26/08/2015
You
You are…
who
what
how you choose
to be
to see
to feel
to believe.
What others think
or want to see
or you to be
is irrelevant.
They don’t wipe your kids tears from their eyes
they don’t look after your parents when they’re sick
they don’t cuddle your pets
they’re not the ones who…
live in your body
feel your emotions
think your thoughts.
It’s not their face looking back in the mirror
it’s not their life you are living
so why should you adopt
their hopes
their dreams
their wishes
their demands
their fears
their beliefs?
You are
wholly
totally
unique
in this world.
How wonderful that is!
Your Heart
Your Hopes
Your Dreams
Your Abilities
Your Possibilities
Your Amazing Potential.
You are your own home.
Make your home loveable
liveable
comfortable
warm
accepting.
After all
it’s where you will be
for life.
Words: © August 2015 Michelle Payne
Photo: 123rf.com
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Poems and Quotes | Tagged: acceptance, achievement, alive, approval, beauty, beliefs, bodies, brave, CBT, choice, comfort, consequences, counseling, counselling, dreams, Dreamweaver Consulting, empowerment, fears, goals, gratitude, growing, heart, home, hope, hopes, inspiring, joy, learned behaviour, life, love, Michelle Payne, mindfulness, perception, poems, positivity, possibility, potential, self-actualisation, self-awareness, soul, warm, wishes | 
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
13/05/2015
Copyright: Andrea Danti/123rf.com
To Let Go Takes Love
To “let go” does not mean to stop caring;
it means I can’t do it for someone else.
To “let go” is not to cut myself off;
it is the realization that I can’t control another.
To “let go” is not to enable,
but to allow learning from natural consequences.
To “let go” is to admit powerlessness,
which means the outcome is not in my hands.
To “let go” is not to try to change or blame another;
it is to make the most of myself.
To “let go” is not to care for,
but to care about.
To “let go” is not to “fix”,
but to be supportive.
To “let go” is not to judge,
but to allow another to be a human being.
To “let go” is not to be in the middle arranging all the outcomes,
but to allow others to affect their own destinies.
To “let go” is not to be protective;
it is to permit another to face reality.
To “let go” is not to deny,
but to accept.
To “let go” is not to nag, scold, or argue,
but instead to search out my own shortcomings and to correct them.
To “let go” is not to adjust everything to my desires,
but to take each day as it comes, and to cherish myself in it.
To “let go” is not to criticize and regulate anybody,
but to try to become what I dream I can be.
To “let go” is not to regret the past,
but to grow and to live for the future.
To “let go” is to fear less and to love more.
~ Robert Paul Gilles ~
(Copyright 1997)
from the book Thoughts of the Dream Poet : vol. 1
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
08/04/2015
Slow Dance
Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round,
or listened to rain slapping the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight,
or gazed at the sun fading into the night?
You better slow down, don’t dance so fast,
time is short, the music won’t last.
Do you run through each day on the fly,
when you ask “How are you?”, do you hear the reply?
When the day is done, do you lie in your bed,
with the next hundred chores running through your head?
You better slow down, don’t dance so fast,
time is short, the music won’t last.
Ever told your child, we’ll do it tomorrow,
and in your haste, not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch, let a friendship die,
’cause you never had time to call and say hi?
You better slow down, don’t dance so fast,
time is short, the music won’t last.
When you run so fast to get somewhere,
you miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
it’s like an unopened gift thrown away.
Life isn’t a race, so take it slower,
hear the music before your song is over.
~~ David L. Weatherford ~~
Posted with permission
http://www.davidlweatherford.com/
(Picture found circulating freely online)
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
18/09/2014
I don’t have a lot of time tonight as at the time of drafting this, it’s only a matter of hours before I’m off to the airport… time to get to the States for the next part of my challenge, so a brief update really.
Racing the Planet / 4 Deserts – Roving Race – 250 km across Madagascar
WOW!
If you had to sum up a whole experience into one word, that is what springs to mind when I think of what I’ve just done. Followed by silence as I think of how to adequately describe what has been just an absolutely amazing time in my life.
It was not easy and I think that overall, it was a good job I had no experience to base my expectations on, because if I’d known quite how tough it would be, how ill I would feel in parts, and some of the mental challenges, then I may not have been so quick to sign up. That being said, I think it went really well for my first stage run… and yes, I finished it.
One thing I really liked was the comms/cyber tent package… it meant that not only could you read emails from people who wanted to send you support and to let you know they were thinking about you, but I also had a blog, so folks back home could not only see updates from Racing the Planet/4deserts, but also get to have a brief snapshot of what you were experiencing. We didn’t have access to it after the end of Stage 5, so if anyone has sent emails that I haven’t acknowledged, my apologies. They will be sent to us once the admin staff get a moment to catch their breath. If anyone hasn’t read them, wants to, or wants to read my thoughts during the stages, as well as an extra one I added last week once I was back in the country, please go visit this page, and click on my surname:
http://www.4deserts.com/beyond/madagascar/blogs
It wasn’t all running… on some of the terrain that was not possible… there was walking, a bit of climbing, wading through rivers, trying not to get stuck in mud and rice fields, fall off log bridges, and hopping around on the spot when stung by some kind of buzzy thing… there were tears, laughter, a lot of smiling… there were falls, injuries, sickness… there was walking and star gazing through the night, fantastic awesome scenery, there were blisters… my god how many blisters… nearly everyone I think had some and by the end of the week as everyone went to get hot water for drinks and dinner, it seemed as if everyone was hobbling.
