[breathing #17] life is a bamboo tree

Nothing happens by chance. This is one thing I believe on. I discovered Les Brown today. I never heard about him before, let alone hear one of his talks.

He's a great motivational speaker: inside him there's passion, knowledge and the will to share. I also admire his strength, however what most inspires me in his life story is: he never gave up. That's a great lesson we need to learn.

"If you can't see it, it doesn't mean it isn't working".

15 Great Lessons From A Bamboo Tree!!! from Sompong Yusoontorn

In this video I'm sharing with you, Les talks about nurture, constant nurture. That metaphor of the Chinese Bamboo tree is a great reminder, and the seed I needed to continue to pursuit my goals. To remind myself that I'm capable enough to achieve them.

We live in a world of instant rewarding, he says. We want what we want, right here and right now. But life isn't a one ladder stairway. Or has a trampoline that let us jump from the first ladder to the last. I lack this asset: of being patient. It's something I need to work on.

Right now, I think I wouldn't be able to water that bamboo tree every single day for 4 years. One day I would forget it, another I wouldn't feel like having all the work to just water it (and just tell myself "it's just one day, what harm can it make?", and then make of this an habit), the following day I'd question myself "What's the purpose? I can't see any outcome" or "I must be doing something wrong. But what?". One day, I'd be so full of excuses that I wouldn't be even conscious that I haven't gave any chance for that tree to grow. Here's my opportunity to change and grow.

I do it with most of my dreams: I do something and nothing happens. I continue doing it for some time and, still, nothing happens. I change here and there, but, well, nothing happens! So I quit and try another dream. I do this in a loop, growing to infinity. This talk taught me that I'm doing everything wrong, even when I'm thinking "I must be doing something wrong". My efforts are an Escher painting, with all that climbing and downing stairs.

Nothing happens by chance, and yet it's curious that, once again, another big lesson in my life is carried in the voice of Chinese history and culture (and nature!). I admire Chinese people very much for all this reasons (and correct me if I'm wrong):

• They fight endlessly, no matter the obstacles;
• Everything in their lives has a purpose and is useful (aesthetics aren't a purpose);
• They search for an equilibrium in all areas (mind and body, traditional and western medicine/philosophies/wisdom, history and innovation, among others);
• They are always polite and grateful.

I once read a wonderful article by Garr Reynolds in Presentation Zen (still one of my favourite blogs!), which talked about this bamboo tree. I think you should read it too.

On my endeavours about this awesome Chinese plant, I discovered a great YouTube video, with all the lessons we can learn with a simple seed:


Also, even if you don't like animation movies, you need to watch Big Hero 6. This is one of the best Disney movies I saw for some years now. It teaches us to persevere, even when everything goes wrong or we don't know what to do any more. The motto is: keep doing and keep failing until you make it. I've made a clip with all the tests Tadashi ran, in order to Baymax to work (84!). Subtitles are in Portuguese, because it's my mother language. After the clip, I'll transcribe the whole dialogue, in English.

Baymax - Tadashi is here.

Tadashi - Here is Tadashi Hamada. And this is the first test of my robotics project.

Baymax - Hello. I am Baymax.

Tadashi - Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop.

Tadashi - The seventh's test of my robotics project.

Baymax - Hello. I...

Tadashi - Ugh! Wait. W-wait. Stop there. Stop.

Tadashi - Tadashi Hamada again. And this is the thirty third test of my robotics project.

Tadashi - *sights* I'm not giving up on you. You don't understand this yet but people need you so let's get back to work.

Tadashi - This is... uh... Tadashi Hamada and this is the eighty fourth... test... *sights* What do you say, big guy?

Baymax - Hello. I am Baymax. Your personal healthcare companion.

Tadashi - It works. It works! Oh, this is amazing! You work! I knew it, I knew it, I knew it, I knew it! You work, I can't believe it! 

Tadashi - Ok, ok. Right, big moment here. Scan me.

