#QOTD - Happiness

Long time no see. It's been way to long since my last post. Sorry about that. 2012 has been a busy year so far, but so awesome. So far it kicks 2011 in the butt ;)

None the less, I'll try to blog more, and I'll start with a small post, a little quote :)

"Happiness is the ability to recognize it."

-Carolyn Wells

So far 2012 has been a year filled with happiness in my life, and I hope to share some of that with you. I hope that you know you have the power to create your own happiness, you control your life, and you can make it happen. Well that is easier said than done sometimes, but just try to remember those words on a rainy day. Find happiness in something around you. Whether it is seeing an old couple walking hand in hand and looking crazy in love or a child having fun with something so simple and innocent. The beauty of the sky, or a flower, or a stone. Open your eyes to the small things, because sometimes it is these small things that give us the most happiness in bad times.

I hope all of you try to look for those small things. Sometimes a smile is all it takes to make a day great for someone else. Smile to someone this Monday, at least 10 people you don’t know, and see how that smile spreads like a fire in hay :) Make some happy this Monday, and maybe that person will end up doing the same. Think how much happiness you could spread tomorrow, and the do it! :)

Have a fantastic week!

<3 Christina

One of the beauties in life, a sunset by the harbor where i live, so gorgeous!

#QOTD - Valentine’s Day

Today is Valentine’s Day, so I just wanted to share a little quote and some words:

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return"

-Moulin Rouge (2001)

Love this quote, it's dead on. Love is the most powerful thing we have and are capable of making/sharing/giving. Love can make us feel like we can conquer the world, and lack of it makes us feel like nothing makes sense, that life is not worth living. We all have different opinions of what love is and what kind of love makes us feel loved and happy. We all speak the language of love, but as in all languages we find our own way of speaking it. That is why we sometime get confused when we try to make someone feel loved, but they don't respond to our love. To say it plain and simple: learn to speak the love-language your partner speaks and you'll see the result immediately. We all want the same, we just respond differently :)

That was a long wise speech, back to basics. Valentine’s Day is the day we either love or hate. I love it, but I also believe it is not romantic just to be romantic ONE day a year :) Romance should fill all our days. Sometimes romance is giving your partner a hug because you can see he/she needs it. Giving your partner what he/she needs despite the fact that you don't understand why it helps, now THAT is romance: THAT is LOVE :) So, is Valentine’s Day necessary? Maybe, maybe not. The industry makes a lot of money on that one day, but the same goes for Christmas, Halloween, Easter, basically every holiday or special occasion. But for me it is not the expensive flowers, dinner or chocolate, for me it is love. A day dedicated to love, and if I look at it that way, I find Valentine’s Day beautiful. Love is the most important thing and therefore it should also have a special day a year. Just like Mothers or Father’s day. That is a special day for them, but that doesn't mean it is the only day we show them special attention :) Or at least that how I believe/think it should be.

So instead of focusing on whether or not you are single on Valentine’s Day, focus on love. ON the love you have with your friends, family, pets, hobbies etc. It is all about love, and as I said, love is the same but still different for each and every one of us :)

So, lots of love from me. I feel blessed to have so much love around me, and I'll send some your way if you need it :) Made this picture for all of you: Happy Valentine's Day :)

Love

Christina

#QOTD - Dreams

"Do not lose hold of your dreams or aspirations. For if you do, you may still exist but you have ceased to live."

-Henry David Thoreau

I think this is a very beautiful quote, and very true. We often find ourselves lost when things don't turn out the way we wished them to do. Or when a sudden turn of events changes our nicely planned life. So when it says; don’t lose hold of your dreams or aspirations; I see like this:

Dreams can change, take you in a different direction than you planned, but does that make it less of a dream or more? I think more, or I believe :) Because, the road we sometimes end up taking in life sometimes give us more than we wished for, we just don’t see it because we are so busy looking down the road we didn't get to take. So hold on to your dreams, believe in them and they will come true, just maybe not in the way YOU planned them to do. If you give up, well, the quote says it beautifully: if you do, you may still exist but you have ceased to live.

Don't lose yourself in your own attempt to seek happiness and success, believe that you will find it :)

Christina

#QOTD - Regret

"Regret comes in all shapes and sizes.

Some are small, like when we do a bad thing for a good reason.

Some are bigger, like when we let down a friend.

Some of us escape the pangs of regret by making the right choice.

