We've all been there haven't we? That point in life where you feel like all the world is coming down crushing on you, like you've tried so much but no good is coming out of it...we've all been there haven't we? Some of us are still there while some of us are headed there right as you read this...it is scary...yes it is dark and hopeless, it is heart-breaking and painful but here is the thing; just when you think that it is never going to get any better you are always one step away from that door that you've been working for to see it open. I understand how harsh and heart wrenching your troubles might be...right now someone is falling apart because of a love gone sour, someone is tired of looking for job, someone is sick of the family that awaits him/her at home, someone is tired of being broke or even struggling with a job...truth is we've all been here and we are all here but just don't give up on yourself...i know the world might be staring at you behind a clown mask but i want you to know you are stronger than you can imagine and if you just don't give up on that which you are fighting for then you are simply one step away from achieving that which you've been looking for...you are just one day away...i cannot assure you that when you wake up tomorrow you'll find everything in place but i promise that if you wake up tomorrow you will one step ahead of where you are today. Don't view your troubles as your punishments for they are not...troubles come to teach us endurance and remind us that we have something to live for. Always remember that when the going gets tough, the tough get going...when life gets tough be tough too...don't be blinded by troubles that might be awaiting you tomorrow...give each day its due and don't worry about that which you have not seen. So listen, for i want you to remember this, your greatest test comes when you are close to the end of your troubles and the harsher your troubles the stronger you are, for we all know that God cannot let you handle that which you are not capable of...so just promise me that you won't wait for the train that's coming from the end of the tunnel but instead you'll go for the light yourself...waiting for that light is giving up, going for it is being strong. Everything that has a beginning has an end and so are the harsh times too...don't close your eyes, just stay focused on where you want to be.
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So today I was woken up in the morning by my alarm tone at 6am like any other days except for the first time it felt different. I have never taken into account the song that I set as my alarm tone except for the fact that it has to be catchy or sung by my favorite musician. So the other night after updating my playlist and somehow lost some of the songs that I had, I was forced to chose a new alarm tone. I was freakishly sleepy so I could not scroll through the whole list listening to each song at that time so the furthest I could go was to letter D and I ended up on Dido songs, after listening to a couple of them I decided to select Life For Rent. When it got to 6am in the morning the song started playing and I found myself humming to it even before I opened my eyes. My point is this, it hit me today that when I did put just other catchy songs as my alarm tone, when the alarm went on it was so easy for me to hit the snooze button but to this song which happens to be one of my ever best songs when it started playing, I found myself not even struggling to wake up.

A 2011 Canadian study found that listening to your favorite music is one of the fastest ways to get rid of a bad mood and I am beginning to think that to avoid those crampy mornings, one should be careful on the songs that he/she select as a wake up tone. We all agree that when we are moody 98% of the time we resort to our favorite music to elate us. So basically listening to your favorite music as the first thing before you open your eyes it's like having your favorite breakfast in bed. Stop having those alarm tones that scare you out of bed. A day should begin in a good tone.

Another thing, have you ever realized that how you wake up in the morning most of the times determines how the rest of your day will be? Well when you wake up feeling exhausted your day pretty much will be a not-much-a-do-day...if you wake up full of energy then you have set your day in a good motion. Part of what we never realize is that most of the times we start our day postponing waking up in 5 minutes or even more when we hit that snooze button...I was reading Allison Mack's blog (most recognize her Chloe Sullivan from CW TV Series Smallville) and she explained the hitting the snooze button as, "Avoiding everything uncomfortable and pushing beginnings to the last second. I don’t think I want to have my days filled with the phrase “five more minutes”. No thank you. More like “right now”. I know they say patience is a virtue. But we don’t have many hours in our life. I would rather be awake than asleep." I suggest if you want to have five-minutes-more moment, try getting to bed five minutes earlier. Your life is a monotonous tone and and what you wake up practicing in the morning somehow in one way or another it will grow itself into your day. Final words...practice good waking up habits but first start with your alarm tone.

Below is the video to my favorite song ever done by the beautiful and amazing Dido...

(In case you can't see the video just visit the blog and you'll get a chance to listen to it)

Today I was reading some articles by Zig Ziglar one of the most renown inspirational speakers and I came across this piece. I think this is something definitely everybody should read/know.

