Tag: #inspiration

Surrender to what is. Let go of what was. Have faith in what will be.– Sonia Ricotti

Bloganuary Day 15. (Eek we are half way through Jan already!!!)

Today’s Prompt: What fear have you conquered?

Hmmm…I guess there a quite a few major fears (well to me anyway) that I have conquered over the years.

When I was done studying, I needed practical experience in order to get my diploma, the experience was hard to come by. I was beside myself and had no idea what to do about it. My dad was very clear that he would not be supporting me now that I had completed my studies so I had to figure something out. I was beside myself with fear but I had to make it happen to I started applying for waitressing jobs while looking for an in-service training position. As it turns out, my waitressing position led to me meeting the person who would help find a position. That position ultimately led to where I am today.

My most recent fear though has being the fear of ageing. I turned 50 last Saturday. It’s a pretty big number and it can be pretty scary. I have spent the last 2-3 years working on accepting it. The hardest part has been looking in the mirror and accepting that I no longer look like my 25 year old self. There are lines forming around my eyes now and my jowls are looking…well…jowly…lol. I can see me face is starting to sag and it has been hard to accept. I love my grey hair though. It’s my favourite part about ageing. I have written about this in an earlier post but a few months ago, I made the decision that it is what it is and that what is in my control is accept the fact that I am ageing and to celebrate it by dressing up and just flaunting my 50 year old self. Why not right! I have also decided to take better care of myself so that I get to enjoy a better quality of life for as long as I am on this earth.

The result is that I actually love myself more than I ever have. I feel good and even though the weight has been stubborn, I think I look great! My friend was saying to me the other day that I look brighter and more radiant. I’ll take that. I follow like minded woman on social media who are comfortable in ther own skins at my age. I just unfollowed a lady who was sharing her minor cosmetic surgery yesterday. I don’t have an issue with it. It makes me sad to see the lengths people will go to to avoid looking older. It’s not possible to stop it but it is possible to look good naturally through the process. We are so blessed to live in an age where a lot of our female role models are choosing to age gracefully like Sarah Jessica Parker and Dame Helen Mirren. In South Africa we have Connie Ferguson and Thembi Seete. I have had the pleasure of being in Thembi Seete’s company for a very short period of time and I was so blown away by her energy and attitude. I want to be like her when I grow up …lol.

At the end of the day, by holding on to my younger self, I have not been able to appreciate and enjoy who I am today. Truth be told, I am a very different person today and I much prefer her to scaredy mouse I was back then. I must admit though that this new found appreciation for myself takes a conscious effort every single day but I am enjoying walking past a mirror and consciously stopping and smiling at myself rather hurrying past in case I see a flaw. It’s awesome.

Taken a week shy of my 50th birthday. Photo credit: Venetia Mitchell. Dress: Jaggery Collection

So Cheers to 50 year old me! Girrrl…You are amazing!🍾🥂

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Travelling…over God’s country

Bloganuary Day 14

Today’s Prompt: What is your preferred mode of travel?

I would definitely say the car! Road trips are my favourite.

When I was a kid, it seemed like we were always on the road during school holidays. My dad loved driving and loved visiting both his and my mum’s family. As a result, we would travel to Johannesburg from Pietermaritzburg where we lived, or to the farm or spend the day in Durban or drive to a small town called Harding in KZN. One year we even drove to Cape Town. It’s an 18 hour trip and I really don’t know how my dad coped with all our singing and chatter along the way. I was only 8 years old then and full of energy.

I had dreamed of taking my son on road trips too but it hasn’t quite worked out as planned. We did drive to East London in the Eastern Cape with my dad. That was a 6 or 8 hr trip and Alex sat like a trooper all the way there. He was only 5 or so when we drove down. He was so excited to get there that he didn’t even want to take a bathroom break until mother nature refused to take no for an answer.

The other trip I did take my son on was a trip to Johannesburg with my boyfriend at the time. He was about 10 at the time. We stopped at the smallest church in the Southern Africa at Van Reenan’s Pass. It is called The Landoff Oratory and you can read about it’s history here. It is gorgeous and is surrounded by the most beautiful landscape.

