Blended Family – The Good Vibes Only Roadshow

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – I Saw The Light

When I was growing up, I remember when someone made a great choice in life, my Mom used to always say, “They Saw The Light!” Meaning, they got it, they were on the right track, and they were moving in the right direction. Moving forward in a positive way in life.

We all have moments, where we feel we are stumbling around in the dark, not knowing what to do, which way to turn, who to reach out too, needing someone to show us the way, feeling stuck, and just frustrated and confused. I like to believe, we learn the best lessons during this time in our lives. We learn to turn the light on!

We have more control in our lives than we think, especially when it comes to going through difficult times. It is our panic and frustration that like to keep us in the dark. The key is to just keep breathing through it all. Remain calm and before you know it, the panic and anxiety will leave. Before you know it, that light will start shimmering, start twinkling and there it is, and nice bright light. That is when you will take the best breath in and the best breath out! Your shoulders will relax back to where they are suppose to be, instead of up by our ears, your eyes will not look like daggers, and the vice grip around your head, will no longer be there.

I love looking forward to seeing the light in different situations. The minute a challenging issue appears, I stop and think to myself, “I can’t wait to see what I’m going to learn now!” Just changing my mindset about a difficult situation, has taught me to relax more. No anxiety!

Give it a try! You may just see the light!

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – I Saw The Light!

Photo Credit: Rhett Wesley

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – There Are A Million Reasons

Every single day, there are so many reasons to be uninspired, depressed, and crabby. Yet, there are a million reasons to be happy! I’ve seen and known so many people, who just can’t allow themselves to be happy; they enjoy living in the world that thrives on envy, jealousy, gossip, back-stabbing, and just a complete negative existence. Exhausting!!

I look forward to waking up each day, I look forward to smiling, I look forward too seeing the beauty in the smallest thing, and I look forward to seeing my family. I look forward to the color of the sky, the squirrels running all over our backyard, the groundhogs peeking out from their hiding spot, and the joy this entertainment in our backyard brings to my daughters face.

I look forward to looking at old pictures, listening to old music, watching old movies, and reading stories and articles from many years ago. I look forward to writing, I look forward to blogging, I look forward to writing music, and I look forward to all the creativity that floats around in my brain all day long.

I look forward to cooking a healthy meal, I look forward to reading old recipes that were passed down from my Mom, I look forward to doing dishes with my daughter, and I look forward to creating a great dessert for afterwards with a nice cup of coffee.

I know after reading all of that, you get the idea. Here is the thing, I didn’t even leave the house in order to find my reasons to be happy. Our happiness starts with us, starts in our home, starts with our lifestyle, and starts with how we love ourselves.

Remember, there are a million reasons to be happy!

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – There Are A Million Reasons!

Photo credit: Brigitte Tohm

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – Sing Like A Bird

I’d like to tell you a little story about how important it is to have a voice; not just for singing, but to be who you are meant to be!

When I was 19 years old, which by the way, seems like yesterday (I’m proud to say I’m still 19 just with 33 years experience at it), I could sing! Boy could I sing! I would be in my bedroom in front of the mirror, just like so many more before and after me, visualizing singing on stage to thousands of people. The music filled my heart so much it ached for more! All I wanted to do was sing, not just to entertain, but more so to feel my heart and passion come alive! Nothing compared to that feeling I had when I sang.

At this time, and with the help of some great friends, I secretly planned my parents 25th Wedding Anniversary. Aside from planning the food, beverages, cake, and decorations, I also planned the entertainment – ME! I was going to face my stage fright and perform all their favorite songs. I did not have a band, all I had were the cassette tapes of these songs; it was going to have to do, as I was ready to sing over any voice that was on those tapes.

I needed to sing like a bird!

The evening was a huge hit, it was a surprise, and everyone invited showed up! It was now time to perform! I started with a classic song by The Judds, for those of you who don’t know who they are, they are a mother/daughter duo who would now compare to the raspy voice of Pink but yet the gentleness of Adele. They are really the only artists I can compare them too. I’m sure after I post this, more will come to mind.

