With Liberty and Justice For All

I have to say that I am disappointed. I just don't approve of the recent laws and rulings of the government. America is the best country in the whole world and I would never want to live anywhere else, but today we were truly tested on how far our elected officials are willing to take their "power". I personally am not an avid follower of politics, but do like to have at least some idea of what is going on in the country. I have felt the effects of our not so good economy, to put it lightly, as I search for a job and can tell that the country is not heading in the right direction.

Today the Supreme Court passed the individual mandate as part of Obamacare under the taxing power of government, but I honestly fear that the government will use this ruling to over reach their powers. If they can tax those that don't buy into heath care what is next? What if the government decides it wants you to own a certain size house or buy certain foods or only have energy saving cars, if you don't comply they can't force you to buy any specific product, but they can (according to the Supreme Court today) tax you for purchasing the undesirable product. All I can see is a threat to the freedom we have spent so many years to protect and defend and the worst part is that the threat is from within our own country.

Our country was founded due to the objections of our forefathers to the injustice of a tyrant, over controlling English ruler, so why would we want to go back to that now after all the lives that have been lost in order to ensure we would have our freedom and could live our life in the pursuit of happiness? Since when do we pass bills that are only explained after we pass them? And why are elected officials who claim that if things do not get better in their four years of office they will leave peacefully pour billions of dollars into their re-election campaign? Obama is even desperate enough to ask people to donate to his campaign in lue of a birthday or wedding gift...that is crazy! We believed that hope and change would come, but instead we got a government that wants to control everything and anything. You can't even buy the size soda you want in New York because it "leads to obesity" (even though there is no direct link), but don't worry you can celebrate donut day as long as you exercise moderation....what?? that makes no sense! The mayor claimed in an interview on the Today show that donut day was historic and should be celebrated in moderation, well what about soda can't the same be said? He claimed that that is what the soda ban was trying to help do, so basically what he was saying is he trust people not to eat too many donuts, but once people get near soda forget about it Americans need help...Do these politicians listen to themselves when they talk? or do they just like hearing the sound of their voices?

Today's decision has just further motivated me to stay involved in what is going on in this country and make my voice heard. Many who are upset know that this battle is not over and that come November our voices will be heard! We all need to band together to get Obama out of office and make sure we send the message to Congress that if they threaten our liberties they will pay the price and that their actions do hold consequences. One of the things that really annoys me about this whole healthcare issue is that whatever Congress or the President passes they will never have to be under it's jurisdiction. I feel that they need to get off their high horses and see what is really best for the American people and not what they can do to line their own pockets. So, yes Obama won today, but lets hope come November the American people will win and we can get back to the ideals and values that this great country was founded on. Lets hope that when we move forward that means great strides to keep government in check and not change into a socialist society. 

Appreciate The Life You Have

"Be thankful for whatever situation you are in because happiness will never come to those who don't appreciate what they already have". I think sometimes we are often too quick to judge our own situations without really seeing all that is going right in our lives. If your life is anything like mine then it is not always easy to see all the blessings you truly have until you actually take the time to step back and try to look for the good things in your life. All to often we see other people's lives as so much better than our own, but are they really? Why are we so quick to accept that others have their life together when we know from our own experiences that life is never actually able to be made that simple and neat?

I was taking with a former classmate of mine and I feel he brought up an interesting point. He asked me if I buy a scratch ticket and I win any money would I tell a lot of people and be really excited about it and I, being the person I am, would of course tell everyone and quickly post to Facebook and call my best friend in Thailand. However, he said what if you didn't win any money would you be so eager to share this information and I replied that I, for obvious reasons, would not be as eager to share this information with others, but would probably still tell my best friend :). Which he was quick to point out is true for many other events that happen in our lives. People tend to emphasize when things are going well in their lives and tend to hide when they are not, which just goes to show that you really should not be comparing your life to anyone else's because you are only getting what others are letting you see, which is the good things in their lives and all too often the bad is being de-emphasized and pushed to the side.

