Winds blow Uncertainty Cleansing aching hearts The sun hides behind the fog Waiting patiently to burn off
In the distant horizon ships pass by Planes fly high Birds sing while vultures circle Waiting to be fed
Life is fragile Struggling to find words Dialing the phone Nobody’s home I just called to say goodbye
The whistle blows Tears flow back to the ocean The fog burns off And the sun glows
We return again and again Rainbows bring hope to despair Everlasting light Wind blows uncertainty
Let’s not say Goodbye! Until we meet again…. Farewell my friend
This comes at a time where we struggle with our sweet dog Harry. Some of you have been so kind to share Harry’s journey with us. He’s dependent on our every need, still eating happily and sleeping between us an night. He has no use of his front legs now either. I pray for miracles and work on him but the time is nearing. Some days his needs are greater than we can bear because he’s dependent on us for his every movement and it’s challenging. It’s a lot like having a newborn and trying to figure out what they need but you know they will grow up and leave the nest and fly. In this case we know we will have to say goodbye. Every time we decide it’s time to send him off to The Rainbow Bridge, he eats another meal and looks at us with those big brown eyes and we just can’t do it. We’re heading out for a hike now and pushing him in the stroller to get some fresh air.
Covid numbers are increasing here in California with a record high of 779 deaths on Friday.
We were watching the news last night and heard Larry King, the Brooklyn-bred man who became cable TV’s most well-known talk show host, died. He was 87.
Over the course of more than five decades in radio and TV broadcasting, half of it spent hosting CNN’s “Larry King Live,” King mingled with the famous and infamous and average people who became either. We watched his shows and had no idea of his colorful life at the time but loved his great interviews.
By his count, he interviewed more than 60,000 subjects, and when his run on cable ended in 2010, he segued to the internet with “Larry King Now,” a daily talk show on Hulu from Ora TV, and became an active presence on Twitter.
Larry’s last words were “Let’s not say Goodbye but rather, Until We Meet Again, Farwell”.
Life is short; days may seem long or fly by and it’s definitely uncertain. Pick up the phone and let someone you know you’re thinking of them, email or send a card. There is nothing like old snail mail. Love yourself and love others, life is fleeting.
Thanks so much for reading today, liking (if you do of course), commenting and or sharing.
Always love and light as you travel through your day!
Thank you so much once again to Jason Gotlib for his spectacular photo and his beautiful hopeful quote.
In celebration, light, love, hope, unity, blessings, prayers for all of us; no matter what color our skin, religious beliefs, gender, sexual preference or age. Thanks so much reading and liking (if you do of course), commenting and or sharing!
I know I’m usually the one that is smiling, happy and upbeat with a positive outlook (didn’t I just write that 🤣). I generally write soothing poetry, post exercise and health tips with a touch of humor and there’s always Fun on Friday. If you haven’t seen it, (which I expect lots of you haven’t, PLEASE DO). My Heaven meets Hell on Fri-Yay Funday post was a little edgy and out of character for me with my collaboration but really fun for me to play with a different voice and banter with none other than Gottfried.
I can’t tell you how excited I was to share it with all of you and then when I posted it and broke the link and I ended up in WP hell, I was going crazy. How crazy is that!!!!! So now, I’m the crazy peep. We all know the feeling though of getting something up and ready to go only to find it glitched. I was like “who’s playing with me? Is this an omen from the devil himself, God, Gottfried?” 🤣🔥 And seriously, how important is this in the scheme of things in our life? IT ISN’T!! WE ALL KNOW THAT, BUT IT WAS FOR ME THAT DAY… Well, let’s be clear it was 3 days, cuz it took that long to rectify it.
If I were doing it alone I would have just taken it down and reposted it or something but I felt this tremendous pressure since it was a collaboration, and I didn’t want to let him down. I mean, I didn’t want to get fired before I even started. 🤣 It was a nightmare and I got so many emails and texts letting me know that they couldn’t get on my link. I felt like I had my first job working for peanuts but this is a hobby and hobbies are supposed to be fun but I sure wasn’t having any fun.
Thank you soooo much to all of you for coming to my rescue and heading to my post when I painstackingly asked each of you if you got the link. Honestly, it was a little embarrassing but I am sooooo grateful you came and visited and for all of your comments. There were lots of great ones but the one that made me laugh the the hardest was my husband’s when he said, “Are you Heaven or Hell?” I also wanted to see if you liked it since it was off beat for me and now there was no way to know since I couldn’t get an accurate response. You my W.P. friends, friends and family are simply the best!!!
