Visions and Dreams and Bears OH MY!

Happy new year!  The start of a new year is the perfect time to set new goals and reflect back on the year past.  I started 2013 with a vision board which was the first time I had ever created one.  Now looking back at the year in it’s entirety; I’m heartened that so much of what I had hoped to accomplish did blessedly come to fruition.

Vision Board Happiness is a Journey Vision Board Family Closeness Vision Board My Book Vision Board Healthy Living Vision Board Church Family Vision Board Travel Vision Board Quality FriendshipsVision Board Everlasting Love

Everlasting Love: Jason and I got married on May 18, 2013 on a beautiful spring day.  The day was full of family, friends, laughter and love. It was the perfect start to our married life together.

 Our Wedding Day My Beautiful Bridesmaids Our First Dance

 Quality Friendships:  During the year I reconnected with old friends, made new ones and cherished those closest to my heart.  There is nothing more valuable than the power of close connections, mutual respect and unbreakable bonds.  Thank God for girlfriends and sisters.

 My GirlsQueen E Girls  Reni and Jennie Bridal Shower Brunch  Mon Lid and I Ayah and I Laughing

 Travel:  Jason and I travelled to Costa Rica for our honeymoon, a beautiful, romantic and exotic getaway.

Costa RicaCosta Rica 2

Church Family:  Jason and I became introduced to City South Church through our friends Leesila and Colin. Immediately we felt a connection to the service, the message, the worship songs and the sense of community within the Church.  We soon became part of a small bible study group through the Church and immediately felt welcomed and comfortable in this group of wonderful people.  We feel blessed to have found such a good fit for us.

           Leesila and Colin The Machados City South Church

Healthy Living: I learnt so much throughout 2013.  I was introduced to health, nutrition and fitness in a remarkably eye opening way that truly affected and touched me. I credit this introduction to Geha Gonthier of the Wellness Clinic who really sparked my interest and curiosity to delve deeper and learn more about nutrition, balance and health.  She introduced me to a more holistic approach to body, spirit and mind; seeing as I had compartmentalized them from each other for so many years prior.  She showed me how my unwanted weight gain was a reflection of something going on deeper inside of me.  She awakened within me the possibility of healing myself; by myself , for myself and because of myself.

Wholesome Foods Geha Gonthier Health and Fitness

My Book: I had started writing a fictional story back in 2004 but had writer’s block for years.  Life mimics art and art mimics life.  I had been in a personal state of indecision and flux for so long, that I wasn’t able to sort out my personal or fictional story. But finally, this past year, the clouds parted and life became much clearer; allowing me the clarity and the freedom to pick up my pen again.

Family Closeness: 2013 really highlighted to me the importance of family and the home my heart always finds in the company of my family.  From my daily phone calls with my Dad while I drive home from work, to the sistership I have with the K-5, the Indian store runs with my Mom, to the reconnection with my extended family during our wedding…TRUE LOVE is the only word that I can use to express the language communicated amongst family.  This past year too was the beautiful start at Jason and I building our own home and family with our mischievous cuddly dog Teddy.

Mom and Joydan Mom and Pooch Dad's Bday Family K5 GirlsLazy Teddy Bear Sept 2013

Happiness is a Journey Not a Destination: There were definitely some unexpected happenings this past year, times of turmoil and trouble.  Times of loss and setback.  But all of it is just life, taking the good with the bad.  The key to my own peace of mind is to not be so attached to the things outside of me, the things I cannot control.  I can’t control people’s assumptions or judgments of me. I can’t control people’s perceptions of me. I can’t control the way people speak or act…the people that come and go, the way the tides turn…but the truth of the matter is – none of these things actually change who I am.  I imagine it like a light inside of my heart.  My God given light; mine by birth and right.  This light is the truth, the purity and the essence of who I am.  And no matter what happens outside of my body, absolutely nothing can dim this light.  Sometime in the face of conflict I might forget, but all I need to do is close my eyes, focus on my heart, feel the brightness of my light and remember that nothing changes who I am, and the only thing I have to do is just continue being me.  It’s the same for all of us, we all are perfectly who we are inside.

            So I’m learning to not wait to be happy, but instead be happy along the way.

           So happy new year! I’m excited to start my new vision board for 2014; to focus on new goals, new visions and bigger dreams (oh my!).

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