Day 13 of Counting Blessings-The Gift of Now

It is the 31st of December 2013 a unique day.Not because it is the end of the year, that is obvious but rather because if you are alive now, you will never experience this day again.Contrary to the few movies we have seen of people who can travel back in time, that unfortunately is a fable.

I want us to learn to make use of everyday the 'now'.No one is guaranteed to be here tomorrow or the next day.When I was in High School, I kept hearing this phrase"live as if today was your last day".
This is not a depressing post I promise.(lol!!, yes I am a part of the 'lol' generation).

Moving along swiftly..all of us have the now to maximize. Stop waiting until the next day or next year to loose weight or to stop a bad habit. I didn't say that any of what I am saying is easy to do,NO!! but bravery comes in making the first step.Stop procrastinating and leave in the now in order to make an informed investment in your tomorrow. We cannot be afraid of living waiting for the perfect time or the most convenient day, come on walk on, trust me there are many of us behind you. Appreciate the "now" and be hopeful for tomorrow.

Finally, wherever you are spending tonight and with whoever you will be with just remember to let go of the fear, anger, depression and anything else holding you back and launch out to the deep.Enjoy your New Year's eve & New Year.

Day 12 of Counting Blessings-Freedom of Choice

There are so many things we take for granted even as minute as they seem they are all important. When you listen to the history of most countries in Africa, it includes a history of oppression and slavery. These are the issues that the wise men and women who are the anchors of most of our democracy fought for.

 

God created man a rational being, conferring on him the dignity of a person who can initiate and control his own actions. "God willed that man should be 'left in the hand of his own counsel,' so that he might of his own accord seek his Creator and freely attain his full and blessed perfection by cleaving to him. We are all blessed in that we have the freedom of choice, we can choose desert over meals, decide where to go who to allow into our lives and vice versa. It is those little things that truly show how blessed we are.

Day 11 of Counting Blessings-Fresh Start

The countdown is officially on just two more nights before we can officially step into 2014.Onething I love about a new year is the new opportunities it gives us for a fresh start. I love something about the sunshine that comes after rain, it has that cleaning effect. We all should be grateful if we are able to see a new day because despite what you have been through the previous night, joy comes with the morning. The next day is an opportunity to start over to make things right and to make amends.

Walk in 2014 knowing that you have a blank page to write your own  story. You will determine the story you want to tell. Count your blessings today because you are alive and you have today to make a better tomorrow.

 

Day 10 Counting Blessings

Woow!!Days have definitely moved very fast. It is almost the end of the year would you believe it, I am definitely looking forward to the new year, I have lots of dreams and aspirations for the new year.

 

If you do have a sound mind, you have the ability to dream. I have no idea if there is anyone who is alive and kicking and has no dreams. I am not talking about the dreams associated to sleeping but rather hopes and aspirations. Someone once said, it is better to dream with your eyes open than vice versa. Regardless of your dreaming pattern the ability to be able to want something and achieve it is a miracle. It is a blessing to be able to look back and be grateful for the things that were once a dream but in 2013 it became a reality. who said you cant achieve your dreams? Who said you cant have your dream car or job?

 

Before you click on to the next BlogSpot, I want to indulge you for a moment. I have the competitor within me. The voice that tells me that I can't do something so I make it a point in my life to prove to myself that no matter what, I can never stop dreaming. If you never learn to dream, you will never recognise when you have made it. So my friends, if you have dreams, you are blessed. If you have a vision of who you want to be, I am telling you right now, no matter how many voices in you or around that tell you that you can't be the person you see in your vision, believe me you are more than capable.

Never allow anyone to fade your dreams or any situation to keep you away from the endless possibilities in life.

 

As Real As It Gets: Day 9 of Counting Blessings

As Real As It Gets: Day 9 of Counting Blessings: Would  you believe it? Its almost day 14 the finale of the series we have been doing on gratitude.Today or tonight depending on your side o...

Day 9 of Counting Blessings

Would  you believe it? Its almost day 14 the finale of the series we have been doing on gratitude.Today or tonight depending on your side of the world. I want to take us back to the simple things we rarely notice. Have you ever gone to a restaurant and received such good service that it made you believe that contrary to popular belief, there is actually people who do care about their jobs and customer care is not as rare as we thought? The people who clean our bathrooms and do the 'dirty' jobs that some of us would never be caught dead doing. What  about the plumber or mechanic? The garden boy who is diligent and does his work to the best of his potential.

