't be the same person today you were 10 years ago. If you are, then you have become stagnant. You might not smell so good. Maybe you should take a good long look in the mirror and see if you have anything weird growing on you.....like judgemental curls....or critical waves......or black mold that is oozing from your pores. Maybe your bangs need to be cut so you can see yourself as you really are. Kudos if you are a newer improved version of yourself. But if not, if changes have not come or have been negative.....clean out the fridge of your life. Throw away that which is useless, ugly or hurtful. Scrub your shelves. Shine your walls. Smell the freshness of a new atttitude.

Change........

A change has come to me. It's been something I've done before and am now doing again. Yep, I'm trying my hand at writing another book. So sadly, I'm saying goodbye to blogging for a bit. Well, sadly for me, maybe not for you. I will pop off and on, but not with regularity. Hopefully you can live without my daily blog. I know, I know, it will be a monumental struggle. But gut up and do it!!!:))) Have Happy Times Guys and Dolls!

Billboard..................

Would you like to be a billboard? And if you were, what would you advertise? Strange, I know, but I'm not going to apologize. Ok...so back to you and the Billboard. First, where would you be? Do you want to be huge and on I-35 where thousands of people pass you everyday and look at you? Or do you want to be small and on a county road where mostly you just see dust as the cars go by every hour or so? I think your choice says a lot about you. Yep....I'm the Billboard that is tall and strong and flashy and so darn important that everyone needs to see me. Or......no, I'm fine to comfortably sit on the side of this small road with little or no notice. Secondly....what do you want to say.....do you want to be a Brand Name, or a Major Hotel, or a Sports Team, or a Restaurant that's not to be missed? Or do you want to be something less out there? Well, I'm here to tell you that you ARE a billboard. And you say something daily to the people around you. Your actions, your words, your pleases and thank you's, your honks and your gestures, your smiles and your frowns.....they are all advertisements on the road of your life and are seen by friends, family, and people who have no clue who you are. You are a walking, talking Billboard. So be very careful what you say, how you look and where you are, because I assure you....someone is reading you right now!

Response...............

When an event, a job, or someone sucks the very life out of you, how do you respond? Do you fight back? Do you crawl in a hole and pull it down around you? Do you let it bounce off you without seemingly noticing it? I find it an interesting part of human nature. We all have heard of the flight or fight syndrome and the other day one of my friends was telling me of an instance where it was either fight or flight. But hers was freeze. So maybe we need to add that to the saying....fight, flight or freeze. But that's not my point for the day. My question is not one of a scare or a terror, but of circumstances that we all face in our lives. Something or someone that drains your energy, emotions, that makes every step you take heavy and hard. Our personalities are as varied as our fingerprints. No two people are cut from the exact same cloth. We tend to be like Grandma's recipes.....a pinch or this and a tad of that. I find human nature so intricate as to not be understandable.......even by you Dr. Phil. We all find our lives going up and down, in and out, straight and narrow or wide and curvy. When emotions get the best of us, when our days suck the life out of us, when everything seems just not worth it, what do you do? How do you react? Where do you go? I dare you to answer me.

Edge..............

Have you ever been on the edge? Not ON edge....but on THE edge. You know that feeling....or do you? Your next step...when you have the will to take it, will get you off that edge.....you'll either fly or fall. There's no turning right, no turning left, no going straight. You are on THE edge. The decision is going to be made. Walking on level ground is no longer acceptable or an option. It's Game Day.....And when the whistle blows,and it surely will, it's your step, your future, your life. The results will be in, votes will be tallied, the score will be set. Did you fail or did you fly? Which ever way it goes....you're not on that edge and that's a good thing. You, my friend, have taken a leap of faith. You have stepped out into the unknown. And anything is better than standing frozen in time, afraid to step out into your future. It's not the falling or flying.....it's the faith.