Menna Van Praag's Blog, page 43
April 6, 2013
Day 96 of 99 Days
Day 97 of 99 Days:
“Security is mostly a superstition. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.”
― Helen Keller
I used to think I was safe, if I lead a little life that avoided anything remotely dangerous or daring. And then, one day, I was walking along the road and a chimney stack fell on my head. If that’s not a sign from above, I don’t know what is. I look it to mean that there was absolutely no point in hiding – physically or emotionally – because safety was an illusion. After that I stopped working for the money and started doing what I loved instead, I began risking my heart and reaching out, I smiled at strangers, I went travelling, I did daring things that had scared me silly before. It was wonderful. Now I believe that, since we’re never safe, we might as well live life to the full!
Pic: A beautiful new edition of Alice, a piece of art.
Day 96 of 99 Days
Day 96 of 99 Days:
“If you had done your calculations properly, there would be a moment when you found that the star you were looking for was exactly where it should be on the horizon. In that instant the universe made sense, and you knew no matter what else happened in the world, the stars would always tell you where you were, and when they did, you would always be able to find your way home.”
― Brunonia Barry, The Map of True Places
We all have own our north star that resides inside us and when we act true to it we feel peace, passion and joy. We feel we are home. When we act in opposition to it we feel fear, guilt and anger. We feel far from home, disconnected to ourselves. It’s taken me most of my life to find my star, to feel my heart, to be true to myself and know my way home. I’ve made many false turns in the past but each experience has taught me to better recognise my own truth. And I know that, if your journey to takes you towards your heart, to being at home in yourself, then you’re on a true path and the stars will light your way.
Pic: when home is a garden library, what bliss!
April 5, 2013
Day 95 of 99 Days
“To create one’s world in any of the arts takes courage.”
― Georgia O’Keeffe
I’ve written so much about courage over these 99 days, but it’s so vital to living a fulfilling life and fulfilling your dreams that I’m writing about it one more time. It’s so vital in fact, that I’m going to sneak in a few extra quotes on the matter. Maya Angelou said: “Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can’t practice any other virtue consistently.” Clare Boothe Luce said: “Courage is the ladder on which all the other virtues mount.” All of life takes courage, fulfilling your dreams doubly so. Cultivate your courage and be kind to yourself as often as you can!
Pic: O getting ready to go… We’ll be spending a weekend in Hamburg with Ariel & Shya Kane cultivating our Creativity & Intuition!
April 4, 2013
Day 94 of 99 Days
“Remorse is the poison of life.”
― Charlotte Brontë
A few days ago I watched a wonderful program about the Brontë sisters. It left me feeling very inspired. Much more so than Anne and Emily, Charlotte was rather ambitious. She wanted to write and wanted to see her writing out there in the world. Of course, everyone told her she couldn’t do it and, since she needed to earn a living, she became a teacher. Still she didn’t give up, persuading her sisters to join her in publishing a book of poetry. It sold two copies. Two copies! Instead of crawling into bed and crying, stewing in remorse and self-pity, six months later she wrote Jane Eyre. Now that is inspiring indeed!
Pic: El Pendulo Bookshop in Mexico City – just gorgeous.
April 3, 2013
Day 93 of 99 Days
“We all have our own life to pursue, our own kind of dream to be weaving. We all have the power to make wishes come true, as long as we keep believing.”
― Louisa May Alcott
Do you believe you have the power to make your own wishes come true? I believe we all have that power. But I must admit that, from time to time, especially after a significant setback, I lose faith in myself. And then, of course, everything goes into a downwards spiral. There’s nothing like losing faith to show you the importance of keeping the faith! When you believe once more, and start acting accordingly, then life will reflect that and start spiralling upwards again. If you believe you can do it, you can. If you believe you can’t, you won’t. That’s the beginning, middle and end of it all.
Pic: a wall of Penguin book in a Soho cafe.
April 2, 2013
Day 92 of 99 Days
“The world is wide, and I will not waste my life in friction when it could be turned into momentum.”
