Day 311. Listen up

   People are social beings and they communicate through speech and body language. We all know that. The bug is that many times we don't know HOW to share our ideas and we end up messing up our relationships with our friends and family because we want them to understand us but we fail to remember that we have to understand them too. How many times did that happen to you?

   The key to few conflicts is being assertive. And that involves telling people what you feel without hurting them in any way. How to do that? Describe the behavior that bothers you, say how you feel and mention the effect of that behavior on you. Don't just put it on them. Don't judge or criticize them. Try to understand them too and start listening more. Listen to their needs and tell them your needs in an assertive way. Work together on keeping the good vibe:) 

   Be the one to start behaving differently and then notice the change that occurs around you. Stay assertive. And don't forget: 

Day 310. The short road

   ... isn't always the best for you. My family and I found that the hard way today but at least we learned our lesson:)

   I also learned that it's not ok to push things the way you want. They just won't work all the time. And that's when you'll be disappointed. So better consider your options and sometimes take the long road instead. It will be smoother and it will give you time to enjoy the ride properly. Sure, it will have its bumps now and then, but you'll take them one by one and you'll surpass them more easily thinking about the destination that you're looking forward to achieve. 

   The long road is the vivid representation of life. It has its ups and downs, but it's mostly smooth if you learn to be patient enough. If you don't, it will just seem endless and you'll always want to take the short one instead. But then life will bring you back to the lesson you need to learn: the short road isn't always the best for you:)


P.S. Remember this:

Day 309. Exceeding expectations

   Many times we leave home thinking that we know what lies ahead of us that day. We plan it so we expect it to go according to the plan. But how wrong we are for thinking like that! Life is all about surprises that exceed our expectations, roads that we didn't take into consideration, something different than expected and yet more beautiful and amazing than what we had planned:)

   I felt all those today. My boyfriend and I went for a long walk and a photo shoot on a hill near our city. As usual, I had thought about where I want to go and the kind of photos I want to take. But I was more than surprised when life read my thoughts and somehow made us face a  huge wheat field. A dream that I didn't think of accomplishing today:) I loved every bit of it even if at first I was upset to be far away from the goal I set at home. A blessing in disguise. That's what this was. Such a beautiful one:) 

   So, today I learned that life does exceed our expectations and all we gotta do is be open minded to change. Set goals, alright, but be prepared to have the ride of your life until you get where we want. At least I know that's how today felt:)

Day 308. Priceless

   You know what they say: you can buy a lot of things but there are some that money just can't buy. You will never be able to buy happiness, love, peace, class, lost time and so on. Yeah, you can buy things to get you there for a second, a minute, a day or maybe a week, but when you wake up the next day, will you still be happy? Think again:)  

   Today my boyfriend and I celebrated his birthday. Happy, happy, joy, joy:) Of course, he received a nice gift, something he loved and needed, but at the end of the day he told me: "you know, the fact that you love me and you're here with me is the best gift there is":) So, can you buy that? Real, everlasting happiness?:) I'm really proud of him and of the special thing we share. Anything I could buy wouldn't make me happier:) This is priceless:)

P.S. Happy birthdaaaay, honey<3 Love you lots!

  

Day 307. Of beautiful experiences

   Life teaches us lessons but it also gives us opportunities. It's up to us if we want to take them or leave them but some of them might never be "on sale" again:) So why not take every opportunity we have and, for example, transform studying at home into studying in a wonderful place that feels like heaven? 

   My family and I had an amazing day today:) We went back to a place that we totally forgot about and enjoyed it like we did the first time: taking a good bath, relaxing in the sun and gathering positive energy from the spectacular scenery:) At some point rain chased us home but we didn't leave disappointed. Better yet, we said we'd come back here the following days. It was just too good to be true and not being taken advantage of:) Yuuuum!

Day 306. Rush, rush, rush

   I always tell myself I hate rushing. And even so, I don't know why but I keep doing it. Rush in to get dressed, catch the bus, get somewhere. Every.single.time. Today I ran after two buses. It was awful and I told myself I should stop doing it. What's the worst that could happen? Take the next bus? 

   Why are we rushing in life? Why do we want things asap? Why can't we just be relaxed about everything and know that in the end we will get where we want anyhow? It would spare us of so much energy loss. 

   In my case I'm thinking that I want to get home sooner or that someone might be waiting for me and they might get cranky if I don't make it on time, but I just have to accept that I will eventually get home anyway and if I happen to be late, true friends understand that missing a bus isn't the end of the world:) 

   So let's cut the rushing. It's not good for us. Sooner or later we need to start prioritizing and stop thinking that we HAVE to do something asap and replace that with "we'd like to do it, but if it doesn't happen, it's still ok." And just chillax. God, how much I want that. So I'm going to start doing it in 3... 2... 1...

Day 305. Patience is a virtue

   I know, you know, everybody knows that patience is what I lack the most. And it's the lesson that always comes back to me until I pass the test. So today, another trial. This time I can't say "next time", this time I'm forced to do it and I'd better learn from it for once. In the end, my motivation is high, I just have to go through all the steps until I get there:) Ohhh, can't wait, perfect teeth:)