On this show the cast looks for people in need of a new life and a leg up. They find families who have had hard times and are living in horrible conditions trying to hold it all together. When they find these families, they rebuild the house, give the family their dream vacations and in short, make a really huge difference in someone’s life in the space of  7 days.

My roomie always laughs at me when I say if I had that much money to do something like that with, I would do it. But it’s true. When I have it, I give it. Even when I don’t have it, I give it.

And that’s about the time Wendi has to put the breaks on before I end up giving everything away. Oh, but she does it with a smile.

What I’ve realized over the years is you don’t need a lot of money to make a difference in someone’s life. Changing a life could be something as small as a kind word at just the right time, or donating your services for a good cause, or even as simple as sending an email to put one friend in touch with the resources she desperately needs at that very moment.

Mom always did say the best things came in small packages, and Hope is the smallest package of all.

It’s okay to make really, really stupid mistakes, then feel like a complete imbecile when you realize what you did wrong.
You’re not an imbecile, I promise.

It’s okay to step outside your comfort zone.
It’s okay to make a complete fool of yourself.
It’s okay to laugh at yourself.
It’s okay if other people laugh at you.

It’s okay to procrastinate, and keep putting off things that really, really scare you.
But most of the time, it feels better to just get it over with.

It’s okay to shut the entire world out, if you need a day to yourself.
It’s okay to scream and yell and curse out your computer if it makes you feel better.
It’s okay to blast some music and have your own private dance party, when things get to be too much.
It’s okay to decide that it’s time for that vacation that you never have time for.

It’s okay if you need a shoulder to cry on, when every stupid little thing keeps going wrong.
Even if none of it really matters.

It’s okay if some days you need everything to be all about you.
It’s okay if you can’t always be grateful, even if others aren’t as lucky as you.
It’s okay if the dishes pile up in the sink, from time to time.
It’s okay to completely slack off, once in a while.

It’s okay to ignore what everyone else insists you do, and just do what you need to do, for you.
Even if they don’t approve.

It’s okay not to be the perfect husband, wife, mother, father, sister, brother, boyfriend, girlfriend, daughter, son, employee, boss…
It’s okay to just be 100% you.
It’s okay to demand that people love you for you, and not for who they want you to be.
It’s okay to refuse to conform.

It’s okay to be weird, awkward, shy, quiet, antisocial, loud, overly social, hyperactive, unfashionable, easily forgettable, or have an obnoxious laugh.
Some people find that charming. And they’re probably the people you’d rather be around anyways.

It’s okay to love.
Even if you’re going to get hurt.
It’s okay to give your all.
Even if you’re going to be taken advantage of.

It’s okay to care more about others’ happiness than your own.
Even if people are going to take you for granted.
It’s okay to go above and beyond for people, even if you know you won’t get anything in return.
It’s still worth it.

It’s okay if you needed this reminder.
So did I.

It’s okay.

Ships that pass in the night, and speak each in passing, only a signal shown and a distant voice in the darkness; so on the ocean of life, we pass and speak one another, only a look and a voice, then darkness again and a silence.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

It is easy to be a ship that sails alone on the ocean of of life.

Well, to be honest, I happen to think it is the most difficult way to go about life. So, perhaps I should rephrase and state that I think it is painfully easy to slip into the pattern of sailing alone. Even when we don’t want to. Even when we’ve made it a point to try and look around and be there for others, reach out a helping hand and be aware of the other ships sailing out in the ocean besides us.

It’s still hard. We are conditioned from very early in life to “Stand up for ourself.” “Be Tough.” “Be Independent.”

We all know that “When the going gets tough…the tough_________Get going.”   That’s right. You knew the answer. No way did your mind start to fill in that blank with start hollering for help!

We aren’t conditioned to ask for help, and we don’t know how to feel about it when it’s presented to us. A lot of us don’t know how to keep our eyes out for those who might need it, and if and when we do stumble on to someone who does look like they could benefit from a helping hand, we hesitate, not knowing if we should get involved for fear of insulting them or making them feel bad.

