dailyprompt – Page 14

The Awakening

This one is embarrassing. The best compliment I’ve ever received was when I was in my early 20s and it was given to me by a group of businessmen.

I was in Singapore at the time and in McDonalds meeting a girlfriend for lunch. Sitting behind us was a group of men in suits. They kept staring but I didn’t pay it much mind. After 20 minutes they got up and left. I was glad because they made me uneasy for some reason. A few minutes later they walked back in. There were about 10 of them altogether so I froze in mid-conversation. They walked to our table, one guy had a single rose in his hand and an envelope. He didn’t say a word as he handed me both, smiled, and they left. The place was eerily quiet as everyone glanced over at us.

I opened the envelope and there was a card in it. It said:

“To the most beautiful girl in Singapore.”

It also contained 30 dollars to pay for lunch I guess. Nothing else. No telephone number nothing. I never saw them again but that chance meeting has stayed in my memory because it literally blew my mind! I would get plenty more compliments as time went on but that one on a hot day in Singapore took the cake and has remained in my mind as one of the best compliments of all time!

I was a wild child in my teens running around barefoot in the forest and playing with the ducks and most days I was covered with mud from head to toe but I loved it. I blossomed when I was 16 and those things were put aside. I never thought of myself as a beauty but things changed. I went from being a tomboy to a quiet young woman. More introvert than anything else. That compliment was my awakening to a different world. Beauty is more than a buzz word, beauty is power in some cases. These days they still tell me I am attractive but I march to a different drumbeat. It is more about the inner beauty and not about the fading kind.

Daily writing prompt

What was the best compliment you’ve received?

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Cross-Country Trip

Airplane, train, bus, car, or bike? What about horse and buggy? Just kidding.

I don’t like trains so that is out of the question, I don’t like buses and bikes either. So that leaves the car and or airplane. Airplanes were my mode of transport going overseas or for going to another country. I always found it stressful and I’m not good at dealing with jetlag, it took me several days to get over it. So that seems to be out as well.

The car is the last one standing on four wheels. It is my current mode of transport for doing the things I need to get done everyday like running to the store or other stuff that is part and parcel of my daily existence. Cross-country trips are far and few these days but I’ve done it in the past. The car is a comfortable way of travel but depending on where you’re at, it can get more than stressful especially if you’re on the Autobahn and driving with the speed demons. It can scare the hell out of you. I still prefer the car if I had to do a cross-country trip just for the comfort factor alone and NOT having to deal with the masses. However, it has its ups and downs as well.

Daily writing prompt

You’re going on a cross-country trip. Airplane, train, bus, car, or bike?

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The Most Confident Person I Know

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

This is a hard one and this early in the morning? My mind is doing a scramble to unravel that mystery because I’ve known many people in my life who seemed very confident and had a handle on this thing called life.

If I had to narrow it down to one person, I would say it was my mom. She is no longer here but her presence remains and is a constant reminder that I can do all things as she did in her life. She was a petite person but a giant when it came to raising her children. Some would call her an “helicopter mom” because her life was based around us and she was constantly looking out for us but when it came to parenting, she was a one woman parenting machine! I take many of my cues from her when it comes to my son and the questions he has. She had answers to every question and believe me there were many many questions!

Part of that parenting system didn’t cater to a rambunctious young girl because I wanted things my way but she stood her ground. She stood up to adversity like a pro and challenges were just that, something to be conquered or handled and that was it. No berating herself like I do. I remember her standing tall even at the worst times in her life and even when her life came to an end because someone chose to end it, she put up a fight. She was and is, the most confident person I know and have known. She had faith in herself and in God and these two things combined together were an unbeatable team. I am confident but nowhere close to where she was but I am learning to embrace my own strength and I see confidence in how I handle things as well. Perhaps the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree as they say.

Combating Negative Feelings

I would say the same things I mentioned in yesterday’s “Daily Prompt,” plus I’ll add a few more. Besides walking, working out and meditation, I put my feelings down on paper or write articles on how I am feeling and what I have done or am doing to combat those feelings.

Writing is a tremendous tool, if you can call it that, to bring out what I am holding inside into the open so that it no longer weighs me down. Getting it out there has also helped me to get a better focus on the problem and to come up with better ways of handling whatever is bothering me. Somehow seeing it for what it is, just a ripple even if at times it seems like a big rock, helps me to deal with the situation in a more focused way. Writing is often my go to method for solving negative feelings and it has been working so far.

