Tag Archive | inspire

Just a Happy Post :-D <3

I love all of the seasons and to me the transition of the seasons is so magical. I was walking to work one day recently and looked up and noticed all of the colorful flowers blooming to life on the trees and all around.

And the weather was sparkling and warm and the splendid rays of the beautiful sun were caressing the Earth all around me. I felt as if I have just come in contact once again with a long lost friend who I haven’t seen in forever. It was beautifully overwhelming.

My dog, Koko, died exactly one week ago and since then I haven’t been the same. I have been sluggish and kind of in a fog with no zest or life spark in me. On occasion, I was still able to smile & laugh at things and find joy but it wasn’t the same as it was before my loss.

Deep inside me I couldn’t shake that nagging deep pain. I began to not only mourn Koko but to mourn for part of myself. I haven’t felt completely like myself and felt that I may never get myself completely back again.

That’s also how I feel when my pain disorder flares up severely and when I become severely depressed. But a while after my pain disorder calms and my depression heals, things go back to the same.

I know things will never be the same now because Koko will never be back.

But I also know that after time goes by the edge of the pain will diminish some and grief will heal, although it will never go away. It will become easier to live with and I will have the happiness of knowing my dog when I did.

I have hundreds & hundreds of pictures of her in my phone but I don’t like to look at them just yet. The pain of seeing her so clearly in pictures but not having her here is very deep. It’s heartbreaking.

Today, one week later, I felt my usual life spark again, very brief & fleeting but it appeared. That gives me so much hope that soon I will get back to my sparkling self.

I wasn’t just happy before Koko died; I had this zest & sparkling life all throughout me, pulsating through my veins and blood.

I know I’ll be that way in general again and it won’t be too long before I experience that again but I sure miss it right now.

Today is my furbaby Isis’ birthday! She is six years old and I love her. She was my baby for four years and one of the greatest things in this world. She is so happy and full of life, so energized and playful.

She is a very spoiled girl today! But that is nothing new! I spoil her everyday!

But today she got lots of bones and a toy and a vanilla frosted cake. She was wagging her tail and jumping all over the place!

Also, a few days ago I accidentally came across a sign in a check cashing place, made by a family who had a litter of pomeranian pups that they had to find homes for. Their pom baby had pups and they decided to sell them, not at a pet store but just to anyone interested. Their dog had the pups without them wanting her too. So they had to find homes.

Koko was half pom and I don’t usually see ads for those kind. The ones the family were selling are full breaded poms.

My family wasn’t planning on getting a new dog as we already had three as well as other pets.

And if I were going to look for a new pet I would prefer to adopt one at a high kill shelter to save lives and not support the horror of puppy mills where they are severely neglected, abused, and mistreated.

But when I stumbled across this sign I copied down the info. The family lives very close to us and I knew we would give the puppy a very loving home that s/he deserves if we got one.

But I also knew that my dad would probably disregard the idea. He prefers to only have one or two pets.

I don’t mind more as long as it’s not an insane amount because that’s not good for anyone! Lol

But very surprisingly my dad said if I call for information we can think about it.

So I called the lady and she was very friendly.

And all the puppies found homes except for one little boy who still needed one!

So my mom, dad, and me went to see him and I fell in love instantly!

He is fourteen weeks old extremely friendly and outgoing. He is this big fluffy ball of fur who craves attention and is not timid or scared at all.

My dad said we could have him!

We brought him home and he gets along well with all the other animals.

I love him already, we call him Emmy. But no animal can ever replace another even if the new animal is loved as much just like no person can ever replace another.

My heart still aches for Koko and always will. I miss her so terribly it hurts.

I have also felt very lonely in my grief but I know others feel the same.

Last night I went to a movie with my mom, dad, and sister. We saw “Evil Dead”. It is so hilarious but I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be or not. There are demons calling people “bitch” and stuff and saying “Suck my cock!”. I was lmao!

But it’s also ridiculously GRUSOME! Blood everywhere, body parts ripped off, gore and all.

And I have mentioned in a previous post how that affects me. I have a very strong stomach and do not get queasy over blood and guts on tv or in person but I feel almost as if it’s happening to me when I see it. Yuck! Lol.

But it sure is funny, this movie!

I’ll be getting ready for work soon.

