Begin your day with
Love in your heart
Express yourself with kind words
Share goodness
Shine the Divine light from within
Inspire others
Never forget to ask for Divine Guidance
God is with you always
Simply Live and Act in Love
With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love, Carmela
When our hearts see only from the desire of our own eyes, we cannot see God’s perspective and are blind to his blessings. When you find yourself in the center of a really difficult situation it can seem impossible to understand how the situation could be a blessing in any way, shape, or form. It is then, when you realize that quite possibly YOU are the one THROUGH which the blessing is to COME to the situation. It is within our willingness to become the “bringer” of the blessing that gives us a clear vision of how miraculously difficult situations can be transformed.
I am so grateful for the many people in my life who have allowed themselves to become the “bringer of blessings” over the years, and I pray that my life and actions are lead by and open to divine guidance so that without question or hesitation I respond to His lead with Truth Wisdom and Love in order to become the “bringer of blessing” to others in need.
As the driver of your own soul, it is only you that can control where and when you arrive at contentment. By following the path of self desire and believing your own wisdom is greater then your peers, the only place it will lead you to is stuck in mean and angry gear. It is only when you realize and accept the fact that every life matters and deserves to be treated with the same love and respect you apply to your own life, you will then be able to feel true contentment and peace. When your eyes are open to the clarity that love, peace and contentment provides you will no longer want to return to the selfish desire gear you were once stuck within.
It is difficult to watch the angry mean behavior people live in daily and often become stuck living in for many years. It can take over many many years of peoples lives if you allow it to.
Like an addiction to a a drug, if you are not willing to take ownership of your part in allowing the nasty ways to continue you will never find peace and contentment. It is not the fault of the ….. situation your in….. the other people around you…. or circumstances out of your control. It takes hard work to look in the mirror and be willing to expose your imperfect qualities. The places in your life where you made mistakes, the times in your life where you were NOT a victim. The times in your life when YOUR actions victimized or caused sadness and hurt to others.
I have spent the majority of my life working as a caregiver to others. I love the work that I do and have always found a special place in my heart for the challenging behaviors that many individuals present. I have heard the phrase “they have the personality of a snake” used when being prepped on an assignment. I am not above saying that I also have lived through days like this as well…… anyone alive and honest should be willing to admit that there are days in our lives when frustration is high and patience low and all you want to do is off load the hurt and frustration onto someone else….. anyone else…. you just hurt and are stuck in mean gear.
It takes work to get out of mean gear. Life is so much more beautiful than what is experienced stuck in this gear. My prayers are that those who find themselves here be willing to look within and make changes to themselves and stop complaining and placing the blame on everyone else.
Many people who are seriously unhappy do not realize that only they have the ability to improve things. Note to Self… “Do not blame anyone else for the life you are leading, you are in the driver seat of your own soul.
Being honest with yourself and your own actions is the only way to finding genuine clarity and peace. For some reason many people find it much easier to complain and point a finger at another rather than looking inward and developing truth, honesty, and humility. Learn to never take your blessings for granted, there will always be someone who is praying for the very thing you are taking for granted. Even when your life is at its most difficult there are always many others in the world who are in the midst of suffering as well.
Pray for clarity, look in the mirror, be brave enough to see your own faults, examine them and take steps to improve yourself instead of blaming others. Doing these things will lead you toward inner peace and true contentment. The only control a person should ever be attempting to gain is self control. Worrying about, blaming and controlling everyone-else only causes problems, suffering and pain.
I am including link to a song below.
Need You Now is one of my new favorites. I also am including an interview with the writer where she explains that this song was written as her prayer. She is very honest in sharing struggles that she dealt with in her life and how she was able to overcome them and find true contentment.
Tiffany Arbuckle Lee, known as Plumb, suffered from painful anxiety and panic attacks in high school. She thought of those days of hiding in the bathroom, crying out to God as she wrote the title track of her album, Need You Now. Recently, the song had renewed relevance as her marriage crumbled and she faced divorce. She discusses her career, her music and her reconciliation with her husband. She sings “Need You Now” at 11:47.
“I wanted there to be a song that said, out loud, it’s OK to cry for help, it’s OK to just scream it at the top of your lungs.”
