Tony Melendez plays "Let It Be" on South Padre Island

What an inspiring performance!

In times of sorrow and sadness, struggle and frustration, let each and everyone of us remember all the little things that we are truly blessed with in our daily lives.

"I cursed my fate because I had no shoes,
and then I met a man who had no feet."

15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy

Here is a list of 15 things which, if you give up on them, will make your life a lot easier and much, much happier. (Original article from World Observer Online here.) We hold on to so many things that cause us a great deal of pain, stress and suffering – and instead of letting them all go, instead of allowing ourselves to be stress free and happy – we cling on to them. Not anymore. Starting today we will give up on all those things that no longer serve us, and we will embrace change. Ready? Here we go:

1. Give up your need to always be right. There are so many of us who can’t stand the idea of being wrong – wanting to always be right – even at the risk of ending great relationships or causing a great deal of stress and pain, for us and for others. It’s just not worth it. Whenever you feel the ‘urgent’ need to jump into a fight over who is right and who is wrong, ask yourself this question: “Would I rather be right, or would I rather be kind?”Wayne Dyer. What difference will that make? Is your ego really that big?

2. Give up your need for control. Be willing to give up your need to always control everything that happens to you and around you – situations, events, people, etc. Whether they are loved ones, coworkers, or just strangers you meet on the street – just allow them to be. Allow everything and everyone to be just as they are and you will see how much better will that make you feel.

“By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond winning.” Lao Tzu

3. Give up on blame. Give up on your need to blame others for what you have or don’t have, for what you feel or don’t feel. Stop giving your powers away and start taking responsibility for your life.

4. Give up your self-defeating self-talk. Oh my. How many people are hurting themselves because of their negative, polluted and repetitive self-defeating mindset? Don’t believe everything that your mind is telling you – especially if it’s negative and self-defeating. You are better than that.

“The mind is a superb instrument if used rightly. Used wrongly, however, it becomes very destructive.” Eckhart Tolle

5. Give up your limiting beliefs about what you can or cannot do, about what is possible or impossible. From now on, you are no longer going to allow your limiting beliefs to keep you stuck in the wrong place. Spread your wings and fly!

“A belief is not an idea held by the mind, it is an idea that holds the mind” Elly Roselle

6. Give up complaining. Give up your constant need to complain about those many, many, maaany things – people, situations, events that make you unhappy, sad and depressed. Nobody can make you unhappy, no situation can make you sad or miserable unless you allow it to. It’s not the situation that triggers those feelings in you, but how you choose to look at it. Never underestimate the power of positive thinking.

7. Give up the luxury of criticism. Give up your need to criticize things, events or people that are different than you. We are all different, yet we are all the same. We all want to be happy, we all want to love and be loved and we all want to be understood. We all want something, and something is wished by us all.

8. Give up your need to impress others. Stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not just to make others like you. It doesn’t work this way. The moment you stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not, the moment you take of all your masks, the moment you accept and embrace the real you, you will find people will be drawn to you, effortlessly.

9. Give up your resistance to change. Change is good. Change will help you move from A to B. Change will help you make improvements in your life and also the lives of those around you. Follow your bliss, embrace change – don’t resist it.
“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls” Joseph Campbell

10. Give up labels. Stop labeling those things, people or events that you don’t understand as being weird or different and try opening your mind, little by little. Minds only work when open. “The highest form of ignorance is when you reject something you don’t know anything about.” Wayne Dyer

11. Give up on your fears. Fear is just an illusion, it doesn’t exist – you created it. It’s all in your mind. Correct the inside and the outside will fall into place.
“The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.” Franklin D. Roosevelt

12. Give up your excuses. Send them packing and tell them they’re fired. You no longer need them. A lot of times we limit ourselves because of the many excuses we use. Instead of growing and working on improving ourselves and our lives, we get stuck, lying to ourselves, using all kind of excuses – excuses that 99.9% of the time are not even real.

