 1300 LESSONS
I TOOK 55 YEARS TO LEARN 1. Make friends on the playground or stand alone - Learn to Love Change! I grew up in a military family, which meant I would just make friends in school and it was time to move- again. At the time I believed this was child abuse, but it taught me how to build relationships, grow friendships and hone the ability to accept and love change. 2. Don’t wish your life away! I remember how I couldn't wait to be thirteen. My Mom said, “Don’t wish your life away.” That didn't pacify me at the time, but now 43 very quick years later I understand the wisdom in that statement. 3. I love Brussels sprouts! I really do! I hated Brussels sprouts for 54 years. The truth is I had never tried one. Not long ago I did. I have been trying to make up for lost time ever since. The moral here is – you can’t hate what you haven’t tried and you can’t judge what you haven’t lived. Let that statement simmer a minute. 4. Don’t tell anyone you are on a diet! If you need to make a life change like losing weight or changing jobs you may need a support group or career coach, but don’t tell anyone else. People will scrutinize every pound you lose (and gain), every job you apply for and every rejection letter you receive. If they don’t know, when you have set backs and disappointments they won’t magnify your defeat. Wait until you have good news to share and let them celebrate the victory with you. 5. Know when to say NO and when to say YES! For years I said, “Yes” to everyone and every request for my energy and time. After suffering a few creative stress induced illnesses I learned that I couldn't do it all and I wasn't Wonder Woman. I learned how to say, “No” when I needed to. I also learned to say, “Yes” to myself. 6. Not everyone likes me! What is not to like about me? I was the people pleasing cocker spaniel that when I got kicked wanted to jump up and lick the face of the kicker to prove that I was sweet, kind and deserving of love. The reality is – not everyone likes cocker spaniels! There are enough people who do and those are the ones I spend my time liking and loving. Don’t waste your time trying to prove yourself to anyone who just doesn't like you. 7. Do what you LOVE! Don’t waste a precious moment of time doing work you hate. Do what brings you joy and contentment. If you can’t do it full time do it as a hobby, but do what you love! 8. Know when to risk and know when to let go! I owned Apple stock when it was $22 a share and sold it at $24. Big mistake! This is a perfect example of doing this wrong. Knowing when to hold something and when to let it go is an intuitive skill that I believe grows with listening to your inner voice when it tells you to run down the street after them yelling, “I love you!” or to turn and walk away as the sun sets and the credits roll. 9. Take care of yourself! Being healthy matters, so control what you can. Just like you take care of your car by cleaning it, getting checkups and supplying it with quality fuel, take care of the body that carries your soul in the same way. Once you hit the mile markers of 40, 50, 55 and beyond you will be happy you did! 10. Be quiet and listen. Meditation saved my life. Sit alone and in silence. Listen to your heart. Listen to the silence. You will be amazed at what you hear! 11. We are all one phone call away from our knees. It happens to everyone. When the phone rings and the message of loss is delivered, you will be on your knees. With the aid of love and grace we will stand back up stronger than before. Once this hard lesson has been learned your heart will expand with the love required to support others when they fall. 12. Every moment we choose the path of Fear or Faith. We are constantly given the choice of walking the path of fear of failure or the path of faith in the future. The road of faith is a much happier road to travel. Choose faith! 13. Gratefulness leads to love and yes, Love is the answer to every question! Being here in this body, on this Earth and at this time is a privilege. Be humbled by the magnitude of it. Do not take anything for granted. Be grateful for every moment, every breath, every experience and every lesson learned; Being grateful leads to living in a space of love. The most important lesson and the basis for all the lessons I have learned is LOVE! Life begins and ends with love. Love yourself. Love others. Love animals. Love nature. With every breath be grateful for being here to love. That’s it, bottom line… Love your heart out! I do realize that was 13 lessons and not 1300, but most of them took me 100 or more experiences to learn, so I am giving myself extra credit. Learn YOUR lessons well. Happy Living! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ YOUR TURN... What lessons have you learned? Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below. Thank you! All Rights Reserved Copyright © 2013-2014 Pennie Hunt This was written and produced by Pennie Hunt. Feel free to forward this post. Please keep the entire message intact, including contact, logo, and copyright information. If you have any questions or comments, or for reprint permission please email: [email protected] Thank you!
