March 31st, 2014
“Nothing will grow there. There’s no sunlight and it’s always damp.” And a mushroom grows. “We can only go as fast as the fastest ship.” And the airplane is invented. “This pill will have no effect because it is a placebo.” And someone taking it is cured. “This animal will be put to sleep in the shelter tonight.” And someone adopts her.
We live in an amazing world of possibilities and exceptions. There is nothing that is impervious to sudden change or reversal. Most of us can call to mind a person who recovered from a serious cancer, a woman who positively couldn’t get pregnant and did, a kid who had trouble in school and turned out to be a role model later on, the homely girl who turns out to be a stunning beauty. Are these the exceptions? Yes! And they do exist. There is no condition in life that is 100% certain and that my friends is the birthplace of hope and where there is life there is always hope.
Years back I had an old car that regularly wouldn’t start with just the turn of the key. Sometimes it did but most times it didn’t. When it did, all was right with the world. When it didn’t the cussin’ and the yelling would start and I would get out and push it for a bit and then jump in and pop the clutch and sometimes it would roar to life and all was right with the world again. Other times it wouldn’t. I’d get out time and time again and push it again and jump in and pop the clutch again and nothing would happen and I’d have to repeat the whole process complete with the yelling and the cussin’. The reason I kept trying was because I knew that if I just kept at it, one of those times it would start and all would be well. Sooner or later it always did.
Whatever you are trying to do, no matter how slim the chances or how many times you have to start over, don’t give up. It’s okay if there’s a bit of yelling and cussin’ but don’t give up. Yes, this world is full of possibilities and exceptions but they rarely just happen. Most often they happen because somebody kept trying and refused to give up. Be that somebody.
(c)2014 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
Facebook – Sundrops On Life
March 24th, 2014
There is an infinite pool of unconscious thoughts upon which you and I are constantly drawing. Most of the time it serves us well. Someone appears and we draw upon our memories and remember them. We step into the shower, make breakfast and thousands of other acts by drawing upon our memories and all goes well but what happens when we reach into this bank of thoughts for a rose and instead feel the sharp prick of a thorn?
Suddenly our defense are up, our position is fortified and defended, we are ready for a battle. The detrimental part is that the battle will usually be fought inside of us and the only casualties will be our mood and our peace of mind.
There are thoughts in each of us that can make us laugh, make our heart sing or cry, put a bounce in our step or chain us to the bed. Yes, our thoughts rule us. They determine our response to others, the state of our immune system, they even determine what we see when we look in the mirror. The eyes merely observe. It is our thoughts that determine whether what we see is good or bad.
Today, you and I will constantly think. We will be unaware of most of our thoughts until they stir one of our emotions. Then we will respond the way we have learned to respond UNLESS today is different. Today we will switch off the auto pilot and purposely think thoughts that make us feel good. We will think about ways to help someone else. We will smile. We will hum or sing a song that uplifts us. A new dream, a new plan, a new perspective will be our conscious thought. We will feel happy today just because we choose that above all else. Today’s thoughts will be our cheerleaders. Regardless of what is going on, we will consciously think more thoughts that uplift us and then we will find out what we have known forever but forgotten…that we deserve to feel better. Think about it.
(c)2014 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
Facebook – Sundrops On Life
March 17th, 2014
The first question we ask ourselves when a relationship isn’t working or a job is going south or we just start to feel unhappy or unhealthy is “What am I doing wrong?”. Maybe, just maybe, asking what we are doing wrong is exactly what we are doing wrong! Maybe we would find better solutions if we were to ask instead “How could it be better?”.
How about we stop asking what we are doing wrong in a relationship or our work and simply ask ourselves Am I happy? Do I need to make some positive changes or do I need to find something/someone better? In regards to our health, Am I happy with the way I look, think, sleep and feel? Do I need to make some positive changes or do I want to kick myself in a couple of years for not starting right now?
This is not just about positive thinking. This is about positive doing. If you are not happy, if you feel unsatisfied, if you feel like you are not on the right path…CHANGE! Think about what feels right and start taking steps in that direction. Stop living a life of putting up with things. Start planning your escape from unhappiness.
Is it difficult, painful, scary and upsetting to make changes, to leave a secure job or relationship, to start dieting and exercising, to meet new people, to go back to school, to move? You betcha! BUT there is no greater feeling in the world than to wake up happy and you deserve to do that every morning of your life.
If you feel happy, feed that happiness with every ounce of your being. If you are unhappy, well what are you going to do about it?
(c)2014 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
Facebook – Sundrops On Life
March 10th, 2014
Imagine that you are standing in front of the stove and you have something in a pot in front of you that requires stirring while it cooks. You stand there with a wooden spoon in your hand and you think about all of the ways you could possibly stir what’s in the pot. Maybe you should stir it clockwise or maybe it would be better to stir it counterclockwise or maybe that will ruin it or maybe back and forth or up and down. While you endlessly debate which way to stir while not actually stirring at all, the meal is ruined.
It might sound a little far fetched to think that someone would do such a thing but isn’t that precisely what we do in some areas of our life? We endlessly debate changing a relationship but never actually act upon it. We don’t like the job we have but we endlessly debate what we would do instead. We want to change our friends, our weight, our health, our finances, our sex life, our self image, our connection to the Divine but it just remains a thought.
Thinking is good. Debating the pros and cons of some parts of our life is excellent but unless the thinking and the debating lead to actual changes, it is a useless, self deceiving, waste of time. We must act. “But what if I choose wrong? What if I regret my choice? What if I cause myself pain?”. These are not just questions. These are the very bars of your cell. This is your prison.
Free yourself! No one can do it for you. Get moving! Make changes. Get out of any part of your life that feels like a prison. Make those changes before they turn into regrets. You won’t always be right but you will always be proud that you did something you thought was right. Go ahead, stir up your life. It won’t be delicious unless you do.
(c)2014 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
Facebook – Sundrops On Life
March 3rd, 2014
Several times each and every day, you must ask yourself the second most important question of the day. “Am I happy right now?” If the answer is yes, then just keep on keeping on. If the answer is no, focus for a moment on the reason that you are not happy.
Nine hundred and ninety nine times out of a thousand, you will have a very legitimate reason for why you are not happy. It probably has something to do with the way you look, the way you feel, your finances, the work you do or the people in your life. It is most assuredly a very good reason not to be happy.
This is not about diminishing the importance of the reason you are not happy. This is not about wrapping up your problems in a smiley face blanket. This is about honestly asking yourself THE most important question of your day. That question is… “Can I be happy in spite of my very, very good reason(s) not to be happy?”
Your happiness has to be your priority no matter what is going on. Selfish? Not in the least. In fact it is the most selfless gesture you can mask. In spite of your own very good reasons not to be happy, when you choose to be happy everyone around you benefits from your happiness. When you choose to be happy, regardless of the situation, you bring light and caring and upliftment to those around you. You decrease the stress in their lives. You make better decisions. People find it easier to talk to you. You give hope. You give a sense that everything will work out. You put a light on solutions rather than a magnifying glass on problems. You make the world a little better and what does it cost? A little smile when you don’t feel like it. Priceless.
Be happy.
(c)2014 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
Facebook – Sundrops On Life