Baymax - Your neurotransmitter levels are elevated. This indicates that you are happy.

Tadashi - I am. I really am. Oh man. Wait until my brother sees you... You're gonna help so many people, buddy. So many!... 

Tadashi - That's all for now. I'm satisfied with my care.

This scene was my favourite one, from all the animation. Here you can see a young boy, trying to change the world by helping people. Quoting a wise man, he is mad enough to believe he can change the world, so he changes it. His early efforts are unsuccessful, but he has faith in the project so he keeps going. He wants to help people so much that giving up is not an option. So he tries and tries again: one, seven, thirty, eighty four times. And then he gets it. Can you see the excitement on his face? How much is he happy? He can't contain himself. And then, we wants to share his victory with his brother, Hiro.

Love and confidence can really change the world. So, don't ever give up on your dreams. Don't listen when others say you won't make it. Erase your thoughts when your conscious whispers on your ear that you don't have the skills yet. Those are all lies, obstacles you need to surpass. And those obstacles are the ones that will show how much you want this dream. So, open your wings and fly. Open your heart and be amazed. You can do it!

[here and there #17] let's fly

"the act of making

your ideas real"

After reading Dane Sanders' article about writing (Writing is the NewBlack) I couldn't help myself but nod at every sentence. He tells us that writing is one of the oldest technologies that survived through time. Writing is always here, only the medium we use is changing. First it was rocks, that evolved to papirus and paper. Then came the computer and cellphones. Where will we be writing next?

And then I realized something: writing, along with drawing, is the most minimalist creative endeavour we could have. We only need pen and paper. And imagination, if you want to do something good.

Writing can take many forms – online or offline, in books and magazines, in ads and packages, in signs and clothes, in letters and smartphones. Even in hands, when you don't have any paper/device around you. To everywhere you look, you'll see it.

Also, you write – I dare say – every single day since you learned how to do it. Grocery lists, little notes, sms to your friends and family, chats and posts in your social network of choice and many more that, surely, I'm forgetting right now.

So, here's the challenge: try NOT to write for a week. Then, tell me, what did it feel? How did you overcome the obstacles? Use the hashtag #ddnowritingweek so I can follow your progress – but just three weeks from now! - understand why in a minute.

This is a great way to realise how writing is important in our lives, but also to be creative and know new ways to record stuff or communicate when we don't have any writing supplies with us (may it be a tablet or a sheet of paper).

The second challenge would be: write without using your regular writing tools, like pen & paper or derivatives - like pencils and crayons - or your computer/electronics (tablet, phone, etc). Now, how do you see the act of writing? Can it be transformed and be innovative? Which materials and tools did you use instead? Use the hashtag #ddwritingtools and let's see how creative you are! But, remember, do it only 3 weeks from now!

I'm also meditating on this quote: Writing is simply the act of making your ideas real. How powerful does that feel? Just by put your thoughts out there you're creating something, you're constructing a path to whatever you want to achieve. So, that means you have the power to make your dreams come true by simply writing them. It doesn't seem that difficult, does it?

Writing is a way of meditating about yourself, your inner-strenghts, your doubts and fears and then to act accordingly to them. By writing you'll be defining where do you want to get and which steps you need to make.

--

Talking about dreams, I'm taking Andrea Schroeder's Give Your Dream Wings (GYDW) free e-course. It would be great to have the money for her Creative Alchemy as well, as there are a lot of great resources and also a welcoming community to be involved in. You'll see that the key here is journaling, a.ka. writing.

For the first lesson, I had to answer three thought-provoking questions that made me take a step back and look at my life as a whole.

What's happening in my life right now?

A lot of things, a lot of happiness, a lot of fears, a lot of learning and a lot of doubts. First things first, I'll be a mother of a boy – my first child. I'm five months and a half pregnant, so my body and my mood suffered a lot of changes already. I'm excited, nervous, anxious and thrilled at the same time. I think about how much my life will change, how wonderful it will be, what I'll miss and what I'll gain, how kind of a person I will turn, what kind of a mother I will be. I fear that others will see me only as a mother, I fear to fail too much at this new role of mine, as well!

