Fear of the Unknown

I was shooting the breeze with a dear co-worker during the closing hour of our shift last night and our conversation ventured off into a pretty involved yet inspiring topic...

It had been a while since I had worked with my friend so we had a lot to catch up on but the majority of our chat was about my plans for college because it is such an exciting time in my life right now. The countdown until I open my next chapter at college seems to be rapidly dwindling. It brings such a rush of melting pot feelings; this burning excitement for what is to come, a hunger for knowledge yet a strange, nervous kind of worry about the unknown ahead of me. The powerlessness of not being able to know what I am really in for, what class will be like, who I will meet, and how I will grow as a person is a bit frightening. But why should something so simple as going to a new school and starting the next part of my life scare me?

Why is it that the unknown is so feared?

You can't go through life backing out of opportunities because you are fearful of trying something new or testing your limits. My co-worker explained that when she was in college, she had been asked if she was willing to become a speaker for a club. Being in front of a crowd and speaking with a microphone was one of her worst fears but she decided that she was willing. Willing to not only try it out but to conquer her fear and see where this might lead her. It opened up so many doors, networking connections and actually brought her joy. She could not believe that something she was so nervous about turned into a passion that would have never evolved had she not tried it. After finishing her story, she said three powerful words,

"Do it afraid." 

There are countless times in life when one has to face daunting obstacles but once you get through it, you look back and question why you were ever so worried to begin with. I can recall many once scary occasions that I can look back on and laugh at because I don't know why I was ever so fearful; going to my first day of elementary school in California, or my first day of middle school and high school, my first volleyball tryout (which happened to be the first time I ever really played volleyball), learning to drive a car, moving to Texas my senior year and living in a whole new place, or graduating high school. All of these events were terrifying and extremely nerve-wracking but also somewhat thrilling because I had to venture a little further into the unknown.

Maybe discovering a piece of that unknown gives reason as to why there is always that tinge of excitement mixed in with the fear.

What are you so afraid of the unknown for? 

Life is short. Take the chance to be stronger than your fear and worry.

It is amazing what can blossom when we do explore the unknown even if we are overcome with fear.

(It has been quite a whirlwind the past few days so I apologize for the lack of posts lately. I do however,  have some exciting news. I am starting to sell my paintings. Anything on my previous post is for sale and I am more than happy to do custom orders. I have anything from mini canvases to regular sized ones. Please email me if you are interested or have any questions related to pricing or designs. I will be posting some of my paintings in a new entry in a few days!)

Rare Souls

I've been extremely blessed to have shared the last few years with two truly incredible, inspiring, strong and caring people in my life. These two mentors and role models have opened up my eyes to the world in front of me and made me into a better and more well-rounded individual. It is seldom to come across people outside of your family or circle of friends that genuinely transform your life and impact you on such a level that surpasses comprehension. People who are composed of this type of nature are what I call a rare soul.

I believe that those of us who are lucky to come across a rare soul, only do so once or twice in a lifetime and when they make their appearance, they do not often stay in our presence for long. So it is important to take a moment during that seemingly transient amount of time, to acknowledge their impactful existence in our life as frequently as we can.  They come into our life as a blessing for a reason and one should not be sad when time together is cut short. As the infamous quote by Dr. Seuss says,  

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened"

Please remember...

• To always be grateful and appreciate the time spent with those who make a difference in your life no matter if it is family, friends, or a rare soul, etc. 
• Make every moment count with those individuals because once it comes time for them to move on to a higher place, memories and lessons learned will be the only thing remaining. 
• Never go a day without telling someone how much they mean to you because you never truly know how much time anyone has left. 

I hope each of you reading this post will come across a "rare soul" or two that will make a phenomenal difference in your life because it was a remarkable period of time in mine, one that I will always cherish and take with me wherever my path leads in this world.  Everything that these two individuals taught me and the memories we share together will never leave me. I hope and pray that one day I can return the favor by being someone else's rare soul. 

I have to ask, 

Have you had the privilege of meeting a rare soul?
If so, who and how did they change your life?
Are you telling those you care about just how much they mean to you as often as you can?

"How lucky we are to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard."

You have taught me immeasurable fortitude and self-worth, to never to give up on myself, others or my dreams and to always "Believe".

