This Could Be Your Best Year Ever!

Happy New Year! Never in my life have I been so excited to see a year end and a new one begin.


2011 was a very difficult year for me and my family. Those who follow this blog regularly have some idea. I've openly shared some details here. The real personal and heart breaking stuff, I've kept to myself. It hasn't been easy and the tough part certainly isn't over yet. It might even get worse before it gets better.

I also believe we are one step closer to happier days.

A friend of mine chose spend this New Year's Eve alone. I invited him to come along with me to an intimate gathering of a few close friends. He declined. I pushed the issue a few times but still he refused to move from his comfortable spot on the couch.

"I really don't care about the holidays and celebrating," he said. "New Years' just means the beginning of another crappy year for me."

"Well, it only be that way if you want it to be," I replied. "It's your choice if you want the new year to be crappy or not. It's all about attitude despite your circumstances. You have to leave all the bad stuff from last year behind and have faith to believe for better things!"

He mumbled a few choice words under his breath and asked me to stop with the "new age bullshit".

I could have kept going but I didn't. I left him alone with his bottle of Southern Comfort and I skipped off to sip champagne with my friends.

It's difficult to reason with a person in that frame of mind. I know his life is tough. Who's isn't? We all have stuff we would rather not deal with. It would be nice to trade a few of my struggles with someone else right now or turn back the clock to a happier time. That's just not possible. I have to deal with these cards life has handed me now and make the best of it. I can't sit around feeling sorry for myself or enter into the new year with a bad attitude. I would rather pull up my big girl pants, keep fighting, keep hoping, and look for the lessons along the way.

Cancer. Drug addiction. Car accidents. Unemployment. Debt. Theft. Alcoholism. Broken relationships. Death. These are just a few of the things that touched me and my loved ones last year. In just one year. It was as if we were being shot at with an automatic rifle.  It took every ounce of strength to keep dodging the bullets and patching up the wounds as quickly as possible. It was a difficult year. Make no mistake about it.
However......

The one thing I refuse to do is carry all the negativity, sorrow, and pain of last year into my new year!

I certainly spent more time crying than laughing last year but in retrospect, I don't think I would change a thing. I've personally learned so much about myself and others. I've learned about life, love, hope, forgiveness. I learned about the strength of a tie that binds family and friends together. A bond that can never be broken. When things are just peachy, I tend to take all that stuff for granted. It's only when times get tough that I realize their true value.

I am getting together with family later for a New Year's Day dinner. My dad will build a fire in the fireplace and we all talk, laugh and play with the kids. After we stuff ourselves with good food and argue about politics and religion, I have a little exercise planned. I will be passing out paper and pens and I want everyone to write down the  things they don't want to carry into the new year. It can be anything: sickness, sorrow, pain, addiction, bad attitudes. Then each of us will toss those papers into the fire and watch them burn to ashes. They will be gone. Forgotten. Over. Done. Perhaps not physically. My dad will still have cancer but in his heart and mind he will be healed. And that is how he will find the strength to keep fighting. And that is how the rest of us will find the strength to fight right along with him. The same goes for everything else written down on our papers and tossed into the flames.

I challenge each of you to do this today. Take time to reflect on what you don't want to carry with you this year, write it down, and burn it. If you don't have a fireplace, toss your paper into bowl or an ashtray and light it on fire. Use an old coffee can to host the flames and watch your papers burn. Then forget it all. It won't be easy. They might creep up and haunt you. When they do, refuse to accept them. Remember that you burned them. They're gone. Forgotten. Over. Done.

You might think this is "new age bullshit" (like my friend) but I am going to say it any way:

If you believe this is going to be your best year ever, it will be. It really is your choice. You just need to have faith and decide not to take the pain, sorrow, bad attitudes, mistakes and failures of last year into your new year.

Wishing you a Happy, Healthy, Prosperous New Year filled with peace, love and joy is meaningless, if you don't have the faith to believe it will be!

And this is my Daily Cyn........

The Most Meaningful Gifts

In the midst of the hustle and bustle of the season, the shopping, the wrapping, the exchanging of gifts and all the time and money spent making this the best Christmas ever.....



