Ain't no mountain high enough......

A mantra my dad has taught me my entire life is that "the view is always better from the top." I couldn't quite grasp that concept until I experienced it, and this summer I had the priveledge of doing so. Over the summer I traveled to the very small town of Pagosa Springs, Colorado. There, I had the amazing opportunity to climb Pagosa Peak, a 13,000 foot mountain above sea level. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done. It feels as though you are doing cardio for three straight hours, your body is mentally, physically and psychologically exhausted. You are breathing heavy because of the elevation and lack of oxygen. It is nothing but pure pain, but it is motivation and endurance that wouldn't let me stop. Despite the suffering, I saw some of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever seen. After literally rock climbing my way to the top, I felt this sense of accomplishment that is incomparable to any other. The view was AMAZING!!! It was like nothing I had ever seen. Truly spectacular. And my dad isn't lying when he says the view is better from the top. It truly is. Along with his mantra, he told me that it's not easy to get to the top, it is easier to stay at the bottom and look up at the top. He ensured that any suffering and pain involved would be worth the view and accomplishment. In life I know look at situations as mountains. I can stay at the bottom where it's easy and comfortable, or I can challenge myself,  overcome the obstacles, rise above the occasion and conquer my Pagosa Peaks.

Forgot what it was like to be home....

 I truly forgot how good home was until I arrived home on Tuesday night. I am from West Palm Beach, Florida, but my family and I were going to The Florida Keys for Thanksgiving. Wednesday morning we left straight for  The Keys, and boy did I forget how beautiful it is down there. Waking up to the fresh sea air while overlooking the bay; Then spending the entire day in the boat, gazing at the crystal blue ocean while listening to Modern English and the Police while soaking in Vitamin D was truly nothing short of living it up in paradise. I was right where I wanted to be. I had all three things I've been missing since I've been in Texas. Family, Ocean, and quality time spent with the two. When you come home from college you really do forget how good you have it. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE college, and have never been happier, but it is nice to come home to familiarity. Dorothy wasn't lying when she said "There's no place like home."

Conflict Resolution

Ok, so we have all been rudely confronted before, be it from a parent, a boy friend, a girl friend, a friend, a sister, a brother.....you get the point. We have all had to deal with a conflict before and because we are so different, we all handle our conflicts in our own unique different ways. I am in Emerging Leaders and today's leadership lesson was on conflict resolution. We were taught the many different to handle conflict, I find them valuable and would like to share them all with you.( I do not take these styles as my work, I received a handout from the speaker)

They include:

-Forcing: attempt to coerce people into doing or thinking something.

-Confronting: believe in openly communicating to surface any unwarranted assumptions about a situation and then deal with obstacles in a positive way.

-Compromising: seek a middle ground solution so that there is a win-win result;assume that it is bettered to have a watered down solution than none at all.

-Withdrawing: try to avoid any disagreements or uncomfortable situations by not engaging anyone in a conflict situation

-Smoothing: work at making everyone happy; try to avoid anyone being uncomfortable by looking at the positive and not dealing directly with conflict issues.

 Have you ever taken the moral high road when being confronted? Have you ever just risen above the occasion  because you knew it was the right thing to do and then been attacked for it?I so miserably recently was and  I came to the conclusion that sometimes the best thing to say is nothing at all.

 

Disguised Porn

 So, here we have (starting from top to bottom),Mile High Pilot, The Refreshinator, Camo Cutie, Texas Hold'Em,  Officer BUSTED and Officer Pat U Down....something is wrong with these pictures. Why does a simple holiday give young women the liberty to go scantily clad? Halloween is supposed to be about disguising yourself as something clever and eating candy, not showing the the sluttiest version of yourself. It disgusts me to see that there are girls who actually have the audacity to dress up, or down should I say, like this. They are exposing themselves because they think it looks "hot or sexy." NEWSFLASH GIRLS, you don't look "hot or sexy", you look trashy, unsophisticated and hooker like. It is time that girls get some self-respect for their bodies and a decent amount of gumption to not give into the idea that you have to wear close to nothing and dress up and look like a prostitute. Playboy even has "officially licensed" costumes... also known as "officially licensed" to look like trash. How absurd is that. Now girls, I know Halloween is this weekend, and Im sure you all will want to look cute, but when deciding whom or what you are going to dress up as, I hope you use good judgement  when it comes to picking out your costume...Bottom line think about how you want to be remembered. That girl who looked like a slutty porn star, or that girl who looked sophisticated like Audrey Hepburn?

