"If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude; don't complain." - Maya Angelou
It is that quote that welcomes you when you log onto A Complaint Free World and it pretty much sums up the basis for my entire post. I stumbled upon the website after hearing a story about a Kansas City Pastor who embarked on a 21 day journey to be complaint free; no gossiping, no criticism, no complaining of any kind...and he invited his parishioners to join in the task. Participants were issued a purple bracelet, similar to the yellow "Live Strong" bracelets, to remind them of their commitment. If they caught themselves complaining, the bracelet would be moved to the other arm, and the 21 days would begin again in it's entirety. It took this pastor three and a half months to complete a 21 day run of no complaining.
Can you believe how tough a seemingly simple task is?
Since then, over 5 million bracelets have been given away indicating a worldwide desire to change and be more positive! And on Monday, I became one of those 5 million. On Monday, I began my own personal vow to not complain for 21 days and although I truly do try to be mostly positive in my daily life regardless...I must admit that today I had to start over again. I complained. Tomorrow, I will yet again begin day 21.
21 days of not complaining about the weather, or how political conversations just piss me off. No complaining about stressful jobs, or frustrating family members, or how fattening the bag of chips were that I just ate. Just 21 days of pure positivity and an actual productive stance to the frustrating things we encounter on a daily basis. If you don't like something...change it. And if you can't change it...what good does complaining about it do? Can you imagine if EVERYONE in the world tried this for just 21 days?
I can't imagine living complaint free for my entire life, especially considering sometimes...you just have to let it out!!! But sometimes I think it's helpful to take an extreme measure, to make us change our ways, even if only slightly.
I'll keep you posted on my progress. I'm super excited for the challenge and hopefully the new outlook to handling life.
Showing posts with label Admitting Failure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Admitting Failure. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
A Candid Moment
HAPPY 2008 (8 days too late)!!!!
I always get really excited for the coming of January 1st. There is just something so magical about “NEW” that gives us hope that we truly can start all over again. As January 1st rings in a new year, so does it also ring in the chance for a new beginning, and I can tell you this year more than any other year before…I need a new beginning.
I hurt people last year; people that have meant more to me than I ever thought possible. I lied to people that mattered in order to carry through with my own selfish intentions. I do realize that's a pretty bold statement to put out to a web full of strangers. But I can’t always put on a happy face, and I can’t pretend to be a perfect human being. I’m flawed. And until I can accept that, I’ll never fully be true to myself. Consider my candid statement, my acceptance.
I’ll forever regret how I treated people in 2007…I’ll forever hate who I was in 2007. If I could do it all over again I’d do many things different, but unfortunately that’s not possible and so I can only hope that my mistakes will carry me forward, and I’ll learn from them.
I can take this new moment, this new day, this New Year and fix me…make me a better person. I can look back at my mistakes and work strongly to not make them again. I can make resolutions and for once make them happen. I can make 2008 a much better year than 2007 and for that I am grateful for the New Year and a new opportunity.
And so, for the first time in many years, I have actually compiled a list of resolutions that I have put onto a piece of paper, and will carry with me every day so that I never lose focus of what I am going to accomplish. That list is as follows:
Write in my blog more often
Spend wisely
SAVE
Utilize my gym membership at least three times a week
Get back into yoga
Eat more fresh foods
Be less selfish
Be more assertive
Enjoy my life now! Don’t dwell on the past, and quit worrying about the future.
Seize opportunities
Take more chances
Do more things that scare the hell out of me
Be honest
Be done with self pity
Accept weaknesses, but build on strengths
Let more people in
I’m sure it’ll be a running list, and I’m sure I’ll fail miserably at some of them, but I hope that in 357 days, I’ll look back at the year and think: “I did good this year”. Here’s hoping for a better 2008.
Friday, July 27, 2007
Shame On Me
You know what pisses me off? Last night, my brother and I got into a discussion over dinner about Thunder and it's origins. Without hesitation, I began discussing how the clouds crash together in the air because of something to do with the high and low pressure and then they...I stopped as I saw my brother staring me straight in the face trying desperately not to laugh.
"What"?
"Do you REALLY still believe that?"
"Isn't that what happens? I learned that in like third grade. I've known it for years. In fact, I can still remember the tiny exercise that my teacher had us...."
"No Christi"
He proceeded to explain to me what really happens when we hear thunder and I wanted to curl in a corner and die at how embarrassed I was. ALL THESE YEARS believing a LIE!
Bound and determined not to let it happen again, I went on an hour long Internet search of Thunder, Lighting, and all things associated with said storms and I came to the conclusion that my brother was in fact right...and I was sadly mistaken.
But it makes me so incredibly mad! As a young child, your educational needs are put into the hands of your teacher in front of you and you're trusting that the information they are providing you is accurate and true. I realize that as an adult we are taught to never take information at face value and to discover the truth on our own, but at the age of 10 how much questioning do you really know how to do? I sure as hell didn't and therefore I took in what I was taught, studied the information I needed to know, and regurgitated it in test format for my teacher to grade and give me that big ol' pretty sticker with a "good job" marked in red ink beside it. And that was it, I never thought of it again. I went on with life, carrying with me the "A" answer I gave on the test, never thinking about it again..until last night.
I consider myself an educated individual which is why it embarrasses me immensely to know that I took another aspect of my education for granted. I trusted a single source as fact.
Stupid Christi.
And stupid third grade teacher for misleading me =)
"What"?
"Do you REALLY still believe that?"
"Isn't that what happens? I learned that in like third grade. I've known it for years. In fact, I can still remember the tiny exercise that my teacher had us...."
"No Christi"
He proceeded to explain to me what really happens when we hear thunder and I wanted to curl in a corner and die at how embarrassed I was. ALL THESE YEARS believing a LIE!
