Let the Party Begin!

104 Days of 365 Days of Celebration

And I have finally reached my big 50!!!

Half a century of living this amazing dream that we call LIFE.

So today I am off to celebrate in style with lots of wonderful plans for the coming days to be shared with my treasured friends and family.

Another Cause for Celebration!

I’m also celebrating the launch of my new website Naked Dragon and I would love to hear your feedback. It has been a real labour of love and I am so looking forward to doing my bit to help promote those with an inspirational message to share with the world – through Naked Dragon’s programme of Talks, Workshops and Spiritual Events.

I am also offering free advertising to other promoters of mind, body, spirit events and those who run holistic businesses; so if you or anyone you know fits this bill, you might like to check out the listings page of the website.

Or for the FaceBook fans amongst you, there is the Naked Dragon FB page and I would be delighted if you choose to ‘Like’ me!

A Big Thank You

It has been a couple of months since I wrote my last post and even though I may have been out of sight, you have all been very much on my mind.

I have been reading your posts and following your stories whilst keeping a low profile and focusing on the many other exciting things going on my in life which have taken up my time and focus over the past few weeks.

If you are reading this post you must still be subscribing to my blog…and I thank you wholeheartedly for hanging on in there!

I promise to visit far more often from now on and to share more of my 365 Days of Celebration with you.

With much love and blessings to you all.

Juls xxx

 

 

Blogging Dream Team

Everybody needs somebody who says, ‘I believe in you.’

 

Better still – get an entire group to believe in you and you cannot fail!

 

You’ll feel stronger and more capable. You’ll be far more ambitious. You’ll leap over hurdles. You’ll laugh off disappointments. You’ll risk more and try harder. And, you’ll celebrate your successes with people who are happy for you to succeed. – Anonymous.

Having someone truly believe in you is a beautiful experience. Someone who is there to help heal your wounds when things don’t always go exactly to plan and will help lift you back up, dust you down and get you back on track.

A few years ago I started a rather ambitious project and I knew that I needed a team of supporters to help me to succeed. I indentified the areas in which I needed the most help and guidance before approaching the right people in each of these areas to explain my mission and to ask for their support.

In a few weeks, I had assembled my ‘Dream Team’, all of whom were committed to helping facilitate my success. They each had unique qualities to bring to the project and most importantly, they all believed in me!

It was the most amazingly experience and taught me a great deal about the power of working in co-operation with others in pursuit of a common goal. Our experience and abilities complemented each other perfectly and the blend was just the right mix to ensure our success.

 

Most importantly, before I could expect others to believe in me…I had to first believe in myself. Without this self-belief, the project would have been doomed to failure from the outset, instead of becoming the huge success that it was.

Over the past couple of months we have attracted a wonderful group of fellow bloggers who are as committed to our success as they are to their own.

We have recognised something special in each other and we are generous in our encouragement of each other. With this belief we have in each other’s ability, we are practically guaranteed to succeed in our blogging challenges.

Bring on the Blogging Dream Team!

Day 52 – 365 Days of Celebration

Today I will be celebrating the amazing spirit of the blogging community and the power of shared success.

Writing from the Heart

Why do we blog…and who exactly are we blogging for?

Do we write just to get something off our chest…or do we write with our perceived audience in mind?

Are we looking to attract a large number of followers…or do we just say whatever is on our mind – regardless of whether anyone wants to read what we have to say?

Does it matter if we stick to our original blog ‘theme’…or is it an evolving process through which our ‘theme’ develops as our blog unfolds?

 Perhaps I should begin this post by answering some of the above questions with my own thoughts on this subject.

 **************************

I began writing this blog as a way of sharing my 50^th birthday celebrations with my friends and family in the mistaken belief that they were possibly the only people who would take the time to read my posts.

After all, why would anyone else be interested in the random thoughts of an (almost) 50 year old!

 

As things have worked out, hardly any of my close friends and family have read more than a just few posts (apart from my loyal friend Liz – bless you) and until a few short weeks ago my current readers were strangers to me.

Now of course, they have become my lovely Blogging Buddies and these dear friends have brought so much unexpected joy, laughter and inspiration to the whole blogging experience.

So does this mean that I now write with my new friends in mind? I do try not to do this, but as I write I can’t help but wonder what my new friends will think of this latest post. So yes, in some ways, I suppose I am beginning to write with my ‘audience’ in mind.

