Day 147. Can you feel it?

   Today one of the four sisters, Spring, revealed to me some of her blessings. She sent the sun to shine the whole day on a clear sky, birds to sing in the trees and snow to melt here and there:) It was beauuutiful:) Laying in the sun warmed you up and if you closed your eyes you could have sworn it was spring already. 

   Today I was told that I'm silly for taking photos to everything around me and not just to new cities I'm visiting and that photographers in general are rather nuts:P I can't but disagree and call myself a mere dreamer who seeks reasons of happiness everywhere around me. Wouldn't you if you wanted to be happy? Would you rather wait for the big things in your life to let yourself smile? I know I wouldn't:)

Day 146. Mission accomplished

   I always felt the need to help those around me, heal the wounded or at least listen to their problems. I later on found out that's why I'm here, in this world. You know. God gives talents of many sorts and I felt this was going to be mine. Whenever I was able to make sad people happy again, I felt complete. 

   Ever since I wrote my thesis and then, after two more years, my dissertation paper, I wanted to implement the findings of my studies. I was and still am interested in parenting and the prevention of mental illnesses in children/teenagers and my dream that started in college was to make parents aware of the fact that they have to be REALLY careful how they behave with their kids, how and what they teach them in order to become psychologically adapted future adults:) Today I had the chance to do just that and I can't tell you how good it made me feel. 

    It was my first Parent-Teacher meeting:) I had previously introduced myself to all the parents in the kindergarten but that took just about 5 minutes. This time I had a whole hour for a useful talk about parenting. "Will they be interested?" "Will they take notice and change something in their life?" "Will it be useful?" I asked myself before the meeting... And the answer to all those is YES:) I don't know yet if all the parents felt the need to change something in their life because maybe they are awesome parents, but they all seemed interested and loved the meeting (or at least that's what I felt). I am so pleased that we had a friendly, cozy atmosphere that helped all the parents talk about their problems and share solutions that worked. It was just... terrific!:) And we'll do it again in one month!:) Yaaay!:) 

   So this is how my dream came true. And I'm not stopping here:) There are more parents out there who need to find out what being a parent actually involves:) Kids need to grow up happy and well prepared for the irrational beliefs they will face later on in life.

Day 145. Niap

   Pain is like a spoiled adolescent girl. She's so sneaky that she clouds your mind, willing to make you focus only on her and forget everything else. And if you dare trying to ignore her she will grab your hand and she'll squeeze it so hard until you acknowledge her and you'll do everything you can to put her to rest... and she doesn't like to give up easily. 

   I had a terrible headache today... and a cold. Again. For the third time this winter due to working with kids. I couldn't enjoy anything. I just knew I had to work a lot and get through with it by the end of the day. I wasn't able to really pay attention to the small details that usually make my day. Pain... was frustrating and even though I tried not to pay attention to her, she would always come back angrier and angrier until I collapsed. I thought it couldn't get any worse. I wasn't in the mood for anything else but go to bed, sleep and make it go away. But then I changed my mind and I took THE pill. We always take pills. And although some say it's better without, in my case, it's not. Really. The Pill kidnapped Pain after just a few minutes and I could still hear her scream. I knew she wanted back to me but I smiled in victory. I could go back to finishing my presentation for tomorrow. Big day approaching...

Day 144. Freeze

   I wish time would freeze for me in the morning. I'd like to be able to turn it off as you do with a timer and linger under the cozy blanket and when I'm bored of the sheets of my bed and the movies or TV shows that i can watch, then and only then unfreeze time and go back to doing what I have to do that day. 

   Life moves on whether we're ready for it or not and we have to roll with it. Every day I promise myself I would go to sleep one or two hours earlier but I never do it. I barely have any free time after work anyway so going to sleep earlier would only shorten that awesome time of the day... And then it gets harder and harder to wake up in the morning. I wish I drank coffee. Maybe that way I wouldn't go through all this unpleasant situation. But I don't, so I have to keep my thoughts together and find something to motivate myself in order to move. I wish time would freeze for me.

Day 143. Le Petit Prince

     Today was a special day because ... I met The Little Prince:)

   I knew the story before, but I never read it. It seemed way too complicated for me so I just abandoned it for other stories that I could comprehend more easily. This night I had the awesome opportunity to listen to the story on vinyl. I swear, it was the most beautiful experience I had in months:) Laying on a cozy armchair, being surrounded by friends and diving into childhood was exactly what I needed:) That trembling voice, those innocent lines and the whole message caught me completely. Time passed and it felt like a second. I loved it! I embraced it with all my heart. I put it in a special corner of my mind and then decided to keep it there as long as I shall live. 

   I was meant to meet him today. He had to teach me a lesson. The lesson of being responsible for what we tame, the lesson of loving and caring, of how fragile love can be and of how innocent we all are deep down. 

   Returning to innocence can make you feel like you've slept a good night's sleep and then you feel rested, full of life, willing to embrace whatever comes and learn... learn as much as you can, just like The Little Prince. 

Day 142. Go the extra mile

   Most of us are lazy... ok, maybe not every day, but surely from time to time, sometimes as a consequence of too much work done. Nevertheless, being lazy and spending the weekends indoors makes us not enjoy life as much we should.

   Today dad took us to a place we've never been to during wintertime. Even if at first we didn't agree with going outside the city, in the end his idea got to be brilliant. I had new photographic material, we enjoyed the fresh air, walked a little in the snow and bathed in the sun. So it was definitely worth it leaving the cozy home for some hours! 
   In the end I came to a conclusion: I should get out of my comfort zone more often: see my friends even if I'd like to see a movie instead, look for new ideas to surprise the kids during my activities, open up to things that involve a little more effort than usual since the result will always be satisfying:)

          Life's short anyway, so why not enjoy it?

Day 141. Let yourself be surprised

"Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart."

   

   Today I woke up to a sea of white. I went to the window and I "wowed" for some seconds:) I loved that bright blanket covering everything even though I didn't see it for the first time this winter.

   I like letting myself be surprised daily by every little detail that stands out, be it a special branch covered in snow, a snowman built by clumsy kids or a ray of sunshine coming in my office. For me these little things brighten up the day.

   I know I'm bohemian but dreaming helps me smile every day and those little daily smiles bring a few more extra minutes, days, months or years to my life... and in the end what can be better than that?:)