-Tiffany Arbuckle Lee (a.k.a Plumb)
Follow Mimi on Twitter: @MimiGeerges
With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love, Carmela
I am beginning to believe that developing a good sense of humor as a child just might be one of the most important puzzle pieces to a successful and healthy future.
Even though we attempt to plan for our future, life has a way of dealing out unpredictable surprises. In the midst of the most sad and serious moments I have had to endure, I like to believe God is the one sending me a silly moment that makes me chuckle to lighten the burden.
As a parent and grandparent I believe It is so important to encourage a child’s sense of humor. Be silly, read silly books with your child, make humor and laughter a part of each day. It is never to late to teach a child to develop a healthy sense of humor. I heard someone say once that a good sense of humor in life, is like shock absorbers are to vehicles. It can take away some of those nasty, unpleasant bumps. It truly is as Bill Cosby puts it, once you find laughter, know matter how painful your situation might be you can survive it. Be sure to make many fun and silly memories, so your child has many to select from when experiencing a difficult time!
As a caregiver I have seen the positive effects of humor. It can diffuse aggression and anger, as well as turn tears into a smile. It also has a calming effect when someone feels nervous or embarrassed. Small children respond to “Oh no, You must have forgot to put your smile on this morning!” Causing the child to stop and think about getting dressed and physically putting a smile on, just might be enough to redirect the unhappy thought and mood and engage them in a playful imaginary hunt for their lost smile.
A very important thing to remember is humor must never be hurtful or disrespectful. It is possible to recognize funny situations or find humor in a funny story without making fun of a person. I really believe that our “bullying” situations in our schools are simply misguided children, attempting to get people to like them or get noticed by making others laugh, at the expense of another person. I have seen adults with low self-esteem attempt to make themselves look better by tearing another person down and then boasting about their own abilities. Sadly many times they are not at all aware of what they are doing. This is simply what they have felt they needed to do and have been doing it their entire lives.
I found a beautiful blog: Sending Hope by: Tracy Hodge That speaks of this very issue. She puts it so perfectly that I am feeling the need to share her words. This is how she put it… Great people, truly great people, are not afraid of the greatness of others. They are not intimidated nor are they threatened when others around them succeed or even surpass them. Great people enjoy lifting others up and never mind showing others the way. On the other hand, small people like to be surrounded by other small people. Small people tear others down in laughter and seldom offer a kind word unless it is to flatter someone in their favor. Small people gossip out of jealousy and have no concept of loyalty. (You can read the entire blog by clicking here)
Mother Teresa once said: The fruit of Love is service, The fruit of service is peace, And peace begins with a smile
Two very important things to remember….. Always remember before you put on a frown, make absolutely certain there are no smiles available. and…..If you meet someone without a smile, give them one of yours. You may never know what a positive affect that may bring to the person who has none.
With respect, hope, joy and love, Carmela
There is nothing more enjoyable then being with someone who is just simply fun to be with. Someone who refuses to be pulled down by the negatives of the world. Someone who takes on the challenge of lifting the spirits of a group of people who are heavyhearted.
Like the photo above, they simply seem to be filled with a natural Joy and they cannot contain the positive energy. With the lightheartedness of a hummingbird they seem to buzz, zoom, zing and zip around with an urgency that is mesmerizing and can’t help but bring a smile of admiration to others.
Some days we are not able to escapes dealing with challenging moments during a lifetime. I like to believe God introduces us to people who we need to help us get through life’s journey. When our spirits are low and a person who has overflowing energy and joy enters into our path, perhaps it is not simply a random joyful encounter but quite possibly an intentional Divine Blessing placed along the path of a difficult day.
Enjoy each smile that enters your day. Be grateful for each encounter of overflowing Joy, and return the favor to others on days when your Joy cannot be contained.
See
Miracles
In
Life
Everyday
With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love, Carmela
My heart hurts today. There are children living each precious day of this life with challenges that they bear with so much grace, elegance and strength that is nothing short of miraculous!
Thank Goodness for the Innocence of a child that shines through with a Light that is so profound and filled with the Infinite Wisdom Of Divine Love, Being Sent To Them Directly From Heaven.
As adults we can learn from their examples of limitless strength and innocent wisdom.
We are born with a heart of Innocence and Love. Somewhere along the way growing up we are taught or begin to question and develop fear.
