Yesterday, we lost our cat, Mr. Murphy, due to HCM (Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy). It was very sudden, and never once thought we’d watch him go the way he did. Just 24 hours before, he was creating mischief and making us laugh.

One thing Murphy taught me with that is this – life is too short to focus on the pain. He was obviously sick, but he had enough to just continue being. How amazing is that? He also was just like any other pet – no secret agendas (ok, maybe when you had ham on your possession, but he didn’t make that much of a secret), never lied, nor any other human faults. He saved my life once from a bee by being the best door stop anyone could get, warned my mother of a snake in the house, licked away my tears when I cried once, gave lots of love when we would pick him up, warned us of people with “issues” by attacking them, and even explained once what PCR meant (“Meow meow meow” = “Polymerase Chain Reaction”).

Thing is, as much as I know about the other side and how pets love it, its always hard to come to terms with the death of one. But for now, I know Murphy’s way of communicating during this difficult time was to send me this poem. Hope this brings comfort to all those who have lost a pet.

I’m Still Here

by Anonymous

Your heart has been heavy since that day

The day you thought I went away.

I haven’t left you I never would –

You just can’t see me,though I wish you could.

It might ease the pain that you feel in your heart

The pain that you’ve felt since you believed us to part.

Try and think of it this way,it might help you to see

That I am right here with you and always will be.

Remember the times we were out in the yard,

You could not always see me yet I hadn’t gone far.

That’s how it is now when you look for my face

I’m still right beside you still filling my place.

I find it to be so very sad

That seeing and believing seem to go hand and hand,

The love and the loyalty the warmth that I gave,

You felt them,did not see them,but you believed just the same.

I walk with you now like I walked with you then

My pain is now gone and I lead once again.

My eyes always following you wherever you roam

Making sure you’re okay and you’re never alone.

Our time was too short yet for me it goes on

I won’t ever leave you,I’ll never be gone.

I live in your heart as you live in mine

An enduring love that continues to shine.

That day will come and together we’ll be,

And you’ll say take me home boy,and once again I will lead.

Until that day comes don’t think that I’ve gone

I’m here right beside you,and my love it lives on.

_________________________________

We miss you and love you, papa. See you soon… xoxo <3

Well, to begin, I must say to everyone Happy (belated) World Oceans Day! I hope everyone had an amazing day, filled with fun and joy… seriously, how amazing is it that they were able to incorporate an entire day dedicated to our watery planet?

When I sent out the texts this morning telling everyone “Happy World Oceans Day!”, the majority of the responses were “that’s so sad” or “how ironic”.. when asked how come those responses, they were all tied to the disaster in the Gulf.

Hmm. I can see how disheartening that is.

However, let’s take a good look at what has happened. It’s easy to see the banner “World Oceans Day” and feel bitterness, resentment, anger, or whatever other emotion towards BP, Obama, or whomever else you want to blame for the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.

Moment of Contemplation

But, for the sake of our health, take a moment… see how this has affected all of us… how do we feel?

We feel sadness, yes… why?

Is it because we see sea creatures being in harm’s way?

Is it because we see BP not doing as much as they should?

Is it because we’re watching our communities suffer from not being able to use their ocean resource?

Notice how all of these seem combined in a way?

1) We feel for those that can’t speak for themselves. In each and every one of us, there is a part that wants to save the world.

2) We don’t like people who can’t take responsibility nor get the job done right. I mean, really, who does? No one. That is the part of us that we dislike about ourselves, because whether we admit to it or not, we’ve all done something like that. We learned from our mistakes, but we have all done something along those lines.

3) We feel bitterness when someone else has seemingly taken away your source of providing food and nourishment for yourself and your family. So of course we feel what others feel.

In essence, all we are feeling is ourselves. How amazing is that?

Now, let’s take a look at the oil spill disaster again. Have you woken up? Seem to notice what happens when we live without knowing what we are doing? Because that is essentially the basis behind what happened at BP, and the events that led to disaster.

Feeling bitterness, anger or resentment is exhausting. Let’s take a positive approach. This oil spill can be seen as a blessing in disguise. Why?

