🌸 Reflections from My Mom’s Journals, Post #9
🌸Thoughts on choosing you circles and being a survivor
"Someone once asked me how I hold my head up so high after all I’ve been through. I said, 'It's because no matter what, I am a survivor. NEVER A VICTIM!'" -Patricia Buckley
"The trick is not to let people know how really weird you are until it’s too late for them to back out." -Ged Backland
"Stick with people who pull the magic out of you and not the madness."
"I have already been through hell. So give it your best shot. Not only will I survive, I will WIN!" -Jovi Pilapil
That declaration—"I am a survivor, never a victim!"—is everything. It always gives me chills, especially when I connect it to Maya Angelou's powerful poem, "Still I Rise."
Still I Rise by Maya Angelou
You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may trod me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I'll rise.
Does my sassiness upset you? Why are you beset with gloom? 'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells Pumping in my living room.
Just like moons and like suns, With the certainty of tides, Just like hopes springing high, Still I'll rise.
Did you want to see me broken? Bowed head and lowered eyes? Shoulders falling down like teardrops. Weakened by my soulful cries.
Does my haughtiness offend you? Don't you take it awful hard 'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines Diggin' in my own back yard.
You may shoot me with your words, You may cut me with your eyes, You may kill me with your hatefulness, But still, like air, I'll rise.
Does my sexiness upset you? Does it come as a surprise That I dance like I've got diamonds At the meeting of my thighs?
Out of the huts of history's shame I rise Up from a past that's rooted in pain I rise I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide, Welling and swelling I bear in the tide. Leaving behind nights of terror and fear I rise Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear I rise Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise I rise I rise.
The Wisdom of Choosing Your Circle
"Stick with people who pull the magic out of you and not the madness." This quote is so simple, so straightforward, yet why do we—or why have I, speaking only for myself—often ignored such common sense? It seems obvious to surround yourself with people who love you and bring out your best, yet I've certainly wanted to be part of social circles in the past that literally gave me migraines and stomach aches.
Why would anyone do that just to climb some self-imposed, invisible ladder to "success"? I did that for many years, and thankfully, I've been delivered from that nonsense! Maybe it's age, or perhaps menopause finally slapped some sense back into me!
Question For You Dear Reader…
“What wisdom from your loved ones has unexpectedly guided you through life's challenges?”
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Now let's all sing along to "I will survive" by the one and only Gloria Gaynor!
💋✨ Until next time... keep loving & living your best life!💋✨
Wishing you Love, Light & Sparkles!
🌸 Carrie
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