Hello lovelies & Happy Self-Love Sunday!
This previous week has been amazing. I was able to be featured on one of the best radio show’s KSU has to offer, “Between the Sheets with Shaq Diesel.” I got the opportunity to speak about self-love, self-healing, my blog & much more. I throughly enjoyed myself & recommend you all to tune in every Wednesday night from 8 pm – 10 pm on ksuradio.com. And I feel last week was a great way to lead into one of my favorite weeks ever, my birthday week! My birthday is on Wednesday and I’m just praying that this week will be filled with nothing short of blessings & happiness for everyone.

Lately, I find myself doing a lot of reflection, especially since my birthday is approaching. I like to make goals each year for myself to accomplish. And almost always, the main goal is to be better than I was the year before. Better doesn’t mean that I have it all figured out, but that I have learned from previous mistakes. During my self-reflection, as well my radio discussion, I have verbally established that I am still a work in progress. Some of us try to be the best, perfect, etc. But the reality is, sometimes, we’re simply a work in progress. We are working toward bettering ourselves so we can achieve our goals, aspirations, dreams, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

I am a work in progress. I don’t have everything all planned out. I do know that I want to be and do better. But I’m still figuring things out. And I am okay with that. I am not perfect. I love hard, I hurt even harder. I smile, I laugh, I cry, I feel. I’m still growing and developing, bettering parts of myself every day. And letting go when needed. Stop over evaluating yourself. You are okay where you’re at, as long as you realize a need for growth and improvement. Remember, sometimes change does not happen over night. And it’s okay to not be where you think you should be, but never let this stop you from going forward.

The words, “work in progress” may not be appealing to everyone. Honestly, I know they haven’t always been appealing to me. Sometime they have a negative connotation associated with them. But my reflection has allowed me to understand the true meaning of these words. Being a work in progress means you’re able to understand that you have shortcomings, disappointments, and every other aspect that makes you human. But it also means that you’re trying to progress, to move forward, to improve. Just because you may feel like you’re not all together, doesn’t mean that you can’t positively impact others. It truly warms my heart when people talk to me about how they can relate to my blog. And I publicly discuss what’s on my heart, what I like about myself & what I don’t like. I’m letting people see that I am human and by allowing myself to be vulnerable, I’m also reaching someone. For the longest, I thought if I wasn’t 100% together then I couldn’t aid someone else, but I am seeing that this is not always true.

Embrace who you are. Whether you think you’ve got it all figured out, or whether you see what can be improved. You are you, flaws and all. When you forget how awesome, special, and unique you are, turn to the man above for guidance, especially when you begin to feel like being a work in progress is not enough. He will remind you of all the wonderful in you and show you how to channel everything else into positivity. Because you are a masterpiece even when you’re trying to figure it all out. I am thankful for these revelations. I am thankful because I want to help others in any way that I can. I feel that’s what I was called to do on this earth. And I know that almost everyone can think of how they can improve themselves & their lives. So in a sense, aren’t we all a work in progress?

I am embracing my need and desire to better myself. This need is constant and I feel it will never cease. And I hope that you begin to embrace yours too. You don’t have to have it all figured out. Sometimes, we have to take things day by day, step by step. Today, I challenge you to openly discuss what makes you a work in progress. Your story may help someone else. It always amazes me to see how my writings and discussion of my feelings helps others. Start to see how your work in progress of a life can make an impact too. Choose to accept a life of massive growth and improvement, you deserve to.

Happy Self-Love Sunday!

I hope everyone has had a wonderful weekend. And I hope that your upcoming week is even better. I am just getting out of church and the message & pastor really touched me! So hey, why not share the message with you all and my interpretation? I hope this touches you all the way it touched me.

So it’s my senior year in college. Which has been very stressful, for a number of reasons. I am pretty involved, on and off campus, so my days are pretty busy. And then on top of that, I am taking two of the hardest (and my last two major related classes) Information Security classes, which have been BEYOND stressful. Sometimes, I can get overwhelmed with all I do and with all I have to do. I try not to complain because Lord knows I love being busy, but sometimes it can be too much. Especially since I LOVE making A’s, and making A’s requires hard work, time, and dedication. But, I am also committed to my mentoring programs, organizations, and all my other areas of interest. And then add personal feelings & emotions into that mix, that can be a lot!

I gave you all that background to say, there have been moments where I didn’t have anything left in me, any fight, any drive, any energy. But, today at church my pastor said, “BUT my blessings are still holding me up.” See, I may feel overwhelmed at times and I may cry sometimes and feel like throwing the towel, but I can’t and never do. And the only reason for this is because of my God. He blesses me, even when I don’t realize it. And it is because of his very blessings that I am able to continue on, to continue being busy, and accomplish every thing that I have set to accomplish.

