Monday Inspiration: October 5, 2015

By: Gabriela Yareliz

Hello, my people!

On Friday, I spent a good amount of time fighting with my umbrella in torrential rains. Thank God I wear shorts under my skirts because the wind was looking for its next Marilyn.

By the end of the day, I looked like I had walked through hurricane Joaquin– hair-in-mouth and everything; like a mad woman.

Because I hadn’t learnt my lesson, on Saturday, I walked down Park Avenue from 87th St. to 59th, this time through a light cold mist, but still fighting to keep my skirt down. To those who saw my shorts in the last couple of days–you’re welcome.

The temperature dropped. It dropped enough to make landlords everywhere turn on the heaters.

And while this year is my first year since kindergarten where I have not gone back to school, in the good tradition of autumn, I am still learning a lot. That is the beauty of life. It never stops teaching us, if we pay attention.

I have been thinking a lot about the meaning of love. In many ways we can be self-preserving, defensive and even prideful. We can even be logical and think in terms of what people deserve. But I then was thinking about Jesus. Jesus showed a different kind of love. A very sacrificial, expect-nothing-in-return kind of love. We, as a society, fall so short of that kind of love.

So, this week, love grandly. Give, knowing that no one can take away from you the love you freely give. I guess the main point is give love even to those who don’t deserve it; to those who won’t say thank you or apologize. Just give. It’s one thing to say it or believe it, it’s another to think of someone who has hurt you and then decide to love them anyway. Love can heal all wounds; especially our own.

I hope you have a great week. I hope it’s less windy on this end. Let’s rock.

XOXO.

[All images are from Tumblr]

“September slipped by into a gold and crimson graciousness of October.”

L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Avonlea

“Autumn is here
The air is crisp and clear
The leaves are amber, red and gold.

There’s cider on the stove,
It’s cozy in our home,
I love this time of the year.

I love this season and I’ve got every reason
Autumn’s when we first fell in love.
The town will soon be white,
snow’s moving in tonight,
I love this time of the year.

Autumn is here
We’ve all got coats to wear
There’s gloves of every size and hue.

The wood’s all chopped and dry,
The family’s gathered near,
I love this time of the year.

I love this season and I’ve got every reason
Autumn’s when we first fell in love.
The town will soon be white,
snow’s moving in tonight,
I love this time of the year.”

Bruce Adler, “I Love This Time of the Year”

“Bittersweet October. The mellow, messy, leaf-kicking, perfect pause between the opposing miseries of summer and winter.”

Carol Bishop Hipps, “October,” In a Southern Garden, 1995

“I urge you to please notice when you are happy.”

Kurt Vonnegut 

“When you write with a bruised, aching heart, I hope there is a finality to it.
I hope every chosen word takes the weight off your chest in fragments and towards the sky. I hope  when you put your pen down that the tears on your cheeks are a cleanse, the ritual of letting go being finally complete.”

incandescentghost  

“He also loves. He also has suffered. He also has waited a long time.”

C.S. Lewis // The Great Divorce

“We need never shout across the spaces to an absent God. He is nearer than our own soul, closer than our most secret thoughts” 
― A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God

“To think that before the hills were formed, or the channels of the sea were scooped out, God loved me; that from everlasting to everlasting His mercy is upon His people. Is not that a consolation?”

Charles Spurgeon

“The reason we know so little about God’s wisdom is that we will only trust Him as far as we can work things out according to our own reasonable common sense.”

Oswald Chambers

“Loving someone should be hard and active, not easy and passive. When you sign up to actually love people – no fakers allowed – then you sign up for a life of runny noses, awkward car rides, hugs that last too long, pauses that demand no noise, and admitting you were wrong. If you want to actually love people then you have to be willing to be wrong.

Love is forgiveness. And it’s atonement. And it’s basically like putting your soul in a washing machine – it’s not some gentle cycle, it’s a fierce whipping that rings you out good.

It makes the stains fade.

Best of all, it fills the holes.”

Hannah Brencher

“Take a shower, wash off the day. Drink a glass of water. Make the room dark. Lie down and close your eyes. Notice the silence. Notice your heart. Still beating. Still fighting. You made it, after all. You made it, another day. And you can make it one more. You’re doing just fine.” Charlotte Eriksson

“What am I? I am myself a word spoken by God. Can God speak a word that does not have any meaning?”

Thomas Merton

Stories

“Stories are necessary–as necessary as food and love. It’s how we make meaning of our lives. Stories matter; many stories matter. Stories have been used to disposes and to malign, but stories can also be used to empower and to humanize. Stories can break the dignity of a people, but stories can also repair that broken dignity.” Chimamanda Brodie Adichie

#Mood Autumn

By: Gabriela Yareliz

Autumn makes me feel like I am stuck in an episode of Gilmore Girls; in an eternal autumn. Luke’s Diner, anyone?

It makes me feel like I am in some time warp, in a classic 90s movie where NYC is dressed for the holidays.

It’s that feeling of drinking tea with a Marisa de los Santos book in your lap.

Or like putting on a sweater when it comes out of the drier.

And like a hot chocolate drenched in whip cream that slowly melts to reveal a grand design.

Tuesday Badinage: September 29, 2015

“Little boy, if you tell me something God can do, I will give you this shiny apple,” a Bible teacher said to his best student.