Keep it classy girls.

Your choices are half chance, so are everybody elses (watch this video, you'll be glad you did)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTJ7AzBIJoI

 

 Pure wisdom and advice for life. Listen to it, read it,  soak it in, reflect on it, enjoy it, live it.

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '99,

Wear sunscreen. If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term 
benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis or 
reliable then my own meandering experience.  I will dispense this advice....now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, nevermind, you won't understand the power and 
beauty of your youth until they've faded, but trust me in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of 
yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous 
you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future, or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra 
equation by chewing bubblegum.

The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind: the kind that blindsides 
you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts; don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy.  Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind.  The race is 
long, and in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive; forget the insults. (if you succeed in doing this, tell me how).

Keep your old love letters; throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life.  The most interesting people 
I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives; some of the most interesting 40 year 
olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of Calcium.  Be kind to your knees -- you'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't.  Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't.  Maybe you'll 
divorce at 40; maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary.

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself, either.  Your choices are half 
chance, so are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body: use it every way you can.  Don't be afraid of it or what other people think of it; it's the 
greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance...even if you have no where to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions (even if you don't follow them).

Do not read beauty magazines; they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents; you never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings: they're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in 
the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but what a precious few should hold on.  Work hard to bridge the gaps 
and geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you 
were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.

Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old; and when you 
do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children 
respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you.  Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse, 
but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you are 40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it.  Advice is a form of nostalgia; 
dispensing it is a way of wishing the past from the disposal--wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts, and 
recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me, I'm the sunscreen. 

Listen to it, read it,  soak it in, reflect on it, enjoy it, live it.

Born to be a King

Reading on a cold morning in Westport, Connecticut  I wanted someone to explain to me why society has allowed the world to get the best of them....

I was reading "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens" by Sean Covey, and I read this story that left a lasting impression on me and I hope it does the same for you

Here it is:

"King Louis had been taken from his throne and imprisoned. His young son, the prince, was taken by those who dethrones the king. They thought inasmuch as the king's son was heir to the throne, if they could destroy him morally, he would never realize the great and grand destiny that life had bestowed upon him.

They took him to a community far away, and there they exposed the lad to every filthy and vile thing that life could offer. They exposed him to foods the richness of which would quickly make him a slave to appetite. They used vile language around him constantly. They exposed him to lewd and lusting women. They exposed him to dishonor and distrust. He was surrounded 24 hours a day by everything that could drag the soul of a man as low as one could slip. For over 6 months he had this treatment-But not once did the young lad buckle under pressure. 

Finally after intensive temptation, they questioned him. why had he not submitted himself to these things-why had he not partaken? These things would provide pleasure, satisfy his lusts, and were desirable;they were all his. The boy said 'I cannot do what you ask for I was born to be a king.' "

Prince Louis held so strong to wht he beleived that nothing could shake him. What I am trying to reveal to my fellow SMU colleagues is this:

In college we are going to be exposed to, if we have not already been, all sorts of thing. Some good, some bad. But I am mostly referring to the bad. I am referring to debauchery as did the story. Mom and Dad aren't here, they cant tell us what we can and cannot do. We have freedom to do what we please. But I encourage you to hold strong to your beliefs/morals/standards/paradigms and let NO ONE tell you different. Today more and more kids make stupid decisions simply because it's the "cool" thing to do, or because everyone else is doing it. Forget THEM and stay true toYOURSELF. Sometime we get so caught up in wanting to be accepted that we lose all sight of who we are and what we stand for. At the end of the day, I can assure you will impact other simply y the way you live your life. The way you chose to not do what everyone else does. The way you chose to be non-conformist. Your friends will fail in life, and all they want to do is pull you down with them. Don't let them. RISE ABOVE and STAND STRONG. BE the one that said no. BE the one that took a stand. BE the one that made a difference simply by the example of his life.  DONT let society dictate how you live. Live with honor and integrity as did Prince Louis. HE was better that all of that sin. YOU are better than all that sin He was a man of character and of perseverance.

 I challenge YOU to be men and women of character.