Trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever

"Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward.  You can only connect them looking backwards, so you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.  You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever.  This approach has never let me down and it has made all the difference in my life."
-Steve Jobs

Say yes to the adventure of life

I find the following personal manifesto written by the fabulous Gala Darling to be so inspiring that I've printed it out and hung it next to my desk (I've made bold the parts that particularly resonate with me):

“Strive to always be thankful and optimistic.  Focus your gaze on what is good and positive; never dwell on the negative.  Do not allow life to make you cynical or closed off.  Remaining open and true to yourself is a life-long adventure, & the only one worth having.

Choose to see the best in people.  Strike up conversations with strangers.  Never be afraid to ask for what you really, really want.  To love, purely and fiercely, without agenda, is the most terrifying and rewarding thing you will ever do.  Travel is essential to the spirit.  A pair of great shoes means nothing if you have an ugly heart. 

Try your hardest not to judge anyone else; it never leads anywhere good.  Always avoid tabloids and gossip, they destroy the soul.  Be kind and loyal.  Many things in this world are more important than money.  Always trust your intuition, always.  Rescue animals, it will strengthen your heart.  Never delight in anyone else’s misery.  Trust in others.

You are your own best investment.  Believe in the magic of a new day and a fresh start.  Follow your bliss.  Do more of what you love.  Always do the best you can.  Create your own family and care for them ferociously. 

When people offer you opportunities that scare you, say yes: It’s the very best way to grow.  You are never as stuck as you think.  Stay eager.  Love yourself. Say yes to the adventure of life.”

-Gala Darling

The golden hours

Photo: Pinterest.
"You must have been warned against letting the golden hours slip by. Yes, but some of them are golden only because we let them slip."
-J.M. Barrie

Do your dance

Just came across the following inspirational quote on one of my favorite blogs, Re-Psych, and felt compelled to share:

"Don’t be daunted. Just do your job. Continue to show up for your piece of it, whatever that might be. If your job is to dance, do your dance. If the divine, cockeyed genius assigned to your case decides to let some sort of wonderment be glimpsed, for just one moment through your efforts, then ‘Ole!’ And if not, do your dance anyhow. And ‘Ole!’ to you, nonetheless. I believe this and I feel that we must teach it. ‘Ole!’ to you, nonetheless, just for having the sheer human love and stubbornness to keep showing up."
~ Elizabeth Gilbert

What a great pre-week reminder to continue to strive to do our best in whatever we undertake, regardless of external recognition we may or may not be receiving at the present moment. 'Ole!" to each and every one of you for giving life your best shot! Have a wonderful week :)

Work and Play

“A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play; his labor and his leisure; his mind and his body; his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing, and leaves others to determine whether he is working or playing. To himself, he always appears to be doing both.”
-L.P. Jacks

Feeling artsy? A Collection of Inspirational Quotations on Creativity

Photo: Toast.co.ok.
Inspirational quotations about art and creativity...

"Each of us is an artist of our days; the greater our integrity & awareness, the more original and creative our time will become."
-John O'Donohue

"Art washes from the soul the dust of every day life."
-Pablo Picasso

"I am my own work of art. I am my own experiment."
-Madonna

Nothing is Original - Cool Quote

Tumblr.
“Nothing is original. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, new films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of water, light and shadows. Select only things to steal from that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work (and theft) will be authentic. Authenticity is invaluable, originality is non-existent. And don’t bother concealing your thievery-celebrate it if you feel like it. In any case, always remember what Jean-Luc Goddard said: “It’s not where you take things from, it’s where you take them to’.”
-Jim Jarmusch

Food for Thought

Photo: Vi.sualize.us.

A brief collection of cool quotes about food...