But over and above that, I believe there are two things which make these events what they are… one being the individual’s drive to challenge themselves, to not give up, to achieve… to battle whatever dark moments they have, to enjoy the lighter ones and then often reaching out to others to help them do the same… and the main one, quite simply, the people. Because it’s the people you meet, how you get on, that create the whole experience: both the individual aspects and the collective: your tent mates, the people you talk to a little bit, the people you talk to a lot, those you help and those who help you… an experience like this, it seems to strip everything away… all the materiality, the day to day aspects of life that often we allow to pile on top of us until what we truly want, who we truly want or crave to be, gets swallowed whole by responsibility, belief patterns, expectations of the self and others, by the necessities of the life that we have created. On an experience like this, we can strip that away and see who we truly are… it allows us time to be reflective and face our fears, our worries, our demons… it gives us space to think, to feel… to just be. Is it like that for others? I don’t know… these are just my thoughts as I type… I’m sure there will be many more once I actually take time to “stop”, let everything assimilate and review the whole journey I’ve been on.
I am extremely glad I jumped into this, and that Madagascar was a starting point for me… what a wonderful adventure to start with! The memories it has given me, the experience for what I am thinking of potentially doing in the future… but mainly, the amazing people I’ve met and become friends with and who I hope will be in my life for a long time to come, and not forgetting the overall memories that I am left with. If anyone is considering doing something like this, then I would say absolutely, go for it, without a shadow of a doubt.
Now, it’s time to get psyched up and ready for Grand to Grand! 273km from the Grand Canyon up to the Grand Staircase. The feet are still somewhat painful… the shoulders are still bruised, and the pack this time seems even heavier… I blame the increase in my blister kit rather than sweets in my daily rations 😉
And once again a reminder… that I am also trying to raise funds and awareness for the UK charity Refuge… who help people get out of domestic abusive / violence relationships and to safety. If you would like to share on social media, with friends, with family… my charity page link is: http://www.justgiving.com/michelle-payne4.
Wishing you all a great week ahead.
Michelle
© September 2014 Michelle Payne
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
23/07/2014
A Life to Create
How hard can it be
to relax and let go
to say that’s enough
there’s nothing to prove
or put on show?
There is a time to push
to strive for more
but also a time to stop
to say No
I’m feeling too raw
To soften doesn’t equate to being weak
it can remove inner barriers
open your mind
help you find answers that you seek
Being hard doesn’t equate
to always being strong
There’s no specific line
No definitive right or wrong
So much in this life
we are told that we need
but what is your soul crying out for?
On what does it feed?
Money
Results
Work done at high speed
Or is it just
that your soul
needs you to see
the self laid open
Flying free?
But in this life
many don’t seem to care
so how can you trust
open up
share?
Where do you sit
What could you shift
What do you want to change
and within what range
between the one side of hard
and the other of soft
where you don’t have to fear
being scoffed
What step can you take
to give yourself a break
to let go of anger
of judgement
of self hate?
Which could lead
to a chance
to begin again
where self-acceptance
is no longer in vain
For new decisions to make
A life chosen
A life you can create.
Words © June 2014 Michelle Payne
Picture found circulating freely online
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
09/07/2014
Meeting the Child within
The light of life
that spark of humanity
it resides within
this form we call human.
We create, we destroy
we live, we breathe
we feel, we touch
we teach
until that final day we reach…
Yet bonded to us
through millennia
through souls and spirit
through hearts
there dwells within a child
with whom we have a shared past.
Have you met this child?
Do they have a name?
Are they gentle, wild
or are they tame?
Are they happy?
Are they sad?
Have they been told that they’re good
or that they’re bad?
Do you accept them?
Or reject them?
Do you welcome them with loving arms
and strive to keep them from any harm?
What story would they voice
if you would give them that choice?
Would they describe you as a stranger
having been kept hidden
to stay safe from danger?
Or would they be out in the open
whole, not broken?
Why not say hello?
Give them a wave…
show them that yes,
step out, be seen,
they can be that brave.
Because if you won’t accept them…
love them…
hug them…
Who will?
Step up to the mirror
take a deep breath
see who is revealed
within the eyes’ depths
Who is there?
Meet Your Inner Child laid bare!
Words © June 2014 Michelle Payne
Picture found circulating freely online
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
10/07/2013
Song of the Soul
In the depth of my soul there is
A wordless song – a song that lives
In the seed of my heart.
