I Learned it All from Soccer...

I was born in the early 1950s in Mexico City. Back in those days and especially in my country of birth sports were not as popular with girls as they were with boys. I was never really interested in sports, I used to take ballet and piano lessons and always loved doing crafts of any kind, but that's a whole other story.

The only sports I've always loved watching are those where art prevails, like figure skating or gymnastics, I did try both of those when I was young but I was never very good at them, not sure why, perhaps I thought of myself as more fragile than I really was. I remember feeling afraid to try anything that went outside of my abilities. I tried many times to break that fear by attempting to learn sports like water or snow skiing, swimming, biking, running, even walking, but anytime I get into the habit of them something comes along to distract me from the consistent practice of a physical activity and every time I drop it, it takes me forever to get back.

The one sport that I really couldn't care less about because I've been inundated with it all my life is Soccer. That was the preferred sport where I grew up and lived the first 25 yrs., then when I became a mom my two kids became soccer players from the age of 3 and I was at every single practice and game for the next 10+ years.

Back in my childhood I had two brothers, my older brother was always focused on business and my younger brother David had Soccer in his heart. He had muscular dystrophy and by the age of 9 he was on a wheelchair so he never had a chance to play the sport he loved to watch, dream and talk about. "Gol del America!!!!" I remember him screaming when his favorite team scored. He might not have been on the field with his physical body, but he was in his heart and soul. He had created this simple quad notebook where he would cut 3 of the 4 sides of the little squares all over two pages side by side. They were cut in strategic areas and then he lifted as if it was a player standing up. Then he would roll a tiny little paper ball, make a goalie on each side and let the games begin.

He would make up his own games and became the player, announcer, referee even the team owner. He kept track of his games and his favorite team wasn't always the winner.

At the time I remember watching him and being in awe of what a great soccer announcer he was and now looking back I can see that he wasn't only living the game he was playing in it. I know that if he had lived longer he could have been a Soccer Announcer and become very loved and admired because of his strength of heart, passion for what he loved and the kindness and patience of an angel. I don't ever remember him complaining about his lot in life.

My uncles and cousins were also fans and players, I believe to this day some still play and so do their sons. Soccer was played at school and at the park, all you really need to play soccer is a flat field a black and while ball and a bunch of people of any age, race, social status, ability, gender, who want to run around kicking the ball and try to get it to hit that net that's being carefully guarded.

The years went on and I got remarried to an Italo/Argentinian. Are there any two groups of people who love soccer more? It turns out my husband feels the same way I do about soccer, but his son and now mine, who happens to live with us, LOVES!!!! and has been playing Soccer his whole life.

So these are just a few of the many things I've learned from Soccer.

1. LIFE IS A TEAM EFFORT, WE SHOULD ALL ROOT FOR AND HELP EACH OTHER.
No matter how good you are at it, how much money you make from it, how many people admire your skills, or how many goals you've scored, you still need a team who helps you along, who's not competing against you but rather giving you their gifts and talents so that you can score. And when you score they feel the same joy that you do because this is a team effort, just like family.

2. JOY IS WITHIN EVERYONES REACH. IT COMES FROM DOING WHAT YOU LOVE.
I'm convinced that even though David never got to play soccer, he felt as if he did, it gave him a reason to dream and not focus so much on his pain, it allowed him to feel passionate about something and it brought him many hours of entertainment, focus and excitement!

3.  YOU DON'T HAVE TO LOVE THE SAME THINGS OTHERS DO AND STILL FEEL JOY THROUGH THEIR JOY.
Even though I still don't care for soccer and wouldn't sit to watch a game by myself including the World Cup Finals, I have enjoyed every second that I've watched my brother, children, uncles, cousins, classmates, friends, neighbors play or get excited watching their team win. I get emotional when one of the countries where I have lived and felt at home wins a game. I have a foster son from Croatia that I haven't seen for years but I know how much he loves Soccer, so every time I hear the Croatian team won a game I think of him with love and joy.

Life is a simple game we play at every moment that doesn't require much, especially when we can play it together as a team.

"I Learned it All from Soccer"

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

Let Go and Go With the Flow...

I always felt different, I'm sure we all do, but to me it manifested by not feeling at home anywhere outside of me and I must admit that for most of my life I was not comfortable inside either. I went through many ups and downs in my journey and when I was up I was flying high and would cling on to the feeling for as long as I could as if already knowing it wouldn't last, this was way before I started to realize that I was creating my own reality, I had no idea it was those very thoughts that were writing the next Chapters of my Life.

I don't feel shortchanged because I didn't know then what I'm starting to understand at this stage of my life, I feel fortunate and with so much gratitude that I was able to get to the point where I finally understand what it takes to grow, evolve, be grateful for every experience, to Make Life Happen On Purpose and With Purpose and look forward to what's yet to come.

Now I can actually wake up in the morning excited for the day to come. I still walk with cautious steps because it takes time to re-program the mind that has been telling me that what I'm living, experiencing, being, becoming, having was either good or bad, but I can say with all certainty and pride that I've worked hard understanding and taking responsibility for my "Life Adventure" and live it as such perhaps not every moment but pretty darn close to it.

