serendipitous

Becoming mindful makes you much more aware of your life and all that is around you. The sights, sounds, people; the feelings of it all. Also, it becomes much easier to detect when seemingly small choices are the catalyst to big changes. It's an amazing experience and exciting. It makes you realize how powerful every choice we make is and teaches us to not go blindly through our lives as though some of these choices do not matter. I do not mean that every time you have to make a choice that it should become a long drawn out process. I only mean to call attention to the beauty and intricacies that are our lives and our worlds. 

-S

age and happiness

As all of my friends know, I talk about age. A lot. I'm hoping to end that with this post. Write it all down and leave it here so I can stop talking about it. I do believe it may be getting quite annoying.

I'm not afraid of getting older. On the contrary, I find it quite exciting. Learning, traveling, loving, losing, growing...it's all beautiful. I'll be 27 soon. Even seeing that number written down it's hard to believe. It may be because growing up you have this image of what someone in their twenties would be like. I'm not where I thought I would be. And that's quite okay with me. I have my own path to follow and it definitely isn't the norm. Sometimes I have existential moments and question the choices I've made. It only takes a moment of reflection to bring me right back to where I am. I have a lot of goals and ambitions in life but am also content on where I am in the present time. I'm starting to believe that's my own secret to happiness. We look for a formula to life's happiness. The funny thing is there is no one formula. You have to find out what works for you.

Find your own happiness. xoxo

-S

connecting

Meditation. What a powerful tool. Practicing the ability to calm ones mind is one of the greatest things we can do for our holistic well-being. This past Wednesday I went to the first class of a series on Advice for Anxious. It was a talk with two guided meditations.

Sitting still for ten minutes, feeling your breath, relaxing, and cutting the continuum of our thoughts is so refreshing. If we can better connect with our true selves, we are far better able to connect with others.

Which brings me to off shoot on connecting with people. After everything I've been through, some of that being a lot of dishonesty and lies, I have become a much more open person. I've never fancied myself a liar and always strive to be open and honest with everyone but my past experiences have made me become so much more open and honest. I don't hold back with my emotions or feelings. If I find that I am I look for the cause and try to correct. People and our relationships with them are the best investments we can make. It's people who help you through tough times and smile with you through the good. It's people who are there to offer a listen or an embrace. People are what really matter in this world. Spread love, joy, friendship, and cultivate your relationships.

The people in our lives is the one garden you should never neglect and constantly tend.

-S

unexpectations

Until now, this very day, this very moment, I have not realized how perfectly I entitled my blog four years ago. Since graduating college in 2010 my life has been a constant series of what's next...

First, there was that time right when I graduated where I got accepted into the University of San Francisco, accepted said offer and then turned it down. After that I worked locally for a year and then moved to Poland for graduate school. That jaunt lasted about two milliseconds and it was back in Massachusetts for me. Then shortly after that onward to New Hampshire. This brings us to present time. I am once again back in Massachusetts with no current plans to make any big moves.

So much has happened in the last three years of my life that it seems like at least ten years time has come and gone. At once I feel like I'm the same person I was three years ago but know that not to be true. How could it be?! I've learned and lived and lost. Even with all of the negatives, turn-downs, let downs and heartaches I would not change a thing. There are no mistakes or coincidences in life.

We have a choice to make in this life. We can take everything that has happened to us and let it bring us down or we can take it all in, the good, the bad, the indifferent and let it empower and lift us up!

-S

the universe...

and our world...absolutely amazing. I love learning about the cosmos. I love learning about microorganisms. The main reason is that it puts everything in perspective. I always feel silly when little things bother me. In the grand scheme of life, of everything, it does not matter. Not one bit. I haven't been able to see or talk to my boyfriend for a week now and I can't bear it. It makes me think about the times we have argued or disagreed and makes me mad that it even happened. I just want to hold, kiss and squeeze him until he can't take it anymore. The same goes for my family. I now live about two hours away from them.
Distance makes you appreciate everything.

go like tweet follow me

The technology of today is crazy. Yes crazy is the most eloquent word I could come up with to sum up how I feel about technology. Oh and apps. And places and spaces on the internet to post your various misguided thoughts and feelings about the world. And yourself. Let's see, we have:
blogs
pinterest
tumblr
instagram
facebook
twitter
Then to sell things we have:
etsy
ebay
craigslist

I am a willing participant of all of these things except for one: ebay. Well I've used it a couple of times but I mean the obsessive, gotta check my iphone and see who "liked" "tweeted" "retweeted" "followed" me on all of these various forums. It's starting to make me dizzy. But like I said I am a willing participant. Some days I want to get rid of it all. Or maybe just give up a few. It gets overbearing when you blog and then post it on your twitter that is connected to your facebook. Which I do. Sorry. I've read countless articles already on this subject. And here I am just adding to the pile. I grew up being told I was special and important so my word counts too. Also, I have a BA in Psychology so that makes me a pseudo-expert on humans.

I don't know how people keep their heads wrapped around all of these extensions to themselves. I need a personal assistant just for this kind of thing. Maybe I can outsource for that. It's funny because these sorts of things aren't necessary really. I mean that we don't have to do them to survive. We do them to feel relevant. We can all be mini celebrities. We can feel special because "look! I was liked by a stranger." And we can compare ourselves to others by how many followers we have. That'll be the new thing to do at high school reunions. Asking each other how many followers we have on our many outlets because we won't have to ask about jobs, marriages, or kids. We have facebook for that now. I don't need an update on everyone's life 10 years after high school. I have an almost minute by minute update.

I would like to hear your thoughts on this. Please comment below. Or on facebook or tweet me.

-S

Ironically ironic

So I was sitting on the couch, untangling yarn to finish a hat that I'm making, when I had a thought. A lot of TV shows are about "middle America." There's "Suburgatory," "the middle," "Modern Family," "The Office,""New Girl," to name a few (or all of them I'm not really sure). (Also, should I be putting them in quotes or underlined? Do people really care? Whatever, quotes it is.) Add to that list whichever ones I may have missed and also shows from the past. Here is the thing: those actors/actresses don't live in middle America. Yes, a lot of them came from this proverbial place but still they are no longer residence. We pay to watch funnier, prettier people live the same lives that we do. Let me say this again, we PAY to watch other people live the SAME lives that we do. The same goes for many movies as well. Does anyone else see the irony in this? I know what some of you may be thinking. That it's not exactly the same. If I ever worked in an office like the one in "The Office" I would run to work everyday. It would be fantastic! Also, I know what else you may be thinking and I know this because of all the memes out there. That you and your friends are just as funny and pretty if not more so!
I'm with you there my brothers and sisters. I currently live my own version of "New Girl." Without all of the "will she ever hook up with that guy?!" because my boyfriend lives in the household so that fun storyline is out. I do live with three guys though, and two dogs, a cat, fish and chickens. I think we're funny. And I think we're all beautiful people. But that's just me. And I'm just some nobody in middle America. Don't get me wrong. I love most of these shows. I just sometimes feel cheated because my life is put on screen and I get none of the royalties.

-S