When we fail to trust and look outside our limited human self for wisdom, we begin to live a life of selfish limitations. We become negative, we criticize and set ourselves apart from others. We see only through eyes of fear. Once we fail to trust Divine Guidance we begin to fret and become selfish.
When we attempt to survive on human wisdom alone, we invite in fear and limitations. A person living in fear and survival mindset will always have a “what about me” mantra, and an animal like response to survive.
When we surrender to Divine Guidance our lives gain clarity. We begin to recognize how much we need each other to survive. Our hearts develop Genuine Love for other humans and recognize our likenesses instead of our differences.
Genuine Human Elegance is a Heart shining from within filled with Divine Love.
~ as Luciano De Crescenzo stated……. ~ We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another. ~
For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. II Tim. 1:7
It is God who arms me with strength, And makes my way perfect. Psalm 18:32
Angels shine from without because their spirits are lit from within by the light of God. ~Quoted in The Angels’ Little Instruction Book by Eileen Elias Freeman, 1994
Never give into to fear. Always remain hopeful and invite the Holy Spirit to take the lead and learn to trust with your whole heart.
Learn to be happy for no reason, like a child.
There is no amount of elegance as sweet as the beauty, innocence and precious wisdom of a child.
With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love, Carmela
This is an interesting blog post from MakeItUltra blog that I thought is worth sharing. Everyday life interactions can often be difficult. The more wisdom we gain helps us in our daily interactions with others. Feel free to share if you find the information helpful.
With respect, Hope, Joy and Love, Carmela
“You cannot have a positive life and a negative mind.” ~Joyce Meyer
1. Recognize and accept their toxicity
First and foremost, it is important to identify and accept that someone we know is a negative person. This can be difficult, especially when the person is someone we care about. Either way, we must be careful not to allow their negativity to transfer onto us. We need to accept that negativity is toxic and will only breed more negativity. It is especially important to avoid complainers. People who complain have given up hope that their actions can make any difference. We must be careful not to enable complainers by always listening to their woes.
2. Stop playing savior and/or problem solver
As human beings, we are wired to connect. For most of us, it is in our nature to lend a compassionate ear to someone who is in need. We must be careful not to let ourselves fall into the…
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Ghosts that haunt are not always scary, sometimes they are best described as disappointments. In our lives as we live through the challenges and encounters that life throws our way, we will meet people who can leave us totally heartbroken with disappointment.
As a person who is a constant seeker of spiritual beauty and truth, I get great joy, contentment and peace offering kindness and genuine love to others. In my adventures I have met several people who I have extended great kindness and support to who have deeply hurt me with dishonest habits.
When we find ourselves confronted with conflict that we cannot change or be supportive of, the best option for our life is to continue our life with the same integrity we have always lived and part ways with those who wish to live in a different manner.
This does not mean however, that the memories of these encounters does not live on. They often surface bringing with them a very sad feelings of disappointment.
There are times in our life when we will meet people who think differently and live differently than we are used to. Many of these encounters will enrich our lives and give us personal growth.
It is when an encounter with someone begins to change and our normality of life and integrity are challenged and belittled by another that we need to separate ourselves from the situation.
Even though the person may be blaming you and belittling you as a person, this has nothing to do with you or anything you have done. The other person has a true inner weakness of blame. Because he or she is feeling small they wish you to feel smaller so they attack to pull you down with them.
For whatever reason deep inside if the person does not get their own way, or is not believed to be right, an inner switch is flipped on and the blame game begins. They will be right and everyone else wrong. Tensions rise and the name calling aggression starts.
I have no idea what is truly going on in their heads, and I do not know if there is a diagnosis or proper name for these actions. What I do know is that I have seen this happen many times and the people that are doing this are not happy people. They are mislead in believing that what they are doing will gain them happiness.
Remove yourself from the chaos. Do whatever you need to do to reconnect with your inner peace.
Prayer is my choice of action against chaos, aggression and uncertainty.
The Holy Spirit Provides us with Endless Strength, Courage and Wisdom.
……………… Intimidators and Bullies Change your ways ……………….
If you are a person who has an inner weakness of blame. When you feel angry and out of control. Re-examine your thoughts and feelings. Look deep inside yourself for the answers before you unleash blame on everyone other than yourself.
Invite the Holy Spirit into your life, and pray daily for assistance in managing the monster from within that unleashes the blaming defense on others as soon as your confidence feels shaken.
