Family New Years

"The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life."

- Richard Bach, author

Here is a picture of my family - names and faces have been changed to protect the innocent...


The bond that links my family is not blood - heck, we are not even the same species. I have spent most of the holidays as the bottom (or as I prefer to say - the foundation) of the family dog pile. For some reason, my dogs like to be close. They don't just curl up beside you. They need to be on top of you and the other dog, if possible; hence, I am the dog bed. It would be annoying, if it were not so darn cute.

Since we are planning to expand our family through adoption, I have been doing a lot of reading on the subject. One of the areas that is a focus in much of the literature on adoption is attachment. I've learned the things to watch for, the ways to promote attachment and I've learned that even children who are born to you can suffer from attachment disorder. One of the strategies for promoting attachment is physical contact. I think this is what my dogs are doing when they are piling on me. This is part of their attachment to our family. It is amazing how us humans have to read to learn about these things, when animals just do them naturally.

My family and I will be spending New Year's Eve and New Year's Day curled up together enjoying each other's company. Homer and I bought a couple good books and the dogs are more than happy to just hang out with us.

Happy New Year to all of you who read my blog!

May the New Year bring you your

Bright Star Dreams

Creativity

"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift."

-- Albert Einstein

Well here it is. The post on my creativity - or rather my lack thereof. It is all my edumacations' fault. I am well educated; therefore, I've had my creativity driven from me. Actually, I think I can be creative, or I guess I should say I am creative. I just need the right environment. For me that environment includes music. Some of my best ideas come to me when I am listening or making music. Music is my muse. Pardon the pun. For others it is physical motion, like dance or exercise. Still others the muse can be found in one of the other senses such as sight, touch or taste.

I am an auditory person. I learn best by listening. When I read and when I write, I hear the words and read or write as if I am speaking. Perhaps this is why I am a slow reader. As I write this, Mozart, Handel and Haydn have been playing in the background. Sometimes when I am at work, I will listen to my iPod. I have felt guilty for doing this, but no more. I am not blocking out my co-workers, I am going to my creative place. I am more productive and I enjoy my work more.

When I put together my Treasure Map, I sat at the kitchen table with no music and no other "distractions". I trimmed, setup the layout, and pasted for a couple hours in a sterile environment. I now realize that if I had done this with some background music and had been "speaking" to myself, the map may have turned out different - more creative, less orderly.

Here is a video clip that another blogger had posted on their blog. It is an entertaining explanation of how our current education system is geared to drive the creativity out of our children. I found it quite inspirational. The education system is designed to teach us that making mistakes is bad; therefore, we are trained to only do things we know we can do right. The right answers minus the wrong answers marking system only emphasizes this kind of thinking. It makes children afraid to try, in case they are wrong. The video is about 20 minutes long, so set aside some time to watch. I hope you find it as inspirational as I did and you find your creativity or can inspire your children to find theirs.



Seek your creativity.
Bright Star Dreams

Treasures from the Map

“A moment's insight is sometimes worth a life's experience.”
- Oliver Wendell Holmes

As promised here are some of the things I learned from making my "Treasure Map to Riches". I am sure there are more things here, but these are the things I noticed on first glance. I will be spending some time contemplating my map, so maybe there is another post in this in a month or two.

