Tag: photography

A Message To My Sons

2 Comments

TaiGreenwayTN

           I hope you never seek validation from others in any aspect of your life

I hope you are confident in your desires and remain true to your personal passions

I hope you cling to wonder and curiosity

I hope you recognize your power to manifest an intentional and tranquil life

I hope you are capable of being happy for others

I hope you understand that gratification is fleeting, as is every emotion and moment

I hope you find peace in simplicity

I hope you transform this world, but do not become lost in the trend

I hope you stand in the rain and still enjoy getting wet

I hope you gain insight from those you encounter and embody lifelong learning

I hope you cry when you are sad

I hope you cry when you are joyous

I hope you speak with eloquence and love

I hope you gaze at the moon in admiration

I hope you accept the journey of LIFE with ease and calm

I hope you choose tolerance

I hope you travel to seek, not travel to tourist

I hope you help people without expectations or applause

I hope you demonstrate patience

I hope when you experience deep sadness you have the courage to redirect your life

I hope you appreciate the value of time and never allow money to consume you

I hope you can sleep without melatonin, and survive a day without caffeine

I hope you rest when you are tired

I hope you strive when you are capable

 I hope you smile when you think of me

My wish for you…I am hopeful

Food For Thought: Communication

Leave a comment

Stars

Communication

Many will tell you they refuse to discuss politics or religion, claiming it’s ‘personal’ or unproductive.  However,  they’ll carelessly discuss random relationships, their hair, what they ate for dinner 2 weeks ago or what is worn to bed every night… along with other void filling nonsense.

But once any topic that resonates as awkward or intolerable is brought up, they RUN.

The problem isn’t that it’s personal, the core issue is COMMUNICATION.

The Inability To Communicate.

The FEAR of confrontation, rejection, misunderstanding, or because one is merely unable to openly express why they believe or feel a certain way.

Lack of constructive communication skills lead to severe emotional, physical and mental devastation.

Add to this the technological advances that have made it far too easy for us to avoid healthy or necessary conversations-picture apps, texting, social networks, slang/shorthand-  and our Face to Face communication skills are becoming nonexistent.

We’re all guilty of completely misunderstanding someone and feeling offended or becoming defensive and critical.

We blame, criticize, doubt and are then fearful of all that we can’t fathom or comprehend..

 …Simply because We Don’t Understand One Another.

There are far too many adults unable to discuss ideas or express emotions effectively, and this is a poor reflection on our society.

WE CAN DO BETTER.

Rather than avoiding matters of substance, can we accept utilizing our voices for the common good?

 It’s our responsibility, to future generations, in setting the example by implementing vulnerable and open communication at home, with friends and in public. It starts with YOU.

Don’t just tell your child to SPEAK, show them how to positively communicate.

Express your affection, doubts, concern, and praise without avoidance, but with love and sincerity.

Encourage your children to genuinely express themselves, to embrace new information and to openly discuss their curiosities.

Never be afraid to use your voice and speak your truth

Ultimately, the inability to communicate leads to extreme emotional distress, hate, discrimination, ethnocentric attitudes(Crimes-Wars-etc.), and a multitude of problems on a daily basis within our relationships(family & business) that few choose to acknowledge.

However, mustering the courage to openly share or exchange information with tact, vulnerability, tolerance and acceptance is incredibly empowering.

Add to this- the ability to LISTEN, or  fully absorb a response, while taking  into consideration the other person’s perspective-

 and You Will Experience a Vocal Awakening.

We’re all CONNECTED and I genuinely believe we should never stop absorbing knowledge from those around us.

Listen. Agree to disagree, but please, face life head on, and don’t avoid conversation.

Be Courageous.  

SPEAK. Be a VOICE not an ECHO

Sincerely, Rosalie Bardo

An Uncharted Path

Leave a comment

THE CHARGED LIFE, the truly lived life, is not a routine existence in some quaint, picturesque village of safety and certainty. No, the life worth living is out there, in the wooded wilds of the unknown, on the craggy battlefields that test our wits and wills in the daily fights with our own demons.

It is found during the long onward slog through the storms and strife, when we hear only the whispers and taunts of foes and opponents stronger than we, on the ground where we are knocked sprawling and forced to face our own weaknesses, and on the mountaintops that we reach only because we pitted our every ounce of virtue, strength, character, and courage to keep climbing no matter the slings and arrows flung at our backs or the barriers thrown up before us.

rosaliebardo

It is only in the herculean quest for something more that life fills us with wisdom and meaning, but only after we have paid with our sweat and, at times, our tears.

It is in the marching on when we are tired and weak and fearful, and in the camaraderie of those fellow warriors we have striven with—our brothers and sisters and family and friends who cheered us on and toiled with us despite the messiness and apparent madness of it all.

