"Life should be an extraordinarily enjoyable experience... day, by day, by day." - Brendan Burchard

Hey friends!

It's been a while. But I made this post extra special for you. This post is on the subject of wellness, and the importance of doing something extra special for yourself every once and a while.

Treat Yourself

We all do it. We find ourselves at 100% capacity with succeeding at work, in school, and with our personal projects. However, you'll soon find that your Friday evening treat (you know, that glass of red wine) just isn't cutting it anymore.

Three reasons

Rewarding yourself is so essential to your overall well-being. In fact, studies say that we:

• work harder
• achieve more, and are
• happier 

when we have a reward system set in place. But in order for it to feel like a reward, it needs to be on a "large" enough scale so that:

1. It actually feels like a reward because it's clearly defined (i.e. you anticipate it, it's satisfying and memorable)
2. You feel rejuvenated at the end of it all. 

Some may argue that treating yourself is too costly, but I'm a firm believer that doing something "extra special" doesn't have to burn a hole in your pocket. Splurging can be as simple as dedicating a block of your time - let's say, an evening - to go off on your own and do something that you love and not feel guilty about it. That last part is the key. You have to truly believe that your positive actions have made you deserving of something great.

New York City

I recently went to New York for a few days with my best friend on a sort of grad trip/girls trip hybrid. Our goal was to check out some key food spots, monuments, and museums that we've been storing in memory after years of perousing blogs, reading books - and more generally - from seeing in pop culture. We constructed a hefty excel spreadsheet that outlined our activities by day, while keeping fully aware that Manhattan is arguably the largest metropolis in North America, and that we can't see everything in one go.

Despite the fact that we had a jam-packed schedule, some rainy weather, and a 24hr flu; the trip was a great, and felt like a nice way to cap off four years of undergraduate studies. Also, I managed to squeeze in one extra special event: Carnegie Hall.

Dream Fulfilled: Carnegie Hall

125th anniversary (left) Stevie Wonder and other celebrity autographs (right)

Attending a concert at Carnegie Hall has been a huge dream of mine for the past few years, and even moreso in the last two years, as my knowledge and appetite for classical music expanded. The dream was realized in excellent timing too, as 2016 marks the 125th anniversary of the hall's opening.

Emanuel Ax 

I attended a piano concerto by Emanuel Ax, a musical mastermind with warm face and humble demeanor about him. We all watched in anticipation as he walked onto center stage and took his seat.






Mr. Ax played an assortment of pieces from Beethoven's Grande Sonate Pathétique. He started the evening with Grave - Allegro di molto e con brio, a piece reminiscent of  beautiful despair (shrill almost). However, my favourite piece by far was the Adagio cantabile, a slow, delicate and majestic piece that is played with extreme attention and care. It has a way of lifting your spirits and transporting you to your happy place. Isn't it just beautiful?




So please. I highly encourage you, my fellow workaholics, to do the same by taking a break every once and a while :)

Some people come into our lives and quietly stay. Others stay for a while, leaving footprints in our hearts and we are never the same. - Flavia Weedn

While walking through the subway station this morning, I witnessed a simple but heartwarming encounter between a young man and an elderly woman. At first glance, I wasn't sure what was going on... the young man was carrying a massive suitcase up a flight of stairs. He left it there, and bolted back down the steps in a matter of seconds. Then I realized that the suitcase belonged to an elderly woman, who was at the bottom of the steps. She was thanking the man profusely for being so kind and for saving her 15 minutes of trouble. Mind you, this wasn't the first time I have seen a stranger help someone with their bags, but it was the expression on her face that really spoke to me. She was literally beaming from ear to ear. She kept that bright smile on her face as she made her way up the entire flight of stairs.

My heart melted. It feels so good to see humans being good to other humans.

I can relate to that feeling of joy after receiving help when you least expect it. But life has made me realize that this isn't always easy. We may have good intentions or a natural inclination to be thoughtful, caring, or loving people, but we don't always act on it. When we're out in public and see someone in distress, it's easy to turn a blind eye and assume that some other stranger will do something about it. It takes a lot of courage to extend a helping hand to others, especially when a positive reaction is never guaranteed.

Another challenge with being kind (or having a good heart) is that your qualities may be mistaken for weakness, passivity or in certain cases, flirtatiousness. Criticism and snide remarks flow into our ears and deter us from doing what's right and saying what we really mean. In an effort to avoid conflict, we live safe and comfortable lives where we only look out for our own concerns.

You might ask, 'whats so wrong with that?'.

Many things, actually. Galatians 6 really sheds some light on that challenge, as we all have our fair share of burdens in life, but we're meant to help each other with carrying the heavy load:

2 Bear one anothers burdens, and so fulfill the laws of Christ. 5 For each will have to bear his own load 9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up 10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith

A watershed moment for me was the recent passing of a schoolmate. Her passing was the sudden and silent variety that leaves the heart and mind of everyone she left behind in complete shock and disarray. She was extremely kind, driven, bold, and didn't wait for anyone to tell her start anything. Her passing confirmed many things for me. First, I reevaluated the kind of woman I aspire to be and the way I want to treat people. My philosophy stands true, and that is to be good to everyone (regardless of race, economic status, health, whether they're a good egg or not, or whether or not they're nice to me). Don't have hidden agendas, ulterior motives, or a scoreboard to see who's winning or losing. Be good because it's good in and of itself. Secondly, I got a wake up call - tomorrow is not guaranteed (Proverbs 27:1). Forgive people, love intensely, slow down, and enjoy life. I know this will be challenging to do, but going through the trouble of being kind is worth it every single time. Our days are numbered (Job 14:5-7) but ironically, living into old age doesn't necessarily mean that you lived a full life. Make time for rest (Matthew 11:28). After all, how can we be generous people if we're groggy and feeling worn out?