13. Give up the past. I know, I know. It’s hard. Especially when the past looks so much better than the present and the future looks so frightening, but you have to take into consideration the fact that the present moment is all you have and all you will ever have. The past you are now longing for – the past that you are now dreaming about – was ignored by you when it was present. Stop deluding yourself. Be present in everything you do and enjoy life. After all life is a journey not a destination. Have a clear vision for the future, prepare yourself, but always be present in the now.

14. Give up attachment. This is a concept that, for most of us is so hard to grasp and I have to tell you that it was for me too, (it still is) but it’s not something impossible. You get better and better at with time and practice. The moment you detach yourself from all things, (and that doesn’t mean you give up your love for them – because love and attachment have nothing to do with one another,  attachment comes from a place of fear, while love… well, real love is pure, kind, and self less, where there is love there can’t be fear, and because of that, attachment and love cannot coexist) you become so peaceful, so tolerant, so kind, and so serene. You will get to a place where you will be able to understand all things without even trying. A state beyond words.

15. Give up living your life to other people’s expectations. Way too many people are living a life that is not theirs to live. They live their lives according to what others think is best for them, they live their lives according to what their parents think is best for them, to what their friends, their enemies and their teachers, their government and the media think is best for them. They ignore their inner voice, that inner calling. They are so busy with pleasing everybody, with living up to other people’s expectations, that they lose control over their lives. They forget what makes them happy, what they want, what they need….and eventually they forget about themselves.  You have one life – this one right now – you must live it, own it, and especially don’t let other people’s opinions distract you from your path.

Reinventing Yourself

Where the Rubber Meets the Road

Larry Smith - Why You Will Fail To Have A Great Career

Aloha everyone, Let's get this week started off on the right foot! Here is one of the most creative and potent motivational speeches I have ever heard. I am sure it will inspire you to really think about your dreams and what goals you might hope to accomplish in your lifetime. Enjoy!

Higher Calling

If your path is more difficult, it is because your calling is higher~
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Carl Sagan: "A Message For The People Of Earth"

A spectacular sound bite that humbly paints the human condition as a perspective of our collective human experience amongst the greater scheme of things. We have come so far in the history of our little blue planet, and yet we have barely begun to unravel the greater mysteries of the universe. Dream BIG my friends! And take care of each other! This is what we must accomplish first before we can ever save our planet for whatever the future may hold.

"We embarked on our cosmic voyage with a question first framed in the childhood of our species and in each generation asked anew with undiminished wonder: What are the stars? Exploration is in our nature. We began as wanderers, and we are wanderers still. We have lingered long enough on the shores of the cosmic ocean. We are ready at last to set sail for the stars."
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To Thy Own Self Be True

In this world, no one is perfect - there are only those with greater work ethic, discipline, and passion.
Not knowing your weaknesses is far more detrimental to your success than your weaknesses themselves. Be stronger, better in spite of fully understanding your own areas of lacking. In order to grow, one must "accept [his] limitations for what they [are] and capitalize on them." This my friends is wisdom. Now shall we endeavor to put the words into practice. Do what you can do and continue perfecting your strengths in light of your weaknesses.
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If can can. If no can, no can.

Success: How Bad Do You Want It?

Mai makaʻu i ka hana; e makaʻu naʻe i ka moloā.
Do not fear work; fear laziness.
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Everybody wants the secret to success, but when the steps to success are revealed and demystified by hard work not everyone is eager to act. Effort, perseverance, and heart shall be the dividing line between the perpetual dreamers and the doers in this world. Which one are you?

Be both, my friends. Hiki nō! You can do it!

Nothing Is Impossible

Nothing is impossible, my friends! Ride your imagination over every hurdle in your path! The goal lies within your own perseverance, and the reward lies within your own hard work.

Motivation Of A Legend

So what more should we put in?

How about this? Thought, Initiative, Effort, Action, Love.

On the flip side: junk in, junk out. Therefore, if you choose to do something my friends, do it with your whole heart. Peace and Blessings~

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