Bound and determined not to let it happen again, I went on an hour long Internet search of Thunder, Lighting, and all things associated with said storms and I came to the conclusion that my brother was in fact right...and I was sadly mistaken.
But it makes me so incredibly mad! As a young child, your educational needs are put into the hands of your teacher in front of you and you're trusting that the information they are providing you is accurate and true. I realize that as an adult we are taught to never take information at face value and to discover the truth on our own, but at the age of 10 how much questioning do you really know how to do? I sure as hell didn't and therefore I took in what I was taught, studied the information I needed to know, and regurgitated it in test format for my teacher to grade and give me that big ol' pretty sticker with a "good job" marked in red ink beside it. And that was it, I never thought of it again. I went on with life, carrying with me the "A" answer I gave on the test, never thinking about it again..until last night.
I consider myself an educated individual which is why it embarrasses me immensely to know that I took another aspect of my education for granted. I trusted a single source as fact.
Stupid Christi.
And stupid third grade teacher for misleading me =)
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Sometimes, I wonder if things will ever change.
And then I explain to him how naive we were, that the world did know and remained silent. And that is why I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must - at that moment - become the center of the universe.
- Elie Wiesel, Night.
On Tuesday, that place was the center of my universe.
I'm not naive to the cruelty of the world. Granted it is true that I live in a sort of bubble, sheltered from the negative effects of the outside world. But the bubble is clear, and I can see it, and ultimately, it affects me. I'd also just like to say that I in no way am comparing the cruelty that I witness throughout my days, to the tragedy that Elie Wiesel experienced during his time at Auschwitz. I am merely making a connection between his words, and their relevance...even today.
When I was 17, I laid witness to a number of my fellow high school classmates, chucking plastic footballs at the head of an openly gay student, as he paraded across the football field during our Homecoming game. He never hung his head, he never lost his smile, and I felt embarrased to call some of these young boys my friends. I think that day I started to hate high school just a little bit.
On Tuesday, on my walk to Walgreens, I was blasted back to the past as I watched a man cross the street in fromt of me, being ridiculed by a couple of young men standing outside a local Brady Street bar.
But this man hung his head, ashamed of who he was in the eyes of these men.
He was a crossdresser.
As this man crossed in front of me I tried to give him a reassuring "You're not a freak" smile, and I hope that because of it he went home knowing that not everyone out there is that cruel or judgemental. But I know that a smile sometimes is not enough, and in my silence, I allowed those men to continue living their cruel lives and gave them the opportunity to do it yet again to another innocent human being.
In my silence I cried. Cried for the humility of the man in front of me, cried for the cruelty that exists in the world today, and cried for the shame I felt as I silently walked into Walgreens, not saying a single word to anyone.
- Elie Wiesel, Night.
On Tuesday, that place was the center of my universe.
I'm not naive to the cruelty of the world. Granted it is true that I live in a sort of bubble, sheltered from the negative effects of the outside world. But the bubble is clear, and I can see it, and ultimately, it affects me. I'd also just like to say that I in no way am comparing the cruelty that I witness throughout my days, to the tragedy that Elie Wiesel experienced during his time at Auschwitz. I am merely making a connection between his words, and their relevance...even today.
When I was 17, I laid witness to a number of my fellow high school classmates, chucking plastic footballs at the head of an openly gay student, as he paraded across the football field during our Homecoming game. He never hung his head, he never lost his smile, and I felt embarrased to call some of these young boys my friends. I think that day I started to hate high school just a little bit.
On Tuesday, on my walk to Walgreens, I was blasted back to the past as I watched a man cross the street in fromt of me, being ridiculed by a couple of young men standing outside a local Brady Street bar.
But this man hung his head, ashamed of who he was in the eyes of these men.
He was a crossdresser.
As this man crossed in front of me I tried to give him a reassuring "You're not a freak" smile, and I hope that because of it he went home knowing that not everyone out there is that cruel or judgemental. But I know that a smile sometimes is not enough, and in my silence, I allowed those men to continue living their cruel lives and gave them the opportunity to do it yet again to another innocent human being.
In my silence I cried. Cried for the humility of the man in front of me, cried for the cruelty that exists in the world today, and cried for the shame I felt as I silently walked into Walgreens, not saying a single word to anyone.
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Okay, You Win
To all you Christi skeptics out there...You Won! I have failed in my detox diet.
Maybe failed is the wrong word. I have POSTPONED my detox diet. There, I like that better. After a full day of eating apples, pinneaple, and a very bland tasteless salad, I began to think about my weekend and how much I would be missing out on if I continued through with this 23 day detox. Between dinner and drinks on Friday and Heather's wedding shower on Saturday the timing on this program just couldn't be any worse. My mom said I should just detox until Friday, go off of it for a few days, then continue on after the weekend, but what's the point in that. I'll just shock my body right back to where it was after a few days off of it.
Therefore, I have decided to clear my schedule for the next three weeks (starting Monday) to allow myself ample time to succesfully complete this detox program.
I know that I can do this! Regardless of how poor my daily habits are =)
Maybe failed is the wrong word. I have POSTPONED my detox diet. There, I like that better. After a full day of eating apples, pinneaple, and a very bland tasteless salad, I began to think about my weekend and how much I would be missing out on if I continued through with this 23 day detox. Between dinner and drinks on Friday and Heather's wedding shower on Saturday the timing on this program just couldn't be any worse. My mom said I should just detox until Friday, go off of it for a few days, then continue on after the weekend, but what's the point in that. I'll just shock my body right back to where it was after a few days off of it.
Therefore, I have decided to clear my schedule for the next three weeks (starting Monday) to allow myself ample time to succesfully complete this detox program.
I know that I can do this! Regardless of how poor my daily habits are =)
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