Continue to Have Courage and Be Kind

If you have yet to check out Medium, I would definitely recommend you do. I recently heard about it in a podcast I was listening to. I went to check it out and WOW! In a way Medium is like a new online encyclopedia.  The platform is quickly becoming one of my favorite places on the web. There is such an immense amount of knowledge that I am super excited to be apart of and learn from.

I decided to rework a blog I had posted here previously for my first post over there. Encouragement is one of my gifts. I love to encourage people to be or do their best no matter what their ambition may be. So I thought that would be a great way to step into this new Medium. I hope you will be encouraged too.

I’ve been sitting here reading news stories and working on some writing. I wanted to stop and take a moment to share some encouragement for my first Medium post.

Over recent days we seem to always be reading and watching more and more horrific attacks or disasters in the news. They’re happening in so many forms across the globe.

Whatever your faith may be. Whether you pray or have other customs or beliefs you live by. I ask that we just take some time to reflect on all of the innocents that are lost every day because of these events. Because of accidents. Because of error. Because of natural disasters.

Because of terrorists.

No matter what the background. No matter if it’s an Islamic extremist, a Christian extremist, a Jewish extremist, a Buddhist extremist, an Atheist extremist, a school shooter, a bomber, crazy people keeping people imprisoned in their homes, I don’t care what the terror is. All of those people are terrorists.

It could happen to any of us.

Life altering circumstances happen to innocent people every day.

I challenge you to do your best, as I will try also, to live your life and enjoy what is around you. Enjoy the precious life we have. We only get one.

Don’t allow uncertainty and worry to govern how you live your life. That is when evil wins. Don’t allow that in. It is like a plague. It continues to spread into every area of your life. You wake up one day and realize you haven’t been living, but surviving.

I try my best to live and enjoy every moment I am given, because we never know which will be our last. I often put the hashtag #Living on many of my social media posts. It helps me to remind myself that I must cherish all of my moments. That I am enjoying the most of life that I can.

If you happen upon this and are in a place where you are forced to fight to survive. My thoughts and prayers are with you! If you have any joy within you, focus on that. It can be your weapon of survival.

To everyone. Take note of the blessings you have. However great or small they may be. Every day someone just like you loses the chance to live.

So let’s be grateful for this time. Honor those who have been lost, or struggle daily, by being the best we can be.

One of my favorite quotes is only five words. To me, it sums up exactly the way each of us should live our lives. I believe it is what helps us to both “live” and also “survive.” Especially in the environment we find ourselves at this time.

So I close with a quote from the Disney live action Cinderella film.

“Have courage and be kind.”