Be bold. Be fierce. Be grateful. Be wild, crazy and gloriously free. Be you.

 

I’m not the silly romantic you think I am. 

I don’t want the heavens or the shooting stars. 

I don’t want the gemstones or gold. 

I have those things already. 

I want a steady hand. 

A kind soul. 

I want to fall asleep, 

and wake, 

knowing my heart is safe. 

I want to love and be loved.

Darling, the world’s not really against you. 

The only thing that’s against you is yourself.

Its funny how sometimes 

all we needed 

was a line from a song, 

a quote from a book or movie

to realize how we really feel

and 

all we needed was

a smile from a friendly stranger,

a good cup of tea,

a walk in the rain,

an old song

to briefly put us back together 

before we fall apart all over

again.

Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful, 

for beauty is God’s handwriting.

I don't let people in often

and I mean what I say.

If I tell you you're my friend

that means a lot!

If I tell you I love you 

that is not a phrase or expression

and know that I actually love you

in the best and most

honest ways that I can.

 You can’t force love, I realized. 

It’s there or it isn’t. 

If it’s not there, you’ve got to be able to admit it. 

If it is there, you’ve got to do whatever it takes to protect the ones you love.

Always pray to have 

eyes that see the best in people, 

a heart that forgives the worst, 

a mind that forgets the bad, 

and a soul that never loses faith in God.

 Never get tired of doing little things for others. 

Sometimes, those little things occupy the biggest part of their hearts.

         

 The world bursts at the seams with people 

ready to tell you you’re not good enough. 

On occasion, some may be correct. 

But do not do their work for them. 

Seek any job; ask anyone out; pursue any goal. 

Don’t take it personally when they say “no”- 

they may not be smart enough to say “yes.”

 Life is a school for angels. 

Love is the Teacher, so do your homework without fear. 

Death is merely graduation.

When nobody else celebrates you,

learn to celebrate yourself.

When nobody else compliments you, 

then compliment yourself.

It's not up to other people to keep you encouraged.

It's up to you.

Encouragement should come from the inside.

Experience. Dream. Risk. Close your eyes and jump. Enjoy the freefall. 

Choose exhilaration over comfort. Choose magic over predictability. Choose potential over safety. Make friends with your intuition. Trust your gut. Discover the beauty of the uncertainty. 

Know yourself fully before you make promises to another. 

Make millions of mistakes so that you will know how to choose what you really need. 

Know when to hold on and when to let go. Love hard and often and without reservation. 

Seek knowledge. Open yourself to possibility. 

Keep your heart open, your head high and your spirit free. 

Embrace your darkness along with your light. 

 Be wrong every once in awhile, and don’t be afraid to admit it. 

Awaken to the brilliance in ordinary moments. 

Tell the truth about yourself no matter what the cost. Own your own reality without apology. See goodness in the world. 

Be bold. Be fierce. Be grateful. Be wild, crazy and gloriously free. 

Be you.

 I have found that if you love life, 

life will love you back.

A Good Life...

A good life is when you assume nothing, 

do more, need less, smile often, dream big,

laugh a lot, and realize how blessed you are.

Sometimes, I get this urge to talk to you, 

and then I remember that you’re a different person now. 

It’s just sad because I miss you a lot.

The beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, 

and not to twist them to fit our own image. 

Otherwise, we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them. 

She did not need much, and wanted very little. 

A kind word. Sincerity. Fresh air. Clean water. 

A garden. Kisses. Books to read. Sheltering arms. 

A cozy bed. And to love and be loved in return.

I hope that in this new year to come, 

you make mistakes. 

If you are making mistakes, 

then you are making new things, 

trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, 

changing yourself, changing your world. 

You’re doing things you've never done before, 

and more importantly, 

you’re doing something.

Don’t freeze, don’t stop, don’t worry 

that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, 

whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life. 

Whatever it is you’re scared of doing, DO IT. 

Make your mistakes, next year and forever.

I’m really happy I met you. 

I hope you know that.

Your journey has molded you for your greater good. 

And it was exactly what it needed to be. 

Don’t think that you've lost time. 

It took each and every situation you have encountered to bring you to the now. 

And now is right on time. 

Jealousy comes from counting others’ blessings 

instead of our own.

Bonaventure - "Silent Night"

Bonaventure is a music group that I became aware of thanks to Twitter. They were a random follower which I chose to check out and immediately followed back.They are a pop/rock band consisting of only two guys: Dan Smyers and Andy Albert. They are working hard to get their name and music out there for all to hear and it definitely appears that their hard work is paying off. 