1. A lot of the images I chose feature water. I have a dream of moving to the west coast, but even the pictures that are not part of that dream feature water. I believe subconsciously I want to live by water, whether that be an ocean, a lake or a river.
2. The picture I chose to represent music was a french horn. I used to play french horn, but gave it up after injuries I received in a car accident caused my left arm and jaw to go numb whenever I played. I realize now how much I miss it. I may have to pick it up again and just not play for as long. Maybe just maybe, I will be able to play again if I start slow and build up the strength.
3. I also selected images that featured cycling. My bike has been hanging in our garage for 10 years and I believe I may have ridden it twice in that time. I used to love cycling. An associate at work just got back from cycling in Vietnam. I think I may have to dust off the bike in the spring (or better yet buy a new one)
4. My husband's family and our dogs are at the top and center - under "Moments that Matter". The ironic thing is that the picture of my husband's family was taken when my husband visited his family and I stayed home. I believe this is telling me I need to spend more time with his family.
5. Nowhere in the collage is there anything remotely close to what I do for a living. Hmmm, either I'm doing the wrong thing or maybe work is just not a priority. Truly my dream is to work less and enjoy life more.
6. Living in another country part time. Several of the phrases I selected indicate this.
7. African children. As those who know me are aware, my husband and I are waiting to adopt from Africa. But the words I chose indicate I have more to do in Africa than just adoption. I recently watched a story on CBC about sponsoring girls in Kenya to go to high school. The organization that is working there is known as CHES - Canadian Harambee Education Society. "Harambee" is Swahili for "pull together". It was started when a Canadian teaching abroad had to ask girls to leave her classroom, if they could not pay the school fees. It costs $450 per year for 4 years to sponsor a girl to go to high school. I've added a link on the left of my blog, if you want to know more.
8. Travel and the outdoors. This surprised me. I am a homebody. I don't travel well. My idea of a vacation is staying home and reading. Many of the images are of places that I want to visit and all of them are outdoors or nature related. This might be related to the fact I've been inside for several weeks due to the -20 C temperatures here, but more likely I believe I want to travel and experience nature. Images I selected were from Italy, France, Nova Scotia, British Columbia, Northern Canada, and Africa. The interesting words that go with this are "Music can take you places" Music has taken me places in the past - but maybe there is more in store for my future.
9. I selected the words and the images independently from one another. I then arranged the images and words to go together - and it worked out. I used all of the words that I had found and most of the images. I definitely had a vision in mind even though I am not sure I knew what It was when I started.
10. I had fun doing this. It was a fairly time consuming exercise. I think I spent 12 - 16 hours cutting out of magazines and searching for images on the net and then organizing and pasting. The time was enjoyable and it was a challenge to find words that really inspired me in the magazines that we had. I also got to stop and read a bunch of articles in the magazines - so I learned some things along the way too.

Overall, I have found this exercise useful and worth the time. People spend more time deciding what they want to wear than they do thinking about where they want to go. I highly recommend this exercise to anyone reading this.

Visualize your

Bright Star Dreams

My Treasure Map

“All you have to do is know where you're going. The answers will come to you of their own accord.”

- Earl Nightingale - (US motivational writer and author, 1921-1989)

For the past few weeks, I have been searching magazines and the web for phrases, words and pictures that inspire me or just make me feel happy. This was part of an exercise to create my "Treasure Map to Riches". I got the idea from one of the blogs I read and decided to give it a try.

My holiday gift to myself was to take the images and words I had found and create a collage. The idea is that this will help me to visualize my goals. As a wise person once said: "If you don't know where you are going, how will you know when you get there?" Lewis Carroll said something similar: "If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there" I feel sometimes I am wandering aimlessly, so this exercise helped me to see where it is I want to go.

I read about one person who did this exercise and had cut out a picture of their dream home from a magazine. Several years later, when looking for a home, the writer ended up buying the exact home that they had identified years earlier. It wasn't until they had moved in and were unpacking that they realized what had happened.

Here is the picture of my treasure map. I must say it is not the piece of art that I had imagined - but it is very me - an orderly presentation of ideas. I really need to let go of that structure and learn to be more creative - but that is for another post. There were some surprises for me in this exercise. In my next post, I will let you know some of the insights that I got from this exercise.

If you want to do this exercise yourself - here is a link to the blog post that I read that inspired me to give the exercise a try. This wasn't the first time I had read about the exercise. This was just the catalyst to get me to actually try it. The post has the detailed instructions, more information on the purpose of the exercise and what to do once you are finished. Treasure Map Instructions

The blogger has since moved her blog to http://millionairemommynextdoor.com/ after her original blog was hacked. You can still get to some of the posts, but the pictures are all gone. Hopefully she will post something similar on her new blog in the near future.

Treasure your

Bright Star Dreams

Christmas Cheer

"If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music."

- Albert Einstein


If I thought I could have made a living at it without having to give up all my other interests, I would definitely have been a musician. Music brings joy to my life.

