Category Archives: Healthy Mind & Body
20 Things to Be Thankful For That Don’t Revolve Around Cash
Have you found yourself cash deficient and losing sight of the beauty that the world has to offer? Whatever you do, don’t allow your fears and frustrations to get the best of you. Allow for what is working and beautiful in your life to offer you strength and courage. In an effort to help us remember the many free things in life that we can be thankful for, here are 20 things to be thankful for:
- The art of conversation
- A forever friend
- A stranger’s nod and smile
- The love of a child
- The touch of a loved one
- A listening ear
- Legs on which to walk
- Eyes with which to see
- Hands which can build and touch
- Words of wisdom
- The ability to be kind and help
- Tummy tickling laughter
- The sun shinning in the sky
- The moon illuminating our nights
- The blue sea
- Prayer and meditation
- A good ole’ jog in the park
- Sleep for a weary mind
- Grace and forgiveness
- Hope
Related Posts:
What is in a Dream?
I’ve found myself thinking lately about the dreams that live within the heart. I fight for dreams realized, yet wonder just
like everyone else if they should be given up for a different road that could grow into a new dream. Within my deepest longings, I’ve always longed to live by the warmest of seas…and walk barefoot 12 months of the year. I also dreamed of an amazing and fulfilling love. Today, I’m here in Gothenburg, Sweden…an amazing city near a chilly sea. It is for love that I’m here.
As I try to imagine my future, I am struck with how dreams evolve…and how things like love and family can reshape destiny. The balance of compromise and dreams realized is an art to say the least.
My mind tosses between my love for a dream and the call of reality. Today, I wandered into a tiny coffee shop called the Mahogany…it’s a famous spot with amazing coffee drinks and fresh pastries. Behind the desk was a man from Washington D.C. He was excited to hear that I am from California and shared with me how he misses his hometown and followed love to Gothenburg. “I miss my home,” he said with emotion-filled eyes. “I’m just not sure how things will shape up.” Now with a child and a Swedish wife, he’s in a beautiful place, but lives between an amazing town and the place he calls home in his heart.
We all make decisions that lead us down a path…and sometimes our decisions split our hearts in two pieces. One piece loving a person…and the other loving a place or a cherished dream.
Yesterday I read the theory that Amelia Earhart may have survived her tragic crash and tried to make it on a small island in the pacific. Items such as a comb and compact mirror were found some time ago, along with a bit of bone thought to have belonged to a woman. DNA tests are currently being conducted. What if it were Amelia and her belongings found?
In an attempt at following her dreams, can you imagine her gazing at the stars at night on an island all alone, as warm winds swept from one end of the island to another? I wonder if she concluded that her dreams were worth the result? She could have played it safe and been strolling around the streets of Kansas or New Your City with a skirt and high heels…instead of sitting under the stars with a pair of torn trousers and only her thoughts. During the time she was praying she’d be rescued, did she dream of what life would have been if she had played it safe…or did visions of all she’d seen while flying in her plane flood her mind?….of her solo flight across the Pacific to Europe…gliding high above animal herds in Africa…or circling the majestic skyline of New York City…
Dreams and decisions can be tricky…the process confounding. How about you? Things shaping up OK?
- Jen Engevik
Project BE Bold
Related Posts:
10 Bold Words to Meditate on Today
1. Love…keep the heart pumping and ever expanding…show your partner, your child, your mother & father, and even
strangers some love today.
2. Forgive…let go of yesterday…today offers the perfect opportunity to create new, positive brain waves.
3. Now…have you noticed all of the beauty surrounding you at this very moment? The magic lies in the moment…that’s why we had so much fun when we were kids.
4. Trees…thank goodness for green leaves to create more oxygen for us to breathe. How about being a tree huger for the day…or climbing up one for fun.
5. Path…choose the path that your gut tells you to take. It may be scary and temporarily painful, but at least it beats stagnancy.
6. Hand…this world wouldn’t be what it is today without our hands. “I can change the world…with my own two hands…with my own…with my own two hands” – Ben Harper
7. Eyes…dare not to take for granted that you have eyes with which to experience the world. Open them up a bit more, and you’ll be amazed at what you can experience.
8. Listen…the more we listen, the more we learn. It’s not always easy to stay silent and give time for another being to express himself/herself, but it’s the most loving thing we can do. Practice makes perfect…let’s keep trying to be better listeners.
9. Quiet…minds need time to breathe. Let’s dare to find a nice place where there are no distractions and just be. Clarity and great ideas grow in moments of peace…and quiet.
