You have made the choice, the tough choice, of LIVING this life, not surviving it.
You have gotten up, on yet another day, to try to be the best you, the latest you, the greatest you.
Go on ‘head with yo bad self!!
Give yourself a twirl, pat on the back.
Tip your cap, to yourself.
You trying, where so many others have stepped off the field, in defeat.
Celebrate some you, this day. You are doing this thing, called life. You are doing YOU!
REJOICE!!!
Tell discouragement, fear, frustration and their ilk to kick some rocks and get going!!
You SHALL grow.
You ARE growing.
You ARE going.
Go on ‘head with your bad self!
Take a bow.
Your life, YOUR efforts, are changing things. You are not only changing your life, but you are changing the lives of folks around you.
Know ye not, beloveds, as you allow your burning bush, your try, your standing, your love, your joy, your voice, your anxt, your falling down, your getting up…..
ALL of these things, are making an impact. You are giving folks, watching, permission to try, themselves. You are giving folks, watching, the courage to try, themselves.
Look at you!
You have not joined the voices of many who say/think/feel trying is not worth the effort. You have chosen not to be a survivor.
Go on ‘head with your bad self!
You are:
More, than a conqueror.
Blessed, above measure.
Relentlessly Loved, by God, by Life.
Filled, with greatness.
Cheered on.
Prayed for.
Fought for.
Keep on doing you.
Look at you!!!!
Take the time, from time to time, to step away, from the battle. Step away to look at you….
WITH YOUR BAD SELF!!!!
This world is TERRIFIED of you. Terrified, you may, you will, discover who you ALREADY ARE!!!!
Beloveds, we ALREADY are:
Worthy, of love.
Worthwhile, peeps.
Destined, for greatness.
What does that greatness look like? Looks different for each of us. We were NOT meant to be the same. We were NOT meant to just run with those that look like us, think like us, do like us. How the world will we EVER grow staying in the same mold, in the same place, at the same time, with the same people????!!
Look at you!
Daring to be different. Daring to be you. Daring to DO you.
Keep on doing you, beloved.
Take a bow. You are changing lives. You HAVE changed lives, starting with your own.
Be sure, today, to tell ALL who would oppose you to kick some rocks and keep it moving!
For years, five of them, in fact, a friend has been fussing with me to use a water filtration system, instead of purchasing bottled water.
Why? Because the water, where I live is awful. Because I was FOREVER whining, complaining, fussing, about fifty thousand water bottles, jugs I had to throw out.
Endless!!
Ack!
Yikes!
Egads!!
O, hey guys, yall no help in reminding me to go ahead and put in the filtration system.
FINALLY, after years, YEARS I TELL YA!, I buy this gorgeous Brita water filtration system.
Huh? Did I hook it up, right away, and begin to use it, you ask?
Ok…..so….hmm…..yikes.
It may, or may not, perhaps, perchance, may have kinda sorta happened, I became lazy and my new, sleek, water filtration system had now turned into a coaster on my kitchen counter….oppps.
So, NOW, I have doubled my anxt! Instead of griping, whining, complaining, fussing, fretting about all these blasted water jugs every which way and having to dump the trash every other five thousand seconds because of these stupid jugs and…..OMG!!!!!!!….*pout*….
Opps…..sorry bout that. So, instead of having the aggravation of fifty thousand jugs, I NOW have to keep moving the stupid, sleek, new, shiny, regal looking dumb, in the way! water filtration system!!
God: Why do you keep buying jugs of water? Why do you keep slapping your new water filtration system around? Wouldn’t it be easier, more cost affective, to take a few minutes and install it?
Life: Yea, what He said.
Yikes!: Seems smart to me. Save me all this daily hollering about jugs and such….
Egads!: What Yikes! said.
Me: Okay, now THIS is true!…*slaps self upside the head*.
Did I hook up the water filtration system, right then?
Of course NOT!
I RAN OUT OF BOTTLED WATER AND WAS TOO LAZY TO ORDER SOME MORE AND WAS THIRSTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tis an absolutely TRUE statement that a lack of decent bottled water, truly IS the mother of invention!
Stomping over the the kitchen counter, I snatched the coaster, dumb water filtration Brita unit, stormed to my seat to actually read the directions.
Who KNEW what can happen when one ACTUALLY READS THE DIRECTIONS!!!….*gasp*…..
Heaven opened up, I am tellin’ ya! It did!!
I could follow the pictures!!!