“Sir, if you can tell me something God can’t do, I will give you a whole barrel of apples,” the boy said. (Paraphrase from Dr. Tony Evans).

“Obedience precedes blessings.” Dr. Tony Evans

[Images from Webstagram]

Monday Inspiration: September 28, 2015

By: Gabriela Yareliz

Hello my fellow Monday survivors! I hope today was a day of much accomplished. Mondays are so tough, sometimes. We are still jetlagged from the weekend, and it’s full speed ahead.

I hope Monday gave you something to smile about. I also hope you conquer the week like a star.

This week, look at your priorities and make sure you are giving value to what is most important.

Let’s start off the work week inspired! Autumn is here. Pumpkins, overcast skies, chunky sweaters– It doesn’t get any better than that.

“There’s a difference between interest and commitment. When you’re interested in doing something, you do it only when it’s convenient. When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results.”

Kenneth Blanchard 

“How would your life be different if…you stopped allowing other people to dilute or poison your day with their words or opinions? Let today be the day…You stand strong in the truth of your beauty and journey through your day without attachment to the validation of others.”

Steve Maraboli

“Even though no-one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.”

Carl Bard

“The best portion of your life will be the small, nameless moments you spend smiling with someone who matters to you.”

(via elenamjacobs)

“Don’t lose heart if it’s very difficult at times, everything will come out all right and nobody can in the beginning do as he wishes.”

Vincent van Gogh

“Forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future. Give everyone a smile. Spend so much time improving yourself that you have no time left to criticize others. Be too big for worry and too noble for anger.”

Norman Vincent Peale

“When I make him laugh, I feel like the most beautiful girl in the world.”

Drew Barrymore
[Images from Tumblr]

Reflections Before Bedtime #41

By: Gabriela Yareliz

“I am poor, but if I see eggnog, I will buy some.”

It’s night. There is a full moon covered in a frosting made of fog. My limbs are aching after an extremely long and delightful walk. Today was beautiful. Walking is like a drug for me.

It was a great day of reflection, discovery and fun conversations. I am sitting here listening to Delilah, the lady on the radio who takes calls, song requests and gives advice. Love her. Listening to her is an old tradition of mine, but it never ceases to make me feel 90s. It makes me feel like I am Meg Ryan in Sleepless in Seattle. Sometimes, my life resembles a Meg Ryan movie. I do romantic comedy very well. Emphasis on the comedy part.

Maybe my life is more like a John Cusack film… anyway…

We all need recharge days. We all find ourselves, at some point, at a place where we are learning a lot, all at once. Life happens, and you have to learn to deal.

Sometimes, we live too naively; we are insecure, intense, intimidating and self-preserving. It’s about learning to be patient; trying to expand your perspective outside of yourself; simply giving people a chance and letting people in.

On my way home from the market this week, I had a little carton of eggs in my cart. I walked several blocks to get home. By the time I got home, I thought several eggs had cracked because of the ups and downs along the way.

Sometimes, you will find some things break and get messy. You clean it up and move on. There are other times, when nothing breaks, and it withstands the journey. You don’t know what is happening along the way. You just hope and pray your investment is safe. You only know if everything is okay, when you get home; when you are standing on the sacred ground called kitchen.

The journey is long. No one seems to be in a rush, and there are a lot of cracks in the sidewalk. The faster you go, it seems, the more likely things will break.

There are some journeys you walk because you believe you can make it home, all eggs in tact; other journeys, you decide not to walk after all; and other journeys, you must decide whether they are worth the effort and time.

Last reflection of the night:

If you see eggnog–buy it. No questions there.

And now, back to Delilah. John Legend is on, which means this caller’s love story is a winner.

#FilmMood

No Reservations

Kate: I wish there was a cookbook for life, you know? Recipes telling us exactly what to do. I know, I know, you’re gonna say “How else will you learn, Kate.”
Therapist: mm. No, actually I wasn’t going to say that. You want to guess again?
Kate: No, no, go ahead.

Therapist: Well what I was going to say was, you know better than anyone, it’s the recipes that you create yourself that are the best.

Friday Glee: September 25, 2015

By: Gabriela Yareliz

I rode the train with a precocious child. He kept asking a bunch of questions, like which trains arrived at what station, and why certain tracks were higher than others. He was probably five years old. Then, when he arrived at his stop, he reached over and grabbed his mom’s hand and led her, in a gentleman-like fashion, off the train. Adorable. It reminded me of how brilliant people are the ones who ask a lot of questions and give love.

Today is Friday. Thank God. There is a lot to be grateful for.

I wanted to put out a reminder today, from Psalm 85:12: “Yes, the Lord will give what is good…”

Have an awesome end to this arduous week.

Reflections Before Bedtime #40

Compiled by: Gabriela Yareliz

“Serenity is the immense sweetness of no longer expecting anything, just walking, just moving on.” Frédéric Gross, A Philosophy of Walking, 146.

“The inescapable thing about walking is that once started, one is forced to arrive. There is no other way, one has to progress. And at the end of the fatigue and the road, one always arrives, it’s enough to add up the hours and think: Let’s go! It was written, unchangeable. When you are on foot, to arrive you must walk. Will as destiny.” Id. at 158.

[Image from Tumblr]