So far, I’m going to Arizona to buy Lisa from Micro at the Macro a Star Bucks coffee, India to buy 10 of Kumar’s books, read Kevin Kinge’s new book (promise I’ll get to it), Finally read Diana’s book, from D Wallace. Thanks to Athira for telling me the new post had a broken link. Thank you so much to Johnathan Caswell, and Chuck thereluctant poem for reblogging it, Marsha from alwayswrite for linking it, Yvette for telling me it was broken, Scott from inspiredchief for always having my back and emailing me and letting me know, Kritika for the heads up and ALL of you who dropped in, commented and supported me. My kids have now banned me from W.P. and the computer for awhile. They’re right, but I’d say thats elder abuse so I’m locked in the bathroom with the lights out, so they can’t find me while i type 🤣.
When I tried to reach Gottfried in a panic for help saying “where are you”? His response was “Out in the real world”. What real world I thought… I was steaming, we all know as writers, this is our real world 🤣. What planet does he live on anyway! Oh right, we covered that. hahahahah. Oh my, I thought what has my world come to, I am possessed. And now I find out it’s his “damn” birthday so I can’t be too mad or maybe I can, since he doesn’t apparrently like them anyway, or does he” One will never know for sure. Happy Un Birthday Gottfried!!! Smile, you should be happy, I was working for you free while you were living it up, getting you all those new followers 😀!
I finally stopped and sat in meditation, came back to center and took some deep breaths. I did a few yoga poses and got out my angel deck card and asked what was this all about and here’s what I picked.
Healing with the Angel Cards Toni Carmine Salerno
In retrospect, I think I have been trying to find my writing voice and putting myself out in the world in a new way was scary. In truth, life is our playground and I will never be a cutter cookie person, just ask anyone who knows me. Boring I’m not, unique, we all are, thus the name of my business, Uniquely Fit. Most of you all loved it and I know that for some of you, it wasn’t your favorite for religious reasons. I want you to know that I’m sorry if this offended you in any way. That certainly wasn’t my intention and I do think there were lots of pearls of wisdom in the post, so I hope you got some of that. For the 100 positive comments we get, we focus on the one or 2 negative ones which is human nature. We have to remember, we can never please everyone, as much as we try and it’s important to honor our own style and expression. That’s the story with perfectionists but we can only do our best. There is perfection in honoring our imperfections. We are all special just the way we are and life is meant to celebrated during our short stay, in light, love, truth and always laughter.
In closing I will leave you with our fellow blogger Curt Mekeman’s quote:
The ability to laugh at oneself has to be a major factor in avoiding insanity.
–Curt
Love and Blessings,
❤️
Cindy
Please remember to like (if you do of course), comment and or share and have a terrific day!
Welcome to Fri-Yay Funday Collab post When Heaven Meets Hell!
Once every so often your path crosses with someone that you might never be friends with. You are from complete opposite sides of the coin, or are you? You can’t explain it but there is sheer delight in the irreverent, and light heartness of deep issues that the other person would say “It’s not that deep”. They make you laugh even though you might not comepletely get their “warped sense of humor” (no judgement there 🤣), or making fun of issues of importance. And they don’t get your esoteric heavenly ways. Men are from Mars and Woman are from Venus. We all know this is true. In this case, He is from Hell and I of course, am from Heaven. 🤣 🔥😇
Can they ever meet in the middle and find equal playing ground?
Step out of your box whereever you stand and have some light hearted fun. We’ve been locked up so long we may have begun to take ourselves too seriously.
Hell 🔥:
Who are you?
Heaven: 😇
The age old question.
I am the wind beneath your wings
So, what’s a nice girl like me doing in a place like this hanging out with you? I was minding my own business doing my job helping people mend their wings so they can fly again and then you came along. I have an important job being an angel and don’t have time for demented souls like you. It’s a full-time job turning damaged goods into worthy ones. And then word gets out that you are so good at it, you put your shingle out and call it heaven. Floating in the clouds is fun for a while, wearing your white robe and Halo and drinking good wine. Not rot gut thunderbird for me, I’ll leave that for you in the lowland. I get the goblets out and say “drink, this is my blood and you will have eternal life and be free”.