I love you Kim and Robe. May you Rest In Peace. 

"It's the Journey, not the Destination."

What Really Is Happiness?

 H a p p i n e s s (n) : 

- The quality or state of being happy [adj: feeling, showing, or expressing joy; pleased]

I have been fine-tuning this post over the past few days and have come to realize that happiness cannot be encompassed by the single definition above. In fact, not even what I have written down below about my recent revelations truly covers it all...

Happiness is exploring your passions.

-Always open and follow your heart to see where your passions lie-
We have all been told to "do what you love". It really is as simple as that. If you are not enamored by something you do, you will not be happy.

Those who truly know me, know how much love and adoration I have for the sport of volleyball and that it brings me so much joy. Volleyball has always been a passion of mine and one that quite frankly, ran my life. Now that I am heading off to college this fall, I will no longer be playing at the competitive level I am accustomed to and without it I have become lost. So naturally, I have had to find other ways to fill up my summer (during the time I have off from my summer job, of course).

Art has always been an enamoring hobby of mine but typically in the form of drawing and sketching. After being inspired by dorm room decorations and thinking I could DIY my own to save money, I pursued painting.  I also wanted to see if it would strike a similar spark inside of me like my other passions did. Crazy enough, it ended up lighting a little more than a spark; It started a fire and has evolved into a new love of mine.  Opening myself up to explore this artistic passion has become more than discovering something I adore, it is my happiness.

Happiness is being surrounded by your loved ones. 

Whether it is immediate family, relatives or friends, surround yourself with those who love, support and care about you. You will find that being in their presence is happiness.

Happiness is a state of mind. 

I, by no means, am happy all the time and quite frankly, no one can be but I've found that trying to see the bright side in tough situations, making every moment count, and simply enjoying and living life forms happiness. Openly allowing and dwelling on anything less than the presence of joy creates a heavy mindset but letting positivity into your life and enjoying all that each day has to offer by living life and not just existing in it is happiness.

"People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be"

                                    - Abraham Lincoln

Ask yourself this...

Am I making time to explore my passions?
Am I surrounding myself with my loved ones?
Am I living in a happy state of mind?
What does happiness mean to me?

Life's Sky

I have been contemplating starting a blog for a while to write about some life lessons, interesting experiences and thoughts but as I was trying to fall asleep last night, my mind kept wandering. For reasons, even I cannot comprehend, my thoughts revolved around how truly incredible and beautiful the sky is and how much it actually parallels life. In case you were wondering, the name of my blog solely originates from my insomniac thoughts last night and is the muse for my first post...

At first thought, the sky may mean nothing more to you than a typically aqua blue colored substance overhead filled with an abundance of wispy marshmallow clouds and a bright shining sun. But when I originally think of the sky, a thousand childhood memories come flooding back.

I can recall gazing up at the clouds in wonder out my car window on road trips or laying on my back in a patch of green dewy grass during summertime, trying to figure out what the clouds looked like most or even testing my knowledge on the scientific name of each type floating across the horizon (In elementary school, I received a book on clouds and stars from my uncle. For some reason, I was particularly fond of showing off that I knew when a cumulonimbus cloud floated in the distance). Although, most of my memories that flash back actually do not even involve cloud-watching. The sky is usually tied with the background of my memories; no matter which point in time, I can usually remember what the sky looked like at that moment in my life. It is amazing to think that the sky has experienced our past, lives in our present and has it's eyes set on the future.

We have all heard the saying,

The sky is the limit.

and in a sense that is true. Our given opportunities and experiences day in and day out are countless just as the sky seems vast and endless. There really are no true limits and there is nothing holding us back from succeeding. Our opportunities are out there. We just never have to stop striving to "reach for the stars" and testing this atmospheric and metaphoric boundary.

With every sunrise on the sky's seemingly infinite horizon, comes new and boundless possibilities within our grasp.  There are times when we will have to endure lengthy grey storms of set backs or sadness but once those dark and gloomy clouds pass and the sun finally sets, we can paint a whole new sky the next morning; one with layers of excitement, wonder and happiness.

What does your sky look like today?
Is it clouded and heavy to the point of weighing you down?
Or are you going to delve into painting an innovative, picturesque and limitless sky?