"Forget love, I'd rather fall in chocolate."
-Unknown

"One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well."
-Virginia Woolf

“Nothing would be more tiresome than eating and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as well as a necessity.”
-Voltaire

"Desserts are like mistresses. They are bad for you. So if you are having one,
you might as well have two.”
- Chef Alain Ducasse

“The smell of good bread baking, like the sound of lightly flowing water, is indescribable in it’s evocation of innocence and delight.”
- MFK Fisher

“Leave the gun. Take the cannolis.”
- Clemenza, in The Godfather

Amen. Wishing you all a weekend of deliciousness!

Happy girls are the prettiest girls

Photo: Femkeee.

"I believe in pink, I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles."
-Audrey Hepburn

A sprinkle of magic for your Monday

Photo: Flickr.

“I will not die an unlived life. I will not live in fear of falling or catching fire. I choose to inhabit my days, to allow my living to open me, to make me less afraid, more accessible, to loosen my heart until it becomes a wing, a torch, a promise. I choose to risk my significance; to live so that which comes to me as a seed goes to the next as a blossom. And that which comes to me as a blossom, goes on as fruit.”
-Dawn Markova

Self Improvement & Self Acceptance: Mutually Exclusive?

Photo: We Heart It.

“As I thought about happiness, I kept running up against paradoxes. I wanted to change myself but accept myself. I wanted to take myself less seriously—and also more seriously. I wanted to use my time well, but I also wanted to wander, to play, to read at whim. I wanted to think about myself so I could forget myself. I was always on the edge of agitation; I wanted to let go of envy and anxiety about the future, yet keep my energy and ambition. Was I searching for spiritual growth and a life more dedicated to transcendent principles—or was my happiness project just an attempt to extend my driven, perfectionist ways to every aspect of my life?’
-Gretchen Rubin, The Happiness Project

I found The Happiness Project, or rather; it found me, a few weeks ago during a routine visit to Barnes and Noble. In the vein of Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat Pray Love, the memoir chronicles the adventures of New York writer, Gretchen Rubin, as she spends 12 months, “test driving the wisdom of the ages, current scientific research, and lessons from popular culture about how to be happier.”

The paradox she describes in the quote above, between striving and self-acceptance, got me thinking. I mean, isn’t a certain lack of self-acceptance necessary to face the discomfort that self-improvement inherently entails?

After pondering this for a few minutes, I did what I normally do when I reach an impasse. I Googled. And found the following quote:

"It’s perfectly possible to accept yourself just how you are, to love the body, mind and soul that you have – and because of that love, to want to keep developing and improving, striving to be the very best person who you can be."
-Ali Luke

Yep, that pretty much sums it up. Here's to loving yourself enough to continue to work to be the best person you can be!

Drunk on Spring

Photo: Pinterest

“Give me books, fruit, French wine and fine weather and a little music out of doors, played by someone I do not know.”
-John Keats

What makes you come alive?

Photo: Summer-Salts

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
-Unknown

Yes! Could not agree more!

Here are a few things that make me “come alive”:

DANCING. Whether I’m grooving behind the wheel (as surrounding drivers watch with a mix of amused bewilderment and horror) or pirouetting in a ballet class, few things make me feel more alive and in my body than dancing.

TRAVEL. For me, little compares to the thrill of an adventure. I love exploring new places and meeting people who broaden my horizons and challenge my perspective on the world. I’m current dying to visit Costa Rica, Greece, Turkey, and India!

FRIENDS. Spending quality time with the people I care about is absolute bliss :)

BEAUTY. I absolutely adore creating and appreciating beauty in all of its forms. Art, nature, fashion, writing, dance, and music all make me “come alive”.

What about you?

Delicious Ambiguity

Photo: Isabel Lambert.


Photo: Alive To Live A Lie.

"Some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what is going to happen next. Delicious Ambiguity."
-Gilda Radner

Staying the course...

Photo: We Heart It.

"Success is not normally attained through sporadic bursts of effort. Rather it is in the continuity of the effort, the constancy of going on trying each day, each week, helped by grace."
-Unknown

For enthusiastic people with slight ADD tendencies (*ahem*, moi), consistency and 'staying the course' can pose a challenge. I thrive on the excitement of beginning new projects, but often have trouble sticking with something after the initial glow and glamor wear away.