Some of us have little time for regret because we're looking forward to the future.

Sometimes we have to fight to come to terms with the past.

And sometimes we bury our regret by promising to change our ways.

But our biggest regrets are not for the things we did, but for the things we didn't do, things we didn't say that could have saved someone we care about.

Especially when we can see the dark storm that's headed their way."

If only I could take credit for those words, it pretty much sums up what regret is and the regrets we often have in life. The questions is how do we get past the regret? How do we not let it take us down?

Regret is the negative version of reflection in my opinion. It's healthy to reflect over the this we have been through, the decisions we make or don't make. But when we think too much about our mistakes, or something we did or how we reacted, it tends to be in a negative way, and that leads to regret.

Learn to reflect instead of regret the things you do, it takes practice, and you will not be perfect:) But the sooner you learn to let go, the sooner you will find that life doesn't have to be so damn hard :)

Have a great weekend!

Christina

"The Dark Times are Coming"....hmmm

So we are heading into what all call "the dark times". Why call it that? That is, besides the obvious fact that it gets darker! Why voluntarily choose to put negative energy into something? For is it not a fact that when we say: "Now we're facing darker times" we actually think: "It becomes harder to get up in the morning because it's dark, it gets colder, sadder weather conditions, snow will result in traffic chaos, it's dark when we get home, etc.". Conclusion: In one small sentence, we place a thousand negative thoughts and feelings. Is it any wonder we always feel less positive and excited about the autumn/winter?

Don't misunderstand me, I don't think we should go around constantly being positive; this is not possible with the way the world is today (though it is definitely something to wish for the future). But is it also not true that we have the power to shape our lives as we wish to see it unfold? That we alone hold the power over our own lives and can write our history as we want?

YES outside factors can influence our choices and in some cases result in that fact that we cannot get nor do what we want, but again we have the ability to choose our response! :)

Will we always choose the correct path or reaction, N.O.!! Of course not, we are not perfect we are humans. But the beauty of life is also that we can change things if we want to! Remember the quote i wrote a while back?:

"Any new attempt justifies all past mistakes!"

What I'm really trying to say is that I believe we can make the "dark time" into something positive. We can still call it the same, because it's true the days becomes darker, but we need to change the energy we put into it. Because there are also positive things about this season. Hot chocolate, snowball fights, the heat from a fireplace, the sun shining on beautiful white scenery, fresh air and cold cheeks, and my favorites: CHRISTMAS and what we in Denmark call "hygge" :) If nothing of the above is something you like or find positive, then find your own, this is just things I find positive and love about "the dark times".

We can put negative energy in everything, even though spring comes and cast away the darkness, we suddenly find other things to put negative energy in. That's just how it always is, but there's no reason to stick with the usual OR to make our lives more challenging than it is. I don't always think positive, far from it, I'm human like everyone else. But I've always believed that we choose whether we want to see the positive rather than the negative. Yes we have our challenges in life and they are not always easy and fun, but we choose how we will look at them. And it's more fun to choose the positive view over the negative. And I have the past several years, 5 to be exact, made big changes in my life and I can see how a positive outlook have made things so much easier than a negative view on things. Is it always easy to think like this? No, you will "fall", but then you can choose to stop being negative before it gets too hard. The beauty of life is of course that we can learn from our mistakes :)

Remember, this is how I am, these are my thoughts, and that's how I feel. I hope it can inspire some new thoughts inside you guys and that maybe you will try to find the positive in the negative, calling problems challenges and fun, it makes it so much easier!

"Life is a mirror and will reflect back to the thinker what he thinks into it."

- Ernest Holmes

So enjoy the autumn, see the beautiful and lovely in something so easily seen as dark and dreary.

Christina

Is love to hard to believe in?

I've had i lot on my mind lately, some really deep and tough questions that I haven't a right or wrong answer to. Here goes:

Is it possible for one person to have absolutely NO faith in a loving peaceful future?

I have no idea, but recently I was confronted with just that thought, and it both scared me and intrigued me. What if a person could not picture this world becoming peaceful, no wars, no hate, just love and acceptance and respect? How do you respond to that when you have the complete OPPOSITE vision of the future?