Here is some Christmas Cheer for you. This is one of my favorites - I was sent this last Christmas. I wish I had half the talent this group does. Here's Straight No Chaser's version of the 12 days of Christmas.






Music in my life brings me closer to my
Bright Star Dreams

A full life

Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.

- John Dewey, philosopher


This is cool, I saw it on several of the blogs that I read. You basically copy this list to your blog, and then highlight the stuff you've done thus far. I'm not tagging anyone, I was surprised how much I have actually done! It also tells you a bit about me, that I have not really revealed on this blog.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band - (several – including ceremonial guard in Ottawa and as a member of the professional musicians’ association)
4. Visited Hawaii - twice
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland /world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo - in grade 2
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea – I think I did – I can picture it, but my husband says we hid in our cabin due to sea sickness
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch (copper tooling)
15. Adopted a child – working on it
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty – I have seen it from the Staten Island Ferry
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo's David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa – I plan to
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie.
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a cheque
68. Flown in a helicopter – I was supposed to but the trip was cancelled due to lightning storms
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job - does a layoff count?
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone - several
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle/moped
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating – chicken, ducks, geese, fish…
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someones life
90. Sat on a jury - I was requested to attend jury selection, but had a medical reason for not attending
91. Met someone famous - Kevin Lowe of the Edmonton Oilers was the most memorable
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day


Fill you life,
With Bright Star Dreams

You Raise Me Up

"We can live without religion and meditation, but we cannot survive without human affection."

- HH the Dalai Lama



What can I say - I like Josh Groban.

Raise up your
Bright Star Dreams

Keep on, Keepin' On

"Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all."

- Dale Carnegie

All I can say is that I have important things to do...

Keep your eye on
Your Bright Star Dreams

I Search, I Give

Give what you have. To someone, it may be better than you dare to think.
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807 - 1882)



I've started using a new search engine. I search, I give. http://isearch.igive.com/ It is run by Yahoo and for the month of December, $0.02 for every valid search is given to a charity of my choice. Normally it is $0.01 per search. I've been using it at both home and work. It have made it my default search engine for my browser. It has the same level of searches that I had received using my regular search engine, it doesn't take me any additional time to use it and I am creating some revenue to my selected charity. This month I am searching for the Stephen Lewis Foundation, Grandmothers' Campaign. There are hundreds of charities registered with them. This is the easiest charitable act I have ever made.



Dare to dream your

Bright Star Dreams

Don't Give Up, You are Loved

I found this on another blog and it was just what I needed. Josh Groban has lifted my spirits. His voice is incredible. His song is inspiring. I am loved and I have love to give.

Don't Give Up,

Your Bright Star Dreams

Fake It

"You can fake your age or mask it, but the passion that moves the characters has to be real. "
- Victoria Abril

"The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake that, you've got it made. "
- Groucho Marx

In an earlier post about being happy, I talked about pretending to have hope in order to actually become hopeful. Lately, I have had to fake a lot of positive emotions, not just hope, but happiness, excitement, cheerfulness, and joy. I'm not sure if anyone is buying it, but it is keeping me from descending into a very dark place. It is working for me. I smile, even when I don't feel like it. The simple act of smiling can make me feel happy. These are times when the faking becomes reality. I actually start to feel good again.

I've been to that dark place in the past and I don't want to go there again. If it means I have to fake emotions and lie to people around me and to myself, I will do it. For me if I can fake the positive and that makes me more positive then like Mr. Marx says I've got it made. The passion that moves me becomes real.

By writing this blog and focusing on the positive, I become more positive. I have more passion for my life. I have more passion for seeking positive influences. This passion can put a spring in my step and drive me to achieve more than I can imagine.

This is the passion that moves my Bright Star Dreams.

Love

"Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking,
it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always preserves."

-- 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

This is my absolute favourite passage from the bible. OK, so it is the only passage from the bible that I know, but it is still my favourite. I try very hard to live up to this ideal. It is a daunting task, but it's the journey and the attempt that matters - not perfection.

