lara simmons

"To be wronged is nothing unless you continue to remember it." -- Confucius Forty years ago I "auditioned" to paint the new mural at our local library. My best friend and I went together. She was chosen. I was not. When the librarian told me I had not made the cut, I was crushed and in my kindergarten mind I came to the following conclusion: I am not an Artist . Over the years I reinforced this idea by repeatedly saying things like, "I can't draw," "I'm not good at art," "I'm not very creative." And sure enough, I came to believe it. Today I have decided to forgive this librarian - who I am sure has/had no idea the impact of her decision on one little girl's life - and to let go of this false belief about myself. I AM AN ARTIST. I may not use oils or watercolors on a canvas, but I create everyday - in my kitchen when I make dinner for my family, on the blank page when I sit down to write, and sometimes...

  "I'm not okay. You're not okay. But that's okay." -- Colin Tipping , author of Radical Forgiveness If you have been reading this blog for awhile, or if you read my previous blog , you know that Colin Tipping is my forgiveness guru. He has written a couple of absolutely fabulous books on the subject, leads workshops on Radical Forgiveness all over the world, and has even created a forgiveness worksheet that you can use to forgive others and set yourself free (these worksheets can be downloaded for FREE on his website). And this is one of my favorite quotes on forgiveness. I love it for its truth and simplicity. I am not okay, at least not all the time. And neither are you. But that's okay. It has to be, because IT IS. At the same time, we all want to do our best, to improve and to move forward into ever greater expression of our TRUE SELVES. The selves we want to be, the selves we are meant to be, the selves we were before we were hurt and mistr...

I cannot think of a better portent than this day for you... A clean slate A fresh canvas A pristine and absolutely cloudless dawn Nothing to intervene between you and those potent rays Of the dawn of a new day. It bodes well... May you travel smoothly across these waters through the unerring Guidance from on High, and may all that was best in the year gone by be preserved and all the rest be eclipsed by the best that is to come! -Jonathan Marshall Happy New Year! Happy New Day!  In a class I took last year I learned this little nugget of truth: you can live 90 years or you can live one year ninety times.  I don't know about you, but I want to live 90 years - or more! - with each year being better than the last. Fuller. More expansive. Less burdened by my negative thoughts, habits, memories and experiences.  To that end I am proclaiming January 2014 Forgiveness Month. It is time to release, let go and LOVE ON! (Like moving on, b...