I know, it’s a tough one, and I've thought about it a lot. My favorite quote, or one out of many, is this quote from Ghandi:

"Be the change you wish to see in the world"

That sentence sums up all I believe in. Or at least most of my believes ;)

If we wish to see politics go in a different direction, then we have to make it go that way. We need to use our voice, and use the power we have to make our voice be heard.  I by no means believe in violence and hate, it is possible to make a revolution without.

If we wish to see violence eliminated, then let us start living more peacefully, be more lovable and open. YES I'm aware that this does not immediately bring an answer to all the world’s problems, but it is a start!! And YES I know war is sometimes necessary especially in the world we live in now. But why not try showing more love, is it so bad that while we are fighting we also use love as a weapon? Love may not show immediate result, and it might take a century to make it work but it works, so why don't we use it?

Is it so difficult to believe in love? To believe that by changing our attitudes today, or try to, we might make the future better? Maybe we won’t see any major change in our lifetime, but maybe our children or grandchildren will, so why not make it a better place for them?

You see my point? I could go on and on with the questions, and so could many others. One thing I want to make clear is, that I do not judge, or I don't believe in judging others, it leads us nowhere. Do i judge? I do, sometimes I judge before I know the whole story, but I try not to and if I catch myself in the act I stop! :) I'm only human, making mistakes is what we live and learn for ;) So please don't take any of what I have written as criticism or lack of understanding, because I have nothing more than love and respect for everyone. I cannot possibly understand what goes on inside your head, why you act, think and do the things you do. But i really want to understand, because I believe understanding leads to acceptance, which leads to respect, which finally leads to love!!

So where am I right now, did I answer my own question with a bunch of questions? Yes :) hehe.. But it is after all a big question, and I might not get the right answer. I will however try to be the change I wish to see in the people around me. Maybe that will inspire them, and maybe open up their minds to a new way of thinking. And in the long run, I think that is the best answer to my question :)

Live, love, laugh! :)

Xoxo

Christina

Election

So, the prime minister announced this Friday that the election officially started and that we will vote September 15th.

Now all hell is going to break loose :)

I have always used my voice, and I find it very important that we use our voice to affect our future. BUT I have never liked politics, never. Of course I have scanned each Party and their general views to know what they stand and fight for, but never have I really gone in to depth with each Party’s politics and key issues. That is about to change, big time.

Today i have gathered every brochure, every document and made shortcuts on my computer to each Party’s homepage. I want to read about them all, maybe not each and every boring detail, but a lot of them. I want to all there is to know and once and for all find my place behind that Party which best represent my beliefs and political views. And i want to be more active, not actually join a Party, but I want know more, and to know how my voice is being used!

The keyword in all of this is of course WANT!! I want to do this, and therefore it feels right. Many young people today don’t pay attention to the world around them, and politics are definitely NOT something worth noticing or discussing in the lunch break. I was one of those, not that I was totally ignorant and not interested in politics, but politics have just never been very interesting to me! And I still HATE politics, or at least what politics have become (I know, it’s a strong word, but you know what I mean ;)). I find it so frustrating, false and there isn't any change, I really don’t like politics, BUT I have great confidence in our youth and the possibility for change!! And our youth will one day replace those "running things" today, and therefore I believe politics will be VERY interesting in the future.

"Out with the old and in with the new!"

Never before have I believed more in this proverb! We need new blood, we need our youth to step it up, because things have to change. You guys might not know how things work in Denmark, or how politics run here, but hope my ramblings make sense, I have kept it very "apolitical", because as I said: I have used my voice, but I have always hated politics, and therefore I might not be the best to explain every detail about our country’s political system :)

So why do I suddenly want to be more active? Three words: Norway, Oslo, Utøya! After the terrible events in Norway I found myself changing a lot of things. I affected me harder than you might understand and the story behind is long. It was an attack on Norway, their democracy, their people, hardworking INNOCENT politicians and YOUNG INNOCENT children. People that were doing something they love. Not that I necessarily support Arbeiterpartiet or knew anything about them before, but it was just so cowardly done!! No matter what god we choose to believe in, what our opinions might be, we DONT kill in order to change things. VIOLENCE is NEVER the answer. It’s a long story, and it woke a lot of emotions in me, but most of all, I was touched. I was touched to see Norway choosing LOVE over HATE. They choose compassion, unity, openness, light, hope and democracy. It touched me deeply, words can’t explain. And it made me want to get more active, not just use my voice, but know more about how it should be used and what it will be used to do.