Everyone wants freedom but next thing you know they’ve drunk the life right out of you and you’re floating in the Red Sea. So you pour a little more so you can drown their sorrows and yours from the purgatory of YOU. It’s a thankless job but someone’s gotta do it and it sure as hell isn’t gonna be you. You sit in your solitary confinement, laughing the pee out of people, farting, making jokes, raking someone over the coals while you sharpen your horns and stick, ready with a swift prick. Oh to be a prick. Prick you. I just wanna be you for a day. Even Fairy Godmother’s need a time out. Their wings get tired and they get sick of nursing these poor souls back to life.
I think it’s great that people try to be you for a day. Sometimes I pretend to be normal but it gets boring so I go back to being myself. I’ve put a lot of thought into it and I don’t think being an adult is going to work for me. So the only way I will gladly swap bodies is if it’s with a kid. There’s nothing about being a kind old lady that appeals to me. Everyone comes to me for food and advice, two things I hate sharing above all. Why would I be inclined to give you food just because I’m old and motherly looking? Although if you want bad advice, you can catch me at the pub, I’ll be there all night long dishing it. The worst part is, you were born on a leap year, so I have to wait four years to celebrate my damn birthday?
Heaven 😇:
I could never live in a shoe so I jumped to light speed so I could never be old. A Genie in a bottle, my wish is your command but only once every 4 years. The rest of the time I’m eternal youth, celebrating all year, cuz I’ll always be younger than you. Young at heart, we agree there, but spending too much time in the pub eating grub, surely ages you more than anything else. Just ask your liver. Too many kids and animals so what else was I going to do, so I whine. If I go missing, look for me on a wine bottle. Don’t let my kids know though cuz they’ll drink every bottle and then I’ll never be found. But then maybe that’s not so bad. Dust me off every 4 years and I’ll meet you at the pub but I’m not holding court with a bunch of drunks. I’ll never make it to 29 so I can’t waste my time.
Hell 🔥:
I’ll be honest when I say that this sounds like the best way to live. What is a life worth living if it’s not on the edge? We’re here for a good time not a long time so we have to make the most of every second of the day. If you think nobody cares that you’re alive, try missing a couple of car payments. If I ever get missing, please follow my kids. They can find me no matter where I try to hide. Of all the things I’ve lost, I miss my mind the most. As the days draw to a close, I am constantly reminded of the insignificance of my existence. The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us. And that’s on period.
Heaven: 😇
We finally agree. No one makes it out alive so we may as well have a good time. A long ride sounds like a road to nowhere. Does anyone even know what day it is anymore? Or should we care?! As for me, I’m living on the back 9 with all of the comfort stations. The grass is always greener, but be careful what you wish for and watch out for the dog poop. Oops… My mama said there were gonna be days like these. We have to milk each moment for what it’s worth and not cry over spilled milk. It’s all mind over matter. If you don’t mind it doesn’t matter. So no worries about losing yours. The cow jumped over the moon, the little dog barked, the pig squealed and the kids ran away with the wine.
Hell……………….? Are you there?
Heaven can wait; What do you say?
Hell 🔥:
I’d say, that was a hella Fun Friday!!!
I wasn’t a fan in the 80’s when this came out but lots of my younger clients love it and it was so fitting for todays post.
I do hope you enjoy this collaboration! This is off the beaten path of my usual arena and it was soooo much fun. If you would like to see more of these please let me know and thanks as always for reading, liking (if you do of course), commenting and or sharing. Thank you from the bottom of my heart and remember if you don’t like it, the devil made me do it 🔥🤣!!!!
If I am to be completely honest, I’m not feeling too fun at the moment. I have always been accused by my clients and most friends of being “too happy”. A dear client who transitioned at 86 used to say “OH NO, here comes Ms. Happy” when I showed up twice a week to put her through the exercise paces. The last thing she wanted to do with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) was see me and yet it was the high point in her day.
I think of her today and the many I have lost over the years ( B.C. before covid) that were so near and dear to my heart. Some of them who had weathered the storms of the ages and some not able to see their kids graduate and I know they would be turning over in their graves right now with the current state of affairs in our country,
I stay happy because I usually stay away from the news and don’t allow toxic informaion that I have no control over to invade my psyche. I energetically stay positive and send energy by tapping into divine truth that raises my level of counsousioness and recharges me so I can be a conduit for others to do the same. It does no good to go down the tubes when I know that healing is going on at it’s deepest level and cleansing out the toxity in a situation is vital, no matter how ugly it gets. We have a choice, we can align with the divine and be a vessle for light and love to enter through darkness or we can let it envelop us.