"You were born with unlimited potential and endowed with the seeds of greatness.You have inside of you what it takes to achieve any goal or dream you desire. Most everyone uses less than 5% of their potential. You must decide what it is you really want. Focus on it so clearly and make it your purpose. Then work on it hard enough and long enough. It will happen.You also have to work on things that are goal achieving instead of stress relieving. Feed your mind with good stuff every day. Become an expert in your field"

Some weeks ago I was reading The Secret by Rhonda Byrne and she talked about the same thing, on how we have unlimited power in us to achieve approximately anything we want. I too do believe that if we can just stop looking at ourselves as persons with limited resources and instead tame that unlimited possibility we have in us, then we can achieve anything we set our minds on. I guess the difference between achievers and failures is that achievers give it their all while failures treat every opportunity as an option.

I guess I needed that quick in the butt too. Now time to go make use my unlimited potential in writing lol. Cheers.
©g!o.inked

Most of us fail to be what we want to be because we don't have that one person who believes in us. We are surrounded by family and friends who thinks we aren't good enough or keeps on reminded how we tried and failed or maybe even reminds us of what we used to be instead of reminding us where are going. These kinds of people are nothing but poison to your thoughts and the more you give them your ear, the further you draw yourself away from where you want to be. Don't be the block in other people's path to bring something to the world. Be the reason others rise to greatness. Remember when you help someone to get up, you are basically not helping them but cushioning yourself in case you fall tomorrow. Everybody needs somebody to believe in them if they are to achieve their dreams. So when you hear a friend says he/she wants to do something...as long as it is good, instead of reminding them how the industry is competitive or maybe how he/she does not have the required skills or maybe how the economy is not on their side...believe in them even if you see no reason to believe in them. Even a fire requires a spark first for it to ignite. It is not the skills that we have at the beginning of the journey that determines the end of the journey, but the passion we have before we make the first step. And if we can keep that passion alive, then the skills will come as we need them and when we need them. Everybody needs somebody to believe in them. It maybe a child from a poor background who wants to be an astronaut, a junkie who desires to be drug clean, a harlot who wants to have a happy family, a friend who wants to start a business, a brother/sister who wants to be big in life, a patient in grave conditions who wants to be well, a broken heart who yearns to find true love...everybody needs somebody to believe in them. Great is the faith that we have for ourselves but greatest is the faith we have for others. So stop reminding others of can't(s) and past falls and keep them focused to where they want to be.

 When I started my writing or let's say when I fell in love with literature, I had no expertise totally in this field and to me it was like going to a battlefield with a passion to win but with no armor or spear. I was venturing into a field where people have been studying for years unlike me. Before I took my first step into this I recall I had read only one novel in my life and I did that when I was like seven years old. In high school, literature was never my favorite subject and as a matter of fact I never liked poetry totally. My first poem that I wrote called Sing My Little Nightingale, I wrote it from just studying a poem's structure but not reading. So I am basically a perfect example of you don't need skills to begin a journey, all you need is passion and people to believe in you. It feels amazing when you believe in yourself but it is ten-times more amazing when you find someone who believes in you. Nowadays people read my poetry and stories and other writings and they tell me how great I am...it feels nice yeah but each time I remember those who believed in me when I started the journey. To the furthest I have come, I owe it to my dad who always had a way of having me around books. My best friend Soph aka Gabby Dans who always believes in every step I make plus always seeing the best in me and her sister Mercy who fell in love with my writing before even reading anything yet lol. Hannah who after reading my diary one day suggested that I should write a book and pressured me in my poetry during my first days. My half-brother Fred Harrison for one silly comment he said that my writing will take me places. My homeboy Teddy, the only person who has always encouraged me and saw me as a genius always even when I was not. Tania Jayme, my really good friend who gave me the first resources and a strong kick in the butt to be serious with my writing, she always saw my writing posted in horizon even I had no hopes. A lot of people can now enjoy and live from my words because of these amazing people among others who believed in me when I doubted myself.

We all need somebody to believe in us and on our behalf and not to forget we too need to be that person who believes in others too no matter the situation..
©g!o.inked

Have you ever just taken a minute and paused everything you are doing and just look in the face of people passing by you one by one? I did, and it is heart wrenching how a lot of people are going through a lot of hidden pain in them. Everybody is just a walking volcano and most of these people's pain is triggered by other people who ignored just shutting up or speaking the right words when needed.