 

I am grateful for the people who clean our streets and parks, have you seen those wonderful gentlemen and ladies that help us at malls to pack or help us with our groceries all for us to give them a few shillings or rands?  I am grateful for those people who work in the background or behind the scenes; the working mothers & dads (some who get home when the kids have gone to bed but are inspired to go out and making a living to make their children's lives that much better), the housewives the teachers we grew up loving to  loath but as we grow older, we realise we are much better people because of them.

 

Just the other day I saw an amazing sight. There is a recently unemployed gentleman who warmed my heart. He was hanging the laundry as his wife was at  work. Does he have to? No! I loved that scene because as irrelevant as that may seem to others he was doing his bit to make it easier for his wife when she finally got home. We all have a role to play in this world some of us share in the shadows while the rest share in the limelight. All of us as we are with our different roles, are unique and important. Whichever role you play, know today you are appreciated and someone somewhere is thanking God for you.

Day 8 of Counting Blessings

I hope you all had an amazing time on Christmas day with family and friends. I hope you are still in a relaxed state of mind because the holiday is far from over.

 

I want us to be grateful for the wisdom that comes with age. Something that we can't change is  the fact as the years go by we grow a year older every year. We live and learn. Sometimes we learn to let go and explore new avenues but one thing remains, no one can take away the lessons that we learn along the way. The wisdom that we get with age is something we can't attain from simply reading self help books(which I have nothing against).I think it is so interesting how with age we get to know who we are and appreciate ourselves and each other beyond the superficial inadequacies.

Lets appreciate every lessons we learn along the way, the make-up and break ups along the way, the tears and pain along the way. Every experience gives us a story to tell to the next generation. So do not despise your growth. Allow yourself to make mistakes along the way and have love and respect for yourself to remember that giving up is never an option.

 

Day 7 of Counting Blessings

I hope you have all finished your last minute shopping and Christmas planning and you are just sinking into bed or on the sofa to have a quite moment or a night in or vice versa. If you are like me, you are looking around at the people in your life and you either get a warm feeling or a little sadness and regret.

 

I want us to appreciate change. Yes in all its colours whether you had a baby this year, got married, started a new relationship or you started a new job or you went back to school. On the flipside, you might have decided to kick out an annoying habit or made a few changes in your social  circle or lost a loved one, you are not alone. I believe everything happens for a reason in life so the changes in our lives are all part of a bigger plan. We sometimes resist change but eventually life must take its course. In order to grow, we must embrace change.

So my friends, whatever changes have  taken place in your life, smile because you survived it and you definitely have a story to tell.

 

Day 6 of Counting Blessings

As we reach the  end of the year, I have been counting down some things that I am grateful for. Its only day six so we have a few more to go before the end of the year. Today I want us to be grateful for the challenges that have come away.

 

The most important lesson you will ever learn is from those challenges. You will never know how strong you are unless you go through a difficult situation. I know how difficult it is to go to a job that you are not happy about  or face a "frenemy" everyday and still maintain your composure.

 

Sometimes the challenges feel like a huge wave in the ocean overwhelming in everyway and most times than not, the challenges are more serious than we care to mention. Like a wave, that too  will pass.

 

So you should pat yourself in the back for making it far, God was on your side the whole time whether you saw His footprints behind you or not. Walk with your head held up high because you made it this far, you are a much stronger person than you will ever know. Challenges teaches us perseverance which eventually builds  character.

 

Day 5 of Counting Blessings

 

Today I want us to be grateful for a rather an unusual blessing. You know the relationships we have had in the year whether with family or friends or a significant other.

 

I am grateful for relationships I have had in the year. People who walked away and those who stayed. The  reason why we need to thank God regardless of whether those relationships worked out or failed is because whether we see it or not, there was a lesson in that failed relationship.

 

We need to appreciate each and every lesson we have learnt though these relationships. My advice which is unsolicited is to evaluate every relationship that we  have and have had and pick up the phone and make it right. If you have to let it a certain somebody go, do it knowing only you have the power to choose what you want to allow in your life.

