"The worst war in the world is the one that goes on inside of our heads when we are not confident in ourselves."

"When we doubt who we are it causes us to go inside of our head to think, rethink, and then to overthink about all of the possible outcomes again. The worst war in the world is the one that goes on inside of our heads when we are not confident in ourselves. It’s a process but we have to love ourselves as we grow, we have to accept ourselves for the human that we are today."

I have followed Sylvester McNutt on Instagram for quite some time now. Several of his quotes and poetry really stick out to me. I knew he had a few books out but The Dear Queen Journey - A Path to Self Love is one that I have really wanted to read. Why? Well, because I am on this new path of Self Discovery and Self Love! 

Sylvester also has several other books about Success in life and also books about Love which I may eventually read but for now this is the one that I picked (or maybe it picked me) because it approaches what I am trying to succeed. 

I am in love with his quotes and his way of writing which is basically poetry. If you have Amazon prime with kindle, this little guy is on Unlimited Kindle for FREE. You're welcome! :) 

Another thing I have been doing and I receive one typically every day and that is how I start my day. Lately, as soon as I get out of bed I have a new morning inspirational video from YouTube on a channel that I subscribed to: Be Inspired - Daily Motivation  So, my routine is to start playing it as soon as I get up and while I get ready. Depending on the length I may have to continue it once I get to work so I just plug in my headphones. 

I still have my affirmations throughout my house, in my purse and at my desk. They have been up for about 3-4 wks so I think it's probably time to update and change them out. 

It may be a gloomy day but we needed the rain. See the beauty in everything! Be confident, be bold and don't forget to smile. 

Love, 

Jillian 

Gratitude

Over the weekend I took a little bit of time to take in some much needed nature. I went hiking at Shades State Park. When I say hiking I am not talking about some paved pathway, I mean rugged hiking through the valleys through a creek bed. My legs are certainly feeling it.

I made sure to put my phone in airplane mode and I had no reception which didn't allow for any distractions. Pictures just don't do this place justice but I also tried not grabbing my phone every 2 minutes out of my backpack and was afraid to carry it in case I tripped from trying to take it all in.

Being Present

I took in all of the sights and sounds that nature was offering. I wasn't thinking about looking at my phone, I wasn't thinking about later, and I wasn't even worried about the time. I was present in the moment or hours I was out there. My worries and stress weren't present, just concentrating on my breathing and trying not to trip.

Gratitude

It's amazing what you can do when you are present in the moment and taking the time to soak it all in. For me, gratitude comes to mind. You are able to enjoy the life and beauty around you. Gratitude has been something that has been difficult for me. Don't get me wrong, I am thankful for many things but what I have failed to do and most certainly working harder on as of lately is being mindful of all the things I am grateful for instead of worrying about all of the stress of the past that can't be changed and the future that has yet to arrive.

Thinking about the hike still brings a smile to my face. I'm thankful that I made myself go and proud of myself for taking it all in. I can't go back and change all of the other times in my life that I should have done the same thing because I can't go back, but what I can do is change the way I absorb things to come.

I made peace with some more things from my life recently which is why I needed this day to fully reflect. As I have mentioned in the beginning, it hasn't always been pretty. To know that I had to make peace with pain that I was holding on to, owning it, I let it surround me, stopped resisting it. Accepting it, being grateful for it and letting go of it. Until we learn to have a different relationship with pain, it will continue and continue and continue to weigh us down which is what it has done to me and I am loving the lighter feeling no matter how ugly it can be when you bring it to light.

To be present, to be grateful. Open your eyes!

Be the beholder

People often say that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” and I say that the most liberating thing about beauty is realizing that you are the beholder. This empowers us to find beauty in places where others have not dared to look, including inside ourselves.