I do write to get things off my chest, hence my constant references to my on-going battle of keeping up my blogging commitments and my dilemma over whether to switch to a weekly post instead of a daily one to lessen some of the pressure.

I have resisted this so far as I would feel that I had let myself down after promising to commit to doing this for the entire 365 days (which feels like a lifetime at this present moment in time!)

It wasn’t my original intention to create loads of followers; although I have to confess that I’ve loved watching the visitor stats slowly begin to climb and it was a truly amazing experience to see them shoot through the roof after being ‘Freshly Pressed’ a couple of weeks ago!

It was as a result of the positive feedback I had been receiving, combined with the numbers of visitors that I decided to add a page to my blog called ‘Dancing with Dystonia’ to help raise awareness of this little known and incurable condition that affects so many people throughout the world.

If by doing this, I can help one other person to recognise this condition…or to find the support they need…then this entire blogging process has been worth the commitment.

As for sticking to a ‘theme’, the only constant throughout my posts is my daily ‘reason for celebration’. Otherwise, I have used different formats with – or without – quotations or poems…and I have written about whatever is on my mind at the time.

Ultimately, we have to be true to ourselves and by…

 Writing from the heart…we will reach to the heart.

We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share. This is a precious moment, but it is transient. It is a little parenthesis in eternity. If we share with caring, lightheartedness, and love, we will create abundance and joy for each other. And then this moment will have been worthwhile.
Deepak Chopra

 

Day 49 – 365 Days of Celebration

Today I am going to celebrate by taking a leaf out of Deepak’s book and enjoy every precious and transient moment.

Child’s Play

Over the past couple of days I’ve talked about connecting with my ‘inner child’ and today is the day I have promised that I would let her out to play.

When I awoke this morning, I asked my ‘child’ what she would like to do today.

Her answer was that she just wanted to ‘go with the flow’ – to chill – and take things easy for a change.

She said that she wanted my undivided attention and that I was to ignore the ‘chattering gremlin’ who sits on my shoulder all day long, shouting instructions about what I ‘should’ be doing if I want to be…

•          Loved

•          Respected

•          Noticed

•          Fulfilled

•          Accepted

She knows that I am constantly bombarded by his never ending fear based demands – all adding constant pressure to my days and restlessness to my nights. With her encouragement, it feels great to tell him to ‘shut up’ and take the day off – leaving us free to enjoy our day together without his constant interruptions.

Being with my ‘inner child’ is like spending time with a new friend. Step by tiny step – she is taking me by the hand and leading me back to myself. A beautiful friendship is beginning to develop as we begin to get to know and understand each other.

This morning she has taken me to a ‘flow yoga’ class – because she loves the freedom of movement and the sense of well-being it brings. She also likes listening to the inspirational teacher who makes her smile and encourages her to feel good about herself.

Leading me back home she encourages me to put on a long forgotten CD called ‘Charka Dancing’ - buried at the bottom of the music pile. Turning it up to full volume we are dancing together around the house and suddenly housework seems like a fun thing to do!

Food is next on her list and she encourages me to raid the fridge for a ‘ready, steady, cook’ challenge of creating a colourful and healthy meal out of the bits and pieces of food found lurking in farthest recesses of the (almost) empty shelves.

Needing a little rest after helping to prepare our lunch, she sits me down and shows me how to focus on enjoying a TV programme without trying to do half a dozen other tasks at the same time.

Having recharged her batteries, she wants to go back out to play and leads me down to the riverbank to say ‘hello’ to the swans – my beautiful ‘Angels of the River’.

Sitting on the steps of the house - we hold hands to watch the sun go down and together we offer our grateful thanks to the universe for giving us such a beautiful day to spend together.

Day 48 – 365 Days of Celebration

Today I am celebrating the delights of becoming reacquainted with my inner child…my best friend…it is so good to meet you again.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Curiosity

“I always wondered how it would feel to re-connect with my Inner Child!”

Day 47 – 365 Days of Celebration

Today I’m off to find my inner child and invite her out to play – again!

I Used to be Decisive – But Now I’m Not so Sure!

“Procrastination usually results in sorrowful regret. Today’s duties put off tomorrow give us a double burden to bear; the best way is to do them in their proper time.” ~Ida Scott Taylor

I used to be decisive – but now I’m not so sure!

When I was younger, I was very impulsive. If something fired up my imagination I would just go for it…with no thought of any possible consequences of my actions.