 

Do appreciate the relationships you have and treasure the priceless lessons you have learnt on the way.

Day 4 of Counting Blessings

We are still counting our blessings. Today, I want us to be grateful for good health. I remember one time getting sick and wondering how it actually felt like to be healthy. I have come to realise no matter how sick you are or how troubled or depressed you are, there is a lot of people who are in a much worse situation.

 

 

So today whatever the situation is, just remember to be grateful for simply being here  another day. It gets worse before it gets better. So don't loose hope tomorrow will be a better day.

 

Day 3 of Counting Blessings-Friendship

If you are wondering what countdown I am on about, I will fill you in...We have been doing a 14 day 'counting blessings' countdown. Day one was all about the Blessing of life and yesterday, we were grateful for family. 

 

 

Today, I want us to look at the people who are our cheerleaders and those who will tell us the truth even when it is not the most desirable thing. I have heard it said a million times that no man is an Island and guess what, no one has proved otherwise. If you have more than 5000 friends on Facebook, eeeer...that isn't what I am talking about that is more of  'funs' hence the term 'fun page'.

There is so much I could write about friends but I won't. You need to look at your phonebook and the situations you have been through and evaluate who really has been a friend and vice versa.I do not necessarily have a lot of people I consider friends and that's not to say the rest are enemies but they are rather acquaintances. What I am grateful for, is my close friends who have been there in the  background, people who don't mind my success or failure, people who actually return my call. People who whether we are in constant communication or not, once we meet it's like we have never been apart, "we hit off like old times". I celebrate people whose faith has carried me through when I was a in  doubt. I celebrate people who  desperately got on their knees on my behalf.

 

So as you count your blessings, do remember your true friends and let them know that they are more than just friends but family. Appreciate them! Most of all look up and thank God for those angels.

 

Day 2 of Counting Blessings

Its day 2 of "being grateful". Everytime we talk about being grateful, we end up going through a list of ...I'm grateful but I wish things were  this way or that way. This 14 day journey should build you to know that when you are grateful, you are simply content with the blessing first before you aspire for more.

Have you ever given someone a gift and instead of a simple "Thank You" the recipient started suggesting something that she or he would have appreciated or preferred  more than the gift? I don't know about you but for me, I would be really hurt by the simple fact that the recipient was so obsessed with what better gift I would have given instead of the present gift at hand or the thought that went into choosing the gift. Believe you me, gift giving for me will end there. See we have grown up with an attitude that we deserve every good thing but not the worries that are thrown on our paths sometimes. Hun, you don't deserve anything in this life, we are all privileged if we are simply alive.

 

Once we recognise that every step on our way is a privilege we will tend to appreciate the Gift Giver and we will be content with those around us.

 

Today I want us to be thankful for the blessing of family.

 

Yes they do come in various packages and their own baggage but if you do have someone to call your family, then you are more blessed than you will ever know. We do not have to always get along but eventually when the world pushes us in a corner, we can always rely on those we call family, no one ever said that our families are perfect or will be perfect, if your family is perfect then thank God more, if not still thank God for allowing you the Grace to deal with the imperfections.

 

Family is not just by blood relations but those that are so close to us in any kind of weather, they still reach out to us and are our biggest cheerleaders.

 

Day of Appreciation

We sometimes wait until people are no longer with us to realise how precious they are. I want to take a minute and simply look around at those around us and appreciate them. I want to appreciate those whose life has illuminated a way for me, those who have been there through the rain and those who make a difference daily through random acts of kindness,people who work in the background.

 

So today, take a minute to look around and Thank God for the opportunity He has given us to have experienced great leaders of all time like Mr Mandela, people who came before us and people around us who continue to inspire us every step of the way.

 

Who are you appreciating today?

 

Gloomy Day??

We all have days that make us want to probably go straight to bed and forget the day actually happened. I have had to make  a rather difficult decision in my work environment today. So if anything could go wrong today, especially for a control freak like me,  it did. I look back at the end of the day and realise all things work together for my good.

 

One thing I learnt today was that I was so afraid of whether my decision was the best or not. I doubted myself so much that I kept pacing around looking for a basis to support my decision. My fear was that I would have made the wrong decision and it would be too late to reverse it.

