Soundtrack: Miguel Radio on Pandora.com
The past few weeks have been anything but dull. Let me start with the most important matter: my book. I have been editing ferociously (that is an exaggeration, but let's go with it). I'm on chapter 12 out of approximately 29 total chapters. The editing process is definitely not as exciting as the writing part. While I'm writing, my characters drive the story and I'm just a conduit they use to tell their stories and live their lives. During the editing process, I find myself enjoying what I've written, as well as tweaking (not twerking) as I go along. Sometimes I change things that conflict with an upcoming event and I have to go back and unchange the change I just made. It is very annoying! I'm annoying myself! For example, I wanted to add more depth to a scene just today. I wanted one of my main characters to plop down on a bench and throw a towel over his head. Well, I couldn't do that and let the other guys in the room recognize him. I had to retract my edit, but I still like the symbolism of his emotional state: the towel represents a cloud looming over head constricting his Sahasrara chakra. My character is caught in a position of not being in tune with himself due to external forces. So now I'm constricted because the more I'd like to move on and continue my edits, the more I need to rework the scene in order to interject this very poignant and foreshadowing imagery. I'm still working on it. Oh, and I've set a deadline for completing ALL edits for May 30th. The added pressure gives me the jolt of stress I need to dedicate myself to getting this done. I learned from a TED talk that stress is good!
On to the next topic: dating. Ugh! Let's just say that Miss Tree has been meeting new giraffes, but in the process of each new acquaintance who always have a bomb to drop i.e. some level of dramatic baggage that changes the game, Miss Tree has changed her priorities. While she was in a hurry to link up with a giraffe initially, she has now refocused her pursuits opening up a fresh timeline for her to follow. She no longer worries about her seasons or...ahem...her germination clock. She just wants to live a breezy life hopefully with one God-sent giraffe, but if not, she'll be all right! She may just relocate and hang out with palm trees in Florida. Who knows?
Lastly, I've found that I'm laughing more these days. I had a wonderful conversation with my pal who just earned her doctorate in psychology. I read her psych books in undergrad to assess just how crazy I was. Good times! Anyway, I had an epiphany while I was talking to her on the phone. I made some drastic changes in the way I lived my life in the fall of 2008, and those changes or shifts served a very important purpose. However, the epiphany was that I thought the shift I made in 2008 would serve another purpose in my life and I was dead wrong. Aha! That is what Deepak Chopra means when he instructs during guided mediation to "breath out what no longer serves." Analogy: It's like trying to use lotion to moisturize your skin and as a condiment on your sandwich. That's not going to work! So, I went back to the drawing board with how I was going to re-equilibrate my life. I'm still in the R&D phase, but I believe I'm headed in the right direction for this new phase in my life. Only time will tell. Back to my joyous laughter I've been experiencing. I've found quite a bit of comic fodder on YouTube recently and I know my levels of endorphins and whatever other hormones form due to laughter have increased. One in particular is Alonzo Lerone. When I tell you that he is exactly what I needed to see and hear the past couple of weeks, "I am not even kidding!" He does parodies, dumbest tweets, skits, and reviews. I laugh. I just laughed thinking about how I laugh at his YouTube videos and social commentary. So if you need a pick-me-up during the day or just a break from the ordinary, http://www.alonzolerone.com/ .
Writers, if you have any editing tips, please comment below. Your help would be appreciated.
Please feel free to leave comments. I'll be sure to respond :)
Building my Ebay Plus Size Fashion Business. Raising my Student-Athlete. Finding all the beauty life has to offer.
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Monday, May 19, 2014
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Finding my Flow
Participating in the Oprah and Deepak 21-Day Meditation Experience is taking me to another level, but there are challenges around every turn. I have made it a habit to meditate twice a day. There have even been some days that I was able to get in three meditation sessions. At the conclusion of each session, I either fall asleep if it’s at night or during the day, I feel a sense of otherworldliness that I can’t adequately put into words. It would be an amazing feeling to exist in this spiritual space for longer periods of time, but because we live in a physical world, that desire is an impossible feat. Existing on another plane of consciousness would hinder my effectiveness, but visiting this space increases my efficacy. Life is a balancing act.
Getting back to the challenges I mentioned…it seems like whatever the mantra or guiding principle for the day happens to be, there is a situation to snuff out the “inner work” that had just been done. For example, yesterday’s mantra was about power. I felt powerful; moreover, bible study confirmed and reaffirmed my authority in the Kingdom. I felt like I could do anything. The exciting part was that I felt like I could do anything for not only myself, but also for others to bring healing and progression. Then the challenge reared its head to make me feel powerless.
