Showing posts with label Healing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Healing. Show all posts

Monday, May 14, 2018

One More Healing Step + #MyPostMonday The Week's Best Original Content

I must tell you about a wonderful day I experienced not too long ago in a little resort/retirement town called Midway! I was invited to be part of a council associated with something called 'Tribalry', a company dedicated to bringing like-minded, similarly motivated, and professionally associated people together to find common ground and to help build friendships and business connections. 
Image - Craig Jensen
I'm here to tell you that these people know how to do it! They had us gather in a big meeting hall, with tables seating 5 - 6. We gathered in our various tribes--health and wellness, bloggers, baby boomers, PR, financial planners, moms, event planners, etc. We were then told to tell a little bit about ourselves in about 2 minutes. We got to hear stories about everyone and it was a great time! We spent a lot of time talking, listening, and taking notes for the whole course of the morning and afternoon, just getting to know people and making connections! I felt like it was going pretty well and I heard lots of great stories, but then something happened. I took the next step, became vulnerable, and revealed more of myself than I ever thought I would. There was a group of women at one of my tables whom I had learned a little bit about previously and I instinctively felt that we all had experienced something similar in our lives. But not only that, we had managed to deal with those experiences in similar ways. I found myself admiring and being drawn to what they had learned. I found myself being inspired by their experiences. (Names changed to protect indentity)

Each one of these lovely ladies had experienced a great loss of one kind or another. But each one had managed to come back with grace and strength, and had adapted to their losses creatively and even profitably! Briefly, here are their stories:

Sarah unexpectedly had a stroke that paralyzed the entire right side of her body. She was left without the ability to care for herself or to even speak. Gradually, and with a lot of work, she was able to get back a lot of what she lost. Ultimately she did have to give up skills that had formerly been easy for her. But she was so grateful to be able to have what she has now and is very accepting of her limitations and is so positive that people around her are lifted by her gentle spirit. She is also very skilled at crochet!

Cindy loved dancing as a girl and young adult. She was looking towards becoming a dance major, graduating in dance and dancing professionally. She lived and breathed dance. But tragedy struck when she was involved in a serious car accident that rendered her immobile and unable to move, much less dance. She never regained her ability to dance. With the evaporation of her dream, she had to find other interests that were within her abilities. She found that she was good at writing. She developed her skill and is a  published author of at least several books. She is a public speaker. She makes beautiful jewelry and she is a traveler. She also is a Life Counselor who is very generous with her hints and tips. I took one of her tips to heart to make my own professional and personal life richer and more meaningful!

Bethany's world was her husband and family. Married to the love of her life for many years, he unexpectedly betrayed her and ruined their marriage. It ended in divorce. He then stole her intellectual property and used it for his own financial gain, giving her nothing in return. She has had to pick up the pieces of her own identity, which was so intertwined with her marriage and what that represented. It hasn't been easy and she has been tempted to take the path of bitterness and revenge. But instead she has chosen to be positive, build from the ground up, and state her intentions of growth. She is adamant that she wants to be married again and is positive that there is love waiting for her at some point, even though she isn't young anymore. She is so positive and upbeat and faces the world with dignity, courage and hope! I know that her positive vibes will attract what she is seeking!

When I started learning about these women, my guard was let down and I started to feel trust in them. That is a strange emotion for me. My own life's experiences have not been ones to foster that particular trait. Trust doesn't come free with me. I realize that not everyone can relate to where I have come from, a divorcee whose husband not only unexpectedly left her, but took everything, including her precious children and was successful in keeping them despite many and repeated efforts and finances to gain them back. I was taken by surprise, destitute, broken, and unable to navigate the curve balls dealt out to me.Thus I was never able to raise them as a true mother, and the role of "mom" was taken from me. Even my own family looked at me like I was some kind of failure for many years, ostracizing  and criticizing me. So why should I expect anyone to believe or relate to my story?  I eventually was able to rebuild my life, re-connect with my sons, and become identified as something more than a "birth mom". 

