Just Look like you

When we are young, we want to look older.

And when we are old, we want to look younger.

And there is a window in the middle of it all when we’re supposed to look as we wish.

But we waste that time wishing

we were taller or thinner or curvier,

our hair was longer or shinier, curlier,

parts of our body were firmer and perkier

and we’d started to use anti-wrinkle cream earlier.

And by the time we realize we were perfect just as we were,

the window has closed. It is too late.

It's too late to realize that all those things never really mattered in the first place.

But it’s never too late to start letting go.

To stop wanting, stop wishing.

It’s never too late to accept yourself.

To look in the mirror and realize that you never needed to look older or younger.

You just needed to look like you.

*****

Becky Hemsley 2023

Fabulous artwork by Chez Simons via Etsy

'Too Late' is from Letters from Life https://amzn.eu/d/gexttTP

Somethings Just Can't Be Fixed

This one is for the fixers. 

The women who automatically want to rush in make everything and everyone better. 

The women who take responsibility for others’ actions and feelings. 

The women who, without thinking, have this urge to clean up everyone else’s messes. 

I know you’re running on fumes at this point. I know you replay scenarios over and over again and I know how hard you are on yourself when you can’t wave a magic wand and make everything better. 

I know you feel like a failure because you couldn’t save them. 

I know you’re exhausted and you’re hurt because even though you are giving your all, it doesn’t feel like enough.

I know you have been conditioned to believe that being a good person means you have to be a helper, a constant giver and a life-saver to all, but can I be brutally honest for a moment? 

You aren’t water. 

You aren’t oxygen. 

You aren’t Jesus. 

It’s impossible for any single person to be what everyone needs in every situation all the time. You are going to let people down. You are going to disappoint. You are going to lack from time to time. You’re going to lack energy. You’re going to lack time. And sometimes you’re going to lack the wisdom.  

You are going to have to understand that life happens. Sometimes things just suck and the best you can do is hold an umbrella over their head when a storm rushes in overhead from out of nowhere. There no such thing as saying the perfect thing, or doing the perfect thing. Clouds linger sometimes and the rain falls and all we can do is be there for each other and hold each other tight. Their storm is not your fault. 

And you’re also going to have to understand that sometimes people create their own storms and chaos and you can’t always stop them. You can love them unconditionally, but dear one, if they’re going to change, it’s going to be because they decide they want it. If they’re going to heal, it’s going to be because they decide they want it. You can lead them to love, but you can’t make them drink. Again, their storm is not your fault. 

There is nothing more beautiful in life than walking together, helping each other through the rough patches and sticking close when bad weather rises. There are few things as life-giving  as serving each other. But you do have to rest too. You do have to take breaks and you do have to step away sometimes, and just…let them, especially if their tornado is tearing you up. 

It doesn’t mean you’re a bad person. It doesn’t mean you’re lacking as a human. It means you are simply human—an imperfect being with needs, wants and a life of their own to live. A soul of their own to keep pure and a heart of their own to protect. 

Do what you can. 

Always. 

Love with everything within you. 

But set down some of the bags you’re carrying and give yourself a break before you break. 

You’re not responsible for everything and everyone. Some stuff has to be on them. 

Love,

Amy

As time goes by

As time goes by,

You will loosen your grip on that rock,

The one you always thought was home,

And you will realize that home is not a place,

It’s a state of mind.

Let it go.

As time goes by,

You will learn to see yourself more clearly,

The girl who was always too much of one thing,

And too little of another, was actually

Everything she needed to be.

Let her out.

As time goes by,

You will let the simple things become the big,

And you will allow the big things to become the simple,

And that readjustment will be, 

The day you really start to live,

Let it be.

As time goes by,

You will be forced to say goodbye many times,

And your soft little heart will shatter but,

It will still beat and that will bring you,

All the purpose you need.

Let it beat.

As time goes by,

You will stop choosing wealth over peace,

You will stop choosing money over time,

And you will see that the treasures you need,

Are in the smiles and the laughter.

Let them in.

As time goes by,

The moments you remember when your life flashes past,

Are never the awful memories my friend, it’s the joy,

The summer nights, the lazy days with loved ones,

The midnight chats and the morning hugs,

Let them happen.

Let them all happen.

✍🏻 Donna Ashworth

God comes to Women

Have you ever noticed how in the scriptures men are always going up into the mountains to commune with god? Yet in the scriptures we hardly ever hear of women going to the mountains, and we know why—right? Because the women were too busy keeping life going; they couldn’t abandon babies, meals, homes, fires, gardens, and a thousand responsibilities to make the climb into the mountains!
.
I was complaining about this to a friend the other day, saying that even as a modern woman I feel like I’m never “free” enough from my responsibilities, never in a quiet enough, or holy enough spot to have the type of communion I want with God. Her response floored me, “That is why God comes to women. Men have to climb the mountain to meet God, but God comes to women where ever they are.”
.
I have been pondering on her words for weeks and have searched my scriptures to see that what she said is true. God does in deed come to women where they are, when they are doing their ordinary, everyday work. He meets them at the wells where they draw water for their families, in their homes, in their kitchens, in their gardens. He comes to them as they sit beside sickbeds, as they give birth, care for the elderly, and perform necessary mourning and burial rites.
.
Even the women at the empty tomb, who were the first to witness Christ’s resurrection, were only there because they were doing the womanly chore of properly preparing Christ’s body for burial. In this seemingly mundane and ordinary task these women found themselves face to face with divinity.
.
So if— like me—you ever start to bemoan the fact that you don’t have as much time to spend in the mountains with God as you would like. Remember, God comes to women. He knows where we are and the burdens we carry. He sees us, and if we open our eyes and our hearts we will see Him, even in the most ordinary places and in the most ordinary things.
.Happy Easter!
.
He lives.