From Tara Burner Blog

This is just something to think about when you get down and feel as if your life is the only one spinning out of control. Just remember its not just you. Right now as many of my friends and I, along with other young adults, try to figure out what we will do in the world and how we will make an impact that is lasting we need to remember not to compare our lives to others and think that we are alone in this struggle, but remember that everyone has their struggles. In most cases no one really knows what their plan in life should be until it happens. So don't get discouraged if you are thinking that this is not where you saw your self in life right now just remember there is a whole generation in your same shoes and no one ever really knows where to go next we are all just stumbling around to find what will make us happy and how to live in a world that does not always seem to play fairly. Therefore, embrace life and do what makes you happy because you only get one life to live so you better make it count! Look to appreciate where you are now in life rather than looking down on it and feeling bad about yourself. Everything will work out in the end! Believe that and for now just enjoy the unanswered questions and the moments of doubt. Remember life does not have to be perfect to be wonderful; its all about your perspective on the situation you are currently in.

You Hold The Power

You are in total control of your life whether you know it or not. You control what you will do and where you will go in your life no one else can do it for you nor can anyone else truly know what is right for you. People may know the stories of your life and the drama that has unfolded, but they will never be able to know your deep inner feelings that words will never be able to express. Just going to show that others do not have the right to judge the way you live your life and the paths you will decided to explore.  In life you have to take the time to really evaluate what you want and not be ashamed to admit when you are on the wrong path. Everyday we make decisions that affect where we will go in the future. Sometimes you will look around and say wow I don't know if I like where my life is heading. The great thing about life is, however, you have the right to say that and make the appropriate measures to change your current situation.


photo from Bits of Truth



Life is not set in stone, nothing is ever guaranteed. If there is one thing I have learned about life it is that you have to enjoy the good times while they last and weather through the storm for just a short bit because life is constantly changing and evolving. People will come into and out of your life and you will make life decisions that will take you in many various directions, but one thing that will always be true is that through it all you will be in control of your actions. You will be able to change your course whenever you want, even if it is hard to see that in the moment.

We all needed to be reminded that our goal in life is to be happy and if the path we are on is not making us happy then we are not on the right path. If we continue on the is path then we will continue to get the same results, however if we are courageous enough to recognize we need to make a change great things can happen. We have to not be afraid of the unknown and step wholeheartedly on. We can not let the fears of failure or uncertainty get the best of us and we can not let the voice in our heads that say change is impossible defeat us. We need to realize the that word impossible really means i'm possible! Why waste another minute not being happy?

There is a story of a five year old who was asked in one word what he wanted to be in life and he said happy, the teacher then responded that he did not understand the assignment, but he thought she didn't understand life. This story just goes to show how much we need to find our happy place in a world that does not always foster it for us. So really take the time to evaluate where you are going in life and where you actually want to be. What can you do today to make this limited time we have here on earth the best it can be?

Friendships

"Tell me who your friends are and I will tell you the kind of person you are". I have gotten these words of wisdom from a fortune cookie, clearly the source of any great life advice, but if you really think about it your friends can have a huge impact on your life and the person you become. They are the people who you choose to help enrich your life and they are the ones you can truly be yourself with. I personally do not know what I would do without my friends they are always there for me and I hope they can say the same about me. They listen to all my trials and tribulations, hear my beautiful sounding off key singing and accept my pink obsession, even when I leave the house wearing a full pink outfit.They help to make me laugh when all I want to do is cry and I always have good memories to share with them whether its imaginative bedtime stories, watching Law and Order SVU together screaming Elliot, singing Taylor Swift, laughing at things only we understand or taking random trips to Boston on a whim. I am truly blessed to have the people I do in my life. Having good friends that help bring lift you up when you are down and who you can share your deepest thoughts with is vital to having a happy life.

Those people you have chosen also say alot about you as a person and the type of qualities you value. You should be with friends who help you look on the bright side of life and support you with the decisions you make. They should not belittle you or make you feel bad about yourself in anyway. They should standby you through the good and the bad because if they can't accept you at your worst why should they be able to have you at your best? Throughout life you will be faced with many trials and its always helpful to know you don't have to ride the journey of life alone.

As I try and figure out where I am going next in life and what my dreams and aspirations are I am very thankful to have the friends I do and hope everyone who reads this also feels the same way about their friends as well. If not you can always try and branch out to make new friends. Everyone can always use a friend and it really is all about the quality of the friends you have never the quantity. Sometimes all someone needs is to know that they have someone in their life that when they pick up the phone they will listen and not judge them and always try to put a smile on their face. So really try and take the time to thank those who you know you would never be the same without because they have forever had an impact on your life wether they have been around for years or just entered your life recently their influence can last a lifetime.