But I've learned that nothing worth having comes easy. To achieve meaningful goals, a healthy work ethic is an absolute necessity. So how do you get in touch with and channel the determination that will keep you plugging away, even when going gets tough?

Here's what works for me...

1. Setting achievable goals
I'm all for lofty aspirations, but if you don't break down your big dream into small, manageable tasks, it's easy to get overwhelmed and give up all together. Make sure to set regular milestones, and don't forget to reward yourself along the way! Got an A on a paper? Gave a rock-star presentation and impressed your boss? Go get a pedicure (or something equally delicious), STAT!

2. Sharing aspirations with positive and like-minded pals
When you feel like your progress is stagnating, look to your friends for support, and in turn, support them when they need it. It's hard to achieve anything without a little love and encouragement, and in the words of The Beatles, "Oh, I get by with a little help from my friends"!

3. Saying affirmations
I know, I know, I'm becoming more of a woo woo Oprah wanna be with each passing day, but I seriously believe in the power of the occasional, "I can do it" or "I am strong" recited to one's reflection in the mirror.

4. Practicing self-care and staying grounded
Never let achieving your goal become more important than your health, relationships, or values. In the words of Conan O'Brien, "If you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen." I believe this with all my heart!

Go out and make things great this week!!

(Whew, now that that's done, I think it's about time to cuddle up in bed with a glass of wine and few episodes of the Vampire Diaries ;)!)

Shine on!

Photo: Linizh Blog.

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

—Marianne Williamson

Have a lovely week and don't forget to let your light shine!
xoxo

A cherry blossom love affair

Photos © 2011 Rebecca Rubin.

"Spring is nature's way of saying, 'Let's party!'"
-Robin Williams

"It's spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you've got it, you want - oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!"
-Mark Twain

Lovely words to live by

Photo: Inspiring Fearless.

“This is your life. Do what you love, and do it often. If you don’t like something, change it. If you don’t have enough time, stop watching TV. If you are looking for the love of your life, stop; they will be waiting for you when you start doing the things you love. Stop over analyzing. All emotions are beautiful. When you eat, appreciate; every last bite. Life is simple. Open your mind, arms, and heart to new things and people; we are united in our differences. Ask the next person you see what their passion is and share your inspiring dream with them. Travel often. Getting lost will help you find yourself. Some opportunities only come once, seize them. Life is about the people you meet and the things you create with them so go out and start creating. Life is short. Live your dream and wear your passion.”
-Unknown

I stumbled upon this beautiful quote today and was so moved. Hope you are too :)
xoxo

Friendship Inspiration

Pollicina

“Keep away from people that try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you too, can become great. When you are seeking to bring big plans to fruition, it is important with whom you regularly associate. Hang out with friends who are like-minded and who are also designing purpose filled lives. Similarly, be that kind of a friend for your friends.”
-Mark Twain

"Each friend represents a world in us, a world not born until they arrive, & it is only by this meeting that a new world is born."
-Anais Nin

Sending heaps of love to all my wonderful friends! You continually bring so much love, happiness, and inspiration into my life and I feel incredibly blessed to have met each and every one of you :)
xoxo

What are you resisting?

Photo: We Heart It

"What you resist persists, and what you stop resisting, stops persisting."

Whether you've been fighting asking for help, taking a risk, admitting responsibility, falling in love, stepping up to the plate, expressing uncomfortable feelings, asking for support, admitting the breakdown of a relationship, grieving, or even eating chocolate icing, why not cut yourself a break? Life happens and things change whether we like it or not. Whether we're ready for it or not. There is only so much we can control, and after that we have two choices: to let go or needlessly suffer. I'm setting a new goal to live with less resistance and more loving acceptance, and I invite you to join me :)