Somewhere along the line we’ve been sold a bill of goods. Somewhere we picked up some erroneous belief that if we “handle life on our own” quietly and without complaint  that we will have have achieved some zen-like courageous level of success on par with the Lone Ranger and Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry Character.

I’d like to go on record as saying I think both of those men’s lives weren’t worth the dust on their shoes.

They were both lonely empty men who didn’t know how to share their lives with anyone. They harbored hero  complexes and carried the weight of the world on their shoulders without being able to depend on anyone to be there for them. Ever. They kept all of their emotions locked up tight inside, sharing nothing with nobody,and in the end-they rode off into the dusty sunset-ALONE.

This isn’t Zen. This isn’t heroic. This is afraid.

Afraid to reach out, afraid to be less then perfect, afraid to be needy, afraid to be needed, afraid to intrude, afraid to be hurt, afraid to hurt, afraid to look foolish.

Simply afraid.

Living in fear stops us from living. It certainly stops us from living inspired. And it stops us from making a difference.

I challenge us to be more daring then that.  We all have the exact same fears. None of us are exempt. We hesitate before reaching out. We think, should I?

Yes, we should. Take a chance.

I dare you. Don’t let that ship pass you by.

Those of you who live in other areas where you’re probably tired of precipitation by now are probably thinking that wet, cold weather definitely is uninspiring when it goes on for days and days. February is probably the worst for those Winter Blues. Everything is gray and dreary, shoveling snow is becoming a chore and you can’t wait for the weather to turn nice again.

Out here in the desert where I’ve been living for the past 10 years, life is a little different. Rain or snow is rarely seen, and when it is, it’s cause for celebration. Twitter lights up with nearly every desert dweller asking, “Is it raining in your part of town? It is here! Oh look, it’s snowing too!”

Keep in mind, our version of excitable snow is nothing like yours. A single, microscopic flake is enough to make any of us Las Vegans go running for the boots and mittens.

The Waste Not, Want Not Phenomenon of Desert Rain

When I first moved out here I encountered a strange side effect of having grown up on the north eastern coast for most of my life.  Back East, beautiful sunny days were something you made sure you went out and enjoyed before more bad weather set in.

Once I moved out here, where every day is one of those “nice days”, I felt guilty if I didn’t go outside and use it. Eventually, feeling like I had to do so became a chore. What? Another nice day? You have to be kidding me! Where were the dark rainy days that allowed me an easy excuse to stay in with a warm cup of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich and be nothing but a slug all day?

Turns out, many of the transplants I spoke to had the same thing happen to them when they moved here. Nice days are a dime a dozen. The tables had shifted and now the dreary days were like gold.

When I worked for the sign company, the whole shop would stop what they were doing to go watch the rain. And when it snows? Oh man, that’s the headline news on television.

Silence of the Rain

Last week, Friar and Davina both put up extraordinary posts about silence. I know exactly the type of silence they were talking about, too. Snowfall silence. Silence so thick you can hear the wheels in your brain turning. Silence that blankets everything and offers you incredible clarity.

Out here, Rain Silence is a little different. It’s the sound of a quiet house and the patter of drops on the aluminum carport roof outside. It’s the wind tapping on the windows every so often. It’s a sense of warmth and security knowing you actually have warmth and security. Rain Silence is cleansing. It’s a way to slow down and recharge. It’s also knowing that it won’t last long enough for you to get tired of it, either.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go enjoy the rain. Rumor has it we may get a little snow in the valley too. Sounds like a bonus to me.

(It stands for Pains in the Ass) They get their joy from ruining yours. Why? Heaven help us, I don’t know. Wouldn’t it be simpler if we were all on the same path of spreading light and joy all around the world? It would. But it won’t happen. So if we are going to go on with our goal of Living Inspired this year, we have to go on despite them.

There is a way. It’s a little bit WICKED.

But I know it will work.

I’m calling it the Living Inspired by Defying Gravity Plan. And as you can see I shamelessly stole the idea from the song Defying Gravity from the Musical Wicked.  If you like, you can listen to the song  in the You tube video below.

When the Old Rules Just Don’t Work Any More

Something has changed within me, something is not the same
I’m through with playing by the rules of someone else’s game
Too late for second-guessing, too late to go back to sleep
Its time to trust my instincts, close my eyes and leap!