I look for constant reminders, learning to trust my intuition based on the way things feel emotionally to me without judgement and I can see my thoughts and emotions coming to life before my eyes.

Now what happens to me from this other side of the river is that I look around me and see the people I'm in most contact with, my Micro Universe so to speak living the way I did for most of my life and I know they can't see it in themselves otherwise if they knew that how they are perceiving life and what they are and will continue to attract will be the opposite of what they want maybe something will hurt enough that they will say I don't like these results, what am I doing wrong? Is this as good as it gets?

I understand that most of the time these changes don't start to happen until the emotions we are feeling are either emotionally depleted or extreme sadness. At least that happened to me at some point and it got old feeling sad or unemotional so I went all out to find how to change that, otherwise life becomes a burden or boring at best and it might be a short life but it's long enough when you don't find motivation and you're not having fun most of the time.

We can change the way we perceive life, I do now, but we can't make those we love or surround ourselves with change the way they perceive theirs that's their path. I went from feeling like an outsider when I was on that side of the river and now I am the outsider on this side. I didn't appreciate enough the things that I had when I was there but I will be eternally grateful for the way I perceive what I lived then; and now instead of going against I decided to "Let Go and Go With the Flow!!...

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

We Just Have to...

It's been a fascinating adventure from the moment that my husband and I made the decision to move to the US only 3 short years ago. I had lived here most of my adult life, since 1979 to be exact, but a few years back things happened and I decided to move away to try to figure out who I was and what I was capable of.

So three years ago I came back to the place I call home only this time there was someone else with me, the man I decided to continue this life adventure with and he had never been to the USA before nor does he speak the language. We really had no idea what we were going to do, how we were going to survive, where we were going to live, to work, to make ends meet and then to grow to get the vision that I hold of my life.

I have to admit that at times I've had my doubts but the majority of the time I didn't. I just went day by day walking in the direction of my dreams and sometimes making what before I would have seen as scary decisions only this time I knew inside what felt right.

It's only 3 yrs. later, it's been an adventure that I would have never wanted to miss, although I've wanted to quit and escape the many challenges that appeared in our path many times. From health to weight gain to a place to call home, to work, to exhaustion to lack of funds to adjustment to all the many changes and roles that we have to play to get back to the other side, where we can pick up where I left off years back, traveling and visiting every corner of the world, helping people in whatever we have to offer, sharing wonderful moments surrounded by family, growing our own organic produce, having a place to receive our loved ones.

The more we've walked in trust the more we've grown and the faster things fall into place giving us all the opportunities that we were hoping to have only a short while back. Today we both have jobs we love, we get to help others, we have a lovely place to call home where we can sit by the fire, cook outdoors on the grill and even plant some organic produce, we spent the holidays surrounded by the Love of our family for the first time in a long time,  I even got my bounce back, I walk in confidence and opportunities for growth keep on appearing without having to go out and look for them, that part already stayed back in the past, the challenges now are more about steps we each continue to take to access more of our own abilities and continue growing and crossing off wishes from our individual "Bucket Lists".

I get excited just thinking about all the different experiences that will no doubt continue to appear because "That's How the Universe Works"!!!...

Don't walk or run, just bounce, don't think just act, don't ask just give, don't compete just win, don't smile just laugh, don't mope just cry, don't just dream, imagine! and most important of all don't Hope just KNOW!. All you have to do is be in complete Gratitude of everything that has ever been that took you all the way to where you are right now, look around you and see how well that works for Nature and Trust.

We just have to... Make Life Happen on Purpose and With Purpose!!!



Hugs xoxo
@nit@

Be The Gift...

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

The Happiest Thanksgiving of my Life...

I got busy very early this morning going from one room to the other of the house. I'm so used to having the house impeccable because if something gets messy or dirty I just clean it right away and not allow things to lay around, but I just had a hurricane that came by and stayed for a little while to make our house feel more like a home full of Life Love and Laughter than I've had in a long time.

The moment my husband walked out the door to go to work I did a couple of things and everywhere I looked around I would see something else that needed to be done, whether it was washing or drying, changing beds or cleaning bathrooms, vacuuming or dusting it's gotta get done before my husband comes back home at 2:30 pm. or I would feel bad that I just sat around writing and listening to music, or relaxing in the tub after he helped me pull off the Happiest Thanksgiving of our Lives...

I stood in the middle of the living room and saw the mess, assessed the time it will take me to put the house back and my eyes landed on the picture in the silver frame.

At that moment I started to feel the emotions with even more intensity than I was at the moment that picture was being taken. I remember I was trying to make Sinatra feel comfortable on my lap and smile at the same time :)

So instead of going back to tidying up I decided to let my heart pour all of its emotions out while they are still so latent inside me.

I was telling my lovely daughter and her handsome boyfriend that this picture reminded me of the vision I had of the future outcome of my life when I was just a little girl and that picture that I visualized in my thoughts and my dreams was now sitting on my little coffee table that I ran to buy just before they came to brighten our house with their Love, young vibrant energy, laughter, lightness, success, union as siblings and significant others and lets not forget the happiness those two beautiful puppies bring every time they are around. I cannot even wrap my heart around what it will be like when there are little feet running around making a mess in my yard and helping me plant vegetables and fruits, watching them grow. Then coming back in the house as we sit in front of the fireplace while I read them stories just like I did to my children when they were growing up.