I will never forget, after hitting some higher notes, and keeping the attention of the guests, my Uncle looked at me, with a shocked looked on his face which later turned to the confused dog look, then looked over at his two sons (who were successful in their businesses) who had the same look on their faces. After I finished singing that song, all I heard was, “that’s it! We are taking you to LA and we are getting you a contract!” I didn’t think much of it, until the next day when they called me and said, “are you ready for a career in music?”

I froze! Instant fear came over me and I hung up the phone.

I couldn’t allow myself to believe I was good enough; instantly I had every insecurity possible show up in my mind. My heart was aching for the opportunity, but my mind took over and I went on with my life.

My life brought me to a point where I lost my voice; not just to be able to sing, but to be who I really wanted to be. I was lost! Fear took over and I was lost in a place where I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t freely be me, a place where I didn’t exist. Anxiety set in and quickly I became the voice that sounded like a cat having a stroke. I lost my voice; I lost my passion.

Years went by, and knowing how my voice now could not carry a tune, I stayed quiet. I would mouth words to songs on the radio, but I would not open up to let my voice be heard. It was breaking me down more and more every single day. I never realized just how important it was to have a voice, and to be able to sing like a bird.

I became stifled in more ways than just singing. I needed to be heard, I needed to find a way to become a strong woman in this world and I needed to regain my passions in life. I just didn’t have the ability to be able to sing, but it was funny how my low self-esteem affected everything. My voice of all things was muted!

Many years later, life changed me, experiences changed me, wisdom changed me, this blog changed me, and my followers helped me to see my voice through my writing was an inspiration to others. My voice was being heard again!

I now have the fueled passion to sing like a bird again! I now have the need in my life to let it out! I now have nothing to hide! I am going to sing again! I am going to be heard and it doesn’t matter if I’m not on key, or if I sound like shattering glass, I will sing! Why? Because it is so important to have your voice heard, whether you sing, whether you want to talk, whether you have something to say, whether you are tired of being muted by the World, and whether you just want to say, “here I am, I exist in this World too!”

Sing Like A Bird My Friends, Sing Like A Bird!

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – Sing Like A Bird!

Photo Credit: Felecia Buitenwerf

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – Sharing Dreams

When you are passionate about a dream you have for your life, all you want to do is share your vision with enthusiasm with whomever will listen. You want to share what is making you feel happy! There is nothing wrong with this concept and you should share; unfortunately, some people may not be in the same mindset as you are when it comes to sharing something positive.

Don’t fear their reaction, don’t worry if you have insulted them by sharing your positive vibe, and please do not let it stop you from pursuing your dreams! I’m sure you have heard this before, “when you hear a No, this does not mean it won’t become a Yes one day!” This is the same concept with sharing passions to negative people. Just because they are negative now, does not mean it won’t become a positive eventually. Who knows, maybe by sharing your dreams, this is what is needed for them to change their own mindset and start looking for their own dream to be passionate about. You might just be an inspiration to someone else.

Never stop sharing, never stop being passionate about your hopes, your dreams, or your goals in life, and never stop talking to people about them. When you share, you inspire! When you share, you are showing hope! When you share, you are showing a drive for something great!

The short form is this:

Inspire those with hope, to find something great!

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – Sharing Dreams!

Photo Credit: William Bay

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – A Beautiful Mind Is Found In All Of Us!

A Beautiful Mind is found in all of us!

There are times in life, we may meet people who have nothing but negativity in their minds; please understand, this is temporary. A Beautiful Mind is created from life experiences; good and bad.

In my experience, it is easy to judge those based on their choices they made many years ago; how silly is this concept. Think about it! If someone made a bad decision when they were 19 years old (and I don’t mean something illegal, I mean something minor), but yet as they matured, lived a life, and at 50 years old they were still judged based on the bad decision they made 31 years ago, what a shame! These people could have become someone unique, wise, caring, compassionate, and loving; to not want anything to do with this person over something they did 31 years ago, you are the ones missing out.

