When your bliss takes you to new places

Today has been a very up and down day.  A friends father died a few weeks ago and today the family asked me to do video and photographs of his memorial service. That was very sad but at the same time I was honored that they asked me to record this moment in their lives.  I did my absolute best with my new camera and even with a few glitches to the process think the end result turned out really well.  I put a lot of time and energy and effort into making this very sad event something they could look back on and hopefully remember with some degree of happiness.

Part 1 of his memorial service
Part 2 of his memorial service
Part 3 of his memorial service

They got to see a lot of family from far away and I learned a little something about myself in the process.  I also got to play with my new video and photography software and master some new skills.  This week I have had off from class and have tried to use my time wisely. 

I have been working in my growing garden, even after several setbacks due to the odd weather we are having this spring in TN.  I have lost many of my plants and had to replant due to unseasonably late frost in our area.  We had a tornado sweep through our area yesterday but I am happy to report my new greenhouse actually was left undamaged by the high winds.

I have done my first lunar shots in the last week and learned even more about photography first hand.  I think they turned out pretty well for a novice with basic equipment. But am already daydreaming of more powerful lenses and better shots in my future.  I have entered my first photo contest and lost and entered my second with high hopes.  At this point I am only doing this for personal satisfaction and my own bliss.  But am finding myself intrigued by the whole DSLR camera and all the bells and whistles that go with it.

My second attempt at a photo contest 

Please stop by and like your favorite in this competition, this link will take you to the photo of my read headed canine companion.

I am learning how to do videography, which I really didn't anticipate and am also getting better and better shots. Now I look at my old photos and go really, I shared that publicly.  I think the better camera and better pictures has made me more judgmental of my past skills.  But at least I know I am improving and learning along the way.

I have not only created a website for my photography but also a facebook fan site.
Jennifer Akes Photography on Facebook
Jennifer Akes Photography website

And I have even shared some of my photos on the Pintrest site
Jennifer Akes on Pinterest

I feel like this passion is beginning to help the pieces fall together.  Because I am no longer focusing on what is wrong in my life I have found other aspects of my life beginning to fall into place.  I spoke with someone regarding a job once my bachelors degree is completed, and have a renewed sense of hope regarding my funding.  I have also begun a cooperative in our area for those who are interested in sharing their surplus or possibly making some additional funds for their household selling their organically raised and humanely harvested foods.

It has been a very busy week but as the weekend slowly comes to a close I am thankful for all the blessings it has brought into my life.  I am sad at the loss of a wonderful man but glad that my photos and my videos could bring them some joy in their time of sadness.  I am overjoyed at my growing confidence in these new arenas and wonder what lies ahead.

I know that as each new challenge shows itself in my life I will once again rise to the challenge and hopefully not only learn more about myself but also about my own happiness through them.  I am loving my life more and more with each passing cycle of the planet and learning and relearning some important life lessons.

I am even making time in my already crazy busy schedule to escape for a few hours and just spend time with friends. Something I haven't done in a great while but have managed to do twice in the last two weeks.

For those who say following your bliss is a waste of time, I say it is what your time is all about.  We all work hard at jobs that perhaps we wish we didn't have to do. Be that laundry or something you get a paycheck for. My bliss is what keeps my sanity intact and my balance in this world secure. It is something that I can look forward to and hopefully eventually make a larger aspect of my life.

I am growing and evolving into the person I was born to be.  With each new skill and each success I am gaining confidence and I am gaining knowledge.  The knowledge I am gaining may not seam like much to an outsider but to me it is the world.

I hope my words today and my experiences have inspired others to follow their own bliss.  Nothing is impossible if you want it bad enough. Sometimes you just have to decide what is really important to you.  You have to set a goal, figure out what you need to do to make it happen and keep on charging that wind mill until you either reach that goal or beat back those dragons in your head that are telling you that you cannot do it.  Either way enjoy the ride.  Life is way to short to be miserable.

Until next time blog buddies.  Stay safe, stay sane and be happy.

Its Never to late to live Happily Ever After

My desktop picture that motivates me isn't a picture of my family or my dogs. It isn't a picture of a waterfall of a beautiful sunset. It is a saying that reminds me every time I turn on my desktop that It is never to late to live Happily ever after. 

