Crossroads

  There comes a time in everyone's lives that they will experience a crossroads. A time where you don't know which direction to go in. Do you go down the road that is familiar to you simply for the sake of similarity or do you take the new road and as Robert Frost would say "the road less traveled".

 The crossroads is a very symbolic image of how my life is going currently. For the past eight years I have been running in the direction of my future and I am finally at the point where I have to stop, take a breath, and choose which road to travel down. It is both exciting and terrifying. I am soon going to be starting nursing school and I am so excited to start but at the same time I am sad that I am going to be leaving my current job. I have been working here for almost 2 years and it will be hard to imagine doing anything else. There are so many new things that are happening and I know the next couple of months are truly going to be a time of change. There is going to be lots of new experiences and there will be lots to learn from them.

I think my new theme song is "Go the Distance" from the movie Hercules. This song is a very inspirational one because it truly preaches that no matter what is going on you CAN achieve all that you set your mind to. I know the next year is going to be a very challenging time for me. Starting nursing school, learning a new method of studying, living on my own and so much more. The next year is going to be full of lots of changes and just need to remember that I CAN go the distance.

Letting Go

Letting go is perhaps one of the hardest things we have to do in life. At some point or another in life an individual will be wronged in some form or another. It can be as simple as a negative comment made to you by your boss, it could be the destruction of a friendship, or it could be the loss of a loved one. Naturally in these situations we harbor on the hurt the situation has caused us and this leads us to wonder about the "What if?”

What if I did a better job on that project at work would my boss still be upset with me?

What if I didn't say my true feelings about my friend’s significant other would we still be friends?

What if I just admitted my faults with my ex-boyfriend would we still be together?

These "What if" statements are poisonous to us and only hinder our ability to grow as people. Festering on negativity will not help us at all. The reason why we cannot fester on past experiences is due to the fact that these occasions are in the past and there is nothing we can do to CHANGE what has already been done. Instead we just need to let go and move on with our lives. Everything in life happens for a reason and even if we think we caused something to go wrong we simply have to let go and move on.

The reason why festering on a problem is so detrimental to us is because it prevents us from moving on with our lives. If something does not go your way simply takes the lessons you learned from that situation and move on. This may be hard at first however it will truly pay off in the long run. Even if you don’t get what you want now through the practice letting go and moving on you can possibly open an even greater door that will lead to all that you ever wanted.

Unexpected Miracles

I am sure a lot of individuals have heard the saying: "God works in mysterious ways". This is truly an understatement because there is so much to be grateful in our everyday lives that we often take for granted. The simple act of waking up is truly a blessing! I often have trouble seeing all of the good things that I am blessed with in my daily life however through continued work I am starting to see how all of the little things really should be appreciated.

I would like to share a story of mine that occurred recently that truly shows this philosophy. When I was younger I got a dog and the minute I got him he and I were best friends and were inseparable. In fact I read books to him in his dog house! Years went by and we both grew older and unfortunately last year it was his time to go to heaven. I was completely devastated and thought that I would never have a dog like him again.

A couple of months went by and my family got an opportunity to adopt another dog and immediately my guard went up and I wanted nothing to do with it. I was still hurting from the loss of my best friend and I did not want to feel like my best friend was getting replaced. Despite my feelings we did indeed adopt this dog and it was one of the best things we could have done. This dog is an angel and not only helped me grieve the loss of my first pet but he also brought our family closer together. I am eternally grateful for the way this animal was able to not only mend my heart but completely help to intensify the bond of my family.

As you can probably tell from the above story I am an absolute animal lover and I frequent the pound a lot! Recently I went in and I was driven to a particular part of the dog kennels. I have no idea why I was drawn to this part of the kennels but I went with it. I was looking around and to my surprise I saw a little doggie that was an exact replica of the dog that helped to intensify my family’s bond when we got him. I immediately was drawn to this dog. I figured there would be no way I would be able to get her because she was so cute but to my surprise she was available to go home that day! I was floured and because my family was talking about getting a new dog decided to adopt her.

She has been a part of our family for a couple of days and already we are completely in love with her. Not only is she such a sweetheart but she also has some of the attributes of my first dog who passed away and is a reminder of the great bond we shared. I love how no matter where we are in life something can happen that will allow you to see the grace of God and how when you least expect it he will give you something you have always wanted.

Blessings and Regrets

Wow! It has been a little over a year since I had created this blog and made my first post and a whole lot has happened in that time. Some great things have happened and also so stuff that is not so great. However in that time I truly learned a lot. I have lost people that I thought were my friends and also gained a lot of truly incredible people in my life. 2012 was a truly tumultuous time for me and it was truly a time of reflection and gaining a better understanding of WHO I TRULY AM.

I have learned a whole lot in the past year and most important I have learned that I cannot impart judgment on others and although I may not agree I should just let things be as they are. This is an incredibly hard thing for me due to the fact that I am very outspoken when I see something I do not agree with. I am working on accepting all things and people just as they are. Although looking back at 2012 it was a year that was full of hard lessons to learn I am truly blessed that they actually occurred because although at the time these lessons were hard to learn they allowed me to become a better person and truly see the person I would like to become.

So what is happening now? We are pretty much at the end of March and I am now just writing about 2013? Yes! 2013 is really turning out to be a great year so far because guess what! I got into my DREAM SCHOOL for nursing school!!!! WOOO HOOO :) Western University of Health Sciences for the MSN-E program. I am so excited to start in August. This is just one step closer to achieving my dream of becoming a nurse. Tuition is VERY expensive so I am currently trying to get as many scholarships as I can.

I am going to try to write more blog posts then I did in the past. Probably at least one per week to help keep a blog of what is going on in my life.

Until next time try to discover the hidden treasures in YOUR life. :)

The Simple Things in Life

Life truly is such a blessing! There are so many things in life to be thankful for and most of the time we get caught up in the materialistic aspects of life and we fail to look at what is truly important. There is so much going on in my life that I am guilty of ignoring the blessings that are right in front of me. Most of the time I am running from place to place- from home to work then from work to school. Even on my "days off" I am running around and helping out individuals at the hospital. There is so much hustle and bustle to my day I never really sit back and enjoy all there is to be grateful for. I recently met an individual who taught me that although there is so much going on in my daily life that I need to really sit back and enjoy the tiny things that are going on in my life. She and her family are truly amazing people and they all show me how to better myself each and everyday. I want to challenge everyone to try to take at least five minutes each day to just sit amongst yourself and find something you are grateful for. This exercise may seem silly but it is a great way to see that the simple things in life like family and friends are truly the most important things you have in your life.