This is my letter to all those who are going through that pain and social depression. I am with you.

People are going to treat you bad, walk on you no matter how nice you try to be to them. They are going to make you cry and you are going to feel like life hates you because you give it the best and in return people give you their worst. Don't give up, just never give up because I promise you that it gets better. All the pain that hurts in your heart will one day fade and once again, the magic waterfall will pour in your heart. No matter what you are going through, shed your tears, forgive them and just humble yourself; remember fire doesn't cool fire but water heals the burns...where you sow good, it is good that you will reap; love only comes where it is invited and God only saves those who are broken. Whenever they pin you down, think of Christ; he was spat on, he was beaten, abused and killed by the same people he came to save, but never even for once did he think of vengeance as much as he had the power of God in his palms. For he knew victory that comes with the wounds is always the sweetest. Don't let people change you...be God's instrument and His rewards will amaze you. Remember people can only mistreat you if they are intimidated by you but always take the high road, don't stoop to their level.
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So i was thinking today of how we take important things for granted and magnify our times on certain things that truly hold not much value in our life...these that basically brings us "security" but not love...i mean on a serious note, what is more insecure than being lonely? Everyday we wake up and the first things we think of are of monetary value and we go all through the day with nothing but this thought. This has become part of our lives to the extent we don't remember that money only bring us temporary happiness, but friends and family brings us joy but still we'd rather choose career over family. Marilyn Monroe once said, " A career is wonderful but you can't curl up with it in bed."...we've all become nothing but zombies yearning to be humans.

Yesterday a friend of mine lost a friend through accident and she told me how she was shocked on how life can be so short. It had me thinking, why do we ignore people as if we know they'll be there tomorrow when truth of the matter is that, we are not promised that?  We hold resentment in our hearts when we know can show love, we postpone things in ignorance when we can just do them today, you make mistakes saying that tomorrow i'll apologize/we'll talk and everything will be alright when you can just avoid it in the first place, we take people for granted when deep within us we know that we need them. Humans are considered to be ruling the highest rank in knowledge capacity but sadly enough i find it that humans are the most ignorant of all God's creations. The big question is, when you wake up today and find that friend/family member dead, will you say you lived a well satisfied life with him/her? Or will you forever hold thirst in you that will never be quenched?

If you have a friend that has made you smile or has really influenced the person you are today, but of late the communication link between you two has been on a wreck, why are you waiting for him/her to call you first if you can do it? If you know you had a fight with someone special in your life that you never want to lose, would you trade that for his/her death? A family member that you have not been on good terms with, what if he/she is stolen today? It is always said, the beautiful things in life are free...stop chasing for temporary happiness if you've been blessed by people you know make you happy in your life. I am not saying that we should not go for our dreams and work hard, just remember life is not for going through but to be lived and money creates no memory....for this life is nothing but a whisper. Let the ones that add/have added colors to your life know that their presence in this life is valued...in this life you can regain everything you have lost, but not a moment stolen.
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So today i want to to talk about my role models, those that i always look up to as an example and my trend-setters. Well i have been thinking about them and what makes them special to add them to my list or what make me think i want to be like them. It's rather absurd that most of them of them were either drug addicts, are dead or people term them as nuts but i love them.

So first, what do i look for in a role model? See, basically role models are people that we want to be like but as for me, they are people who were somehow like me but i want to be either bigger or better than them so that's why somehow you'll find them as people that society really never appreciated them that much...but i love them because, it is from them that i have learned how to deal with certain stuff and people and life in general, 'cause i say "if he could manage to rise above that problem why can't i?"

So without further a due, let me get  to them...