- We now know our connection to the ocean is more than just hoping into a car and driving to the beach. Our whole lives are affected by it, and only now are we starting to notice it.

- We all now know what happens when we live unconsciously… go about bee-bopping our way through life without realizing our actions and our thoughts. There is always going to be a consequence to those actions… whether we see them or not is up to us, but sometimes it takes big events such as these to create enough havoc that we notice.

- This may be tied to the last point I made, but it is essential for all of this…

WE HAVE LEARNED TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY.

All those animals, jobs, and people affected by the oil spill have suffered to teach us a lot of different lessons. Think about it carefully next time you want to be sad or upset….

How wonderful is it that because it happened, Obama has postponed exploratory drilling in Alaska?

How wonderful is it that now people are seriously considering alternatives for energy usage?

How wonderful is it that people everywhere are learning to take responsibilities for their actions?

I truly believe it is exhausting to feel anger towards people you believe are responsible for disasters such as these. They do not know what they are doing. It’s really okay.

“How is it okay???” You might ask. It’s okay because the truth of the matter is there will always be consequences to any action, even those made unconsciously. The same people making the “bad” decisions in these situations, or leading to these types of situations, do them for any number of reason, but really they are generally reasons we can all identify with – the need to provide for family, needing to provide for self, sometimes even greed. We have all been there. Try to understand that, put yourself in their shoes when you too lived unconsciously, and understand that there will be consequences for them, so you really don’t ever have to spend your energy on worrying about that. It’ll happen. It is simply the law of cause and effect in play.

So next time someone says something about the oceans, about how wonderful they are, or if they are celebrating it, do not get down on yourself and try to bring everyone else down with you. Because the way I see it, if it wasn’t for the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, here at my home we’d still be worried about Hess really putting an LNG terminal in our bay (read about that here), and it it wasn’t for it happening, we would still be worried about Obama going ahead with exploratory drilling. And most of all, those of us trying to conserve our watery planet would still be trying to make a point across about how important it is for us to save it. In a holistic approach, the earth gave us a big signal, and we have responded.

For all that, I am grateful it occurred. What a wonderful blessing in disguise indeed. Happy World Oceans Day!!

<3

-WaterBaby

Thank you, Stephany Flores Ramirez, for helping him get caught. Your death was not in vain, and sure people may be bitter about Aruba’s corrupt government during the first murder, but the truth is it all works out quite lovely. You get to rest on the other side, and people back here get to learn several lessons, such as being happy for what you have and appreciating it.

Natalee, your death was not in vain either… during an interview, I heard your mom explain that she got to redefine her life and herself, which not many people get to do in their lifetime. Instead of being in a same ol’, same ol’ situation without a real purpose in life, she is now helping millions of people, especially teenagers, who go missing or are simply going on vacation. So thank you.

(And YAYYYYYYY van der Sloot’s run is over! Now he gets to finally learn whatever lessons he’s meant to in this lifetime )

OHM…. peace <3

Why is that, you ask? As radical as this seems, I truly believe we have all lived in every aspect of the equation – good, bad, light, dark, evil, happy, holy, sad, scared, calm, etc. Some believe in other lifetimes, and usually they explain that they lived these feelings and ideals in past lives. However, we have all done good or bad in our lives, and we know it. We have all done shameful things, and we have all done stuff to redeem ourselves. This is simply a process of life. So why do we block ourselves from being compassionate with others who make or have made mistakes? Why do we let this stop us from reaching this inner peace, not only with ourselves, but with our environment?

A few days ago, someone was telling me about a conference call she was in. A person during it seemed to be having trouble with simply letting self-healing occur, since they kept on insisting that the other callers pray for them, especially the moderator. Suddenly someone chimed in, saying “I have lupus, what should I do?” with the calmest voice. Of course, it is easy to say the first person was simply crazy and look, there is someone who is actually sick and is asking what they can do to help themselves. This is an easily frustrating situation, but if you can look at all angles, you will see how to connect with someone who is so disconnected, and help bring them back up. The key? Compassion.

