Tag Archives: Accomplished

Thoughtful Thursday

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THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY

Power of a Smile

Researchers have found that smiling, evokes a feeling of happiness and has many positive effects on our overall wellbeing. On my morning walks I’ve encountered many people on the road especially these days. But to my surprise, a lot of them were, well, grump misers. I would smile and give them a nice “Good Morning” a few would respond but a lot would just grunt and keep going.

My parents always told me stories of how I was the happiest baby, always laughing and smiling and I still am. Truth be told, it just makes you feel good. Sure, life isn’t perfect and things go wrong for all of us, but it comes down to what are you going to do with that curve ball life just threw your way. Are you going to be miserable or are you going to make the best of it and find something to smile about. Personally I prefer to find that silver lining in the cloud.

With all these morning grump misers, I thought I can’t let them be this unhappy, because happiness and positive energy is contagious. So I upped my game. I started giving everyone a big smile with a resounding “Good Morning!” And if that didn’t work, the next time I’d add in a twinkling little wave along with my big smile and greeting. I was determined to share the happy!

Funny thing started to happen, even the grumpiest people would get happy when they saw me coming their way. The happiness and positive energy has been so contagious, that they are now, seeking me out for that “Good Morning” smile and it’s just really nice to know that your smile and positive energy has the power to brighten someone else’s day.

We have unusual circumstances these days where many of us are in environments where we have to wear masks a lot but you can still see a smile in a person’s eyes and you feel the positive energy radiating from them. So don’t use that as an excuse not to smile and share the happy. Imagine how different the world could be if more people would share a smile and positive energy.

Who did you share your smile with today?

“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.” Thich Nhat Hanh

Thanks for stopping by, Share the Happy!

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THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY

Fear

I read an interesting article written by Chip Gaines in the Summer 2020 issue of Magnolia Journal. In the article he posed a good question: “If fear wasn’t a part of the equation, how would your life look different?”

It really got me thinking. Fear always plays a pretty big role in all of our lives everyday. We don’t move forward with projects out of fear of failure. We hold back on meeting new people because we’re afraid of being rejected. We don’t sing, create art or dance to our hearts content because we’re afraid of being ridiculed or laughed at.

But ultimately, we end up hurting ourselves. We lose out on life, by sitting on the sidelines allowing fear to grip us tight and hold us back. I’m not saying that fear is bad, it’s also a good thing because fear keeps us safe. But often times we let it get out of control when it isn’t necessarily needed. We need fear but we also need to keep it in check. We need to be sensible but when it comes to living our lives and being in the present moment or sitting it out on the bench, please choose to enjoy life! It is so much more fulfilling and it’s one of the reasons we’re here. So live your life to the fullest everyday!

“In the end, we only regret the chances we didn’t take.” ~ Lewis Carroll

Thanks for stopping by, Share the Happy!

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THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY

Words of Wisdom

I am a collector of quotes. They inspire and motivate you and touch your heart and soul. These are a few of my favorites from “Inspirational Quotes illustrated” by Lesley Riley.

This book quickly became one of my favorites. Lesley did a magnificent job collecting 130 quotes and paired them with beautiful illustrations by various artists. The pages in the book are perforated so you can easily tear them out and frame them if you like.

Click on the above image to go directly to Amazon

“We are not human beings have a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.” ~Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

“The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.” ~Helen Keller

“Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as the attitude you bring to life.” ~Khalil Gibrain

“Some days there won’t be a song in your heart. Sing anyway.” ~Emory Austin

“We have a tendency to obscure the forest of simple joys with the trees of problems.” ~Christiane Collange

What is your favorite quote?

Thanks for stopping by, Share the Happy!

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THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY

Confidence

Not sure if you read last week’s Thoughtful Thursday Post but I entered a virtual challenge for the week from Garmin, competing against 9 other runners. The goal was distance. It officially ended on Monday and I walked 33.9 miles and took 1st Place!! That was such a milestone for me. I was never able to do this when I was younger, much less win 1st Place but I was determined. I wanted to throw in the towel a few times but I had to reach down deep and find the courage and perseverance to keep going. Everything in my body was starting to hurt. But I really wanted to win.