I'm loving to see this little creature develop inside of me, I can't wait to feel it and share that joy with R. I'm taking photos of my belly every month so I can watch it grow. I'm receiving wonderful gifts from family and friends. And I never know how to thank them or repay – I don't like this word at all, we can't pay (for) love! - their love.

I'm also making new friends, going out more, having more fun. I'm discovering myself in others and feeling inspired. I'm learning new things with them. My love circle is expanding: I give it more and I receive it more, too. I'm learning to be more open and let my true self come out. I'm learning to me more honest and frontal. I'm learning to fight for myself.

But most of all, I'm happy!

- Update: almost 6 months now and feeling my baby, every knick is, to me, an act of love.

What feels stuck or uncomfortable?

I don't remember feeling comfortable, ever! And I take it as a good thing, as I'm always willing/trying to change.

There are a few things that are making me a bit uncomfortable right now. The very first one is how to achieve my dreams accordingly to the lifestyle I want to have. Let's put it into context:

I'm sure I already said it a few times but: 1) I don't want a regular job – I prefer to be a freelancer and work at my own pace, with my own schedule; 2) While doing it, I want to travel – possibly in an autocaravan – without route plans or for how much time I'll stay in one place; and 3) I want a minimalist, and sustainable, lifestyle.

However, right now, I don't have any kind of job or paid activity. So, I'm uncomfortable for not providing for my family and to not putting my talents into a productive/useful way. I feel like I'm waisting my own resources.

I don't need much money to be happy, I do have a somewhat comfortable life with the money R. already provides but... there's something missing. I can't buy him a nice thing and say: this is my gift for you, made of love and effort. Sure I can write him a letter or a poem, design something, create something with my hands. But it doesn't feel enough - not after, almost ,11 years together! I've to found out what is that something missing. Not knowing it makes me uncomfortable too.

Last but not the least, I don't know which of – or how - my talents can be used to solve all the above problems. The answer is within me and yet I can't find it.

What do you wish for?

I wish my son to be happy. I also want him to have the most fun and educational environment possible (can I do it without money? The free resources/tools I'm aknowledge of will be enough? Will my creativity will be enough?). I wish us to be a loving family, the less disfunctional as it can be. I wish to travel with them. I wish to be more of myself. I wish to find a way to give as much as I receive. I wish for my dreams to come true - but that I know it will happen.

I can see that some of my dreams aren't included in my wishlist. And why is that? From this I realise my life goes around happiness and love. I don't seem to need nothing more besides that. Now what makes me happy is a different story: little things are the key. And love, well, I just need to find more and more ways to show it.

On the second lesson, we're invited to describe how it feels to visit the field of the Creative Soul Alchemy.

I felt calm, inspired, curious. I experienced innovative images in my mind that I wanted to come out of me as a product. I was anxious for the meditation to end so I could put all the ideas into paper. I was afraid to forget them as soon as the exercise ended, as they were popping up and shiffting too fast. I forgot all about my body needs, all of the pain and all of the problems and just focused on the situation itself, without judgement. I forgot I am myself or anything really. I was just being.

After analising the whole experience, I realised three things: 1) I want to experience this once again, so I can have more cool ideas; 2) I want to feel more this way – non-judgemental, focusing on what I'm living and just being – during my day; and 3) my mind works, at the same time, in a metaphorical and literal way, mixing the two of them to create something new.

How does it feel to be energetically supported in bringing your wildest dreams to life?

I have only one answer to this: it feels natural. It seems an awkward answer as we're used to not see our dreams come true. Mine always had: I found my soulmate, I've pursuited my dream course, I'm creating a family, I'm becoming a better person and meeting wonderful people along the way. I never thought I'd be happy; now I can't imagine how could I be happier.