I love working at the store but recently my coworker and me got yelled at badly! My boss said someone told her we were giving away free stuff to people. That accusation is completely UNTRUE but she believes it and said we will be fired if she hears that again. Which really sucks because someone is lying for some reason and can just lie again!

This isn’t the first day someone lied. We have gotten told about this before.

Since we have no cameras people get away with too much like lying and stuff!

Oh well though, I’m still staying positive! 😀

Another thing I am very happy about is: I was filling out a job application recently for a peer specialist position/training class and on the app where it asks for basic info such as race, name, address, and gender, for gender it has options to check off: Female, Male, and Gender Variant/trans.

I am so pleased that they include other options than just the usual male/female. While most people can identify as male or female, some do not. Some prefer to be referred to as transsexual/transgender and imagine the frustration and exclusion they must feel being forced to check off something that doesn’t completely describe them! All places should be more open to variation/diversity of all kinds.

I know some trans. People want to be referred to as male and some as female but some like to also be known as trans. Some people identify with aspects of both genders while others cannot identify with either and that is all ok.

So yeah that makes me happy!

😀

I looked down and saw my “Love Life/Be Brave” bracelet earlier and love the feeling I got. This life truly is beautiful even through the pain, sorrow, and misfortunes.

I hope you all find/have strength, happiness, positivity, and much hope. ❤ 😀

Xoxo Kim ❤

P.S. That’s my birthday girl in that pic with me! ❤

Thank You!!! <3 :-D

Apr14

I want to thank everyone who has recently liked any of my blog entries or hit the “follow” button for it and everyone who already liked or followed it a while ago. I am so, so thankful.

And for the people who just read it and stay quiet.

Some people think it’s “uncool” or shallow or just stupid to get so happy over “likes” or get depressed over not enough attention on social media websites. I agree that we should not let “lack of attention” on the internet get to us too much. But there’s nothing wrong with being grateful for and very happy about the “likes”, shares, reblogs, and comments that we do get.

I decided to create a blog account not only for myself to have a collection of all of my positive & happy thoughts, ideas, finds, and things but to try to help uplift others as well.

So I did create this blog account for other people to see. Even if no one ever paid attention to it I would still keep up with it for myself and whoever may come across it at some point. And you never know who may be “stalking”! Lol ;-p

I understand if you just have a blog for venting just for yourself or a blog that is “blocked” so other people cannot read it you may not care as much having no readers. But if your blog is about a certain topic for others to see, of course you’ll be thrilled over knowing that people see & like your content!!

I love that people are kind enough to take the time to read or comment or “like” my entries and stuff.

I’m going to very soon create a page under the “Menu” section here where I’m going to list the links to inspirational/positive/self-help/motivational websites & blogs.

They can be professional or personal blogs. They don’t have to be very old or completely established yet either. I have quite a few in mind that I’m going to list and I would love more ideas.

I just want a collection of links for websites/blogs with a general positive, inspirational, or self-help theme.

I’m not looking for anything in return like a link back to my blog or a promotion in any way of mine.

If you have a blog or website that is your own with that theme or if you just know of one that you love, you can send me the link either in an e-mail or in a comment here if you want and I will list it! 🙂

So many, many, many blogs & websites have helped me significantly and uplifted me even in my despair and I would love to share them with others and maybe they can be helped and inspired too. ❤

Sharing is caring!! ❤

Here are a few websites I’m going to list:

http://www.jonathanlockwoodhuie.com/

http://www.soulfulliving.com/index.htm

http://www.positivelypositive.com/

I also have some other ones.

I hope you’re all having a fantastic day!! ❤ 🙂

X0xo Kim ❤

“That’s Just the Way I Am”

Apr14

I’m currently reading a book called “Finding Joy” by Charlotte Davis Kasl, Ph.D

I haven’t completed it yet but I can already tell it’s an amazing book!

Dr. Davis Kasl came up with this idea that is designed to help people to accept themselves just the way they are, flaws or perceived “flaws” and all. We all are going to have things we don’t like about ourselves and things other people do not like about us and that is ok. We don’t have to be considered perfect to ourselves or anyone else. We can be perfect in our own way.

Dr. Davis Kasl suggests that we choose some things about ourselves that we may consider to be less than perfect and say or write it out and after saying or writing it, put “That’s just the way I am” or “That’s just what I do sometimes” or “That’s just what is” after it.