I made a conscious effort to be present in every moment not trying to orchestrate everything but rather allowing it to flow and it did in the best way possible. I watched my children having fun and a strong unity and everyone in the room got that much closer. It brought back memories of what it felt like to be a family sitting around the table and just having fun being with those who know us and can still love us with all our flaws and value our strengths.

I remember dreaming of these moments when I was younger, but even in my wildest dreams couldn't have imagined the stories contained inside the silver frame and the image of a life of ups and downs, highs and lows, strengths and weaknesses, walking paths, crossing rivers and climbing mountains and landing back on my sofa in front of the fire. Back after a long road of our intense fight for inward growth.

We ate healthy food, laughed till our bellies hurt, saw pictures, told stories and got to know each other better at a deeper level, listened to music, played table games, did fun crafts, even got to briefly travel across the border to beautiful Vancouver for the day.

I feel very lucky that my daughter loves to take photographs as much as I do because I didn't take one single one, I made it my purpose to be present in the moment at every moment and I notice that when I want to capture the moment through my camera I distract myself from the moment somehow to capture something for later and I didn't want that to happen when my children were around, I wanted to drink in all the emotions that my heart was feeling after such a long road to land them back together with me on my couch sharing each other's hopes, dreams, passions and present realities.

When my son and his lovely fiance came to pick up my daughter and her boyfriend they both handed me two beautiful gift bags, I couldn't have imagined what would be inside but I knew it had to be something where there was a lot of heart involved because that's how my daughter is, always so thoughtful with everyone trying to get them what she knows will bring them joy so I opened them just like I remember opening presents on my birthday or holiday when I was little child, with excited anticipation and I wasn't wrong.

There was that photo that would inspire me to write this post with tears of joy in my eyes, same tears I allowed myself to share with them at a moment of need to express all of those emotions that we hold inside for so long that one day like this they just come out without control. There were other pictures just as wonderful each one with a different message, memory and emotion that gets stirred inside.

There was also a card, I opened that first actually and read the sentiments both wrote to myself and my wonderful husband and they made me melt.

There was a packet of ladybug stickers, no doubt my daughter knows what I like, they also went around looking for the Kinder eggs with toys inside because they know how much I love miniatures and how much of a child I am.  We all had fun opening them up and putting them together, we were laughing so much at the fact that it all started with the purple whale I have in my tub that my stepson and husband got me and here it was a Kinder Egg from Canada with another miniature whale in the egg I got, what were the chances of that?

All of a sudden I saw the roles being reversed, I used to be the one giving them toys now she goes around looking for those she knows I will love and she's always right.

As I stood this morning in the living room deciding whether to clean up and put things away or write I looked up to the ceiling where a beautiful hummingbird alebrije that we bought in Ciudad Juárez to represent the presence of my mom in my house hangs. My husband hung it with a thin transparent string from a sprinkler that is right in the middle of the room so it looks as if it's flying. My eyes landed on it as I was admiring the picture on my table and I felt my mom's presence sending me her blessings and reminding me what being a mother is really all about.

My heart filled with so much gratitude that I just needed to sit down and let all the emotions pour out into my words so they don't get lost in memories that become distant and eventually fade out or get forgotten in our busy lives.

I love all the stories that go behind every one of those smiles in the picture in the silver frame because they all make us who we are and because it brings us back to the times when we were a family living under one roof with the same common goals and dreams.

My daughter's boyfriend also handed me a bag with a beautiful shawl that I loved. I wanted to slip it on right away so they could see how perfect those are for me, I learned that when he bought it since he didn't even know me at the time he just went with his intuition of what I might like. Once here he saw how it's mostly shawls that I wear because they are the best for me at this time and I didn't have anything like the one he gave me. As I was rushing to put it on I took care of taking off the tag that was being held by a tiny safety pin. I always keep the tags until I have a chance to look at them, I like to know about the clothes I use to wrap my body around. I left the tag sitting on top of my desk without looking at it and slipped the shawl on. We all said how great it was and I kept it on till I went to turn in for the night.

Right now as I was writing this post the tag was slipping down from where I had left it on top of my sewing project that was on a slant. I saw it slipping off the periphery of my eyes and turned to catch it so it wouldn't fall to the ground and I'd have to bend down and my eyes landed on the only word printed on that small cream cardboard label inside a dark brown triangle. All it said was 'dreamers'.

That's me I thought, it was a very strong confirmation of the purpose of dreams that if our hearts hold on to a dream it's for a reason, they are here to be fulfilled otherwise they wouldn't exist and if we really believe and walk in their direction one day they will turn into "The Happiest Thanksgiving of Your Life"...

With so much Gratitude to everything that was which makes everything that is a Reality!...

@nit@

"It's Not About the Money!"...

It was raining hard this morning on our way to my husband's job. Early, cold, dark and rainy. We have a rental car while our 'Victoria' is at the Car Hospital being healed and having a little bit of "Plastic Surgery". I know she's going to look beautiful so that makes me happy and my husband is thrilled that for now we get to drive this brand new SUV. He is a big man so a car this size fits him perfectly, I on the other hand like small cars, easier for me to drive, to adjust, cheaper in gas and easier to find parking as I go from one place to another all day long.