 

Don't leave anything for later

Don't leave anything for later.

Later, the coffee gets cold.

Later, you lose interest.

Later, the day turns into night.

Later, people grow up.

Later, people grow old.

Later, life goes by.

Later, you regret not doing something...

When you had the chance.

Life is a fleeting dance, a delicate balance of moments that unfold before us, never to return in quite the same way again.

Regret is a bitter pill to swallow, a weight that bears down upon the soul with the burden of missed chances and unspoken words.

So, let us not leave anything for later. Let us seize the moments as they come, with hearts open and arms outstretched to embrace the possibilities that lie before us. For in the end, it is not the things we did that we regret, but the things we left undone, the words left unspoken, the dreams left unfulfilled.

— Before the Coffee Gets Cold is a 2015 novel by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Don't Ignor those who want to be part of your life.

Don’t ignore the efforts of someone who truly loves you and wants to be a part of your life. Don’t ignore the efforts of someone willing to listen. Don’t ignore the efforts of someone willing to show up when it matters most. 

Someone who checks in, calls, and genuinely
cares about how you’re doing. Don’t ignore the efforts of someone willing to push you and be honest with yourself. Who is willing to forgive, apologize, and work things out even when uncomfortable. 

Don’t ignore the efforts of someone trustworthy and don’t ignore the efforts of someone who enjoys your company and gives you room to be yourself. 

Don’t ignore the efforts of someone genuine. 

People like that are hard to find, and they won’t be around forever if you don’t return their efforts. 

So, appreciate. 

Reciprocate. 

Initiate. 

And love them for the treasure they are. 

This is luxury.

A good read… What is Luxury?

They made us believe that luxury was the rare, the expensive,

the exclusive. Everything that seemed unobtainable.

Now we realize that Luxury was those little things we didn't know how to value when we had them, and now that they're gone, we miss them so much.

Luxury is being healthy.

Luxury is not stepping into a hospital.

Luxury is being able to walk along the seashore.

Luxury is going out on the streets and breathing without a mask.

Luxury is meeting with your whole family, all your friends.

Smiles are Luxury.

Luxury is hugs and kisses.

Luxury is enjoying every sunrise.

Luxury is enjoying every sunset. 

Luxury is the privilege of loving and being alive.

All this is Luxury and we didn't know.

Always stay grateful for all the “luxuries
” in your life. No matter how small. 

Author Unknown

I'm too much and I know it!

I’m a lot. 

I am. 

I know I am. 

I’ve always known I am. 

I get over-the-top excited about mundane things. I get overly emotional too.  

I have ten thousand ideas flowing rapidly through my brain at any time.

I think fast. I speak fast. I type even faster. 

I sing at the top of my lungs whether I’m in church or sitting alone in my car. I think the world is falling, and then realize maybe I just haven’t had any sleep the last two nights, and I need a glass of water, and everything appears sunny again.

I send ten text messages in a row. And, oh yes, you’d better believe they are full of exclamation points and emojis. I plan girls’ trips at the drop of a hat. I work really hard to make everything magical. 

I apologize all the time. 

I talk way too much. 

I take up too much space. 

I dance anytime music is on—grocery store, car, bank, doesn’t matter. 

I build businesses and then new businesses and new businesses. 

I see clothes that I absolutely HAVE to have. I think every movie I’ve ever watched is the “best ever.” I like every song that comes on the radio, and I rave about them, and I research the lyrics and try to figure out the deeper meaning. I cry about situations, and then turn around with my next breath and flip the switch and find the ever-elusive silver lining. 

I’m a lot. 

I’m passionate. 

I rarely walk. 

If I’m going somewhere, I run. (Metaphorically-speaking, of course. If I’m literally running, something weird is up and everyone needs to be on the lookout.)

 When I’m chill, I’m chill. 

But when I’m not—I am not. 

I don’t tiptoe. I jump in without looking back. And I splash water everywhere. I have energy, and I like for energy to be given back to me. 

I used to hate this about myself. Everything I just mentioned made me blame myself, and question myself, and want to be by myself, and also somehow, made me want to be with everyone all the time. 

I used to think being too much was my worst quality. I thought it was the reason I was misunderstood and lonely. I thought it was my greatest setback. 

And so I quieted myself up. 

I played small. 

I bottled my excitement. 

I convinced myself to become less. 

But I was not made to be less. 

I give hard. I forgive hard. I work hard. I laugh hard. I cry hard. I mess up hard, but then I get back up and I keep on moving forward. 

I dream hard. I believe hard.

I live fiercely. And I love free. 

There is nothing wrong with that. 

There is nothing wrong with meeting someone and instantly clicking with them. There is nothing wrong with telling people how much you love them. There is nothing wrong with laughing and crying and feeling other people’s pain. 

If you’re an “a lot” person like I am. If you bounce around from place to place. If it takes a while for you to settle down, and you lie in bed at night wondering what in the world is wrong with you, and oh-my-gosh why did you say “you too” when the waiter told you to enjoy your meal. That’s such an odd thing to say. 

It’s okay. 

You’re okay. 

It’s going to be okay. 

Stop beating yourself up. Stop with the constant worrying that people won’t like you and start liking yourself. 

Cause, yeah, you’re a lot. 

You’re a lot of love. 

You’re a lot of joy. 

You’re a lot of beautiful. 

You’re a lot of real. 

You’re a lot of passionate. 

You’re a lot of empathetic. 

You’re a lot of what makes a good friend. 

And you’re also a lot of what this world needs. Don’t hide. Don’t shy away. Don’t back down. Don’t try to be someone else. Don’t shrug off your gifts. 

Don’t change. Ever. 

But do breathe, listen well when people talk and do at least try to be more on time. 

Love, 

Amy