Some examples in her book are:

1.) “I get anxious filling out IRS forms. That’s just the way I am.”

2.) “I get scared and don’t stand up for myself. That’s just what I do sometimes.”

3.) “I wear a size 6 top and size 12 slacks. That’s just what is.”

4.) “Sometimes I interrupt. That’s just the way I am.”

(Page 30, “Finding Joy”, Charlotte Davis Kasl, ph.d)

I believe that we should accept what/who we are even the “bad” things because we will be happier and more joyful that way. And anyway it’s impossible to be human and have absolutely no negative things about you.

This isn’t always easy but it is definitely possible and worth it! It’s ok and even good to make attempts to change certain things about ourselves for us for the better but even while we are working to change those things, it’s still possible and good to accept ourselves as we currently are while working to change certain aspects.

For example:

Someone who wants to lose weight for the better would benefit, in my opinion, while accepting her/his current body/weight/physique while attempting to change.

By “acceptance” I don’t mean necessarily “love”. I think we should think or say “This is how I currently am” or “This is how it currently is” and “that’s ok” and try not to feel resentment or anger for ourselves.

There’s really nothing you can do right this second about how you are. If it can be changed it will probably take a while and some work. If it can’t be changed ever it will do you good to embrace or at least accept it.

Focus on the positive aspects about yourself that you like and cherish those while working on what you feel can be better.

It’s ok not to be 100% perfect in everyone’s eyes and even to our own selves.

My view is that in general, things should only be changed about a person if it’s better for that person and is a positive change. So a girl (or anyone) who wants to lose weight, in my opinion, should only do that if it’s healthy for her and what she truly wants for herself and not because of what others or society as a whole or anyone else thinks.

There have been things about myself that I thought is ok but I cared what other people thought and wanted to change it for them, not me.

Ex: My nail polish gets chipped a lot and looks unattractive even to me but I don’t have a serious problem with it. I would prefer to have lovely nails that aren’t all chipped but if they are oh well I will get around to changing them eventually.

But I recently saw people making extremely insulting comments on Facebook on a picture of a girl with chipped nail polish and saying she should constantly keep up on her nails and destructively criticizing her for not doing so. They seriously are acting like this triviality reflects who she is as a whole person. That’s quite a stretch if you ask me.

On some occasions I have looked at my terrible looking chipped nail polish and thought to myself “What would those people think of my nails like this if they saw?”

But I realized it’s not important to me what they think of MY nails! They should attend to their OWN and forget anyone else’s. It just seems so absolutely trivial.

I love fixing up my nails when I’m in the mood but I won’t make it an obsessed top priority because of what other people think!

Also, I have chicken legs. I did ever since I was a little girl. They are very thin like my dad’s. I also have extremely thin arms.

My mom always jokes in a playful way about my thin arms and chicken legs. I always found it amusing.

It’s mostly only noticeable when I’m wearing shorts (which I only wear to sleep in) or dress/skirt (which I hardly ever wear) though, not when they’re covered in pants.

I don’t have a problem with them. I haven’t struggled with my body image since I was seventeen years old.

But recently on Facebook I saw a pic of a girl about the same size as me with thin arms and legs and people were calling her “gross” and “disgusting”. I’m not underweight or malnourished at all and neither is she in that pic. And I don’t have a completely flat stomach.

And I started to think “Wow if they saw me they would think I’m disgusting.” I can just imagine the comments they would say about me!

And the truth is I let it get to me for a while. But I won’t obsess over it at all.

It’s definitely ok and even necessary to a certain extent to care what people think of us about some things. We’re not robots or whatever!

It’s good to a certain point to have emotional reactions to others. Good & bad. It’s unrealistic to expect us to never ever care. We need connections and to be healthy, I believe we should be affected by others.

Just not overly negatively affected to the point that we care more about what other people think than being true to ourselves.

We shouldn’t care so much that we change ourselves for them or care so much that we constantly obsess day & night!

That is unhealthy.

Here are some of my “That’s just the way I am’s”!! Lol!

😀

1.) I’m overly empathetic and often have the tendency to let other people’s/animal’s problems & pain overwhelm me even if I don’t know those people/animals. “That’s just the way I am.”

