"It's impossible," said pride...
"It's risky," said experience.
"It's pointless," said reason...
"Give it a try" whispered the heart...
**********
"I honestly think it is better to be a failure at something you love than to be a success at something you hate."
-George Burns
**********
"It is impossible to live without failing at something.
Unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all...
Which in case, you fail by default."
-JK Rowling
**********
"Courage is the discovery that you may not win, and trying when you know you can lose."
-Tom Krause
**********
"I've learned that making a living is not the same thing as making a life."
-Maya Angelou
**********
"Anyone can give up...it's the easiest thing in the world to do.
But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart,
That is true strength."
**********
"I've learned that people may forget what you said..
They will forget what you did...
But they will never forget the way you made them feel"
-Maya Angelou
**********
"Never be afraid to try something new.
Remember...amateurs built the ark...
Professionals built the Titanic."
**********
"You are braver than you believe,
Stronger than you seem,
And smarter than you think."
-AA Milne
**********
"No man on his deathbed has ever looked up into the eyes of his family and said, "I wish I had spent more time at the office."
**********
Monday, September 5, 2011
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Thoughts on Strength
I wanted to share some quotes that say exactly what I wish I could...Hopefully, they provide a new insight or solace to others in need of strength in coping with any sort of challenge....because bad hair days, bitchy people and days you swear will never end (unfortunately) happen to us all...
And because i can never just leave well enough alone, I added some of my own "deep thoughts"...
Shocking, I know...
**********
If nothing else, one day you can look someone straight in the eyes and say,"...but I lived through it. And it made me who I am today."
**********
Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some sort of battle.
(it is so true.... Everyone is carrying a burden of some kind. Whether they be devastated by grief, worried about a family member, finances or a harbor a secret affinity for Patrick Swayze even though he has a feathered mullet in your favorite movie; everyone has something weighing heavily on them (and unfortunately for "a friend," it's not Patrick Swayze).... Moral of the story, instead of giving the charming lady chatting on her cell phone charging down the 101 in her beige SUV while cutting you off the finger; give her the benefit of the doubt. She could be rushing to say a final goodbye to a loved one, or late for a meeting with her boss, or (more likely) is blissfully unaware of the world outside her Mercedes and wants to get a covered parking spot for lunch with the "girls" at Neiman's....it doesn't matter. Save yourself the obscene gesture ticket and just let it go. Consider yourself lucky if that is the very worst thing that happens to you that day. I mean think...some people have monumental challenges to face. They might have to park in above ground parking....the injustice is just too much to bear.)
**********
You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.
(Being a grown-up totally has it's perks...but the tolls paid for all the freedom and responsibility you once so naively craved are unrelentingly constant and seemingly always due. You become so stressed with the day-to-day that it is impossible to think you can handle anything else, I mean, you already have so many important obligations....and then, faster than you can say "Zac Effron," your entire world is destroyed. We're not talking, "I can't believe they gave me Jennifer Aniston highlights when I specifically asked for Blake Lively blonde," I'm talking about a moment in which you instantly know your life has been divided into two very distinct chapters...you will only have memories of the "before." The life you previously knew, the priorities you held, the dreams you longed for are no longer possible. The "after" begins upon witnessing the comprehensive annihilation of every spiritual or theological view in which you previously sought comfort. These are the sort of events that are so swiftly devastating, so surreal....as you instinctually take one last deep breath, the exhalation releasing the part of your soul that died with him....the revocation of a life in which you no longer exist. And after all is said and done, those few moments of total clarity in which you realize you are transfused so wholly with pain and unfathomable depths of despair....the rest becomes a blur. My mind and soul resemble the frantic, unorganized chaos of a hurricane...yet in the eye- the calm of the storm-I know that although my little world has been forever rocked off the axis, life must continue. One foot in front of the other...one day at a time. Being strong has nothing to do with physical strength. Being strong right now means that tomorrow will come, and the day after that...and that is all I can say with any certainty. Strength now means the acknowledgment of those tomorrow's, and the strength of recognizing that I cannot control anything other than to walk with my family...one foot in front of the other, one day at a time...knowing the strength of our marriage, love of our babies, and the support of our family will allow us to emerge from the other side of this nightmarish storm. I have I feeling that I'm stronger than I ever imagined I could be. Because I have no other choice. And when I emerge from this hellish hurricane, I damn sure better have beachy, Blake Lively blond hair. I figure I've earned it.)
**********
Perhaps strength doesn't reside in having never been broken...
But the courage to grow strong in the broken places.
(if you never love deeply, you can never be truly hurt....and pristine heart is not a medal of honor, but rather the sorrowful burden carried by a coward. To quote the poetic genus of Def Leppard, Love Bites...