In an interview done by Patricia Tanne, she asked both members what their dream in life is.

Andy's response was:

"Our dream is to touch people with our music.  Whether we are playing for an audience of 1, or 1 million, we want our music to hit home with people on a personal level."

& 

Dan's response was:

 "We don’t measure success in money earned or records sold, but the extent to which people are moved by the music we create.  If we can inspire someone, or brighten their day with our songs, then we have succeeded."

I think both of their responses are true to heart and after following them for a few months on Twitter and Facebook, one can see that they truly care about music and using it to touch the lives of people.

Recently they recorded a version of Silent Night and they chose to use an extremely powerful commercial as the video for the song. The television commercial, “Silence of Love”, created for Thai Life Insurance, "tells the story of a young woman and her deaf mute father. The dramatic story reveals just how significant a father’s love is, despite feelings of inadequacy and frustration."

The song Silent Night is about the birth of Jesus. Jesus, the son of God, came to earth to give forgiveness and life to those who place their trust in Him. He came to take care of man’s debt of sin and He came to seek those who are lost. Many of us know about God and Jesus but still feel lost and unsure of the love of God. We focus on all the bad that is occurring and can't understand why a God would allow all this pain, hurt, and suffering. We simply sit back unwilling to understand a God that we can't actually hear or speak to. God's loves is like the love of the father in this film. Even though He knows what is best for us and wants the best for us, we have to open our eyes to His love. He is not going to make our lives perfect, we will have struggles, but He wants us to seek Him and trust in Him with all our heart. He may not be able to tell you He loves you in person but He works everyday to show His love. 

I encourage everyone to take one day to just look around; seek God and look for all the ways He tells you He loves you. Watch a sunrise, listen to the birds sing in the morning, eat fresh fruit, hug a friend who's always been there for you, look at yourself in the mirror and marvel at the work He has done in creating you. We may not hear God or understand why He does the things He does but one thing is for certain; He has a never-ending love for us and everyday He waits patiently for us to love Him in return. 

I hope everyone enjoys this holiday season. Please take a moment to watch this amazing video and listen to the amazing version of Silent Night by Bonaventure. The song is available to download on iTunes. The group has also promised to play a FREE ONLINE ACOUSTIC show if the song reaches #1 on any iTunes chart. Links to the iTunes song, YouTube video and where to find the group on Twitter and Facebook will be at the bottom of this post! Please share the song and video with everyone you know. Thanks! 

Links: all links will open in a new window

YouTube video: click here

iTunes Link to download song for only $0.99: click here

Follow Bonaventure on Twitter: click here

Like Bonaventure on Facebook: click here

Bonaventure's YouTube page: click here

Site with interview done by Patricia Tanne
Quote about commercial

Live for the moment....

Sometimes you will never know the true value of a moment 

until it becomes a memory.

One day, you’ll be just a memory for some people. 

Do your best to be a good one!

When you look at a field of dandelions

you can either see

a hundred weeds or

a hundred wishes!

No matter how badly people treat you, 

never drop down to their level, 

just know you’re better and walk away!

Life is like a roller coaster

it has its ups & downs.

But it's your choice to scream

or enjoy the ride!

You got enemies?

Good that means you've

stood up for something!

If a person wants to be a part of your life

they will make an obvious effort to do so.

Think twice before reserving a space in your heart

for people who do not make an effort to stay!

You are stronger than you seem,

Braver than you believe,

Smarter than you think!

Life isn't about finding yourself.

Life is about creating yourself!

No eye has seen,

No ear has heard,

No mind has conceived,

What God has prepared

For those who LOVE HIM!

I have not failed!

I have just found 10,000 ways

that won't work!

Don't ever give up!

The only things you can take with you 

when you leave this world

are the things you've packed

inside your heart!

Friendship is born at that moment

when one person says to another:

"What! You too? I thought I was the only one."

Feelings change,

Memories don't!

We must take adventures

in order to know 

Where we truly belong!

People will always have their opinions of you

despite who you are and 

what you are capable of!

In three words 

I can sum up everything 

I've learned about life:

 It Goes On.

The Ant and the Contact Lens...

