Write It Down!

You know the infamous saying, “This is going to be my year.” Every year that I used that saying, I can tell you it was not my year! Each year I try to come up with a theme. A way to live my life that honors who I am and who I want to be. A way to specify the type of year I want to have and the way I want to accomplish things. Cute idea, right? I actually think it is, but I lose sight of my theme about 4 months into the year. Or even sooner if I experience a large speed bump in the road. The theme falls by the wayside just like a resolution. Do I plan on getting rid of the theme idea for this year? Nope. I just plan on executing the theme a little differently.

If you are like me, which I am sure about 50% of people are, you don’t write down your goals where you can see them regularly. Your goals are stored in a notebook or a notebook app on your phone. You don’t trot them out often for your viewing pleasure. Your goals may bounce around in your head, occasionally coming to the front as you accomplish one here and there. Yet they are not set in stone or written out where you will see them daily. How can you accomplish something that you are not even aware of?

In one of my previous post there was a link to my article for Vivyd Magazine with ways to keep track of goals completed. And they were good ideas, in my opinion. So this post is just piggy backing on that. If you haven’t read it yet, please do. Here is the link again,

https://www.ebonyoneverything.com/how-did-it-go-year-in-review-vivyd-article/

My favorite tip was the jar. I really liked how it gave you a clear idea of what happened throughout the year. It was all written out. And this is the point I’m trying to make here, don’t just type it, write it. I even heard it suggested that you write your goals daily. I have to be honest I probably won’t do that, but I can commit to writing them out weekly. This will keep my theme and my goals fresh in my mind. Not just an afterthought.

I am journal hoarder ๐Ÿคฆ๐Ÿพโ€โ™€๏ธ. I go in the store and I see one I can’t resist and then I add it to my collection. I have gotten better. I can say I haven’t brought one in a few months. Since I have so many, I truly don’t have an excuse for not writing my yearly theme or my goals. Find yourself a journal that is irresistible and use it to write your goals in. Or if you aren’t into journals, get a notebook. I don’t care what method you use, just write. And write repeatedly.

If you have a method that has worked for you, stick to it! It would be greatly appreciated if you share it with me so I can share it with others. I will include it on my next post. It may be just the method for someone else needs. We all learn and do things differently. There is no right or wrong way. Any new tips I come across I will share. This year, I don’t want anyone to get to the end and feel like they haven’t accomplished anything. For one, you will have. For two, it may look different than what you planned and who cares, you still rocked it out! For three, if you don’t write it down, then how will you know? Stay well and whole. Much love ๐Ÿงก ๐Ÿ’š

A Dream Deferred, Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Photo courtesy of K. Wills

“You can kill the dreamer, but you can’t kill the dream.”

 

Today, we as a nation honors Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King has some well known quotes that we recycle year after year. Words that we should all live by, but only get toted out at the same time every year. Not much as changed from his time here on this Earth til present day. We are still in the fight for equality. This nation, and many others, still have an unprecedented amount of people living in poverty. We are still a nation divided. We are still at war. His dream has not been realized.


I decided to use some of his lesser known quotes this year. Quotes that pertain specifically to the individual. Quotes that make you re-evaluate who you are and who you want to be. Change happens within ourselves and we then go out and change the world.

 

“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now.”

 

“Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked and dejected with a lost opportunity.”

 

“There is nothing more tragic than to find an individual bogged down in the length of life, devoid of breadth.”

 

“Keep feeling the need for being first. But I want you to be first in love. I want you to be first in moral excellence. I want you to be the first in generosity.”

 

“A productive and healthy life is not something you find, it is something you make.”

 

“The quality, not the longevity, of one’s life is what is important.”

 

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?”

 

Photo courtesy of K. Wills

“If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.”

 

“Not everybody can be famous but everybody can be great, because greatness is determined by service.”

 

“We stand in life at midnight; we are always at the threshold of a new dawn.”

 

Photo courtesy of K. Wills

“My obligation is to do the right thing. The rest is in God’s hands.”

Let’s not live these words, honor Dr. King’s legacy and celebrate our unity only on this day. Let’s strive to live lives of service, greatness, acceptance, peace and love each and every day. I’m not on my high horse, I am speaking to myself as well. It is not too late to make his dream come true. Be well and whole. Much Love ๐Ÿงก ๐Ÿ’š

But First, Coffee

Have you ever agreed to something that you later wish you didn’t? Even worse, you actually volunteered to do it. Why? Why would I purposely torture myself? I don’t know. I have no excuse.

So my really good friend stated she was going to do the Daniel Fast for 21 days. Me, being the oh so supportive friend, said, I will do it with you. She texted me the food list and we set a date. Now I did have a general idea of the foods I was allowed to eat versus the foods I was not allowed to eat. I eat pretty healthy for the most part so I was like I got this. No alcohol, no soft drinks, no coffee. Wait, hold up! No coffee?!?! You have got to be kidding me. Let’s say at this point I realized I made a big mistake ๐Ÿ˜†.


The first 3 days without coffee I had the worst headache. It was so annoying. I didn’t want to quit then, I just wanted the headache to go away. About a week in I was over not having coffee. My mom makes it every morning and the smell was hurting my feelings ๐Ÿ˜‚. One day, I said fuck this I am going to get up and make me a cup of coffee the next morning. I didn’t care, I had had enough! That day I woke up and a peace came over me. It was so weird. I know it was nothing but God. That peace continued to carry me through each and every day.


Now the last 3 days has been a whole different story. Through this experience I understand why people give up, why they quit. These days have been the worst ones out of all 21 days. Being so close to the finish line but my resistance is low. I feel put upon (even though I did sign up for this). Yes, my story is about coffee, but it is so much bigger than that. It is about life and how we approach obstacles and struggles. I have an end date in sight. I know I can make it. Yet, most situations we encounter in life are not that cut and dry. We do not know when the struggle will end. We don’t even know how we are going to come out on the other side of it. And these factors can make it easy to give up. It is so much easier. It seems like such a relief.


I’m here to tell you, don’t give up. Don’t quit! I know you have heard it plenty of times before, but I felt the need to say it again. The same struggle you want to give up on will come back around and you will be at square one. You will have to start all over again. You are in it right now. And you could be halfway through or 3 days from the goal. Do you really want to start all over again? HELL NO! Quitting is the easiest answer but it doesn’t make it the right one. Strengthen your resolve. Take it one day at a time. Pray. Whatever it takes for you to not just get through, but get better, do it! I didn’t believe in myself. Sometimes I forget how strong I am. I just needed a reminder. I am going to be your reminder. I believe in you. You are stronger than you think. You are resilient. You are able to succeed beyond your own imagination. You are a finisher.


Seriously, I am not giving up coffee again. It makes me happy and it isn’t hurting anyone. The only way I will stop drinking coffee again is if my doctor says they have found a cure for MS and for me to receive it I have to give up coffee ๐Ÿ˜†. I do however appreciate how this minor inconvenience gave me a whole new perspective on life, on me and my capabilities. I thank God for the lesson that was taught and the insight I gained. I hope you all were able to get a little perspective from this as well. It’s a new year and we are facing not just the same struggles, but new ones as well. We have made it this far. Let’s keep pushing. Be well and whole. Much Love ๐Ÿงก๐Ÿ’š

P.S. I am one day away. So excited โ˜•๐Ÿ˜€