Er…let’s go back to our friends Mr. Giraffe and Miss Tree. Since we last saw her, Miss Tree was lamenting about her mother’s unintended insensitivity. Recently, she has met a giraffe named Gary who is everything she had hoped she’d find. They have been communicating regularly which is creating the perfect atmosphere for them to develop a wonderful friendship as a foundation for more. He even brought up the fact that he’d like a constant tree and that Miss Tree was a perfect fit with her sweet leaves and vibrant personality. Then the wrench: While there were many things that they both agreed upon as it pertained to their future, there were a couple of issues that arose that seemed to be non-negotiable on his part. So, that left Miss Tree feeling…powerless. Miss Tree once again contemplated adjusting her desires and dreams to align them with Mr. Gary Giraffe. Ugh!
Poor Miss Tree! What exactly is she to do? My advice to her is to live in the moment, continue to release her dreams, desires, and most importantly, gratitude into the Universe leaving it in God’s hands, and enjoy all of the fruits from her commitment to building up her spirit! Sometimes, taking a step back to assess the situation gives a fresh perspective and fuels us with power within to keep pressing forward. David Ji from the Chopra Meditation Center said something during a guided meditation that has stuck with me and shifted my focus. He said, “Breath in uncertainty, and breath out certain pain.” There is quite a big difference in “uncertainty” and expecting “certain pain.” Uncertainty does not have to be bad at all. It only means that we do not know everything that will happen. The problem comes when we think we know everything that will happen and suspect that it will turn out for the worse. Stop that! Uncertainty means that there are great things that will happen and you (and I) will be able to experience them when the time comes. So, I wait with expectancy while enjoying the “now.” Miss Tree, enjoy Mr. Gary Giraffe because if it is meant for you two to be more than “passersbys,” you will have a shared destiny that won’t have a hint of contradiction. Harmony will be ever-present.
It’s not too late to start the Oprah and Deepak 21-Day Meditation Experience. I would suggest if you would like your life to change for the better, you give it a try. You will not regret taking that time for yourself, getting closer to the self you were created to be. You'll feel reinvigorated and passions will be reignited! Despite the challenges I may face on this journey, I know I have all of the force to overcome them, by my spirit and the Spirit!
https://chopracentermeditation.com/experience
Getting back to the challenges I mentioned…it seems like whatever the mantra or guiding principle for the day happens to be, there is a situation to snuff out the “inner work” that had just been done. For example, yesterday’s mantra was about power. I felt powerful; moreover, bible study confirmed and reaffirmed my authority in the Kingdom. I felt like I could do anything. The exciting part was that I felt like I could do anything for not only myself, but also for others to bring healing and progression. Then the challenge reared its head to make me feel powerless.
Er…let’s go back to our friends Mr. Giraffe and Miss Tree. Since we last saw her, Miss Tree was lamenting about her mother’s unintended insensitivity. Recently, she has met a giraffe named Gary who is everything she had hoped she’d find. They have been communicating regularly which is creating the perfect atmosphere for them to develop a wonderful friendship as a foundation for more. He even brought up the fact that he’d like a constant tree and that Miss Tree was a perfect fit with her sweet leaves and vibrant personality. Then the wrench: While there were many things that they both agreed upon as it pertained to their future, there were a couple of issues that arose that seemed to be non-negotiable on his part. So, that left Miss Tree feeling…powerless. Miss Tree once again contemplated adjusting her desires and dreams to align them with Mr. Gary Giraffe. Ugh!
Poor Miss Tree! What exactly is she to do? My advice to her is to live in the moment, continue to release her dreams, desires, and most importantly, gratitude into the Universe leaving it in God’s hands, and enjoy all of the fruits from her commitment to building up her spirit! Sometimes, taking a step back to assess the situation gives a fresh perspective and fuels us with power within to keep pressing forward. David Ji from the Chopra Meditation Center said something during a guided meditation that has stuck with me and shifted my focus. He said, “Breath in uncertainty, and breath out certain pain.” There is quite a big difference in “uncertainty” and expecting “certain pain.” Uncertainty does not have to be bad at all. It only means that we do not know everything that will happen. The problem comes when we think we know everything that will happen and suspect that it will turn out for the worse. Stop that! Uncertainty means that there are great things that will happen and you (and I) will be able to experience them when the time comes. So, I wait with expectancy while enjoying the “now.” Miss Tree, enjoy Mr. Gary Giraffe because if it is meant for you two to be more than “passersbys,” you will have a shared destiny that won’t have a hint of contradiction. Harmony will be ever-present.
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| Model: KJ Photo Credit: Marley Ross |
https://chopracentermeditation.com/experience
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