It refuses to melt with ink on
Parchment; it engulfs my affection
In a transparent cloak and flows,
But not upon my lips.
How can I sigh it? I fear it may
Mingle with earthly ether;
To whom shall I sing it? It dwells
In the house of my soul, in fear of
Harsh ears.
When I look into my inner eyes
I see the shadow of its shadow;
When I touch my fingertips
I feel its vibrations.
The deeds of my hands heed its
Presence as a lake must reflect
The glittering stars; my tears
Reveal it, as bright drops of dew
Reveal the secret of a withering rose.
It is a song composed by contemplation,
And published by silence,
And shunned by clamor,
And folded by truth,
And repeated by dreams,
And understood by love,
And hidden by awakening,
And sung by the soul.
It is the song of love;
What Cain or Esau could sing it?
It is more fragrant than jasmine;
What voice could enslave it?
It is heartbound, as a virgin’s secret;
What string could quiver it?
Who dares unite the roar of the sea
And the singing of the nightingale?
Who dares compare the shrieking tempest
To the sigh of an infant?
Who dares speak aloud the words
Intended for the heart to speak?
What human dares sing in voice
The song of God?
~ Khalil Gibran ~
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
19/06/2013
Compassion and wet pants!
Come with me to a third grade classroom….. There is a nine-year-old boy sitting at his desk and all of a sudden, there is a puddle between his feet and the front of his pants are wet. He thinks his heart is going to stop because he cannot possibly imagine how this has happened. It’s never happened before, and he knows that when the boys find out he will never hear the end of it. When the girls find out, they’ll never speak to him again as long as he lives….The boy believes his heart is going to stop; he puts his head down and prays this prayer, “Dear God, this is an emergency! I need help now! Five minutes from now I am dead meat.”
He looks up from his prayer and here comes the teacher with a look in her eyes that says he has been discovered.
As the teacher is walking toward him, a classmate named Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is filled with water. Susie trips in front of the teacher and inexplicably dumps the bowl of water in the boy’s lap.
The boy pretends to be angry, but all the while is saying to himself, “Thank you, Lord! Thank you.”
Now all of a sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule, the boy is the object of compassion. The teacher rushes him downstairs and gives him gym shorts to put on while his pants dry out. All the other children are on their hands and knees cleaning up around his desk. The compassion is wonderful. But as life would have it, the ridicule that would have been his has been transferred to someone else – Susie…
She tries to help, but they tell her to get out. You’ve done enough, you klutz!”
Finally, at the end of the day as they are waiting for the bus, the boy walks over to Susie and whispers, “You did that on purpose, didn’t you?” Susie whispers back, “I wet my pants once too…”
~~ Unknown ~~
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
10/04/2013
Goodness knows that sometimes the greatest thing
in the world is a smile from a child,
So Goodness laughs a lot.
Goodness knows that it’s easier to break
a child than to mend one,
So Goodness handles with care.
Goodness knows that everyone deserves a second chance,
And sometimes a third and fourth chance, too.
Goodness knows that we all need friends in this world,
So Goodness is determined to be friendly.
Goodness knows that only people count,
So Goodness never counts out people.
Goodness knows that life is sometimes lonely,
But we are never alone.
And when the sorrows of life are left unexplained,
it’s still not too much to bear,
For we can trust that Goodness knows.
~~ unattributed ~~
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
27/03/2013
A farmer had some puppies he needed to sell. He painted a sign advertising the 4 pups and set about nailing it to a post on the edge of his yard. As he was driving the last nail into the post, he felt a tug on his overalls. He looked down into the eyes of a little boy.”Mister,” he said, “I want to buy one of your puppies.””Well,” said the farmer, as he rubbed the sweat off the back of his neck, “These puppies come from fine parents and cost a good deal of money.”The boy dropped his head for a moment. Then reaching deep into his pocket, he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the farmer.”I’ve got thirty-nine cents. Is that enough to take a look?””Sure,” said the farmer. And with that he let out a whistle. “Here, Dolly!” he called.Out from the doghouse and down the ramp ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur.
The little boy pressed his face against the chain link fence. His eyes danced with delight. As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else stirring inside the doghouse.
Slowly another little ball appeared, this one noticeably smaller. Down the ramp it slid. Then in a somewhat awkward manner, the little pup began hobbling toward the others, doing its best to catch up…
“I want that one,” the little boy said, pointing to the runt. The farmer knelt down at the boy’s side and said, “Son, you don’t want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would.”
With that the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down, and began rolling up one leg of his trousers.
In doing so he revealed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe.
Looking back up at the farmer, he said, “You see sir, I don’t run too well myself, and he will need someone who understands.”
With tears in his eyes, the farmer reached down and picked up the little pup. Holding it carefully he handed it to the little boy.
“How much?” asked the little boy. “No charge,” answered the farmer, “There’s no charge for love.”
~~ Origin Unknown ~~
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Posted by Dreamweaver Consulting
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