Some people would say that this only applies to a relationship.  I say this applies to learning to not only love your life but also to loving yourself.  If you love yourself you hold others to a higher standard in how they treat you and how they act around you.  To me at least this says I may not be a spring chicken but I am worthy of living a life that has quality in it.  I haven't been writing as often as I would like but there is a reason. I would rather put out blogs of quality over churning out many that aren't worthy of reading. I am odd like that.

I would rather share things that I feel are important with those who read my blog and share the things in my life that bring me happiness and joy, or things that challenge me, than to write every day about things that just mundane or downright boring.  And so today I felt I had something to share.

Happily Ever after many times puts people in the mind set of Fairy Tales.  But fairy tales weren't always the happy stories we tell our children.  Once upon a time they were scary stories told by parents to make their children fear the unknown.  If you have ever read the original stories you know what I mean.  Life is a lot like those fairy tales.  It can be scary and overwhelming and something that goes bump in the night. Or it can be an amazing journey of discovery and growth.  The choice is really yours.

And it doesn't matter if you 21 or 81 it is never to late to live Happily Ever After.  When I first saw this picture I thought to myself that it meant that you were meant to find your soulmate and ride off in the sunset with them.  But now after several months I see this and think I am my own happily ever after.  Relationships can change.  They can evolve into something you don't recognize after many years or decades together. People change and evolve, or they stagnate and become dull and lifeless.  But if you are your own happily ever after you can change the ending to your own story.  You can make a life that you want to live and that you want to share with others.

Even if you have spent the last 60 years of your life living a life for others and doing what society has deemed to be the norm, it doesn't mean you cannot start changing that today.  You can learn to love yourself with all your faults and flaws, pimples and dimples and simply live your own Happily Ever After. 

I know many people who feel that they will never get that storybook ending because they haven't found Mr or Mrs Right.  They spend so much of their time and energy looking for that perfect person they often forget that in order to bring love into your life you have be the kind of person that a good person would want to be with.  They forget that a pretty face and a pretty body changes with time, but a beautiful soul is timeless.  That someone who is truly happy in their own skin attracts other like minded people to them and finds themselves surrounded by those who appreciate all they have to offer and know what a blessing they truly are.

Never allow the mistakes of your past to dictate who you will become in the future.  Never allow what you see as limitation to prevent you from following your dreams and making them a reality.  There are many people out there who have physical and mental limitations that others would say why bother trying that still do what they need to in order to be truly happy. Often times finding strength in overcoming those limitation.

Nick Vujici was born without arms or legs but he does not allow his physical limitations to prevent him from following his mission on this planet. He preaches about overcoming adversity to young people and the masses.  He skydives and lives a life worth living.  He is an inspiration regardless of your religious beliefs.  He is living a life worth living.

Christopher Renfro battles with a mental illness but creates amazing pieces of art using moving lights and slow shutter speeds. His work is legendary and amazing to witness. In an era of digital dark room photography this artist uses his environment to create one of a kind shots.

A trick of the light

Christopher Renfro Photograhy

Make any limitations you may encounter help you to become stronger and more determined to achieve your long term goal.  Even if along the way it may give you additional mountains to climb or speed bumps to get past.  Life is to short to be miserable. Embrace your dream and life a life worth living.

At times everyone's life is hard, things happen people come and go from our lives. Bills come in and money gets tight and we all have our dark days. But having something you are passionate about will help those days and times pass that much quicker.  It will help you remain focused on what you want out of life and give you motivation to go after it no matter what challenges have to be faced and conquered to make it happen.

You are never to young or to old to live a life well lived. None of us have a promise of tomorrow.  At any time we could lose our life, how do you want to be remembered.  There is a line in Steel Magnolias that I adore.  "I would rather have 30 minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special".

I like to think I have taken many of the incredible lines written by those who came before me and mapped out my life by those wise words.  If I die tomorrow those I leave behind know that I lived the life I chose not the life I was assigned.  They will also know I didn't wait until I was diagnosed with some terminal disease to begin truly living my life.  I follow my bliss and I highly recommend others do the same. Why you may ask, because life is way to short to be miserable and you should grab it with both hands and make it yours every chance you can.