Also, I don't have wild dreams. Or easy-peasy dreams. I don't judge it that way. I just work on it until I get it, sometimes I don't even know how I did it. So yes, it feels natural.

On lesson three we have to explore our dream and answer the following questions:

What feels uncomfortable about naming and claiming your dream? Write out all the things that come to mind.

What do you need to do about it to feel comfortable? What needs to change?

Those were the most difficult questions I had to answer until now. The first question I had to pose myself was: why would my dream feel uncomfortable? In our guts we know it shouldn't, but the fact is that EVERY dream we have is uncomfortable to us, or it wouldn't be a dream but a reality. So, what is holding me back? That's the real question. Why isn't my dream a reality already? Because I feel uncomfortable with it, because there are things I still have to deal with before I put one step in front of the other.

The first thing that came to my mind was my family – well, a small but important part of it. I feel judged at every action, and not in a good way. I understand they have their own vision of what life should be, but I don't know why they can't realise we can't all be put in the same bag. The solution I came up to deal with this was: 1) not to tell them about my decisions until I get a final, and optimal, result; or 2) not to do it at all. None of them are making me any good: I shouldn't have to hide myself from them or act accordingly their measurements/principles. What I need to do is to distance myself from what they'll think and/or say and have the courage to speak for myself, to take responsibility for myself. This was always a big issue in my life that I need to take care of right NOW. I know I can't change them, but I can change my (re)actions and the way I look and think about myself.

Also, it feels uncomfortable to doubt if I can put my knowledge into words, specially in a form people will enjoy and understand. I know I'm good at writing, but I never tried to teach anything with my stories and poems: I just spoke from the heart. Maybe that's what I need to do now as well.

It feels uncomfortable to know that, probably, even with the knowledge in their hands, people won't make an effort towards their happiness.

Now that I let it all out: what do I need to do for this to change? I already mention some points, however I need to add that I have to work on my confidence. I also need to be more disciplined and work on my dream everyday – this means writing everyday, my dream - one of them - is to publish a novel. I have to have in mind that I can't control everything.

People will know what to do with the knowledge they have.

here and there #13 [under the pink or the cornflake girl]

//via tumblr

Looking at the universe and I see everything and anything at all. I see all the lives, all those deaths. All those inevitable deaths. The hundred ones that are happening right now. The million ones that already did. And the infinite ones that are still yet to come.

And I'm watching all these babies that are born and the ones that are still only a dream. And I see all these dreams, this willing of making it happen. This sense that life needs to have a meaning and people always searching for it.

And I see it as music, a never-ending song talking about tragedies and fairy-tales, and crimes, and brokenness and solitude, and companionship and love, and hope, and happiness and everything in between.

And I am so sure: it will be written on the stars. All these beautiful, somewhat bitter-sweet stories. These stories I'd like to learn and live and feel and pass on along.

Taking part of this uniqueness...do you imagine how lucky you are? The universe gave you the lottery ticket for you to spend it just the way it pleases you. You're among the elite. Everyone is like you. You're like everyone else. And yet, we're snowflakes.

The universe, we'll never leave it. I wonder where I'll be. In a flower. In someone's heart? Pure sunlight. The breath of the wind. The shadow of the moon. In a smile...

My wonderlife will be about enjoying all these little moments. Good. Bad. Not so good and not so bad. And make of them the best they'll possibly be.

My song has to end someday, I want it to be beautiful, to make people cry and laugh at the same time, to inspire them and bring something good to their hearts. Something they can pass along as well.

here and there #11 [just one step ahead]

My dear dreamers,

This blog is feeling really lonely and I'm afraid I won't be able to post as often as I used to. Maybe one day per week or so. I'm now a volunteer/activist of The Venus Project and I'll also start to help kids with cancer.

But I have a little message for you, one that talks about my dreams and projects. Take a look:



Thanks for watching! And feel free to comment&share. :)

What are your current projects? Tell me all about it!