Stepping Stones

Hey there guys! I wanted to drop by with a little mid week reminder for you all. There has been so much going in my life, from recruitment to starting back up at school, homework and reading to mentally preparing myself for this Valentine's Day alone. Speaking of which, I made a whole blog post about it here. You can find some cutie patootie things to #treatyoself!

Sometimes life gets tough, but we have to keep pushing through. It always seems like the second one thing ends, the next begins. We don't often have time to stop and take a break. We just need to dive in to ourselves and spend sometime not worrying about what comes next. Why is everything so calculated?

When my second cousin posted this quote on her Facebook page a while back, it really stood out to me. My great-grandfather apparently used to say this all the time (in Italian, of course!) and it's so true. We spend a lot of our days sweating the small stuff when we should be soaking up the entire world like a big ole sponge. Every second doesn't need to go right as planned. Sometimes our paths change or we make decisions that lead us down a road we never thought we'd take. But the more we worry about those tiny, insignificant details, the more time we are taking away from the betterment of ourselves...

Which reminds me of a funny story. My brother and I, and later on my sister as she got older, always used to have these races at my beach house. On the side of the house was a pathway made of many large, flat stones. Like football players, my brother and I would time each other to see who could run from one end of the path and back, while stepping on every single stone. It was pretty hard! Thinking back on this quote reminds me of those summer memories, and more than anything makes me wish I was on a warm beach right about now!

I purposely made this humongous so you can read it hehe

Along those same lines, I am making it my goal to follow the Optimist's Creed to the best of my ability. I absolutely love this little verse, and think that its outlook and message are so wonderful. I love that not only does it focus on being positive, but also taking time to look at the bigger picture and not worry yourself with small things. You may have noticed that my header on Tumblr contains a phrase from the creed.

I conveniently have it taped up on my desk next to my computer, and I look at it and read it frequently. My mom and I both also have a copy posted to mirrors in our bedrooms at home! I hope that it can inspire you as much as it inspires me.

What mantras do you follow? Do you have one phrase or motivation that keeps you going when things get stressful? Let me know in the comments below!