Thoughtful Thursday

‎"Excuses for failure, excuses about choices in life, excuses about not taking responsibility fuel dysfunctional thinking – and consequently, undesirable actions and behaviors. Making excuses instead of taking one hundred percent responsibility for your actions, your thoughts, and your goals is the hallmark of people who fail to succeed." ~ Susan M. Heathfield

Wow.  Isn't this brilliant?  We are so often worried about how others will view the choices we make for ourselves that we over-explain or make excuses.  I am also reminded of the quote, "Never explain yourself.  Your friends don't need it and your enemies won't believe it."  Sadly, excuses make us look like we're compensating for something.  Usually not in a truthful way!  Over-elaborating diminishes our stance on issues.  

Be strong in your decisions and take responsibility for your actions.  "Silence the negative voice in your head".  

Food for thought.

Momma's Little Easter Bunny

Maaike made a bunny mask at preschool yesterday.  

In fact, it was on a visit with her preschool class to Lakeview Manor where they entertain the "grammas and grampas" that they made the craft (while having juice and jam filled cookies, nonetheless).  She loves it and wants to wear it all the time, hopping around like a wonderful, silly little easter bunny.  : )

Cute but a bit scary, too? 

She even insisted on wearing her bunny mask to the park!

I certainly hope this innocent lack of self-consciousness continues ...

Wednesday's Words

"Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language. Do not look for the answers. They cannot now be given to you because you could not live them. It is a question of experiencing everything." ~ Rainer Maria Rilke

I stole this from my 26-year-old cousin's blog.  She is currently in the process of kicking cancer to the curb ... in a drop kick with both feet kind of way, I might add.  This quote reminds her of what is important as she moves forward post-treatment.  

These words also tripped me up as I was moving along in the course of my seemingly uneventful life.  We are often too much of a "I want what I want when I want it" society.  How often do we sit back and just "experience everything"?  Life is soooo darn short and I think that makes a lot of us demand the "as soon as possibles".  But we're missing some of the true joys in life along the way: the thrill of the chase, the joy in the adventure, the appreciation of the process, and the glory in the accomplishment.  

Today I wish you all the patience to simply, and peacefully, experience the things that are going on in your life ... relish some breathing space, take the pressure off, and let life happen.