I like this picture. It’s symbolic to me. If you have ever watched any of the “nature” shows on cable channels such as Animal Planet or National Geographic, perhaps you have seen scenarios in which the lion is hunting his prey for food. In many cases, the prey is the weaker member of  the species such as a baby calf who wanders off from their mother. The lion is persistent because it is hungry perhaps starving. Once it reaches its prey, it doesn’t hesitate to grab the animal by the throat at choke it to death. Afterwards , the entire lion pride closes in to devour the defenseless animal. It didn’t have a chance. If the animal was a baby, the mother  usually watches from  a distance while her newborn gets ripped to shreds. Perhaps she is used to it. The circle of life, right?!!

Well, that wasn’t the case with the animal in the picture. Honestly, I can’t tell whether it is the mother or father. What is obvious to me is that the animal in question refused to settle for the status quo. Circle of life?!!! HELL NO!!! Notice that there were two lions present. They could have both jumped her( yes, I have assigned gender.) She was willing to risk her life for what she believed in , namely, that her calf deserved to live. She also realized that she was the only one that had a chance of making that happen. She overcame her fear. It was all or nothing. She chose to believe in herself. She decided not to allow forces outside of herself to determine her destiny nor the fate of her offspring. She did this without necessarily having a backup plan. There was no time for that.

This picture is symbolic. The “cow” mother represents anyone who has decided to believe in themselves to create their own destiny. There is no other way and absolutely no excuses. The lion represents the naysayers, excuses and obstacles that potentially can get in our way of realizing our dreams. Last, but not least, the calf represent our dreams that constantly need to be protected, nurtured and developed until they are powerful enough to stand on their feet. At that point, nothing can stop them from being fully realized.

In order to live authentically, you must believe in yourself. It isn’t enough to accept yourself. You must embrace who you are completely!!! Know that whatever challenges you face, regardless, of the appearance can be solved even if you don’t know how yet. You are the savior that you have been looking for. Every situation and individual that shows up in your life experience is a direct reflection of you. Actually, they exist to serve you  or , in other words, to teach you something about yourself. You determine the value of the experience. You manifested into this material illusion with every resource necessary to create the life that you desire once ( and this is the “kicker”) you awaken to that fact.

  There has never been nor will there ever be anyone that can do you as good as you can. Just the fact that you are here is clear evidence that you have a right to be here. Each person that has been born into this reality earned the right to be here. Basic biology teaches us that we each were one of over a million potential candidates that entered into the fight live this life. We won!! It was instinctual. You were a winner before you even knew your name. You are a natural. Know one can believe that that for you. Only you can do you. You have already gotten through the hardest part. You got here. Know what are you going to do? Believe in your own ability and potential. Build your own life!! Anything less is “criminal.” You are robbing both yourself and the world the opportunity of benefiting from your natural brilliance. You determine what that looks like.

Believe in yourself in order to take full responsibility for creating your own happiness . Look for the good in each circumstance despite appearances. Establish your own values and principles. Practice living by them on a daily basis. Make a decision to be a student of life. Commit yourself to learn and improve from each new experience. Remind yourself each morning that  every problem comes with a solution attached to it. You are more than capable of overcoming each and every one of them as they appear. It is a done deal. Recognize that your attitude has a profound effect on the outcome of any situation that you find yourself going through. Remember that each experience is temporary. When necessary , be willing to make short term sacrifices in order to achieve long term gratification.

Once you realize your own self worth, you will begin to exude confidence. You will soon discover that others will begin to notice. They will develop respect for you and begin to look to you as a source of insight and motivation. By you deciding to believe in yourself, they will be inspired to look within themselves. Through your confidence, you will begin to teach others how to treat you without having to tell them. It will be a natural response that perhaps they might not even be aware of. Nevertheless, everyone within your realm of influence will benefit . You are the “savior” that you have been looking for. Onward…. Enough said… Until next time.

Author and speaker , Yehuda Berg, stated , ” Words are singularly the most powerful force available to humanity. We an choose to use this force constructively with words of encouragement, or destructively using words of despair. Words have energy and power with the ability to help, to heal, to hinder, to harm, to humiliate and to humble.” Words are powerful. They can be used to build up others or destroy. When I mention words I am referring to both the words that we say to others as well as the ones that we repeatedly, perhaps, subconsciously, say to ourselves.

It is vital that we practice paying attention to our inner dialogue. Remember that we are creators , therefore, whatever we say or think about ourselves and others has to produce a result . Even if we consciously try to change our dialogue, we can still unconsciously sabotage ourselves. It is the subconscious words that we use to describe our world and our place in it that determine what or who shows up in our lives. It is also important to examine words that were told by those that we looked up to while growing. Those words can have a profound affect on both  our self image and how we view others.

We are all connected. What affects you affects everyone around you and beyond. Bullies who hurt others verbally or physically often are hurting themselves. Look for the best in yourself. If there are areas within your character that you want to improve say to yourself that you are a work in progress rather than saying that you are terrible at something. Make both a decision and plan to improve in that area so that you can comfortably make that claim without reservation.

Empower yourself with words!!! You are unique!! You are wonderful!! You are beautiful!!! You are powerful!!! You have greatness in you!!! You are a queen!! You are a king!! Your children are future queens and kings designed to lead one day!! Make a daily if not moment by moment habit to speak words of power!!! It is impossible for you to fail!!! What others call failure, you call an opportunity to learn, practice and grow stronger!!!

Practice looking for the good in others  and , once you find something, tell them. Again, you are looking for qualities that you genuinely admire. You cannot escape who you truly are nor how you feel about a thing. It will come out in your life experience in one way or the other. Remember that your words never come back empty. Look for opportunities to encourage others. You may be pointing out strengths and abilities that the individual might take for granted. They might not even be aware of how valuable their gift is to the people around them. When this act becomes a common practice, it will become natural for you to identify the good in yourself and others. Kind words go much farther than critical ones. In certain cases, they can change the course in someone’s life. When you build up others , you will benefit in way or the other. Practice finding the good in all circumstances and proclaiming it. Consider writing positive affirmations about yourself. Say them out loud each morning and before you fall asleep at night. Stay consistent with it and pay attention to how dramatically your entire outlook on life will change. Opportunities will appear that resonate with you on a personal level. Every area of your life can change for the better once you start paying attention to the words that you say to yourself and others. As mentioned earlier, we are connected.