This is a story that originates from a book written by Elisabeth Elliot written in 1995 titled Keep a Quiet Heart. Ms. Elliot attributes the story to a first-person account sent to her by Brenda Foltz of Princeton, Minnesota, who maintained she wrote it based upon an event that occurred during her first rock-climbing experience. I love this story because it serves as a reminder to have faith in God each and every day! He's there for you no matter how big or small your problems are! 

The Ant and The Contact.

Brenda was almost halfway to the top of the tremendous granite cliff. She was standing on a ledge where she was taking a breather during this, her first rock climb. As she rested there, the safety rope snapped against her eye and knocked out her contact lens.

“Great,” she thought. “Here I am on a rock ledge, hundreds of feet from the bottom and hundreds of feet to the top of this cliff, and now my sight is blurry.” She looked and looked, hoping that somehow it had landed on the ledge. But it just wasn't there!

She felt the panic rising in her, so she began praying. She prayed for calm, and she prayed that she may find her contact lens.

When she got to the top, a friend examined her eye and her clothing for the lens, but it was not to be found. Although she was calm now that she was at the top, she was saddened because she could not clearly see across the range of mountains.

She thought of the Bible verse, “The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth.” She thought, “Lord, You can see all these mountains. You know every stone and leaf, and You know exactly where my contact lens is. Please help me.”

Later, when they had hiked down the trail to the bottom of the cliff they met another party of climbers just starting up the face of the cliff. One of them shouted out, “Hey, you guys! Anybody lose a contact lens?”

            

Well, that would be startling enough. But you know why the climber saw it?

An ant was moving slowly across the face of the rock, carrying it!

The story doesn't end there.

Brenda’s father is a cartoonist. When she told him the incredible story of the ant, the prayer, and the contact lens, he drew a cartoon of an ant lugging that contact lens with the caption:

“Lord, I don’t know why You want me to carry this thing. I can’t eat it, and it’s awfully heavy. But if this is what You want me to do, I’ll carry it for You.”

God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called. 

Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.

There are a few times in your life when all your instincts will tell you to do something, something that defies logic, upsets your plans, and may seem crazy to others. When that happens, you do it. Listen to your instincts and ignore everything else. Ignore logic, ignore the odds, ignore the complications and just go for it.

Do not look at the world through your head; look at it through your heart.

See, we are all imperfect and unworthy of His love. Just because we do things that we don’t like to look back on, doesn't make anyone a bad person. After all, Peter had a temper, David had an affair, Noah got drunk, Jonah ran from God, Paul was a murderer, Gideon was insecure, Miriam was a gossip, Martha was a worrier, Thomas was a doubter, Sara was impatient, Elijah was moody, Moses stuttered, Zaccheus was short, Abraham was old, and Lazarus was dead. Our mistakes and the lessons we learn make us WHO WE ARE. We are given these lessons to mold us into the people we are supposed to be. His grace IS sufficient for us and his power is made perfect in weakness.

Among other things, you’ll find that you’re not the first person who was ever confused and frightened and even sickened by human behavior. You’re by no means alone on that score, you’ll be excited and stimulated to know. Many, many men have been just as troubled morally and spiritually as you are right now. Happily, some of them kept records of their troubles. You’ll learn from them- if you want to. Just as someday, if you have something to offer, someone will learn something from you. It’s a beautiful reciprocal arrangement. And it isn't education. It’s history. It’s poetry.

To lose balance sometimes for love is part of living a balanced life.

In desperate love, we always invent the characters of our partners, demanding they be what we need of them, and then feeling devastated when they refuse to perform the role we created in the first place.

Everyone makes mistakes, and then you learn from them. If you ever happen to make the same mistake twice, the second time isn't a mistake. It’s a choice.

Not everyone or everything is worth fighting for. Sometimes what seems promising is nothing but a scenario and an ending that we've created in our heads. Throwing in the towel doesn't always mean that you’re weak. It just means that you are strong enough to let go and allow God to take over. Whatever is meant to be…will be.

Look at us, running around. Always rushed, always late. I guess that’s why they call it the human race. What we crave most in this world is connection. For some people, that happens at first sight. It’s when you know, you know. It’s fate working its magic. And that’s great for them. They get to live in a pop song. Ride the express train. But that’s not the way it really works. For the rest of us, it’s a bit less romantic. It’s complicated, it’s messy. It’s about horrible timing and fumbled opportunities. And not being able to say what you need to say when you need to say it. At least, that’s the way it was for me. But sometimes, it slows down just enough for all the pieces to fall into place. Fate works its magic. And you’re connected.