10. Imagination…it’s OK to daydream a bit and let the mind take flight. How else was the science of flight conceived?…or the iPhone developed?…or the pyramids designed? Why do we not have daydreaming classes in school? Don’t be one of those people who tell your children not to daydream…or that their imagination will lead them to ruin. Join in the fun!
Those who are out there making things happen in the world often have a hard time sleeping at night…their imaginations run wild as they dream up their next creation. Have you bought into the idea that they own some special dreaming license? At birth we were all given the same one…why not use it?
- Jen Engevik
Related Posts:
Connecting the Dots, Steve Jobs, Justin Bieber & Dreams
While trying to drift off to sleep last eve, or should I say around 2am (because of a massive creative attack), I thought of a
speech that Steve Jobs gave at Stanford University. He spoke of how one can only connect the dots when looking backward, never when looking forward. Meaning…if we try to piece everything together before it happens, we waste valuable time.
Will my dreams come true?
Will my family be happy and healthy?
Will I finally be able to own my dream house?
Will I be able to travel the world?
What about work…will I be able to keep my job?
If I completely dislike my job and decide to quit…will I be OK? Will I starve?
If I leave my dysfunctional relationship, will I ever find love again?
The list goes on and on…
The truth as Steve Jobs so eloquently put it…is that we simply can’t know. We can only make wise/bold decisions in the present moment and have faith that the dots will connect in the future. One moment will lead to the next, no matter what we do. Time cannot be halted until we figure it all out.
The key is to stay focused on what we can do in the here and now. Begin writing before we worry about finding publishers. Start running for a while before we become concerned with whether the pounds are coming off. Do our best each second to create healthy relationships with the people we love…not try to connect the dots toward forever.
We must be the task…whatever it is…otherwise we push people away, we don’t focus on the actual work that needs to be done to build our dreams. I was thinking today about Justin Bieber. That poor kid has so many haters and critics. But I’m going to tell you something…
he’s doing it…
he’s putting himself out there while…
well…while many people are sitting on their arses doing nothing. Staring at the TV with their mouths open…allowing for
their minds to grow soggier by the moment. Laugh all you want…while he’s singing and dancing his heart out…and traveling the world to boot.
It’s not that we all have to become fans…but really we must respect those who are out there experiencing and pushing the limits.
If you have a dream…or a hope…just put one foot in front of the other and begin to create something.
The dots will connect while we’re doing our work…
- Jen Engevik
Project BE Bold
Related Posts:
Making it Through Struggle in Today’s Challenging World
Fall in Sweden
I’m writing from Sweden where fall has definitely set in and the yellowish-brown leaves float by as the winds whip through the crisp sky. It’s beautiful really, even though the Southern Californian in me keeps hoping for the Santa Anas to push warm air in from the desert…all the way up toward the arctic circle. Ahh…the dreamer in me really never quits.
I’ve been talking to many friends, family members, and strangers on the street about today’s world. The majority feel that things are wild…scary…unpredictable. The economy has many of us panicked and worried about our futures. This get me thinking a bit about how we navigate through life when things seem so unpredictable.
For me, when I feel things are falling apart at the seams I tend to not sleep…to have a hard time focusing…eat less…fret…worry…become like a frightened cat feeling there is no option but to run and hide under the bed.
I’m not in this place now, but I’ve been there many times. There was a time though in which I held on to things so tightly. I prided myself in living in my own apartment, driving a beautiful Audi, having excess cash for travels, etc. When I quit my well-paying job to pursue the life of a writer, it was darn wild. My savings diminished quickly, and I really had to fight to survive. Sometimes I still do in my effort to live between two countries with my other-half and write.
But…I feel it’s been worth it…and hopefully it may pay off in more ways than one. It hurt when I decided I needed to downsize my car, reduce my “thing” pile, and find a new place to live in Southern California/a roommate who would both help me save money and be an adopted cat mom while I am in Sweden for months at a time (ouch!…before moving I kept invisibly hitting myself over the head for making this move. I kept thinking that someone my age should be much further ahead…with a house overlooking the sea…living the “dream”).
Yet I learned something life changing — I am not my things — I am not my home — I am not my car. In the end, I gained an amazing friend in my roommate and a new sense of humility. Who knew how much communal living could be? Who knew what freedom can be gained by not being attached to so many things?