Allow the beauty of the Holy Spirit to take over and lead you.
Learning to Live in Love will bring you unending Peace from Within.
Never let anyone attack your integrity, belittle you, intimidate you or manipulate a situation with dishonest bullying tactics. Remove yourself from the situation and continue your journey of seeking and sharing spiritual beauty and truth with others.
Dishonesty will never win over Truth and Love. Follow the Light and walk away from Darkness.
With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love, Carmela
Life is not easy…….But it doesn’t have to be so confusing
Focus on what is important
Always view your glass (or bucket) as half FULL and not half empty
Think Positive
Find solutions that are available to you
Pray for wisdom and positive loving solutions and act on what you feel is right
This post was inspired from the daily prompt challenge confused
ONE COOL DOG
When you don’t have a pool and it’s hot
You make due with what you’ve got
Two front paws are cool, while the back one’s will dual
For equal time at a shot
I cannot dive in, and immerse myself
Like those with lakes or ponds
The flip side of this, that I should not dismiss
is of fish and mud, I’m not fond
This day in review, is a blessing, it’s true
for I’m safe and cannot drown
So I keep my chin up, and tell those who snicker
I choose to only see the blessings in life that abound
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/confused/
With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love, Carmela
Because I am attempting to share my home with exchange students from other countries, I was asked to put together a home and family profile. In putting words to and explaining the home I live in I found it was impossible to separate the description of the house from the beauty and depth of my parents Love for each other as well as my sister and I.
I am truly grateful for their Love for us and the manner in which they shared there immense wisdom of Life and Love. Love and Life can be so overwhelmingly complicated that it may take us years to actually completely understand and absorb the gifts it places before us.
I live in the home that my father built before getting married to my mother. They were married in front of the fireplace within the home and lived here their entire lives.
This is the home I grew up in. I treasure the many beautiful memories my family built here and the fact that I can continue sharing life’s journey and build more positive memories and wisdom with my children, grandchildren and others as well.
My father was a custom home builder as well as a furniture maker. Many items within the home were made by my father’s hands. My mother also used her talents and love to make beautiful things that filled the home with details, beauty and proof of her longing to provide not only a loving environment but a place filled with the warmth of Love.
Like a warm blanket that someone wraps you in when you are cold and afraid, this is what my parents have built and left for me. I long to continue to share that level of Love with others as I continue to live here and share their home with my grown children, grandchildren and with others.
Our family has a very deep understanding of how precious each day of life is. Our family has lived through the most difficult challenge anyone should ever have to endure. My beautiful Grandson Wyatt was diagnosed with Mitochondrial disease and lived with and died from the disease in 2013.
He was 11 years old when he joined Jesus in Heaven. He taught us great beauty that is impossible to put words to. He continues each day to send us wisdom from heaven that we share with others by keeping his story and life active in our hearts daily.
Love for a grandchild does not stop when they become an Angel in Heaven, it multiplies by a thousand and we actively use it by extending his Love to others. By doing this we feel him with us each day and God wraps us in that warm blanket of Love to help us continue our journey on life without him.
I warms my heart knowing that our Angels in Heaven were able to share such great Wisdom and Love with us while we were graced with the beauty of their presence here on earth with us.
Today I read a beautiful post from a fellow blogger who gracefully shared her son Jacobs story and journey. Each time we share our loved ones story is another chance their soul has to touch the earth with their wisdom. I am truly grateful for the wisdom of each treasured soul I meet.
Below is a portion of a poem from the Wieckling Blog that I felt the need to share. You can read Jacob’s families post as well as the complete poem by clicking on the link above.
“I fancied that I heard them say, “Dear Lord, Thy will be done!
For all the joy Thy child shall bring, the risk of grief we run.
We’ll shelter him with tenderness, we’ll love him while we may,
And for the happiness we’ve known, forever grateful stay;
But should the angels call for him much sooner than we’ve planned,
We’ll brave the bitter grief that comes and try to understand!”
Thank you Mom, Dad, Wyatt and Jacob for continuing to share your wisdom with others here on earth.
With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love, Carmela
Many years ago I heard someone speak saying “people are like icebergs, only 1/8 of an iceberg can be seen above the surface. The remainder lies beneath the surface and cannot be seen.”