On our way to work at 3:30 am I turned on the radio and this song was playing. I turned up the sound and started singing and moving along to the tune, you really can't help but do that, at least not if you're like me who carries music in my heart and listen for the sounds of life everywhere I Am.

I think the only people who don't believe that Happiness can't be bought no matter how much money you have are those who either have so much money they find ways of buying some of that instant gratification you can get with the money you have or they wind up identifying their self worth as money.  Or those who have never had enough money and they believe once they get it then they'll be happy. The question is, "Is that what Happiness is?"

So what if you lose that money and can't keep on buying that happiness, is happiness no longer something you can have if you don't get that money back? Can money always buy you happiness? ask the people in the Limelight, like Prince Charles and Princess Diana RIP, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie or Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck, just a few of the many examples who not only have the money they have everything else too, the talent, the altruism, the following, the fame,  the respect, you name it they have it so why aren't they being happy?

Or what if you're so poor you win the lottery and you get the stuff you wanted and go to visit the places you dreamt of and once you do all you thought that would make you happy something happens that even your money can't buy. Do you then stop being happy? What if you're in the middle of acquiring all these things and going places and you realize it doesn't feel the way you thought it would when you were dreaming about it your whole life, what then, what do you aspire to next?

Look around you there is beauty everywhere. You may be challenged with anything, an illness maybe, a big loss, of a person, someone you loved, something material or a job. I say stay Happy while you are here, while you still have a body and a mind, keep on giving love to others, we are all going to die eventually, it's About the Here and Now, it's about The Music in your Heart. When you are happy money flows into your reality because you are not looking for it you are just making the most out of your life, it's just a consequence if you will to your state of being.

Listen for the music, but most of all feel it inside and you will see what Happy means... harmony, love, care, peace, joy and most of all no fear! The French call it  "Joie de Vivre!"...

And always remember that "It's Not About the Money!"...

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

Trick, Treat or Gratitude?...

Halloween and "Día de Los Muertos" are two totally different celebrations. They have some of the same characteristics as they both deal with death somehow, but Halloween the way I've been celebrating since I was a little girl is more or a fun tradition that both adults and children happen to like and I believe it has more to do with dressing up and becoming someone else for a day, we all have dreams of becoming someone else even just for a day.

I remember always wanting to be a boy just for one day. All I really wanted was to know how they felt, how they viewed life, what they thought of girls, how they handled life as something other than a girl, no matter how much someone else describes their views and their experience it can never be the same as if you become it and embody it even just for a day, a glance at it would give me the ability to understand men better.

I must have transmitted my love of Halloween to my children. Every year we would decorate the whole house. I loved giving away little gifts like pencils, markers or erasers rather than the usual candy. My daughter especially loves Halloween, when they were little they'd get so much candy that they would build a pretend train made of candy and had a competition of whose train was longer. Nowadays she loves dressing up, going to parties and all those fun things you get to do once a year like go to a Haunted House and get scared out of your mind. Not my favorite but others rave about it. It must be that adrenaline I guess.

So if we establish that Halloween is more like a fun celebration of those scary things that we wonder about or fantasize with whereas "Día de Los Muertos" is as it sounds "The Day of the Dead". As any man-made holiday it has a different meaning for anyone who chooses to observe or celebrate any type of holiday, my husband and I don't celebrate too many, just some that have become traditions from our families and our ancestors. We especially celebrate Shabbat. We make sure that every Friday evening we light the candles and say a prayer to Thank The Creator for allowing us to light the candles once again. I never like to miss lighting the Shabbat candles, even take them with me if we go on a trip, it's just our own reminder that we are still here, still trying to make a difference, still having that corporeal life experience that those who left before us no longer do.

In our house we celebrate the dead every day. There are candles always lit up, a couple of cute skeletons on the corner, little trinkets or pictures that remind us of where we came from, who played important roles in our lives and helped us get to where we are today, I figure without them we wouldn't exist, we wouldn't have a chance to have fun and live an adventure and love and eat and travel and play and cry. And since we are still here to do all that, still able to fulfill dreams, we have them to thank for that so we do it by celebrating the dead every day in our minds, our hearts by living to the fullest for ourselves and for them and most of all with our Gratitude!

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

It's None of Your Business...

Have you ever noticed that whatever anyone does with you, for you or to you has actually nothing to do with you? I know that sounds farfetched but just think for a moment, it may seem that all those emotions that you feel for someone else positive or negative have to do with that person but it has only to do with you, with your thoughts, your needs, your desires, your fears, its all you and nothing to do with them. I know what you're thinking, but I love them, I tend to them, I worry about them and no matter how you look at it to me it has nothing to do with them and all of it to do with you.

If it was them would we stop loving somebody who hurt us? would we hurt someone we love on purpose? could we fall out of love and trade them for someone else? To me Love means something different, it means that you do anything that is humanly possible to make that other person happy and in return they do the same. How many people do you know who do that consistently for as long as we both shall live, I don't know anyone including me, do you?