Today is our 9th anniversary. It has not always been easy and sometimes we get stuck, but we truly love one another. We are soul mates. He is my guide when I am lost. He is not afraid to tell me when I am not living up to this ideal, but it is always done with love in his heart. He keeps me honest. He keeps me laughing. He brings joy and excitement to what otherwise might be my mundane life.

The one thing that I believe has kept our love going is everyday we tell each other "I love you". These three simple words help to remind me what is truly important. Everything else comes a distant second.

Happy Anniversary Honey!

May you reach your Bright Star Dreams

Hope

"Once you choose hope, anything's possible."


- Christopher Reeve


The news lately has not been hopeful. I believe the media is making it worse with exaggerated predictions of a gloomy outlook. The OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) recently announced that Germany has experienced 2 quarters of detraction in GDP, therefore, is officially in recession. The retraction, however, was very slight: GDP fell 0.5 percent in the third quarter after a 0.4 percent decline in the second quarter. The OECD has also predicted that gross domestic product for its 30 member countries would decline 0.3 percent in 2009 from 2008, before recovering slightly to grow by 1.5 percent in 2010.

Notice how a 1.5 % growth is considered slight and no adjective is used to describe the 0.3 % decline. The media has focused on the decline - calling it grim. By proliferating the view that this is a negative outlook, the media is in fact creating a self fulfilling prophesy. It could even make the downturn worse than it portrays.

The global economy has been overheated for the past 3 -5 years, maybe longer. The stock markets and real estate have been over valued and over bought. The financial institutions have been reckless. It is sad to me that greed won out over financial prudence. Considering this, a decline of only 0.3% is extremely good news. I see a slow down as a relief and quite possibly an opportunity. I have hope that more people will think of the slow down in this way and that as a result the world will come out of this period stronger and more prudent.

If you look at the historical graphs of the Dow on Yahoo here, you may see what I see. Recently, there have been two periods of extraordinary growth. Each time, the markets fell back to the place it would have been had economic growth been kept at a sustainable rate. So in the end, sustainable growth won out over excess. This is positive news - sustainable growth is good for everyone. An overheated economy burns people out, does not use resources efficiently and in general does not reward ethical behaviour. It follows the parable of the Tortoise and the Hare. I believe that if people were to view the OECD's announcement as positive, rather than as the media portrays it, it is possible that the downturn will be short lived. I have a lot of hope that I am not the only one who is thinking this way. As Christopher Reeve said: "Anything's possible"


Today, I am also thinking about a group of families who are waiting, as patiently as possible, to hear whether they have to wait a few days or several weeks for their second chance to finalize the adoption of their children. Their advocate is meeting with the powers that be in the next 24 hours to plead their case. By this time tomorrow they will know. In the mean time, I have them in my thoughts, with hope and faith that they receive happy news tomorrow.

I have hope for Bright Star Dreams

Always Believe

I sing in a choir and this winter we are singing "Always Believe" by Greg Gilpin. For some reason this piece resonates with me. We have had a hard month and had to say no to something when we really wanted to say yes. We knew that no was the right answer for us, but it was one of the hardest things I've had to do. Sorry for being cryptic, but there are others involved, and I do not have the right to share their part of this story. I have found peace with our decision and part of that has been the words for this song (it can be found under the Music for 2007)

Always Believe

( A Song for December)

For some, this is a season of hope.

For some, this is a season of faith.

For others, it's a season so full of dreams

And wishes that they long to come true.

And there are those who just enjoy the winter snow

And all the beauty nature can bring.

And many share the love of fam'ly and friends

And show it with the things they do

Always believe, always believe

In what your heart is telling you

Always believe, always believe

Let it guide you in all that you do.

And in this season, there's a wonderful reason

To share ourselves and all that we are.

Always believe and believe the love that's deep in your heart.

Did you know that there's a single thread,

That connects us all, one by one?

And this thread of love, of faith, of hope

Creates a strong and beautiful bond!

Always believe, always believe
In what your heart is telling you
Always believe, always believe
Let it guide you in all that you do.
And in this season, there's a wonderful reason
To share ourselves and all that we are.
Always believe and believe the love that's deep in your heart.