I often feel that this means I’m very weak. And then I start to think very low of myself about it. I want to care for all living/sentient beings but I want to have barriers to protect myself against exhaustion over it. But this is me!

2.). Sometimes I do care more than I should about what other people think about certain things about me. “That’s just what I do sometimes.”

3.) I have the tendency to sometimes feel that my worth is dependent upon people & things outside of myself such as how many friends I have, how many people like me, how many accomplishments I have achieved…. “That’s just the way I am, sometimes.”

I am not as bad with this as I used to be but I must admit that I still do struggle, on occasion, with feelings of extreme worthlessness.

I know I create my own worth and purpose but occasionally it’s hard not to fall into a negative trap.

4.) I have the tendency sometimes to struggle with feelings of extreme worthlessness and feel that I’m different than most people in some ways that are not good or that other people may think are not good. And then I feel extreme loneliness and excluded. “That’s just the way I am.”

I have mentioned before about how I am a very simple kind of girl. I’m not talking about boring or shallow with no depth but I’m very happy and content with simple things, usually. That’s actually a good thing but sometimes I think it may not be socially considered so good. Sometimes laying in bed all day with my dog on a rainy day brings me just as much of a thrill as some people would probably get going on a big extravagant vacation! Lol

5.) People tell me I need to get a backbone because I tend to feel guilt at just the thought of coming back at people who say/do something negative to me. Sometimes I do get revenge and I usually feel guilty and sorry either instantly or later because deep inside I really don’t like causing pain or anger for people, even ones who do that for other people. People see it as a weakness. “That’s just the way I am”.

6.). I do like horror movies but they affect me more than they should. I’m not one of those jumpy, scared people that feel fear all throughout the movie and then at night when I’m in bed! Lol. But because of my excessive empathy, I feel pain, both physical & emotional when I see the characters feeling pain in the movie. I know it’s not real but it seems soo so real! I also feel empathy for the actors because I know they have to be feeling stress, maybe even emotional pain to some degree while making the movies. I know they chose that job but even self inflicted pain is still pain and worthy, in my opinion, of empathy and compassion!

7.) I have no special talents or creative abilities! “That’s just the way I am.”

8.) I procrastinate like crazy! “That’s just the way I am.”

9.) I am extremely disorganized and the more organized I attempt to become, the more disorganized I am! “That’s just the way I am.”

10.) I like to wear low-cut shirts and tight clothes. For me, not to attract negative attention or get lots of men. People think it’s trashy.

But I like it because I like the way I look and feel in it. “That’s just the way I am.”

11.) I don’t like when people think something negative about me that is not true. So, often, if someone accuses me of something negative that is not true, I feel the need to drag out a conversation/argument until I feel I got my point across. If someone misunderstands what I’m saying or wants to stop talking before I feel I got my point across I try to drag it out for a while. My mom and sister cannot stand this and they claim that I do this merely to cause trouble and for the sake of arguing. They call it harassment. Then I feel the need to drag that out!

Lol! “That’s just how it is.”

I really don’t do this just to argue or be negative! :-). My sister and mom are similar in ways that I am not. When they don’t understand something or are stressed or frustrated they want to quit trying to understand and not talk about it. This drives me bananas! Imagine someone accusing you of something negative then you can’t even defend yourself and get called harassing!! >:-O

12.) I’m horrible at math. Even simple basic stuff. In college I got put in the math for dummies class because my exam scores were sooo loooww! Lol! We were doing elementary school math!

:-O

“That’s just the way it is.”

13.) I am very easily amused and laugh uncontrollably even sometimes during inappropriate situations such as when someone trips or spills something. It may be annoying, possibly immature, and it makes people, especially my mom, mad! But “That’s just the way I am!”. “So sue me!” Lol! ;-D

I also laugh out loud uncontrollably in movie theatres at scenes where no one else is laughing, not sad scenes but stupid ones. And when there is a hilarious scene where everyone is laughing hysterically, I’m the one still laughing long after everyone else has stopped. Kind of embarrassing!

That “American Reunion” movie & “What Happens in Vegas” practically had me on the floor lmao!!! :-p

14.). I’m kind of the biggest pig and have to have the largest of everything when I buy food or drinks out somewhere. My mom says I eat “like there’s no tomorrow.”. Lol “that’s just the way I am”.