When I realized that these women experienced loss that completely took away their former identities, and yet they were able to rebuild, it was so empowering! I felt such a sense of healing. They could understand me because they had lived through similar experiences. I'm thankful that I was able to experience yet another step in my lifelong recovery from the one trauma that could have destroyed me personally forever, but didn't!
This certainly isn't a sponsored post, but I can tell you that this controlled and empowering experience was life-changing for me. If you hear about 'Tribalry', you should definitely check it out! 
 Today is "My Post Monday!", a curation of the week's best original content. It's all about posts from Crafts to Camping, Wellness to Wealth, Fashion to Food, and whatever else is on the brain!  I  open up with a post of my own and then follow it up with a linky of the week's top original blog posts! It's all about what the writer thinks, believes, and knows--in other words, they are active, writing blogs. If I happen to find a great original, non-sponsored post, I'll link it up and share it with you here and on Twitter via the #MyPostMonday hashtag!  I can miss some amazing posts, but I don't want to!  So, in addition, if you'd like to link up yourself, you can do that too!  I'll visit your site, comment, promote and publicize(Affiliate links welcome) 

Monday, July 18, 2016

Clear Vision + #MyPostMonday Link-Up

It has been a really hard few months for everyone and I'm not just talking Americans. With the advent of the internet, we are painfully aware of many of the world's tragedies unfolding before our eyes. And since it is so easy to hop on a plane, and be in another country in a matter of a few hours, we feel more connected than ever to our brothers and sisters overseas. There is anger and outrage, no matter what side you're on, and either side feels they have the monopoly on being right. There seems to be no shortage of those who will take matters into their own hands and wield out punishments they feel are deserved for injustices caused, not even to them personally, but done to others who may be similar in circumstances, beliefs, color, religion, politics, etc. The list goes on and on. 

Personally, I feel like crawling in a little hole and just letting it all pass by, hoping I somehow won't be affected by it all. Not saying I'm doing that--I am very tuned in to Social Media, like everyone else. I get the news. I get at least several reports per day on the things that are going down. It is disturbing. Those who do nothing are as bad as those who go against the cause.

Monday, October 19, 2015

Water and Lamps + #MotivatingMonday Link-Up

Have you ever had one of those sledgehammer types of weeks? Where toxicity in all of its rusty shades tries to erode its ugly way into your heart, brain, and soul? Do you know how hard it is to get up after toxic people get to you? It could even be yourself--negative self-talk, learned after a lifetime of someone else talking negatively to you. The best advice I have is to get away from it as fast as possible!
It's so important to surround yourself with family and friends who are positive, encouraging, and non-judgmental. Thankfully, I have quite a few friends and family members who are like that. I just need to block out the negative forces and influences that try to get into my life. Sometimes it's hard, though. When you have a toxic work environment, a toxic family member or relative, or have been subjected to undeserved toxicity as a child. 
WATER
In 'The Hidden Messages Of Water', by Masaru Emoto, droplets of water are transformed into molecular snowflake patterns by simple one-word introductions, either by voice or print. It is amazing to see how the influence of positive words, music, or ideas will help the water droplets form beautiful and amazing crystals. Just the opposite effect happens, however, when negative words, ideas, or music are placed in the droplet's path--ugly, misshapen, ill-formed crystals are formed.
Image by Leanne Kartchner
Of course we are way more complex than a drop of water, but we are influenced just the way water is. It is just so interesting to see how these influences change a living organism at such a fundamental level. 
LAMPS
If you have been subjected to toxicity, whether in words, music, pictures, or any other kind of negativity, even your own self-talk, I believe you can become healed. It's a personal journey, but I know it's possible! I'm so grateful to friends and family around me who exude goodness and give me courage until I can again walk on my own!
LAMPS
"I met a stranger in the night
Whose lamp had ceased to shine.
I paused and let him light
His lamp from mine.

A tempest sprang up later on
And shook the world about.
And when the wind was gone
My lamp was out!

But back to me the stranger came—

His lamp was glowing fine!

He held the precious flame
And lighted mine!"  --Lon Woodrun, 1940
Today is Motivating Monday!  We all need a little motivation!  I, for one, love to explore other sites for motivating, non-sponsored posts, tips, pictures and videos! Sponsored posts are great and I appreciate the information from well-written and authentic sponsored posts, but I also love non-sponsored posts because they are all about the person and less about a specific brand! If I happen to find a great non-sponsored post, I'll link it up and share it with you here and on Twitter via the #MotivatingMonday hashtag!  It's like being featured!  I can miss some amazing posts, but I don't want to!  So, in addition, if you'd like to link up yourself, you can do that too!  I'll visit your site, comment, promote and publicize! Remember, any link to your posts helps your blog numbers increase! (Affiliate links OK)