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 SEEING FOR
THE FIRST TIME He runs in the room, stops right in front of me and says, "Oh, Hi!" This is a lovely greeting that I have heard three times in the last 30 minutes. You see every time his almost two year old legs carry him out of the room and then back again he looks at me as if I have just arrived. With every, “Oh… Hi,” his enthusiasm and excitement jumping-jacks out of his body and his expression is one of pure delight! Everyone laughs at the charm of this, but the lesson is not lost on me. Imagine if we saw everything in every moment of our lives as if we were seeing it for the first time....even if we just saw it five minutes ago? Can you imagine being in the present moment at that level? Everything in our world would seem bigger and brighter. Looking at the sky would be like seeing blue for the first time. The sound of music would be as if we had never experienced harmony before. We would notice every petal on the flower, every flavor in our food, every breeze that brushes our cheek. Hearing the voice, laughter and seeing the face of those close to us would be like the moment we fell in love with them – over and over again. We would only see what is in front of us at that very second without giving any thought to what captured us the second before or what may be waiting for us around the next minute. Now, just right now is what fills the screen of our mind in vivid color and exquisite freshness. What pleasure! What joy! What an awesome way to experience life! Why not begin now? Stop right in front of the next person you see and say, “Oh…Hi!” and feel the thrill of seeing them for the first time! Pennie’s Life Lesson: “Greet every moment, person, place and thing as if you are seeing them for the first time. Savor the experience with new eyes.” ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ YOUR TURN... How could you work this into your life? What would you love to see again - for the first time? Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below. Thank you! All Rights Reserved Copyright © 2013-2014 Pennie Hunt This was written and produced by Pennie Hunt. Feel free to forward this post. Please keep the entire message intact, including contact, logo, and copyright information. If you have any questions or comments, or for reprint permission please email: [email protected] Thank you!  Announcing New Meditation Offerings Recently I wrote a blog called, Meditation Saved My Life. Many responded by asking me for advice on how to mediate and for help in beginning the process. After years of learning about the many types of meditation, I have settled in to what works for me. I believe you do not have to follow a certain meditation dogma or philosophy to receive an emotional and physical benefit. The basic premise is to quiet your thoughts and allow calm, contentment and peace to fill the space of your mind and body. I have created a new page on my website for meditations. You will find my first one, The Turn of Breath Meditation, above as well as on my meditation page. This is a 5 minute cleansing meditation to help you release worries, fears and concerns. This will work well as a morning meditation or a quick realignment at any time during your day. I will be adding more meditations from time to time with the intent of helping you to relax, process stress and enjoy your life in a calm loving way. Happy meditating! Pennie ***Since we all learn from each other, I would love to have you share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below. Thank you!*** All Rights Reserved Copyright © 2013-2014 Pennie Hunt This was written and produced by Pennie Hunt. Feel free to forward this post. Please keep the entire message intact, including contact, logo, and copyright information. If you have any questions or comments, or for reprint permission please email: [email protected] Thank you!  When it comes to love, Anything Will Help!
I turned the corner to head home after doing my weekly errands. I noticed at the street light ahead there was a man holding his cardboard sign that read, “Anything will help.” Pulling up next to him I rolled down my window and handed him one of my coffee shop gift cards that I carry just for occasions like this. I explained to him where the coffee shop was and that he could get something hot to drink and eat on this cold day. After he said, “Thank YOU,” for the third time our eyes met and I believe in that second he felt love. In that moment I felt love. I felt the love being returned from him and I also felt love for myself for showing kindness. Love works that way. If we don’t see love we can’t be love. In the moment he looked at me he understood that the gift card held more than a cup of coffee and a sandwich, it held love. When he looked in my eyes and saw love, he mirrored the love back to me filling me up with love from him and magnifying the love I hold inside of myself. Once we see love, we can BE love. How many times do we have the opportunity to show love for others to see? The answer is constantly! Love is not just for special celebrations or certain holidays. Love is for every moment of every day. The more love we show, the more love others see, the more love they can be filled with and the more love they show to others. This is the pay-it-forward of the heart. We see this mirrored magnification work all the time…. If you show anger, others show anger and it spreads. If you see fear, you become fear and it grows. Why would we want to waste our time on that? Become what you want more of. Become Love. Show love. It’s easy to show it with flowers, gifts and in big ways. It is harder to show it in every moment in small ways. Be the love that others see. Even showing small amounts of love will be mirrored back to you. When it comes to love, Anything Will Help! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Pennie’s Life Lesson: “When you become the love that others see love will be mirrored back to you.” ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ***Since we all learn from each other, I would love to have you share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below. Thank you!*** All Rights Reserved Copyright © 2013-2014 Pennie Hunt This was written and produced by Pennie Hunt. Feel free to forward this post. Please keep the entire message intact, including contact, logo, and copyright information. If you have any questions or comments, or for reprint permission please email: [email protected] Thank you! |
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PLEASE NOTE: This page does not provide medical or legal advice, professional diagnosis, opinion, treatment or services to you or to any other individual. Through this site and links to other sites, Pennie Hunt provides general information for inspiration, encouragement and educational purposes only. The information provided in this site, or through links to other sites, is not a substitute for legal, medical, or professional care, and you should not use the information in place of a visit, call or the advice of your lawyer, physician or other healthcare provider. |