Category Archives: Passion

Learning to Love Life Again

I mentioned in my last post that my luck has not been so good lately.  As the saying goes, “If it wasn’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all.”  At least, that’s how it has felt.  So, when I saw a workshop titled, Love Your Life, I thought, “I should probably take that.”

Love Your Life is based on a book, The Passion Test, by Janet Bray Attwood and Chris Attwood.  The gist of both the workshop and book is to help you gain clarity on what you are passionate about.  This is achieved through an exercise where you identify 10 things that would make your life ideal.  With the help of a partner you narrow it down to five through a questioning exercise.  You then set goals or markers to achieve those five items.

While I found that part of the workshop interesting, identifying my passions has never really been my problem.  The second half of the workshop was about commitment and overcoming obstacles.  I found this very interesting because I often get distracted from goals because of life circumstances and-this is hard to admit- fear.

Our facilitator, Christina Loggia, had us write down our negative self-talk.  Then she had us “re-language” these sentences into something more positive. As a writer one of my fears is that no one cares about what I have to share.  I re-languaged that negative statement into “the right audience finds and appreciates my work.”  I felt my mood shift when I read this new statement.  Feeling better about it, somehow, made it seem more possible it could be true.  Affirmations are not new to me but I had never made one that was so goal-specific before.  It was like a little fear-seeking missile!

My other big takeaway from the workshop was about committing the time and energy to achieve what I am passionate about.  Christina shared with the group that one of her passions is yoga.  She said that everyone in her life knows when she practices and teaches yoga and that they know better than to ask her to do something during those times.  I have been very sloppy when it comes to setting boundaries around my passions.  I intend to change that going forward.

The last point I wanted to mention was that I realized nothing has to be achieved overnight.  I think I have been inclined not to set goals in the past because I didn’t think I would have the time or financial resources to achieve them.  Our society is so inclined toward instant gratification, it can be hard to work toward something if you don’t when exactly it will come to fruition.      Christina gave an example about trying to sell her house and how it was taking longer than hoped.  It doesn’t mean it will never sell.  It just hasn’t been the right time yet.  The important thing is to stay clear on what you want even when success seems elusive.

 

Naturally Purposeful: Building the Dream with Andrea Shields Nunez

After our interview, I asked Career Liberation Coach Andrea Shields Nunez if she would answer a career/business question with a (health and wellness slant) quarterly.  She agreed!  I am really excited about this collaboration because I believe pursuing a dream you feel passionate about is integral to good health.  Our timely first installment is below.

Everything gets so crazy this time of year with the holidays.  It would be easy for people to get side-tracked from working on their dream.  Do you have any tips for people not to lose focus during all the holiday madness?

Not falling prey to the inevitable holiday madness that this time of year brings requires you to be very intentional. Even things that are truly important to you can get bumped for family obligations or just out of pure exhaustion. As much as I tout the importance of staying focused and taking action, in this case—at this time of year—my advice is not to fight it. In fact, build the downtime into your plan. Chances are you probably need the break, and what better time to give yourself permission to wind down then when everyone else is allowing themselves to be stressed! (I’m nothing if not a contrarian!)

The keys here are intention and full permission. Make it your intention to actually get some rest, recharge, do things you enjoy just for the sake of the enjoyment. Understand that this is as important to achieving your goals as taking action. Giving yourself this time can actually help you gain even more clarity and focus once you get back into action! And give yourself full permission to take the break. Absolutely NO guilt; None! For some, this time of year comes with plenty of that already. Don’t pile it on!

As we head into the season full force, take a few minutes to declare your intention to juuuust chill, give yourself full permission to do so, and know that you’re doing the very best thing possible for moving yourself forward in the New Year!

I agree with Andrea that rest and taking time to recharge is very important especially this time of year.  What do you think?  Please leave a reply in the comments section.

Many blessings,

Cynthia

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Naturally Generous: This Year’s Donation for Little Shelter

I mentioned a few times on here that I donate financially and also handmade jewelry to Little Shelter.  It’s almost time for their annual masquerade ball.  I created this piece especially for this event.

Little Shelter Auction

Click on image to see the full-sized photo.

This necklace is made with sodalite, sterling silver, blue lace agate and Swarovski crystals in an “alexandrite” finish.  These crystals have a little surprise!  They change color depending on the light.

The Masquerade Ball will take place at Water Mill Caterers in Smithtown on Thursday, October 29th from 6 to 11 PM.  Call 631-368-8770 ext. 26 for more information.  Please consider purchasing a ticket to the event or making a donation to Little Shelter.  Check out http://littleshelter.com for more information.

Many Blessings,

Cynthia

Please follow me on Twitter.  Also, please LIKE my Facebook Page.

justdragonfly

Naturally Passionate: Make Time To Do What Feeds Your Soul

I have a birthday present to make for my friend, Sylvia, who I will be seeing later.  So, I am going to share one of my passions with you today.

These are the first pieces I ever made.

These are the first pieces I ever made.

I started making jewelry almost 15 years ago.  I had a naval ring at the time and wanted to change the bead on it.  Being too… thrifty to pay $10 bucks for a bead change at the tattoo place, I decided to buy a bead and change my own.  It’s very difficult to buy one small bead.  So, I bought a package.  Since I only needed one for the purpose at hand, I decided to get some beading wire and fasteners to make use of the rest of the package.  I was hooked on making jewelry immediately!

I put this chain together link by link and set each of the beads.

I put this chain together link by link and set each of the beads.

I made pieces for myself that other people really dug.  So, I started making jewelry for friends, coworkers and family members.  The more I made, the more I wanted to make.  My pieces began to get quite interesting and complex.  I started selling my all-original jewelry under the name Chickyrhumba (a nickname my mom had for me when I was little) in 2006.  I had just begun to do quite well and then the economy tanked.  Understandably, original, handmade jewelry wasn’t a priority for people to purchase at that time.  I closed Chickyrhumba in 2012.  The truth is I never enjoyed selling it as much I enjoyed making it.

boothphoto

I took the big tumble down the stairs a few months later, so I didn’t make jewelry for much of 2013.  When finally I started again,   it was just like it was in the beginning.  I LOVED it!  Making jewelry gets me down into my hands and keeps me from over-analyzing anything that may be going on in my life.  I would definitely describe it as a form of meditation.

tweednecklace

It’s such a delightful one because it is so sensory.  I love feeling the smoothness of the stones.  I enjoy looking at all the colors and natural variations in gems.  Bending wire into submission can be like therapy!  I also love getting vintage beads and remaking them into something new.  I guess most satisfying of all is being able to see the fruits of your labor.  Executing something tangible from start to finish that I can give to someone else makes me very happy.

JosieNeck9

I made this for Josie Stevens using vintage beads and Swarovski crystals.

 

Ah done!  Do you think Sylvia will like it?  I hope so.  I know I enjoyed making it.

Sylia's birthstone is peridot.  Amethyst is a healing stone.  Who couldn't use an angel?

Sylvia’s birthstone is peridot. Amethyst is a healing stone. Who couldn’t use an angel?

Do you have any hobbies or passions that you need to make more time for? Leave me a reply in the comments section.  I would love to hear from you.

Many blessings,

 

Cynthia

Please follow me on Twitter.  Also, please LIKE my Facebook Page.

justdragonfly