Take A Look Around

It is often said that life is not about the destination, but the journey. I was reminded of this on my drive home from grad school this weekend. I was trying to get back home as quickly as possible because I had an appointment I had to go to in town and I did not want to be late, as is normally my style. So I was driving along full steam ahead and on part of my route there was some construction, which made all the cars passing through have to slow down as they crossed the torn up road. All I could think was let's go I have to get home, I'm going to be late. However, upon looking around at my surroundings (while still keeping my eyes on the road) I noticed the cutest house along the side of the road. I had driven past this way numerous times to go home and have never noticed this house, but today as I took the time to really take in the scenery I was able to see it crystal clear. And this got me to thinking how often we do this same thing in our everyday lives. We are so busy trying to get places in the world whether it be in our cars or climbing the corporate ladder or finding the one we will marry that we often fail to see the good things that surround us in our current position.

We may think to ourselves once I get that six figure job or meet that perfect life companion I will be happy, yet we fail to see all the good things that are already present in our lives. Why do we have to wait to be happy? We need things like road blocks or wake up calls to really make us stop in our tracks and see the beauty this life has to offer. I definitely believe it is good to have goals and dreams for our lives, but i also feel that we should not get too wrapped up in where we envision our lives going that we fail to enjoy what life has to offer each and every day. We need to take the time to appreciate the people in our lives and not take for granted that they will always be with us on this life journey as well as appreciating each day we have because sadly that will end one day also. The journey of life must be enjoyed and not taken too seriously because as it has been quoted no one makes it out alive, so it is really just about making the most of the time you have and doing what makes you happy while still being kind to others.

"Dare to live the life you have dreamed for yourself. Go forward and make your dreams come true.”--Ralph Waldo Emerson

Time To Start The Life You Always Wanted

So recently I have been wanting a change. I want to start feeling like I am living life and not just watching it pass by. I want to start accomplishing more than just what is expected of me and what I ought to do. So with this being said I am taking a stand in my life and diving head first into the next chapter of my life.

I am going to do all the things I have wanted to do since I could remember. I am going to go out and do things for the sole purpose of having fun and enjoying life. I am going to cook foods that I have never made before, take trips to places I want to explore and most importantly try to find out who I am and what I want to do in life.

For the past 17 years I have been doing everything that has been expected of me, but now it is my turn to see the fun side of life. I want to be able to look back and see that I did things for me and not just because it was the next logical step in my life. At this point I am young and have my whole life ahead of me why not explore the world around me and take the time to really see the person I am and the person I want to become. Everyone is always waiting for something in order for thier life to start, but why can't it start right now?

When I started this blog originally I wanted to inspire people to be happy and I also want to show people it is never too late to do what makes you happy, better late then never. I want to try and capture the magic of life and share it with those of you who choose to read. I want to start doing things that I would never imagine doing just because I want to do them. You are only young once and nothing lasts forever so you must enjoy the time that god has given you while it lasts. Tell people that you care about that you love them and take the time to be there for your friends because things change and people change. No one is guarrenteed any particular amount of time on this planet so we need to make the most of it while we can!

So As I open the next chapter of my life I hope to share it with those who read my blog and hopefully inspire someone to do the same thing in their life. It doesn't need to be life altering to make an impact on your life it could be as simple as taking an hour out of your day to just focus on you and where you want to go in life or taking a day trip exploring your state in ways you never have before. Just listen to your heart and what you can feel will make you happy. It may not be easy, but then again when is life ever guarrenteed to be easy? If it were easy we would all be to bored to enjoy it.

There is no maual to how to live your life you just need to ride the rollar coaster and hold on tight only sometimes falling off.

