What Has Changed In A Year?

I've been reading some fabulous year-end reviews like Benny's. I started mine. Yes, I actually started it. And I'll finish it soon and post it.

Tomorrow is my 42nd birthday!! Wow. I'm incredibly grateful that I've had what seems like a complete infusion of living positively (again). Yay! Just before I put my daughter to bed tonight, we shouted out into the darkness of night this horrible birthday song:

Happy Birthday, ugh (big grunt!)
Happy Birthday, ugh (another big grunt)
Misery and despair
People dying everywhere
Happy Birthday, ugh.

What is sad is that for the past few years I have not at all been excited about my birthday. To me, it symbolized that I've been living a sucky life and, introspectively, what I haven't done. All that's been in my heart.

All those wonderful things I want to do are still in my heart. And I hope to do at the very least 1- 2 of them in this next year.

For whatever reason, I've had a shift inside. I've been more consciously working on releasing all these crap beliefs I'm holding inside me for how life needs to look and act and feel like. No thanks! There are so many ways that have never served me that have attached themselves to me somewhere along the way. One gift to growing older is realizing it's okay to shuck the shitty things you collected along the way. Perhaps I could rename this post Shuck the Shit. Ha! Big laughs!

It feels great to say to myself, you know it's soooo okay to believe you deserve good things and to be happy again. What an amazing concept for me. This year I am saying goodbye to feeling badly emotionally and physically. I am saying goodbye to any niggling remainders of being a victim. I honor my past. I am grateful for all these lessons I lived through. And even happier I'm on the other side of the dark space. I never do well in these dark spaces of my life. And yet when I'm in them, I know and trust they will pass. Eventually.

The reason I had Bella and I sadly sing that sadder song into the dark night is because I didn't even want it in my living space. I work hard to create a living space that's soothing and makes me feel good. (Note to self: need to work harder on that by painting my table ocean this weekend with the warm Minnesota winter!)

I am feeling great these days. I'm working in an office for now. I had a much better xmas and New Year's where I created more of what I wanted instead of having huge problems with my parents not honoring my daughter and I last year. I am so grateful I am choosing to create a better life these days, and to expect life to keep getting better and better. And it's not that things are even that fabulous, it's just my attitude is much more positive. I've been feeding it positive cereal for a while!

Am I Supposed To Let Go More?

My daughter just turned eight on October 29. Yep, she's a pumpkin. I'm always feeling blessed to have her. (Especially as the years keep going by and I haven't yet met someone new to marry and have a family with ~ so I'm workng oncreating a succulent life again!)

It used to be that I would get so emotional her birthday month. It was very traumatic for me when I had my daughter. In being reminded of her coming into this world, my world, I would remember back to the sadness of that time. That her dad chose his drugs over wonderful us.

I'm so happy it's eight years later! Eight years to heal, to make more mistakes to heal from. To start realizing I've got to live my own dreams. Many, many lessons to be blessed with.

I might not be fully healed. I've gone through other minor traumas of my spirit, my being. And that's okay. I no longer feel I have to be so conscious about pulling myself up with positiveness and actions. It's happening by itself now. Thank goodness, another blessing.

I am immensely grateful for my LOA coaching group. In our weekly calls, interactions, implementing, and processing what I'm being reminded my spirit knows, I am choosing to release a lot. To move quickly through turbulent emotional moments. I'd like to relase those, too! ;) Hemal Radia teaches us when something hurts to do things that make you feel better to allow a higher vibration.

So, alas, my daughter again received a crappy birthday present from her absentee dad. Late, too. Seeing the crap he gave her without even a card, I am reminded why I left him. I am reminded, slapped in the face to let go again. What an onion of letting go of the king of toxicity! When will I learn to release any expectataions, any hopes of him being what I want? I need to realize he's no longer in our lives for many reasons.

Part of my expectations are mine alone. They stem from childhood and adult disappointment from my own parents and family for birthdays and holiday gifts. For speaking my truth and not being acknowledged on my special days. As I keep getting older, amidst the seemingly millions of things I am working on internally, I truly am learning to let go of my expectations of others.

What I'll be pondering is how much do I fully let go and how much do I speak my truth? Do I visibly release him even more from our lives? At times like this I am strengthened by my good choices I've made for me in no longer allowing him in our lives. Or allowing him to have a strong emotional pull. He must have a bit of a pull if I am reacting so strongly, even if it only strong disappointment. What the hater or the comedienne in me would absolutely love to do is tape the package back up "return to sender". The note I would put inside would allude to me asking him to give her a gift card and to take these low quality/too small things back so he can buy a rock. I won't. Maybe in the morning, I will write it out and burn it with my other daily morning wishes to bring in.

I am strengthened by myself. By the good, strong choices I have made regarding her father. More and more of me these days is stepping into a better life and allowing that which I no longer need to fall by the wayside. And I must smilingly say I did pretty good this year on my own for her birthday presents. More than that, I am doing great building a beautiful life with the resources I do have for my daughter. Yes, my daughter. Happy birthday, shining light!