A Precription to Positivity.

Today it snowed.  It is just about tradition, when it snows my mother instantly tunes in to her inner chef and revs up a first class punjabi meal.  Today, it was crispy parathay with minced beef and spice.  Ahh, comfort food for my very American, Punjabi soul.  Having overindulged, I supplemented with a warm cup of unsweetened green tea.  And so I began to write... with cozy by my side and thoughts pouring through my soul like the fluff of sweet snow, I began to write...

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"Haha, who're you kidding... You ain't good enough."

"Umm, you might as well stop there, because you stink."

"You're definitely not skinny enough."

"You swear like you're the nicest person on earth."

"Trust me, there are way better people than you out there."

Sound familiar?  The voices of your inner critic bang your head like a toddler with pots and pans. You hear him each time you decide, 

'Today will be a new day."  

"Today, I will make a step into a positive direction."

"Today, I will wear the outfit that best expresses me."

And so, you begin.  You begin to start your day feeling great.  People may even respond with, 'Oh my, don't you look fab today!'   And yes, you continue to feel fab, all day!  But it is only a matter of time, when the husky, ever so bombastic voice begins to cast his devilistic shadow.  "Seriously?  You seriously thought that outfit made you look good? I mean, for reals!"  

It is practically instinctual, yet we do it to ourselves.  There is no better external critic than the one that lives inside of YOU. You see, we ARE our own WORST critics!  Have you thought, what would happen if I simply reversed that thought.  What would happen if I duck-taped my critic and actually began to think more positively?  What would happen if I actually BELIEVED I was capable of XYZ?

I believe negativity to be a learned behavior.  As children, we are powerful beings.  We are constantly yearning to observe the environment, touch, feel, hear, and explore our 5 senses.  We enter our terrible twos, challenge our very own parents, and claim to be atop of the world.  There is an innate understanding that we are capable.  That yes, God-willing, as a 1 year old child, I can take my first step... I can verbalize my first word... I can learn to read.

But what happens with time as we grow older.  Into our fours and fives, the world suddenly becomes clearer and more crisp.  Suddenly, social media, shopping, and competition becomes the vain of our existence.  Or so, our friend named society has taught.  The place that occupied the brain that always told us, "I can, I can, I CAN" has now become, "I can't, seriously I CAN'T!"    

 So we go about living our days in complete and utter negativity.  The lens at which we view the world becomes dim and dark.  We envy the model with the prettier face, the student with greater intellect, the jock with unwavering agility, the speaker with fluid articulation, and so on.  You see, we are constantly, constantly comparing ourselves to the being directly in front of us.  And by doing so, we are simply feeding the critic with juicy envy and bitter depression.  You are only allowing your critic to grow and grow further just by continuously comparing yourself to the stronger, smarter, and better looking girl/guy two feet from you.

There is beauty in the person that you are.  I have said it once and I will say it again.  God created you with a special purpose.  I believe everyone is a genius.  Yes, I really do and YES, that would be you!  I believe we all carry an immense potential, that can and does go undiscovered.. Simply because we are too negative to realize it. 

So to keep this post from getting any longer, I want to give you a prescription to positivity.  No, I am not a doctor and yes I am only a student.  But, I want to tell you what has completely changed my life, for the better.  Here is your Rx. 

Rx. 
Diagnosis: Hyper-negativity Syndrome 
Drug: Gratitude by QuickFix Pharma.
Dose / Frequency: 5 minutes once every morning and night, titrate up as tolerated.  
Duration:  21 days 
Refills: Unlimited

1. Be Grateful.  The second you wake up in the morning, before you even lift your comforter, shout out 3 (at least) new beautiful things you are grateful for.  Truly feel the power of the morning and the beauty of this day.  Yes, God gave you another day to live.  This is your gift.  This is your PRIVILEGE to see the world, just one more day!  So say it proud and LOUD, what are you grateful for?  
2. Give.  Do one nice thing for another once every day.  Send a thank you card to your mail man, email a friend and tell him / her how great of a person he / she is, etc.  Not only will this make you feel good, but you see, you're spreading love!!  And love is contagious.  That positive bug you have will indeed infect your neighbors, and it will go viral!
3. Be Positive.  Yes, be positive.   Any time your critic yells, "YOU SUCK," you grab him by the ears and smush him!  Proudly and confidently yell back at him, "I am capable!"  Always, always, ALWAYS stay positive.  No matter what situation you are in.  Even when you are in your most deepest and darkest place, there is something positive to look forward to...!