So there’s a list of some of my “That’s just the way I am’s”!

This is not to encourage people to settle for less or to be less when we can be more. It’s to show that it’s ok to not be perfect and it’s possible and great to accept yourself the way you are, flaws and all, even if you intend to change eventually, for the better.

You’re not a “loser”, “freak”, or “worthless” just because you have a few quirks, flaws, or negative qualities.

You are not a horrible person for your less desirable traits or habits! 🙂

I read another book before which I do not remember the name or author but the author mentioned that whenever she did something or possessed a quality she or someone else did not like she would say “So sue me!”.

“I made a mistake, so sue me!”. Lol that gave me a chuckle!!

I love the feeling I got reading and doing this exercise.

I recommend it and encourage everyone to give it a try. You can list yours on your blog, in a journal, or just make a mental list but I definitely think it’s a great idea!!

❤ 😀

I hope you’re all having a beautiful day! 🙂

X0xo Kim ❤

Art Journaling Love

Mar8

I have just recently discovered the love of art journaling and paper painting. I love to write too but there are some thoughts, emotions, fantasies swirling around in my head that cannot be expressed in writing because I cannot find the words I’m searching for!! Or they just do not appear to me to be as magical as the energy igniting in me. So they spill out in painting and coloring and drawing. And coloring, painting, drawing is just fun!!!

Like I have mentioned before I have never thought of myself as very creative or skilled at anything like drawing or painting. I’m more skilled at research and academic papers but what good is that?! Lol. That stuff is good for students and some jobs but I’m just a girl looking for some creative outlets and colorful fun!! ;-p

But I’m actually quite pleased with my drawings! They’re not so bad! And there’s one in particular that I really like. Not so much the visual aesthetics of it as the concept. It’s a black page with a small golden yellow light and a hand reaching towards it. I drew this to symbolize that no matter how much darkness or pain there is now, there is always at least a small glimmer of light that we can reach for. And the light can always get brighter & brighter and then eventually transcend the darkness.

The picture of my picture isn’t the best but it’s alright. Lol

I hope you’re all having a beautiful day/night wherever you are! ❤

X0xo Kim ❤

My #1 Goal & sweet reminders <3 :-D

Mar2

Recently at the ice cream store I work at, a sweet, happy, and friendly family came, a mom, dad, and their two little girls. They wanted some milk for the baby’s sippie cup. We don’t usually sell milk but we do have milk we use for the milkshakes so I gave them a cup of milk and did not charge them even though they offered to pay. They also got ice cream and were very pleased with it! 😀

They only spent a few dollars all together. I charged them a little bit less for the little girls’ ice cream because they got smaller sizes than we sell because the girls are so little. They gave me a sixteen dollar tip! A sixteen dollar tip?! Whoooaaa!!! That’s the biggest tip I ever received at once! I was so grateful for their kindness and generosity. Not just because I got extra money but for the fact that there’s people out there who are that giving and friendly and genuinely want to do good for others. They are just very happy and good people. I always appreciate people/customers like that whether or not they give me a tip. Their friendly smiles are enough for me. 😀

This incident reminded me of my number one goal.

To be the best me I can be.

I hope everyone is having a beautiful day/night wherever you are!

❤

X0xoKim ❤

Beauty Abound

Jan31

“R

ainbows, spiderwebs, sunsets…the world is full of wonder if only you look.”

Some days are just blah or even ugly when it seems there’s no beauty to be found anywhere. But even those days have small specks of beauty glimmering in places you may not expect to find beauty. When we think of the concept of “beauty” or “beautiful” we often think of explicit or obvious beauty like a beautiful person or a lovely dress or a bouquet of wedding flowers or a splendid garden. Or songs and music. Or a poem maybe.

But there are more subtle forms of beauty, things that we often overlook and maybe even at first glance do not appear to be beautiful until we actually look closer, deeper, or think about it.

If you can hear, you probably hear cars everyday driving by, screeching, beeping, you probably hear people talking outside your house, you hear the soft humming of the refrigerator, the white noise of your tv, the static of your radio….all these commonplace things we tend to forget are actually beautiful sounds and things. What if you lost your hearing temporarily and then you regained it, you would realize this. But hopefully people will come to realize without going deaf. Icesickles hanging off of cars, rainbows in dripping car oil, spiderwebs woven in the corners of a room, the smile of a stranger, the ticking of a clock…all of these little things can provoke wonder & awe.

