Beautiful. Words.

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for,
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.

It doesn't interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love, for your dreams,
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon.
I want to know if you have touched
the center of your own sorrow,
if you have been opened by life's betrayals
or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain.

I want to know if you can sit with pain,
mine or your own, without moving to hide it
or fade it or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy mine or your own.
if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy
fill you to the tips of your fingers
and toes without cautioning us
to be careful, be realistic,
remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true.
I want to know if you can disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty every day,
and if you can source your own life from its presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine,
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon.

It doesn't interest me to know where you live,
or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair,
weary and bruised to the bone,
and do what needs to be done to feed the children.

It doesn't interest me who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.

It doesn't interest me where or what
or with whom you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you from the inside
when all else falls away.

I want to know if you can be alone with yourself,
and if you truly like the company,
you keep in the empty moments.




[I do not know where it came from. I do not know the author. All I know is that I think this poetry is lovely. Simply stunning.]

In the end: there is YOU

Will today be the day you decide that who you are as a person is much more than you've demonstrated?

Hold yourself to high standards.

So often people talk about wanting to make a change in their lives. To be a better person, avoid people or things that are bad for them, change their job or circumstance, help others... The list goes on. And so often we see people struggle with following through. They feel frustrated or overwhelmed, alone or insecure. We know we need to take action but can't seem to do it! There is a simple reason for this: they keep trying to change their behavior or outside circumstances, which is the effect, instead of dealing with the cause behind it. A person needs to explore the root of the problem before trying to fix the outside influences.

You really need to look within to know why you are hurting, or why you feel happy. Or just why things are the way they are. Life is not projected on you, you project life on life. It all comes from within. Learn to be honest with yourself and an honest life will be created. Your path will unfold. When you truly commit to making something happen, the "how" will reveal itself.

Make your life consistent with the quality of your spirit. Say to yourself: "This is who I am. This is what my life is about. This is what I am going to do. Nothing will stop me from achieving my destiny."

Don't just go with the flow of where others and your environment will take you. It is easy to float and just pass along... But let me pose this question for you: Are you really living the life you want to be living? Are you proud of your own existence, your own impression you are making on your world? When you come to a fork in the river (of life), consciously decide which way you will go.

There are no failures in life, only results. If you didn't get the results you wanted, learn from this experience so that you have references about how to make better decisions in life.
No mistakes. No regrets. Just a series of decisions that lead to the experiences you've been exposed to.

The human spirit truly is unconquerable. But the will to win, the will to succeed, to shape one's life, to take control, can only be harnessed when you decide what you want and believe that no challenge, no problem, no obstacle can keep you from it.
When you decide that, your life will ultimately be shaped not by your conditions but by your decisions. Then, in that moment, your life will change forever.

Why is it that people can experience pain yet fail to change? They haven't experienced enough pain yet; they haven't hit the emotional threshold. You have to hit a level of pain you aren't willing to settle for anymore before you can stop and say, "that's it, I've had it with this!" This is the magical moment when pain becomes our friend. It drives us to take new action and produce new results.

Life is a series of events, emotions and experiences that have come from the decisions you have made. Take nothing for granted and know that you are your only constant. Life is hard but life is good. Know in your heart that you are capable of anything. Make decisions that will produce the results you want to be a part of. Learn from the ones that don't turn out the way you thought they might. Let your pain in, so that you can eventually let it out. You must feel and truly understand the source of your pain before you can work through it. Know your emotional threshold and learn when to ask for help.

And in the end, just know this: God's delays are not God's denials.


(This post may seem a bit random. It all came from notes I'd taken while reading a particularly inspiring chapter in Tony Robbins' book 'Awaken the Giant Within.' Most are my own words, some are taken straight from the pages. Tony Robbins is an incredible teacher and inspiration in my life and the lives of many others.)