“I like the darkness. There’s something to the feeling of not knowing your surroundings, not seeing the color of things as they appear, but as they truly are. There’s something about the unknown, the quiet, the cold. There’s something unspoken about the dark, something I can never quite put words to. Something terrifying yet beautiful.” ❤
~Hugs & love~ ❤
😀
xoxo Kim
“Where there is ruin, there is hope for a treasure.”~ Rumi
❤
On Christmas day, I went to see a scary Christmas movie at night. It’s called Krampus and is based on the myth of some ancient spirit. The spirit would come to remind and punish those who stop believing in and wishing for good. In one scene, a little girl asked what if they change what they do and act in better ways so Krampus won’t get them, and an old wise lady said it’s not what we do, it’s what we believe.
We often hear the phrase “actions speak louder than words” and “without action, our words/intention mean nothing.” While I agree in some ways, I don’t completely agree in every case.
Sometimes our intention and compassion are enough, even if it does nothing practical. Compassionate intentions, thoughts, and wishes are still good even if we cannot or do not always act on it. It’s good to be compassionate and not cold. Having compassionate, loving thoughts and intentions helps deepen our general compassion, generating loving energy, and making it more likely we will act in compassionate ways. Sometimes just being near a very loving person brings a sense of calm and peace.
And some actions, while looking good, are not performed out of love. Someone can help others just for image or credit or reputation or out of a sense of obligation or feeling awkward not helping.
I think the best actions are those taken out of true love & desire to help.
It’s true that love & compassion are often best when coupled with action. But living in a state of love and compassion in our mind is also beautiful. A loving essence is beautiful
The movie reminds me of this quote:
“Sometimes people are beautiful. Not in looks. Not in what they say. Just in what they are.” ~ Markus Zusak
❤
Much love,
Xoxo Kim 😀
Nahhhh…I decided to go out in the middle of a rainstorm! it’s raining cats & dogs out there!
Even though it’s storming, I decided to walk to get my mom, sister, and me coffee & hot chocolate.
I LOVE walking in the rain! As long as I can change my clothes and get dried off soon!
Today I soaked up the rain and let it drench me. No umbrella, no hood or raincoat or anything to shield me against the drops falling out of the sky. I felt it on the tips of my toes as I splashed thorough puddles all the way to the top of my head as it soaked my hair. Oh the joy!
My hair just got long enough to sit on last night! Lol It was always almost long enough to sit on but just last night whenever I sit down now, my hair pulls my head back because I’m sitting on it! Lol It’s so funny it just happened in one night! Long hair problems! ;-D
It was also funny walking in the rain. I had nothing but smiles and giggles! 😀 Everyone was probably thinking that poor girl, not knowing it was my choice and I love it.
The weather is perfect for walking in, not cold or hot. Just cool.
A couple people felt sorry for me thinking I got caught in it unexpectedly. Lol But I was loving every second! I received a few friendly and sympathetic and even funny comments. I guess a soaking wet girl with excessively long hair tends to attract attention while out walking!
Here are a few pics of me after getting home drenched. And some rainy songs!
Fool in the rain – Led Zeppelin – mobile
“Now my body is starting to quiver
And the palms of my hands getting wet
I’ve got no reason to doubt you baby…”
Laughter in the Rain – Neil Sedaka – mobile
“Strolling along country roads with my baby
It starts to rain, it begins to pour
Without an umbrella we’re soaked to the skin
I feel a shiver run up my spine
I feel the warmth of her hand in mine
Ooh, I hear laughter in the rain
Walking hand in hand with the one I love” ❤
Walking in the Rain – The Walker Brothers – mobile
“I want her and I need her
And someday, someway
I’ll meet her
She’ll be kind of shy
And real good lookin’ too
And I’ll be certain she’s the one
By the things she’ll like to do
Like walking in the rain (like walking in the rain)
And wishing on the stars up above
And being so in love”
Escape (The Pina Colada Song) – Rupert Holmes – mobile
“If you like Pina Coladas, and getting caught in the rain
If you’re not into yoga, if you have half a brain
If you like making love at midnight, in the dunes of the cape
I’m the love that you’ve looked for, come with me, and escape”
And here’s a beautiful song about paying attention to life and all the beauty we are blessed to know, about not taking things for granted and letting people and things and days slip away without cherishing them.
Standing Knee Deep in A River (Dying of Thirst) – Joe Cocker – mobile
Knee Deep in a River – desktop
Maybe you don’t like walking in the rain but this is a great reminder to soak up all of whatever we do love. Cherish every moment we have been given, honor each day being mindful of all the gifts it provides us.
