You are more resilient than you think…..
Tag Archives: courage
Domestic Violence Awareness Month- Day 17
No child should live in constant fear…..
Domestic Violence Awareness Month- Day 16
Find the meaning behind your childhood dream…..
Domestic Violence Awareness Month- Day 15
What seed do you have inside that needs nourishing?
Domestic Violence Awareness Month- Day 9
I believe in you….
Once upon a time….
Those four words have been the beginning of many fairy tales for centuries. Ok, maybe not centuries but a long, long time.
Cinderella, Snow White, Thumbelina, Belle and so many others… all princesses that we read or watch movies about. The birds fly around them and animals come out of the forest to be in their presence. There are butterflies, zebras and moon beams. And, of course, there is usually a prince.
These are considered stories of fantasy. But is it really fantasy? Can we not be the princess in our own fairy tale?
I recently stopped and noticed how these things that seem to only happen to storybook princesses actually happen in my life. I stopped to see the moon, and think that it is shining just for me. Perhaps not, but something made me stop and savor in the moon beams as if it was for my eyes only. Look around, birds flitting about, bees in the flowers, the shiny outlines of the sun behind the clouds, a rainbow all for you to see. Look at the people in your life who are dutiful coachman to you, as the mice were to Cinderella. Could we all be princesses if we take the time to notice the magic that happens every day and think, “Wow, is this just for me?” Could we all be princesses if we would say to ourselves, “I am worthy, I am loved?”
And like any good tale, there will always be poison apples, wicked witches and trolls under a bridge. These people and things bring gifts to us in the form of a lesson. Scared of lions, tigers or bears? Dig down and you will find courage. Evil step sisters full of greed and selfishness teach us about grace. The ugly beast gives us the opportunity to love unconditionally and look at the heart of another.
Try it! Take time today to look, I mean really look. Be aware of the simplest of things in your day to day life and think that the fairy god mothers, genies, and wizards put these things in your path just for you. You are a princess, beautiful and loved in your own light. I think you will be amazed at the wonderful magic that surrounds each of us every day.
Now if you will excuse me I have to go out and feed my unicorn….
Women ROCK……
A dear friend shared this with me and I felt compelled to pass it along….
While the C-5 was turning over its engines, a female crewman gave the G.I.s on board the usual information regarding seat belts, emergency exits, etc.
Finally, she said, “Now sit back and enjoy your trip while your captain, Judith Campbell, and crew take you safely to Afghanistan.”
An old Master Sergeant sitting in the eighth row thought to himself, “Did I hear her right? Is the captain a woman?”
When the attendant came by he said, “Did I understand you right? Is the captain a woman?”
“Yes,” said the attendant, “in fact, this entire crew is female.”
“My God,” he said, “I wish I had two double scotch and sodas. I don’t know what to think with only women up there in the cockpit.”
“That’s another thing, Sergeant,” said the crew member, “we no longer call it ‘The Cockpit’.”
“It’s ‘The Box Office’.”
Quote of the day:
“Whatever you give a woman, she will make greater. If you give her sperm, she’ll give you a baby. If you give her a house, she’ll give you a home. If you give her groceries, she’ll give you a meal. If you give her a smile, she’ll give you her heart. She multiplies and enlarges what is given to her. So, if you give her any crap, be ready to receive a ton of shit.”
Love & light,
Indrani
Ms. Know-It-All…..
I was at a well known treatment center a few weeks ago and on the last day of my event I decided to eat breakfast on the lawn.
I usually ate in the cafe but on this particular day the weather was glorious and I wanted to savor the fresh air.
I sat at a table that was already occupied by two young women.
I immediately started to engage with them as is my way and we were having a sweet conversation.
Another woman joined us, and the party began.
Within 5 minutes, the new woman had chased away one of the original people and was expounding on how I should fix my life.
THIS woman KNEW that:
1. I was hanging around negative people.
2. I was deliberately choosing to hang around negative people.
3. I was clearly not making the right choices in friends.
Mmmmmm…. I wanted to:
1. Snap at her.
2. Throw my OJ at her.
3. Dig out my inner bitch and have at it.
Instead, I chose to turn my body away from her and engage with the other woman at the table.
Ms. Know-It-All then turned her attention to the woman I was talking to and proceeded to tell her how to fix her life.
This woman was just the most “knowledgeable” person I had met in quite a while.
She then told me to contact her and that she could help with my foundation.
I almost choked.
I smiled at her, and said “Have a good day” and went to class.
I congratulated myself for not losing my cool and for having the courage to be graceful about leaving the table.
Have you ever met people like this?
Some of these people are in our families and it’s not so easy to leave them behind.
There are, however, lots of people we continually choose to be around who are always “in our business.”
They know everything about everything. They are experts at philosophy, history, psychology, social skills etc. You name it, they have the answer!
I don’t know about you, but I am not in the market for any more Know-It-Alls in my life. I have had my fill of them. They were irritating then, and they are irritating now!
The difference in me is now I have the courage to leave and not CARE what they think of me.
I do not care if that woman thinks that she is JUST the thing I need to make my foundation reach one million people.