Beauty doesn’t even have to be things we experience directly through the senses. It can be thoughts or feelings also. I think we all occasionally find that beautiful things just happen to “jump out” at us. We just see or hear or feel them without looking.

But how many of us have actually developed the positive habit of actually *looking* for beautiful things hidden and glimmering in the corners of darkness or ugliness or plainness? I believe we should all cultivate this habit if we want to be inspired and happier more often.

I love to take in the world around me when I go for walks outside. I frequently take pictures of anything that screams out at me and captivates me. Leaves on trees or the ground, flowers in someone’s flowerpots, the sky in all its various appearances, weeds, plants, lights, designs, birds, squirrels…..

My mom & sister often get annoyed going out with me because I stop every other second to snap a picture of something I find to be very lovely.

The tan weeds in my pictures, I find to be astoundingly beautiful but my mom and sister see them as just old dead weeds! Lol!

And look at the gorgeousness of that sky!! If you try you will find specks of platinum among the sand and dirt.

❤

“Nothing is insignificant.”. ~Samuel T. Coleridge

“See the good all around you, even if you have to squint.”

Xox0 Kim ❤ 😀

List of Inspirations – Sunday, October 7, 2012

Oct7

<a href=”http://www.positivelypositive.com/”>http://www.positivelypositive.com/</a> The Positively Positive Blog

Which I read often and receive their e-mail updates, I came across this wonderful idea introduced to the blog by

<a href=”http://www.positivelypositive.com/2012/10/01/the-list-october-2012/

”>Eric Handler in his “The List” post</a>

The idea is that every month he will make a list of any interesting, inspirational, helpful material he has come across that month. This can include movies, books, ideas, anything.

I decided to try something similar every now and then! Please give credit for this incredible idea to Eric Handler, of the Positively Positive blog!

In the last week some inspirational ideas or things I have come across or thought of are:

1.) This quote by Johnny Cash:

“I’m thankful for a pair of shoes that feel really good on my feet; I like my shoes.

I’m thankful for the birds; I feel like they’re singing just for me when I get up in the morning… Saying, ‘Good morning, John. You made it, John.’

I’m thankful for the sea breeze that feels so good right now, and the scent of jasmine when the sun starts going down.

I’m thankful…”

~Johnny Cash

I love this quote. It is so sweet and loving. Just to acknowledge and appreciate and give thanks for the simple wonders and pleasures around us is a great and extremely effective for bettering our lives and the lives of all around us. Even seemingly ordinary things that almost everyone we know has access to or possesses like a pair of shoes are something to feel immense gratitude for.

Without shoes, we wouldn’t be the same.

2.) Positive Focus: This is something I frequently think about. While it is important to acknowledge what is wrong in the world and around our lives and to take care of that when we can, it is equally important (to feel happier and healthier) to frequently acknowledge what is right with us and the world. We can make mental gratitude lists but it is much more effective to write it down somewhere on paper or on a computer/phone or other technology. I will post another entry soon on the topic of positive journaling. When positive focus becomes intentional and turns into an ingrained habit, we will be much happier and appreciative of life in general.

3.) Craft ideas/Fun Activities: Even if you aren’t very talented at any kind of creative activities, you can still have so much fun creating! Coloring, drawing, painting, writing, gluing, all kinds of stuff like that. This can take your mind off of negative events and thoughts for a while and you can even build on your creative skills!

A.C. Moore has lots of cool craft stuff or just get construction paper and markers!

4.) This quote I also saw in the last week: “All love stories are beautiful but ours is my favorite.” <3. This is a beautiful quote because it is about love and conveys great confidence and appreciation for what the person has but also acknowledges the beauty in what someone else has. There’s no envy here. No negativity. No putting others down or being arrogant. Just love and satisfaction. We should all strive to love and accept what we have while being happy and appreciating the happiness of others as well.