The directions actually made sense, kinda!!! I only had to re read them about fifty times. I only had to curse out the dumb adaptors about ten times!(None fit. None needed. Dammit!). Took a whole five minutes to put the system on correctly.
Took all of five seconds to find out I put the actual filter on incorrectly. Crap!….*Cassandra reminds herself to mop up kitchen floor in a minute*…
After fits and starts, starts and fits…..
HALLELUJAH!!!!!
WATER!!!!!
I felt like Patty Duke in the ‘Miracle Worker’ when she finally figured out Melissa Gilbert could sign water! (Great movie by the by. Yes, I know Patty Duke started in the 1964 version being the blind one and Anne Bancroft played the teacher. I digress. Both fantastic, by the by).
Enjoying an absolutely delish(!), glass of water, I thought about ALL the money I could have saved, ALL the trips to the trash, I could have saved, ALL the jugs, I could have saved, just by buying and installing a water filtration system sooner.
LIVING, instead of surviving, can seem exhausting, at times. It IS exhausting, at times. Yet, I have learned so much about me, about life.
I thought, I was ‘saving time’, buying jugs of water. Also, it was ‘just; 80 cents a jug. I had looked up systems before and they were ‘up there’, I told myself.
In actuality, I could have bought……good Yikes no telling how many I could have bought, in these last five years.
I spent money, on water, I could have used for other things, other needs, other wants, other pursuits.
I let laziness, habit, fear of tearing up the sink, distrust in what the water would taste like, habit, laziness, habit, laziness, habit, and laziness cost me a bundle.
I’m glad I finally changed my FILTER, my way of looking at things, which helped me to go ahead and install my water filtration system. This will save me:
Money.
Time.
Aggravation.
We pick up too many bad habits, from surviving life. We tend to want to do the ‘easiest thing’, go the faster/easier/less complicated way. We look at ways to trim, get out of doing, living, being. Surviving life takes too much effort to worry about things like striving, trying, standing, and all the other ‘exhausting’ things one is required to do to LIVE life and not simply to survive it.
THAT burning bush, the one that God and Life has tapped you on the shoulder to turn aside and see, also helps you to see all the areas where you are still ‘surviving’ life, instead of LIVING life.
While we are living life, it’s important to see where we are still ‘surviving’ out of habit, laziness, fear, (insert your own words here). Check to see where you may be losing out on life, things, opportunities, moments, miracles, love from not changing your filter.
Change your filter, as needed! The ‘water’ is fantastic!!
What a comforting thought! There are days when the world seems so big. Seems like Covid, strife, and so many things have isolated and separated us all.
It’s awesome to know we don’t have to ‘got this’ all by our lonesome, isn’t it?
Just wanting to let folk know I have been praying hard, for all of us. Praying for healing, strength, growth, joy, laughter, freedom, all kinds of good things for our lives.
Just wanted to take a moment to let folk know they are NOT alone.
I am grateful, for this day, for folks who care. I am grateful, for all the hard that came with today. I am grateful for the love of family, friends, God, Life, Yikes! and Egads!
KNOW you are:
Loved.
Cherished.
Respected.
Valued.
Honored.
And so very many other things.
God and Life have been watching your back for more days than you will ever be able to count. Rest upon Them. Rely on Them. Let someone know they are not alone, would you? I can’t get to the whole world.
Looking at my cord, experiencing my new found freedom, has me thinking about how little ‘slack’ we allow ourselves when trying to grow and learn new things.
I am learning a new job. Frustrating all on it’s own. The most maddening thing is the thought processes are the polar opposite of what I have been doing for the last 10 plus years. My old instincts want to solve issue the way I know. Yet, doing so is only complicating matters and making the learning that much harder.
It was ONLY after I surrendered myself to unlearning what I was used to, and committing to learning a whole new way of thinking, did things become easier for me.
Yes, the newness is STILL new, it is STILL hard. But, I am okay, with the hardness, knowing time, effort and commitment WILL get me to the other side.
It was ONLY after I cut myself some slack, gave myself PERMISSION to mess up, royally if needed, I began to enjoy the hard new training.
Don’t you think it’s time for you to cut YOU some slack, as well?
You don’t have to know everything, be everything, do everything, all at once. Growth, takes time.
I am learning to enjoy my new ‘length’. In cutting myself some slack, I am able to explore more, enjoy more, laugh at my mistakes more.
I am LIVING. There is victory in that. Yea, this LIVING can get awfully frustrating. It’s fun, though. Am learning so much about life. Even more so, about me.
