My eyebrows will NEVER be your eyebrows
"Brow"nistas! Oh, how I've missed you! It's been FOREVER! I know, I know! 2015 is practically OVER, and I am just writing my first post for the year!
What can I say? I have been busy living life, learning lessons, conquering obstacles, getting better, accomplishing goals, setting new goals, loving myself, my family and God more and more...you know, and all of that jazz! I apologize for being a terrible blog mother to my blog babies! Seriously, I should be locked up by Blog Social Services for my negligent behavior. I am back and, like any absetee parent worth their salt, I want to pick up where we left off as if I never left!
I wanted to write to you about where I am as the pioneer for this whole "brow"nista movement. You know I live for moments of reflection and to share my nuggets of wisdom and insight so you, my lovelies, are better and benefit from my process.
This year has been...topsy turvy. I was nervous about this year because 2014 was my year! It was AWESOME and, for some reason, I felt like having another good year would be asking too much. So, 2015 was not welcomed with as much enthusiam from me. 2013 was a monster, so I felt like 2014 owed me! It paid in full, and now I am in 2015 with mixed feelings forcing myself to mature past this foolish belief that years themselves actually hold any power or authority over the course of my life.
So, like I said, 2015 has been full of ups and downs. Frankly, as I write this, I am tired. Tired of chaos, confusion, drama, and a host of other interruptions I deem to be simply unnecessary. I am learning difficult lessons this year about self control, discipline, healthy thinking, having the right priorities and staying focused. If I have to sum it up in one theme, it would be: when it comes to you winning in life, God always leaves the keys with you!
If you win, it's on you.
If you lose, it's on you.
No one is stopping you.
No one is doing anything to you.
God is not cruel.
He gives it to you that way you are not hostage to the whims of anyone.
Therefore, you have no excuse.
Basically, once you discover that you can do this, you have to determine that you will do this!
I have been in and out, up and down, over and through trying to collect my power back that I had been giving away to people and things and habits all year! I was feeling helpless, and I did not like that feeling. I went to God about it, and He let me know that He created me to be more powerful that I had ever magined or understood. It was time that I tapped into that power unapologetically. "Brow"nistas, I had some cleaning up to do.
Which brings me to the title.
My eyebrows will NEVER be your eyebrows...
In this day and age of Social Media, depression, distraction and disdain are at an all time high. We are losing track, power and focus because we have become experts in the useless "industry" of other people's business and strategically mastered "highlight reels." We have silently entered into competitions with one another via the world wide web. The whole thing is just draining, and it has left us discontent and scattered as we are no longer driven by our God given passions and purpose, but rather by what we lust after, think will gets us likes and followers, or appear to be glamorous and prestigous.
I decided ENOUGH! I'm over it!
Most of what sent me through spirals of frustration this year was me comparing my journey and process to others, thinking I was the only one "going through," the only one desparately trying to get to better and higher levels, the only one completely over outside detractors that always find a way to attempt to interrupt my "happy" with unsolicited drama and so on. I was all worked up, and not putting on my eyebrows because I was consumned with a host of things I could not control.
Which brings me to "Brow"nista nugget #1:
Often we want to control what we can't control, and don't want to control what we can control.
You are not me, and I am not you. (Of course you've heard that before, but how often do you remember it even more live like you know it!?) You have advantages and disadvantages that I do not have and vice versa. From the outside, it looks one way. The inside always tells a different tale.
Bottom line if you want to return to the place where the joy of putting on your eyebrows remains (that place where you ease along in the journey of your life, focusing on your goals, celebrating your growth, thinking on the right things, building the right relationships, investing in your purpose, thriving in your calling and all that God has for you), you (and I) must stop comparing ourselves to other people. Pull out of the deceiving race (whatever things or practices that suck you back into getting off track), and return to loving yourself and all that God is doing through and for you.
The true reason this year has been up and down is because I haven't settled on the only stable foundation that I will ever have-God.
I decided to change that. Afterall, I can not be at head of a women's empowerment movement and be all bipolar in my stability!
So, "brow"nistas, I am taking back the power and influence I gave to my Social Networking profiles, and other's opinions and mindsets, and superficial goals that sound impressive but truly are not for me, and anything else that has taken away from instead of generated or restored life into my life.
I am returning to the simple as I enjoy and embrace my process while sticking to what matters.
If you're looking for me in the days, months and years to come, I will be somewhere really living my life...of course with my eyebrows on.
