Category: Reflections

Living with Intention

Living with Intention

Posted on by Dawn

Living intentionally. What does that mean? It means much more than intending to keep on breathing for another day, although that in itself is a great intention! Highly recommended! What I’m actually talking about is being in touch with yourself; your thoughts, your dreams and desires, and breathing life into those dreams and desires on purpose. With intention.

I am SO guilty of getting SO busy that I don’t check in with myself to see if I am currently working towards living the life I want to be living. Sometimes life is busy, and we may even be busy doing things that are good and worthy and that we love, but are these things what we should be focusing on right now? I am nearly swamped with publishing and web design work at the moment, which is really an awesome thing! It’s what I have been working towards for some time now. But when I let myself have a few moments to let the brain wander where it wants to, it tells me, hey Dawn, we need a day off! What I want need is a day to curl up on the couch with a fuzzy blanket and a book, or a movie, and just RELAX. So now, I’m rearranging my schedule to allow for that, and to keep space open for just kicking back and spending time with the people I love.

Well Dawn, it’s not like that was an earth shattering insight or anything. No, it’s not. But even being someone who is kind of ‘woke’, I still get sucked into the grind of working too hard or too much. Building businesses is a great thing to be able to do. Working for a great agency that supports people is a great thing to be able to do. But when all is said and done, I’m replaceable as a secretary, a web designer and a publisher. At home, I’m not. I’m an original, as are you! I am pretty sure my hubby would have a hard time replacing his chatty little weirdo wife whom he finds horribly adorable (and at times, adorably horrible). I guess what I’m trying to say is, be careful what you wish for, as you just might get it! So don’t forget to wish for the non-work related things that truly make you happy while you’re busy creating your dream job or your empire or whatever it is that you have set as your intention to do. We are so ingrained to work hard and make money, but it is generally the relationships in life that bring the biggest blessings.

So, while you are intending to better at something, or to be rich, or famous, don’t forget to intend to be happy with your family and friends. Tis a worthy quest!

Did You Smile Today?

Did You Smile Today?

Posted on by Dawn

It’s been quite a year, hasn’t it?

A pandemic hit the globe and we are all still struggling to deal with it and accept that this is how life will be for the foreseeable. It’s made life difficult in situations that are already hard to endure. Some of us have lost people we care about and have had to mourn alone, without the comfort of our friends and families. Some of us have postponed important and much anticipated special gatherings, like weddings. Some of us struggle to make ends meet because our workplaces have reduced hours or closed altogether because of the restrictions placed upon us. Some of us have wrestled with major health issues on our own because the pandemic has made it so our support people cannot attend the hospital or doctor’s appointments with us. It’s been a year of new hassles and hardships and we have mourned our former lives and begun to accept as normal, this life that looks so different than it once did. The weight of the pandemic is still there on everyone’s shoulders and mind, but we have, for the most part, found a place of acceptance of it.

We have all felt the pain of separation from those we would love to be with, those outside our tiny social circles. But in that isolation from the world, there have been good things that have come out of it. Some of us have cleaner houses than ever (not mine, but I’ve heard it’s happened!). Some of us have taken up old hobbies or learned a new one. Apparently, bread making has made such a huge comeback that it’s still tricky to find yeast at the grocery stores. We have realized more starkly that relationships are important and have made the effort to stay connected to those we care about. And many of us have sat in the silence and realized that, even with a global pandemic going on, we still have much to be grateful for.

If we are lucky, we have our health, we live with our significant other or children, and working from home was a viable option so we still have gainful employment. We’ve been able to enjoy our homes more fully than in the past, and we ought to be grateful for that. Even though we aren’t supposed to go out and gather with our friends, technology has made it so that we can stay connected via phone, text, video chatting and the like. We still have our fur babies who love us and make us smile. We still have hope for better days ahead. The bright spots are there to behold if we train our eyes to see them. They are like beacons of light against the backdrop of a unsettled and struggling world.