Believe the love that's deep in your heart

I believe in my Bright Star Dreams

Create Your Dream

I read a lot of blogs written by people who have or are adopting from Ethiopia. In my blog surfing, I found this post about a friend of the blogger who visited North Africa with a non-profit agency shortly after celebrating a typical North American Christmas. He vowed that this year would be different. This year he would Create Christmas instead of buying it, so he could donate the money that was saved to the non-profit agency. As part of his project he is asking mothers or mothers to be to write letters to share their stories with other mothers. I applaud this man and his project. I am going to try to write a letter and also contemplate how I too can create Christmas or my Dream rather than buying it this year.

If you have any ideas, please comment.

Remember

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, remember those who have given their life so that we may live in freedom.

Hope for peace. Support those who give so much to make it happen

Bright Star Dreams

Bright Star Dreams

I found this Cool tool on another blog and played with it using the words from one of my posts. You can customize the font, colour and the layout or use a radomizer to play until you find a look that you like. The word sizes change based on the number of times a word is used. I had a little fun playing with it and here are my Bright Star Dreams in colour.

The image was created at http://www.wordle.net/

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Bright Star Dreams

Be Thankful

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving

I have much to be thankful for and sometimes when I am caught up with my life I have to remind myself how much I have. This past month I was working so much that I am now sick with a cold. My husband has been wonderful through this. When I was working he made sure there was dinner on the table and clean clothes in my closet. Now that I'm sick, he has made chicken soup from scratch and has ensured that I am getting a good night's sleep.

Strangely enough, I am not worried about the market crash or an impending recession. I work contract, so it is possible my work could end at any time - with no severance - but again I'm not worried. I have a number of contacts asking for my help and I feel we are well prepared for this. We do not carry much debt (a mortgage that is floating with prime and a low interest car loan) and we have been living within our means. We have a number of discretionary expenses that could be cut if needed. We have a nest egg that we have been adding to as often as we can. Since we felt the markets were over valued, we kept it in cash. I now see this as an opportunity, rather than something to fear. Of course, it is possible if things get much worse that my opinion will change. Right now, I am thankful that we have been restrained, while it seemed that everyone around us were out riding the wave of the boom.

Today I heard about a lady who has been trying re-unite her son with his sister in Ethiopia. After years of government paper work and forging new ground in both Canada and Ethiopia, her request has finally been approved. Her new daughter will be home in 4 to 6 months. This is unbelievably exciting for everyone involved. My worries seem so small in comparison.

Today we are going to celebrate Thanksgiving. We have bright star dreams and we are truly thankful

Be Grateful

"In our daily lives, we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but the gratefulness that makes us happy."-- Albert Clarke

OK, I know I already already written about being grateful, but it is so true it is worth saying twice. I ran across this post on becoming wealthy which led to this post on the power of being grateful.

That is really what this blog is about for me -- the power of positive thinking and gratitude.

So obviously I haven't been keeping up with this as a daily gratitude blog, but I am grateful that I have an outlet for my thoughts. While I doubt anyone will actually find this place (except my husband -- Hi Honey!), I am not concerned about that as this blog is for me, not anyone else.

I've had a lot of cynical and negative thoughts lately. So I am really going to try to be more grateful and hopefully that will lead to happiness.

Today I am grateful for the summer. It is a time when the air is warm and the sun shines until well past my bedtime. It adds a brightness to my bright star dreams.

I am grateful for my Bright Star Dreams

Be Creative

“Creativity is allowing oneself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.”
– Scott Adams

I am a perfectionist, so this kind of creativity sometimes eludes me. When I do make mistakes, they tend to be big ones. The kind you wish would go away, not ones you would even consider keeping.

Lately though, I've been making a lot of mistakes. The kind of absentminded mistakes that occur due to a lack of sleep. Yesterday, I almost put the dish soap into the refrigerator! LOL If anything, these mistakes have enhanced my sense of humour. I am learning that mistakes can be fun and now I guess I need to become an artist with my mistakes.

In software development mistakes that work out are called features instead of bugs. My bright star dream is to add more features to my daily life. I give myself permission to be creative.