My take on it is that if this is all about Who I Am and what role do I play in the collective energy then I  must learn how not to take anything personal or think that I'm responsible for someone else's path. I see now that when I work on Who I Am I can be a much better version of myself and what I give to others comes from a better part of me. I also noticed that I receive more love this way, just when I stopped looking for love and started giving it freely did it come back the same way.

I also noticed that your strength comes from that part of you that decided to be grateful for everything and give love freely because you always keep yourself in a state of joy. So in other words you control your own level of joy with all that you do for others. That just makes me keep on nurturing myself, walking towards my dreams and fulfilling them one at a time because it leaves me with this huge surplus of joy and emotional energy to gift to others.

I know what others have done to me is "None of My Business", but I want to make it my business to do things for others. That's a good business to be in...

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

If I'm Gonna Die, I Wanna Live...

This morning I woke up later than normal because I worked last night, then when I got home, although I had just slept 5 hrs. the night before "The Voice" was on and it's one of my favorite shows, I love talent shows, there's so much talent out there that never seizes to amaze me. Some voices that must come straight from Heaven that even make me cry and talent of all types. It's also incredible how many young children have the talent of adults at such a young age. So of course I stayed up to watch it.

I've been trying to be more conscious of living my life with a different perspective than the one I grew up with and adopted for 60 yrs. only to find out at this age that I had made it more challenging for myself than it was supposed to be.

My logic tells me one thing but my repetitive actions and thoughts for most of my life seem to want to pull me back, so my strategy not to revert to the way I used to perceive my life is to make short term plans of action and try to stay true to my plan for a long enough period of time until it becomes the "New Normal".

I understand that there's always something pending to do, there are times and responsibilities to abide by and from there I have to decide what to tend to next, is it those pending things that can wait for now or is it doing something to bring me Joy, more health, stamina, strength and tools to help others find their joy. That's what I focus on first and then I go complete the other tasks.

I did it the other way around my whole life and the truth is that it didn't work out the way I thought it would. There were many things that I wanted to accomplish and always left those aside. I thought I was supposed to help those I love the most to accomplish their goals and then it would be my turn, my mom modeled it that way to me.

This morning I didn't have all those hours I get when I wake up at 1:30 am but I didn't want to stop living that part that brings me so much joy in the morning such as taking a warm bathtub with Epson Salts and citrus/menthol oils, ginger candles, meditation tapes and lets not forget sitting down to write so that tonight I can come back and re-read what I wrote and feel again that joy that I feel when I'm putting my "Own Oxygen Mask First" and then doing the rest.

The only thing we know for certain in this Life is that we're all going to die, this reality we are living day to day will end one day just like that, nobody really knows when or how, I'm not afraid of dying, I don't know anything about it just what others say but I know it will happen, I just want to do my best not to die with the Music still in me so "If I'm Gonna Die, I Wanna LIVE!!!" while I can and do it with as much Joy and Passion as possible!

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

TRADITIONS!!! TRADITIONS...

I'm sure there must be millions of articles out there that explain why we create traditions, I've never cared to read about it though, because I want to respect my own reasons why I create MY Traditions, and my personal reason is very simple, because they make me feel better that's why I pick them and keep on reverting to them because they bring me some type of well-being.

I can pick any of them like say brushing my teeth with a Sonicare toothbrush while taking a shower. I notice that if I have to brush my teeth outside of the shower it gives me a feeling of laziness, aggghhh I have to stand there for two minutes drooling all over my face, the mirror gets all splashed, with the water closed so I don't waste so much water for two mins. that does nothing for me other than make that pretty sound that water makes.

Now the way I choose to do it while in the shower this is my perception of it, the warm water on my body and my face feels like I'm being caressed by millions of angels that are cleansing every negative emotion that I might be carrying, it takes exactly two minutes to brush with a Sonicare, 1/2 min. on each quadrant and on each one of them I focus on how I visualize my day will be and set my intentions.

The water washes my face, there is no drool only warm water, nothing gets splashed or stained, just cleansed and energized, so for me that's what makes it worth to be put into the category of a Tradition...

Like this morning before my husband went to work we like to make the bed together. It's 10 times faster and very enjoyable as opposed to just one of us making it. Together we tie-up the plans we made earlier while drinking mattes and espresso, another Tradition.

We leave it as if this was a model apartment that's going to be shown to potential buyers, Realtors call it 'Staging', and nobody is going to come here except for us, so why do we take such good care of something that we have to mess up again this evening? because of the joy that it gives us every time we look at it, because of the many ways it makes us feel and most of all because we are so proud and so grateful for having gotten to this place that was once just an intention.

This is why I create MY OWN TRADITIONS... Because it helps me aspire to always do all I can to be all that I was born to be, whatever that may be...

Traditions!!! OH! Traditions...

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

What Happiness Isn't...

I think there are only two ways that you can look at life, as "Challenging and Painful" or as a "Happy Adventure" the situation could be the same for two individuals and one will perceive it as the first and the other as the second. So does that mean that our happiness depends on the perception we have of our lives rather than what happens in them?