Find your bright spots. Appreciate them and enjoy the good you still have in your life. We can look forward to better days ahead, but don’t forget to embrace the good that is sitting right in front of you. Don’t forget to smile today!

That’s the Way It Goes…But There’s Hope

That’s the Way It Goes…But There’s Hope

Posted on by Dawn

It’s funny how you think things will go a certain way, and then, poof! They don’t. Back in January, I don’t think any of us in Canada had a clue as to what was in store for us. But here we are, just a couple of weeks into having the Covid 19 pandemic touch our lives here. School is cancelled for the foreseeable. Non-essential businesses are shut down. More people than ever are working from home, and between them and the kids out of school, our internet services are maxing out at times. We have to shelter in place, save for essential work and the buying of necessities. We wash our hands constantly. And some of us, like me, find themselves unemployed. My place of work (day job) shut down this past week, and truthfully, there are not a lot of businesses looking for web designers (my side hustle) at the moment.

It’s been a roller coaster ride these past few weeks. Coming to terms with what is happening isn’t something you can accept and be ok with just overnight. Acceptance comes in stages, and some of us didn’t get there without tears and kicking and screaming. Even though this is our new normal, it’s still stressful. I have a pre-existing condition that could cause big problems if I contract the novel coronavirus, so my awesome hubby has agreed to do the shopping for us and for my mom. This on top of his job being deemed essential, so he goes out every day to work. I’m lucky to be able to sit it out at home, and doubly lucky that we still have one income coming in. But I worry about my hubby having to go out into the world that seems ever more dangerous now that we have cases of the virus in our community. But I am thankful that I can hunker down in my warm house that is well stocked and be grateful that the people I love are currently safe.

Finding meaningful things to do is tricky. Once the house is clean, and you’ve caught up on your sleep and Netflix, now what? Days of jammies and snacktime? As for me, I decided that if I’m getting bored and overwhelmed by the media, I’m probably not the only one. So, using those web design skills that are not currently in demand, I created a virtual neighbourhood website for my little town. I am hoping it will be a positive place for the community to go to be inspired and to feel connected when life seems strangely void of inclusive behaviours. I’m hoping that people will take the time to visit and to submit their photos and stories to share with others. And in doing so, maybe we will all feel a little less alone and find our smiles again, too. It’s a little thing, but sometimes the little things can mean a lot. Hope is the one thing I think we all could use a daily dose of these days, and maybe this is one way to create it.

Wishing you all good health and that you remain safe.

www.petrolia.virtualneighbourhood.ca

Letting People Go

Letting People Go

Posted on by Dawn

Sometimes we build relationships with people who are only meant to be part of our lives for a while. They may have come to teach us something about ourselves, or to provide support for a struggle we encountered. Let’s face it, a lot of people will float in and out of our lives over the years. And as we grow in maturity and self-knowledge, we also come to the realization that some of those people, although once very much involved in our lives, have gravitated to the fringes of our lives, and we see more clearly where these individuals have fit into the scheme of life. Maybe we needed them at one point. Maybe they needed us. But what once was is gone and now what?

Sometimes, you need that bit of distance to be able to discern the situation more accurately. Maybe the concern they seem to have shown for you has been rooted in ulterior motives, but it was hard to see when they were closer to you. They will meddle under the guise of ‘being concerned’ while actively trying to sway your way of thinking about another person or situation. And having survived a cult church, I am quite done with being manipulated in life.

So, if you know that someone is being manipulative towards you for the purpose of their own gain, feel free to let them go. You are entitled to your own life, your own thoughts and your own choices. If someone would gladly take those freedoms from you for their own ulterior motives and gain, then they really aren’t your friend who wants what is best for you, are they?

Life is too short to waste on people who make you feel less than, people who try to meddle in your affairs or people make you feel uneasy because you know they are going to try to influence you in a way that makes you uncomfortable. If your gut says it’s not right, trust it. Vibes don’t lie! Release them with positivity and blessings, and know you’ve done yourself a great favour.