 SOMETIMES I FAIL
The traffic was crazy. I was late. People were waiting for me. My stress was building as I pulled into the parking lot only to circle six times before finding an empty space. Running into the restaurant I blurted out a rather uncharacteristic rant of a not-so-nice kind. I saw the shock and surprise on the faces of my friends. Later I couldn’t get the image of my rant and the reaction it spurred out of my mind. I thought of the ways I want to live my life. Sometimes I fail. I fail at being the person I want to be. I want to be PATIENT and KIND with others, with life situations and with myself. Sometimes I fail. I want to be LOVING by sharing love and positive energy with everyone I meet and in every space I stand. Sometimes I fail. I want to be OPEN to all views and opinions, because I believe everyone has a path to walk and it is not my place to judge, criticize or blame. Sometimes I fail. I want to be AWAKE and AWARE of the small and grand messages of Grace that I receive. Sometimes I fail. I want to be someone who WALKS HER TALK and models the lessons I have learned and the concepts that I teach. Sometimes I fail. I want to be CONFIDENT in knowing that I am who I am --and that I am Good Enough! Sometimes I fail. I want to be SILENT and LISTEN to my heart sing the messages of my soul that guide my life in a peaceful way. Sometimes I fail. I want to be CAREFUL with my voice. Words Matter and carry with them power when they are sent out into the world - I want to choose them with care as I know that once said or written I cannot take them back. Sometimes I fail. I want to be GRATEFUL at all times for the people, things and experiences I am given in this life. Sometimes I fail. I want to be FORGIVING of others and myself and let go of the past so that it doesn't take away my future. Sometimes I fail. I can’t go back in time to that day and erase my rant or the unkind words that I blurted out to those I care about. The best I can do is realize that sometimes I will fail at being the person I want to be and to love and forgive myself-- as in every failure there is a lesson. Pennie’s Life Lesson: “Accept that sometimes we fail and with every failure there is a lesson.” YOUR TURN... My intent in sharing this with you is to confess that I am not perfect...none of us are. Although we may not intentionally mean to hurt someone or break one of our own personal guidelines...it happens. Sometimes we all fail. That doesn't make us a bad person -- it makes us human. How have you failed and learned from it? Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below . And please feel free to email me at: [email protected]. 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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 UBUNTU,
I AM BECAUSE WE ARE After several years filled with emotional events, celebrations and struggles I recognized the significant role women play in a family and the strength they bring to the stability of the family tree. Through my roller coaster ride that I call life, I know I can count on these women for sharing laughter, tears, and a hand up or at times a push forward, but always, always, love and encouragement. There is an African Philosophy which describes this called Ubuntu. It means - "I am because we are." The women of a family work together like the stitches in a quilt. Each stitch is unique-some long, some short, some tightly pulled, some more relaxed, but each add their own character to the patchwork, creating strength that helps all of life's experiences to make sense. Ubuntu, I am because we are. Years ago the Hunt family formed a gathering called the Women's Annual Rejuvenating Montage. The acronym WARM was formed. Invitations were sent, a logo was created and the t-shirts were made. The WARM Guiding Principles are simple. A member must be a woman at least 18 years old AND a direct descendant of my mother; married to her direct descendant; or given birth to one of her direct descendants. Ubuntu, I am because we are. WARM was created for the women following my mother to rejuvenate, relax and continually nurture the bond we share. Our montage is the juxtaposing of diverse personalities into a single element of commonality. We have learned to understand each other, and ourselves, better as we discover our own shared human qualities and how we all fit in relation to our quilted family. During these gatherings we are willing to share, willing to be vulnerable, and willing to affirm and accept each other as a part of the whole. Ubuntu, I am because we are. This tradition will continue past our lifetimes and for generations to come. The Ubuntu belief is that our ancestors continue to exist among the living. With every new member, WARM will carry the spirit and love of all of us as we come and go, stitch by stitch, adding strength to our quilted bond. Ubuntu, I am because we are. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Pennie's Life Lesson: "No one stands alone - we are who we are because we all exist together." ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ YOUR TURN... My intent in sharing this with you is to encourage you to look at the people in your life who make you who you are, the ones you can count on...the ones that you know that without them you would not be the person you are today. Who stands in UBUNTU with you? Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below . And please feel free to email me at: [email protected]. 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!  MAYBE I’M NOT REALLY HERE