For now, this is all I will prescribe.  Shifting from a negative to a positive outlook takes baby steps.  But with persistence and motivation, I have full confidence you can shrink your critic and believe in the powers invested within you! 

Now, excuse me while I chow down on my mother's whole-wheat paratha (yes, I am allowing occasional wheat on this sugar fast :)

Be well. 

Love - in a Hopeless Place.

Love:  The feeling that brings us the warm and the fuzzies.  We find it in our families, amongst our friends, but mostly, in our significant other.  In love, we can fly sky high.  We open our hearts and welcome love to flow like a river... let it stream through our blood with goodness.  Ah, yes, this love.  This love, we find it, we find it in a human being and we treasure it.

But if and when this love breaks... When we are denied of the one person who brought us fulfillment, we transform into beings of needs and cravings.  We chase after an obsession.  We glorify him or her in our thoughts and suddenly find ourselves hopeless.  But I say, rise up!  We yearn for the attention and forget the greater purpose.  Rise up!  We cry with broken hearts, and build grief in our minds.  Rise up!  We diminish our self-worth and find emptiness in our soul.  Rise, Rise, Rise Up!

Rise.  Because this concept we are taught, it is completely false.  God created each and every one of us with His infinite love.  He crafted clay into humans and blew magic into their souls.  And then He watched… He watched as each one of them grew to find love in every source, other than of their very own Creator.  Why?  Why do we search to this world to fill our empty and aching hearts?  If we just looked, God is ready to hand us His ultimate love!  You see, we are searching for love in all of the wrong places!  Rhianna couldn’t have said it better -oftentimes, we find ‘love in a hopeless place.’ So Rise Up, dear friend.  

I am not here to tell you not to love humanity.  I am not here to tell you not to love your spouse.  I am not even telling you to hate the ex who cracked a scar in your soft heart.  I am here to say, Love!  If we are all beings of the True and Almighty, we will feel his love and spread it to the world.  Embrace his light, search for him inside of you!  His love is so strong, it is unimaginable and unthinkable.  Find it, oh please find it!   Because when you love God, when you give him your all and allow him to enter your life with purity and goodness… You shall see... People…  They will give you their love.  They will treat you with respect.  Why?  Because when you love God, you begin to love all of his creations.  You spread love to everyone around you, for each one of us is a product of The All-Knowing and The Most Merciful.  And when you give love, oh friend, you will be given an abundance of pure love and joy.  It is through this abundance of goodness God shows you His love for you!  Yes, I have full faith in this world.  Yes, people are beautiful and they are kind.  Yes, each one of us, we are each a substance built by a wonderful God. 

For those of you who are looking to stitch a broken wound, see the beauty in front of you.  Feel the present moment, the air beneath your ears, the wind brushing your arm, the smiles of the children, and the cool calm of the evening sky.  Love is all around, you must open your eyes and see it!  God has created mountains and villages, smiles and laughter, warmth and cozy -All for you to recognize his endless love.  Then, begin to love yourself.  Understand the intelligence and the potential you hold.  Fall in love with every cell that makes you.. you!  Love who you are, love God, and love the people who shaped you into the great being you have become.  Yes, dear friend, Rise Up!

When you have God’s love, you know your heart is protected.  When you have God’s love, you will never experience a broken heart.  So why not return the love? 

Why not Rise Up?

Be well.