I hope my words today have inspired you to begin your own journey of self discovery and to go after what makes you happy.  Nothing worth having in this life comes easy, we all have struggles and obstacles to overcome. It isn't the problems you face that define you, it is how you overcome them that dictates the person you will become.  See challenges as the Universes way of  asking how truly important is this to you?  If you want it bad enough you will find a way to overcome it. If you cannot go through it, you go around around it, if you cannot go around it you go over it or under but you must find a way to get to the other side.  You must not give up or you will never find that bliss that many of us seek.

Until Tomorrow Blog Buddies, Stay safe, stay sane, and be happy.

The difference being Happy and merely Existing

Many people walk through life existing. They go about their lives asleep at the wheel. They climb out of bed and slide in the uniform of the day, be that a 3 piece suit,  an issued uniform or whatever wardrobe choice the day calls for.  They spend their entire life doing what makes others money, makes others happy, or serves a communal purpose. They rarely if ever think about what makes them happy.  The go to work and pay their bills and do what is expected of them because that is what they think society expects from all of us.

When someone appears on their radar who is happy and radiant they often scoff and call them a dreamer or an idealist or even worse say they are on drugs because no one is that happy naturally.  They refuse to acknowledge that there is something bigger than you or I at work in the universe. That something guides us and motivates us to dream bigger than our day to day lives.

Some people believe that there is no such thing as destiny, that we are simply hurdling through space without any purpose or any kind of divine intention.  I feel for those people because they are often times at a higher risk for suicide during hard times and rarely if ever see the bigger picture that life has to offer.  The don't see the silver lining to rain clouds or the life lessons we all must learn behind those bad days.

Being happy is a state of mind in the fact that it is a different perspective on life and all that it offers. Some may say that happy people are only optimistic or that they never see the glass as half empty.  I disagree with that. I am not an optimist by any stretch of the imagination. I expect the worst but hope for the best and always try to graciously accept whatever may come in life.  Sometimes life gives me cake, other times it gives me lemons. But regardless of what it gives me I am going to make the best of it.

10 things happy people do differently

I am going to enjoy the time I have amongst those I love. I am not going to wallow in self pity or allow that to rob me of whatever I time I may have on this planet.  I am going to enjoy the beautiful scenery and the wonderful foods and the amazing smells along the way.  I am going to enjoy the warm sun shining down on my face I am going to be exhilarated by the cold rain splattering my skin and I am never going to stop being amazed by the feel of a loved ones arms wrapped around me tight making me feel safe and secure.

I embrace life with all its little hick ups and glitches and am thankful for one more day to spend amongst those who make me the happiest.  I am not going to deny myself that little piece of chocolate when my body yearns for it or refuse that steaming cup of hot coffee first thing in the morning.  Instead I am going to savor those moments and try hard to remember that as good as life may get it don't get any better than snuggling up between clean sheets, or the feel of a warm egg straight from under a chicken's backside, or the wind gently blowing my hair.

Life is way to short to stress over stupid stuff. If you cannot fix it then don't stress it, it only causes grey hair, wrinkles and health issues.  Learn to take a step back from life's problems and see them for what they really are.  Sometimes some distance from a problem will put it into a better perspective.  Many problems we all face in 6 months will only be a vague memory, if that much.  I find that to many people stress over things that either don't directly affect them or don't have a lasting effect on the lives they are creating.

I handle my marriage the same way.  Many things just aren't worth fighting over.  I know a lot of couples who grow so incredibly far apart over stupid stuff.  They fight over who is going to walk the dog or turn off the light before getting into bed and those little things escalate into huge fights with time and continued strife.  Marriage is a partnership, and it is never a 50/50 arrangement, but hopefully it is a partnership in which both parties benefit from the other person being in their lives.  Each bringing different talents and skills to the table and both leaving the better for being in it.

Now I am not a marriage counselor nor am I an expert on marriage.  I can tell you that marriage isn't easy but having a partner to go through life with and having someone who you can count on to have your back during trying times is important.  But so is making sure that you take care of yourself.  Making sure to take that time to reward yourself for a job well done.  Acknowledging that you are a capable person who can do anything if you put your mind to it.  And having your own personal cheering squad helps with that.

Some times you just need another person to hear you.  To acknowledge that what you are doing is important and that doesn't have to be a life partner, it can be a sibling, a friend, a coworker, even a complete stranger who comments on how you changed their life for the better.  I am very lucky in the fact that I have a group of individuals who support me and who help me follow my dreams.  That is a very important ingredient when following your bliss.