Kind people are powerful. They effectively manage their emotions. They hold on to life's positive aspects and they quickly rid themselves of negatives and keep pressing forward! More importantly, they leave an impression on those around them and empower them to do the same.

I was flipping through some old photos from St. Paul de Vence, and I was drawn to this photo because of the inscription on the sun dial. I quickly realized that the words were not in French, and just had to know what language it was.

I learned that "Passo coume lou vent" is Provençal (the dialect of Province circa 17th century) for "pass like the wind" or "passe comme le vent" in French. In the past, it was quite popular for sun dials to display Greek or Latin mottos reflecting the thoughts of it's artisan, or words of wisdom that reflect the philosophy of the epoch. It's impossible to know what year this sun dial was made in, but it's message reminds me of the Baroque philosophy on life, which spanned the 16th and 17th century. This period was marked by a struggle between two ideologies; the lingering optimism of the renaissance (think of great French Kings and exuberance) and the self-denying, modest lifestyle of the religious and church (think a life of solitude and seclusion). In effect, the population was fixated on both the richness and the curtness of life.

I ask myself how this applies today. We're still fixated on measuring time and enjoying each day (Carpe Diem)! We don't necessarily focus on death, but our culture is fixated on youth and self-preservation (i.e. anti-aging creams, cosmetic surgery, and working hard so that we leave our legacy behind). But I wonder if our society is too fear-driven that we miss the bigger picture. I think we've warmed up to the idea of being dissatisfied with today, and instead, we heavily rely on the promise of brighter days ahead when that isn't necessarily guaranteed (i.e. looking forward to Friday on a Monday).


Before I ramble on for too long... let me end by leaving you with a couple of "Carpe Diem" inspired quotes as a reminder of how amazing and powerful living in the present can be:

"The trick is to enjoy life. Don't wish away your days, waiting for better ones ahead" - Marjorie Pay Hinckley

 "Dream as if you will live forever; Live as if you will die today" - James Dean

"When you arise in the morning think of what a privilege it is to be alive, to think, to enjoy, to love" - Marcus Aurelius 

Hello and happy New Year! 2015 is finally here, and I'm sure we all have a list of resolutions and goals that we want to get started on tout de suite. Our batteries are fully charged, and we all have a perfectly blank slate to work with! I find the imagery of 'blankness' and 'new beginnings' so therapeutic, don't you? But let's be honest, if we're not careful, our resolutions can vanish faster than retail stores can dissassemble their christmas displays.

I'd be kidding myself if I said that I am the world's most organized person, but I am super goal-oriented. I think I'd be lost if I didn't have something to constantly work towards. I should probably add that this New Years Eve, I had no resolutions. Well not officially at least. Why? I don't think you should wait until December 31st to set new goals or feel inspired. I feel like there are some lessons that we can't seem to escape... almost as if we keep revisiting them until we sort of 'pass' the test. For this reason, I didn't create any new goals by NYE because I plan on exploring and improving my old ones.

Overall, I think that 2014 was a fairly good chapter in my life. The year proved to be challenging. It felt like every four months brought on another wave of tests and new things to adapt to. I'm not opposed to the idea of "the new", but after a while, I find the challenges it brings to be very emotionally trying. I learned to endure these periods by being extremely patient and keeping a positive attitude despite adversity. I built thicker skin, and sort of became better at enduring things until the storms lightened up or passed. What's more, in 2014 I travelled a lot, cried very little, opened up more, judged others and myself less, and got better and enjoying the moment. I still need to work on finishing what I start, worrying less and being decisive.

Some other things I (re)learned:

Contentment takes work. Work daily at it!
Maintaining your happiness should be like a reflex. Everyday a series of good and bad events will occur. But it's your job to keep your cool. Filter out what you don't want in your life, and embrace positive the things that you do want to manifest in your life :)

Keep. things. simple.
I want to spend more time creating and completing things and less time pondering how to start them. This one is mostly in regards to my blogging habits, haha. I want to start writing on a consistent basis, and I think I can do this if I express myself in a clear and simple way. When writing, I have a habit of starting off by using embellishments and one-thousand details. This often leads to my initial message being lost, which then leads to me forgetting the idea all-together, and finally, the blog post is left in drafts (for dismissal, ofcourse). Instead of being hesitant to publish it because it isn't just the way I want, I'm going to go ahead and do it anyway. Sometimes it's best to start things and figure it out as you go along.

Laugh everyday. You deserve it.
Ever noticed how kids laugh at just about anything? Laughter is so important. Life seems to get more 'grown up' and 'serious' with every year, but it shouldn't mean that we can't laugh like we did when we were kids!

Wishing you all the best in the year ahead! Stay strong :)

Highlights of the year in photos: