BREATHE.

It’s time….Now.
Let go.
Start……and keep going.

I’m not here to give a motivational speech, and definitely not here to tell anyone that I know what’s right, or what works when it comes to figuring out this world, and this thing called life. So, it’s important to start off by saying, I don’t know what’s right or what works. But…..you do.

You get to figure out what works best on your own. It’s not anyone else’s idea. It’s not anyone else’s opinion forced onto you. It’s the beauty of discovering what lies within your own intuitions and your own curiosities. It’s something to look forward to every day. Because it happens every day…and when you find it, you’ll look forward to every day. Only you can find that. And…only you can make the choice to do it. Whatever “it” is.

I believe only you can know what’s right, and what works… and that’s the most exciting part.

When you find and trust in your own intuition and curiosities, it really doesn’t matter what anyone has to say about how you might consider going about living this life of yours. After that, I mean it’s honestly up to you what you want to let in, let go of, share, create, and ignore, isn’t it? I don’t know. I’d hope so. That’s all you.

So…….

BREATHE

Now…

There’s something we all want to hear. That we are unique. That we are special. That we are gifted. Different from the rest. Going to be somebody. Guess what? In all honesty, each one of us?…we are. That is what is so awesome. And no, that’s not a bunch of sappy feel good shit. We are each unique. Get used to it, and see how positive it is.

That’s what’s so cool about this world. Each one of us has something to bring to the table. Just be open to finding what section of the table that is for yourself. Then… own it. Find the people who help you own your spot at this table, and then you can strive to develop a section of the table that you can lead and direct. Just remember, you can’t lead this metaphorical table without having people sitting near you first.

Be open to finding those people who sit near you, you’ll know them when you find them.

These are the people who matter on your journey. Help them make sure they know the spot that they own, and watch as that helps you to own your spot even more. It begins to expand the section of the table around you and you’ll find more people near you. When you can start to see the table as a whole, and as your area of the table expands, then you can start to offer a direction for the table. Until then, find your spot and take a seat. You’re in for an awesome ride in this life.

BREATHE. Mini break time. Think about an idol of yours.
Who is your idol? Who do you most admire? Do you have that person in mind? If not, stop right now and think about who that is…then continue.

It is extremely special to have someone to admire. To have someone who inspires you. Whether that’s a famous writer, sculpture, architect, innovator, creator, dreamer, visionary, politician, actor/actress, family member, leader, entrepreneur, developer, and the list goes on and on. We need people like these to learn from (the good and the bad) and to inspire us to live life in a similar fashion or in a completely new way.

You know what sucks, but is also cool? You won’t be the next (enter name of person you have in mind). No one is going to be the next Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, Marie Curie, or whomever your idols are that span different areas of interest. We learn from and/or read about these figures (and many others that we idol) and sometimes, or in some ways, we want to be just like them. It’s a great thing. But, also a problem.

The one thing that these folks have in common is that they most likely followed their own intuitions and curiosities to become who they are. They didn’t read up on the person they admired before them and then do everything that person did or live their lives in the same fashion that person did. It just doesn’t work like that. They were themselves, and they did what each of us has to do: make mistakes, learn from others around us and from the experiences we have, make our own decisions and sacrifices, dedicate time to discover and follow our own intuitions and curiosities, find our passions, cry, be mad, be sad, be happy, find happiness, explore, learn, fall, fail, succeed, etc.

Keep this special person in mind. They most likely had someone they kept in mind like that too.

But… do you. Have some faith and patience if you haven’t found what you love doing yet. It will only come by letting go, being the real you, and making a choice to follow your own intuitions and curiosities (which should be exciting). You may not initially find yourself connecting with those currently around you (or you’ll be pleasantly surprised), but then there is only one way to start connecting with the people that you should, and it will happen way easier when you are the real you. Go be that person who someone else idolizes like you do now. Start now, by learning how to be you. Then, don’t stop being open to being the best version of yourself. This world changes fast. The more we can be open to positively change with it, the better off we’ll be.

One last time, BREATHE. Relax, you are already you. There’s really not much work required. It’s just time to listen to you. Love you. Respect you. Believe in you. And, keep being you. All it is, is a choice. I can’t make it. And, I’m not going to tell you to make it or when to make it. But, I know someone who can make it…

You.