I was glued to the news inbetween clients and shaken like most people I know, as we watched the unfathomable of breaking into our capital and vandalizing sacred ground incited by our leaders. I’m not here to talk politics. This is a deep time of mourning no matter what you are for or against and violence and threatening our democracy no matter what, is deplorable and never ok. So, I guess you would say, I’m in shock and mourning.
I decided on January 1rst that I would write a quote everyday this year and at the end of the year, if I don’t have the book I’m workng on ready, I will have a book of meditative quotes from the year. I wrote this for next year.
Jan. 6th 2021
Let the music of silence fill your heart with stillness The lyrics might be out of tune and your ears might need to filter out The noises all around you Surrender and let go as you dance through your day in light and love.
It’s hard to ignore voices of the outside world especially in despicable acts of violence trying to drown out truth.
How do me maintain composure and honor and do what’s right, when every ounce of you wants to retaliate?
It’s not easy to be witness to the atrocities of the world, destruction, violence, greed, anger, racism, rape; whatever the case may be. Last year today it was an assault to our democracy in America. Wherever you live, who ever you are, you know the feeling of being a victim of unjust behavior. We have every right to feel sad, scared and angry and yet we must remember that truth prevails and light overshadows darkness.
Our own inner world and mind can be as damaging to ourselves as what happens in the outside world.
Close your eyes and breath and ignite the light so we together can collectively find peace amidst chaos and confusion. Breath in and breath out as you settle the restlessness in your bones, so you can be part of the solution not the problem.
Sing a song of joy and goodness as you ignite the light.
On a happy note, I ended up staying home while my husband and son headed to the lake last night so I could take care of my soul on a deep level and enjoy the stillness of the morning. I’ll head up later but in the meantime, the morning is heaven as it always is when the sun comes to greet the day and I’m cuddled in, nestled between the sheets with my beloved cats.
OllieCassian my daughters new kitty (He’s not here but too cute not to share)My beloved once feral Star
I’ll be wandering to the lake soon after meditaion and my morning ritual of writing and the fun will begin. However you find yourself, honor your feelings and heart and treat yourself well. Enjoy your weekend and find respite no matter what’s going on in your world. I’ll see you on Monday with some exercise tips and an interview that Yvette from Priorhouse did on me, in case you haven’t seen it yet.
And have fun. After all, it’s Friday Funday and someone has to do it, so it might as well be you.
Stay Blessed, be bold and know you are love.
❤️
Cindy
Thanks so much for reading andPlease remember to like (if you do of course), comment and or share if you are inclined. It’s so much appreciated.
Say goodbye to yesterday To make way for what’s to come Clean out the closet of our mind So we can dwell in possibility.
Say goodbye to yesterday The heartache and the loss We’ve made it through the craziness No mater what the cost.
Say goodbye to yesterday And thank it for the lessons We don’t have far too look They’re right in front of our noses.
Say goodbye to yesterday So we can move forward in faith And birth our souls yearnings While nourishing new beginnings.
Say goodbye to yesterday The toxic people in our lives The leaders that took us down a garden path To the graves of those we’ve lost.
Say good by to yesterday And make room for moments of today We think we know so much but if we’ve learned anything, It’s that life happens while we’re making other plans.
Say goodbye to yesterday And make your blessings count It’s in the moments you create Remember gratitude is attitude.
As we usher in the New Year it’s important to reflect on 2020 to release whatever emotions or patterns might be holding us back from moving forward.
Take some introspective time to reflect if you haven’t done so already and see what you need to let go of and what you want to birth this year in 2021.
While we are so ready to say goodbye to 2020, it seems we are a long way from where we were before the Pandemic started.
Eager to move on with a vaccine being slowly distributed but not there yet, and we must do our due diligence while moving into the year with the unknown. And we all know the unknown is one of the hardest places to hang out in.
This is my annual ritual I do in groups with clients or alone. Both are awesome. You could even call your support circle together outside or hold a Zoom meeting and do it together online. You could also do it with me below and turn the video on and off while you complete each step. It’s very powerful and I haven’t missed a year for 35 years and I started the tradition with my family as well.
New Years Burning Bowl with the Family
9 Easy Steps to Usher in the New Year and clear out the debris from 2020
Sit in meditation at your alter and light a candle, some incense, a flower and bell and root and ground for a few breathes or a long meditation. These 3 things reminds us of the impermanence of life as we know it.
Write down all the things you want to let go of from this past year on a piece of paper. This is your chance to get them all out of your body and mind and on to paper. Anything at all that has a hold on you. Ie: anxiety, anger, depression, jealousy, frustration, loneliness, hurt, resentment. It can go on and on and don’t stop until you have written each one down.
