End violence against women- A great approach

Burundi is doing something that the rest of the world must do to end the violence agianst women.

Check out this presentation from Euronews.- Here

My Christmas gift to you

 

To the world, I give the gift of connection to a higher power.  It is a gift that you can reach for it anytime and in any place, unlike your favorite toy, sweater, or the baby blanket you've had for 70 years.  My favorite thing about Christmas is the carols found in hymns. Listening and singing to Carol makes me remember that there is a power greater than me, a power I can always count on. Some of those lyrics and melody were written when the writer or composer needd something more or felt the world needed something more. Besides my connection to my God, the other essential need I have for this Christmas is electricity.  

 

I am not going back!!

 

After the US election result was called, I saw a comment on a social media post that said “I feel like things are back to normal”.  Looking back at my life in society, nothing for me has felt normal. I don’t want any of what could have been better to be normal. I expect better for humanity.  I don’t want to go back, or backward for fear of reliving the past. I want to move on and go forward. I want to go forward because in the future I still believe people who differ in their ideology will still respect each other’s humanness and agree to disagree instead of wanting to wipe each other off the face of the earth. I want to move forward because I still look forward to a future where I am seen as a person first, not as only my gender or as only what people think about my heritage. I want to move forward because I want my life to be better, I want to live and love fully and I want to make goals and do whatever it takes to achieve it because in the future this is possible.

As i go forward i will take with me Traditional Hymns and Christmas Carol and Classic Movies, including the Sound of Music from the past.

 

C19 Closure

I was telling a friend that I was feeling lazy to do anything, even the things I enjoy like going for walks in the city or practicing French and Spanish. She responded that it is not laziness but something else. This led me to the term C-19 Closure, which I explained as the state of not being able to plan for the future, or giving up on a few moments of joy because you know that you have to go back to a restricted life.

It is impossible for us to be happy every moment of our waking life and hence we are encouraged to take time throughout the day or as often as possible to “smell the roses”, and to give thanks for the good in our lives.

Lately, I have been failing at this, because of C-19 Closure. I am finding it difficult to fool my Brain into smelling roses because it knows that as soon as I smell that rose, C-19 closure will happen and to prevent the deep slide into the dark abbess of C-19 closure, my Brain does whatever it can to keep me safe.

The other day, when I found myself alone in my shared apartment, I had a thought, my Brain immediately piped in and said “you can run around the house naked all you want and enjoy your freedom, but why bother, you still have to go outside with a mask on and the Canadian border is closed, so traveling to Montreal is a no go."'

Then I thought maybe I should go into Manhattan, it piped in again and said “okay, you want to go into the city,  do you feel safe wandering into your go-to spot for a bathroom break?”

Then I yelled forget it, I will go and stand outside and get some fresh air. It then said, “You want to go outside for two minutes for fresh air, really? please, by the time you put on your coat, and mask, and refill your hand sanitizer and alcohol the Sun would have set.”

 Me, to the Brain, whatever, I am taking a nap.

Luckily for the rest of my body, well including the Brain, my perseverance and curiosity lead me to dive deeper into the workings of the brain, and the psychology around accomplishing goals. What I unearthed was much research, talks, and quotes that led me in the direction of seeking out ways to be free in the presence of restrictions.

I learned that to stay sane and motivated during this time of uncertainty, I should focus on what I can do now.  I learned that I should develop a few tricks to center myself which can be done by using my breath to either energize myself when I am feeling lethargy or calm myself when I am feeling anxious.  I learned that I should take a timeout and practice mindfulness by just focusing on what I am doing and let it be just that; just stay in the moment.

Today I came upon this post on Instagram by Colombian Actor/ Psychologist/Coach George Slebi.-@psicoslebi and It said it all; my game plan.

"Lo Pradadojico de Este Encierra Pandemico es que podemos ejercer nuestra propia libertad" G. Slebi

Translation by Google translate:

"The Paradox of this Pandemic enclosure is that we can exercise our freedom" G. Slebi.

 

 

 

The colors in my life

I love Colombia Actress Caroline Gomez’s (star of the must watch La Venganza de Analia/ Her Mother’s Killer on Netflix) response to me after I responded to her post asking “what color is your life today”.

“esooo! La alegría la encontraremos representada con el color amarillo ya que se vincula con la luz del sol y el estado positivo que experimentamos con la llegada de la primavera.” Verde: es el color de la naturaleza y la esperanza. En un tono oscuro aporta confianza y prosperidad”.

Translation courtesy of Google translates:

"This! We will find joy represented by the color yellow as it is linked to the sunlight and the positive state we experience with the arrival of spring. "Green: it is the color of nature and hope. In a dark tone, it brings confidence and prosperity”.