Many people often keep the majority of their feelings and thoughts deep beneath the surface where no one else can see. The reason why this may be so may vary greatly with individuals.
I have met many people who appear to be trapped within a frozen existence. Their natural internal reactions seem to continue to rise back to the surface and repeat themselves even when it may seem progress and improvement has been made.
I learned from a very special individual that I met and worked with that through attempting different ways of approaching and reaching out, those who sometimes are believed unreachable and often exhibit somewhat mechanical responses can be reached and an emotional connection is possible even when it appeared to be impossible for a number of years.
I met this person in an adult day care environment. He was considered a difficult person to work with. Had very unusual habits. He had a diagnosis of Autism.
When you would first approach him or entered into a room where he was located, a very booming and aggressive voice would shout out “What’s your first name? “What’s your middle name?” “What’s you last name?” After he heard all three of your names, he would then state your full name using only the middle initial.
He did this to everyone who entered. For many years after he was known to remember people who he met and upon seeing them years later he would point at them with his finger and state their full name using only the middle initial. He would follow the statement of your name with a very “cheesy grin” and a giggle.
I found him to be a very pleasant mix of a Teddy bear like happy soul and the Tasmanian devil character that had the ability to trash a room in a matter of minutes if someone simply said the wrong words. He was a challenge and I love a challenge.
For some reason I found myself drawn to the people who others often attempted to avoid and dreaded having contact with.
This person when something or someone bothered him often destroyed things, ran out of the room slamming the door and disappeared often exhibiting self abusive behavior as well.
He had a very threatening size as well and very loud and mechanical type speech. He could write and read. He also had numerous unusual habits or “tic” like movements. He was self abusive by hitting himself in the head and face, stomped his foot, but the most offensive of his behaviors was his urge to spit when he became agitated (he always turned his face away from you and spit onto the wall, floor or on objects)
One of his undesirable habits was to tear up or destroy furniture, and one of my hobbies was doing furniture upholstery 🙂 ! A match straight from heaven… maybe?
My Life’s journey always seems to provide me with both a chuckle and a challenge!
I began to learn, simply by trial and error, how to best communicate with him and avoid an outburst of self abusive behavior and property destruction.
If I would be working on a project next to him in a room, I would notice that he watched very closely to what I was doing. I made attempts at asking him to help me however, communicating with words and attempting instruction would set off unwanted behavior.
I then decided as I was working and he was watching me…. I would simply explain to myself how to complete the job using absolutely no eye contact with him. It worked!!! I could then hand him the tools for the project and he would complete it without problems.
This lead to me being able to instruct him through written notes tacked in place, or working side by side telling only myself needed instructions. He would work next to me and break out into a giggle periodically 🙂
He was able to complete the job that a “tear down” person in an upholstery shop would do ….with the support of my non-interactive play by play self talk 🙂
We had success on other projects as well. Later he became employed by a company that made picture frames. He was asked to do a one step job applying glue to the joint that the next person would then use a machine to join together.
He had the ability to complete the job however, the challenge was he was not able to change his “ways of processing instruction and communicating with people”.
I supported him for a while at his job location. My thoughts and instructions for his co-workers was not to ask him to conform to their ways of working but to request them to adjust their way of communicating to and with him.
The job in the community worked out for awhile. However, on a very hot day…. He became very hot, sweaty and uncomfortable. He left the post in the work area to visit the bathroom….. Somewhere off the bathroom was a shower……He seen the shower….. He was hot…… He undressed and happily showered…….. When it was noticed that his work was piling up, someone was sent to investigate what was taking him so long in the bathroom 😦 ………..Not sure about any further details other than the fact that he no longer is working there.
Although I was very sad that he lost his job….. I knew that there was nothing that I could have done, even if I was there. There is a limit to what we can do for a person. There is a point when you cannot be a persons shadow and assist them by giving yourself play by play instruction on proper work etiquette.
Maybe the lesson in this story is that what may sometimes appear as a positive breakthrough may end in only being short lived fleeting moments of success 😦
I love the man no less and I am a better person from the experience of meeting him!
Always make an attempt to reach past the surface of every individual you meet to try to better understand them. We all live with a heart that longs to be appreciated. In understanding each other we improve ourselves as well!
With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love, Carmela
Carmela Snelbaker 