❤
Hugs & love,
Xoxo Kim 😀
“Spring passes and one remembers one’s innocence.
Summer passes and one remembers one’s exuberance.
Autumn passes and one remembers one’s reverence.
Winter passes and one remembers one’s perseverance.”~Yoko Ono
Today is the first day of Winter and I felt like posting something about Winter before I even remembered today is the first day! 😀
It’s unseasonably warm here in Philadelphia! (I just learned the word “unseasonably” [which my mom is shocked about saying how could I have never encountered that word before now…:-/ ])after reading it in a fiction book and I wanted to use it! lol And this year it’s the perfect opportunity because it IS in fact unseasonably warm! lol) ;-D
What a great quote about the beauty of each season and what it can teach us. Not everyone lives in a place where they get to experience the diversity like some of us do. But whatever it’s like where you are now, there’s something to cherish & be thankful for! ❤ 😀
This is also true not just for seasons involving weather but stages and seasons of life. There's always something unpleasant but always something beautiful too! ❤
😀
Turn! Turn! Turn! – The Byrds – mobile
“A time to be born, a time to die
A time to plant, a time to reap
A time to kill, a time to heal
A time to laugh, a time to weep
To everything – turn, turn, turn
There is a season – turn, turn, turn
And a time to every purpose under heaven”
~Hugs & love~
xoxo Kim ❤
“Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
It’s not all about what we look at but how we see it, our mindset, our attitude and perspectives. There are lots of beautiful things outside of us but they will not do much for us if we don’t have beauty within.
But the good thing is, we all have the capacity to feel beauty, even when it’s hard. We just have to be receptive, open up and truly pay attention. Imagine what it would be like without the senses we have and our ability to understand and all the beauty around us. ❤
This picture is of a beautiful and very large pine tree outside a church. For years I would stop and look at it, take so many photos in all the seasons throughout each year, even collect its pinecones that would fall to the ground. I'm so sad because recently I watched as workers cut it down! I feel grief & disappointment.
But I'm thankful I got to see it for the few years I lived close to it and get all those pictures. I still carry the beauty of it within. No one else seems as sad as me about it. No one else seemed to pay much attention.
Here is a picture of the church on January 9th, 2015.
I know the date because this is the picture I chose for that day on the 365 photo project. I don’t post there everyday.
Here is what I wrote that day:
“This is a church bathing in the sun on a cold Winter day. It’s beautiful and brings me a sense of hope.”
The church is being demolished so they had to cut the tree to get to it. I will miss seeing it and the tree and those creepy black steps that are mostly encased.
This reminds me to always pay close attention to people and things and all the beauty around me. It’s still good to cherish and be mindful of everything even if we knew we would have it forever but we don’t have things forever and it’s harder to lose people and things we did not appreciate as much as we could have. There is more potential for regret when we lose things we take for granted.
So let’s cherish everything we are blessed with! And still keep the beauty within us even when it’s gone.
😀
Much love & light to you,
Xoxo Kim ❤
(the pictures in this post are not mine, they are of a beautiful little girl named Sa’fyre Terry –
http://abcnews.go.com/US/girl-lost-family-fire-christmas-cards-presents/story?id=35675085 )
“In the eyes of a child there is joy, there is laughter
There is hope, there is trust, a chance to shape the future
For the lessons of life there is no better teacher
Than the look in the eyes of a child” ~ Air Supply
Yes, it is ok not to be perfect!
But this little baby IS beautiful just the way she is.
What a wise little girl. ❤
My sister told me about this sweet little Earth angel who she is going to send a card to and then I saw someone share her story on Facebook.
Isn't she just the cutest?!
She wants people to send her cards for Christmas.
She was burned in a tragic house fire where her family was killed.
I stare at her picture over and over and have nothing but love and compassion for her, not sorrow or pity. She doesn't need that. All she wants is LOVE and true love is seeing someone's beauty just the way it is.
One of my biggest dreams has been to do volunteer work in a burn unit for children. In the movie "Shallow Hal," the girl volunteers to work with little kids who have suffered burns. I always found that to be the sweetest thing and ever since I saw that movie, years ago, I decided I want to do that too!
I haven't been able to find any volunteer opportunities like that. Some volunteer jobs I found in similar settings require previous experience, which I don't have.
Hopefully one day though I will realize this dream! ❤ ❤
Some people have trouble looking at people who are seriously disfigured or deformed but I just cannot have that trouble because I feel too connected to others to see them as anything but beautiful, to see them as anything unlike myself. That body, that face, scarred or disfigured or deformed or flawless is a part of who they are. It's hard to explain in words but the closest I can come to explaining is their face or body is a big part of them like mine is a big part of me and I would never want someone to have difficulty looking at me and I'm sure no one else wants that either. What is the difference if my face is flawless or scarred or deformed? It's mine and inside I am still me. Just like all of us.