I always had a great time and never regretted any of my decisions. With hindsight, they weren’t always the best decisions…but hey…at least I’d had a ball and learnt a few lessons along the way.

Now I’m rapidly heading towards my big 50, I just can’t seem to make the simplest of decisions without procrastinating for days…or weeks…before finally taking action.

What happened to the girl who always followed her heart wherever it may lead?

Now every choice is examined from every conceivable angle. Pros and cons are weighed up. Friends and family are consulted for their opinion and needless to say, their opinions vary hugely – resulting in more confusion than ever!

The incessant chatter inside my head goes round in circles until I am unable to think straight…let alone make any important decisions.

Eventually I will decide on a course of action – only to start worrying about whether this really was the right decision – before checking to see if there is a ‘get out clause’ in case I change my mind!

All this procrastination is very tiring…and so I usually end up doing nothing and putting off making decisions until tomorrow – always tomorrow – and one day there will be no tomorrow.

What happened to the trusting girl who had such faith in the universe that even if she made a mistake – it didn’t really matter – as she knew that everything would always work out for the best?

As I get older, I worry more about becoming the proverbial ‘bag lady’ – living on the streets if all my ventures fail and I can no longer afford to pay the rent.

This prospect scares me more now than it did in my younger days when all things seemed possible and I felt immortal.

Maybe it is because there is now more time behind me than there is in front of me – and less time for my mistakes to work themselves out…so I try to avoid making mistakes…by avoiding making decisions in the first place!

I recognise this pattern of procrastination in my mother who is the Queen of Worry. I used to listen to her talk herself into something one minute…and talk herself out of it the next. I understand her fear of failure and the frustration of not finding the courage to ‘feel the fear – and do it anyway’.

For many years I was determined not to be like my mother – so frozen with fear and worry that she chose to walk away from so many of life’s wonderful opportunities. I became the explorer of the family-  always chasing after the next exciting adventure.

I am a firm believer than we teach what we most need to learn. And when I started writing this blog at the beginning of the year, I talked about our DASH  (the line between our date of birth and date of passing from this world)…and how we owe it to ourselves to make our DASH count.

I have a neighbour whose mantra is…‘Yeah…whatever’…

Exactly…Whatever…! 

Life is a risky business and whatever our choices…we will all end up at the same destination!

So thank you dear neighbour – for reminding me to stop worrying about the future…to live in the ‘Now’…and focus on making every day a cause of celebration!

Day 46 – 365 Days of Celebration

Today I am going to celebrate by making the decisions I keep putting off and trusting that there is no such thing as a ‘wrong decision’.

I Shall Wear Sweatpants

In my recent post ‘I Shall Wear Purple’, I quoted a well known verse by Jenny Joseph called, ‘When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple’.

When fellow Blogging Buddy, Papa Joe, read the post he responded with a  verse written from his own perspective.

I loved it so much that I asked him if I could re-post it on my blog to share with anyone who may have missed it the first time around. Enjoy!

When I Am An Old Man I Shall Wear Sweatpants

With a T-shirt only partly tucked in, and stains more than vaguely visible.

And I shall spend my pension on coffee and donuts with friends in restaurants where they don’t care how I look.

I shall shave when I want to and shop for groceries regardless of the stubble.

I will take long walks and peer in all the windows making the shop keepers nervous.

“Will he come in?!” they’ll think.  And just to make them sweat I’ll reach for the door before deciding to move along.

I will pat strange dogs and sit with them on the sidewalk until their owners come out of the store. 

I will tell overly long stories and fain deafness when someone tries to interrupt. 

I will eat Macaroni and Cheese – with Hot Dogs for a treat, not because I can’t afford differently.  Because I CAN.

I will make huge pots of macaroni and re-heat meals until the little green spots on the lot start to move on their own. 

I will live and love and most of all remember.  Remember when I looked forward to the freedom of being old. 

And I will regret having spent my youth looking forward to retirement only to learn that in retirement I miss my youth.

I think I’ll bring out the youthful me to play for a day.  Eat chili with extra red-hot peppers.  Stay up ’till 3:00 in the morning and pretend I have to get up the next day.  Drink like it was still a new and novel privilege.  And glory in the heartburn and acid reflux for the next three days.

Yes, when I am old, I will do many things.  I probably just won’t remember them. 

Papa Joe

Day 45 – 365 Days of Celebration

I will celebrating this Valentine’s Day by raising a glass – or two – to all the people I love…to say thank you for all the joy you bring into my life. I am truly blessed.