If you want to find out if I might sit at the metaphorical table near you or you feel like we probably sit at the table near each other, or have any questions or comments at all, reach out. Add me on Facebook, follow me on instagram, and/or email me. I will respond.

(Written by Darby Miller)

If you REALLY know me and my views on life, then you know my low-key obsession with cups.

I mean yes, I love those coffee cups with their ~inspirational~ quotes and I love my $1 cherry blossom cups I recently bought from Dollar Tree…BUT my obsession doesn’t come from a tangible sense, it comes from a metaphorical sense. I believe that “cups” can be used on a daily basis to describe life and how we should live it.

We’ve all heard the classic saying “glass half-full vs. glass half-empty” when describing an optimist vs. pessimist view towards certain situations. Personal opinion here, but I truly believe if you choose to see each moment given to you with a CUP half-full mentality…each and every day is going to reveal all sorts of joys/wonders (I am a self-proclaimed optimist, can you tell?).

Ask yourself, what would your life look like if you decided to see the sweet moments in everyday life?

Are you overshadowing someone’s bliss by your negative attitude? Would your days be different if you highlighted the good and left the bad in the past? Not only is it important for you to create and maintain this positive outlook, but attitudes are contagious. You never know whose day you’re impacting by your words and actions.

“Every day might not be a good day, but there is good in every day.” I was challenged this past year to write down one positive thing I took away from each day. They varied from “wow today the weather was so AWESOME” to “I ate Taco Bell today…heck yes” to “today I had a really intentional conversation with a friend.”

This daily ritual began to alter how I viewed the entirety of the day. I started noticing all the immense gifts in each day, small or large, that made me smile. Happiness is this really cool thing where everyone has their own take on the question “what fills up your cup?” I challenge you to answer that question and start implementing those things in your daily routine.

Is it going for a long run? Catching up with a friend? Listening to a jammin’ song with the windows rolled down? (If so, let me come with). But it doesn’t matter what floats your boat, as long as you start doing these things in your daily life routine.

Obviously some days feel like they can drag on forever, but I challenge you to find the joy and soak up the days. And if you’re having a bad day, remember my favorite quote, “the days are long, but the years are short.”

One of the best things that life brings us is the opportunity to create relationships with others. In my opinion, interactions with others will FILL up your hypothetical cup the most.

Relationships create a whole new mindset behind the idea of cups. Essentially I’ve learned that everyone has their own unique, individual and beautiful type of cup. Cups differ in many ways; color, shape, size, purpose, etc.

For example, you probably aren’t going to use a wine glass for your morning coffee (but if you do, I respect you big time because you do you, homie.) Taking that in a literal sense, just like cups have purposes, you as an individual too have been placed on this earth with a purpose. And see, no two cups are alike so no two people are meant for the same purpose!

But let’s be honest, sometimes it is really hard knowing truly what our purpose is when we are one of 7.2 billion.

If you’ve found yourself barely staying afloat in the never ending questioning of purpose, you’re not alone. All throughout my life, especially my first two years of college, I struggled with this concept to the extreme. One night in particular I was feeling extra drained and just really down on myself. I wasn’t happy with who I was becoming or the decisions I was making. In my terminology, my personal “cup” was as empty as it could be.

I was walking back to my apartment when I was handed a water bottle from a stranger. Attached to the bottle was a note that said, “Your Life Has Purpose.”

A million thoughts raced through my mind like, “Why does this random person think that I, Darby Miller, have purpose?” or “they don’t even know me or all the mistakes I’ve made…how could they think I have a purpose?” I doubted myself completely. I doubted my worth.

Too much in society, we forget our worth, our value, our purpose to this world. We let insecurities and others tear us down from what we really are in His eyes…perfect. I know there are going to be moments in your life where life doesn’t seem to be going your way or you feel like you’re going down the wrong path BUT…I can promise you this…your life has a purpose…a MAJOR purpose!

Don’t let anyone or anything try to tell you differently because you are a special, unique, beautiful cup that has been created in His image and your capabilities are infinite.

