The Magic of You

Magic has been my word for 2018.
I'd like to share a few things that I have learnt over this past year in my journey of reconnecting with who I am. It has been a beautiful year with equal shares of hurt, healing and growth.
 I truly feel that 2018 has been one of my best years yet and I am proud of who I have become.
Last year at Singapore Airport I picked up a copy of Elizabeth Gilbert's Big Magic and it was like a magic wand that helped me become clear on not just being creative, but living creatively and fearlessly.
I have come a long way from that person with small thinking and a small sense of self and if you have followed my journey from New Years Eve 2013 and seen my spiritual and mental metamorphosis, you would know that something magical happend to me between June 2017 and today.  These are things that I have learnt and I hope that if you are looking for your own magic, that this will help you on your journey to finding it.

1) Accept what is.
What you are seeing in front of you is real. How you feel about it is the truth.
If a situation makes you feel uncomfortable or you are getting this yucky feeling in your gut, then take the steps to remove yourself from that environment or situation.

 2) Do the Unthinkable.
A) Stay in the situation you are in.
B) Have the courage to walk away and begin again.

3) Choose Your Paradise. 
We can consciously decide to live in suffering or joy. And we can build whatever we focus on.
We can choose to live in the moment or the past. We can choose whether we attract or repel.
We can choose to be informed or ignorant. We can choose our tomorrow with the decisions that we make today.

4) Surround Yourself with Love 
1) Love yourself.
2) Show love to others.
3) Consciously choose to be around people who reflect the love that you show them.
4) Choose the environments that you inhabit wisely and with the intention that you want to find a sense of love, contentment and mutual respect there.

5) Listen to Yourself 
Feel like something is trying to get your attention? It's you, trying to get your attention!
You want to tell you that you need to move because something is coming!
It can be a warning that you need to take action or a prickling, sinking feeling that something is about to happen. Or it could be that you need to follow a hunch that will lead to something out-of-this-world amazing! It could even be as simple as you telling yourself that there is a bargain too good to miss or something has caught your eye. When I first met Alan almost eight years ago on December 17th 2011. The moment I saw him - before we even spoke - I knew that he was it for me.
I couldn't believe it at the time - seriously - because I thought he would surely be taken already with his slicked back hair, those greenish hazel eyes and yummy looking biceps peeking out of his black tee...
Well you get the picture, I was smitten. Still am seven years later. I won't have forever with this man but I know I'll be with him into my seventies. It's a true story, babe. Listen to Yourself!

6) Don't Deny Your Magic 
I used to put myself down quite a bit, I have a self-depreciating sense of humour that I know how to use to make people laugh. What I did not know that when I did this, I repelled my wisdom and it affected my choices, my relationships and my creativity. Because our magic is apart of us, whether we choose to use it or not. When we put ourselves down, in truth or in jest, when we downplay what we know and how we feel that's when we feel our least productive and creative.
So sweetheart, learn to accept the compliments that are your due without saying something like.
"Oh, thank you - but my.../ or 'I don't like how I did..." Don't go there, babe - that's a slippery slope to denying your magic and putting a temporary/permanent red light on it.
 God would not have put magic in you if he didn't want you to use it!
When you don't use your magic, that's when life becomes pretty mundane.,,

7) Do What You Love 
If what you do brings you a sense of joy and peace and it creates a ripple-affect and makes others feel the same. Do it. Pour your passion, your heart, your soul into what you are creating whether it is for  a hobby or for your career. Or whether it's the hobby that will become your career.
 Hear and trust in the calling that you are being called to do. Mould it, design it, paint it, write it, explore it, live it. Life is too short to live small.

8) Enjoy What You Have 
Sometimes if we buy into this thing that we should be further ahead, we should have more or compare our lives to others - that is what breeds the three D's.
 Disillusionment. Discontentment. Discord.
The other day I was listening to Marie Forleo and she said something absolutely profound, that we should never be complacent but we should also be grateful for what we have and enjoy it.

When we don't enjoy what we have, we go through a perpetual slump. A ground-hog day that we have to repeat until we do something differently. So the bottom-line is that you enjoy what you have so you can enjoy more.

9) You Ain't No Muggle! 
Move over, Harry Potter! There's a new wizard in town!
You were born with magic inside you. It is there 24/7, seven days a week.
The reason why I love the Harry Potter books so much is because it is more than teenage wizards setting out to conquer evil while trying to maintain good or average grades, it's about growing up.
J.K Rowling did not just inspire a generation, but she also helped them overcome their challenges through Harry, Hermione and Ron. Puberty blues, dealing with bullies, meaningful friendships, blossoming romance and how to kill one (that is nod to Lavender Brown) and most of all, to believe in themselves and what they are capable of - even with the odds (and world) against them.
So many kids like myself were disappointed that they never got a Hogwarts letter or went to Ollivander's to have a wand choose them. But there is so much magic in humanity, it doesn't just exist between the pages of a paper-back. It's in you, babe. Whether you have a magic for sensing that someone is not okay and being able to offer guidance and support, whether you have the courage to face down the bad guys that nobody else would have the guts to say 'boo' to, or you have an affinity to make plants or people grow - that's your magic, baby! Use it well.

10) Seek, Learn, Know 
Sometimes we don't know what other magic we've got until we seek it out or stumble upon it by accident.
This year I have learnt that I can look after flowers. I keep the flowers and plants in the community garden at my work hydrated and flourishing.
I can sing kareoke and what's more - people liked it! I have found a lovely niche with country pop.
I am also a beginner in tea-leaf/coffee grind reading - just simply because I enjoy it.
I am learning words and phrases in Korean with the help of Hannah, my beautiful friend from Korea.
She is so patient while I test the words on my tongue. Korean is a beautiful language to learn and I am always left marvelling at what Hannah teaches me.
 Always be open to learning new words, new skills and new ideas because this can strengthen the magic you know and help you master the magic you choose to learn.

With that, my dears. I hope that this blog has helped you realise the magic of you.

- Sarah x