You are the ones missing out on a Beautiful Mind!

Yes, there are individuals who never understand they have the potential to have a beautiful mind, but it is because they didn’t think they had any support, any love, or anyone to go to for help. They settled thinking they didn’t have any choices. We have so many options in our World, we need to encourage those who are hurting to reach out. Their beautiful mind is worth it.

What do all negatives need? They need a positive to balance it out. Never settle for any negative that is floating around in your mind; know there is always a positive to lean on and to gain wisdom from. Your beautiful mind deserves the attention, it deserves care, it deserves comfort, and it deserves forgiveness. A beautiful mind is created when we understand we are here to learn, to focus our intentions in a positive way, and to encourage others to do the same.

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – A Beautiful Mind Is Found In All Of Us!

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – My Wish List!

My Wish List!

My wish list is about you, my supporters, my family, and my friends; this is what I wish for you:

For everyone to follow their passions in life

To make healthy choices

To be safe

To wake up with gratitude in your heart

To love yourself first

To practice acts of kindness every single day

To smile

To fill your day with positive comments

To practice compassion

To empathize with souls who are struggling

To encourage others to step out of their comfort zone for just a moment

To pause during the day and reflect on how precious life is

To find it in your heart to forgive yourself

To find it in your heart to forgive others

To not judge others based on assumption

To be an ear for someone who just needs you to listen

To take a moment to journal and listen to your thoughts

To love unconditionally

To learn something new

To not put pressure on yourself; you are doing the best you can

To ask questions

To share your wisdom

and most of all…

To share with others what I have shared with you.

Wish great things and let other people know that they are thought of, that they matter, and that you sincerely care about their well-being.

Share Love, Don’t Hate, Life is Short, Appreciate!

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – My Wish List!

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – Get Your Thoughts Out!

There are times in life where, due to respect, we simply do not say what we “want” to say, but instead we say what we “need” to say. Have you ever been in that position? You really want to say what your mind wants to say, but realize it would hurt someone’s feelings, you then bottle it up.

That is called respecting someone’s feelings. We all have a difference of opinion, that is what makes us unique; however, at times, and in certain conversations or discussions, we don’t look at it that way. We just look at it as, “why don’t they see, my opinion is right!!” When this happens, it means you have strong convictions towards your beliefs. There is nothing wrong with that either.

The key is this:

It is very important to understand we are all different, we all need to be heard, and we all need to respect others opinions as well. If we want to be heard and understood, then why wouldn’t someone else want that in their lives? That is the main question here. Makes you think, doesn’t it?

In order to keep a conversation smooth and calm, when it could go the other way, we need to stop and think before we speak. It isn’t always necessary to voice an opinion, when all the other person wants is to be heard. Which means, you just need to listen.

At times, this can cause a bit of frustration in our lives; not being able to voice an opinion, especially if it is different than the person you are listening too. You do have an option; write your thoughts down on paper.

It works! I have done this many times, and I’ve felt a sense of relief afterwards. With respect towards the person I’ve been listening too, it was clear they needed to just be heard and for me to listen, I did not comment, I simply gave compassion.

I’ve used a journal to write down my thoughts towards a situation; this doesn’t mean I don’t like the person I was conversing with, it just means, I still wrote out my opinions on a “topic” in order for me to get my own thoughts out. In a way, the paper was listening to what the pen was writing, without commenting. A different perspective, but it works!

We all have thoughts that we need to get out, every now and then, and it is important to do so. No need to bottle up emotions, write them down! There are times we cannot say certain things out loud, but our paper will listen without judgement, without criticism, and without a hurtful response.

Start your own journal and give it a try; remember you don’t need to mention any names, just get your thoughts out about your opinions of different situations. In showing respect for others, you are showing respect for yourself by creating this exercise.

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – Get Your Thoughts Out!