1. Marilyn Monroe

Yes, Norma Jeane Mortenson, widely known as Marilyn Monroe. Okay right now i know she is a figure that a lot of girls and dudes look up to and worship, plus statics show that she is the celebrity figure that has gained the most fame after her death than when she was alive. Her merchandise have surpassed E. Presley's and M. Jackson's and even The Beatles. 50 years after her death and her fan base keeps grown more and more each and everyday. I must say i am proud of her, i'd want my legacy to live on like that, i'd rather be famous after my death than when i'm alive, because after you die you become a god among men. So what makes Norma Jeane a tick? Well looking at her personal life growing up, she went through some evil stuff like being stuffed into a bag by her own mother, moving from one foster home to another, sexual assaults and torture among others and despite all these she held her dream in her heart that one day she'd grow into a big star. Even after her breakthrough, trouble did not seem to have abandoned her. Most of her relationships were a wreck and when you follow her story well you'll notice she was the girl screaming in the Cinderella dress. Despite the fame and everything, she just wanted to be normal but she could never match the patch....the misunderstood type. Basically that's the type of person that i am too. Despite always being the adored, i still feel like i never belong plus my life is always full of drama and that which everybody want to poke there nose in and not to forget my past, i grew up around some really harsh environment. I love her in the fact despite all the drama she managed to rise and sit with presidents and made herself a brand that people will forever remember. I don't wish to sit among kings and queens but i do hope that my work will some day be the voice to the ones always shut out. Like Norma once said, "Behind the make up and behind the smile, i am just a girl who wishes for the world"...so to shut the speculations, i hope you understand that i love her not just because she is a Gemini, but for many reasons.
R.I.P Monroe, i wish you could see how much we love you now.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marilyn_Monroe

2. Eminem

Yeah, this is the part that everybody always goes "What the heck?" and i answer, "you heard me right." Marshal Bruce Mathers III is my second role model. We pretty much all know the background of Marshal. Growing in the black neighborhood, growing up without a dad and his relationship with his mom plus being one of the first white rappers emerging into rap industry. I am not going to go into so much details of his life but we all know him and either love or hate Marshal from his rebel attitude and from him i have come to learn that the society always wants to create you into whoever it wants, thus making a lot of people afraid to stand up and stand out. Everybody is made to believe that speaking your mind is being imperfect and thus if you speak what you think, you are not good. Well most call Marshall a bad influence but i have never heard it anywhere stated that Hailie his daughter, is smoking pot or not going to school, that makes him somebody that can foster a good child then...i speak my mind a lot and i am basically not harmed by it, for i know that when i bottle all that stuff up in me, i'll either end up retarded or dead by 25. From Marshall i have learned that, do whatever you love, go for your dreams at the end of the day not everybody will approve your path. From him i learned that, the pains that people cause me, i can them use as the stones to build myself with, after all being different does not make you a victim but special. "I say what I want to say and do what I want to do. There's no in between. People will either love you for it or hate you for it."

3 David
I am talking about David from the Old Testament for those who know what bible is :') ...I understand to some people he is just a make up story just like superman and stuff, but when the only book you get to read as a child looking for a better tomorrow is bible, then you'll believe that he is real. To me not only is he real, but also my hero. From what aspects though? Well i am a Christian and all those who are like me know that the only thing that makes you special is your faith in God. David growing up, he was the last born in his family and the one that was considered the only thing he could do better is sing and look over the flock of his father. Pretty much if you look at my family i am not well built and strong like my brother neither am i all that smart like my sisters, in fact i used to be one of those considered weak in primary school. Nobody believed David could face Goliath and deliver Philistines in the hands of Israelis, but he had faith that nothing could stop the power that was living in him and with just a sling and a stone, he brought Philistines to their knees. I love that, if i can just have even a drop of that faith whenever i face any challenge in life...i am sure nothing can bring me down. David too rose from nothing to a name that we all know will reign forever. I too want to have that sort of faith that you live each and everyday knowing there's someone you can rely on.

4. My Dad
Well nobody fits this part better than my dad since he is one person i have witnessed life from him first hand. From a distance when you look at him, all you'll see is just an ordinary person, an ordinary dad but i am who i am today because of him. I never grew up with my mother and as we all know how most fathers would be, all reckless and stuff, my daddy never for once forgot that he had kids to look after and he would sacrifice all he had just so that he can see my brother and i happy. From him i have known how to be a better parent someday when i have my kids...at least i'll know how to raise them. From his big heart i have learned how to feel what people go through and never to overlook anyone. From his struggle i now can persevere through the fire (that is a facetious statement, don't try to pour hot coal on me)...and the list is long but you can google Four-to-Nine Steps and read more about him from that poem i poem i wrote. 
 