The other method I turn to is breathing. Whenever I feel like I am drowning in negativity, it happens from time to time but when I sit myself down and go within and start one of my breathing techniques, it melts away. This doesn’t always work but more often than not. There’s something about taking a deep breath, holding it in for a few seconds and slowly letting go with a sigh that releases the anxiety and nervousness within. It is a stress buster and just a few minutes a day does wonders for my inner being, my psyche and for letting negative feelings go where they belong, wherever that is. Peace is what I seek and it is what I find when I do “deep breathing” several times a day.

Daily writing prompt

What strategies do you use to cope with negative feelings?

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Activities I Love!

There are three activities that I have come to love in my search for peace and serenity. They are walking, workouts, and meditation.

These three things have helped to forge a way out of situations I find myself in and they have helped to bring a sense of cohesiveness to my life. It didn’t happen overnight, it took time and a certain mindset to keep at getting better.

Walking is my go to when I need to clear my mind of all negative thoughts and just 2o minutes out in nature helps me to do just that. It is free and all it takes is to get out there and see what remedies “nature” in its all-knowing wisdom has to offer if you are willing to listen that is. It may seem like a mindless activity but it is not.

Working out is a daily companion. I work out seven days a week and I don’t stick to one thing. It gets boring that way. I switch it around. Some days it is cardio, some days weight training, some days Pilates and some days Yoga. Whatever I choose to do, Chachi, the cat, is right there working alongside! More like standing right in front of me and waiting to be picked up and kisses rained down on him! That’s his allure to working out. It works just fine for the both of us.

Meditation, well I can’t live without it. It is a big part of my day and one that helps to center and to bring calm into my life. It also helps the “monkey” I call my brain to take a seat and to be quiet for a while.

These are activities that are part and parcel of my life. Simple things, non-materialistic but I find Nirvana in them and they will continue to be a part of my existence.

Daily writing prompt

What activities do you lose yourself in?

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Five Times Over?

What movies or TV series have I watched more than 5 times? This is easy, I don’t think any. The most I’ve watched something I like is maybe twice.

Two movies come to mind both with Anthony Hopkins and Brad Pitt in starring roles. The first one was “Meet Joe Black.” I loved this one and both actors did a superb job with their roles. Some may say a boring movie but I found it interesting and it combined both romance and the supernatural so it was spell-binding.

The other was “Legends of the Fall.” Here again, it combined romance and a family’s fight to survive a corrupt system. The scenery was more than beautiful and the underlying issue of love, the forbidden kind was front and center.

I loved both of them but I’ve watched them maybe twice. Five times? I think it takes just two or three times to have something imprinted on your mind and to know every upcoming scene. Five times might be overdoing it just a little.

Daily writing prompt

What movies or TV series have you watched more than 5 times?

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Superstitious?

In one word, YES!

It comes from having lived in Asia for many years and from having traveled around the world. There are many superstitions that people around the world believe in and not of the mundane kind either! A black cat crossing in front of you is said to bring bad luck but the kind I have come across makes that assumption seem mild.

The Asians have this thing about leaving your shoes outside when you go into someone’s house. It is said to bring whatever that has latched on to you into the house! Washing your feet after visiting a graveyard is another one. This is so you don’t bring any spirits into your home. I still do that as a precaution! Or the idea of burning paper money, houses, servants and whatever so that the dead have all of those things in the afterlife may seem bizarre but it is done in certain parts of the world. How about this one? The richer you are, the longer the family and relatives mourn your demise with music, singing, food and whatnots right in front of the coffin to show respect and to show how well-to-do you are or they are and this is done for a week or longer!

These are just the tip of the iceberg. I’ve picked up plenty along the way. Some say I am very supertitious and maybe I am. Besides washing my feet before coming into the house after a graveyard visit, I throw salt over my shoulder to ward off bad spirits and to bring good luck. I don’t do any cleaning on New Year’s day because you may sweep or vacuum “luck” away! I don’t open an umbrella inside the house because it is said to rain bad luck on you and bad luck happens in threes! There are plenty more but it’s too early in the morning to drum them all up.

I wouldn’t say “supertitious” is my middle name but pretty close!

Daily writing prompt

Are you superstitious?

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Comparison to an Animal

I would compare myself to a cat. Here’s why. I think there’s more to a cat than meets the eye. It is not all fur and cuteness. There is a certain wisdom they carry that lies beneath the surface. It shows up when you least expect it. Just when you think you’ve got them pegged, they show you different. I think there is a similarity in that respect.