BURN IT! Yes, burn baby burn. Let it all go and feel it release far and away from you physically and metaphysically to create space inside for what you want to manifest in the New Year.
Write down what you are grateful for: I know this might be a tall order for some of you with loss and the challenge from last year but it is really important because Gratitude produces more abundance in your life.There are always things you can find even in the most dismal of times (yes, even in 2020).
And to think 2020 had such a good ring. Don’t judge a book by it’s cover…. what a lesson this was!
Write a letter to God, Source, the Divine, Your Higher Power affirming your wishes for 2021 thanking the powers that be. See my sample letter below from last year. I also might write some goals that I have with dates and a plan of action and add those to my calendar.
Pick 3 angel cards representing Past, Present and Future. This is optional but quite profound and fun to play with!
Stick it in an envelope, seal it and address it to yourself so you can mail it to yourself one week before the end of 2021 (write the day you will mail it to yourself in your calendar or you will forget).
Now, open your letter from last year. It’s amazing what you will find.
Past, Present, Future Healing with Angels Dorreen Virtue, P.H.D. deck
This year was like a surprise gift I could have never predicted.. If some things still haven’t come into fruition, you simply put them on your list for next year. In regards to my Angel Cards, I still have the same love transformed into more passion. I’m playing more and always have to be honest with my truth and integrity. I am curious about all of the cherubs in all 3 cards as this is rare. I have 4 children and had 1 miscarriage making 5. Does this mean I have grandchildren on the horizon? hmmmm…..I guess I’ll have to wait and see.
Remember to say Thank You!!!
Here’s are samples of what I wrote this year:
What do I want to release?
Impatience, frustration, perfection, fixation, being swept away, sitting so much, poor scheduling.
What I am grateful for:
My income only decreasing in half, clients that are so gracious, new definition of self, learning to do technology hard as it’s been, seeing clients on Zoom which has been awesome and more efficient in some ways, saving so much money by only spending money on essentials: Food and wine 🤣, learning how to structure my writing, my 1,000 followers to finish the year. Thanks again. My health, my yoga and Tai Chi practice, walking, strength training, sustaining my exercise routine, making videos, time with myself, effort, struggle and worry about income and just trusting, the beautiful clean air, starting my book and joining a writers workshop, doing some guest interviews, continuing even when I’m frustrated, help from some of you when I’m at the 9th hour and stuck, simple gatherings of everyone pitching in, letting go of messes in the house, amazing parents, kids, friends, pur word press family.
What I’ve learned about myself:
That I can stop driving myself to goals and trust the process, that I am capable of learning technology even though I have a difficult time with it, that I am resilient, that it’s ok to ask for help, I do much better with order and a schedule, it takes time to learn so it’s a double edge sword, to be gentle with myself, that I need to stop and eat and drink more water, that I love writing but hate sitting so much, that exercise, meditation and my yoga and Tai Chi are essential and imbedded in my genes at this point, I need to get up every hour and break, that interruptions of all of the animals is grating on my nerves, they teach me patience,
My letter From 2020:
Weird I started this right after my birthday Feb 29th on March 1st (late this year) before Covid
This was wild to read because all of this came into fruition this year without any thought that my life would shift. At the time I was seeing a full load of clients 4-6 a day. Covid was the gift of allowing me to create this new shift. Otherwise, I would have just kept plugging along in my familiar and expected patterns. Yes, it took a pandemic for me to ask what about me, what do I want? Ask any busy person to get something done because they will do that and more. Now I have limits on what I want to do and how much is actually good for me, which is so freeing.I’m not sure why I didn’t address my letter in my usual way with is usually Dear Father Mother God, Thank you for my blessings of……..
I also enclosed a second page this year which I never do. I also often write down exercise goals, etc. and put dates on them and add them to my calendar. Somewhere, I must have known there would be no schedule this year.
Here’s the second page I included. It was so unusual for me to do a semi poem or thoughts propelling me into writing without even knowing it. I thought I would spare you from my horrible writing this time. 🤣
Gathering, chirping, nesting Moving from limb to limb Leaping to new heights Swinging off branches Singing my song.
Listening closely to my heartbeat We all have a song waiting to be told And to share with the world Deep penetrating, dark open to shed light on wounds and cleanse Drinking in the nectar of life’s gifts.