We all have different values, wants, needs, realities, experiences, but should we start paying more attention to our perception rather than to what's outside? Is that what the spiritual leaders refer to as "Going inside oneself?"

I have lived it and seen it both ways, and every now and then I still experience anguish, fear and pain, but now I learned how to "Go inside myself" accept what is and change my perception.

But what if you don't seem to be getting the results you were expecting, or there are difficult and painful situations on the road to your dreams, you worked so hard at getting something only to see it fade or get taken away, you were about to reach the stars and failed, you are used to getting everything and then one day difficult challenges come your way, you wish you had made different choices, should you put Happiness on hold then until you get what you are looking for? and what if you get what you were hoping for and you're not happy then, or if you change your dreams to something else. Should the efforts you put into the things that in the end didn't work be considered a waste?

Happiness is always there even in very challenging situations because its not tied to an individual, a situation, an event, a possession, knowledge or preparation. It's not a thing we can mold or purchase, it's a decision we have to make by changing our perception.

I don't like the feeling of fear or pain anymore than anyone else, but I'm grateful to them because they allow me to exercise my perception.

What if we started today to take responsibility over our own reality and stop blaming everyone and everything else? What if we "Go inside ourselves and change our perception" give the other side of the coin a chance to shine now and then?

I believe our happiness is our responsibility! Are you taking it?

Much love xoxo
@nit@

I just wanted to remind 'YOU'...

"Shake the burden of seeing your baby steps as a necessary discipline.

See them instead as optional dance moves in life's conga line, that spark miracles, open floodgates, and lead to the near effortless manifestation of 'DREAMS'."

~ The Universe ~

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

Técnicamente el vaso SIEMPRE está LLENO...

Les comparto una respuesta que le hice a un amigo mío y para todos aquellos que se puedan llegar a identificar con él.

Estoy de acuerdo contigo mi querido amigo, yo te hubiera recomendado que te pusieras fuerte y te quedaras hasta el final. Eso no quiere decir que no esta bien que estes de regreso pero ahorita aguantala un ratito para que puedas procesar todo lo que acabas de vivir y tomes el camino que tu corazón te dice, que se siente mejor, porque acuerdate que adonde tu vayas ahi estás, tu no te puedes escapar de ti ni te tus sentimientos y el lugar no va a hacer la diferencia, si el amor de tu vida estuviera allá te encantaría el calor o no? 

Goza a tus hijos, no pienses en el futuro por el momento, solo deja que todo fluya, no huyas del dolor, abrazalo, y luego simplemente dejalo ir, no lo necesitas ya, no te aferres al dolor y te sigas castigando TU TIENES CONTROL DE TU PERCEPCION DE LA VIDA!!! yo te juro que con todo lo que he pasado dirias pobre mujer, y la verdad que yo soy tan tan feliz, porque hasta aprecio mi dolor, es una aventura de vida, vivela con pasión, cada momento, que tal si te mueres a las 11:52 pm jajaja es mi numero espiritual por eso te lo dije, es chiste, solo que entiendes lo que te digo? 

Como dicen en los aviones, en caso de EMERGENCIA favor de colocarse su mascara de oxygeno primero y luego ayudar a los demás, asi que ahorita eres tú el que necesita agarrarse de LO QUE SEA que te haga recordar lo que es la felicidad y las cosas te van a empezar a llegar solitas, solo pon claro en tu mente que quieres, el cielo es el limite, te prometo que asi es...no pierdas tiempo amargandote más tu aventura de vida, vivela!!!!! con Amor y Alegria.

Te mando un fuertisimo abrazo y no te preocupes vas a volver a ser feliz, solo que te tienes que sentir feliz y luego las cosas te llegan, no lo opuesto. Es la ley! ;)

Anita

Ode to the Women in My Life...

I have spent my life surrounded by family illness,  witnessed my two grandfathers die young from very aggressive illnesses, one lost a leg, hand fingers and died of a heart problem but with gangrene in other parts of the body, the other died in his 50s, as a soldier in his teens he needed to hide in trenches so as not be captured by the Nazis, there he caught typhoid fever and this affected his heart until it failed.

My mother looked after him since she was only 4 and it was mostly my grandmother who supported her family. My mom didn’t study much or worked, she just stayed home and raised her family, she never even learned how to drive, my grandmother worked, traveled with friends to many parts of the world, always involved in activities, she remained single after zeide Pepe died and helped both her kids until the end, buried her only son who was a physician in his 40s from a terrible and debilitating type of skin cancer. 

My mother buried a son at 14, my younger brother David RIP, and she passed a few years ago, she was only 77 and her mind was so sharp, she’d remember everyone and everything from her past, I called her the ‘Family Historian’, but her body had been ravished by the emphysema she had for years. I always thought she should have been a doctor, she was so good at taking care of sick people, she had so much love to give, but curiously enough my daughter asked her shortly before she passed if she ever had a dream of becoming something and she replied ‘An Anthropologist’ who would have known, I guess she just took on the roles that were needed but she forgot to love herself.

These diseases and many others became part of my life, why question what was obvious and which I had no control over, instead what I did was to develop an insatiable curiosity to understand why some people can live a full and joyous life under the worst conditions and others give up and live as victims for the rest of their lives. These are two very clear examples. 