The rest area had been a welcomed site after hours of driving. I stood in front of the sink waving my soap filled hands back and forth. I moved closer and then far away and then tried jumping back into position thinking the magic eye of the faucet would see me. Standing still for a brief moment I looked in the mirror wondering if anyone could see the reflection I saw. Convinced the faucet was not working, I stepped over to the next sink to try my luck. After several creative hand movements the water finally came on. Moving to the paper towel dispenser I experienced the same problem. The other ladies in the restroom didn't seem to have any trouble when they stepped up to the sink and the paper towels came out just fine for them. What do I have to do for these automatic machines to see me? It was as if I didn't exist. I felt ignored and invisible. Stepping outside the wind felt like it whistled right through me. Maybe I’m not really here. It happens to me all the time with these type of machines. Equally disturbing is the fact that no one in the room ever acknowledges my dilemma. It is a mystery to me why my DNA doesn't seem to set off the mechanical eyes. Am I the only one this happens to? Why don’t others notice? How many times in life do we make others feel like these machines make me feel? When you see someone with a disability do you avoid eye contact? Do you power your way through your day pushing your agenda and not allowing others the opportunity to speak? And what about the brown sign carriers—you know the ones on the corner with their life message scribbled on cardboard? Do you speed your car by them so that you don’t give your eyes and heart time to feel their message? Standing in front of the faucet I just wanted to be seen. I wanted someone else to acknowledge my circumstance. I wanted to feel like I matter. Isn't that what we all want? We shouldn't have to jump up and down, stand in creative positions or shout to be noticed. Maybe if we are honest, we don’t want others to look too deeply or see us too clearly as they will see our imperfections, our shame and our guilt. Maybe this is why we walk by others without looking at them. We fear that by seeing them their imperfections, shame and guilt will reflect our own. Look at them anyway. See them with eyes wide open to their heart as the heart outshines all of these fears and opens the space of commonality that connects us. The gift of reflecting me in you and you in me is not one to fear. It is this heart opening that will make us feel seen and acknowledged. Pennie’s Life Lesson: “See and acknowledge others – as in them we see and acknowledge ourselves.” YOUR TURN... My intent in sharing this with you is to encourage you to think about how you feel when you don't believe you are seen and acknowledged. And, how you do this to others. Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below . And please feel free to email me at: [email protected]. 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!  ARE YOU MAKING WAVES OR SAILING YOUR SHIP?
Do you argue just to be right when the outcome is of little importance? Do you walk in happiness or do you live in the shadow of anger? Do you demand for the sake of being in control? Do you create kindness or cause cruelty? Do you judge when you could observe and accept? Do you force your opinion to prove you hold power or do you listen to all sides? Do you feel jealousy or do you celebrate the success of others? Do you take when you could give? Do you spend more time being helpful or harmful? Do you fear and hate when you should love? What if all of these choices were guided by one magical thought? Close your eyes with me now and see yourself as the captain at the wheel of a beautiful ship. The sun lays warmly on the side of your face while with every breath the crisp air circles your lungs with fresh energy. The diamond sparkling water that surrounds you is the sea of your life. Your goal is to safely sail your ship, enjoying the sun, fresh air and adventure without causing danger or damage to yourself or others who are navigating their own ships. Your navigation system tells you there are rough waters ahead. Will you increase speed to aim towards them risking damage to your ship and the cargo you hold close to your heart or will you turn to search for a calmer, safer route? The radar shows a small vessel to the left. Will you blow your horn demanding they move and then stay on your course causing a wake that is certain to overturn the small vessel or will you slow the engines and adjust your route to avoid making waves? You see a flair rocket into the sky...a clear indication that someone is in distress and needs help. Do you set your course to help them and gently guide them to safety or do you steer the other way as quickly as possible-- after all what you don't see won't hurt you, right? And by doing so cover them with a spray of water as you avoid their cries for help? Here is where the one magical thought comes in. If you were the captain of a ship would you put more emphasis on making waves or would you concentrate your energy on the smooth sailing of the ship. That's it! The one magical thought that serves as the lighthouse flashing in front of us guiding us through the storms, frustrations and challenges to reach the other side of life with ourselves, our ship and our cargo feeling safe, loved and honored. There are times on the voyage that there is no choice but to batten down the hatches and go full speed ahead into the sea of uncertainty that life creates for us, but most of the time we have a choice. Do we want to make waves or smoothly sail our ship? With every decision and action in life ask yourself this: "Will this action I am about to take make waves or will it safely sail my ship? Pennie's Life Lesson: "Every moment in life we choose to make waves or sail our ship." YOUR TURN... My intent in sharing this with you is to encourage you to think about your actions and how they affect you and others.. use the lesson above to gauge how you make your decisions. Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below . And please feel free to email me at: [email protected]. 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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