To Love
When you think of the love you feel you actually send calm, peaceful, kind, joyful, accepting energy into the world. This energy doesn't travel only from point A to point B - it spreads and touches all in it's path.
So, yes, love deeply.
Love people, your job, your habits, your activities. Love animals, and the planet. Love kind gestures.
Love passionately and completely and you WILL make this world a better place.
♥ Louise Smith
Have you ever noticed that generally speaking, honesty is something we expect from others but excuse in ourselves.
Think about it.
We encourage others to be honest with us. We hurt when they aren't.
But, and here's the big BUT, in our day-to-day lives we are quick to cover certain things up, leave certain things out, and decide what we need to be truthful about. After all, who really wants to hear that the dress they're wearing does actually make their butt look big, and why would we tell the boss we are late because we had one too many glasses of wine with friends last night.
Here's the irony.
If you decide when and where you should be honest, and when/where a little white lie fits, and when/where an omission or big fat ole lie is best, then you cannot expect anyone else in your world to do things differently.
If you lie. They get to lie. If you choose when/where/why to suit your needs, THEY get to choose when/where/why to suit THEIR needs.
That cycle never ends. Until you end it. If you choose honesty then yes, you can expect honesty all around you. It's amazing how beautiful your life becomes when you fill your space with like-minded souls.
This is a tough lesson to master. Be kind to yourself if it takes a few kicks at the can before you reach the higher level of wisdom. Good luck. ♥ Louise Smith
When I was 20 I thought I had my whole life ahead of me. To do what I wish and when I wished. Life seemed never-ending.
I could make mistakes, take wrong roads, live on the wild side, hang out with people even if they didn't resonate with me. After all, I had my whole life to fix those things up if they didn't work out so well. Plus I'm not even sure I knew what 'resonate' meant back then :)
Now that I am 50 I see how short life really is. I arrived here far faster than expected. And now that I am here, at this stage, I see each moment more like a gift.
So,
Here's to choosing not to waste a single minute.
Here's to choosing to surround myself with kindness, honesty, integrity and compassion.
Here's to choosing to be those things myself.
Here's to happiness, here's to life!
♥ Louise Smith
Exactly what I was thinking and feeling last night as I turned onto the highway toward home after a particularly long and challenging week.
The sun was setting.
The air had turned cool again.
And quite frankly, I was mentally and emotionally exhausted.
But, as my favourite music danced through my vehicle and into my soul, and the sun sparkled and glistened in its final minutes I couldn’t help but feel grateful.
For the big things. Like the time to do what had to be done. For incredibly supportive siblings. For unending love from my husband and family.
I felt grateful for even bigger things. A setting sun to remind me every day is a new day. A cool breeze to remind me I am alive. Music to remind me I am not walking this journey alone.
I spent the rest of the ride counting my blessings. Friends. Family. Health. A warm home, a full fridge, and the forest trails that were waiting to welcome me back.
As the kilometers fell behind I smiled, sang, and acknowledged all the good in my world.
Once again I was balanced, mind, body, and spirit.
♥ Louise Smith
Living a life of kindness is a choice.
It doesn't mean we slide through life without difficulties. It doesn't mean we are delusional or 'blind to reality' either.
It simply means we have TRAINED OUR MINDS to focus on the good, on beauty, generosity, making a positive difference, and spreading kindness rather than doubt, fear, anger, resentment, bitterness, and spreading negativity.
Special thanks to those who have made the choice to make the world a little bit brighter instead of a little bit darker. ♥ Louise Smith
'If you care for your mind, if you nurture it and if you cultivate it just like a fertile, rich garden, it will blossom far beyond your expectations. But if you let the weeds take root, lasting peace of mind and deep inner harmony will always elude you.' ~ Robin Sharma
Either way, you are training your mind. ♥ Louise Smith
Sometimes we get so passionate about our beliefs we become almost rabid in our ways of communicating them.
Whether its politics, religion, fitness, the environment, spirituality, or whatever, we can get so caught up in our own personal beliefs we become guilty of pushing. And we will keep an arsenal of reasons to excuse our behaviour, even though we may not be so kind when others push their beliefs back at us.
It turns into an ugly war of words.
I know. I have been guilty of this myself a few times over the years. It happens easily to passionate people.
That doesn’t make it right. I know this too.
There is a fine balance to respecting your own views and respecting the views of others. Learning how to float through this delicate dance of behaviour takes honesty, integrity, kindness, and a heaping pile of respect.
Mastering the dance takes confidence in yourself and a deeper understanding that you could be right, and you might possibly be wrong, and that’s okay. Reaching this level raises you to a higher level of wisdom and brings a more peaceful energy to the world.
Good luck. ♥ Louise