― Frances E. Willard
Having a son has taught me just how sacred time is. Before him I was pretty focused on positive things but it was still easy to lose a few hours lamenting a negative review or an argument. Nowadays I treasure every hour. Every day I see how fast time flies and I don’t want to waste a minute on meaningless, self-inflicted pains. When we really realise how truly precious and fleeting life is, choosing momentum over friction is easy – most of the time!
April 1, 2013
Day 91 of 99 Days
“Maybe that was the secret of happiness – not expecting any one thing to last forever.”
― Barbara O’Neal, The Lost Recipe for Happiness
I recently discovered that, at least for me, happiness is all about expectations. Without any, I can happily enjoy each moment and manage whatever life presents me with. But, if I’m either seduced into expecting more, or fall foul of trying to hold onto what I’ve got, then a gap opens up between me and happiness that gets wider by the minute! So, be aware of losing yourself in future fantasies. If you stay, as much as possible, in the parameters of the present moment you’ll enjoy – for the most part – a perfectly lovely life.
Pic: A “Happy Easter Hunny Bunny” Cake from the usual place. Since it’s Easter Monday I’m sneaking in one more cake pic!
March 31, 2013
Day 90 of 99 Days
“I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.”
― Audrey Hepburn
I just adore this quote, perhaps because I believe in all these things now but never used to. These sentences remind me of how people can and do change, they give me hope in the possibility of transformation. I used to wear only black. I hated pink. I was deeply cynical about everyone and everything. I hated my body and tried to beat it into submission. I fell apart a lot, sinking into drama at the slightest thing. I believed I was ugly and rarely smiled. I certainly didn’t believe in miracles.
Today I do. I wear pink, I laugh often, I leave my body to be, I feel pretty (especially when I’m smiling) I often surprise myself with my strength, I believe in the chance of tomorrow and the possibility of miracles. I believe in hope and love and the goodness of people. Needless to say, I’m a million times happier today than I ever used to be. Which, I think, is reason enough to believe in all these things and much, much more. In my humble opinion, faith in power of joy is the foundation for everything.
Pic: a giant Easter Egg in Choccy Woccy Do Dah in Soho, London.
March 30, 2013
Day 89 of 99 Days
“We gain strength, courage and confidence every time we look fear in the face. We must do that which we think we cannot do.”
― Eleanor Roosevelt
Often, we think we can’t do something and we believe that thought to be true. We don’t think “oh, that’s just a thought, as inconsequential as all those other silly thoughts I have a thousand times a day.” The amount of negative nonsense that runs through our minds every day is boggling, most of it baring a ridiculous relationship to reality. And yet, because we hear these words in our own voices in our own heads we assume such doubts and fears should be taken seriously.
I used to think I couldn’t do any of the things I wanted to do. I had thousands of thoughts on the subject of how scared and stupid I was. Then I started learning about thoughts and how 99% of them are simply negative nonsense. And, gradually, I stopped automatically believing them and – in the subsequent silence – I found myself doing things I’d never dreamed I could do. The more I did, the more I believed I could do, and I’m absolutely sure it will be the same for you.
Pic: a rather magnificent bookshelf!
March 29, 2013
Day 88 of 99 Days
“Don’t give up the search for happiness because you’re afraid of getting hurt.”
― Martha Raye
We’re all afraid of getting hurt. None of us would willingly offer ourselves up for a bit of an emotional battering. So we step lightly around love, holding back our hearts, investing cautiously and not giving too much. And yet, the more we hold back the less happy we are. In protecting ourselves from hurt we hurt ourselves in the process.
A few years ago I learnt the best way not to get hurt and be happy is to never stop searching for it – with everyone and in everything. Sometimes the highlight of your day can be with a total stranger. Sometimes a life opportunity comes along in an utterly unexpected way. And then because you have so many eggs in so many baskets, when you’re faced with the occasional rejection, you’ll hardly notice it at all.
Pic: little O on his throne in Waterstones bookshop.