It is out there on the path less traveled, an uncharted path chosen by each of us alone, an often meandering, overgrown path that leads only to another unpaved road or open field of opportunity, where we must strike out once more with the same hope for victory and transcendence.

It is out there when we have the guts to stand naked before the world as who we truly are, when we peer into the souls of those around us and finally see in them the image of the divine, that we plunge ourselves bravely and unconditionally into love that has no bottom or boundary.

It is out there, outside the confines of our comforts and the pleasures of our accumulations, beyond our architecture of the routine, that we slip the bonds of our limiting beliefs, soar magnificently above our own shortcomings, and express our highest selves.

It is out there, in a world rich with choice and challenge and fear and freedom, that your greatest gifts and adventures await you. Listen. It is out there that destiny calls. Be bold and ready yourself. It is time to charge once again.

From the book THE CHARGE by Brendon Burchard

Join The Fight: Spread Awareness : Human Trafficking

2 Comments

RosalieBardoHumanTrafficking

Human trafficking is a form of modern day slavery. It affects every country around the world, regardless of socio-economic status, history, or political structure. Human traffickers have created an international market for the trade in human beings based on high profits and demand for commercial sex and cheap labor. Trafficking affects 161 countries worldwide.

An estimated 20.9 million men, women and children are trafficked for commercial sex or forced labor around the world today. 

Utilizing the power and influence of music, film, and celebrity –> MTV EXIT is a cutting edge and innovative media campaign that aims to raise awareness and increase prevention of human trafficking and exploitation.

mtvexitblogrollbanner

http://mtvexit.org/jointhefight/#lightbox/1/

 We need YOUR help to encourage greater awareness, stimulate a global conversation, and inspire change.

Human trafficking has become the second most profitable crime in the world creating a $32 billion industry: more than Nike, Google and Starbucks combined.

Victims do not agree to be trafficked – they are tricked – lured by false promises – or forced. Many are kept as slaves; starved,  punished and beaten into submission.

The trafficker takes away the basic human rights of the victim: the Freedom to move, to Choose, to Control his/her body and mind, and to Control his/her future.

NOTFORSALE

Trafficking in CHILDREN

 Trafficking of children is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of children for the purpose of exploitation.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children states that there are 100,000-300,000 American born children likely to be victims of human trafficking each year.

The International Labor Organization estimates worldwide that there are 246 million exploited children aged between 5 and 17 involved in debt bondage, forced recruitment for armed conflict, prostitution, pornography, the illegal drug trade, the illegal arms trade, and other illicit activities around the world

Join MTV EXIT on GOOGLE+ , Twitter & Facebook

google.com/+MTVEXIT

HotlineNUMBER

BE A VOICE FOR THOSE WITH NO VOICE. Abolish Slavery. Take Action .

Other Great Sources to help Spread Awareness and Join the fight against Human Trafficking

http://www.polarisproject.org/human-trafficking/international-trafficking

National Human Trafficking Resource Center          

Call 1-888-373-7888 or text BeFree (233733). The National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) is a national, toll-free hotline, available to answer calls and texts from anywhere in the country, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year.

(The NHTRC is a program of Polaris Project, a non-profit, non-governmental organization working exclusively on the issue of human trafficking. They are not a government entity, law enforcement or an immigration authority.)

http://www.endhumantrafficking.org/

http://dontsellbodies.org/

http://www.notforsalecampaign.org/

http://www.castla.org/homepage

http://www.unicefusa.org/work/protection/child-trafficking/

http://www.worldvision.org/our-work/child-protection?campaign=11935146&gclid=CNSLj-3x87gCFa9eQgodWBwALw

Training The Mind

Leave a comment

By thinking of all sentient beings as even better than the wish-granting gem,

for accomplishing the highest aim, may I always consider them precious.

                   Wherever I go, with whomever I go,may I see myself as less than all others, and from the depth of my heart,

may I consider them supremely precious.

May I examine my mind in all actions, and as soon as a negative state occurs,

since it endangers myself and others

,may I firmly face and avert it.

                                                    When I see beings of a negative dispositionor those oppressed by negativity or pain,

 may I, as if finding a treasure, consider them precious, for they are rarely met.

Whenever others, due to their jealousy,

revile and treat me in other unjust ways,

may I accept this defeat myself,

and offer the victory to others.

                           When someone whom I have helped,or in whom I have placed great hope, harms me with great injustice,

may I see him as a sacred friend.

 In short, may I offer both directly and indirectly all joy and benefit to all beings,

my mothers, and may I myself secretly take on all of their hurt and suffering.

May they not be defiled by the concepts of the eight mundane concerns,

and aware that all things are illusory, may they, ungrasping, be free from bondage.

by Kadampa Geshe Langri Tangpa (1054 – 1123)

Love & Light