Live on In Love...

Last week was Valentine's Day.  My son and I love listening to Madison on KPRI in the morning.  His welcoming voice makes me feel like a true San Diego native.  Always sharing interesting tidbits, on Feb. 14th he proclaimed that 51% of the men would be buying flowers, chocolates or trinkets after 5 p.m. on Valentine's Day.  I thought of all those anxious men, racing around, honking horns and madly pillaging local shops for the remaining boxes of candy.  I wondered if any of those men had heard the suggestion Madison made after that statistic.  "Why not just write a love letter?"  I smiled and realized that along with being a great music spinner, this guy would make a good therapist. 

The more we are loved, the less we want, crave or need a day to remind others to "love" us.  And the more we love our relationships, love our work, our attributes and our choices, then we live "in love" everyday. 

Loving oneself has nothing to do with looking in a mirror and doing the old "I love me" exercise.  To be kind and compassionate with oneself, is to live "in love."  To recognize the uniqueness of your personality, experiences and lessons learned is to live "in love" with your life.  To remember what is yours to manage, guide and maintain is to live "in love" with personal growth and ownership.

Happy February to everyone, here's to living "in love" every day of the year! 

Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1850

Welcome to this, my very own blog; a way of sharing insights, ramblings, poetic diversions, laugh out loud tidbits and ah-hah moments.  What better way to ring in a New Year than to raise the curtain on this, an intriguing word dance, my own literary orchestra, dedicated to helping all brave Pirate Sisters, explore, excavate, unlock and polish up the most sparkling treasure...true Self-Bling.

Tattered, smudged, stained and lacking luster…that describes my 2010 appointment book.  It tells the story of the coffee I spilled, birthdays rejoiced, events cataloguing parenting, marriage, friendship and family, hundreds of hours spent with clients, notes to self and highlights of the months departed.  Yes, at this stage of the year, this is a well worn diary of what “was.”  The replacement sits shiny, crisp and at the ready, waiting to be embraced, utilized and made valuable by what will fill it up and define this New Year.

We may feel a bit tattered and stained from life’s experiences.  It is January’s “call to arms” to decide, with determination and focus, how we will heal what is torn, strengthen what is fragile and restore hope and possibility.  In order to meet this challenge of the “New Year” we are asked to “let go” of what has burdened us and honestly evaluate desires.  To meet goals head on January 1^st asks this of us…make peace with our heart, stimulate our mind and fiercely fight to break those patterns that limit and frustrate us.    

The New Year brings shiny potential, crisp beginnings and wisdom gained from the gratitude of what has come before.  As you open the pages on 2011, allow yourself to savor the memory of lessons learned and journeys ventured, that even though a bit tired, perhaps bearing a few more wrinkles, your commitment to finding your treasure and brandishing it proudly is propelling you forward, landing in this New Year ringing in your truth.