Hey everyone!! I know it's been a little while since I've written but I usually wait for inspiration to hit me, and then I write down a basic idea for an entry and then I just start rambling haha. However, my inspiration fairy seems to have taken a vacation or something so this is just a short and sweet post.
As most know, pride is one of the seven deadly sins. I can understand how this leads to someone's downfall, but I don't really want to talk about that aspect of pride. I'd rather talk about what it is to be proud of something or someone and how it may affect a person.
I was having a conversation about my little brother being the musical at his high school and this person said that I sounded like a proud mother. I started to think about it. I realized that I probably do sound like that when it comes to talking about many of the people that I care about, especially my family. I am so insanely proud of my mom and siblings ( I am the oldest) for everything they venture into. My mom is a stellar human being, who is generous beyond measure and entirely too nice sometimes. I hope that I am half the woman that she is, and if I'm even a quarter of the mother that she is then my children will have great lives. My sister has recently become the mother of two beautiful little girls and has adapted to motherhood with the grace of someone who was born to do this. My brother has gone out for school plays and musicals since his freshman year and is the kindest and least judgemental person I know.
I only hope that my pride and belief in them and others encourages self-esteem and self-love.
Overall, I am so proud to be a part of these people's lives and to be able to call them family. So if pride is a sin, I'm very clearly guilty of committing it and I wouldn't change a thing.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Sunday, March 18, 2012
I have a secret!
Hello everyone! Before I dive into this post, I want to thank those who have read my blog and are already so incredibly supportive! I am one of the luckiest people in the world when it comes to knowing that I will have that support no matter what I venture into. So once again thank you so so so much, it means the world to me!
Now on to the actual post that has been on my mind. As I mentioned in my last post, I am a big fan of watching "beauty gurus" on YouTube. Well, today one of them posted a tag video called my top 10 secrets. In addition to this video, every Sunday I read a blog called "Sunday Secrets" from PostSecret. "PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a homemade postcard" (http://www.postsecret.com/). On most Sundays, postcards have been randomly chosen and posted to this website for everyone to read. On other Sundays, there is a kind of theme, ie. Father's Day etc. I am a huge fan of not only the website, but the entire idea, and that people everywhere are struggling with secrets of their own and can release some of their issues into the world without feeling like they are being judged. While some secrets are heart-wrenching, others are kind of silly. Regardless of what the secret is, they are all expressions of the people who sent them and it is thoroughly inspirational.
I guess with these two things together today, I took it as a kind of sign. Everyone around us has a past and things that I will never know about them that make them who they are. Everyone also has different struggles that they deal with daily whether it is a conscious act or not. I think that once you are comfortable with your secrets or have learned how to deal with them, life becomes a beautiful thing. I recently dealt with one of my secrets and it has changed my life.
For those of you who may not know me, I am pretty open about what goes on in my life. I enjoy getting other people's perspectives on my personal struggles so if you ask me a question you may get more information than you ever dreamed of. I have no regrets in life, because I very firmly believe that everything that I've experienced has gotten me to the person that I am today. However, I wasn't always as steadfast in that belief.
I very recently got divorced. My secret was that I wasn't happy in my marriage, I wasn't me. I changed everything about myself and moved across the country to be with someone who didn't really appreciate the real me. Part of this is my fault because I allowed the changes to take place. I desperately wanted my marriage to succeed and I thought that changing me was the only way it would happen. Instead, I ended up hating myself and lacking any shred of confidence. It was no way to live.
I faced all of it though and it took me a long time to get to where I am now. But I wouldn't change any of the pain and hurt that I went through because I truly am the happiest I have ever been.
I want to encourage you to share a secret, it doesn't have to be huge or life-shattering but it can be if you want to. Reading "Sunday Secrets" helped me come to realize my own. So if you feel like it, you can leave an anonymous comment below and maybe it will set you free.
Thank you so much for reading once again, and love yourself!!
Love always,
Rachel
Now on to the actual post that has been on my mind. As I mentioned in my last post, I am a big fan of watching "beauty gurus" on YouTube. Well, today one of them posted a tag video called my top 10 secrets. In addition to this video, every Sunday I read a blog called "Sunday Secrets" from PostSecret. "PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a homemade postcard" (http://www.postsecret.com/). On most Sundays, postcards have been randomly chosen and posted to this website for everyone to read. On other Sundays, there is a kind of theme, ie. Father's Day etc. I am a huge fan of not only the website, but the entire idea, and that people everywhere are struggling with secrets of their own and can release some of their issues into the world without feeling like they are being judged. While some secrets are heart-wrenching, others are kind of silly. Regardless of what the secret is, they are all expressions of the people who sent them and it is thoroughly inspirational.