If you have those kind of people in your life never assume they will always have time to be your cheering squad, no matter what the relationship.  Be prepared to be the kind of friend and partner that you want in them.  You have to make time for them in your busy life as well or with time you will find that person spending less and less of their time being your cheerleader because you never returned that favor for them.

Never judge others or make them feel bad about their dreams.  That is their dream and theirs alone.  If they tell you they want to be a rodeo clown instead of pointing out how dangerous that is offer to go makeup shopping with them, or ask if they have seen the lastest video on youtube about dodging bulls.  Try to get involved. Sometimes getting involved in someone else's bliss will help you get one step closer to your own.

Today I have wandered all over in my blog, but as I write I often find myself distracted by or thinking about something else I want to share or something else I feel needs to be said.  I hope that today's blog makes sense and gives you some food for thought.  I hope that it isn't to far out there or to spuradic to follow.  And I will try harder in future blogs to stay on track with my subject matter.

If you get a chance check out the link I shared regarding the 10 things happy people do differently. It really is a great article.  And until tomorrow blog buddies.  Stay safe, stay sane, and be happy.

In photography like in life you can either concentrate on the shadows or you can walk in the sunshine. Only you can make that decision which one is your home and which one is your background.  Instead of seeing things only in black and white try to see it things for what they really are, a moment in time that with enough moments passed they will be forgotten.  And you will have moved on to a new situation or a new goal or new surroundings.  Never allow the darkness of this moment to jade you towards the next and never allow your heart and mind to be ruled by the shadows.

I took this photograph many years ago of a new foal who was beginning to explore his amazing new and exciting world.  I hope you take it for what it is a picture of a new beginning and a pretty good shot if I do say so myself.

Justify your Actions to No one but always be prepared to Legitimize all Actions to Yourself

This is the phrase that was running through my head when my eyes opened this morning and I thought to myself what a perfect title for my Blog today. Many of you may be scratching you heads going what is she talking about.  Has she finally gone round the bend. Well to be honest I went "around the bend" years ago.  I little insanity in your life is good. It shakes things up and keeps life interesting.

What I am talking about is, this is your life and you are the only person who has to live with the consequences of your actions.  You may be judged by others by the actions you take but their opinion is just that, their opinion. In time they will either move onto to others to judge or forget what it is about your life choices they disagree with.  But you have to live with any and all actions you take regarding your life for the rest of your life. If you can rise every morning and face yourself in the mirror and know that no matter what actions you may have taken they were legitimate actions in the pursuit of your dreams and goals then you can continue on the path you are following.

Many times change is difficult for those who do not understand why they are necessary.  If it aint broke don't fix it is a common phrase used in polite society.  Others may see your desire to find your own personal bliss as a selfish act because it upsets their view of the norm for this life.  That may because they are still sleep walking through life, doing what has to be done and seeing no reason for making any changes. It may be because they feel that by you seeking your own bliss in some way threatens their reality or the comfortable life they have fallen into.  It may simply be because they aren't brave enough themselves to take actions to find happiness and are content to merely exist.

When people begin to do things to make themselves happy and take that control away from those around them, people often react negatively. When I decided to return to school as an adult, single Mother with 3 children I was told by many that I was wasting my energy, money, and my time.  That I needed to focus on caring for my children and concentrate on the day to day life I was living. Instead I was looking at the big picture.  I knew that without an education I could never offer them the life that they deserved. That I could not make the money I needed to ensure them with the basic necessities of life such as shelter, food, and clothing without assistance from those around me.

I was miserable because I hate having to ask others to help me take care of the responsibilities I took on myself.  My children did not ask to come into this world, I made that active choice when I conceived them.  My children did not ask to be born into a home with a single Mom, that was my decision to go it alone when I divorced their Dad.  My children did not ask to simply exist on the barest of necessities. That was a decision I made when I dropped out of college before starting my family.  These were choices I made.

I took a long hard look at my life and decided in order to provide them and myself with a better tomorrow I had to find a way to provide for them. I had to find a way to increase our income level to something that would ensure that they would never go hungry or be homeless. And hopefully by making the decision to return to school and get my degree I made the right decision.

Now my children are grown and you would think to yourself, she did that for purely selfish reasons, but in reality I did it for all of us.  Although my children are grown and gone I have set a role model in place that they can look to and hopefully be inspired by.  I am becoming the person I was meant to be and no longer existing as the dull droid I had become.  I not only bettered my life but I also helped them see their world in a new light.

