Inspirational

My Deepest Fear

Happy Family My deepest fear is not that I am inadequate. My deepest fear is that I am powerful beyond measure. It is my light, not my darkness that most frightens me.

I ask myself, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who am I not to be? I am a child of God. My playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around me.

I am meant to shine, as children do. I was born to make manifest the glory of God that is within me. It’s not just in me; it’s in everyone. And as I let my own light shine, I unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As I am liberated from my own fear, my presence automatically liberates others.

~Marianne Williamson

PS: Originally, this quote was “Author Unknown.” Thanks to Elizabeth Aleccia for identifying the author. The title and text have been corrected to exactly match the author’s quote.

Marilyn Kvasnok

Happy Thanksgiving

Nov 27th, 2008

by Marilyn.

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Today’s the day we give thanks for all we have. It’s a busy time of cleaning, shopping and cooking. But, there’s more to Thanksgiving than basting the turkey and setting the table.

For years, I was caught up in the celebration. Now, I’m more reflective. Perhaps that’s the wisdom that comes with age. (Did I really admit that?) Now I’m not so concerned with cooking a big dinner. Maybe it’s because I did that for years. Now, I’d rather spend the time with my family and friends and not fuss so much with dinner.

I’m developing an attitude of gratitude. It’s taken a long time. It reminds me of an old saying, “Too soon old. Too late smart.” I used to see it on the back of the Schwan delivery trucks.

Here are the top few items on my gratitude list . . .

My family is spread out across the country. We keep in touch, especially by phone and email. I’m looking forward to our family reunion at Christmas.

My friends have stood by me in good times and bad. Some are old childhood friends and others are new. Some are local and others are Internet friends that I’ve never met in person.

My health. I didn’t realize just how much I could have been doing to take care of myself until the last several years. Not that I was doing a lot to jeopardize my health. There’s just so much I could have been doing to be proactive. So, now I’m eating better and faithfully taking my vitamins.

My business
I’ve been self-employed for 13 years. I quit my last job in 1995 and never looked back. For the last 4 years, I’ve been a Shaklee distributor. It’s allowed me to be a full time caregiver for my mom, who’s not longer independent.

Today is just the start of the Holiday season. I’m really looking forward to spending time with family and friends. And when the Holidays are over and life calms down again, we’ll all have the memories to carry us into the future.

When I count my blessings today you will be among them. Thank you for your friendship and love. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Marilyn Kvasnok

Inspirational Video

Nov 8th, 2008

by Marilyn.

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When I was growing up, mom used to say, “A man complained because he had no shoes, until he met a man who had no feet.” I still remember it. And I repeated it to my kids more than once.

We all have challenges. Most of them are not insurmountable. It may seem easy to slip into self-pity, but I hope you don’t. Years ago, I met a man who had no arms. He did everything with his feet, including playing the guitar. He was amazing. He had a “can do” attitude. It would have been easy for him to give in to his disability, but he chose to inspire others.

Watch the video to virtually meet another man who is truly inspirational.

Marilyn Kvasnok

Vision Boards

Nov 4th, 2008

by Marilyn.

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You can dream all you want, but if you want those dreams to come true, they need to be real goals. One way to set goals and keep them in front of you is to create a vision board. I found a free one at Catalog of Dreams.

Create a free account and go thru their catalog, adding images and words. Create your own text and add that, too. The catalog is very limited, but there was enough there to make my first vision board.

The free version only saves the vision board for 24-48 hours. But, you can capture the image and save it to your computer. From there, you can post it on your blog, like I did. Or use it for your desktop wallpaper. Click my vision board to see a larger image.

I’m new to vision boards, but I love it already. This one is very simple, but now that I’ve create one, I have ideas for the next one. And with Catalog of Dreams, I can create a new one anytime I choose.

Marilyn Kvasnok

Tribute to Randy Pausch

Jul 25th, 2008

by Marilyn.

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“We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.”
–Randy Pausch

Like most of us, I followed Randy Pausch from afar. As a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, he taught all of us much more than computer sciences. He showed us how to live. Randy lived every day to the fullest.

I have a strong suspicion that his attitude was the same before he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. His positive attitude permeated his life. Thanks to the Internet, we all got to share in his journey. Randy’s website is a timeline of events from his diagnosis to his passing.

I will remember Randy. He was only 47, but into his short life he crammed a lifetime of memories for his family. He may have lost his battle with cancer, but he lived with integrity and courage to the end. And he won the hearts of everyone who met him – whether in person or virtually.

ABC News Report: Randy Pausch, ‘Last Lecture’ Professor Dies

Interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer

In his book, The Last Lecture,Randy has combined the humor, inspiration and intelligence that made his lecture such a phenomenon and given it an indelible form. It is a book that will be shared for generations to come. — Amazon editorial review

Marilyn Kvasnok