I’ve been called complicated many times over BUT there is a certain je ne sais quoi about that complexity. I call it a quiet strength that observes more than reacts and when the time is right, it shows itself. Cats, in my observation, have that same kind of strength. They are observers more than reactors meaning it is more about a thoughtful, proactive mindset than just reacting to anything that comes their way. One source says that “cats have 300 million neurons compared to dogs with 160 million neurons. This high-octane brain power fuels feline intelligence. The cerebral cortex not only governs higher functions of rational thought, but also problem solving.” Let’s just say that we are both good at problem solving.

The easy laid-back lifestyle appeals to both of us. Sleeping most of the day away is not my thing but other than that, we love the no stress lifestyle. We love figuring out stuff and how things work. Life is my preoccupation, how it works and why things happen the way they do, while my best buddy, Chachi, loves figuring out how his “human” works!

We are both wise beyond our years, I call myself an old soul and Chachi claims to have lived more than 9 lives, each one taking him back to another place and time. There are similarities there.

If I had to compare myself to a cat, I would say that somewhere in my past I used to be a CAT! I communicate well with them and they seem to love me. Maybe there is something that connects us. I do know this, they call me the “cat whisperer” and I agree. They calm down in my presence and I appear “tame” in theirs!

Note to 100-Year-Old Self

Photo by Quang Nguyen Vinh on Pexels.com

I’m surprised that you made it this far. Since you have made it here, I want you to know that you are one tough cookie! You’ve survived more than most and are still standing. Kudos to you.

Let’s talk about all the things that you went through that could have been made easier but since you wanted to do things your way, the road less traveled is often the one you chose to take. You meandered like a stream and made your own path. It was hard, made harder by your stubbornness. You had your own set of rules and refused to budge making “love” an almost impossible journey. You had your principles instilled by two well-meaning parents that made your life tough. Letting go of those lessons learned were an almost impossible task. You survived more than most and here you are, a 100-year-old self wondering where the time went.

Time has flown by and even though there were both good, bad, and impossible times, the strength within you managed to withstand what was handed to you. There were times when you didn’t want those lessons, those trials and tribulations but you also knew that some were of your own making.

You are wrinkled beyond belief, several teeth missing, but that smile, the smile that touched a 100 or more lives during your lifetime is hard to miss. It is still there and that makes you beautiful. You’ve crossed many bridges, you’ve thrown fear (your constant companion) aside and here you are standing tall, proud, and ready for the next challenge.

My message to you is clear. You can be truly proud of yourself. Here’s to another 100? Not really, I think you and I know that making it to a 100 was a fluke. We didn’t want to make it that far. The wish was always to go before you get to be as old as Methuselah and become a burden and life becomes nothing more than of wishing and wanting.

Enjoy your accomplishments and may life, the rest of it, be kind to you.

Shopping Spree Destination

Where would I go on a shopping spree? I really don’t know as shopping sprees are a thing of the past. Once, I loved shopping. Designer clothes, bags, and shoes were the norm when I headed out to some fancy store to load up on STUFF that I didn’t need but loved looking at as they took up space in my closet and cubbyholes! These days, I’m about getting rid of unwanted things that take up too much space and clutter up my mind. I like simplicity and it feels good.

I still have a lot of STUFF but working on simplifying the process. However, coming back to your question. I used to love this village that is a mix of old and new. The architecture is fantastic, the shops even more so. It was a mix of not so high-end and the high-end variety. You can get anything there and the pull are the numerous coffee shops, restaurants, lining the shopping mile as they call it. You can make it an all day affair, shop till you drop and then stop for a meal, get a window seat and people watch.

Market days are Tuesdays and Fridays and it adds to the excitement factor. Fresh fruits and vegetables from local farmers take center stage. Eggs, meat, pastries, and cakes are all there on display too. If you like moving with the masses, this is the place to be on those days. I don’t but once in a while it is a welcome change from taking a walk in nature.

If I do make it there which is not often, I window shop, stock up on fresh bread, lamb from the Turkish grocery story, and then stop for lunch at the Indian restaurant which carries authentic Indian food. My favorite, Masala Dosai. They also have veg and non-veg thalis. I usually sit by the window if I am alone and watch people as they move with the crowd. Nice way to spend the morning, I might add.

Shopping sprees used to be a nice thing to do but I love the quiet life now AND instead of throwing money out the window, I go with what I have.