The Little Church. Photo credit: Michelle Frankson
The Coffee Shop next door. Photo Credit: Michelle Frankson

I think the things I love most about road trips is the quality time you get to spend with your travelling companions in the car, the scenery (South Africa is a beautiful country) and the journey.

Ooh the other little road trip that stands out in my mind was the drive from Trumbull, Connecticut to Weehawken, New Jersey and back. It was the end of September and the night time temperature dropped between trips so the trees were green on the way to NJ and on the way back, most had changed colour to the beautiful autumn shades of yellow and orange. It totally blew my mind!

I love flying as well. Most people think me strange but the take-off is my favourite part of the flight. I also love airports. I love that I am surrounded by such a mix of people nd cultures at any point in time and it’s always a vibe. I love flying because it takes me to such distant destinations which have different cultures to be experienced.

It has always been a dream of mine to let my son experience all the major forms of transport at least once. He has flown, taken a long distance bus trip to Port Elizabeth (once was enough!) and had a train ride to Inchanga although we need to do that trip again but in the steam engine. Next up is a cruise. My aim is for that to happen in the next year or two. We were supposed to tick that off last year but covid got in the way.

What’s your favourite way to travel? Let me know in the comments. I would also highly recommend follwing the bloganuary hashtag as I have read great posts on this topic.

When I am a wealthy woman…

Bloganuary Day 13

Today’s Prompt: If you had a billion US dollars, how would you spend it?

Well! Imagine that! That is a serious bit of money! Which just reminds me…i forgot to buy my Powerball ticket for tonight🤦🏽‍♀️😂 Of course I wouldn’t need to buy one if I had all that money but I’d probably do it anyway just because I can.

Photo by John Guccione http://www.advergroup.com on Pexels.com

So what will I do? First things first, I will donate a 10th of it to Gift of the Givers. They are a charity organisation who do amazing work in South Africa as well as all over the world. They have helped the release of hostages, helped out at every major disaster around the world over the 10+ years and in South Africa. Their founder and leader is Dr Imtiaz Sooliman and he is based in my home town. He used to treat my mum when he was still a practising medical doctor. You can read about how a visit to Turkey sealed his fate and, if you are moved to, contribute to the foundation here.

I will also donate 10% to the SPCA. They do amazing work. I will also start a fund that would take of the needs of old people’s pets as it is exteremly expensive to maintain a pet in South Africa. A visit to the vet costs more than a visit to the GP.

Thereafter, I will definitely give my family and friends a share of it, especially those who have always been there for me. Then I will invest it so that my son and I can live a fantastic life travelling the world. I will make us visit every museum and classic little bookshop I can find and he will make us attend every F1 race and probably every car manufacturers headquarters as well.

I will buy a house somewhere in the world where I can see the sea and the mountains (much like one can in Cape Town) from my writing room. It will also need to have a beautiful garden that I can walk through and ground myself in everyday. Can you imagine the size of the library I will have!

Photo by Ricardo Esquivel on Pexels.com

My son will have whatever he needs which may not be same as what he wants. He will have to work for the things that he wants but doesn’t need. I will buy my dad his dream cottage by the sea where he can step out of his door and go fishing every day if he so chooses.

Lastly, well for now anyway, I will set up a foundation that mentors and perhaps sponsors South Africans who are motivated to make something of themselves. Age will not be a factor as not everyone knows what they want in their 20’s. If you have only found your purpose at age 70 and you are looking for support and guidance on how to make it happen, our doors would definitely be open to you. We so desperately need to make South Africa the place where dreams can come true in order to uplift our people and our economy.

So yip, that is just some of the things that I will do with my billion dollars. Nothing too fancy. Now note, I say and will and not would as it’s still very possible that I will be a billionnaire one day. I live in faith. Nothing is impossible.😉

Let me know what you will be doing with yours in the comments.

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