Cut yourself some slack. Stop yanking yo head off. Lengthen your cord!
Doesn’t matter, if the damned mountain still won’t move.
Doesn’t matter, if no one will go with you.
Doesn’t matter, if Life and God keeps saying no or not now.
Doesn’t matter, if I don’t see the change or experience the moment.
No, it just does NOT matter….
Even if it doesn’t get better, I want to BE better!
God and Life are interested in OUR response. Cares not one whit how others are being or what they may or may not be doing.
The question is:
What am I doing?
What am I learning?
What am I giving?
What am I receiving?
When the world is cutting up and acting a fool, am I doing the same?
Or, am I CHOOSING to be the:
Light, in the darkness.
Hope, for the hopeless.
Am I CHOOSING to:
Stand.
Love.
Hope.
Grow.
Go.
Give.
Do.
Show.
Or, am I using circumstances, situations, old tapes, new tapes, old foes, new friends, old woes, new roads as an excuse to:
Give up.
Give in.
Run away.
Turn away.
Become angry.
Stay angry.
The harder life gets, the more I am learning, have learned, learning again, to EMBRACE the hard. The hard is teaching me so much:
About, me.
About, Life.
About, God.
About, others.
In going THROUGH the hardness, I am learning/experiencing:
I am much stronger than I thought.
I am much weaker, than I thought.
In going THROUGH the hardness, I am learning/experiencing:
I have much more patience, than I thought.
I have much less patience, than I thought.
Now, that standing has become a habit. Now, that seeking God and Life, FIRST, has become a habit. Now, that embracing the suck/accepting the hard, has become a habit….
NOW, I KNOW I really do ‘got this’.
I am a better ME!
I no longer seek a pillow when I come upon THE rock and a hard place. Now, I have started looking out for how the hard thing, THIS hard thing, the next hard thing, can/will/should make me a better ME.
It will. IF, I make the choice. The choice to BE better, no matter what, no matter how, no matter who.
How do we ensure we have become better?
Easy Peasey! By simply recognizing, receiving, accepting ALL God and Life requires from us is our ‘try’. God and Life will show us how to ‘do’ the thing. They just require our ‘try’. They just need our ‘yes’ to begin the thing.
The rest truly will come out, in the wash.
Keep doing you.
You ARE becoming better. Each time you choose to try, when you could have done as most, and returned to the easy way.
Keep on acknowledging, THAT burning bush, raging inside, burning quietly inside, burning constantly inside.
Keep on acknowledging, you are doing and have done all you know.
Keep on acknowledging, you are loving best you can, giving best you can, receiving best you.
If you have done these things, you are ALREADY better than you were, yesterday.
It is enough.
Wipe the day’s journey, off your feet. Rest. Enjoy some you time.
In getting organized, in reconnecting, in repairing broken things, I have realized how much time has been wasted, how many years wasted in using broken things, in being unable to use broken things.
It could be easy to blame myself for not knowing, or for knowing and not doing.
Yet, God and Life is uninterested in us berating ourselves for what we did not do, for what we did not know, for what we failed to do with what we knew.
There is absolutely nothing we can do about it, now. Now, all we can do is something about it NOW.
Life is short.
Repair what you can.
Move on where you can’t.
Start fresh.
Start again.
Does not matter where.
Just start.
In the middle.
At the end.
Who cares.
The world will get tired of fooling with your greatness. Will get tired of knocking you down, only seeing you rise, AGAIN!
Too much greatness in us, beloveds, to even think about throwing in the towel.
The ONLY thing we gonna quit doing is quit listening to dummies who think we can’t/won’t make it.
HA!
No need on crying over lost days. Best get to making the most of the rest of them, don’t you think?
As for me and my house, we fixing to have a nice cup of coffee, watch a ridiculous Super Hero Movie and imagine I am the one in the cape.
We just have to maintain, in the meantime, while our better days catch up with our former ones.
Keep going.
You can do this.
You WILL do this.
As will I.
Don’t let this world get it twisted: NOTHING shall stand between us and our growth.
Be gentle with you, in the meantime. You are doing all you know to do. This is ALL that is required.
You DONE paying rent. You DONE with trying to earn love/favor/joy.
Those who don’t see your greatness, well, wish them well and keep it moving. Plenty of us out there who WILL and DO care about you. Look around. We are here.
Has made me angry enough to REFUSE to give up, give in, or give out.
The ONLY way we lose, folks, is if we give up.
Not gonna happen.
Not on our watch.
We got TOO MANY dreams to fulfill.