I had no intention of walking this much but Jon, who was in 2nd Place was absolutely relentless. Every time I tried to put a little more distance between us he up’d his game and closed the gap. I am very thankful for Jon because he pushed me to do more and more. More than I ever thought I was capable of. Almost 34 miles in 1 week!!! It was unbelievably hard and I’m so glad it’s done because I’m exhausted.

After finishing this race, my confidence in myself definitely went up a few notches. I now know that that I have the drive and ability to tackle what may appear as a monumental task and come out victorious. Even if I don’t know how to go about it, I’m more than capable of figuring it out and that’s a very good feeling.

This wasn’t an official race. There were no trophies, no one cheering you along from the sidelines. It was just me and my Garmin, tracking my miles. But I’m very proud of my virtual win because for me this was so much more than just winning.

What area of your life do you need to boost your confidence in? Take on that monumental task and prove to yourself that you CAN do it!

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Personal Drive

I never thought I would like competing as much as I do. I guess it drives me to do better and that’s why I’ve grown to like it so much. I got a Garmin Watch from my hubby for my birthday a few months ago. I had no idea what missing until I got this watch. I really, really love it! One of the cool things is that you can install the Garmin app on your phone and sync it with your watch. Garmin has different challenges every week and month. So I entered my first challenge last week.

The goal of this challenge was to walk 25,000 steps in a week which is about 12.5 miles so you can advance to the next level. I entered it a few days in and was excited to see I was in 6th place out of 10 other people who also entered. I moved up to 4th and sadly dropped finished in 7th Place. The other walkers had way more steps than me, I didn’t even come close. The winner of the group completed about 29+ miles. Very impressive to say the least!!

After losing that challenge, I entered it again for this week. I’m determined to finish in 1st place so I’ve been doing a lot of walking, much more than usual. The hardest part is the South Florida heat. The humidity has been really bad lately. It definitely slows down your pace but I refuse to give up. Today I walked the furthest yet, a whopping 5 miles. It took me 1 hour, 20 minutes. I really started to fizzle in the end but I persevered and reached my goal! I’ve walked nearly 13.5 miles in 3 days which is not bad considering I would normally have anywhere from 6 to 9 miles for an entire week.

As of this moment, I’m still in 1st Place. But the others are closing in fast. It’s going to be a tough challenge but I’m seeing it through. Wish me luck!!

What is something that challenges you and drives you to do better?

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Power of the Mind

I was on my walk/run the other day and completed my best time ever for 2 miles: 24 minutes, 34 seconds. I was ecstatic and amazed at what I accomplished.

When I was little, I suffered from respiratory illness. The word “running” was not in my vocabulary since my lungs could not handle it. I was constantly told “you can’t do it.” I eventually adopted this mindset and when things would get a little tough, I’d give up because I believed everyone was right.

Fast forward to now, I just read the book “Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself: How to Lose Your Mind and Create a New One”  by Dr. Joe Dispenza. He talked about rewiring your brain to change your body. An idea that sounded impossible but I’ve come to realize is very possible. 

I loved what Dr. Dispenza wrote so much that I’m continuing to read another one of his books titled “Becoming Super Natural: How Common People are Doing the Uncommon.”

I also started meditating this year. I have to say, it seemed odd at first, but the more I practiced, the more I grew to love it. It truly is a wonderful reset!

This morning I went on a walk, and I noticed something. The running segments that I had been doing  were getting longer and easier each time. I also noticed that when I start my running segment my mind switches gears. I go into a kind of meditative state and instead of saying to myself “Oh this is hard, I just have to get to my marker and I can stop.” I now say “This is easy; I got this; no problem.” My focus is no longer on making it from one marker to another, but rather the act of running and the ease of it. This helped me to break my negative thoughts and now I end up running past my markers without realizing it!

I made a decision to silence these negative thoughts because if I can reprogram my mind to make my body stronger (something I was told my whole life wasn’t possible) what else can I achieve? The possibilities are are endless!

What I’ve learned from Dr Dispenza has been mind blowing. I highly recommend you check out his website: drjoedispenza.com and his books. They’re amazing!

What would you like to achieve or change in your life? 

Photo by Maria / Cherry Blossoms, Washington DC