When does it start?

I met a friend for lunch today and she brought her daughter who I had never met before so it was good for me to meet her as well as I loved catching up with CS. Her daughter loves to play basketball, but she doesn't play anymore. I asked her why not, and even though she wouldn't tell me, I drove away wondering, "Is that when it starts?" When we allow others to dictate what we do. When we start to overthink about how it looks to others. When we believe more about what others think than what we think. When are we going to be strong enough to start ignoring all the mumbo jumbo that gets thrown at us every day? When? Does it start when you are 10 and have no idea what life is really like? How many of us would love to know what we know now, but go back and use that knowledge to maybe change some things we wish we could have done differently? I was given a wonderful book for my birthday from Rocky this past year and it's about women who wrote themselves a letter at a particularly difficult time in their life, based on what they learned from going through that experience. I have often thought about completing an exercise similar to that, but not sure what event was so pivotal in my life that a letter would make a difference. I have learned a lot about why I am the way I am and cannot think of one single thing that happened when I can recollect when my life took a dramatic turn. Let's assume that we may never know when we stop believing in ourselves and allow others dictate what we do next. Does it even have to start? No, it doesn't. That is why the G.I.F.T. exists...because we don't want it to start. One member, SM has a daughter and she is trying to teach her not to be afraid of life, regardless of what life shows you. What is we encouraged this generation of pre-teens, teens, and young women to never have fear and to always show their MOXIE? When you have one woman who refuses to back down from prejudice and taunts made by others. Courage comes in many forms and in many ways. It means being strong when you feel your knees getting ready to buckle. It means smiling when you know the tears are just ready to fall. It means believing more in yourself regardless of what is said about you. It means it doesn't have to start, but needs to end. Most of the time, I say "It Starts Today", but in this case I will say, "It ends today."

The Best Day

I am not even sure where to start, but I think the stars were aligned today. I still have a smile on my face as I think about all of the fun Rocky and I had today. When was the last time you could say that you had a great day? Are you waiting for it to come to you? It won't. You have to go get it. You have to choose to do fun, crazy things that people would just question you that you really did it. Yes, we have pictures. No, you will not see them. Even when we messed up and made fools of ourselves, we did not care who was around us or what they thought. We were "going with the flow" and having a blast. We laughed so hard at inside jokes, cold cracks, and playing tic-tac-toe. It was simply awesome. What makes you happy? What gives you a smile? Do you seek that and take time for it? YOU NEED TO!!! With life being chaotic at times, and unplanned, and with tons of responsibilites, you need to remember to have fun, even if it means you go back to your childhood when playing games like Jacks and Hopscotch was how you would spend your day. Sometimes, we have forgotten what it is like to have fun, have no fear, and just go in the moment. We must get back there at times...even momentarily. Doing so replenishes you and gives you enormous energy to tackle whatever is in front of you now. Promise yourself to take time for you and laugh, enjoy great friends, and live your life. You get one chance and you want to love it. Dig deep into your past and find those little snapshots of joyfulness and giddiness and being young at heart. We went there today and as much as I would not wish to going back to being in the 7-12 year old age bracket again, it was absolutely priceless today at 42. It was the best day I have had in a long time. Thanks, Rock.