dont stop

*via music + pixels!

opportunity

"It's amazing how one small step can lead to another and

before you know it you are on a brand new journey.

You are growing and learning and opportunities are coming

up that you never would have thought of seeing before.

I am standing at the edge of an amazing opportunity.

I can see a glimpse of it, but I dont want to dare jumping for it

because it may just vanish into dust.

Instead I will stand quietly, with a silent excitement and hope

that it lands within my grasp of its own accord.

Never stop dreaming and never stop believing."

The heart aches for what it desires

*via lovebot

"To be with you in this moment would be magic.

You read my mind.

You play with my thoughts.

You keep me up at night.

This is new but I want it to be old, for I desire

the quirks that come with time.

Speak to me the words I long to hear.

My heart is bound to this hope."

Fear can be overcome

*via wishopeace

If you believe you will achieve

*via quote book

Lifted up on humanity

"I was once like you - lost and afraid.

But then someone held out a hand to me and pulled

me out of the darkness.

A word.

A breath.

A smile.

It only takes something small.

A connection.

I was once very small and so very daunted.

But I grew - up and older.

And I changed.

Now I know that there will always be a

buffer for me. Something to stop me dropping all

the way down the deep, dark well.

If I look for it, if I truly place myself in the

hands of humanity then I am lifted.

I used to be just like you until I opened my eyes."

laying it all on the line

*via quote book

"This is currently my truth.

Already I have changed several things that needed

changing, and on the horizon are many more

challenges. I can see them coming.

And I welcome them.

I didnt choose this life to become a passenger,

I am most alive when I grab the wheel and

steer my own course, chart my own life.

I dont want to just sit back and see what happens.

I have dreams, I have goals.

I want to explore.

And nothing will hold me back anymore."

Once more with feeling

*via lovebot

*via thoughts on a sunday

Himalayan Times

I received this email and wanted to pass it along.

>>" This morning I was reading the Himalayan Times at breakfast and found this article.

LIFE THAT MATTERS

Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end.

There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days.

All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten

will pass to someone else. Your wealth, fame and temporal power will

shrivel to irrelevance. It will not matter what you owned

or what you were owed. Your grudges, resentments, frustrations

and jealousies will finally disappear.

So to, your hopes, ambitions, plans and to do lists will expire.

The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.

It wont matter where you came from or what side

of the tracks you lived on at the end.

It wont matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant.

Even your gender and skin colour will be irrelevant.

So what will matter?

What will matter is not what you bought but what you built,

not what you got but what you gave.

What will matter is not your success but your significance.

What will matter is not what you learned but what you taught.

What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion,

courage or sacrifice that enriched, empowered or encouraged

others to emulate your example.

What will matter is not your competence but your character.

What will matter is not how many people you knew,

but how many will feel a lasting loss when you are gone.

What will matter is not your memories but the memories

that live in those who loved you.

What will matter is how long you will be remembered,

by whom and for what.

Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident.

It's not a matter of circumstance but of choice.

Choose a life that matters.">>>

Sunset and hope

*via thresco

A new dawning, a day of hope.

"In one moment my world changed.

That's how it felt.

I didnt see that underneath the surface that change had

been a gradual thing spreading undetected for weeks now.

It took me so long to notice it.

But once I did it swept through me like a hurricane.

I realised that everything we had was gone.

And I felt no pain. No tears.

Just acceptance.

Like a vast forest with no trees.

I saw the sun and it was shining.

Life was returning.

There was new growth on the ground.

Hope was alive."

A promise is nothing without the follow through

“Promise yourself to be so strong that nothing can

disturb your peace of mind. Look at the sunny side

of everything and make your optimism come true.

Think only of the best, work only for the best and

expect only the best. Forget the mistakes of the past

and press on to the greater achievements of the future.

Give so much time to the improvement of yourself that

you have no time to criticize others.

Live in the faith that the whole world is on your side

as long as you are true to the best that is in you!”
-Christian D. Larson

*via little miss

"Every great dream begins with a dreamer.

Always remember, you have within you the strength,

the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars

to change the world.”
— Harriet Tubman

*via kari-shma

“We make a living by what we get,

but we make a life by what we give.”
— Sir Winston Churchill

*via kari-shma

Finding your place in the world

*via quote book

*via music + pixels

I see you

"And the only thing that keeps me going is the thought of you,

sitting in your room and looking out the window,

thinking about me.

You dont know me yet and I dont know you,

but you are out there living your life with a hole the exact size of me.

The thing is that you wont even realise this until we finally meet.

And I may not realise it is you either, so keep an open heart and mind

and we'll try with all our might not to pass each other by."

I see it all

And together we made colors that dont even exist yet.

A new dawn

It just so happened that I was awake at 4am this morning (the only time not being able to sleep is a good thing) and so I turned the tv on to watch the Obama Inauguration live. I was so humbled and honoured and proud to be sitting there watching and as he took the official oath I found myself crying -but tears of happiness for a change. What a really great speech too. This feels so good for my soul.

“ Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek. "

"People will judge you on what you can BUILD, not what you destroy."

dont shut out the light

I was lost... and what I found.

I wasnt lost in the physical sense, but I was lost on my path in a spiritual sense. I wandered all along the canal and decided to see where the water ended up. So I walked to the end where nothing lay and then back to the start again, stopping along the way to sit on various benches underneath trees and to feel leaves etc. I ended up at the ocean. Then I followed the wall and danced upon it like a child again. Suddenly I stopped to listen to the ocean and look at the view and when I looked down I saw what is in the photo below. It gave me strength and made me think that maybe I am on the right path afterall. These are the kind of signs that I look for... and I have been lucky to have found a few lately.

I just need to believe...

there is always hope

I lost my friend today, but I am holding out hope that I will find him somewhere on the way home. He was last seen attached to my handbag but when I looked today I realised that the little bugger had escaped!! Or maybe someone stole him. Either way I hope that little hotpants comes back home soon. He was very special to me.
It was one of the tealadies birthdays at work today, she turned 70. Most of the 190 staff members we have at head office went to the party to congratulate her. Naturally I was the first person to take a cupcake. It was a beautiful speech, a lovely turnout and many people were crying with happiness. I can only hope that when I am 70 I would have touched the lives of half that many people.

the aftermath

I'm not sure how I thought I would feel if this day ever came, if I ever woke up in the morning and realised it all wasnt just a dream. If I realised that America turned hope into reality and made Barack Obama their next president. I dont know how I thought I would feel but I do know how I am feeling right now. It feels good. It feels like a little light inside us all just got a bit brighter. Now I know that this doesnt change the past but I believe that it gives a lot of hope to the future. We have eliminated that shred of doubt that true change can move a nation. The fact is that regardless of the color of his skin - Barack is an incredible person. And because of the color of his skin he has changed the world. It shouldnt make a difference, but it does. It is just a fact, and through this fact the difference of color has faded a little. All differences have faded a little. We have become more united than ever. We all start to believe that maybe we can.
The empowerment has begun.