Dawn Lupul – Page 23 – Holistic Health Coach

December 25, 2019December 24, 2019

My Christmas Wish List

Dear Santa, I know that you are busy today but I want to ask for a few things. They aren’t necessarily for me, but I guess they are because I would be happy if you gave these gifts to everyone.

First, I want everyone to know that they aren’t alone. No matter how bad things seem there is always someone else who cares. Santa, help them to find a way to reach out and ask for the help they need. Give them hope that tomorrow has the potential of being much brighter than what they see around them today.

Next, Santa, could you help women to find the strength inside not to allow anyone to take advantage of them? Everything in society is so sexualized right now and some women are losing themselves in it. Teach them dignity and give them a way to get away from abuse and exploitation.

I know the men out there deserve lots from you too Santa. Give them the gift of acceptance and knowing that they don’t need to be millionaires or own fancy cars to be valuable. Help them find the riches within and to be content with all that they already have. Also teach them that sensitivity and being thoughtful is more powerful than arrogance and being a bully.

For the animals, Santa, I would like them to have the ability to live the lives they deserve. Life of all kinds is precious, and I would be ever so grateful if you could help ease the suffering felt by so many. Show the people around all the beautiful creatures of the world that they should be treated with dignity and love.

Peace and love, Santa, those are two big ones. If you can help all of us to treat each other the way we wish to be treated, then so many problems would disappear instantly. Right now there is so much greed and jealousy and hatred in so many parts of the world, and none of it is necessary.

The earth deserves the biggest gift you have in your sleigh Santa. Human actions have changed the way the planet functions, and although I don’t know, I have a suspicion that it might not be heading in a positive direction. You probably know what the earth needs better than me, so give it whatever you think is appropriate. Keep us from doing harm that might not be reversible.

I guess it all boils down to one thing Santa – love. Love for the world, the animals, each other and ourselves is the best gift you can give. Love will change everything into the best version of what it can be.

Santa, I love you and the hope that you bring to so many on this day. Please keep giving your gifts every other day too.

December 24, 2019December 24, 2019

Stress Isn’t a Badge of Honour

A beautiful vacation in Cuba is an instant stress-reliever

Busy, busy, busy. Between family, work, socializing and getting ahead, there isn’t much time in the day to indulge in the pleasure of doing nothing. It seems like we are going at full speed from the minute we wake up until we collapse in bed to sleep.

If you are living like this, have you ever wondered why? Or are you swept up in the current of modern life, unaware that there is even the possibility to be any other way?

It can help to evaluate where you are and where you are going. Many of us aren’t eating the way we know we should, or getting enough healthy exercise, or taking time to just relax and enjoy a slower pace of life.

Two weeks of vacation a year isn’t enough. It can be more healing to take a mini-vacation from your life every day by finding a way to relax for a few moments.

December 23, 2019December 23, 2019

Going With the Flow

4:55 AM and everything is beautiful, even if I could be sleeping instead of taking pictures

My best work comes in the middle of the night. It’s not really by choice though.

Sometimes I wake up after getting three hours of sleep, and when I look at the clock it’s 2:10. It isn’t every night, but it happens.

I used to try to force myself back to sleep. Sometimes it works but a lot of times it doesn’t. I just lie there, getting more antsy and irritated that I’m not sleeping.

One night a couple of years ago I decided to just get up. Getting up when it’s 2:00 in the morning is kind of weird, and if you live with someone they probably won’t appreciate it. For me though it was what I decided to do.

Something happened that night that made me realize it was okay to get up and start my day as I normally would, even if it was the middle of the night. I found I was more productive instead of less.

December 22, 2019December 22, 2019

The Simple Life

Part of my heart still lives in this special place in Puerto Rico

I have been fortunate in life to travel a great deal, and through my adventures I have met many people who live lives very different from my own.

In Puerto Rico I stayed in a condo that was part of a gated community, with three big high-rises contained within. It was right on the beach and had a tennis court, swimming pool, a library and security. It was safe and clean and full of both snowbirds from the States and retirees from Puerto Rico.