We are much more than what we look like but how we look is a part of us and it's good to embrace it and each other.
I am no different than this little girl. She has emotions, dreams, goals, interests, love, joy, pain, sorrow, happiness, scars, perfections, needs, desires, life, beauty…just like me.
When I look at her, I see a reflection of my own self.
My struggle with depression and severe facial pain & headaches has always inspired me to feel deeper connections to people with both seen and invisible disabilities.
A person with a physical scar or deformity may not feel the same or agree with me and I understand but my severe facial pain disorder, though it can't be seen, has always allowed me to feel a strong identification with others with facial disorders and even physical scars, deformities, birthmarks.
Mine cannot be seen but it's just as real. Mine is physical but also brings with it deep emotional scars and pain. It even hurts me to write or think about it.
But we all have basic empathy and can tune into it and strengthen it whether we have a disability or not. We don't need depression or any other disorder to empathize with others. But those things can help. We can all draw on our own experiences, both pleasant and painful, to identify with each other.
Also, at any second, any one of us can be slashed, scarred, disfigured, burned. And we would still be us. Would you want someone to cringe when those people look at you? Whether or not your face is disfigured, imagine a person having difficulty, emotionally, looking at you. It's not pleasant.
Not everyone who can't bring themselves to look at someone with a deformity or disfigurement is cold or cruel. Some are but most probably aren't. We aren't used to seeing things like that and often when a person is scarred or disfigured, it's the result of a serious injury and that's what often comes to mind when we see the scars. It doesn't make us callous or horrible if we have the urge to look away or cringe or stare but that can be overcome through tuning into our empathy and strongly identifying with the person. That person is not unlike someone with a perfect face. We are the same, we are One.
For this little girl, we can do more than just send her cards. We can live a life of compassion and empathy and learn to see the beauty of every single person we lay eyes on or encounter in any way. Even if we do nothing to help in a practical way, having a loving, compassionate attitude, essence, is very helpful and can contribute to us acting in loving ways consciously and unconsciously. Loving energy is very good. People sense our energy/vibration. Let's make it one of Love. All encompassing Love.
“You’ve found the place to walk the path you’ve chosen
You’ll never miss the world you’ve left behind
When life gives life, it’s happiness unbroken
When you give love, it’s love you’ll find” ~ Air Supply
Two of the most beautiful things are self confidence and compassion for others.
It's beautiful when a woman with a big scar on her chest can still wear revealing clothing, when a person with a facial scar still shows her/his face knowing people will stare and whisper, when a person not considered society's definition of beautiful will still have the courage to dress how she wants, when a person with gray hair embraces it instead of covering it just for what others may think, when a woman with no hair as a result of a medical/health condition doesn't feel the need to wear a wig or scarf just because other people will think something unpleasant, it's beautiful when we overlook all the trivialities and see beauty in places it's not considered to be, when we embrace each other in our love.
It's ok to conceal our imperfections for us if it's truly what we desire. A person who is confident may still just wish to cover or get rid of something undesirable to that person and that's ok. But it's not something we should feel the need to do because of what others may think.
Cosmetic surgery, hair dye, wigs, makeup, anti-aging creams, weight loss techniques…there's nothing wrong with it and it's not necessarily an indication that someone is insecure or lacks self love.
Some people just desire some changes. But I don't think it's something we should do out of fear or embarrassment for what society or others think. I think those things are best when done for our own selves because it's what we want based on our own desire, not the desire or demands or rules of someone else.
Even if we do not know a person or any living sentient being we come across, we know enough to love that being. We know that living, sentient being, just like us, is someone, someone with pleasure, joy, and pain, fear, hunger, someone with the need to avoid suffering and the desire for happiness or absence of suffering.
We can not tell jokes about people's physical appearance, we can choose not to be shallow and judge based on physical appearance, we can choose to see how we are all connected. We can choose to genuinely compliment someone when someone else slings insults. We can choose to seek what is good in each other and forgive the less than good.
I have much sympathy for the little girl who lost her family in a fire and I have so much sorrow for all the lives lost. Her daddy covered her with his body to save her life. He did not survive. The little girl does have a family, even if not the whole one she was born into, but she has people who love and care for her and now all the people around the world who encountered her story and love her. Family isn't just biological or legal.
Sa’fyre’s aunt says this about her:
“She’s a living message to people that there’s hope, and no matter what you can get through anything,” Dolder said. “That’s why we share Sa’fyre with everyone.”
