V-Day + Gratitude

VDAY: ONE BILLION RISING

http://www.onebillionrising.org

Yesterday I read something, written by a girl who I met approximately twice in high school, that really affected me. It was beautifully written, but what really did it for me was the absolute vulnerability and complete transparent nature of her writing style in which she reflected on defining life moments and the feelings she had when she experienced them. To this person: I have been meaning to write you personally and express my gratitude. I will get around to it soon, but if by some coincidence you read this before that time and realize it's you - thank-you for being inspirational and lovely. 

I ended up reading a few more of the poems/short-stories on her blog loosely based on self-awareness and reflections, but the initial piece I read had to do with aligning what you mean with what you say. Obviously, this is an extremely basic concept, read: don't lie, however I think almost everyone underestimates the importance of honesty and often we hover in the grey zone of not being exactly honest, but not completely lying either. It's one thing to tell these "white lies" to other people, but I think we also end up telling them to ourselves, usually not on purpose, but rather because we have a difficult time being vulnerable, regardless of the audience. 

Case in point: I had intended on writing this post with a Valentine's Day theme, or as I have been referring to it as "Single's Awareness Day". My opinion of the hallmark holiday tends to fluctuate from despise to indifference which makes plenty of sense when you consider the term awareness… people who are single end up being more aware of their marital status on Valentine’s Day opposed to the other days of the year, simply because it is a day to celebrate your loved ones… and when you don't have a significant other, you end up thinking about the lack thereof...

But AHA, yesterday, I had the pleasure of attending a keynote speech, focusing on leadership. There were two specific take-away messages that I got from Drew Dudley last night and the first one was regarding abundance. Drew encouraged the audience to think less about scarcity and competition, especially concerning money and jobs, and to revert that notion into one of abundance – realizing that there is enough for everyone and to strive to add value to each individual’s life that you come in contact with. (This reminded me of the meditation retreat I attended in Australia which was based off of the book Eight Steps to Happiness, where they teach you that only by cherishing others will you ever have a chance at ultimate happiness. Needless to say, it was also very inspiring to me and I highly recommend it.) So that was a great take-away for sure, but the other take-away, which is in the same realm of adding value to others, is that of gratitude. Hallelujah! Whenever I remind myself to pause and acknowledge everything that I am feeling grateful for in that moment, I am immediately overcome with a calm serenity.

Coming full circle, when you think about the underlying point of Valentine’s Day, as I mentioned previously, it’s about celebrating your loved ones – this does NOT mean you have to celebrate a romantic partner, although that is encouraged if the option is there, but you can and should celebrate all of your loved ones, from your family to your friends! Recognizing my gratitude for all of the relationships in my life has made me focus less on my marital status of “single” and more on my life status of “fulfilled”.  Keeping with the message of being honest with myself however, means that I should also acknowledge the part of me that would prefer to also have a romantic partner to celebrate with too. The cliché of “not settling” has rendered me single on the day before the day, that being single, kind of sucks.

In efforts to shift my self-centered focus, I'd like to complete some of these 52 random acts of kindness instead. Also, because it IS a day focused on love, here is a picture I posted on Instagram once, that really resonated with me. 

Even though prospects in my little town are looking quite bleak, perhaps I’m a hopeless romantic after all… what about you?

A FEW LOVE SONGS:

Kiss Me, Ed Sheeran

Your Song, Elton John

She Keeps Me Warm, Mary Lambert

Head Over Feet, Alanis Morissette

Slide, Goo Goo Dolls

10,000 Miles, Mary Chapin Carpenter

Bridge Over Troubled Water, Simon and Garfunkel

I Will Follow You Into The Dark, Death Cab for Cutie

Do you Realize, Flaming Lips

Such Great Heights, Postal Service

I Know, I Know, I Know, Tegan and Sara

Give Me Love, Ed Sheeran

I Wanna Dance With Somebody, Whitney Houston

Make You Feel My Love, Adele

Because You Loved Me, Celine Dion

Love They Say, Tegan and Sara

Let Me Love You, Mario

Someone To Watch Over Me, Frank Sinatra

Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Barry White

Wonderful Tonight, Eric Clapton

A quaint little list of DATE IDEAS:

1 - Bike Ride	19 - Bowling	37 - Go to the Zoo
2 - Cook Together	20 - Split a Milkshake	38 - Pick Out Each Others Outfits
3 - Go to the Gym	21 - Aquarium	39 - Go Tanning
4 - Match Socks Together	22 - Take a Nap	40 - Have a Harry Potter Marathon
5 - Plant a Garden	23 - Kiss in the Rain	41 - Kiss Underwater
6 - See a Play at a Local Theater	24 - Ride on a Ferris Wheel	42 - Watch Fireworks
7 - Paint a Room in Your House	25 - Buy Matching Bracelets	43 - Fall asleep on the phone together
8 - Shopping	26 - Go on a Road Trip	44 - Get Ready Together
9 - Scrabble	27 - Make Breakfast	45 - Go on a Classy Ass Date
10 - Go to a Vineyard	28 - Write Each Other Letters	46 - Eat Ice Cream
11 - Walk	29 - Go Mini Golfing	47 - Take a Bubble Bath Together
12 - Picnic on the Beach	30 - Kiss at Midnight	48 - Go Running
13 - Play the Wii	31 - Go to the Beach	49 - Have a Paint War
14 - Play Tennis	32 - Make a Couple's Video	50 - Take a Picture Kissing
15 - Put Together a Puzzle	33 - Sing a Song Really Loud	51 - Go on a Startbucks Date
16 - Read a Book Together	34 - Order Chinese Food	52 - Slow Dance
17 - Watch a Sunset	35 - Build a Blanket Fort	53 - Share Popcorn at the Movies
18 - YOGA	36 - Stargaze	54 - Get a side by side pedicure