Sharp fans spike shadows of light moving gracefully, gently and swiftly cutting through lies People have their ideas but they can’t define me All are mirrors to grow and learn from.
Happy New Year as you put into motion an attitude of gratitude so that no matter what happens to you next year, you can ride the current, go with the flow and find your dristi (focus) and bliss.
As always, thanks so much for your time and support. If you found this useful, please remember to like (if you do of course), comment and or share.
Happy Holidays to you. I hope you have a heartfelt day however you celebrate. Here is gift for you to work into your holiday schedule in honor of your body, mind and spirit.
Stay Blessed and Safe as you stretch into saying goodbye to 2020 and entering with hope, faith and renewed spirit.
Remember to keep breathing, stay present and find peace in challlenging moments as we kiss 2020 GOODBYE. I know I said this once, but I’ve just gotta say it again.
Thanks so much for your continued support. I’ll be on a blogging break until the second week of January but will be reading your posts when I can. Until we meet again be bold and be bright.
Please remember to like (if you do of course), comment and or share. I truly appreciate it!
In wrapping up the year, I am feeling particular grateful for your friendship, follow, comments and sharing my work. Thank so so much for being here to share insights, learn, grow and support each other in our journey together. It truly is a gift and I have learned so much from each of you which I am eternally grateful for, whether it be how to technically do something when posting, learning a new form of poetry, learning about history or admire your amazing photography! A picture or quote says a thousand words. I am so inspired by our community and apprecaite you.
I know it’s been a tough year with loss, changes which have called us to higher ground and finding meaning in tough times but we are doing it.
Alrighty, let’s get on to blogging. I don’t usually write about blogging because I like to stick to my strengths and this is not my area of expertise. However, after 7 months of blogging regularly, I have some opinions and Pet Peeves if you will, that I want to share. I hope you find my ideas helpful.
Mind you this is my complete bias and everyone will and should run their blogging page in their own way. After all, it is YOUR POST and what you do with your site is up to you. Do it your way.
Write good content.
What do you want to impart? What is the purpose of your blog posts? If you have lousy content: NO ONE WANTS TO READ IT, EXCEPT YOU and perhaps the few others that find company in misery. Again, that’s ok, if that’s all you care about.
Edit your work!
Good editors will tell you straight up that it has to go to the chopping board if it’s not content worthy. Most of us won’t be hiring an editor for our blog post, so you’ll have to wear 2 hats… writer and editor. But you say, “oh it’s so good though.” Well, maybe to you but if you aren’t getting followers and you want them, get the chopping board out. And that means spelling, grammar, run on sentences etc. You will be forgiven for an occasional slip up but after a while, people will get tired of it, when they can surf to the next good writer. It’s a drag, I get it and as the queen of run on sentences and not framing my thoughts. I know how painstaking it is to go over something umpteen times, only to still get it wrong at times. That’s where my kids ridiculing me has come in handy or my husband’s first comment in the morning; “you have an error.” I get so mad and roll my eyes because I want to hear something positive after spending so much time checking it but it’s the best gift I could have been given.
Pictures and some Gify’s and emojis add a lot.
Start with one and grow from there. I’m still trying to figure out why when I do a tile picture someone sees it all chopped up and it looks perfect in preview. Do tell please, if you know the answer to this! As you get better, you can add more and use applications such as Canva, Getty Images etc. It’s been fun learning how to add words over pictures. Practice a lot, because you’ll forget unless you do it a lot.
SEO’s: Search Engine Optimization:
I hear they are great… I do try to title my post with some words I will use again so when people search me they will find me, and use post tags as well… Refer to Rising Star, Ero, Pooja Shelly etc for great articles on this and others. They are the masterminds here. There are SEO plugins that you can look up and will do a lot of the work for you. SEO’s are essential if you are trying to grow your audience. Rising Star has great tips for SEO’s in blogging as well as other tips. This posts does a great job explaining your options and considerations when learning about SEO’s. It’s a rabbit hole but very useful information to know. Also, check out Pooja’s posts at lifesfinewhine for great ideas. Ero Eromonsele Emmanuel, from ericotrips just put out the Good Bad the bad and honorable mentions in his last post with some great tips I had never heard of either. They are really helpful. Do check it out. Also, Shelly from Growing With Swan also has some amazing posts on blogging so check her out too. All of these bloggers are multidimensional and are genuinly great people as well.