 

So I sat in my office praying and asking God what He had up His sleeves because for me, at that moment things were not working as we had 'discussed '(God and I) the previous night. When I look at everything with the benefit of hindsight, I learn everyday that God's thoughts are not ours and His ways higher than ours. He has good plans for us which may not come in the way we expected it but at the end of it all, All things truly work for our good whether we can see it at that moment or not!

 

So if you have one of those days, you wish the ground to open up and swallow you, your are not alone we all go through it. My advice, go home take a bath, watch a movie or do anything that relaxes you and wait to see the lesson in the situation that you faced.

7 You should be grateful for

1. If you are alive then you better be grateful for that
2. Family, whether good or bad whether insane or downright crazy, still something to be awesomely grateful for
3. Friendships, if you have good people who keep  you  in check then you have a reason to be thankful         
4. To be continued.....

Take it from me

There is a song that talks about kindness and weakness how so distinct they are just because I am good to you does not mean you have the right to overstep the boundary.Some people literally push the envelope too far and openly disrespect you because they have the idea in their mind you can not do anything about it.

Truth is I can throw my heel at you. I can hurl insults at you but I will not lower myself to your level. I have been lately infuriated by some close people in my life, I am not perfect but I try my best to tolerate others, it is not easy or a piece of pie but I strongly believe in treating others as I would want them to treat me. some people obviously have not yet got that memo and push and push. I do not want to get so infuriated that I hurt you in a fit of rage so when I walk away from the confrontation let me be.

Intentionally hurting someone simply because you have the idea in your head that she or he cannot do anything about it is just down right silly. Learn how to speak to people and that is how they will speak back to you. Treasure the things that matter in your life before you loose them do not even for a minute take them for granted.

I hate confrontations if that makes me a coward,  so be it but just don't push me to the edge you do not want to find out what lies on  that other side of the cliff. I am  trying to be civil to you, you may not like me but that is just fine but kindly respect my space. I will never punch you, no! Not in this life but don't make me think about it.

Not the B**** Word!!

Pardon me if I come out too strong but I don't get why being termed a B**** is so cute or great. I mean women before my generation were all about empowerment of the woman and fighting against derogatory terms that undermine them, yet we are in  the 21st century with all the power we have been given by those who believed a woman was supposed to be a treasured creature , respected and as classy as they come.

Is it just me or something is wrong with our thought pattern. Why do girls like me respond to names that do not define them. Why would I answer to someone who is  classless enough to call me the B word? I mean really? It doesn't stop there, we still allow our female friends to call us in such degrading names, apparently that is somehow supposed to look  cool.

 

I strongly disagree, the last time I checked I didn't have four legs so before you think of calling me that, seriously look around and differentiate between a woman and a female dog. To me, like it or not, it 's rude, uncultured  and detestedful in every bit.

 So before you call someone else a B**** think twice if you would want your sister, mother or grandmother being termed as a B****, I bet that will tick you off. So Hi, how about a new generation of respectful men!

I found her, but not in the package I was looking in

So this one gentleman tells his friend that at least he(the friend) has a girlfriend although she didn't quite exactly come in the package he was expecting, in fact it took him some getting used to before he could even look at the possibility of asking her out. To be precise in his mind, he thought he was going to find a girlfriend with the best body and the list is endless.

 

 

That conversation inspired my blog today. I mean honestly speaking, how many times do we pass of people whether subconsciously or consciously simply because they don't look the part or something about them didn't make us feel at ease.  A friend of mine was talking to a new friend and the conversation was great until she realized he  is from a township, does that really matter?(don't give her that look yet) It does not determine the value of the guy although to my friend she associated him immediately to horror stories she had heard.

 

I cannot blame her for her misguided perceptions, because more often than not, we all do the same thing.

If they are successful and that bothers us, we look at the things about them that we find appalling, whether we look at their car, and call them proud or whatever else we pick up to discredit them. If his a committed husband then, there is definitely something wrong with him. I would be  lying if I said that I have never shrugged someone off because they didn't look the part or they didn't sound like or match my mental picture.

 

See the thing about perceptions is, you get a first impression of the 'package' once and that is the only opportunity you get to fairly judge the package. Please unravel the package and afterwards you are free to make your own conclusions and judgments.

