I often write about purpose faith and more broader topics of lifestyle because I’m more often than not ALWAYS looking for some sense of clarity and relief. I mean, my life isn’t miserable, to say the least, and it doesn’t have to be for me to state that DAILY LIFE IS HARD! And again, I repeat “DAILY LIFE IS HARD” but HARD does not mean IMPOSSIBLE.

In my quest for purpose and relief, I’m always always in search of inspiration. I’m always looking for a good story, quote, what is often in the religious/Christian community is called “a word.”

Well, last week, courtesy of Instagram, a ‘word’ and a solid one at that came across my timeline. Now, I’ll admit that I do not know who created this God-given quote however I found this gem along with its caption on @thecgirlinc’s site.

The quote read, “2017 is an ‘I love u very much but your vibe is interrupting my growth’-type year” and as for the caption it read “Cut those dead ends; hair, relationships, spaces, opportunities, jobs, careers, beliefs, etc… cut off all that does not add to the growth of you and your surroundings! Hard to let the light in when you’re surrounded by #shade.”

Now, for a moment let's forget the analogy of ‘dead ends’ and just have a moment of truth between you and I. My entire life was beginning to feel dead in regard to inspiration, which quite frankly in my most humble opinion is UNACCEPTABLE. When inspiration is a hard-press to find it is typically a clear indicator that some changes are in dire need of being made.

So back to the quote... (I know I’m asking a lot of traveling out of you!). When considering my ‘dead ends’ I had to begin with the spacing of my life. Now, to better illustrate what I’m talking about I’m going to ask that you now cue in your imagination. READY... SET... IMAGINE your mind as being a plot of land in which you and only you have the ability to utilize. Now, you can plant whatever you want at the quantity and quality of your choice. The only stipulation you have is to remember that what you plant will be a representation of what you’ve chosen to place precedence in.

If you were to look at the mental spacing of my life, you’d think I was a hoarder... because, well I am! I let everything and everyone have a free booth in mind, rent-free at that! And somehow, someway I find myself throwing out all terms of agreement because, well... the rent is free… which is a HUGE no-no! Yet, I know I’m not the only one (please tell me I’m not the only one) that struggles with assessing what’s always healthy for me to entertain (because it’s in my nature to care about A LOT -in a CRAZY compassionate way). Although compassion is great, I’d be foolish and completely remiss to say that boundaries aren’t necessary. Safeguards over the mind are essential, in terms of how, who, and what we entertain. Safeguards in regard to how we respond to what is presented to us. How we love, how we endure, how we give and how we take all matters when it’s time to harvest.

In order to protect and ensure the development of our inspiration, we have to PROTECT the ground that we labor (sorry, I went to back to the plot of land analogy... I know I’m still jumping around).

What I’m really trying to say is, value your sanity enough to protect it at any cost. Love yourself enough to show up for yourself and as a result you’ll be able to show up for others. Lastly, only worry about the issues that you can control, but if you can control it well then you shouldn’t have to worry at all.