We got TOO MUCH love to receive/give.
We got TOO MUCH life to LIVE, not survive.
There is NOTHING that can keep us from having what we are meant to have.
Keep going.
Keep LIVING.
Keep trying.
Keep loving.
Keep striving.
I don’t give two hoots how hard it is.
These hard days are ONLY making you stronger.
These hard days are ONLY making you more seasoned.
These hard days are ONLY making you more determined.
These hard days are leading you to that which you have been fighting for.
You are getting all your Nos out of the way.
You are getting all your obstacles out of the way.
You are getting all the hangers on out of the way.
You are getting all your pride out of the way.
You are getting all of your discouragement out of the way.
You are getting all of your fear out of the way.
Keep going.
ALL things have their say. ALL things have their beginning and SHALL have their end.
The trick is how will YOU be at the end of the test/trial/road/story?
Victorious!
God and Life is cheering you on.
Keep going, beloved.
You got this.
If you did not, got this, why the world do you think the world, situations, circumstances have ALL prevailed to get you to give up on you.
Don’t you DARE give up!
It’s not the effort, that will make the difference. You are going to be rewarded, yes, BECAUSE of your effort, because of your perseverance.
You are going to win, however, because God and Life are going to make sure you do.
You have a good heart. You are a good person. You love as much and as hard as you can. Keep doing you. This world is DESPERATE for what you have, for who you are.
We need you. Keep going. I need you to help me keep going.
There are days, not many but some, that I want to damned that burning bush.
It never goes out.
IT NEVER GOES OUT!!
Calling me.
Welcoming me.
Unnerving me.
Entreating me.
Beseeching me.
Some days, it’s just an ember. A gentle reminder to keep trying, to keep fighting, to keep loving, to keep seeking.
Other days it’s a raging inferno. An insistent notification to:
KEEP FIGHTING!
KEEP TRYING!
KEEP LOVING!
KEEP SEEKING!
Mostly, it’s there, always there now, a constant reminder to:
KEEP FIGHTING!
KEEP TRYING!
KEEP LOVING!
KEEP SEEKING!
Dear Lord, that blasted burning bush can drive one up ten walls, though, can’t it?!
Real talk. Growing is hard. Being pulled aside, to see where we have kept ourselves from growing, to see where others have kept us from growing, to see where we have allowed situations and circumstances to keep us from growing, hurts.
It hurts I delayed God’s and Life’s blessings due to MY unbelief in:
Myself.
God’s Character.
Life’s Care.
Support of family/friends.
Opportunity.
Moments meant to change my life for the GOOD.
Miracles hidden into EVERY day had I looked for them.
I imagine Moses may have been overwhelmed, himself, being called aside to see that burning bush. He was minding his own, thinking his time had passed. He may have even been chiding himself, deriding himself for opportunities lost from being booted out of Egypt.
He may have been doubting himself, his worth, in coming from wealth to tossed aside, banished to the desert, to fight it out with scorpions etc. He wandered for 40 years remember.
I wonder if Moses wondered, as he wandered, if he had missed God’s and Life’s best for his life. I know I have wondered, as I have wandered, if I have ‘missed it’ somehow. The older we get, the farther removed from old dreams, hopes, aspirations, the easier it can be to get down on ourselves for ‘just’ tending some sheep.
We feel as if we ‘should have’, ‘could have’ been doing MORE.
More what? Don’t ask me. The world, situations, circumstances, the enemy, often taunts us. Points out where other folks seem to have ‘gotten it’ and ‘gotten things’ long before we have/did.
Single folk may be lamenting never having been married. Married folk may be lamenting never having children. Folk with children may be lamenting not pursuing education/adventures prior to having children.
Seems like, each of us, have all manner of ‘sheep’ or things we have been tending, all these years, prior to being tapped on the shoulder and asked to ‘turn aside’ and view that burning bush.
Seeing that burning bush, that reminder inside of us freedom, greatness, hopes, dreams, goals, (enter whatever you like here) are just bursting, inside us, waiting to get free, is a great thing. It is also a frustrating thing, to be honest.
That burning bush, it NEVER goes out. A reminder there is MORE to this life we had been surviving, up til now.
Yes, LIVING life feels good. But, it can also be exhausting, frustrating, scary etc. Surviving, seems like, was much easier. It was MUCH simpler guarding our sheep, then it is to be forever trying to grow, to be free, to LIVE. Surviving, we lie to ourselves, takes less effort. The reverse, in fact, is true.