In a normal setting, where people have what we call high values and integrity, it is easy to try to make someone snap out of it. Psychology has brought us tons of remedies, such as medications and psychotherapy. It is tempting to stick to this, but something I have learned is that people don’t respond well when they are told something without the other person seeing them eye to eye. It is easy to get mad and say the person really has no excuse. My general experience with psychologists and psychiatrists is that they will stay in their own energy/vibrational level, and never really see eye to eye with their patients, resulting in a situation where the patient feels like there is really and truly something very wrong with them, giving them no hope for themselves and nor for their doctors.

Feeling their emotions is the key to reaching your inner compassionate heart...

Now, you don’t have to have a degree to help others (obviously, I am still in college). But the key to helping someone is simply seeing them in “Christ” eyes, or “Kwan Yin” eyes (and I don’t say Christ as in christianity, or any religious affiliation, but simply as a model of compassion). See the person as someone who has a lot of potential for good, who IS good, and is simply blocking themselves in some way. In the example with the conference call, you can see someone who is desperate, and they truly believe they are not well (even if they weren’t diagnosed with anything). Now, picture yourself as them… focus on this desperation, the fear, the need to have others caring for you, the constant wanting for something more… Think about what could’ve made them this way.. a traumatic event? Being spoiled as a child? Low self esteem? It can be any number of things… now feel the energy, how low it feels… no wonder they were freaking out, huh? This is essentially the best time to talk to someone, when you can get to that vibrational energy that matches them. Explain that you completely and totally see where they are coming from, that you feel what they feel… trust me, they’ll know you’re there too because when you can match that energy, you can get them to understand why you are trying to help. From there, you can help them with how to get themselves back out.

The key here is to be able to pull yourself back up and know that those feelings you felt were not you right now. They were simply you representing someone else, even if at one point in your life you did something similar.

There are many examples to use this for – something I plan on writing more about. Every aspect of your life, you can do this. It is easy to judge someone and say you would never do that because you have never done anything like that or even conceive something like that. It can be from terrorists to simply people who make a small bank error. You CAN feel what others feel, it just takes a bit more work than normal for us.

Please remember, if you cannot get yourself to a different energy level and be able to pick yourself up, it is essential that you work on you first before you do anything like that. A lot of emotional people can’t handle more emotions other than their own. It is essential that they work on themselves first.

Stay tuned for my next blog on another example where you can get yourself to feel others’ emotions and practice compassion. In the mean time, try to see how others view their own world, especially someone you find particularly frustrating.

Love always,

WaterBaby

Are you ready?

HAHA Sorry, you just have to have a little fun during this!

You’re going to be a bit upset with me, since initially this seems very easy.

Step 1) Make a list of the characteristics and features you want in your dream partner. Yes, this includes even the strangest things that you like in your partner (ie. thermal shirt affinity, nose ring, ability to drive with one hand). ANYTHING! Put it on this list!

Step 2) Make sure the list includes personality characteristics, such as “Wants a commitment” or “Emotionally brave”, whatever you want, even something like “eco-conscious” or “sensitive” can make it on the list. Again, something you admire and are willing to live with.

Step 3) Take a look at the list. What is reflecting on that piece of paper that you want in yourself as well? Trust me, there is usually something on these lists that seem to make the partner have to compensate one’s own weaknesses.

Step 4) Put the list away – in your underwear drawer, in a binder, sofa… Just remember where it is.

Step 5) Forget about it being there, and begin working on yourself so you can embody that person you want to attract into your life. If time gets tough, it is okay to pull out the list and look at it, using it as a friendly reminder of why you are doing this.

Step 5 is usually the kicker for most people. See, it is easy to play the blaming game – blaming it on meeting the wrong people all the time, the whole “why me” thought process starts to kick in, and eventually the person simply doesn’t feel worthy but still expects for the list to magically appear in front of you. This can happen, and you may seem happy at first, but because you didn’t work on yourself, it’ll be a temporary situation (temporary as in it may lasts years and years, but not a lifetime).