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – Hold My Hand

Hold My Hand and give me comfort

Hold My Hand and give me joy

Hold My Hand and give me kindness

Hold My Hand and be my friend

❤

Hold My Hand and show me support

Hold My Hand and protect me from fear

Hold My Hand and show me the way

Hold My Hand and be my teacher

❤

Hold My Hand and walk with me

Hold My Hand and show me my future

Hold My Hand and we will grow together

Hold My Hand and be my love

❤

With Good Vibes Only – Hold My Hand

Photo credit: Valentin Antonucci

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – Going Back Home

For a very long time, I’ve wanted to be able to go back to my hometown to visit, but life always seemed to hand out more to deal with. Was this the Universe trying to tell me, I wasn’t meant to go back home? Then the Pandemic hit, and now it was going to be even longer before I could even think of heading back home. I found myself “in the meantime” and needing to make use out of this time.

Instead of feeling sad and lonely, I decided to get creative, I decided to visualize what it would be like going back home, I decided to embrace myself with the memories of a better time. My memories took me on a journey throughout my life; instead of feeling stuck in the past, I found myself healing my need to visit and healing the void. I was moving forward! At this time, I was still on a journey in my memories. Why was I experiencing a different perspective?

Was it because, I’ve grown “again” in a short period of time? Was it because, I was not taking my life I live now for granted? Was I showing more appreciation for the “now”, rather than the “past”? Were my memories creating more awareness for me? I was learning, I was letting go, and I was clearing out my mind, body and soul for new experiences. The past was fading into the distant; I blew it a kiss and waved good-bye. As I just had a beautiful visit; one I will cherish forever.

I have no regrets, I have great memories, I have lessons I’ve learned from, and I have friends that are dear to my heart. Sometimes, we don’t necessarily need to go back in the physical form, but instead we can go back in our minds and move forward.

I have learned that when devastation hit with this Pandemic, my first instinct was to run “home”. I couldn’t get back to my hometown fast enough! In reality, I hadn’t been home for 14 years, so why now all of a sudden was it so important for me to go home? I’ve come to the conclusion, home is comforting. I was needing the comfort as, along with everyone else, I was nervous and a bit scared as to what this Pandemic was going to be like. We had never experienced anything like it before.

Things started to become the new normal and we were able to understand the situation much better. Everything is a learning experience.

I now know, that if given the opportunity to one day visit my hometown, I can now do it with a sense of Peace and gratitude for the town that made me who I am today.

With Good Vibes Only – Going Back Home!

The Good Vibes Only Roadshow – Have You Lost Your Way?

Do you feel as though you have lost your way? It is almost a childlike feeling; when a child is feeling scared and lonely in this great big World we live in. Even though we have all felt at times, lost in our way, I’m not going to say, “I understand, exactly what you are going through and how you feel”, because each experience is different. Each experience should be treated differently.

Each experience should be recognized. Each experience should be acknowledged. Each experience should be comforted.

We tend to blame ourselves when we are in a position where we feel lost, but before you go down that road, just remind yourself, sometimes the World changes and takes over the control for just a bit of time. Sometimes, things happen in the World that put us in a tiny state of shock for a moment; it isn’t anything we have done, it is just circumstances that get out of control.

That’s when we “take our control” back! We slowly find our way again! We find options, we find a new way of thinking, we find comfort, we find answers, and we find a sense of peace within reach.

We cannot let something that is not in our control, control “our way”. No matter what, “our way” is, it will remain that way. “Our Way”, is what we own, it is also, “our why” in life. When you know “why” you are passionate about something in your life, then that becomes your way! You will never lose “your way”; it is always with you.

The next time you feel as though you have lost your way, just take a moment and breathe, sit in silence and remind yourself, your way is always there. Find your grounding, find your center, find your clarity, it is within you as well. In that moment of silence, listen to your breath, listen to your heart telling you, “I’m here”.

With Good Vibes Only – Have You Lost Your Way?

Picture credit: Paul Hutton