Bright Star Dreams

Be Happy

"Happiness is having something to do, something to love and something to hope for."

- Allan K. Chalmers

I think there is more to this that I need to consider.

The something to do must be something that interests you. Something that you believe in. Something that has meaning to you. If you are doing things that have no meaning to you, then you have to ask yourself why you are doing it and try to find meaning. Sometimes the meaning is not in the doing, it is in the awareness that the doing brings. The days when my work has no meaning, I remind myself that by working I am able to enjoy my time better with my family. It makes that time more precious to me.

The something to love is good - except, it seems, if that love is not reciprocated. Then something to love can be really be painful. "It is better to have loved and lost..." Opening up your heart is a difficult thing to do, but the act can be a lesson in itself.

The most important something to love is yourself. I struggled with this for a long time. The key for me has been forgiveness and acceptance. I had to be able to forgive myself for the things for which I wasn't proud and to accept that I am not perfect. I make mistakes. Everyone does. I am finally at peace with this.

The something to hope for is really important. Without hope, it is really hard to move forward. Sometimes when I feel that I am losing hope, I have to pretend I have hope. In pretending to have hope, I start to gain actual hope again. It's a chicken or the egg thing for me.


Be Happy
Bright Star Dreams

Believe in your Dreams

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams"

- Eleanor Roosevelt

For the most part, I am not a dreamer. I pretty much stay in the here and now. I set goals and then I work to achieve them, but those are practical things like buying a house, getting a certain type of job, or saving a certain amount of money to retire on.

I've decided I need to allow myself to dream. To think outside the everyday life things and dream.

Some dreams that I've allowed myself:

• A world where the color of a person's skin does not matter
• A world that understands the meaning of enough and ensures that everyone has it
• A world where people consider the impact of their actions and words on others
• A world where finding cures is more important that the money earned from treating symptoms

These are some of my Bright Star Dreams

Be Exceptional

"The greatest pleasure in life is doing what other people say you cannot do"

- Walter Bagehot

I'm a perfectionist. Always have been, always will be. It is the part of me that drives me to create exceptional results. The darkest times in my life were when I believed the people who told me the things I could not do.

I know now that I am exceptional. I have exceptional ideas. I can do exceptional things. I achieve exceptional results. I have an exceptional family. We may do things a little different than the norm, but that's what makes us exceptional.

Bright Star Dreams

Be Balanced

Today I went to a yoga class - my second in as many weeks. Let me just say I love, love, love yoga. I normally do Ashtanga, but today for a change I went to a Hatha style class. It was wonderful. I feel all mellow and balanced.

My new intention is to try to practice once a week at a minimum. I believe that yoga is an essential component to achieve balance in my life.

Namaste

Bright Star Dreams

Be Grateful

" Let us be grateful to people who make us happy,
they are charming gardeners who make our souls blossom"

- Marcel Proust

In French class, in grade 11, we were asked to do name the person we loved the most. I cannot remember who I chose, but one of my fellow classmates named her most loved one as herself. I have often reflected on this choice. It was not until I was 30 years old that I could say this same thing. At 16, she was more well grounded than most people I know. I am grateful to have known Karen S.

Those that make me happy:

Me!
My husband - he always makes me laugh
My dogs - one is a clown and the other is his straight lady (they are quite the tag team)

I am grateful for my quirky family

Bright Star Dreams

Be Your Brilliance

In setting my intention to be positive, I came across this inspiration:

There is nothing to practice.
To know yourself, be yourself.
To be yourself, stop imagining yourself to be this or that.
Just be. Let your true nature emerge.
Don't disturb your mind with seeking.
When I see I am nothing, that is wisdom.
When I see I am everything, that is love.
My life is a movement between these two.

-Nisargdatta Maharaj

You are enough.
BE your brilliance!

On this blog I am going to get to know my positive self. It is my experiment to see where my positive self takes me.

My positive thoughts for the day:

I am a brilliant woman
I have the most loving and brilliant husband - he loves me with all his energy
My merry little hounds keep me entertained every day
The birds are singing to their little ones - the world is renewed

Bright Star Dreams