Making the most of it!!

Photograph by Sion Fullana Flickr

Life’s rich tapestry is there for us all, ups downs, lows and highs.
I have a very wise friend who once told me we are all in the sh#t its just different levels, sometimes just your toes are in, another time your right up to your neck in it…..
Always makes me smile this analogy but so incredibly true.

For me though its about making the most of our time here, maybe this ideology does only come about with age and experience but trying to find a positive in all adversity’s and appreciation of the wonderful moments is the key to happiness and contentment.

Having a go!

Sometimes we miss out because we are afraid of looking silly or just plain failure but really making the most of whatever is the best principle…

I love my cover picture and this is an excellent example of someone thinking out of the box making the most of it, not having a garden but still reading, enjoying the sun on a balcony, genius….

Don’t put obstacles in the way, don’t miss out just because…….

So go everyday enjoy what life has to offer, taste, smell, see, enjoy, laugh, smile and even cry because we are creatures of emotion and feeling is what we desire, its what gives us the passion and it creates those all so important memories…..

Go live, go make the most if it….

Mandy.x

Five reasons to be thankful!

Photograph by “Gary Neave” Flickr

Today was beautiful,sunny almost Spring like, the days are getting longer, the long awaited warmer days are soon to arrive.
I have my favourite flowers out in the garden “snowdrops” always a sure sign Springs only around the corner….

There are possibly a few random people who love the Winter but I can honestly say I long for March and the changing of the clocks here in the UK, meaning lighter nights and mornings…
Its a true fact that people do suffer with SAD ~

Seasonal affective (or mood) disorder (SAD) is a type of depression with a seasonal pattern, occurring at the same time each year, most commonly in winter.

Link below explains in more detail >>>>
http://bit.ly/1GmwtVa

So really its understandable why Winter isn’t many peoples choice of seasons.

We do through despite many struggles or problems in our life’s still have many reasons to be thankful…
Here is a link to my previous blog on being thankful from January, well worth a read >>>>>>>>
Permalink: https://mandymoran.wordpress.com/2015/01/03/lets-be-thankful/ ‎

Today’s post though is about things we perhaps take for granted and don’t really appreciate.
We are so in ore of today’s technology I sometimes think we forget all the wonderful things discovered many years before that we now take as the norm…..

Think back only 150 years and the people of England were contracting and even dying from diseases related to unclean water. We turn on the tap in the western world and clean drinkable water appears.
So to start my five thankful things I nominate

1. Clean drinking water on tap.

2. Having a warm comfortable home.

Photograph by “Jon Cooper” Flickr
  
Again 100 years ago poor people lived in slums filled with disease and misery, we today need to be thankful….

3. Electricity enabling for an easier life…

Photograph by “Dondu Small

We forget until a power cut occurs how reliant on electricity we really are….

4. Our prized jewel, the car.

Photograph by ” Peter Ellis2″ Flickr.

Again think how slow life would be paced if we still used horse and carts.

5. Last but no means least, the love of your children and close family and friends. Totally priceless and most definitely priceless.

Be thankful.

From now on think and try and be thankful…..

Mandy.x

Is your ego in control?

The biggest challenge after success is shutting up about it.

Criss Jami

I’m the first to admit that my ego isn’t always under control, I do find myself having to check my thoughts and think differently.
Do we really understand the power the ego has over us or how destructive it can be, love is its enemy and it will do what it can to win…

Who can think of a time when they just had to be right in an argument, or someone who is defensive, ungrateful, selfish the list goes on. I’m sure you get the idea, the ego really isn’t your friend.

The ego can be inferior as well as arrogant.

From my description you could be mistaken in thinking that the ego is only arrogant, thinking itself special and better than everyone else, judgemental full of self importance, it does have this face most definitely but also a self pity face too.
We can often feel inferior to others comparing ourselves, again taking away our happiness, this is the ego playing its games once more……

                Love vs ego….

Think of relationships, do you push love away being fearful of it, this is the ego, do you expect someone to make you happy, expectations of what a relationship can give you rather than how you can just simply share love, again the ego. Is it all about me rather than us and then needy comes to mind, once again the ego…..

“The price of love is your ego”

Lets not allow our egos to imprison us….

         Examples of the ego at work!

1. Being unable to be pleased for other peoples success.

2. Revelling in other peoples misfortunes, gossiping!

3. The judgemental behaviour of people different, socially, physically etc to ourselves.

4. Always feeling the need to be right, argumentative and stubborn, you can be right but does it really make you happier!!

5. Comparing ourselves to others thinking, wishing we were different instead of being positive. Jealously then making an entrance.

6. Lacking in gratitude and appreciation, being expectant of others to make us happy.

7. Putting the blame on others, when we know we have made a mistake etc, cowardice….

8. The lack of ability to forgive, holding a grudge and then leading to bitterness…….

” More the knowledge lesser the ego, lesser the knowledge more the ego.

Albert Einstein

                Our thoughts……
Try to control the ego, change and check your thoughts and see a difference for the better in your life.

Love is all we need, really……..

Mandy.x

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Let’s be Thankful!

Well that’s it Christmas tree and decorations away, cleaned the house throughout, great feeling but then I am slightly OCD inclined!!
I always love getting a fresh vase of flowers on the table, looking forward to the spring, the nights are gradually drawing out,
We should be truly thankful…….

         Gratitude is the finest virtue….