Everyone has been singing the song, “I’m living my best life.” But who is living their blessed life? That’s why when the pastor brought today’s message of “Living the Blessed Life,” I felt it on so many levels. It touched all of my spirit, heart, and soul and that’s why it resonated so heavy with me and inspired today’s blog. And one of the points he made is that, we, as humans, are so quick to seek “counsel from the unGodly” and then wonder why our situations seem endless. That really hit me, too. Because everyone wants to live a blessed and happy life and in times of need, we are so quick to run to our friends for advice (which I have mentioned in a previous post). And there’s nothing wrong with leaning on friends in time of need. But, why can’t we run to God first? If we truly want to live a blessed life, why can’t we seek God first and follow his instructions and turn to our friends for support? You can’t live a blessed life seeking advice from people who AREN’T even living their blessed life.

One of my favorite things about God (I have so many) is that he blesses everyone. He blesses us regardless of what we look like, what we believe, how we treat others, and how we live our lives. However, it’s up to us to accept these blessings. We can’t accept them doing the bare minimum and living like everyone else does. We have to be exceptional, we have to understand that we are flawed but our flaws make us who we are, that we are beautiful no matter what anyone says, and most importantly, that we have to seek God’s guidance. Being blessed doesn’t mean that you are free from problems, pain, and worry. It means that YOU are blessed IN SPITE of those very persecutions and no matter how hard they try, they will never take away your blessings. I don’t know about you, but I want to live my blessed life.

Another thing that my pastor said is that, “I have to live my blessed life so that I can live my best life.” And everyone’s singing they are living their best life, so why not live your blessed life, too? I am guilty of not realizing how blessed I truly am at times. But today,  I see each and every blessing & I am so thankful. I am thankful I don’t look like how I feel sometimes, I am thankful that I don’t look like what I’ve been through, and for so much more. Think about all the things you have to be thankful for, even though things may not be going your way. I promise in the end, everything will all work out.  Today, I challenge you to replace the word best with blessed when you talk about your life. Because when you are blessed, you can live your best life.

Hello lovelies & Happy Self-Love Sunday!
I hope this past week has been fantastic for you & that this upcoming week will be even better. I just want to give you all a quick little update on my week & life before we dive into this blog 🙂 So this past week happened to be midterm week for me, as well homecoming week! I was beyond ready for the week to be here, but it seemed as if it came so fast and ended even faster. And what made it bittersweet was that this was my last homecoming as an undergraduate student. So I was beyond busy with school and homecoming festivities, but I am also beyond happy to be writing this for you all today.

Today’s topic kind of appeared to me throughout the week when I was thinking about my feelings and it’s been so heavy on my heart that I had to share. I have a tendency of taking some situations, words, and others things too personally OR just personal in general. And I know for sure that I am not the only person who experiences these moments where things just get to them.

It can be hard to take and leave things for what they are. And it can be easy to automatically take things to heart. But this week I saw this quote that really inspired this post (which is displayed above). It’s not always about me OR you. Sometimes things just happen or people just say things. And it just is what it is. It’s not personal, but it occurred. You have to let it go and move forward. And I have been taking some situations personally lately. They’ve been bothering me, hurting my heart & killing my spirit. But as I analyzed these situations after reading that Tweet, I realize that these situations aren’t as personal as I’ve been taking them.

Sometimes people just lie, some people are just rude, some people will hurt you (unintentionally & intentionally), and do a plethora of other things that we may probably never understand. But that’s a them problem and not a you problem. You can’t control how people behave and you definitely can’t control how they will behave in regards to you. Some people may be a work in progress, just like me, and just like some of you. I am not justifying behavior, but just exploring possible causes for people and how these actions can cause people to take things personally. The only certain thing you can control is how you react and whether or not you take what they do to heart, whether you take it personally.

We are only human and therefore, we feel, act, and react as human beings. I know that my feelings can get hurt easily. And sometimes, I allow my feelings to block and cloud my judgment. I began to take things personally and act accordingly, in my mind. But that is not okay. Every thing is not a direct attack to or on me. I am working on moving forward and letting go. It’s not easy, but it’s doable.

I am writing all of this to say, everything isn’t a direct attack on you either. Don’t take everything personal. When people speak on who you are, how you behave, judge you, and more don’t take it personal! You know you better than anyone else. You know your heart & they are only speaking based off of assumptions. So let them assume and you keep doing you.It MAY feel personal, but who cares? Life goes on and so should you. You are special, valuable and worthy. You are worth being loved, especially by yourself! So I challenge you to join me, as I work on not taking things personal & embracing what I know to be true about myself. Keep in mind to never take it personal and keep being the wonderful, majestic, worthy of love you that you are!