Jason: Facing the Fire
Recently in my life I reached my all time low. I haven’t been through anything like this since I found out my daughter wasn’t mines, I was homeless, and my brother had been stabbed. This was over five years ago. In the middle of the class I received word that my grandmother was diagnosed with cancer and would have to undergo surgery. A week later my mother was in a severe car accident and my best friend’s father had passed. Two days later I was leaving school and on my way to be there for family and friends. While in N.Y my cousin died from cancer and other areas of my life began to crumble like an earthquake. I was in the fire. There were times I wouldn’t eat, nights I wouldn’t sleep, moments when friends and family weren’t available because they were busy living their lives, and mornings I would wake up crying. Social media feeds seemed to be filled with superficial, non-important information. I was in the fire and it burned. This was the test that I had been preparing my whole life for. You never know how much you know until you are tested. You never know how much of that knowledge you actually embody until you are tested. You never know how strong you are until opposition breaches your comfortability. All the messages and principals I share were now to be proved true or false. It felt like I was given a final exam but it was only the second day of class. What do you do when the phone stops ringing? The text messages stop coming in? The emails don’t reply? The headphones no longer work? The bills still come in? The internet is not at reach? The career responsibilities are still there? Friends leave your side? The family is to busy? And there’s no where to escape to? Will you be ready to look in the mirror? Can you stand the silence? The loneliness? Will the junk under your bed crawl back up and shock you? The inevitable truth is that one day we will all face this fire and in this fire I found God. I was angry but understanding. I was anxious but patient. His voice came to me through the mouths of friends, through thoughts in my mind, through random books and readings, through the sun, the moon, and the cosmos. The intelligence of God is supreme and all knowing indeed. In that moment I realized I wasn’t alone and never will be. There was this weight lifted off my body, this tension lifted off my mind, and this heaviness off my heart. I tasted freedom. I wasn’t alone. This was the end to a new beginning. This fire was the opportunity of a lifetime to purify and embrace transformation. Was it easy? No, and it still isn’t. I still have the stinging burned marks but I’m healing. These times come unexpected. They come when you are at the top of your game and you think you got life in the bag. Do these moments have to happen, I asked myself? I don’t know, but what I do know is that this too shall pass. This is my story, my life, my flaws, my mistakes, my lessons, and my responsibility to keep moving forward. One day all of this will serve someone, somewhere for a greater purpose. You are never alone. If you open yourself up to light it will enter you no matter how dark you think it is inside. I am no better or worse than anyone. I am not special nor non-important. I am light fighting for its territory.
-JA
Jason Avile’s website can be found at: http://www.BUBGreat.com
Brian: Shoes by the Beach
My father and I placed our shoes on the sand at the beach. A little later, we came across a woman who told us that her shoes had drifted away while she was staring into the ocean. I did not think too much about the implication regarding our own shoes. After we parted ways for half an hour, she came running across the beach to tell us that she had found all three of our shoes drifting in the water and that she had waited a few minutes for my father’s to come to her before going underwater to retrieve them. She then placed them somewhere that we could access.
Some people are really nice.
Debbie: Unicorns, Dreams, Wishes
I am a lively girl full of pomeranian fun and laughter. I have big dreams that entail big possibilities. . Finding the love of my life, living happily ever after… Getting my dream job and having a great boss… Getting my perfect body back at 112 pounds, revamping my diet to eat healthy.
At times, when sharing my dreams and goals, I am questioned by certain people who urge me to be more “realistic” and “logical.” However, I’m happy to say that all of the above has happened…due to my persistence, due to the Universe being on my side, due to the stars aligning. So screw “reality” and “logic”! If they say I’m delusional about something I am going to make happen, I’ll just have to prove them wrong.
Heck, that’s what this boy did! He’s riding on a sweet white unicorn! 
And here’s him all grown up…still living the unicorn life!
Rossmery: A Magical Date
So as part of my 2013 vision, I’m creating a new bucket list and I share with my friend, one of my wishes:
Me: #5: Experience a magical date: Pick me up in a limo, bring me flowers, take me to dinner to eat authentic Italian food, followed by a Broadway show, then takes me out to dance, see the sunrise. Have breakfast at a great vegan place lol and finally go to sleep at a 5 star hotel hahaha.
Friend: Whatttt! Yea, let me get Zack Efron-Warren Buffet- astronaut… on the phone for you.
Geo…The Spectrum of Life
Life is a real b***h sometimes – if you don’t put your heart into anything your life has no meaning, but the more you put your heart into things the more you realize you shouldn’t take things too seriously. At the end life seems to be nothing more than pleasuring yourself (in some people’s cases that translates into pleasuring a God) as much as possible while, hopefully, without affecting others adversely. At the end we all want to experience as much as possible all aspects of emotions fully – happiness, anger, sorrow, and finally, peace.
Debbie: Cherry Blossoms, Spring Love
Debbie: Touch of Gold…
“Everything I touch turns into gold.” Someone said this today, and it really had me thinking for a while. What if everything we touched could turn into gold? What if we had the potential to touch those we encounter, everywhere we go? We could leave our fellow humans bigger than they were. We could inspire them, empower them, or remind them of their potential. We could create magic, joy, excitement or inspiration. For me, personally, sometimes all I need is empowerment, and just one person, to believe in me, for me to just go for what my heart truly desires. Sometimes I just need that one reminder. Sometimes, I just need someone to listen, listen for the gold. With that, I leave you with this question. What difference could you potentially make today? Who’s heart could you touch? Who’s soul could start to sing?
Cinderella!
And for one evening, I felt like a Manhattan socialite.. like a Cinderella given access to a grand ballroom of characters in elaborate costumes. Despite not being dressed for the occasion, I still had a blast (once I learned to overcome my social anxiety that has come to be extremely reliable whenever I’m placed in a new situation)!
Heather’s Lil Boy, Lil Leprechaun!
Today Arden went to spend time with his Dad. Before committing to this arrangement he wanted me to secure several details. He must be able to bring his special container in which he will keep the Leprechaun that he catches for a short while. (My son assured me that the little fellow’s captivity would be brief and that he would be cared for with LOVE.)
He must have one tree to hide behind and another approximately 4′ away to which he could throw his lasso to capture a Leprechaun.
“What colors,” he asked with utmost seriousness “other than green, are Leprechauns most attracted to?”
John’s quick thinking and proximity to the cereal aisle at the time allowed me to provide the answer ” Yellow moons, pink hearts, green clovers and blue diamonds!” Arden made sure to at least gather special arts and crafts items of the appropriate colors.
Finally, when his Dad came to pick him up, he asked for chocolate to put inside his Leprechaun container.
Oh let the magic never end!!!! Happy St. Patrick’s Day All! Wishing you a magical day of LOVE, imagination and abundance! ♥
Geoffrey: Winter Wonders
One of the longest day of my life… woke up 7:30am for snowboarding, and went to icy moguls double-diamonds multiple times on 8000 elevation where air is thin, had beers on mtn restaurants, and saw the BEST park terrain ever in my life with plenty of snow on a perfectly formed half-pipe, then back hotel for swimming pool basketball and jacuzzi, then home made dinner and TV/movies, and now can’t sleep thinking about work, where to go, how to live my life, and basically just watching random things on netflix inside the bathroom cuz both the sleeping and living room are people sleeping…
The Sparkled Life 