The most meaningful gifts don't cost a thing..............

encouragement for a shaky soul,


friendship for a lonely person,

kindness to the disheartened,

understanding for someone troubled,

compassion for the neglected,

comfort for the bereaved,

respect for the dignity of others,

defense of the rights of individuals,

and love to heal a broken heart.


And this is my Daily Cyn......

You are an Artist

"If you can see yourself as an artist, and you can see that your life is your own creation, then why not create the most beautiful story for yourself?" -- Don Miguel Ruiz

I can't draw or paint to save my life. My ability never evolved beyond drawing stick figures and even those are pretty pathetic. I got a Paint-by Number kit as a kid one year for Christmas. Those are virtually fool-proof yet I managed to mess mine up. It looked so awful, I threw it away. I was the one who always failed art class in school. I am the least artistic person in the world and I slightly envy those  blessed with such a gift.

Recently, I painted my bathroom. What a big production that was! I had never painted a wall or a piece of trim in my life. but I because I had a big hair-dye mishap (Nice and Easy Natural Dark Brown #121A  spatters on the wall over the sink) I had to cover it up. I didn't want to spend the money to hire someone to paint my tiny bathroom so I marched down to local hardware store, talked to paint guy, and came home armed with brushes, rollers, drop cloths, a gallon of eco-friendly paint and a free paint stirrer.

Despite the fact that I needed two whole days to complete what would take an ordinary person about an hour, my first real attempt at painting turned out well and I am pretty darn proud of myself. I can see only one spot along the tub that I completely missed and one of these days I will take out my can of paint and fix it. Since I managed to pull off painting the bathroom, I am now ready to tackle the bedroom. 

My whole apartment is in desperate need of painting. Every wall is a boring, dingy white. This was supposed to be temporary resting place but it looks like I will be staying here a little longer.   A few coats of paint on the walls will make it look and feel more like home. Because I am so inexperienced in the painting department I figured I'd attempt the bathroom first, then the bedroom.  If I make mistakes, I can always repaint because those two rooms are so small.  Eventually my technique will improve and so will my confidence. I will be ready to take on bigger challenges: the kitchen and living room.

I can hire a professional to do the painting for me. It would certainly look better and take a lot less time. But then, I will miss out on the sheer satisfaction of sitting back and admiring my work- paint drips, missed spots and all. Every time I go into my bathroom now, I think how beautiful it looks. I bring everyone in there to show them what I did. I tell them how terrified I was to even attempt the job, how the cat accidentally stepped in the paint tray and tracked paint all through the house, and the clever ways I figured out how to paint around the sink, electrical outlets and plumbing fixtures. If someone else had done the job for me, I don't know how often I would take notice or if I would be as proud to show it off. There would be no stories to tell.......

All this might sound crazy to you. Big deal. I painted a bathroom. But, you must understand, I am a spoiled, slightly clumsy, girlie-girl who always had a man around to do everything for me. Growing up, my father wouldn't dream of asking his daughter to get her hands dirty with so-called men's work. If he wasn't sick right now, he would insist on doing the work himself. When I was married, my husband did everything. One year, I offered to help him paint trim on the house and I spilled an entire can of oil-based paint all over myself and the side of the house. I had white paint stuck in my hair for weeks and that was the last time my ex-husband ever asked for my assistance with anything. I can't help but feel proud that I painted a whole room all by myself.  I created a warm and beautiful bathroom with a brush, a can of paint and my own two hands. I am now an artist and the bathroom walls, though slightly imperfect, are my masterpiece!

You are an artist. Life is a blank canvas on which to create your very own work of art. It won't ever be as magnificent if you sit back and let someone else create it for you.  Just pick up the brush and start painting. The more you practice, the better you'll get at it.  If you really don't like it, start over again and create something new. And don't worry too much about the imperfections. Those are just the ups and downs, trials, tribulations, heartache, joys and triumphs that tell the most beautiful story and make your life a true masterpiece.

And this is Daily Cyn......





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The Truth Will Not Be Withheld IF.......