I will take my time, surround myself with people I admire and respect and LIKE, and I will reach the right amount of people in exactly the right time.
There is a KNOW-IT-ALL lurking around every corner, waiting for us to show the slightest interest in the wealth of knowledge and then…
They latch ON!
It is harder to extricate yourself from their clutches than it is to just leave them alone the first time you meet them.
I hope you meet some of these people soon and you can begin to practice the strength of believing in yourself.
These individuals give us the opportunity to stand firmly in our knowledge and allow them to expound to someone else.
If you meet one of these individuals at a party I recommend faking a bad stomach and getting the hell outta there.
I don’t know about you, but I believe that life is too short to waste precious time on people who just LOVE to hear the sound of their own voice.
Love & light,
Indrani
The FULL COURT PRESS… You CAN stand up to them!
Do you know what the phrase “full court press” means?
My novice understanding of basketball tells me it’s when the opposing team exports most of its players to guard your players the whole length of the court. Especially the greatest players on your team like the one who scores a lot or the one who is the 3 point expert…the player most like a young Michael Jordan. I think that Michael Jordan was the recipient of many a “full court press”.
When faced with the wrath of the opposing team, one must use all of one’s wiles and wits. One must pull every trick out of the hat…make any move, even if it seems counter intuitive. It’s either make a move (a swift move), find someone to pass the ball to or just go for the shot anyway, before the ref blows the whistle that you’ve held the ball too long.
Ok, big deal, why should you care about the theory of the full court press?
So glad you asked!
Let’s use our eagle eyes to zoom out from the basketball court and soar way above our lives and take some close looks at the predicaments that we have gotten ourselves into.
When you were a kid and another kid hurt you, did you want, even long for, your parents to come to your rescue? If the answer is yes, then you longed for the full court family press to save you because you could not save yourself. You wanted your team to surround you and help you to navigate the challenge at hand.
Did your parents ever go to your school to stand with you against an unfair accusation by a teacher? If so, you were the recipient of the Full Court Press. You see the full court press does not always work the way you want it to. You may not get the teacher to admit that they were wrong BUT you will have seen that your family came to your aid and that may be all that you needed. You were NOT being blamed by your people, only by the opposing team. Your people had your back!
The full court press can work in the exact opposite way.
Take for example, your spouse hits you, so bad that you had to go to the hospital. The doctor BY LAW must report alleged domestic violence. The police begin to question you and you finally break down and all the secrets come tumbling out. The secrets of many years can no longer be held in.
Be aware that the Full Court Family Press is about to be UNLEASHED on you. The press will probably be from the side of the battering spouse, maybe even the battered spouse side may jump in.
You may be pressed and pressured with words like;
He didn’t mean it.
What did you do to upset him?
What kind of mother are you to put your children’s father in jail?
What kind of wife are you to not know how to make your family happy?
What will the rest of the family say?
What will the priest/imam/rabbi/guru/scientologist say?
When you start being barraged by the Full court press, whose only goal is to get you to go back to being abused in silence, you MUST find someone on the outside that you can “send the ball” to.
This will be someone who wants to help you live a life of JOY.
This will be someone who understands your pain.
This will be someone who has your back.
The Full Court Press to repress your rights to a peaceful life may NEVER go away.
They may vow to make your life miserable and spread rumors about you throughout the town/village/Internet.
You cannot control their actions. You can only control your own actions.
So suit up and look around. Identify those on YOUR team and give them a heads up that you may be calling on them.
Gather your team slowly and purposefully. Don’t accept people who make you feel bad even when things are good. These people may not be able to hold your pain and be a part of your full court.
I hope this got you thinking about who is REALLY on your team.
You deserve a wonderful team.
Love and light,
Indrani
Dancing with Wild Abandon
I had seen her many times during the past few months. She is small and cute and always smiling.
For some reason, she always hugged me as soon as she saw me and we exchanged pleasantries.
When she danced in Zumba her hair flew, her hips spoke volumes and her arms were as expressive as the rest of the Latin lovelies in the class. She used her hair as another appendage and her golden locks flew every which way.
I always admired her ability to move fluidly and effortlessly, as I stomped about and pretended to be effortless also.
A few days ago, she lingered a little longer and I asked what she did when she was not in Zumba. She said she had two little ones, ages 2 and 5 and she takes care of them. I was surprised since she seemed to be 16 years old!
We talked a few more minutes and she asked, “You work in shelters?”
I replied, “Yes, I do.”
Without erasing her smile she said, “I was in a shelter in 2011.”
I am not easily surprised and I usually am not in “work” mode when at Zumba.
I paused and said, “The same man or another man?”
She said, “The same man.”
She continued, “He is not so bad these days.”
Then she said, “That is why I dance, to forget.”
She walked away with a sweet “Bye.”
I looked at her as she left, wanting to run to her and say I will always be here for you.
I could not, she did not ask me for my help.
I took comfort in knowing that she felt comfortable enough to speak her truth and that she has found a way to forget and deal with her pain.
Cardio for her heart…Zumba now holds a whole new meaning for me.
Love and Light,
Indrani