About a month ago I broke down and got cable tv….I say broke down because I generally believe that 90% of the things on tv are a total waste of electricity, brain cells, and precious seconds of life that I can never get back. I try to engage myself with practical matters that focus on achieving the ambitious goals that I have set for myself…

and they generally don’t involve turning on the TV to watch some random, “housewife” sing about the importance of not being ‘Tardy to the Party’.

But I digress.

Last night I turned on the TV and was pleasantly surprised to find a movie that really touched my heart and spirit and challenged me to contemplate life on so many levels.  The movie is called Mama Flora’s Family.  It is based on a book written by Alex Haley and I’m not sure if it is based on a true story or not but it really hit home and had me contemplating the realness of life.

In the story Mama Flora’s son, Willie is forced to flee the south at the hands of a mob of racists who were out to get him.  He ends up fleeing to Chicago, where he gets swooped up into a life of drug dealing and gambling.  After a violent run in with the law he finally decides to get his act together, and ends up enrolling in the army where he goes on to become a decorated soldier.

Upon his return, he marries his childhood sweetheart and quickly has twins and then another son shortly to follow.  He quickly finds out upon his return that his life has not improved because he is now a decorated soldier and after searching high and low the only job that he could find was that of a janitor – and he has no problem working two jobs to take care of his family.

In one scene in particular Willie’s daughter has grown up and has a child of her own.  She is reminiscing with her grandmother – Mama Flora about her son’s father and she admits that she was looking for a man that she could admire and look up to and that is how she got swept up by a man because she thought he was a man that she could admire.

She told her grandmother that she just realized that the man that she was looking for – that man she could look up to – she had known all along….it was her father.

Her father had worked hard and long for his family to make sure that they could have a better life.

She came to realize that respect and admiration is not based on social stature or title….but true respect belongs to those who are willing to sacrifice and do whatever it takes to make life better for the ones that they love.

So the question is -Are you one of those chosen ones?

<span>Are you 100% focused on doing things and living your life in a way that is about making life better -not just for your family, but for society as a whole </span>?

Let your legacy in life be more than having the biggest house or the most expensive car.  Make your legacy be about making the lives of others all the better for having come into contact with you.

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!

You won’t accomplish anything if you wait for all the possible objections to be overcome. Taking a new step, uttering a new word, is what people fear most.

Don’t be afraid to live.
Don’t wait for things to change.
Don’t wait until you have more time, until you are less tired,
until you get the promotion, until you settle down, until, until, until.

Don’t wait for a major event in your life to occur before
you begin to live.

Begin where you are. Work where you are. The hour you are wasting now, dreaming of some far off success,
is crowded with tremendous possibilities.

When you take the first step, your mind will mobilize all its forces to assist you. Once you have started, all that is within and around you will come to your assistance.

The only way to start down the road to success is to start.

Life is Short. Dream BIG!

To Margarita Sippin,
Jenn

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!

If you let others make decisions for you, you give up control. When you control the decisions, you control the actions.

It’s your life. You decide what you are going to do with it.

If you don’t run your own life someone else will. You are in control of your life to the degree you make decisions.

Take charge of your life so that there is no longer a need to ask permission of others. When you ask permission, you are giving someone else veto power over your life.

Take control and start making those decisions. Only you are responsible for your life.

A successful person makes decisions.

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!

You’ve got it in you to succeed. Your success is not dependent on whatever you experienced yesterday or even what you are experiencing at this moment. Make a decision of what you want your life to be, move in that direction, and stick with it. Just make up your mind and stick with it.

You weren’t born with any limits on your powers or any limits to what you can achieve.

At any moment, you have more possibilities than you can act upon. When you start to Imagine your possibilities, your vision expands.

If you think you can, you can.
If you think you can’t, you can’t.

It’s your choice!

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!

Some people think that life is all about money…but life is really all about time. Time to do whatever, however, and whenever you want. That is the ultimate thing that money cannot buy. What type of treasure are you seeking?

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!

We all face challenges in life. No one is immune to it. Sometimes we feel that other people’s lives are better than our own…but remember there is always a price that was paid for the results that you see in people’s lives. You just don’t know how high the cost was. One thing is for sure – you are either in the midst of a challenge, on your way to a challenge or just left a challenge! Rejoice in your challenges – they are only making you stronger and more well equipped for your victory ahead!! No matter what it looks like remind yourself that YOU WIN EVERY TIME. You can’t fall off the ground, you can only get up!

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!

A lot of times we wait until things are absolutely perfect in order to take action. We want the moon to be in Jupiter…a great hair day…lots of extra money in the bank…and all of the birds singing on a bright sunny day…before we take action. What we need to remember and realize is that there is never a perfect time to start ANYTHING! If you have a goal START NOW! Even if you don’t think you have everything that you need. Even if you feel like you would do better later on down the line, don’t procrastinate. Do it now!

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!

Life is Short.  DREAM BIG!