A New Spin on the "It Girl"

A New Spin on the "It Girl"

Unfortunately, today's society is all about exclusivity. The places we shop, the clothes we wear, the places we eat, and even the friends we choose to hang out with are all graded so as to see who can ultimately be the most exclusive. 
I've often wondered why this is. Why, as humans, do we feel the need to pick certain options out of a multitude of possibilities? Why do we feel the need to leave others out? In a world where an infinite amount of good can happen, why should we limit ourselves to an exclusive set of outcomes?

We shouldn't ever feel the need to leave others out. The classiest of individuals know that if we are acting out of love, the possibility of exclusivity would never even exist, but rather it seems to show its face in the presence of fear. When we act out of love, showing compassion and kindness toward others, we are proving that there is something larger than selfish desires. When we truly love others we let them know that we will be there for them eternally, regardless of where they "fit in" in our personal life plans or in our culture. True love is about making sure others feel comfortable, and bringing joy, encouragement, and a multitude of other blessings into a person's life, regardless of what that person might be able to do for you. 

In a world where we focus on the "It Girl", and on branding ourselves and making ourselves look "better than", it has become increasingly evident to me what a true "It Girl" is.  I am not basing my definition on typical factors such as external beauty, social status, or financial standing, though those are often some of the criteria for exclusivity in the world we live in. I have realized that to be an "It Girl"you must bring "it" to everyone in your life. That is, a true "It Girl" brings whatever "it" is that a particular person needs it in order to help create that person's best version of themself. Truth, peace, friendship, encouragement, among many other things, are just some of the gifts that can be offered. That's that, no exclusivity about it. 

The temptation to be exclusive is always there. It is always an option to leave someone out, but the best practice for life is to focus on including others. Someone else's life can be tough enough...they don't need the added stress of someone leaving them out. And plus, being exclusive shows fear of inadequacy on the excluder's part. Everyone deserves love and appropriate treatment and I have faith that if we start giving more and fearing less, we will be able to cut down a little on this problem.

XOXO,

E

From Connecting the Dots to a Masterpiece

We all know that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. However, some of us don't always keep in mind that that particular linear path is not the one that bears the most fruit for us (and for others) in the end. Most of the time our successes can be attributed to efficiency, but there are other, just as critical instances, where our successes are determined by our overall experience and what we have taken away from one particular scene that might be applicable at another. 

Steinbeck describes life's journeys like this, "A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike. And all plans, safeguards, policing, and coercion are fruitless. We find that after years of struggle we do not take a trip; the trip takes us."

There are so many moments in my life that I planned linearly that have in fact turned into something much more beautiful and intricate that I could have ever even thought to plan out! My plans, which connected me from point A to point B and so on, were like the connect the dots puzzles children do for fun. But when my plans were disrupted was when I was able to see the true beauty and art that is my unique life.

As clever individuals we all know that there is magnificent value in planning...I don't want to understate that. But the true test of cleverness is what we make out of those plans when they have been ripped and demolished leaving a completely new puzzle for us to make sense of. In those situations, we must continue to enjoy those moments for what they are, work on improving ourselves and our futures, and continue to derive our happiness, not solely on selfish foundations, but on the value we find in serving others. And that is where we go from connecting the dots to a unique and astonishing masterpiece!

(This is one of my favorite works by Van Gogh. I hope you can enjoy it too!)


As Always,

E

A Little Bit of Luck Goes a Long Way

With St. Patrick’s Day in the rear view mirror, I was just reflecting about my thoughts on luck. Luck is like a good hair day, when we don’t have it we wish we did and when we do have it, we are on the top of the world for our own little moment in time. A clever person knows how to take a stroke of luck and capitalize on it and turn it into a stage for his or her dreams. Recently, I’ve had a little bit of luck, but it hasn’t always been that way. In fact, it rarely is.

I’m the girl who had a sinus infection, ear infection, bronchitis, and pink eye in both eyes all at the same time while simultaneously being threatened with deportation from China. Black cats cross my path on a regular basis. I can’t keep my tiny lucky bamboo plant alive to save either of our lives (I'm pretty sure the moment it entered my room it just surrendered its life). It’s ridiculous how unlucky I am.

But then there are moments when everything changes. And let me tell you, these moments are what it’s all about. Recently I’ve had a few moments of luck and they have inspired me to reevaluate my dreams. The thing is, clever people realize that, objects moving in a positive direction will continue to move in a positive direction until they are disrupted by an outside force. And even when an outside force is acting on them, depending on the intensity of their positive energy, it can be really hard to disrupt this path. Because this is true, only the most clever individuals, use this principle to get themselves out of a rut. 

It doesn’t have to be a huge stroke of luck. In fact it can be something seemingly irrelevant. The important part is that we use these moments as a mood booster and  a nudge in the right direction. 

Trust me, it’s easy to consider how unlucky we are....to count our curses. Sometimes it’s not so easy to excavate those small instances of luck, but when we do, bigger miracles happen, we are happy about our lives and thus able to focus on helping others, which any classy girl knows is what life is all about!

May the Luck Be with You,

E