I guess with these two things together today, I took it as a kind of sign. Everyone around us has a past and things that I will never know about them that make them who they are. Everyone also has different struggles that they deal with daily whether it is a conscious act or not. I think that once you are comfortable with your secrets or have learned how to deal with them, life becomes a beautiful thing. I recently dealt with one of my secrets and it has changed my life.
For those of you who may not know me, I am pretty open about what goes on in my life. I enjoy getting other people's perspectives on my personal struggles so if you ask me a question you may get more information than you ever dreamed of. I have no regrets in life, because I very firmly believe that everything that I've experienced has gotten me to the person that I am today. However, I wasn't always as steadfast in that belief.
I very recently got divorced. My secret was that I wasn't happy in my marriage, I wasn't me. I changed everything about myself and moved across the country to be with someone who didn't really appreciate the real me. Part of this is my fault because I allowed the changes to take place. I desperately wanted my marriage to succeed and I thought that changing me was the only way it would happen. Instead, I ended up hating myself and lacking any shred of confidence. It was no way to live.
I faced all of it though and it took me a long time to get to where I am now. But I wouldn't change any of the pain and hurt that I went through because I truly am the happiest I have ever been.
I want to encourage you to share a secret, it doesn't have to be huge or life-shattering but it can be if you want to. Reading "Sunday Secrets" helped me come to realize my own. So if you feel like it, you can leave an anonymous comment below and maybe it will set you free.
Thank you so much for reading once again, and love yourself!!
Love always,
Rachel
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Welcome!
Hello everyone and welcome to my first post! How exciting! I want to let you know more about me and why I started this blog as well as what you may see coming soon.
2011 was a difficult year for me. So as 2012 came around I decided to make my first ever new year's resolution....I decided to be a better me in every way that I can be. It's a wildly vague resolution but I felt that I could definitely accomplish it that way haha! Anyway, this resolution included taking better care of myself, cutting soda out of my diet (which is a huuuge accomplishment), being sure to wash my face, etc. My true goal being to feel more confident and have that confidence be seen by others.
Once this decision was made I started trying to figure out how to make all of this happen. I cut out the soda first, which I feel the need to mention once again was a huge accomplishment for me. I also started to wear makeup again, which due to college life, had been a practically nonexistant part of my daily routine. I knew that I instantly felt a little bit better about myself when I took the time to do my makeup so I decided that was the best place for me to start. I started watching YouTube videos to figure out looks to do on my sister for her wedding and, of course, ventured into other looks that I have come to love. However, without getting into too much detail about that, I began to use these YouTube channels to learn more about makeup and hair and nails. I gained so much insight and inspiration from these women that I began to translate that into my everyday life. I stopped biting my nails, took better care of my skin, and took pride in how I looked. It may sound silly and vain to some people but it turned what was a pretty dark time for me into something beautiful. Feeling better about myself really did shine through and others noticed. It's lead me to believe that once you truly love yourself, you can allow others to love you fully.
Overall, I just want to keep track of how things are going for me as well as offer any kind of advice, no matter how serious or silly it may be, to others. I firmly believe that the best way to spend your life is spending it trying to better the lives that you may touch and this is simply the beginning of this yet another way of doing that.
I hope you enjoy this blog and we can grow together! Stay happy!!
2011 was a difficult year for me. So as 2012 came around I decided to make my first ever new year's resolution....I decided to be a better me in every way that I can be. It's a wildly vague resolution but I felt that I could definitely accomplish it that way haha! Anyway, this resolution included taking better care of myself, cutting soda out of my diet (which is a huuuge accomplishment), being sure to wash my face, etc. My true goal being to feel more confident and have that confidence be seen by others.
Once this decision was made I started trying to figure out how to make all of this happen. I cut out the soda first, which I feel the need to mention once again was a huge accomplishment for me. I also started to wear makeup again, which due to college life, had been a practically nonexistant part of my daily routine. I knew that I instantly felt a little bit better about myself when I took the time to do my makeup so I decided that was the best place for me to start. I started watching YouTube videos to figure out looks to do on my sister for her wedding and, of course, ventured into other looks that I have come to love. However, without getting into too much detail about that, I began to use these YouTube channels to learn more about makeup and hair and nails. I gained so much insight and inspiration from these women that I began to translate that into my everyday life. I stopped biting my nails, took better care of my skin, and took pride in how I looked. It may sound silly and vain to some people but it turned what was a pretty dark time for me into something beautiful. Feeling better about myself really did shine through and others noticed. It's lead me to believe that once you truly love yourself, you can allow others to love you fully.
Overall, I just want to keep track of how things are going for me as well as offer any kind of advice, no matter how serious or silly it may be, to others. I firmly believe that the best way to spend your life is spending it trying to better the lives that you may touch and this is simply the beginning of this yet another way of doing that.
I hope you enjoy this blog and we can grow together! Stay happy!!
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