in the absence of light...

there is no such thing as darkness. what we refer to as dark is really just an absence of light. think to the last time you sat in complete 'darkness'...how did you feel? and i don't mean that wonderful feeling right before you fall asleep. is there a sense of fear or uncertainty in the dark? a lot of people hesitate to sit in completely darkened areas without a legitimate reason. not all people, i had a roommate in college that held a strong dislike for light...i do believe our curtains were always closed and the overhead lights only on if they were absolutely necessary. back to the point...in that absence of light you are remembering, do you think how you were feeling could have been different? the next time you have a spare five minutes, go to a quiet place and make it very dark. sit calmly and think about sad things, or frown. how do you think you will feel? i am quite sure that your feelings will not be positive. now try again, only this time, smile, laugh, and think about happy things. did the darkness disappear? in the absence of light, it does not take physical light to correct the absence, it only takes a positive outlook. from now on, any time you are feeling blue, or like you are sitting in a dark area: smile. you will feel better.

love, love, love! (and smiles) :):)

the key to life...

hello! if a random stranger were to walk up to you and ask you what the key to life is, what would you say? on average, i am pretty positive realistic people would say breathing. i agree actually, for obvious reasons...but what about non-obvious answers. take a look in a mirror. what do you see? look past your physical characteristics and view your person. are you alive? or merely existing? you see, it takes things like breathing, eating, and sleeping to exist. but to live, it takes more. so today, i challenge you: live! smile more, love freely, and choose to live every day like it is your last. cliche or not, there is much truth to the phrase...today may be your last, so take advantage of the unknown and live! the key to life is life. in order to truly live, you must have life in you. don't just exist, live!
and smile... :)
peace, hope, smiles, hugs, and glittery laughter... :)

no matter what...

hello all! i hope today was as happy as sunshine for you! today's post is something of a cheer up therapy session for those of you who didn't have good days. open another tab and go to YouTube. search the song No Matter What by Kerrie Roberts. when i titled this post the first thing that popped into my mind was that song. to me, the song is a reminder that no matter what happens, what we have done, where we have been, or who we associate with, God sent Jesus to die for you also, and that alone, right there is a reason to rejoice, take joy, smile, and be happy. and if that doesn't make you smile or cheer up, then think on this: be you! you are allowed to have days that aren't stellar because that is part of you. and remember, you are a masterpiece created by the best Artist ever. smiling yet? i am cheering myself up by writing this! :) so go forth and smile at random, make the rest of your day sunshine-y happy, and don't forget...SMILE. :):)
peace, hope, and smiles... :)

humbly awesome... :)

hey friends!
while talking with some friends yesterday, we had this interesting thought about humility and awesomeness. we have an awesome God, right? (correct answer: yes) :):) and our God delights when we are humble, yet He created us, which makes us awesome children of an awesome God. that makes us humbly awesome! so smile about that. :) here is a thought about humility that i heard during a talk with the band Big Daddy Weave. being humble is not about degrading yourself or being cruel, but true humbleness is accepting the way God created you and LOVING YOU. give yourself another smile. :) now for a final thought, what do you think when you hear the word creation? i usually think of masterpieces, or things not easily recreated except by the original artist. my friends, God is that Artist, and you are His masterpiece. smile! :)
hugs, smiles, and hope... :)

in love with today...

what were some good things about your today? maybe a family meal, a compliment from a stranger, a cute outfit that makes you feel good, a sparkling lake, the sunshine...? those are some of my good things from today. but what about letting the fact you had today make your day good? this morning (or afternoon) when you woke up, did you thank God for allowing you to have today?  that is one thing we all forget is a blessing. so even if your day was terrible, remember...at least you had today.

a reason to smile

hello hello hello! :) what did you smile about today? i smiled about quite a few things today. i have a thought for you: think of how many blessings you have and smile for each one. now ask yourself...would you ever stop smiling? today i thought about blessings. as humans, we are blessed. that enough is a reason to smile. did you wake up today? obviously ;) that is a reason to smile. in the twenty four hours of today, you have had 31,536,000 seconds in which to smile. logically, if every second of life is a blessing, and you should smile at every blessing, then today, in 24 hours, you didn't have a reason to not be smiling. so, smile. :) on my way home from work today, i drove past a lake that is full of icky algae due to the tremendous amounts of rain followed by ridiculous heat this gorgeous state of Minnesota has been blessed with. while the lake smells, and the shores look murky, out in the center was a huge sea of sparkles. (love, love, LOVE sparkles) those sparkles were individual waves reflecting the sun. each of those sparkles was a reason to smile. so as you can see, there are infinite reasons to smile...so tomorrow, later today, or even right now, smile at a random person. start a chain. make someone's day. give the world a reason to smile!

hugs, hope, laughter, sparkles, and

...smiles! :)

smile, smile, smile

hey all! this is new, and it will probably take me awhile to make it pretty, but i wanted to start my ministry today! i would like to invite you to smile, right now, at no one in particular. how did that feel? are you still smiling? this blog is all about smiling. my goal is to post tidbits that made me smile to give you a smile. when i was younger a family moved to my small town with a few kids around my age. we quickly became friends, spent countless hours together, and thankfully are still friends. one day while we were hanging out we listened to this old music machine song called 'smile'. i don't remember many of the lyrics, however, part of it goes like this: 'smile, smile, smile! i love to smile!...' here are a few things for you...
-- smile, because no matter how many clouds there are, your smile is a ray of sunshine.
-- smile, because it is good for you, as in healthy
-- smile, because it gives you a freedom for your mind
-- smile, because it creates more smiles
now, have a good evening! and don't forget...

smile! :)