It took a simple gesture of a water bottle to realize my worth. In DJ Khaled terms, the “key to success” isn’t always going to be right in front of you lit up in lights saying, “Hey you! This is how you’re going to do everything and then it’ll all be alright!”

Your purpose is a journey. Your purpose is constantly evolving. Your purpose will surprise you with new ideas and experiences.

Today is the day. Today I challenge you to see that each day and each person is a precious gift. I challenge you to embrace ALL the abilities you were given no matter the circumstances.

And above all else, I challenge you to remember that you have a really cool creator who loves you immensely. So may your cup be filled to the brim and may you have the ability to fill up others’ cups with His love.

“And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be FILLED to the measure of all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:17-19

(Written by Kristen Zeck)

Have you ever had one of those moments when you received a sign? You know, one of those times when it seemed like the stars aligned to send you a message in a surreal way? I had one of those experiences while listening to an acoustic version of U2’s “Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out Of.”

I’ve been a diehard U2 fan for a long time. My dad would play one of the band’s CDs in the car every morning on the way to drop my brothers and I off at school. As hard as I tried to not like “dad music,” I was hopelessly captivated.

Fast forward to junior year of college, and I find myself in a rut. I have projects on top of projects, tests, homework and other obligations with no end in sight. Sleep didn’t seem like a luxury I could afford.

When I did found the time to sleep, however, anxiety kept me up. During one sleepless night at 4 a.m., I grabbed my laptop and resorted to YouTube as a means of therapy. I searched “live U2 performances” because that’s the closest I thought I’d ever get to a U2 concert.

When a live version of “Stuck In A Moment” came up, I decided to check it out.

The song was very simple and pretty, but with a slight difference from the original: instead of ending the song with the usual “this time will pass,” Bono sang, “this too shall pass.” The two phrases basically mean the same thing, but the latter hit me like a freight train. At that moment, I thought it was the most beautiful string of words I had ever heard.

Since then, “this too shall pass” has become an incredibly important lesson for me. I even wrote it in marker on my bedroom mirror as a constant reminder that as tough as life can sometimes be, I will make it through.

The phrase has really changed my outlook on life.

One of the best things you can do for yourself is to keep your head up. Everyone runs into a bump in the road now and then, and it’s so easy to turn that little bump into a roadblock. The longer you dwell on the bad, the more negative your outlook becomes. This is where that beautiful four-word phrase comes into play: this too shall pass. That bump in the road is not the end of the world, and before you know it, you’re over it. How quickly, though, depends on how badly you want to put it behind you.

Sometimes, we run into bigger obstacles. It’s not so easy to tell yourself that this too shall pass in some situations. There are times when you feel so defeated that you ask yourself, how can things possibly get worse? Huge mistake.

Any human being who has ever watched a melodramatic TV show knows what happens after that question is asked – the character gets struck by lightning or splashed by a car driving through a massive rain puddle. Indeed, things can absolutely get worse. And sometimes, it just sucks. I’ve been there before, and I know I’ll be there again.

It’s that place where you don’t want advice and you don’t want to be comforted. You just want someone to listen, understand and say “wow, that really sucks.” As hard as it may be to see the light at the end of the tunnel, I promise it’s there if you’re willing to look for it.

The real beauty of this phrase lies in its versatility – it can be applied to the really great times, too.

This may seem bittersweet, but it’s a reminder to cherish the good times while they last. It’s comforting when things go wrong, humbling when things go right and a reality check all packaged into one clean phrase.

Having recently graduated from college, I can tell you that time really does fly when you’re having fun. I have never experienced a quicker four years in my entire life. I would try not to think about graduation because it meant the end of an incredible era, but then I would see the faint “this too shall pass” at the top of my mirror.

While it may not have been the happiest of reminders, it made me remember how lucky I was to have something that would make me feel so sad in its absence. Knowing that these good times would come to an end made me appreciate them so much more. Bittersweet, right?

I’ll leave you with this: no matter how terrible the cards are that life deals you, you’ll find a way to win. You’ll win even sooner if you ditch the negative outlook on your future. Keep your head up and move forward, because this too shall pass.