I loved it. It was quiet and secure and the people were friendly. I would return there two more years after the first, staying as long as six weeks at a time. It’s where I discovered who I was meant to be.

December 21, 2019December 20, 2019

Asking for Help

Mini getting and giving a little scratching to a friend

I always hated asking for help. I thought that I could do everything myself no matter what it was. If I couldn’t do it, I felt like I had failed, or that I was weak or somehow less of a person for not being able to figure it out.

It’s not a happy way to live.

This need to be good at everything caused me a lot of stress over the years. Even as a child, I pushed myself to be more than what I was. It didn’t matter what I was good at, I needed to be able to do more. And more and more and more.

I was hospitalized with ulcers when I was 10 years old.

December 20, 2019December 19, 2019

What Does Success Feel Like?

The joy of winning, the pure sensation of success can be achieved in many ways

There really is no right or wrong answer to what success feels like. It is an individual measure, a personal response to achieving what you set out to do.

Success is categorized in different ways. For some it might be career-based, while for others it could focus on family. Running your own business or having a secure job at a good company could be your parameters of success. Providing a comfortable and supportive environment for your family could be your goal.

What the actual outward achievements look like isn’t important, but how you feel about them is everything. That is the only true measure of success there is.

December 19, 2019December 18, 2019

Help Yourself by Helping Others

Birds of a feather flock together – I want to be surrounded by compassionate people

I like to do things for other people. It makes me feel good. Even if they don’t appreciate my offer to help, I still love the feeling I get from just being there if they need a hand.

Helping others and being a pleasant person is my personal addiction.

It wasn’t always this way. I used to think pretty much about myself only, determined to protect what I had and to get more of everything I wanted.

What a pity I didn’t realize sooner how empty of a life that can be.

There isn’t enough stuff in the world for me to get that will ever replace the joy of making someone else’s path in life a little easier. It’s not even the big things that matter; being courteous and thoughtful and considerate is more than enough.

December 18, 2019December 18, 2019

Bad News

I haven’t been back to Puerto Rico since the hurricane. So many lives were lost or forever changed that day

One minute you are sailing along, the routine hum of life carrying you in a familiar sense of sameness, and nothing particularly interesting is going on.

Then something happens and your life changes in a heartbeat.

The phone rings. It’s bad news. Or you get an email. Bad news. Or the boss wants to see you, your spouse wants to talk with you, or the principal from your kid’s school is trying to reach you. Or worst of all, there’s a knock at the door and it’s the police.

Suddenly, the routine security of a normal day is gone.

It’s bad news.

December 17, 2019December 16, 2019

Choose What We Need, Get What We Want

That pot of gold doesn’t look too far away…

It can be a stark difference between the things we want and the things we actually need. If you can become more aware of what you are choosing in each moment, this becomes a little easier to figure out.

Start with when you go shopping. Do you really need a new pair of shoes, or a new TV, or that bag of potato chips? Or do you just want it?

It can be difficult to decide in the heat of the buying moment, but if you step back it’s easier to admit that you might not actually need it.

There is nothing wrong with having nice things, but if it is at the expense of your savings or your credit card debt is ballooning, then perhaps right now it would be better to enjoy what you already have. As you deliberately focus on developing the skills you possess that can make you money, you will eventually have enough to buy those things if you still want them.

December 16, 2019December 16, 2019

Be Aware

If your feet feel like they are on fire, you should probably do something about it

You know that nagging feeling you get sometimes when something just doesn’t feel right? Maybe it’s a pain in your back that won’t go away, or a feeling of being tired all of the time, or something more subtle like noticing that you get angry quicker than normal.

Something is different. It’s probably worth paying attention to and trying to figure out what is going on.

Our bodies are so remarkable in everything they do. Inside of us is an intricate pharmacy, capable of adding a few drops of this hormone here and a pinch of that endorphin there as needed. Then everything is cleared away and balance returns without any nasty withdrawal symptoms.

If you have ever been startled and your adrenaline started flowing, you know exactly what I am talking about.