It takes ALL your survival skills, to hide the truth from yourself. It takes ALL your energy to pretend like your self imposed prison is okay. It takes ALL within you to deny your heart’s cry for freedom, love, opportunity, moments and all God and Life has prepared for us.
That burning bush is a friend. Yet, lately, it almost feels like a task master, doesn’t it?!
I don’t feel like taking the high road, today. I want to fuss, fume, fret, gripe and complain about why it’s not MY turn yet. I want to, let’s be honest, act a fool, like a child on a long car ride, asking ‘are we there yet?’
I want to already BE there! As soon as the lights came on, as soon as I saw that burning bush, my heart rejoiced.
FREEDOM!
LIFE!
LIBERTY!
Let’s go! I want to rush out, to my new ‘home’, to my new experiences.
Yet, those things may not be ready yet. There is STILL work to do!
Even if God and Life opened the door, to a new place, I STILL have to pack up the old one. I STILL have to get rid of old things, to make way/room, for the new things.
I STILL have to prepare my heart for company, if I have been alone.
I STILL have to get my body in shape, if I have abused it or have been ill or the myriad of things that can happen to our physical man.
I STILL have to make things right with relationships I wrecked, or situations/circumstances wrecked, or the enemy wrecked.
I STILL have to break old habits of being afraid to try new things.
I STILL have to get rid of old tapes I have listened to where others, circumstances, situations, the enemy, (insert whatever you like here) have told me I was not enough, I have to stay on the hamster wheel and earn my place/love etc.
That burning bush does so many things, for us. It not only enlightens us, but also shows us what we had been living with, in the darkness.
The light can show us some frightful things, about ourselves, can’t it?
Who the world knew I would be soooooooooooooo terrrified to start a new job?
Who knew I was working myself to death, in part, believing I had to keep earning God and Life’s respect/love/care/blessings?
Who would have ever imagined, I could spend decades, encouraging the world, and have spent so long keeping the same encouragement, from reaching my own heart, playing Superwoman and not letting folks/love/moments ALL the way in?
THAT burning bush! I am so thankful God and LIfe turned me aside.
THAT burning bush! Dammit, God and Life, my life would have been so much easier, had you left me alone, in semi darkness, surviving this life, not living it.
THAT burning bush!
WHEW!!
That burning bush is giving me so many opportunities to:
Stand.
Grow.
Love.
Rejoice.
Lament.
Strive.
Cry.
Laugh.
Attempt.
Succeed.
Fail.
Succeed, again.
Fail, again.
Try.
Try.
Try.
Hope.
Yea, that bush has renewed my hope. In myself. In God. In Life. In others.
That bush, helps me to keep trying.
It call to me to keep going. Keep going, Cassandra.
I do.
I will.
I am.
I whisper to you, I encourage you to keep on going, beloveds. Keep going. Keep trusting in yourself. You got this! Don’t be ashamed of what that burning bush, has revealed to you. Do NOT allow the world, the enemy, situations, circumstances, yourself to get down on you for where you are now. You are not ‘JUST’ anything! You have not ‘just’ been tending sheep. You have been doing the best you can, with the knowledge you had to work with, at the time.
Yes, it may have taken more time, years, circumstances then you would have liked, before you were tapped the shoulder, to see your burning bush. Do not lament the time it took. Do not fret about the standing, time, dreams, hopes, aspirations you think you may have lost.
You are STILL winning. You have ALREADY won. The fact you have turned aside, have put down your pride, fear, etc, to look upon your burning bush, is a great victory. THAT burning bush is revealing your freedom. That bush is showing you the way. It will guide you. It will warm you. It will encourage you.
Be encouraged. GOD will explain what THAT burning bush is. It means many things. Be patient, with yourself. Be patient, with others. When we grow, we become different. Folks around us may be uncomfortable with your growth. That’s a ‘their problem’ not a ‘you problem’. Keep on growing. They will either grow with you, go with you, or will get gone, unable to accept your growth. Keep growing.
You do.
You will.
You are.
God and Life just wants us to keep trying. It gets hard, waiting for the results of freedom. Being free comes with a cost. We have to keep giving our ALL. Freedom costs us everything. Yet, we win ALL.
We do.
We will.
We are.
God has our backs. He knows dealing with that burning bush can be trying. Yet, God’s Character, God’s Deep and Abiding Love for us will see us through.
He did.
He will.
He has.
While we are in our ‘in the meantime’, in between growth and walking in complete freedom, continue to:
Why Can't I Be Loud?! 