akittenone

There are many things I am passionate about, many things I will go to bat for and a few people I will defend and support to the end of the earth regardless of whether I think they are in the right or wrong. Sometimes that loyalty is misplaced, I know this. How do I know ? Mainly 'cos when I defend or tell someone that what they ell me is in confidence and will not be shared, I am giving them my word that that is the case, I will not try to 'score' points with another and will not use what is... Read Full Story

How often have you been introduced to someone or heard something about them and formed an opinion of the,, a preconceived idea of them ? When you have preconceived ideas it stops you actually seeing the person for who and what they are. They might act a certain way with others but do we ever really know the full reasons why ? Was it something someone done to them ? They done to the other person? Does it affect how they are with us ? Sometimes we get into a habit of only viewing a person a... Read Full Story

There are times when life spins out of control. In fact, when one really considers it, life is always spinning out of control. Most of what occurs around us is outside our realm of influence. Things just happen that have nothing to do with our abilities nor dedication. The phrase "s**t happens" certainly applies. Accepting Things We Cannot Change The Serenity Prayer has a phrase in it that is one of the keys to happiness. The line "accept the things I cannot change" is stated in recovery... Read Full Story

"Feelings Aren't Facts" We all have setbacks in life. There are times when things do not go our way. Sadly, it seems that the events during these times pile up. They say that things happen in threes. Most of us understand this from experience. It seems when something goes wrong, everything goes wrong. The snowball effect has been felt by all of us. It is during these times where we can allow our feelings to get in the way. It is easy to feel bad when things are falling to pieces around us... Read Full Story

Only people who are committed to something succeed at it. Ponder this statement for a few minutes. When you consider it, the only way to succeed is to completely commit to something. Anything less than that means one's chances are diminished greatly. The examples we can look to keep arriving at this same conclusion. The top athletes in a particular sport are where they are because of the commitment to that activity. This same idea is true for concert pianists, authors, and airplane pilots... Read Full Story

We have all heard that life is meant to be lived in the present moment. There are many books on the market referring to the "Power of Now" and how present focus is the only way to reach fulfillment. Many eastern philosophies teach this concept as a basis of their discipline. Without getting into any of the specifics, this outlook holds a great deal of weight. Most people miss their entire lives because of the fact they are always "off somewhere else". Human beings tend to be masterful... Read Full Story

We have all heard the term "alternative lifestyle". This is used to denote a way of life that is different from the mainstream. The promoters of dogma insist on classifying living choices that are different in a less than admirable fashion. In this sense, these are degrading the choices most individuals make. Of course, this is all done in an effort to maintain power. The truth is that each life is alternative. Those who understand this idea are willing to take control of the path they opt to... Read Full Story

Courage is something that we commonly reserve for soldiers, firefighters, and police officers. We often refer to people acting "courageously in the line of duty". These individuals are esteemed because they risk for the benefit of others. This is a class of people who deserve the attention. However, they do not have a monopoly on courage. Many think courage is the absence of fear. It is not. Mark Twain may have summed it up best when he penned: " Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear... Read Full Story

Change is something that always happens in a moment. Unfortunately, it often takes a long time to get to the moment. People will hold onto old behavior until it reaches the point where change must occur. Until this moment arrives, the same pattern follows. Pain is the most powerful motivator in life. There are two states: pleasure and pain. However, when it comes to altering behavior, pain is the state which will cause one to alter actions. As much as we like to believe we do things for... Read Full Story

Reality is created in the mind. This seems like an absurd statement but it is the truth. Everything we see, hear, touch, smell, and taste is filtered through our brains. There, we have a treasure trove of memories which the new sensations are linked up to. Everything we process is done through this central computer. The bad news is that whatever we "see" in the mind is real. It cannot distinguish between real or imagined. Instead, it sees everything as concrete. This allows a thing called... Read Full Story