Judge Not

So recently I have tried to work to be a better person and as part of this transformation I have tried to resist the temptation to gossip and judge others. Each person has their own story and their own struggles in life and who am I to tell a person what they should or should not do or even have an opinion on how they decide to live their life? I have no more insight into this life than they do and on some issues I could never image being in such a position. I am fortunate in the life that I have and honestly have enough in my life to worry about I don't need the added worry of others lives. By judging others we are not defining others but ourselves. How we treat others around us is more of a reflection of the people that we are and less about the other person. Think about it when we judge others aren't we just commenting on weaknesses and failures we see in our selves. We bring up the failures of others to deflect the failures we should be trying to focus on in our own lives. But why do we throw stones at others as if we have no problems of our own? I think we would rather see how others are lacking than truly look into in our own hearts. Its our lack of self-confidence and our unwillingness to take a good hard look at our own lives that that leads us to see others and feel as if we have a say in their lives.
In the bible Jesus tells a group of people who want to stone a woman for adultery that the person who has not committed any sins can throw the first stone by doing this Jesus was trying to show people that no one is perfect and no one has the right to judge another since we all have our failings that we need to deal with.
We see people everyday and everyday we interact with them, but do we ever really know what is going on in their lives? We are only able to see as far into their lives as they let us and in some situations that is not very far. So then how are we, who are secondhand judgers, really going to make up in our minds how we feel they should live their lives? No one has the ability to judge your own life other than you because you are the only one who has all the information. Sure others know the stories and events that go on in your lives, but none of them know the feelings and emotions you have felt behind those events. 

So my new rule of life is going to be to try to be to only say something about another person that I would say if they were standing right in front of me. If you wouldn't say it in front of them then why are you saying it behind their back?

Now I am in no way saying this is easy to do nor am I saying that I have been able to accomplish this goal yet, but it is defiantly something to strive for. I am no better than anyone else and most of the time I find it extremely hard to say what is on my mind because of insecurities I have with myself. But I guess that is the thing about judging others you judge based on insecurities you have and project onto others who don't deserve such treatment. But who am I to judge I am just an average person trying to do what is right, but knowing that sometimes I will stumble along the way. In order to be truly happy you need to let go of the hate and embrace love and compassion for others around you. Each day gives you the chance to start anew and leave the worries and bothers of yesterday behind you. If you don't move forward you will stop growing and when you stop growing how will you continue to thrive?

Don't Worry Be Happy

We are all waiting for that one moment when we will be happy. When everything will fall into place and when our life will be in order. We say once we get that job promotion, or find "the one", or buy a house to live in, or have a baby our lives will be perfect and we will achieve everything we ever wanted in life. But all though these things will help improve our lives and one of them is a true miracle that will forever positively impact our lives they are not everything. They can not fix the unhappiness we feel today the instant they appear. They can not take away the years of agony we have felt. The are counterfeit happiness. On first thought they seem to be the answer to our despair but once we attain them we quickly see that they are not all that they are cracked up to be. If we want to be happy we need to start today this very moment.
Everyday we have a choice of how we will approach the day--with eagerness and excitement or anger and frustration. We choose no one else can choose for us. We need to start feeling happy today in order to ensure happiness in the future not just assume that one day when we have the right combination of life events or objects in our life that we will then gain the key to happiness.
So with that being said who will you be? and what kind of person will you let the world see that you are? Hopefully you can be happy and see that life is a gift from God and he would not give us anything we could not handle. 

Things I have Learned

Life is an unexpected and crazy ride that each of us has the ability to learn from and grow. One thing I have recently been able to learn from life is the quality of being honest and freeing yourself from previous burdens. There is no way to move forward if you do not examine your life and see where forgiveness can fit in. You must forgive those in your past in order to help your future and have a happier life. Everyone makes mistakes and everyone fails us at some point, but it how we react to this that will affect the happiness in our lives and the lightness we will feel in our souls. Sometimes this forgiveness will manifests its self in doing something nice for someone we do not particularly like, or telling someone they are forgiven, or even just letting go of the anger we hold in our hearts. Whatever works for us needs to allow us to resolve the issue in our hearts so that we can greet each day with a smile and not with pent up anger and resentment for the people around us.
Next we owe it to the people we care about to be honest with them and tell them when they have hurt us in order to move from a place of hurt to a place of healing. No one will ever know how you are feeling and the thoughts in your head unless you tell them! Even your best friend can know most of your thoughts and how you will react to different situations, but they still will never fully understand you as a person because you are unique creature of God that has thoughts and feelings every second of everyday.
God allows us to forgive others by forgiving us for our own shortcomings. How do we expect God to forgive us if we ourselves can not forgive others? Forgiveness is a big step and comes from the realization that we are all human and make mistakes. Freeing ourselves of this burden of holding ill feelings towards another will allow us to feel better about ourselves and the world we are creating to live in with those lucky enough to share our life. You never know where life will take you and when someone will leave this world for a better place so always leave loved ones with kind words to comfort them and never hold grudges that affect your well being for in the end none of us are going to make it out alive, but we need to make the most of everyday in every way possible :)