5.) Take the opportunity to understand someone else’s situation/pain and see the beauty underneath: I was recently thinking about counseling centers and mental health centers and how some of them have workers/counselors who seriously mistreat people who struggle with substance addiction or abuse. They treat them as if they are not as worthy of compassion and empathy as other patients and not only counselors do this but often many “ordinary” people do. Friends, family members, strangers…. Often treat people struggling with addiction as if they are horrible people that there is no hope for. For many people, all they see is the monster that the addiction created. But underneath the tragic addiction is a beautiful person with much potential. This doesn’t just go for people struggling with addiction but anyone who may be difficult to have to associate with for whatever reason that may be.

If we extend warmth and compassion and empathy there’s a chance we will touch someone’s life for the better. When a person hurts us in any way it’s often so easy to get angry and devastated and want to hurt the person back. That makes sense and is a normal reaction. I think most everyone has done this. But I got to thinking how it would benefit us all to try to just understand even just a little bit, someone else’s situation or point of view.

6.) Just a random idea: If you’re stuck and feeling uninspired in any situation or if you are depressed and feeling apathetic and want to do nothing, do something anyway. Whatever you usually love to do. If you are some kind of writer, even just someone who writes in personal journals for yourself or creative writing, and you have no idea what to write, just put the pen to paper and see where it goes. If you don’t even try, you’ll never see what happens. And if you’re depressed and indifferent to everything, just go about your usual day. Force yourself out of bed and get your body moving. If you usually like makeup, put it on. I find that this helps me so much more than staying in bed and being blahhhh all day. It inspires me, even if not much, to just keep going and laying around all day being depressed just adds to the depression. Nothing wrong with laying around though and being lazy every now and then just because but don’t let your depression stop you!

I hope you find these helpful and inspirational! And I plan to post more like this often!

And I hope you all have a beautiful day. ❤

XoxoKim

P.s. If this post is completely weird looking it’s likely because I made an attempt to use some html stuff to make the links clickable. I used to have some good basic knowledge of html stuff when I was young but through the years, it all escaped me! ;-). So I may have messed it up a bit!

Also, the two adorable cuties in the picture are my dad’s parakeets, Elvis & Lennon! ❤

A Kind Heart

Sep12

“Strong people don’t put others down…they lift them up.” ~Michael P. Watson

We should try to build each other up, not drag each other down. I have seen so many people who intentionally, consciously go around looking for and focusing on the flaws they see in people, even trivial ones like someone’s physical appearance and many of the “flaws” they point out aren’t even flaws, just differences. I believe that most people who are generally truly satisfied and happy with their own lives and self don’t go around trying to degrade and vilify others.

We all have something that someone else will view as unpleasant or as an imperfection or flaw. No one is absolutely perfect in everyone’s eyes.

I can even understand not liking a certain person but I have known people who negatively gossip and degrade everyone they can about every aspect of the people.

Sometimes when people would do something bad to me or talk negatively about me or make stuff up, I would seek revenge and do it back to the person but I have come to realize that that isn’t the best that I can be. I’m better off ignoring them or confronting them in a civilized manner. I don’t have to like people who destructively criticize me but I can handle it better than lowering myself to their level. The truth is, it’s not good to myself, that person, or the world around me to degrade anyone even if that person is doing something wrong. I think constructive criticism is often good but should be gentle and truly intended to help a person, not drag the person down.

I recently saw a picture on Facebook of a girl who is not very thin that someone put on so that everyone can make fun of her. There were so many negative comments, not one constructive, just cruel to try to be funny or hurt her.

I find that absolutely horrible that someone can want to devastate her like that. They don’t even know her. It wasn’t even like she did something seriously wrong to them. And even if she did, it wouldn’t be right.

But it’s even more weird that they would do that to a person just because of her weight.

I also saw recently on Facebook that a girl who is twenty-something posted a short list of goals she would like to accomplish.

Some of them are to make more friends, make more bead bracelets, paint her nails more, learn to drive, start a craft business at home….all simple things like that.

People vilified her for being so simplistic and called her pathetic and immature and said those are goals she should have had when she was a teenager.

They were comparing their busy, stressful lives to her laid back, calm, peaceful one.

I think that’s ridiculous because there’s nothing at all wrong with having simple goals even as an adult.

Being busy and stressed out isn’t better than focusing on the simple pleasures in life.

It’s up to each person to choose how to live.

We shouldn’t judge other people by our own standards or dreams.

It’s amazing to focus on the small things and be child-like and youthful. That’s not the same as immature.

