Seek What it is that Creates You

I love this quote.  Life truly is what you make it.  We all have circumstances that make some things hard to acheive, but we also have talents that make other things easier.   I believe discovering your passion is the key to happiness.  That one thing that makes getting out of bed easier in the morning, that is what makes life worth living.  Your passion is what creates you.  And your passion can be the thing that shapes your entire life.

Too often people settle for what’s comfortable or secure in order to just get by.   I, myself, am guilty of this.  I delagated my passion into a casual hobby, and hobbies are always the first things to be sidelined when life gets busy.  It amazes me just how easily I am able to drop the things that truly make me happy in order to do things that can wait until another time or to do things to please others.

I think people forget just how much power they have.  We have the power to make the decisions that will lead us to greater things, that will lead us to our happiness.  I intend to use that power, I hope you do too.

P.S.

I have seen this quote accredited to George Bernard Shaw, not sure why this one says “unknown” but I liked the graphic.

In Pursuit of Happiness

A few days ago I was telling Ramses that as I near 30 I have been feeling very strongly about going after what we really want.  Since November Ramses has completed countless written tests, physical agility tests, interviews, and 25 page + background packets all in pursuit of what he wants… a career in law enforcement.

As I watch him study, train, and wake up at inhuman hours to make appointments in his sharp-looking suit my heart swells with pride.  Up until this point in our lives we’ve been content.  For the most part we’ve achieved everything we set out to achieve and live comfortably enough.  We have a wonderful marriage and a beautiful home.  But contentment does not equal happiness.  I think what was missing was… passion.  Neither of us pursued fulfillment.  We have both worked decent jobs that paid the bills but if I lost my job tomorrow the only thing I would miss is the paycheck.

So what do I truly want from this life?  I want to be healthy.  I want to be a mother.  I want to write and I don’t care if I ever publish anything, I just want to write and finish something that I start.  My goals are simple and as I achieve them, loftier goals may surface but I am willing to focus one day at a time.

Anything of worth takes risk and sacrifice.  And as I watch the people around me follow their passions I feel truly inspired.

Great Reminder

Today was supposed to be a Wordless Wednesday but I kept forgetting my camera this week.  I finally remembered today but the battery is dead!  Guess it wasn’t meant to be.

Rock Out

Just wanted to take a moment to wish lots of leg-breaking upon both David and Emily.  Their  bands The Retcons and D.E.L.T.A. have shows coming up.  Although we don’t make it out to a lot of the shows I think it’s awesome that they follow their passion for music.  I have mad respect for people who go out and do the things that bring them real joy.  =)

Complete Person

“Everyone is a house with four rooms; a physical, an emotional, a mental, and a spiritual one. Most of us tend to live in one room most the time, but unless we go into every room every day, even if only to keep it aired… we are not a complete person.”

-Indian Proverb

I love to write.  More specifically I love to write stories.  When was the last time I wrote a story?  Probably… 5 years ago.  I am not counting what I write in my blogs, those are just personal feelings that turn into words and fall out of my head.  The last time I sat down and wrote about characters and stories that were exciting and emotional was years ago.  So, if I love it so much then why haven’t I taken time to do it?  That is an excellent question, self.

I can make up tons of excuses.    I stuffed all my free time with other pursuits;  buying a home, trying to start a family, work, getting my health on track, etc.  However, the truth of the matter is I decided to neglect that aspect of myself. Sure I longed for the days I would spend hours on end weaving together stories filled with characters I loved and pouring everything I had into it.  But the more time that passed the more I felt like I just didn’t have it in me anymore, that I had lost something that meant so much to me.

I am guilty of “living in one room most of the time.”  That’s clearly evident to me.  There is a Jewel song that I love called Deep Water in it there is a line that says, “And you wake up to realize that your standard of living somehow got stuck on survive.”  That is what has happened to me.  Living is filling your days with the things you love.  The majority of my adult life has been monopolized by health scares and crappy “adult” problems.  Much of those things were out of my control but I allowed myself to fixate on them instead of just accepting them for what they were.

So, it’s time for some spring cleaning!  Those four rooms have cobwebs and dust for days not to mention a whole lot of unnecessary clutter.

I’ve gotten back to my writing.  I’ve spent a couple weeks researching and brainstorming and this week I started actually writing.  It’s taken me four days to get 3 good pages of material but let me tell you, these are the most satisfying 3 pages I have ever written.