If this sounds familiar, maybe you too have reached a place where your inner voice is waking up and refusing to play nice with everyone else’s version of the Game of Life. Perhaps something is stirring, that  bit of you, that authentic self that refuses to go back to sleep, stay quiet or be lulled into a false sense of security. Maybe it’s been easier to let the wizard behind the curtain make all the decisions while you’ve been to afraid to speak up.

And maybe, just maybe, now that you are ready to take that first step, jump out on the ledge on your own,  you find that your well meaning fiends and family sound a little like this?

GLINDA
Elphie, listen to me. Just say you’re sorry:
You can still be with the Wizard
What you’ve worked and waited for
You can have all you ever wante:

With Friends like this Who Needs Enemies?

Glinda was the good witch remember? The one who did everything right and never made waves? Yet, she is the first one to try and talk Elphaba  out of sticking to her guns and being her authentic self. “Don’t make waves!” “Don’t be yourself!” “Just say your sorry and do what you are told and everything will be all right!”

Sound familiar?

Well sometimes waves need to be made and we need to make them. We need to stand up for what we believe in, trust our instincts and live the life we know is right for us, even if it seems out of reach or flies on the face of common wizardry (or wisdom.)  In order to Live Inspired, live authentic lives of purpose filled direction, we are going to have to be willing to face down the naysayers, the status quo makers, and the joy killers and try defying a little gravity of our own.
It’s time to try
Defying gravity
I think I’ll try
Defying gravity
And you can’t pull me down!

Expect to Be Ridiculed. Expect Them To Try to Drag you Back Down

GLINDA
Can’t I make you understand?
You’re having delusions of grandeur:

When you first decide to fly, some will say you are delusional. Unrealistic. Not paying close enough attention to the facts. The statistics, the odds may all be against you. All of the these things are gravity forming chains to keep you on the ground like everyone else. They don’t want you to break free and leave them all alone. Then they’ll have to face the fact that they are too afraid to fly. This isn’t about your wings…it’s about the lack of theirs.

The Only Thing Holding You Down is You

ELPHABA
I’m through accepting limits
”cause someone says they’re so
Some things I cannot change
But till I try, I’ll never know!
Too long I’ve been afraid of
Losing love I guess I’ve lost
Well, if that’s love
It comes at much too high a cost!
I’d sooner buy
Defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye
I’m defying gravity
And you can’t pull me down:

When we finally do decide that we are finished accepting the imposed limitations placed on us by others,when we finally decide not to live our lives by the  fear of not being accepted or rejected or needing a love that comes at too high a cost, then we are free to trying flying by the power of our own strength, convictions and dreams. Nobody will be able to hold us down then!

Sometimes You Have to Fly Alone

Glinda – come with me…

…Well? Are you coming?
(spoiler here) Glinda doesn’t get on the broom. As much as Elphaba is able to explain to Glinda why she has to defy gravity and do her own thing, she can’t convince her to hop on and come with. Even when she sings inspiring words about being unlimited together and being the greatest team thats ever been, It isn’t enough to sway her confidence. Glinda  is happy for her but not confident enough to defy gravity for herself.

Are you Strong Enough to Go it Alone?

“Ev’ryone deserves the chance to fly!”
And if I’m flying solo
At least I’m flying free
To those who’d ground me
Take a message back from me
Tell them how I am
Defying gravity
I’m flying high
Defying gravity
And soon I’ll match them in renown
And nobody in all of Oz
No Wizard that there is or was
Is ever gonna bring me down!

The Bottom Line  is to Reach For The Sky No  Matter how Wicked it Feels

It’s scary to fly in the face of naysayers. It’s hard to be a rulebreaker. It’s even more difficult to stick to your guns in the wake of friends and family who really believe they have your best interests at heart. It’s downright terrifying to lift off the ground when you know you will be leaving everything and everyone behind and forging on alone.

If it’s your destiny, do it anyway. If its your passion, keep on going. Don’t listen to them. Listen to your heart. Believe in yourself, lift off.

Defy gravity.