I know someone right now who is so worried about finances and saving her home that she walks around each day with tired, bloodshot eyes. Her soul is weary…she cries often. She frets about things she should have done and about how bleak her future looks. “If I am forced to move, what will I do with my beautiful furniture?” she asked not long ago. All the while, her fears are sucking the life out of her. My question to her was, “what is your furniture going to mean to you if you’re dead or sick?” She looked at me with pain in her eyes, wondering if I had fallen off my rocker. My point was…if she keeps letting fear be her guide…she will not last either physically or mentally.
It’s wild to think…many people around the world revere an amazing being who had no home and no worldly possessions. Jesus roamed freely, not burdened by things…but driven by a passion and love for humanity. “Come to me all who are weary and burdened…and I will give you rest,” he once said. Whether you are religious or not, it is important to realize that these words were coming from a wanderer without a bank account, without a multi-million dollar home, without a Mercedes Benz. He realized how bogged down we can become when attached to things…that our connection and love for one another should trump our obsession with the material world.
I’m not saying for one second that it is bad to have “things.” I still want to save up for a little bungalow overlooking the ocean in Southern California…and who knows…I may own a fancy convertible sports car one day. What I’m saying is that if you or anyone you know is struggling to keep your head above water financially, don’t be afraid. Just make key decisions that will make your life easier to maintain. Don’t beat yourself over the head…don’t alienate the people you love in an effort to hold on to your possessions…don’t make yourself sick.
Downsize if you need to…
Learn to live on pennies for a while…
Make decisions that are going to propel you forward…
Let go of the need to hold on to possessions and begin focusing on to your loved ones instead…
It’s going to be OK.
The moment we free our minds and unburden our hearts…the more we allow our creative energy to take flight. A healthy mind is essential for success in this life. Pray for guidance. Meditate on good things. Ask for help.
You’ll make it through…
- Jen Engevik
Related Posts:
Excelling Versus Maintaining
Life is a wild ride indeed. There is something within most of us that wants to maintain the things we’ve known and to be
able to predict where we are to go. “Change is never easy,” it has been said. But what if change is easier than maintaining what is?
What if listening to that deep voice within will bring a happier existence?
What is it that keeps us from reaching for new heights and leaving behind the fearful creature that brings on sleepless nights, troubled/stagnant days, and may simply lead to a future full of maintaining the same ole’?
“Courage is not the absence of fear but rather the judgement that something else is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever but the cautious do not live at all.” – Unknown
- Jen Engevik
Project BE Bold
Related Posts:
The Power of Words & Why “It Is What It Is” Doesn’t Cut It
Reading some thoughts by Anthony Robbins on how the words (or word associations) we use either weigh us down or give us wings
with which to fly. He suggests trying a simple exercise in an effort to change our thoughts from negative & energy-zapping to empowering & energy-provoking.
Robbins provides the following exercise:
1. Take a moment to write down at least three words you currently use on a regular basis…words that make you feel lousy, lost and lazy. These can include (but definitely aren’t limited to) frustrated, angry, scared, sad, incompetent, etc.
2. Write down next each word how it makes you feel. Does it affect your ability to succeed in your work, relationships, or other areas of your life? Does it keep you from reaching your goals and dreams?
3. Go on a crazy, outrageous, and fun brainstorming session! Write down new words that you can use in place of the words you listed. “Remember that your brain loves anything that gets you out of pain and into pleasure,” writes Robbins. Choose new words that will move you beyond limited thought to new places cookin’!
It’s quite interesting to think — your world is what you perceive it to be. Have you noticed the difference from neighborhood to neighborhood within a city? In Los Angeles, I’m always amazed at how one neighborhood can be inspired…pristine…creative…litter-free. Yet, a few blocks down the story can be completely different…litter everywhere…houses with cracking paint and barred windows.
The difference between neighborhoods…and minds…is vision. It’s what we perceive and what we manifest (create) as result.
As a Disneyland fan, I notice when I ride on the Pirates of the Caribbean some children cry their eyes out because they are afraid of the dark atmosphere & the freaky pirates, while others love it so much they want to go again and again. The only difference between the two types of youngsters are their mental perceptions.
In many sacred texts, “the word” is given much attention. I think this is because long-ago wisdom-filled individuals realized the words that run through our minds — are then spoken through our lips — which inspires action/or non-action — and then the results are seen in the home, in families and friendships, in the workplace, and in our neighborhoods.
Don’t allow the words & perceptions that run through your mind to be the end-all-be-all. One of my least favorite phrases = ”it is what it is.” I hear it all too often from people I love. An “is what it is” mentality is a cop-out. Don’t forget that we have the power to shape our worlds — moment by moment. It all begins by reshaping our perceptions and creating a new mental vocabulary.
Make it a bold day!
- Jen Engevik