Another symptom of not having gone through step 5 is usually seen in situations where there is “forbidden love”. Listen, let’s be real here, there is no such thing as it – we have the power to conquer anything nowadays. Long gone are the days where parents made influences on their children’s decisions, where classes are so stratified that people do not mix (although they could’ve back then, but nowadays its normal to hear about the maid marrying the homeowner), where races can’t mix. 10 year old Nujood Ali proved us this with her divorce. It doesn’t necessarily have to be this drastic, but I hear a lot about people finding the “one” and yet there are circumstances separating them. It’s okay. Don’t think that way. Because in truth, if you were on the right path with number 5, you wouldn’t encounter these issues because you have accepted that you are, really and truly, ready and worthy of a healthy relationship. Meaning if you encounter this, there is something going on inside of you that is preventing you from finding the healthy relationship you long for.

For this blog entry, I highly encourage you do these exercises, but read Dr. Wayne Dyer’s article as well. Can you imagine that the thing that saved your life was simply your journey to meet the one, not necessarily when you actually meet them? Simply amazing

All the love,

WaterBaby

I’m sure by now, everyone has heard about the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that occured three days ago. It isn’t something that we like to hear, it can be a very negative topic to talk about. However, it seems that the earthquake is a large-scaled physical representation of what happens within all of us every once in a while to help shift our lives into better paths.

Haiti has undergone many disasters, with earthquakes being a norm in the small country. It seemed though that everyone was waiting for a “big” one, since it was overdue. Please read this article to help give you some idea of what the country was like beforehand. With the way that Troutman explains in the article, it appears the earthquake was something to help make disaster planning a bit more imperative. I am sure it isn’t easy to swallow – hundreds of people have been reported dead or missing, and many more injured. My heart goes out to them everyday, and with every inch of me, I wish I could go down and help, too. 

But I couldn’t help but think… It seems each of us undergo our own earthquakes. We get stuck in situations we don’t particularly like, or are just decently content… until something rattles our lives to help make it so much better. Many of us get stuck in dead end jobs, relationships or lifestyles. We think there’s nothing better, so why bother? But, you see, there is something much better. That’s why catastrophic events occur – either physically or spiritually – so we can get to where we really deserve and desire to be.

You might be thinking “oh no, where is she getting at now???”. I am hoping to bring into light what good has come out of Haiti, and reflect that unto our own lives.

The positive outcomes of Haiti’s earthquake:

1) Now the priority of disaster planning has been brought to light. It is something that reached out to the rest of the world, so we can help our fellow men.

2) Starting new – imagine how much help will be coming in, cleaning up the area, and assisting the society to rise up a bit more. There is now possibility of charities working to help build schools, or create infrastructure that delivers clean water to many citizens.

3) The people who died during the earthquake are helping their surviving loved ones appreciate what they have around them, including other loved ones. This is not an easy task, many will victimize themselves and not see the bigger picture, which is normal because we’re always taught that it is okay to be a victim. But the truth is, there is a huge blessing in the loss of someone special. There are many messages each person can see and read clearly.

4) People who are interacting at this very moment are, in some way, affecting and impacting each other in a positive manner – simply because they are helping each other. It takes the strength of a community to get back to normal, and it is a wonderful opportunity for every single person to be touched in some way. The way I see it, the earthquake happened to help billions of people. I don’t mean just the Haitians, but the rest of the world, because we can all learn something, feel grateful, and meet others who are undergoing the same lessons. How beautiful is that?

The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami helped teach us very similar lessons. One of my favorite ones was the rise in mangrove forest conservation. If you’re not familiar with this, it is simply that mangrove trees grow in saltwater, that used to grow in abundance along the sea coast of many warmer to temperate climate regions. It is known they help buffer tsunamis and storm surges, as well as serving as nurseries for juvenile and larval forms of marine organisms, along with habitats of endemic birds and many more species. But due to development and human impact, they have been declining. However, there was proof that where there were thriving mangrove forests, the citizens in the corresponding areas didn’t feel the same impact of the tsunami as the surrounding areas without mangroves did. This helped bring awareness of what is essentially ocean conservation, as well as advanced tsunami warning systems. Imagine the good that will come out of the Haiti earthquake.