 

I think the reason we sometimes end up wondering what happened to all the good men or girls is simply because they might not have come in the package we had hoped for. So hey...they might come as pretty as you hoped for(Amen!!) , or a little different or flawed. ladies the guy may come a little broke but with a pocket full of dreams and if you don't give him the room to grow because he didn't have the car you hoped for, well what makes you think when he has that car he will be interested in you?

 

I am in no means advising any one to settle by all means set your standards above the moon but if the moon is a little hidden by the clouds, give it a chance, it will definitely shine.

Save Me from Myself

I feel like I am beginning to sound like an old broken record, but I want to keep insisting on this until you finally hear me out. You are a powerful being, you just don't see yourself in the right mirror to discover that.

There is a song with this lyrics:I must be too close to the mirror,to see what you see:the problem is with us, we deem our on light because we are afraid of stepping out of the shadows. You are still the most powerful person I know. You must think I am a dreamer or a baseless motivational blogger but the truth is until you let yourself loose, you will never know your true strength.

 

I will be the first to admit that if you can defeat the voices in you that tell you that you cant or voices that tell you that you should leave that task for someone else,is when you will begin to feel the real potential in you soar.You see no one can make you feel anything that you feel unless you have given them the permission to. I do not believe that you can be a looser in your private space and be a winner in a public space it has to start from within.If I can defeat the voices in me and listen to the voice of truth which is not always the most glamorous view maybe just maybe, I could climb that mountain.

 

So until we defeat the voices in us that make us incapable of trusting,loving or leading, we will continue to be spectators in our lives. If you do not stand to be counted in your own life, who will take the lead in it?

As Real As It Gets: Are you going to be a chicken?

As Real As It Gets: Are you going to be a chicken?: Have you ever noticed that chicken run away from anything sure they freight at every little movement yet, I see so many ways they can shake...

Are you going to be a chicken?

Have you ever noticed that chicken run away from anything sure they freight at every little movement yet, I see so many ways they can shake loose  and fight back.

 

Look up you are about to fly

I am not  a farmer or anything like that,so today we are not going to be talking about chicken.I am talking about playing too safe in life yet we all know life itself is a risk. Risk takers are free people pardon me if you are a bit as reserved as I am, I want to make a point. Calculated risks maketh a man.Simply taking any direction that the wind blows you to is not even half of what I am talking about.

 

I am simply trying to draw you to think about the ifs in your life it is well and good that we are brought up to be protected and to leave and learn through other people's experiences but something makes me wonder, if we do that- completely rely on other people's decisions and actions does that rally define us?I honestly think it limits our thinking.

Just because in your family hierarchy and every one involved has a story to tell about how he or she never succeeded and the many rational reasons why.we can either choose to sit at the  on the fence and let ourselves re-enact already made history. You cannot make a mark in life by  using the same formula that has been used over and given the same result.

 

If you can take a risk to be different and great it may not be the most popular choice but you will prove to yourself that you are not a chicken and when you set your own rules in life, how free and liberating does it feel?

 

I feel tired of leaving by set standards knowing well I have the ability to effect change in my life through decisions I make everyday. You know for you to be great the greatness overflows from your own life outwardly?

You should not give hopelessness an opportunity to make  you a chicken in your own path. I am terrified of bungee jumping but if I never take the plunge, well I might as well leave on other people's experiences. If you want to write your own story well, stop huddling with the rest of the chickens and be the character in your own book and define what standard you want to achieve.

 

You know how it feels like when someone is explaining to you about something they have watched, they get excited and you know as much as you want to be excited about the parts they loved, it may not be something you find all that exciting  so why don't you watch the movie yourself and re-tell the story?

If you huddle in the corner and sit close to the fence waiting to run at the sight of any trouble who will be you and do what you were put on earth for?

 

Life is a stage God is the director if you miss you are missing in the production and you are the only character who can replace an original?What kind of production will ever be a success without the main character?

 

So why not dare to live and dare to test your strength by doing what you never thought you had the strength in you to effect?

 

Dear chicken if you and I really looked close enough we could fly maybe watch those wings a little closer you may be suprised what we can do, see where the eagle is high up in the sky, I think we can fly now flap your wings 1....2...and go.....