Being thankful isn’t always an easy feeling to achieve though, we do tend to navigate towards negative thoughts and all of us sometimes think we have been dealt a hard time, but really there is always a reason to be thankful…….

Studies have proven that thankful thoughts can help improve our immune system and blood flow to the heart even, quite remarkable I’d say!

Keeping a diary of gratitude and writing in it every day or the wonderful idea of having a jar and writing on a piece of paper whenever you feel thankful throughout the year, putting the papers in the jar and at the end of the year reading them all……
Wonderful ideas to help with thankfulness that can benefit our enthusiasm, energy and even aid sleep. People who are thankful are less stressed and are less likely to suffer with depression.

When you are grateful fear disappears and abundance appears.
Tony Robbins

Ways to help with keeping those important thoughts of Thankfulness!

1. I have already mentioned a thankful or gratitude diary, well worth a try because again as I’ve touched on in the past its always available for reference once its written, at a later date.

2. Living for the moment, here and now and not holding onto the past and any negative thoughts or looking into the future either. The power of the moment is all we really have. Embrace it…..

3. Not comparing ourselves to others, this has no positive attributes what so ever, it only forms feelings of resentment and bitterness, which in turn will hinder your spiritual being.

4. Being realistic in your thoughts and realising there can never be sunshine without rain. The pain and hardship in our life’s only acts to teach us how grateful we should be, what we do have.

5. Hope because for me this is the key to thankfulness, without feelings of hope we can never be grateful for what we actually have……

6. Changing our mindset, the thoughts over feelings that I’m always banging on about. Look for the good not the bad in everyone, hard at times I know but really you are the only person responsible for your thoughts and they determine how you feel. So make them good thoughts and be thankful.

Anyway I must be off now lots to do and to be thankful for in the process.

Life’s a wonderful gift let’s be grateful and have no regrets because tomorrow is never a promise…..

Thanks for reading my blog!

Mandy.x

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How to combat jealousy and envy!

Not one of us can say we haven’t felt envy or jealously in our life’s at one time or another, both emotions are constraining and dreadfully destructive to our whole being…..

If we try and invisage jealously in our minds or actually had to draw or paint it, ugly would come to mind, a destructive monstrasty of a masterpiece would be created!

Understanding jealously vs envy!

Firstly to try and combat these negative soul crushing feelings we have to understand them, people do get them confused with each other , when actually they are different even though they do often appear together and produce similar reactions……

            Envy!

This emotion is associated with you being  envious of what someone else has or may look like, its a desire to have that for yourself.
It involves just two people and usually is focused around someone similar to yourself maybe a work colleague or friend.

For example you are envious of their house, car or good looks or perhaps that they are acheiving or receiving better treatment at work than you.
psychologists actually say that envy and competiveness are linked, that a little envy isn’t actually that bad for us because it insights more success.

Where as…….

                    Jealously!

Is more an emotion of a fear of losing someone or something and usually involves a third party. Jealously can be accompanied by envy.

For example you may feel jealous because your boyfriend/girlfriend is talking to someone else and you could be envious of their good looks.

Solutions!

1.  Be grateful of what you already have and try to focus your thoughts on to your differences.For example you may have something that other people envy…….

2. Don’t compare because we are all different and remember things aren’t always as they seem…….

3. Remember what really defines us are our thoughts and feelings not what we own. The quote ~ “Its nice to be important but more important to be nice”

4. Most importantly be happy and share in others success, this for me is the primary solution and possibly the hardest to achieve.

If we are continually accessing negative energy by being envious of others we are blocking positive feelings and not allowing ourselves what we actually desire……

Love yourself and each other!

It goes back to self esteem, loving yourself is decidedly difficult but to combat the pain of envy and to stop  you wanting to take others happiness away.You must feel love to others and most importantly to yourself!!!

Always remember you are special and envy and jealously of other’s will inevitably always end in disaster and upset.

So love yourself today and then love will come to you……….

Dispel envy for good!!

Mandy.x

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7 – Priceless things we take for granted!

This time next week it will be done and dusted and we’ll all be feeling a slight anti climax after Christmas.
Don’t despair though, we have so much to appreciate, we just need to look! Sometimes the priceless things in our lifes are the true wonders,the things we take for granted………

I have compiled my favourite “7” to help you keep positive after all the festivities!

1. The beauty of the Sun its rise and fall gives us spectacular horizons. Especially this time of the year with the sun being so low.

2. A child’s delight at the magic of Santa’s arrival, their sheer marvel and wonderful priceless reaction.

3. Feeling invigorated after an early morning run or brisk walk, your mind is clear and ready for the day ahead.

4. Smiling at a complete stranger and getting a smile back, totally priceless….

Watch this video below in the link its hilarious but totally proves laughter when shared is wonderful……

>>>>>> http://bit.ly/1zHkksj

5. Singing in the car, shower ,bath and someone walking in or overhearing you. Alternatively stopping at the traffic lights and glancing to the other car and being embrassed, when realising they have been watching you singing your head off. Hilarious when vice versa as well!

6. A hug from someone you love when you are feeling upset or just needing some affection.

7. The beautiful smell of fragrant fresh roses and their vibrant colours and irregularities of nature.

Appreciation.

There are so many more reasons to be appreciative of our lives, we just need to be aware.
Keep those thoughts in check and your life will transform for the better, really, try it!

Mandy

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