My grandmother who lost most of her siblings and parents in concentration camps, came to Mexico alone with nothing and no language at age 15, my grandfather had been there a year, he was 18, working as a tailor and selling his garments on the streets, sent her a ticket and when she wanted to get off at the port of Veracruz they wouldn’t let her because she was under age, my grandfather got on the ship and asked the captain to marry them so they could start their lives in the free world.

I remember their small clothing store on Tacuba corner with Motolinia. It was one of my favorite things, going to help her sell clothes, dress mannequins, changing the windows and making them beautiful and at lunch time go with my ‘portavianda’ to the now famous "Café Tacuba" a block away to get each small blue pewter pot filled with the most delicious food, I loved everything there. 

Both my grandmother and my mother were elegant women, always well dressed, coiffed, with make up, with jewelry matching their attire and polished fingernails.

My grandmother is my icon and the fact that I have been surrounded by so many family illness and that many passed so early in their lives, like my brother whom I loved so very much and know that today he would continue to be my best friend, that made me even more determined to live a full life and make it a “FUN ADVENTURE!” take risks and see what happens.

I live not only for myself but for those I love who did not have a chance for whatever reason to have this life experience I'm having, though part of it is painful, that's the part that sends rockets to grow and emerge better and stronger on the other side. That’s what we are here for, to grow, to evolve, not to be victims of anything, any circumstance or anyone, much less add the limitations made-up by our minds because we are not our minds.

I am very proud to say that today my icon is my own daughter who lives life intensely, with an insatiable curiosity, with kindness, integrity, achieving her dreams only to dream new ones. A life with purpose and on purpose. This blog is dedicated to her,  she is my grandmother Etko’s and my beautiful kind mother Sara's  legacy and a “Wonderful Human Being”, I love you so much Child o’mine ;)

A toast to all the women in my life, my Daughter, mother, grandmothers, cousins, aunts, nieces, friends, teachers, acquaintances, etc. Thanks to each and everyone, you have all taught me something. 

Hugs xoxo 

Anita

By taking ‘BIG RISKS’ and accepting ‘WHAT IS’

So a good friend of mine asked me today how I keep my vitality and enthusiasm, and I confess I had to give that some thought, especially because when I seem to be going through a little air pocket where I feel low in physical and emotional energy due to consequences of choices I make, something comes to remind me of how far I’ve come, how much I’ve grown and continue to do so because of that vitality, insatiable curiosity and sense of wonder, so what I came up with is that I do it by taking’ ‘BIG RISKS’ and accepting ‘WHAT IS’, and in doing that I get to screw it up a lot, which helps me gain a different perspective of what I do and don’t need to do, and when I do get what I was aiming for, my appreciation charges my batteries in a way that I get anything I set my intention to. 

My intuition hasn’t let me down yet, what usually gets me is when I chose to ignore what I know intuitively that I need to do to get the results that I want.

I am happy not because of my circumstances in life, not for my possessions or the place where I live, or what I do, who I know, etc. etc. but because I chose to be. I live every single moment very intensely, not just for me but for those who can’t anymore, those who don’t know how or even question why they should, and I have come to find out that happiness is threatening to some people and it might make you feel vulnerable if you want to identify with it. Makes you feel as if it’s something that you can lose, but it’s really up to you if you do since its an emotion you chose to feel.

if I perceive whatever pain I encounter along the way as part of the same thing, I am able to embrace it and be grateful for it because of its incredible teaching power.

All I really have to do is ‘BELIEVE IN ME’ and take FULL responsibility that for every choice I make I am ‘CREATING MY OWN DESTINY’. it can’t be any other way. All I really do is pay attention to what feels right to me.

Are you taking risks? Making your life Happen on Purpose? Make ‘WHAT IS’ for you, what you want it to be.

Hugs xoxo

@nit@

Change for a Dollar ~ Cambio por un dolar

What we do for ourselves dies with us.
What we do for others is and will remain immortal.  


Lo que hacemos para nosotros, se muere con nosotros.
Lo que hacemos para otros es y permanecerá inmortal.


Hugs xoxo
@nit@

Don't put Happiness on Hold...

In reading one of the postings of a blog I subscribe to by the name of AWAKE it reminded me of one of the handicaps that I've had to work on overcoming, which was thinking that I was supposed to put on hold my happiness until.... and you can fill that blank with anything, like:

• I'll be happy when I finish school

• When I get married

• When I have kids

• When I buy my own home

• When my kids go off to college, etc. etc. etc.

I decided to post this blog because I think it illustrates what most of us do.

I hope you find something to bring you joy today and everyday.

Hugs xoxo

Anita

Don't Delay your Joy

by Louis Majors

Driving to town today, I listened to an interview of Charles Marshall regarding his book ‘The Soul Mechanic.’ When I got home and started to read the introduction one line really jumped out at me… Live for the experience of living! Wow…what a line! It re-minded me that when we choose a ‘goal’ to trigger joy and satisfaction (ie: I’ll be happy when….) it might delay us from living in joy all the moments leading up to that one point and all the points after our acheivement.