Liking and commenting on Blogs:
If you don’t like a post, don’t comment. You can feel inauthenticity through the ethers. But if you do, acknowledge their work. It’s the old adage, what goes around, comes around. People say to me I write too much in comments and they have great tips where they copy and paste a few different line’s in people’s posts and rotate them which is a good idea and a great time saver, I just can’t do that unfortunately. I do end up way too long commenting but it’s because I only comment when I truly am moved and sometimes, it’s only a quick response. It builds relationships though and I feel a genuine connection with that person and I know they do with me. I actually search out some of my friends if I haven’t heard from them in a long time. I am just seriously hoping everything is ok with them.
Don’t like something?
Skip it altogether then. The beauty of W.P, unlike other sites is, it’s not a pissing match and there is deep respect most of the time for others points of few. I have only seen one or 2 times otherwise and it really is disturbing. How not to win friends and influence people. Lol. It’s just plain rude. Now, I love healthy bantering or questions and clarification etc. That is awesome and allows for learning about each other’s backgrounds and history where we can expand and grow in respect.
Share people’s names and site by referencing their content with a hyperlink or reblog. Referrals are the nicest form of flattery which is how I have single handedly built my business with a waiting list.
When someone follows you
Thank them and review their content and if you like their work, follow back. If you want to play, you gotta pay. It’s a 2 way street. I want to go to someone’s site naturally when they follow me because I’m so appreciative. You don’t have to follow but it’s nice if you are inclined and like their work. If you don’t, search out other blogs you connect with. It’s important you honor your interests. I sometimes follow people in another language even though I don’t know what they are saying because I’m drawn to them by their pictures, their smile etc. Sometimes I think, “God I hope they aren’t an axe murderer or something” but so far, my intuition has been right I think. 🤣. I also might not have an interest in their subject but I like them and want to acknowledge them. Sometimes I look for underdogs that have good content but no one sees it and I want to let them know they are valuable, so I like their work. It’s the life coach in me I guess.
Check you spam in comments:
Regularly for followers. Often your followers will end up in spam for a few reasons, either a misclick by you or they were flagged by WordPress. So, if you haven’t seen them for a while check and take them out if they were flagged incorrectly. If someone seems suspicious or is trying to post links in your comments, they may be a scammer and should be left in your spam folder. Scammers will use disguised links and proxies to lure you into websites with viruses or other scams.
Contests and Awards:
Up to you and it’s such an awesome way to make friends right away, acknowledge new bloggers in particular to motivate them and keep them writing. It also builds a following but let me warn you, it takes a lot of time, so be ready for the onslaught. It’s really fun at first ’cause it gets you out of the gate running but you will keep that race up and it can be exhausting. However, just know a lot of these people will be your forever friends because you started out together and are helping each other grow and thrive. It’s fine to have an award free site and write that on your site when people go to your site. It helps when people who want to give you an award know that you don’t participate. It’s a lot of work researching bloggers etc., so it saves them time and the hassle of explaining that you don’t participate in them. I should write that on my site but I truly want to help them and I think “oh, I can do this and I really can’t.
I just want to say THANK YOU SO MUCH to all of you who gifted me awards this year and the ones I never got to even with the best of intentions. You know who you are and I am so appreciative and apologize for not having the time to participate.
A huge thanks to Kally at Middleme for doing an interview on me in the begining of Covid. She writes incredible interviews and career posts. It was well received and I was honored to be invited. Also, thank you Yvette from Priorhouse for the kind mini interview that came out last week. I will repost in January in case you miss it. I appreciate both of you for kindness and vauling my work and featuring me on your posts.
Make as many tags as possible so a greater audience can find your post .
Scheduling Posts is a great way to get a head start and make sure a post will go up at a reasonable time to be seen by others. TIP: WordPress uses UTC (Coordinated Universal Time). So you will have to look up which UTC time correlates to the time you want your post to go live.
Pet Peeves:
Listing your whole post in someone’s comments. Hello? What is that about? Acknowledge the writer you are commenting about. DO NOT AND I REPEAT DO NOT POST YOUR POST IN THEIR COMMENTS. It’s like showing up at a party you weren’t invited too! If you are one that does this, go online immediately and order an etiquette book or just take my word for it; it’s damn straight annoying.
Writing too much in a day:
Knock yourself out if that’s what you love to do and there are some writers that turn things out that are awesome every time. I can’t figure out how they can do this but they are a faucet connected to the powers that be which is commendable. But if I’m to be completely honest, I don’t want to see you show up with umpteen posts that require my attention. I want to like all of it because you’re so good but I just don’t have time. I want to like everyone of them but begin to feel overwhelmed because as your following grows you have limited time and I personally want to see all of my followers work. Posting 1-5 times a week is about right, again IMHO.