What a gem this little girl is! ❤
This little darling girl inspires me so deeply! She is so happy and positive and adorable! She looks so cute in her little Christmas clothes! I’m so happy she chose to put her story out into the world and to show her beautiful face, to touch so many lives with her young life.
I am so thankful she survived.
I’m also so thankful she still has her sense of vision, that it wasn’t completely destroyed. And thankful for her beautiful smile. 😀
I’m so thankful to her family for bringing her into the world and for sharing her with us. ❤
I hope we will cherish the lives of all sentient beings and wish the best for everyone. By best I am referring to happiness and inner peace no matter the circumstances.
“When you look to the past for life’s long hidden meaning
For the dreams and the plans made in your youth
Does the thrill to achieve match the warm hidden feeling
That lies so still and lives in you”
The Eyes of a Child – Air Supply – mobile
Beautiful song that brings chills!
Much love & light to you, always. ❤ ❤
xoxo Kim ❤
I love Christmas & Christmas music!
Today is a beautiful December day.
Unusually hot. I am cherishing every second of warmth especially knowing that it’s not always going to be like this. Most Decembers are freezing cold here and it’s quite beautiful to be able to walk around in short sleeves without freezing my balls off, in December! I do love the cold but this is sweet too! I was so disappointed, even beyond disappointed, for a while that it’s this hot but now I’m just soaking up all the warm beauty. It feels like the beginning of Spring! Not just physically but that emotional/psychological feeling.
Now I’m longing for Spring! Lol
Here is one of my favorite Christmas songs!
Santa Baby – Eartha Kitt – mobile
“Come and trim my Christmas tree,
With some decorations bought at Tiffany’s,
I really do believe in you,
Let’s see if you believe in me,
Santa baby, forgot to mention one little thing,
A ring.
I don’t mean on the phone,
Santa baby, so hurry down the chimney tonight”
Very materialistic isn’t it? Lol But that’s ok! Nothing wrong with wanting a few unnecessary objects!
Here is my materialistic Christmas list:
1.) A ring (like the girl in the song! Lol) I love rings, especially sterling silver emerald birthstone rings! The emeralds don’t have to be real. That would be sweet though! I can look at rings online all day. It’s eye candy but torture since I can’t have them. I like silver more than gold.
2.) some more Buddhist Malas! Any pretty stones are good!
3.) lots & lots of books! Mystery, thrillers, philosophy, fiction, supernatural, legal thrillers, medical thrillers….
4.) stationary supplies…notebooks, pens…
5.) tea!
6.) a pleasant surprise! 😀
7.) candles! I especially love tropical scents and there’s this one I saw that I hope to get called “Stormy Nights” and it smells amazing! There’s one called “Midnight Rain” that looks pretty but doesn’t smell really good. Not bad but not especially good. I love the names of both candles. I’m also hoping for a Strawberry one! 😀
8.) A five inch pair of stilettos, preferably black! Never too old for those!
Lol This was kind of difficult, I had to think a lot about what objects I want, I guess I’m not that materialistic! Oh, well….;-D But I really would love all these things! ❤
Soon, I will be sharing my grown up Christmas list, a way less materialistic one!
I love that song sung by Amy Grant! Just beautiful!
😀
But I also love this funny, cheerful, uplifting one!
Eartha Kitt is a pretty, pretty girl isn't she?! Goddess for sure! And what a pretty name, Eartha. I love the old sound of this great song!
Much love to you!
❤ 😀
Xoxo Kim ❤
“Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment and nonjudgmentally.” ~ Jon Kabat-Zinn
Yeaaahh! There’s so many beautiful things to be mindful of and tune into using all the senses we have!
Especially this season! I love the holiday season! All the lovely fragrances and decor! This year it’s hot as hell in Philadelphia! It’s often freezing cold & snowing by now and this year people are still walking around in shorts! Walking to work today, it felt like Summer!
I love cold weather but at least with it so warm, work is opened more days. We often close for “bad” weather. And another great thing about warm temps is some flowers are still in bloom and Summer bugs haven’t all died off. I love those things!
One visited me tonight at work.
What a beauty! They are green with clear green wings. If you can identify this beautiful creature, let me know, please! ❤
It kind of sucks because we already had Spring & Summer this year! We don’t need another. But it’s still beautiful and I’m looking at the bright side!
😀
Much love to you!
xoxo Kim ❤
~ No beauty shines brighter than a good heart.~ ❤
"A pretty face gets old…A nice body will change…But a good woman will always be a good woman."
True beauty never fades! ;-D
hugs & love to you! ❤
xoxo Kim