Those who carry broken hearts are the walking wounded. The sting of rejection, well, totally sucks. It takes tremendous tenacity, a quality best paired with a bit of insight into who you are and what you truly want, to risk really putting yourself "out there" again. A gin and tonic-or four- doesn't hurt either...To have a broken heart meant that at one point, you were vulnerable. You trusted, maybe even loved another person. Broken hearts are also badges worn by the brave, possibly the ice cream eating, Notebook watching, rebound make out bandit session participants, but brave nonetheless. Of course it would be easier to go thru life and never experience the agony of hurt...nursing their wounds, and moving forward. Why put yourself thru this seemingly unnecessary trauma? Because anyone who has ever felt true love-romantic or otherwise-will attest that the risk of heartbreak is real...and potentially painful, no other feeling compares.
**********
Some people need a high five...
In the face...
With a chair.
(seriously. How many times have you been left in awe or total frustration at the stupidity/insensitivity/"did they really just say that out loud" idiotic situations you might find yourself in and thought to yourself that if it wouldn't get you fired, arrested or any combination of the two; and that it takes every ounce of self-control to not slap, kick or engage in any other form of furniture tossing in the facial direction of your conversational partner? I swear I have a higher than average threshold for the moronic behavior of others; but I'll be damned if I haven't thought of flicking people on the forehead while saying "you.are.an.idiot." rather than providing the polite smile and responding with something in the arena of "...well, that's an interesting theory/idea/request that I will surely consider..." One should never discount the sense of fulfillment gained by a good ol' fashioned bitch slap. Even if it is just a daydream....And yes, I am aware this flies in the face of my "be kinder" quote listed above. Dont judge....you've been there too.
**********
Courage does not always roar.
Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow."
-MaryAnne Radmacher
**********
Crying doesn't indicate that you are weak.
Since birth it has always been a sign that your alive.
(I'm the first to admit it...I'm a big cryer. And not always because I'm sad or angry, although that certainly seems to be the truth now...I cry at Lifetime movies, commercials where the father dances with his daughter or a Hallmark commercial where the daughter with the new baby sends a card to her mom... I cry at the Notebook and Titanic, The American President or Steel Magnolias every time I see them...which is frequently. I cry when I think of friends I miss, frustrations about work. I cry at weddings, when I'm really proud of an accomplishment made by someone I love. Those damn Sarah McLaughlin ASPCA commercials or the one with the polar bear floating out to sea on an ice floe gets me every time...I cry at the Darius Rucker song he wrote about his daughter, the song "Godspeed" by the Dixie Chicks and anytime I hear bagpipes playing Amazing Grace. I cry because I feel powerless, or I cry because I don't know how else to express how much it hurts when things just don't go as planned and my frustration has no other outlet... Now, those triggers seem so insignificant...innocent in a way. So much more breaks my heart now, and what was once a cathartic release is now a daily constant. I sob for the loss of my Liam, mourn the loss of raising the triplet boys I so quickly leaned of and so quickly lost...I cry now out of anger and so desperately want solutions to for unanswerable questions. And I cry because I'm so afraid of becoming a shell...so desperate to cry again out of joy, and terrified that I might not feel a pure emotion not tainted by anger or pain, and for this sorrow, I cannot cry....
**********
Sometimes when I say "I'm okay," I want someone to look me in the eyes, hug me tight and say, "I know you're not."
And because i can never just leave well enough alone, I added some of my own "deep thoughts"...
Shocking, I know...
**********
If nothing else, one day you can look someone straight in the eyes and say,"...but I lived through it. And it made me who I am today."
**********
Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some sort of battle.
(it is so true.... Everyone is carrying a burden of some kind. Whether they be devastated by grief, worried about a family member, finances or a harbor a secret affinity for Patrick Swayze even though he has a feathered mullet in your favorite movie; everyone has something weighing heavily on them (and unfortunately for "a friend," it's not Patrick Swayze).... Moral of the story, instead of giving the charming lady chatting on her cell phone charging down the 101 in her beige SUV while cutting you off the finger; give her the benefit of the doubt. She could be rushing to say a final goodbye to a loved one, or late for a meeting with her boss, or (more likely) is blissfully unaware of the world outside her Mercedes and wants to get a covered parking spot for lunch with the "girls" at Neiman's....it doesn't matter. Save yourself the obscene gesture ticket and just let it go. Consider yourself lucky if that is the very worst thing that happens to you that day. I mean think...some people have monumental challenges to face. They might have to park in above ground parking....the injustice is just too much to bear.)
**********
You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.