So there they are, like i said my role models are either dead or considered bad influence; at least my dad doesn't fit in both categories. My role models don't influence my career path as in the case i see among most people...no, mine influence how i handle my life. So don't confuse my mentors and role models. My mentors guide me on how to better myself in different areas of my life and my skills but not my whole life, the likes of Joel Osteen, Oscar Wilde, Emily Dickinson, Niccolo Machiavelli among others...

My role models though, are people who set the standard for me and i try to live above it.... 

Next i'll discuss about my mentors. Cheers.

© g!o.inked  

We buried a muse the other day

For a poet laid down his quill

He said he'd never write again

For he simply refused to feel

Muses came from miles around

To tell their friend goodbye

Inspiration was everywhere

You should have heard them cry

They buried him in a special place

Up on Inspiration Hill

Paper flowers covered his grave

His tombstone was his quill

No one knows where muses go

When poets refuse to write

Maybe they simply disappear

Or maybe follow the light

The next time you get your writer's block

And you're feeling empty inside

Your inspiration has gone to a funeral

For another muse has died

Coutesy of Whiskurz
http://www.writerscafe.org/Larry B

...we all are scared of being alone. One thing we miss to understand is that loneliness in us is created when we ignore finding time for ourselves. We wake up each morning with the thought of being happy around others, being happy with others and being happy because of others. WRONG. Learn to be content with just being yourself without attracting the vibe of happiness from others. We only become lonely when we cant stand sight of being on our own.

Don't be too scared of losing those in your life to the point you become scared of yourself. Those who matter most in your life they'll always be there and just because someone walks out of you it don't mean that you are bad or unable of maintaining friends, nope. God brings the right people in your life at the right time and so does He also take away people out of your life at a certain time for reasons best known to Him. Use the lonely time to grow and know yourself, cease bungee jumping in relationships. Sometimes it is good to fall and remain on the ground; it helps you to see the view from below.

You are what and where you are for a reason. Nothing is a coincidence and ALWAYS, ALWAYS remember you are never alone for God is with you. Well view it this way. When we were young, our parents always yearned to spend time with us and at times they'd take us away from our friends just so that they can be with us, so does God...He wants us for Him too, thus comes moments that He is forced to drive us to solitude so that we can be with Him too. It's as simple as that but we are always blinded and deceived that it is at that time that God has forsaken us.

Don't also forget that the enemy will also always bring the wrong people at the right time in our lives to keep us from what is meant for us.

Use solitude/loneliness to grow...~ ♥ GG

The strongest action that you can take in any situation is to go to your knees and ask God for help. The highest purpose of faith or prayer is not to change your circumstances but to change you for the circumstance at hand. We are in every situation for a reason; either to learn or grow strong. So next time you are in a "foul" situation don't ask God to change your situation but ask from Him wisdom and strength to get through it. Somebody, somewhere, someday, somehow in someway said, "If you want to help someone hungry don't give them fish but teach them how to fish and for that you'll save them a million troubles."

When we pray, we whisper words with hope and faith that our prayers will be answered...don't just pray but practice your prayers. When it is raining don't go hide under a shed waiting for the rain to cease falling but instead walk through the rain and dance in the rain and you'll learn to find your joy in every drop. Like i said yesterday there is no event that you cant find joy.

Prayer may not change things for you but surely it changes you for all things ~ ♥GG

Good morning diary-lets as you begin this present, just want to share a thought with you...as much as we all want to have our report cards have a distinction on it when our time expires on earth, do not be so consumed in thought of how your life after death will be till you forget that it is the life before death that counts. Have a blast and dare do that which scares you most as long as it is not, evil extend a hand and don't let nobody bring you down...

Live as you will wish to have lived when you are dying. ~Christian Furchtegott Gellert

We always run to see who will dare to follow us, build walls to see who dares to break them down and as a way of protecting ourselves but we keep doing this till we forget how strong we are. Sometimes the best u can do is stop running, stop building walls and face your fears...just then we will learn to know our greatest strength...it's all in the leap of faith...~♥ GG

Loss is nothing else but change, and change is Nature's delight...just because it is gone it doesn't mean it is the end...it means nature wants to appreciate you with something better...that which you need and deserve...so keep your face towards the silver lining. Sun wont shine on your face when you keep looking down...~♥ GG

Some times we gotta dare to trust ourselves and trust the lies even if we are lying to ourselves that the lie is not a lie to make that lie a truth....that's called believing in the impossible~♥ GG