Apologizing for being gone. It’s not like anyone or most really care, seriously as much as is said about posting regularly etc. While there is some truth to that, come back with no apologies. You owe it to yourself to do whatever you need to do to take care of yourself.
Now, if you are going to be gone for awhile or on a break, it is nice to let people know because some of us legitimately care and will worry about you or wonder if all is well.
Ragging and brain dumping
It’s like getting a call from someone and before you even say hello the person goes straight into emoting and throwing up without as much as a hello or a breath.
We hear that all day long. On the news, from people, t.v. etc. Give us the lesson, what you’re dealing with, how you’re struggling or share something of meaning. We all get that because we all struggle and are working on growing, learning etc but ADD to our day, don’t just throw your garbage onto someone else’s page so you can get rid of it. Words have power so mindfully choose how you want to affect people.
Word Press Glitches
Not being able to edit because you’re in classic or block and cannot get out.
Timing Out
You’re almost done with your likes, comments and shares and somehow you can’t hit the like button. I have heard many things from too many people on the internet at that time, or you can only like so many at a time. I don’t know but if you know, I’d be so grateful if you would tell me.
Care to add to this list?
In closing I just want to say thanks for all of your support by reading my posts, commenting and sharing your heart with me. It has been a great honor getting to know so many of you and it truly makes my day to see you have visited and see your comments!
We as a community educate, enlighten and give voice to so many topics and I have personally grown so much reading your posts.
Have a wonderful holiday however you spend it and remember, we are almost there and we can say hello to 2021.
I will be on a break from writing posts because I think I will get kicked out from my family if I don’t 🤣 😝 but I’ll be back the second week of January and will definately be checking in on your writing. Hopefully, I can do this!!!
❤️
Cindy
Thanks for reading and liking (if you do of course), commenting and or sharing if you are inclined.
“Of course I say, that’s how life is; change is the only thing there is”.
He shoots me a stare, a snarl and a shake of his head,
I look at him in disbelief.
Neither are right or wrong but change is inevitable; and he is right;
“I’ve changed”!
They say woman marry men, hoping they’ll change,
And men marry women, hoping they’ll never change.
Is it that woman went along more, when love was new?
Or is it that they finally found their voice and speak up more as they bloom?
I’ve always spoken my truth but was always busy pleasing others, never asking questions.
That’s what mothers, daughters and wives do.
Put off me to be there for you.
He loves watching sports (any sport on T.V.) or on the radio,
However, I could care less.
I would rather listen to quiet music, meditate, hike and write.
Men are easy; Give them a sandwich and sex and they’ll follow you anywhere.
Women want to talk.
Just ask my son. His first sentence was “Mom too many words”
I’ve done it all from work to birthing babies, having umpteen pets, traveled with the 6 of us all over the world, hosted lavish parties with all the decorations. Cooked great food and concocted amazing drinks and now I’m content to sit in the void while those spin around me.
I’ve changed, it’s true.
I love my peace and quiet.
Clean floors don’t interest me much, nor does shopping for material objects or having meaningless conversations.
Don’t get me wrong,
I love a clean house and delicious food, and drink,
I just don’t want to execute and do it anymore.
I’ve changed.
And you should know, so when you come home to visit, you’re not disappointed when your Christmas stockings are empty and there aren’t many boxes and I’m not cooking up a storm.
You’ll find me early in the morning in the moonlight writing, quiet as a mouse, dancing or singing and ready to play a game, take a hike or jump on the bike.
I’ve changed so I hope you enjoy the memory of the mother, friend, daughter, wife that you once knew and can appreciate who I am now. If you can’t, I understand.
I love you all no matter what, but it’s important you know;
I’ve changed.
And I’ll keep changing and so will you.
Maybe the mother you once knew will reemerge like the butterfly from the cocoon,
But who knows, I’ve changed.
Nothing is set in stone.
Besides, the best gift is time spent and memories made and shared, not material gifts.
When you visit my home, please write your message on a stone
This was writen before I experienced the complete shift with my adult children coming home for Thanksgiving in a way that I have never seen before. I suppose all of my warnings have paid off. As they are starting to pile in for the holidays, it is always a gift to my heart. Have a beautiful day. Thanks so much for visiting today and hope you enjoyed this and gave you permission to listen to your inner voice.
Please like (if you do of course), commemt and or share.
