Last week I celebrated my 56th birthday. Those of you who know me well, know that I believe that every birthday should be celebrated in some way. I don’t worry about getting older. I celebrate the fact that I have been blessed to be alive and overall healthy for 56 years. Not everyone is so lucky. I’ve said this before…there is always something to be grateful for. I’ve also been blessed to be able to reflect on life experiences and learn from them, and I continue to do this almost every day. I have become grateful to be the person that I am, and in turn, I have come to see that I deserve to have my needs fulfilled. Over the weekend I got to thinking about how my wants and needs have changed over the years. I also realized that the way that I define ‘wants’ and ‘needs’ has changed.
I believe that ‘needs’ fall into two different categories: there are the things that you need to survive; and there are the things that you need to make your soul happy. The rest are wants. For example: Do I need a million dollars in order to survive? No. Do I need a million dollars to make my soul happy? No. Do I want a million dollars? Well, of course that would be nice. If I personalize this more, I recently completed a lifelong dream. I finished my first book. Did I need to write this book to survive? No. Did I need to write this book to make my soul happy? Yes!
In my own journey, I had to stop worrying so much about what other people needed and what other people thought and just have faith in the fact that I was going to be okay no matter what.
Yes, I’m going to take these dance classes, and invest in writing my book. Is it costing me and putting a big dent in my savings? Yes, but I’m doing not just what I want, but what I need to do, and in the end it’s going to be worth it. I know that there are people who are looking at me right now and wondering, “how is she doing this?” Thinking I’m crazy for turning down a full-time contract in order to pursue my dreams. Wondering to themselves: “How is she supporting herself? Why is she wasting money on this or that?” The thing is, to me it’s not a waste. I believe that everyone has different ‘soul needs’, and we have to sit quietly and really look inside of ourselves to find them. But they are so important, because if your soul is not happy and at peace then you are not really living, you are simply existing. So, I am paying attention to my ‘soul needs’. I’m not going to a job that I hate everyday. I’m not coming home so defeated and exhausted that I’m sitting in front of a TV for five or six hours. I’m not dwelling on the negative, thinking about how the ‘world is going to crap’ and complaining about how the government is going to take over everything that we do. I am the only one who has control of my mind and soul, so I don’t care! I’m going to the lake. See you later! I’m going to talk to the birds. They are always happy.
When you let go of the need for approval from the outside, when you stop listening to all of the negative voices in your head, you start to realize that you are the writer of your own story, and you can restart your story at any time. You have the power to affirm a new reality. In order to do this, you need to really let go of the past and focus on yourself. Focus on taking care of yourself and releasing anything that holds you back. Start caring more about what your feelings are on the inside rather than what other peoples’ feelings are from the outside. Live consciously–live in the present and take back control of your life.
Much love,
Sandy
I believe that ‘needs’ fall into two different categories: there are the things that you need to survive; and there are the things that you need to make your soul happy. The rest are wants. For example: Do I need a million dollars in order to survive? No. Do I need a million dollars to make my soul happy? No. Do I want a million dollars? Well, of course that would be nice. If I personalize this more, I recently completed a lifelong dream. I finished my first book. Did I need to write this book to survive? No. Did I need to write this book to make my soul happy? Yes!
In my own journey, I had to stop worrying so much about what other people needed and what other people thought and just have faith in the fact that I was going to be okay no matter what.
Yes, I’m going to take these dance classes, and invest in writing my book. Is it costing me and putting a big dent in my savings? Yes, but I’m doing not just what I want, but what I need to do, and in the end it’s going to be worth it. I know that there are people who are looking at me right now and wondering, “how is she doing this?” Thinking I’m crazy for turning down a full-time contract in order to pursue my dreams. Wondering to themselves: “How is she supporting herself? Why is she wasting money on this or that?” The thing is, to me it’s not a waste. I believe that everyone has different ‘soul needs’, and we have to sit quietly and really look inside of ourselves to find them. But they are so important, because if your soul is not happy and at peace then you are not really living, you are simply existing. So, I am paying attention to my ‘soul needs’. I’m not going to a job that I hate everyday. I’m not coming home so defeated and exhausted that I’m sitting in front of a TV for five or six hours. I’m not dwelling on the negative, thinking about how the ‘world is going to crap’ and complaining about how the government is going to take over everything that we do. I am the only one who has control of my mind and soul, so I don’t care! I’m going to the lake. See you later! I’m going to talk to the birds. They are always happy.
When you let go of the need for approval from the outside, when you stop listening to all of the negative voices in your head, you start to realize that you are the writer of your own story, and you can restart your story at any time. You have the power to affirm a new reality. In order to do this, you need to really let go of the past and focus on yourself. Focus on taking care of yourself and releasing anything that holds you back. Start caring more about what your feelings are on the inside rather than what other peoples’ feelings are from the outside. Live consciously–live in the present and take back control of your life.
Much love,
Sandy