(Being a grown-up totally has it's perks...but the tolls paid for all the freedom and responsibility you once so naively craved are unrelentingly constant and seemingly always due. You become so stressed with the day-to-day that it is impossible to think you can handle anything else, I mean, you already have so many important obligations....and then, faster than you can say "Zac Effron," your entire world is destroyed. We're not talking, "I can't believe they gave me Jennifer Aniston highlights when I specifically asked for Blake Lively blonde," I'm talking about a moment in which you instantly know your life has been divided into two very distinct chapters...you will only have memories of the "before." The life you previously knew, the priorities you held, the dreams you longed for are no longer possible. The "after" begins upon witnessing the comprehensive annihilation of every spiritual or theological view in which you previously sought comfort. These are the sort of events that are so swiftly devastating, so surreal....as you instinctually take one last deep breath, the exhalation releasing the part of your soul that died with him....the revocation of a life in which you no longer exist. And after all is said and done, those few moments of total clarity in which you realize you are transfused so wholly with pain and unfathomable depths of despair....the rest becomes a blur. My mind and soul resemble the frantic, unorganized chaos of a hurricane...yet in the eye- the calm of the storm-I know that although my little world has been forever rocked off the axis, life must continue. One foot in front of the other...one day at a time. Being strong has nothing to do with physical strength. Being strong right now means that tomorrow will come, and the day after that...and that is all I can say with any certainty. Strength now means the acknowledgment of those tomorrow's, and the strength of recognizing that I cannot control anything other than to walk with my family...one foot in front of the other, one day at a time...knowing the strength of our marriage, love of our babies, and the support of our family will allow us to emerge from the other side of this nightmarish storm. I have I feeling that I'm stronger than I ever imagined I could be. Because I have no other choice. And when I emerge from this hellish hurricane, I damn sure better have beachy, Blake Lively blond hair. I figure I've earned it.)
**********
Perhaps strength doesn't reside in having never been broken...
But the courage to grow strong in the broken places.
(if you never love deeply, you can never be truly hurt....and pristine heart is not a medal of honor, but rather the sorrowful burden carried by a coward. To quote the poetic genus of Def Leppard, Love Bites...
Those who carry broken hearts are the walking wounded. The sting of rejection, well, totally sucks. It takes tremendous tenacity, a quality best paired with a bit of insight into who you are and what you truly want, to risk really putting yourself "out there" again. A gin and tonic-or four- doesn't hurt either...To have a broken heart meant that at one point, you were vulnerable. You trusted, maybe even loved another person. Broken hearts are also badges worn by the brave, possibly the ice cream eating, Notebook watching, rebound make out bandit session participants, but brave nonetheless. Of course it would be easier to go thru life and never experience the agony of hurt...nursing their wounds, and moving forward. Why put yourself thru this seemingly unnecessary trauma? Because anyone who has ever felt true love-romantic or otherwise-will attest that the risk of heartbreak is real...and potentially painful, no other feeling compares.
**********
Some people need a high five...
In the face...
With a chair.
(seriously. How many times have you been left in awe or total frustration at the stupidity/insensitivity/"did they really just say that out loud" idiotic situations you might find yourself in and thought to yourself that if it wouldn't get you fired, arrested or any combination of the two; and that it takes every ounce of self-control to not slap, kick or engage in any other form of furniture tossing in the facial direction of your conversational partner? I swear I have a higher than average threshold for the moronic behavior of others; but I'll be damned if I haven't thought of flicking people on the forehead while saying "you.are.an.idiot." rather than providing the polite smile and responding with something in the arena of "...well, that's an interesting theory/idea/request that I will surely consider..." One should never discount the sense of fulfillment gained by a good ol' fashioned bitch slap. Even if it is just a daydream....And yes, I am aware this flies in the face of my "be kinder" quote listed above. Dont judge....you've been there too.
**********
Courage does not always roar.
Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow."
-MaryAnne Radmacher
**********
Crying doesn't indicate that you are weak.
Since birth it has always been a sign that your alive.
(I'm the first to admit it...I'm a big cryer. And not always because I'm sad or angry, although that certainly seems to be the truth now...I cry at Lifetime movies, commercials where the father dances with his daughter or a Hallmark commercial where the daughter with the new baby sends a card to her mom... I cry at the Notebook and Titanic, The American President or Steel Magnolias every time I see them...which is frequently. I cry when I think of friends I miss, frustrations about work. I cry at weddings, when I'm really proud of an accomplishment made by someone I love. Those damn Sarah McLaughlin ASPCA commercials or the one with the polar bear floating out to sea on an ice floe gets me every time...I cry at the Darius Rucker song he wrote about his daughter, the song "Godspeed" by the Dixie Chicks and anytime I hear bagpipes playing Amazing Grace. I cry because I feel powerless, or I cry because I don't know how else to express how much it hurts when things just don't go as planned and my frustration has no other outlet... Now, those triggers seem so insignificant...innocent in a way. So much more breaks my heart now, and what was once a cathartic release is now a daily constant. I sob for the loss of my Liam, mourn the loss of raising the triplet boys I so quickly leaned of and so quickly lost...I cry now out of anger and so desperately want solutions to for unanswerable questions. And I cry because I'm so afraid of becoming a shell...so desperate to cry again out of joy, and terrified that I might not feel a pure emotion not tainted by anger or pain, and for this sorrow, I cannot cry....
**********
Sometimes when I say "I'm okay," I want someone to look me in the eyes, hug me tight and say, "I know you're not."
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