Now, let’s compare that to our “personal earthquakes” – these may include economic issues in the household, the death of a loved one, a relationship break up or strain, and many more. Sometimes we have all these things happening at once, and we feel like we can’t handle it. But it is obvious the human soul is resilient, because we’re still here after all this time.

Look at your life journey – did anything ever happen where you felt like the earth had crumbled beneath your feet, and suddenly your life was in shambles? What happened afterward? Do you now have a wonderful, grateful worthy life? Maybe you’re going through something similar as you’re reading this. This is something the ancients called “Dark Night of the Soul“. We undergo a big transformation, all so we can finally get back on a healthy and happy track. But, of course, at the moment we can’t see that light at the end of the tunnel.

Well, my dear friends… the light is there. As Andrew Harvey says in his book “The Hope“, the light you can’t see has been there all along. You just can’t see that clearly because it is so bright, similar to when you stare at the sun for too long.

I will take my “personal earthquake” as an example. For about over a year, I have had to undergo a huge transformation. It was many big events that occurred in this period of time, where it is easy for a person to give up and just go home. When it began, I remember sitting on the floor of my dorm room in the summer of 2008, crying my eyes out and feeling hopeless. Shortly after, we had another situation occur, one that made me even more exasperated. After that, it was one thing after another, and soon my life seemed to be really in shattered pieces. However, during that time, I met some of the most amazing people left and right. It was as if they were placed there for a reason – and all of which understood or knew my situation, helping me gain some hope.

One day, I decided to sit down and look at what was around me. I had not only encountered people who helped me, but suddenly I was helping and impacting others. It turned out to be a huge ripple effect – from the series of “bad” news, there was a lot of good that came out and reached forward to everyone like a vine growing on the side of a house. Soon, I began to notice those people helping other people, and well, you get the picture.

It seems the “bad” situations weren’t “bad” at all. It has been the most beautiful series of blessings I have ever encountered in my life. I view my life now and always as beautiful; I have security and abundance flowing from all directions, and I continue encountering and impacting people along the way. If it weren’t for the relentless tearing my life apart, limb by limb, I wouldn’t be here typing to you.

Message: Find your blessings in every situation, and always know everything is as it should be – meaning, you are okay, and you are safe.

As we enter into the new year, plenty of people are thinking about having that “special someone”. Some of you feel lucky, while others feel exasperated and lonely. It seems the holidays can do this to some, and that is a perfectly normal human response. But let’s take that response and use it so you don’t feel so bad anymore, meaning we end up eventually getting what we really want. Ready?

I’m not sure how many times I have said that what you think about, you bring about. If you’re not feeling okay with being lonely, meaning you’re not okay with being with yourself, then you’ll just attract someone with the same qualities, with the following chain of reactions: who will then not feel satisfied with you because how could they, if they can’t be satisfied with themselves? (and vice versa). This is a large hurdle many don’t see, they just assume it can be fixed by finding that “special someone”. But, ah, my friends… the universe and the laws of physics just don’t work that way… even when you think we defied those laws, something will always come out and rear it’s ugly head…

Let’s start with why starting a relationship (or trying to) when you’re not ready might be a bad idea…

1) You’re attracting the worst kind of people… you think you’ve found “the one” and instead you’re finding the snakes… This could be a dangerous time, because out of your desperation, you’re not seeing people for who they really are.

2) You settle. Yup. You settle for the one you think you can’t do better.

3) You can make some pretty dumb mistakes – un-planned pregnancies (out of the need to have someone there permanently because you feel lonely or you’re getting “old”), drunken vegas-style wedding, impromptu engagements (after a short courting period), moving in together – all for the sake that you think you really need someone else in your life to fill it up.

4) You’ll hurt people because later on, you’ll realize they’re not the one. It’s not only painful for them, but in a sense it’ll become painful for you. Guilt eats up everyone, even the unlikely.

5) The dependency factor becomes too heavy, sometimes you’ll be too dependent on that person for your own happiness, and that is not mature love.