Don’t get me wrong…there is nothing wrong in setting goals and working towards that end. But if I don’t enjoy the process all the way it doesn’t make any sense to be unhappy 99% of the time when I can create and hold the energy of joy any time or all the time if I so choose and program my subconscious to surprise me with joyful and happy events in my human experience. Most of this is unconscious because as infants we were taught the ‘reward’ system by our parents/guardians. It started with the ‘good child/bad child’ program as we tried to appease our parents/guardians and evolved into peer approval to gain self-worth.

Of course the easiest path to ultimate self-worth and self-love is found within where we always have the power to effect our energetic resonance and therefore our experience. That reminds me not to delay the experience of the energy of joy and love that already exists within me AND that I can trigger and release any time and all the time if I so choose.

We know as ‘conscious’ humans I can choose as a goal to experience and expect JOY every moment and the universe will respond each moment with the appropriate objects, people, and events.

PS: One problem with setting target goals to trigger joy is it tends to make us evaluate each event as ‘working for’ or ‘working against’ my goal thus triggering the appropriate up and down energy in my emotional resonance. Also it’s putting the horse ahead of the cart to ‘wait and see’ if events bring me joy INSTEAD of knowing my personal power and changing my subconscious expectations to expect joy and fulfillment from every experience thus making it happen correcting the disruption created by my past self-imposed uncertainty.

Life is a Miracle!

Can you see the beauty in this, what an amazing miracle life is?

Can you remember the immense joy you felt? you knew life would never be the same!!

Can you recall the feeling enough to feel it again?

Can you see that love is all there is, that you can do anything if someone believes in you and is there to love you no matter what?

I dare you to feel it again!! and see what happens then! ;o)

Don't forget to come back and tell me! I'd Love to hear!

http://www.baluart.net/videos/la-guia-maxima-del-embarazo

Hugs xoxo

@nit@

You are an Explorer/Negotiator

The other day I decided to take a test on one of those dating sites, just to see how I was perceived according to my answers. Since I really like learning as much about myself as I possibly can, so that I can make better use of my strengths, while working on my weaknesses, I made sure that I answered all of their questionnaire truthfully, and these are the results of that questionnaire.

It made me very happy to see that it described me pretty much the way I see myself, so I guess I must be getting close to vibrating at the same frequency as my Source Energy. Here are the results of that test.

"You are an EXPLORER/Negotiator. You are a highly spontaneous person who always likes to try new things. Novel and unpredictable situations don't bother you; instead you find them challenging and exciting. You tend to be focused and resourceful and you are able to juggle a lot of projects at the same time; as a result you are sometimes a whirlwind of activity. You have a firm grip on reality and enjoy living in the present tense. But you have a keen imagination that enables you to lift off from time and space to be remarkably creative. You are humorous.

You are able to laugh at yourself, and you like entertaining others. You have a deep sense of compassion. You can show genuine insight into the needs of others; you are good at listening and talking; and you express a genuine desire to be helpful. Yet you are easy-going. Your tolerance for others and their beliefs, your lack of prejudice, your ability to compromise and your occasional antics make you popular with others and a great companion.E-Explorer - 31%
N-Negotiator - 25%
B-Builder - 22%
D-Director - 20%
How your personality breaks out :
Explorer - 31% of your personality
Known for high energy, high creativity and spontaneity. Seeks novelty, risk and pleasure. Intellectually curious and not easily swayed by opinion.
Builder - 22% of your personality
Usually very popular. Deep attachment to home and family. Calm demeanor and low anxiety. Often consistent, loyal and protective.
Negotiator - 25% of your personality
Excels at seeing the big picture, long-term planning and consensus building. An intuitive thinker who is flexible, verbal and socially skilled. Imaginative, empathetic and nurturing.
Director - 20% of your personality
Daring, original, direct and inventive. A non-conformist. Skilled at abstract thinking and short-term planning. Often assertive and quite competitive. Tough-minded and efficient."



How do you see yourself?

Hugs xoxo
@nit@

Yes it’s a Daybreak!...

I was listening to Barry Manilow’s songs tonight, they help and inspire me to keep on believing because I finally came to understand that all these people who had become GREAT at something, anything, were just people who believed, and whatever it is that I still want to become and haven’t yet, is because sometimes it’s hard to believe because you have been without for a while and you forget what it feels like to have.

As Daybreak started to play, for a moment I wondered if I would remember the words, it has been a long time since I last heard that song, I found that I did remember the words, for some reason I memorize many songs and never forget them, even in languages I don’t understand, but what I also noticed was that I never paid attention to the meaning of the words, and that this is not the first time that this happens to me with a song.

I even remember as an adult singing children’s songs to my kids, and as I was listening to the words that were coming out of my mouth, to see what I was teaching them, I paid attention to the meaning perhaps for the first time. It sure came as a surprise to me to realize I have done this many times throughout my life, so now I try to listen and pay attention to the meaning intended when the artists wrote and sang the songs, and try to imagine what was behind them.

Tonight I was having a particular enlightening type of an evening, and when I feel like that, songs seem to talk to me, and Day break sure did.
And as I listen and sing and dance to this music, feeling it deep inside of me, I realize I’m already making it shine, shine, shine all around the world!
YES IT’S DAY BREAK!