In the end, I've come to believe in something I call "The Physics of the Quest." A force in nature governed by laws as real as the laws of gravity. The rule of Quest Physics goes something like this: If you're brave enough to leave behind everything familiar and comforting, which can be anything from your house to bitter, old resentments, and set out on a truth-seeking journey, either externally or internally, and if you are truly willing to regard everything that happens to you on that journey as a clue and if you accept everyone you meet along the way as a teacher and if you are prepared, most of all, to face and forgive some very difficult realities about yourself, then the truth will not be withheld from you. -Elizabeth Gilbert: Eat, Pray, Love.

And this is my Daily Cyn......

Humility

And this is my Daily Cyn........

War is Over

And this is my Daily Cyn..............

The Tell-Tale Signs of Unhealthy Eating!



What the heck happened to my face?

 It takes a very brave woman to post a photo like this on the internet. Without a stitch of make up or the beauty of photo-shop or airbrushing of some kind. Yet, I am doing it. This is me. Actually one side of me- the bad side.

 I woke up this morning with three HUGE zits on my face.  And here they are- in living color! 





You may break out in pimples often. I never do. My skin is usually radiant, smooth and blemish-free. I am almost fifty years old for goodness sake. I am in menopause. My days of occassional aggravating zits are long gone. But yet, I have them now--three unsightly eruptions on my face. And I have so much to do today: clients to meet, appointments to keep, shopping to do. I don't exactly look like the picture of health, do I?

It took every ounce of self-control to not pick and squeeze these god-awful things on my face. Cover-up just made them look worse. Instead, in a desperate attempt to draw attention away from the big, reg, ugly pimples, I applied a bit more eye makeup than usual and removed my hair from its pony tail holder and let it fall wild and free.

As I got dressed and ready to go, I racked my brains trying to figure out what caused my skin to become so angry. I haven't changed my skin care or makeup or laundry detergent. And then, it dawned on me. The only thing that's been different is my diet. Thanksgiving and all the high, calorie, fat-laden, unhealthy foods I am not accustomed to eating.

I indulged this year and one week later, my body (mainly my face) is showing all the signs.  First of all, I am a vegan. I don't eat meat and I don't do dairy- no milk, no eggs, no cheese. I didn't eat any meat but I did let the whole dairy thing slide a little for the holiday. I couldn't refuse the pumpkin pie with vanilla ice cream, caulliflower in cheese sauce, and my mom's famous corn pudding. I rarely drink alcohol either, but I helped myself to several glasses of wine.  And it wasn't just on Thanskgiving that I went a little crazy--there were leftovers so I kept on eating and drinking a few days after. Now I have three big zits to show for it! I am tired and bloated, too, but that's another story.........

When we allow impurities and toxins into our bodies (in my case- too much fat, dairy, processed foods and alcohol), they look for a way out. This is when we become sluggish and bloated and our skin is less than glowing. My face literally erupted with all the tell-tale signs of unhealthy eating. And this is only the result of a few days of bad choices. What would happen if I ate that way all the time? I would look and feel awful!

The cure: filtered water with freshly squeezed organic lemons. Lemons are cleansing. Soup, plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit. I need to flush this stuff out of my system and lots of liquid and foods that are high in water-content are crucial.  No salt, no sugar, no preservatives, no oil. Good oils are okay- avocados, nuts (unsalted). A few days of eating like this and I should look and feel fantastic again!

Why am I telling you this? To prove a point. If you don't think the foods you eat have a direct result on how you look, think again. How does your skin look? Is it dry and flaky? Do you battle with constant blemishes that seem to appear out of nowhere?  You might be so accustomed to your rebellious skin that you might not even be aware of it anymore. There are reasons why your skin reacts in those ways. These are signs of impurities. It might be time to evaluate your diet and switch to a more wholesome way of eating.

Not sure where to start? Comment here, send me an email, or contact me at True Metamorphosis. Together we'll take a look at what you're eating and see if we can make a few improvements here and there. That way, when the holidays roll around, you'll be glowing from the inside out.

And this is my Daily Cyn.......