So let’s take these reasons and place the positive approach to them:

1) These fatal attractions can be used as your “alarm systems” – When you suddenly come face to face with a “messed up” individual, trust your gut instincts (let’s face it, everyone has them! Use them!), and back off. Then think to yourself “why did I attract them? What is going on inside of me that is manifesting out here?”. Use that to your advantage, because essentially it’s the universe’s way of telling you something is very wrong, and you need to fix it. And plus, it’s easier to fix yourself than trying to fix someone else, so don’t go against the current here.

2) YOU CAN DO BETTER. OK let’s do this together. Ready?

“I DESERVE THE VERY BEST IN MY LIFE! I deserve to be loved, to be admired, and to only attract the very best in my life. I now attract that dream person in my life, and I am very excited to meet them!”

Rinse and repeat.

This is so true. Everyone deserves the best, everyone can have the best, and everyone has the potential for ANYTHING. Use that power to your advantage, and start moving those electrons and waves in the right way. It is only when you believe it that it will happen.

3) Oh, we’ve all seen these in our friends, huh? It’s heartbreaking to watch. First off, I am a bit sensitive (sorry to be partial, but it is my biggest calling – to try to be the best mother possible to my children, and to my pets) about bringing someone else into the mix just to make you feel better and not so alone, especially babies, boyfriends/girlfriends, and even pets. They’re all huge responsibilities, think about it way before hand. A common mistake nowadays has to be “unplanned” pregnancies, which is mainly due to a lax in our society where illegitimacy isn’t viewed as a terrible scandal anymore. To me, I think everything has a blessing in disguise, but the biggest blessing is realizing you can’t try to have a child just to fill some gap in your heart. But I have a deep feeling that that realization comes quickly when you’re up at 2am trying to change the diaper of a colic baby .

Impromptu engagements have been around for ages. This is normal, but it isn’t fair to your heart, nor to the other person. You really need to see if this is the person you are willing to make a commitment to, and form a balanced family unit with. For this to happen, you need time and patience with yourself first, and then with that person.Don’t worry, time never runs out, because time is just an illusion. Be happy that our dating rules are different than they were 100 years ago, so date someone and really get to know them.

All the other mistakes are tied together. Use these mistakes as your life lessons – what did they teach you? That’s right… desperation leads to idiocy. Learn to be patient in everything you do.

4) This is so heartbreaking for everyone… here’s another lesson to learn: Desperation leads to eventual heartbreak for all parties involved. But I am not a fan of guilt – it doesn’t help you or anyone, so when you feel this gremlin creeping up on you, squash it, because everything happened for a reason.

5) How will you ever be truly, 100% satisfied when you aren’t satisfied enough with yourself? When you didn’t take the time to learn to love you, you won’t ever find the love with someone else, regardless of how nice situations look at the moment. They eventually fall apart because the foundations weren’t laid out or weren’t strong enough. In every relationship where a person wasn’t happy about themselves that I have seen, the dependency factor was huge. They can have a bad day, and depend on the other person to make it better. It doesn’t work that way. Take this as a lesson, and learn to make yourself happy because you are a happy being. And soon, you will see that you don’t depend on your significant other. Trust me when I say that is wayyy more attractive to them than someone who thinks you’re their only hope (sorry Nicholas Sparks).

So please sit there and think about what you have done lately for you. Not for someone else, not to get someone else, but for yourself. I want you to think about how much you enjoy your time alone, where you easily amuse yourself, and those friends of yours that have stuck by you no matter what. Think about those accomplishments in your life where you did them 100% on your own. Did you ever think you had a purpose in life? If so, what do you think it is? Think about the times you were alone and there was no one else there, how did you get through it? Remember, in the pain is the healing. What did your last heartbreak teach you about yourself?

Write these down – look at them over. If you feel a grudge against someone or something, write a nasty letter to them and then burn it. Feel the healing you felt during that. Then look at how much you have accomplished. How amazing you are! Every single person has that special quality.

Conclusion:

It is only when you are 100% positive that you deserve the best, because you are the best, that you receive the love everyone so covets.

