04/04/2013
1 Year Blogaversary!*
It seems crazy to me to say that Inner Angels & Enemies has been up a running for a whole year! It has been a truly wonderful year, especially as I have come to find that I am not at all completely misunderstood. This was a huge discovery for me, because once my Dad passed away I thought I might have no one left to share my left field perspectives with.
Big huge thanks to those who have read the ramblings which I have the nerve to call writing, and for the constant support your feedback has given me. I am here to serve you, and when something I have shared here may connect with you, even in some small way, it brings me so much joy.
How awesome are my readers!! You have comforted me in my lowest moments, encouraged me when I am in fear. You have reassured me in my self-doubt and accepted me as I expose both the good and the bad. You have humbled me with your compliments, and inspired me by sharing your own stories honestly in your wonderful comments.
I hope we can continue like this for a long time to come. It’s all about connection! If you want to connect further, tell me how you are going, let me know if a post related in some way to you, do you have a favourite topic? Share your questions and opinions with me. I love to hear from you all. I am so glad to be able to open up to you in this special way, & I wish you so many blessings!!
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Happy Blogiversary to Me!
Blasting to the past with the link to my very first post – I hope my intentions are shining through a whole year later. 😉
So Far so Good
14/09/2012
My Answers…*
In a recent post I explained how I adored our office white board and its ‘Life changing question of the week’. In it I shared a few of the questions which we have been asked and hoped some of you would join in. I was so blessed to find that a fellow blogger had dedicated a post to answering one of these questions. I admire the story she shared to capture her answer. You can read her wonderfully creative vision here… One return-trip in a time machine.
I thought it only fair that I give you a couple of my own answers and an idea of the answers from those who I share my days with…
*Would you willingly give up your arms, if you knew you would grow wings in their place?
My Answer – “I would keep my arms and wait for heaven, where I hope to have both arms and wings”. 😉
Most of the staff agreed to keep their arms, they liked the independence and their usefulness. One young guy said he would take the wings and become famous enough to pay others to do everything he could no longer do while he flew around all day! Hahaha
*Would you give up sleep, if you knew you would never get tired again?
One thing you should know about me and sleep is that I need it! Even if I’m full of energy, I need sleep. I am like an Energizer Bunny, full of nervous energy, I have been known to just keep going, and often at extreme speeds! This leads to high levels of adrenaline coursing through my veins and that puts excess stress on the heart. Sleep gives my busy, flighty brain a chance to unwind, (so long as I’m not having one of my nights of vivid dreams). I have learned over years to do some meditation and relaxation techniques before trying to get to sleep. This gives my body the peaceful rest it requires and makes it easier to get up in the morning. Beside I love my comfy bed and comfy pillows, I love the weight of my heavy quilt covering me like a safety blanket. I like resting my heavy head and giving my weak neck a much needed break.
So ‘No’ I would not give up sleep, even if I never got tired again. Most of the staff enjoyed sleep too much to give it up also. The guy with the wings said he would also give up sleep, feeling it wasted time he could spend more productively….probably flying 😉
*If you had to be on a deserted island with anyone, other than your partner, for 12 months who would you choose?
Some chose celebrities, some chose a survival expert such as Bear Grylls or MacGyver, I chose Jesus… We’ve all heard of the multitude of gifts He has. He is an amazing fisherman, He can bring water from a stone, turn rocks into bread, water into wine, or as my friend suggested, He could part the sea so we could walk off the island whenever we wanted 😉 Then there is the added bonus of course to be able to simply sit in His presence, hearing His voice… Listening to His wisdom falling over me like warm rain….
I enjoyed sharing a few of my answers with you and I hope you check out the amazing answer from my blogging friend at the start of this post. Blessings to you all and remember to keep connecting with questions.
23/06/2012
Do you really like getting presents?*
My Big Girl and I were having one of our ‘Deep & Meaningful” talks one night recently, as we often do. These are times I am so grateful for, as it seems so difficult to get teenagers to talk at the best of times, let alone with their parents. So here we were talking about life, faith, boys, future plans, past victories and sharing our thoughts about all kinds of important stuff. One thing she wanted to share, was how much she appreciates that she doesn’t equate ‘gifts’ with how much she is loved. She is happy with a balance of going without things, and appreciating what she has. However, people in her life are beginning to give her gifts as a gesture of affection. Many would perhaps enjoy being spoilt like this, but it actually causes her to feel uncomfortable and I can understand why.
I used to date a guy who bought me ‘gifts’ all the time, he would buy me gifts for no particular reason, and when a special occasion came along he would go overboard. I was a single Mum and counting every penny I had, obviously there was no way I could keep up with his level of gift giving. I gave him affection and attention, but not much in the way of material things. Unfortunately he didn’t know any better, it was how his parents showed him affection, they bought him stuff. They were quite wealthy and he wanted for nothing, yet he was not even close to feeling fulfilled or happy.
It is so common to try to buy things for our loved ones to make up for our shortcomings in regard to giving them attention or love. The act itself of buying a gift for someone could be interpreted as loving thing to do, to spend time thinking about the person you love and thinking of what will make them smile. However the person receiving these gifts only gets a short dose of warmth that easily fades over time. I don’t know about you, but I’ve never thought to myself , ‘Yep, they must really love me, because I remember that present they bought me last month.’
Another element to consider when buying gifts is that the intention can often create feelings of anticipation. If the intention is simply to make someone smile then fine, you will probably get a smile in return for a gift. But what if the intention is to get love in return? What would they have to do to love you back? Do they owe you something now?
A gift is a gift, end of story. It is a gesture purely to acknowledge that thought was given to a person or situation. Thought alone, not love.
If we really want to show our love for others it needs to come in the form of something that cannot be forgotten or broken or lost. If we give our loved ones things like loyalty, compromise, acceptance, forgiveness, freedom, trust, support, encouragement, honesty, affection and attention, then they will know they are loved. We won’t need gifts to prove it.
These expectations of love and the now seemingly common practice of giving ‘gifts’ in exchange for love, has led to the excessive commercialisation we get shoved down our throats at every ‘special day’ imaginable. We just recover from Christmas and then it’s Valentine’s day, we take a breath after getting that out of the way and all of a sudden it’s Easter, with chocolate eggs through to lavish gift baskets displayed on (a ridiculous amount of) stands in every shop. Add to that all the birthdays of those we care for, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Baby showers, Christenings, Birth of New babies, Anniversaries, and before you know it, it is stinking Christmas again! I don’t know about you, but the thought of loving someone with gifts is both expensive and exhausting.
It seems obvious to me that our inner enemies are trying to convince us that giving gifts is necessary when it comes to showing love, by creating hoopla around every occasion we can come up with.
We need to ask our inner angels to take over and encourage us to begin truly loving people in ways that puts gift giving to shame. In fact I think this post should conclude with those true loving gestures lingering in our minds.
Lord, help this world to overlook gift giving as a gesture of love and help us show our loved ones  genuine love through AFFECTION – PATIENCE – LOYALTY – KINDNESS – COMPROMISE – SUPPORT – ATTENTION – FORGIVENESS – ACCEPTANCE – FREEDOM – ENCOURAGEMENT – HONESTY & TRUST! Amen!
Inner Angels & Enemies 