There are two things that make you grow as a productive member of society.  College and travel, both things expose you to new ideas and new concepts for life. Through both you are able to see how others live and how things are done differently from place to place. In college you are challenged to think outside the box, many of us for the first time in our lives.  Through travel you see and experience first hand how others may handle similar circumstance to our own and how everyone regardless of where they live face similar challenges.  Both allow you to step outside your normal boundaries and experience life in a new and exciting way.

Would my children have survived had I not gone back to college?  Yes we would have continued on in the same manner as every generation before theirs existing. We would have paid our bills, asked for help when we couldn't and done without when no help was available.  I wanted more, for them and myself.  I wanted to change the legacy of our family and hopefully make it a brighter one for all those who would come later, namely my grandchildren and great grandchildren. Has returning to school changed us as a family.  Yes, it has taught my daughters that if you want something bad enough you are willing to do whatever it takes to make it a reality.

This fall I will finish my bachelors degree in mathematics.  I will then begin my masters degree and sit for my CPA certification. Now this isn't going to change the world as I know it, or save anyone from a dreaded disease, but in some small way I have impacted my own life and the lives of those around us. Because I returned to school and continued my education I have set a background for success for those who say it cannot be done.  I have shown that you can be a single mom and work a 40+ hour workweek and still make time for a family and a life.  I have shown anything worth having is worth working for and that following your dreams is never the wrong thing to do.

I will never paint a masterpiece, I will never compose a piece of music that moves the souls of the masses.  I will never walk on the moon, find a cure for cancer, or even find the answer to life burning question "Why are we here".  But along the way I have motivated others to take the first step towards finding their own bliss.  I have encouraged and guided those who may have been struggling with some of those hard questions and helped them find the answers they sought.  I have done many small things which to me may equal up to those big things I will never do.

Every new day is a new chance to improve your life.  Every morning that you open you eyes is a good day. Yes bad things happen and sometimes things go wrong and sometimes well, sometimes you just want to role over and say you know what I just don't feel like fighting the good fight today.  And that is alright. We all need personal days when we veg or allow our minds to wander where they will and to lead us towards better and brighter ideas.  But if we do not take active steps to pursue what makes us happy, if we do not take active steps towards finding the things in life that make us who we were born to be. We will forever be stuck in that in eternal loop of woulda, coulda, shoulda until one day we wake no more and our lives will have been wasted.

I was planning on using today's blog to share tips and tricks for avoiding the things that may sidetrack us away from finding your own personal bliss.  Quoting the words of others or perhaps even sharing a story or two from my own personal experiences of setbacks I have suffered along the way.  But when I opened my eyes this morning this phrase was running through my head. I quickly jotted it down before it was lost in the business of the day to share it with you my readers.

I believe that everything happens for a reason, both the good and the bad things. The good things keep us moving forward, the bad things help us stop for a moment realize how fleeting our time on this planet are and how we must utilize every precious moment we are given.  Tomorrow is history, the future is a mystery the only thing we really have is to today.  Don't waste your todays, you have no guarantee of how many tomorrows you will get.  And I would rather go to my grave knowing I did something towards becoming all that I can be than risk dying knowing that I never took a chance, never pushed those box walls and never truly lived.

I hope my post gave you some food for thought. I hoped it made others realize that no matter how silly your dreams and goals may be to others, they are yours and yours alone. Own them, make them a reality, never allow anyone to tell you that you can't if you know in your heart that you can.

I hope all that read my post are enjoying them. I am doing all I can to stay true to my promise to write something every day. I am finding it easier and easier with each passing day, but I still struggle on occasion. Did I blog today?  Was it worth the time it took to publish it?  Will anyone read it are still questions I hear in my inner voice.  But then I realize that yes although those who are reading it aren't many there are some, and hopefully those will find the courage and strength they need to pursue their own dreams and goals and yes bliss.  That in their actions others will find their own role models and determination to do the same. I am truly hoping that this blog has the ripple effect. Even the smallest of stones creates ripples in the water around where it lands.

Until tomorrow my friends, stay safe, stay sane and stay focused on your bliss and take the steps necessary to find your true happiness and true joy in this life.

You can either spend your free moments dreaming of the tomorrows you want or you can take active steps to make it a reality. Which will you choose?