 

 

She had me thinking of the meaning of all the colors and how they present in my life. Here is what I came up with:

 

Pink- Unconditional Love, Harmony, Femininity

Red -Power, Stability, Passion, Fire

Orange- Emotion Expression, Creativity, Success

Yellow- Lightness, Joy, Optimism, the Sun

 Green- Prosperity, Growth, Masculinity, Nature

Blue- Communication, Honesty, Trust, the Sky

Purple- Inner Peace, Intuition, Wisdom

Black- Bold

Brown- Grounding

White-Innocent

Silver - Classy

Gold- Wealth

 

So I am asking you, how do color show up in your life? Does your mood affect the color of clothing or jewelry you chose to wear?

 

 

 

The benches outside the park

 

I posted on Instagram today that I was grateful for the benches outside the park near my apartment. Unlike Italy, Spain and France, we in New York City, were allowed outside for Sun, Fresh Air, and exercise during the heights of the COVID-19 quarantine. I am currently sharing an apartment that does not get much natural light. I am also sleeping and working in a bedroom that does not get any natural light or fresh air. Every day since I started working from home, I have had to go outside before work, during lunch and after work to expose my brain and body to Natural light, especially the Sun and to get fresh air. Even when I woke up tired from sleeping only three hours per night, or was feeling drained because of swollen lymph nodes and ear pain due to Rhinitis, I made sure I went outside. It turns out I was doing the correct thing for my brain and for my health. It turns out our Brain regulates our body, to keep up healthy by knowing what time of the day or what season it is.  Whenever I am in the apartment all day, I always feel sluggish and I’m always in a low mood but as soon as I step outside, especially on sunny days, my mood is lifted immediately.

I am grateful for the benches because without them I would not have anywhere to sit and regulate my body. I would not have a place for my outside reading.  Living in a city can be fun but their drawbacks are many but thanks to Codvid-19, I am very aware of what is the most the important thing for me, what is as beneficial for me as water, I am aware of what compromises I will not or should not make especially when choosing a home or when planning my day.

A pulled muscle or two-Ouch

 

I pulled my groin last weekend and during the nights of Wednesday and Friday last week, I experienced some muscle spasm or re-pull. OMG, I haven’t experience that level of pain in my life. Thanks to my determination (which is evident in my astrology chart) and my new method of how to focus (from the video I was watching early about improving the Brain's plasticity), I was able to get off my bed and hop-walk to the fridge for my icepack. I spent the rest of those nights and the subsequent nights sleeping, sitting up.

After reading several articles online about groin pulls and how to alleviate the pain, I felt kind of lazy and guilty because this did not happen during a workout or I was playing sports, as the articles mention but when I was getting off my roommate's island stool. After a minute or so of guilt, I then remembered that I am to start physical therapy soon for a weak Pelvis and Lower Back. The guilt disappears, and I told myself that I am not lazy and that I am only a human being with a weak Muscular Structure.

I am proof that non-sport-related muscle strain does happen, ice and heat are its friends, and don’t forget to elevate. You will have to get creative with elevating the groin.

Change, Change, make the change when you can

 

Three seminars and a Facebook live post I listened to last week all spoke about change. They all had the same underlined messages; change is constant, it can be good or bad, it can be driven by oneself or by your surroundings or those around you.

With the onsite of co-vid 19, I have been one of those that have been grounded by this great change our society is facing. But looking back, I think my grounding started long before COVID-19. Just before it started, I had decided that some things in my life must change and I was ready to start making them.  These changes that I needed to make to felt and still feel scary partly because I felt like  I am not equipped to make the change and because I felt and still feel guilty for disrupting the lives of those around me. Maybe I should thank COVID-19 for keeping me from moving forward, but then again, being stuck is unbearable, and therefore I have to make the changes.

So I have decided to do what was suggested by the presenters; I must prepare myself  mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally to face take action because I am worth it.

I am a Human Being

The protests are is strong than ever; the 8pm curfew in NYC has been lifted. The UK, Spain, France, New Zealand, and Canada are among the other Countries protesting for “Black Lives Matters”.

When this all gets resolved or settles, I pray that the spirit remains in the heart of all protesting, and those that support the cause. I pray that those who have problems with it will rethink their position but if they can’t, I want them to realize that people of color are human beings as well.

The judicial, political, and law enforcement systems are not the only ones that need reforming. Societies around the globe need reforming.

We as people need to think about our prejudices, our preferences and be brave to fight against the need to belong when what we are witnessing is not right; when what we are witnessing feels wrong in our heart and soul.

One of my favorite Biblical quotes from Jesus is “Treat others as you would like to be treated”.  Please remember, if you love your neighbors as you love yourself, you won’t harm others because in doing so you will damage your life as well.