Busyness and stress do not equal purpose or value anymore than peace and calmness, and simplicity do.

If someone is content with a simple life of simple goals and small things then that’s great.

What matters is that we all have a sense of purpose and happiness with how we live, not what brings us that happiness or sense of purpose. We’re all different and that’s a good thing.

People were also severely criticizing stay at home moms, saying they do nothing and throw away their lives slaving over children and housework instead of doing great things. And calling them lazy.

I also find this ridiculous.

If that is what their heart desires, to stay at home and care for their children, that is great that they have the opportunity to do that.

Just because that kind of life doesn’t appeal to some doesn’t mean it isn’t great.

Like I said, we should all do what we want, whatever brings us joy and a sense of purpose, not what others think we should do.

I have been negatively criticized by some for my frequent positive and cheerful attitude. Someone has actually called it “disgusting”.

I have also heard people call positive attitudes “immature”, “fake”, and “annoying”.

It’s ok for people to have those opinions even though I disagree. Being positive as much as possible does not entail ignoring negative things or repressing them, just not letting them drag us down or get to us too much.

I also think it’s wise and very mature to look at the bright side instead of frequently flipping out and reacting negatively to any little thing that goes wrong.

I am aware that negative things should be addressed and not always be completely ignored. But that doesn’t mean we have to obsess over them and dwell on them and get severely depressed over them.

I think we should absolutely focus on and bask in the small pleasures around us. They’re everywhere if we would just slow down to notice. We can’t always have big things that will bring us pleasure. We can’t always buy expensive things, or win the lottery, or go on a big vacation or have the job of our dreams and even if we do get those things, very often the thrill is diminished after a while when it’s no longer new. The novelty wears off and the thing is taken for granted.

The truth is we should take parts of our day everyday to feel gratitude for everything we have, big and small.

Whether or not we have those big things, the little things are there everyday and can bring us immense pleasure. ❤

The truth is if people feel the need or desire to attempt to drag others down for no specific reason and speak/write negatively of them the people very likely have a problem with their own lives and selves and they either don’t consciously realize or are too afraid to examine themselves and attempt to change for the better. So instead of negatively/destructively criticizing others, they should instead examine themselves and their own lives. That is way more effective than dragging other people down. Negative talking about other people is rarely productive or effective in a positive way.

It may bring the person doing the negative talking an initial sense of gratification for a few minutes or whatever but in the end it does not make that person a better person at all. In fact, I feel that when we degrade each other, in the process we are lowering and degrading ourselves. We’re not being the best we can be but instead sinking to a level we can be way above. Why not be the kind of person who uplifts and brings people up and sees the goodness and beauty in people instead of the “flaws”?

When people are unhappy and bitter in their own lives, they often feel relief trying to convince themselves that someone else is “worse” than they are. But whether or not that’s true, pointing it out about someone doesn’t make you any better than you were or better than that person.

Chances are, if you talk negatively about people, they will do it back to you and try to make you feel low, perpetuating the whole thing. This isn’t good for anyone.

We should allow other people’s beauty, successes, fortunes, happiness, and accomplishments to inspire and motivate us, not make us feel jealous and depressed because we don’t have what they have. We can all do something great for ourselves and others. Even something as simple as being uplifting and positive and encouraging. You don’t have to accomplish big things to be great.

Just being a great person with valuable qualities and characteristics is good enough.

If you are someone who feels the need to vilify people you don’t even know well or people who haven’t done this to you, you will likely benefit by examining yourself more instead of those people because this is an indication that you are unhappy or bitter about something in your life. Then you can work on yourself for the better.

It is normal and even ok to get a little jealous sometimes or strongly desire what others have. But when it’s so frequent or strong or interferes with your life or friendships/relationships with others then that’s when it becomes a problem. But the good news is that it can be helped if you focus on the goodness in yourself and cherish it and not let what you think are flaws make you feel low about yourself.

Let’s feel happy for ourselves and others who experience great things!! ❤

I’m extremely empathetic which is great but also has a somewhat negative side.

I take great pleasure in the success of others but I also take on the world’s pain.

I find though, that I absolutely love feeling thrilled for others as I am for myself when great things happen to them.

When we help others and uplift them, it makes ourselves feel wonderful.

🙂

“Tearing others down won’t get you any higher.”