I don’t want to vote out of sympathy, but because politics is important, and WE, the new generation, have a chance to make it different.  A chance to make politics more humane, more loving and open, instead of the shallow, unsuccessful “acting class-promoting thing” it is today. That is why I want my vote to be used properly, and why I want to know more about politics now vs. “the me” before July 22th 2011! And I believe it is the best reaction to what has happen.

One a final note, I could write so much more about my thoughts on the attracts the 22th of July, but know is not the time. All you need to know is this: I send peace, light an unconditional love to all the people affected each day! To the families and friend of lost ones; My heart goes out to you, I hope you will one day come back stronger and honor those you loved by keep living a life of love. The people involved and injure;, You will come back stronger, give it time, and know my thoughts are with you every day!

"Enemies teach us inner strength, courage and determination." - Dalai Lama

Let’s not end on a sad note! Hope you all had a great weekend, hope it was awesome :)

Xx

Why this blog

So this is my very first post, at least on this blog :) I've had a Facebook for 4 years, a twitter for almost two years, but know in stepping it up i nudge and making this blog. So why is that, what is my purpose of making this blog and writing what I do? Inspiration. Guidance. Fun. Learning. Laughing. BUILDING. Those are just some of the words that describe my reasons for making this blog.

I'm in no way smarter, better or more skilled in the art that is life than any of you, but what I do know, is that writing and trying to be an inspiration to people, helps you grow and learn. I want to be and inspiration, or at least try, because I'm NOT perfect, nor will I be or want to be. But I want to try and be the best I can, and learn from the mistakes I make :)

Maybe some of you will read this blog because you need something in your life, some part is missing, or you are going through things that you can’t seem to find you way. I want to help with all the guidance I can! If not with knowledge that I have, but knowledge I can get. Or maybe something i write will be the light at the end of the tunnel you have searched for without finding it. I hope my experiences or thoughts are helpful.

I want not only to write about my life and thoughts, but I also want to have FUN! Fun is the most important ingredient in life, it makes everything so much easier, and therefore I want ALOT of it :) Books, movies, games, jokes, embarrassing moments, all things that make my life fun (maybe the embarrassing things won’t be fun right away, but after some time), and I want to share my adventures and thoughts on that area also.

We all go through things in life, some things more often than others, because life i all about learning. Not that all life's challenges are equally fun, they are hard, very hard at times. But if we let them be a learning lesson, we gain so much in life. So have I been through all of them no, but I have been through some, and friends that have been through others. So hopefully I can help you in your learning experiences and offer some advice or maybe just my thoughts to help you through more easily.

If there is one thing i like more than anything, its laughing! I laugh as often as I can, it’s the most relieving thing in the world, all your worries seem more small and your world less dark. So I want people to laugh, use laugh, se the beauty and fun in life and smile as much as you can. Even smiling just to yourself makes you feel good. A smile is contagious so smile to the world and it will smile again :) Being positive gives you so much, even thou it can be hard, seeing things from a positive aspect helps you focus better and deal with the problem at hand in the best way possible. So as someone so brilliantly wrote: live, love, laugh :)

So what do I want? A want to make this a place where I can share everything I have on my mind, because writing about it, and shearing it helps me see want I might not see when I keep it in my head. You guys might find some of my thoughts helpful, but your comments. Might be the vest criticism I can get. Criticism is hard, but I hope to gain something positive from it. Or maybe just share ideas and thoughts. Together we could be building a place for people to find peace, friends and help that makes them want to go through their lives even thou it seems like everything is dark. Be there guiding light, their friend. Maybe you can share you passion about books, movies, recipes etc.., share jokes, learn from each other, laugh, cry and smile. I believe that through compassion, love and positive attitude you can live a happy life. And therefore I want to try and make this blog that sort of place, more or less. I deliver ideas, you might give me ideas, and together we might make this an awesome experience :)

So this was my "smarty-pants" starting post ;) but i mean every word that i write, and put all my positive thoughts in this project, because I believe it is true, and that all of you out there can have that awesome life that's just waiting for you :)

Aaaaaaand, please note the English is my secondary language, so if the text seem out of context or is poorly written, I apologies (I hope the soul of the text is still understandable and is getting through). I might also express myself badly, so please feel free to ask questions in the commentary below, I don't want to be misinterpreted :)

Enough with the heavy, let’s have fun. So enjoy :)

Xx

Christina