I love this quote below, but I must tweak it:
Infantile love follows the principle: “I love because I am loved.”
Mature love follows the principle: “I am loved because I love.” – everything about me and around me, which includes you.
Immature love says: “I love you because I need you.”
Mature love says: “I need you because I love you.” – but I can be happy without you because I know the best always comes to me.

So my dear friends, relax and bask in your glory! See the light shining from you. Realize your true self and how wonderful you are.

For the ladies: A famous mentor of mine once told me something that stuck with me. Do work on your self-esteem, if not for yourself, then think about your children (existant or hypothetical), especially if you have daughters. When the mother is insecure, the child, and usually with emphasis on the daughter(s), mirrors the same undesirable quality. So do you want that for your child? (If you want some hardcore help with this, feel free to fill out Dee’s action plan here… She’s the very lady who helped me out.)

When you do work on you… you can move onto the next step… “The List”… … coming soon…

xoxo

-WaterBaby

Random Fact: Snowflake picture taken after the water was introduced to the words "Love and Gratitude"...

I just want want to say I am so grateful for my family (the few but true), my friends (shipmates, classmates, labmates, and of course the ones who are there regardless of not having anything in common other than quoting Family Guy all day, lol), and all those teachers and professors that have come into my life (because school is my absolute favorite place in the world).

But… I want to say thank you, most of all, to those from past hurts, the ones who made me feel struggle and made me reach the very bottom of the pit – “my dark night of the soul“. You were my biggest blessings in disguises. You taught me the most important values in life – forgiveness, gratitude, and love. Without you, I wouldn’t recognize the light shining so brightly coming from ME. <3

(lol, wasn’t my intention for it to look like a Christmas tree… but I love it! If you’re not on the tree, trust me, you’re still being thought about in my heart. I just let my OCD get the best of me, and didn’t want to make the tree too obnoxiously big, hehe)

xoxo

-Water Baby

During my last visit to VA, a friend (Thanks Becky!) pointed out a lot of things, such as the fact that he is still a human being. Heck, if we didn’t make mistakes, we wouldn’t be human. We are all here to learn a lesson. So of course I was conflicted, I wondered to myself how could I forgive such a person, because from the bottom of my heart I love watching the progress of the Michael Vick dogs (see here), and it wasn’t easy to watch how poorly injured they were when they were admitted. BUT… these dogs are little messengers (as I’m convinced all dogs are). They came here to have Michael Vick caught, and to have him learn the big lesson he needed to learn this lifetime. This never ever means a person is “bad” or “awful”, it simply means they lived fairly unconsciously without really thinking about the repercussions from his actions. In other words, he did something a lot of people do everyday. And more than the average amount of people out there live rather unconsciously, just living on a day to day basis without knowing they are the masters of their lives.

With this action to go speak in front of students about dogfighting and the ugly side of it, I believe Michael Vick is balancing what he screwed up. I’m sure a lot of people will say he HAD to do it, but the truth is every action we take, whether we want to or not, helps shape us into who we are. Eventually, it leads to us learning our lessons and becoming a better version of ourselves.

To answer the initial question, I must say he is the perfect person to talk about this subject. He has seen it, he has been punished for it, and now he is going to other schools to make sure children of his old social status do not make the same mistakes he made. It is like having someone talk to you about not doing drugs when they themselves haven’t tried them or seen the bad effects, other than what they see on TV. Would you want that person talking to your children? Most likely not. So, I would love to have Michael Vick talk to my (hypothetical) children!

I have to say compassion is the toughest lesson of all. We look up to people who practice(d) it, but never realize that we have that ability ourselves. We all do. That is something that will make your life brighter, your soul a little lighter, and the smile on your face easier to form.

If there’s something I’ve learned in my whole life, it is that everyone is a good person. You just have to give them a little bit of time and a chance to show it.

xoxo

-Water Baby

I saw this video thanks to a friend of mine yesterday. I need to show it to everyone – it is proof that if you give anyone a chance, may it be a human or an animal, they will show you their kind side. Leopard seals have terrified me for most of my life, so seeing this made me relax and realize there’s always a good side, we just have to wait a while to see it.

Much love,

WaterBaby. xoxo