New Ventures

Happy New Year to you friends!  It's hard to believe another year has passed us by and we're off on another adventure!  I hope you are all well and shining your light brightly!

How often do you have time for yourself?  In today's world, probably not very much.  My life has changed a bit from the last time I posted. Having completed my studies, I entered the teaching world only to find that my family responsibilities must take precedence over a full time teaching job. Teachers not only work at school, but they also devote countless hours at home preparing and searching for new ways to approach learning. My priorities are my child and my elderly parents whom we live with.  You see, there is not a Mr. Blunt who takes care of me. I take care of others. So, I have opted for a  part time teaching assistant position for much less pay, but with the ability to be a good mom, an active part of my child's life and his learning and the ability to be a good daughter and take care of more difficult tasks for my 90 year old parents. The parents who took my child and I in back in 2009. My selfless parents who are amazing role models and who are extremely supportive of their children and their goals. It is my turn to give back to them, to help them, that is what I have chosen.

In addition to working part-time, I have decided to open an online boutique specializing in women's clothing for ALL WOMEN from sizes XXS to 3XL. This venture came about after trying on the clothing and coming from a personal place of lacking confidence and not "feeling" beautiful. No matter who tells you are beautiful, it may not matter, you see because BEAUTY is a feeling that we possess or do not possess from the inside. May it be from our past circumstances or relationships we may lack THAT feeling. Having gone through this past cycle and not caring what I looked like to fast forward to when I tried on the particular clothing, I felt the self confidence kick in and the feeling of beauty ooze from within. Because of this experience, I've decided to help other women feel beautiful, confident, inspired and to help others experience personal and fashion freedom in gorgeous fabrics and stylish patterns. The clothing is comfortable, stylish and affordable.  I am scheduled to "onboard" with the company this week with inventory on its way!

If you love being fashionable, comfortable and stylish, I encourage you to join me on my fashion forward journey of LuLaRoe Toni Ruocco.

LuLaRoe Toni Ruocco
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Periscope: Lularoe Toni Ruocco
Twitter: Lularoe Toni Ruocco

Namaste,

Blunt

Long Over Due

                                                              Long Over Due

  It has been 7 months since my mentor and guide "dropped" his body, and I am now informing you after all this time.  He is Douglas Ray. The person whose poetry and stories I featured on my blog in the early days when I was more active on Google+.  Life is so very different without him, his guidance and his companionship. I met him January 13, 2011.  This was the day my life would change forever; for the better. He dropped his body in August 2015, one hour after I visited him for the last time to say "Ciao Ciao to my 'ultimate friend'. 'Ultimate Friend'.  Have you every had the magical experience of having an ultimate friend?  Someone who can and will listen to you, Someone who can look into your eyes and that person instantaneously knows you, SEES you, who you are, your pain, your hurt, your joy, your love and your light?

To be continued....

Namaste,

Blunt

Poem

The sky is blue
The heart is gray
It once was here
Now to fray
The pieces strewn
Across the path
Where to land
Never hath
To let it go here and fro
From where it loved to heal and grow
Within me it now lives
To visit when my spirit blends.
The stirring, whirling of it all
Longs to be a grounding hall
Living, walking being here
Complete the twirling living flesh
My heart is gray
The sky is blue
To live and thrive
To make it through
The sky is gray
The heart is true

A story: Lesson

Life is filled with lessons. Isn't that why we are here? To learn our lesson until it goes away.  Ah, the joy of a lesson leaving us.  It only leaves us once we have learned it, not once, not twice, but over and over again.  Sometimes it takes us a few times to get it right.

There's the first time. Okay, I'll give us each a first time exception because after all we've never experienced it before or known what it was like. Now, the second time.  We should know better by now because we are more aware of red flags and the feeling.  What it feels like is key.  It is our intuition, our gut.  Always trust your gut.

Having experienced my second time intuition/gut feeling with a new person today has me thinking about what my lesson is that I need to learn.  Quite simple: I can only take care of me. Never ever should I look outside of myself for someone to take care of me; after all, that's how I got into the mess I am presently cleaning myself out of from over 5 years ago.  People clean up nicely after achieving a bachelors and masters degree; however, life's lessons are ongoing, extremely comprehensive and linger until we 150% definitively show LIFE we have LEARNED WHAT SHE HAS SET OUT TO PROVE TO US.  Right now, I see it, I recognize it and I slam on the breaks.  Life has reminded me of where I was, thankful to be where I am now and grateful to be aware of  and see the warning signs.  Lessons repeat until we learn from them.  I see my lesson before me a second time.  The question remains....Has it been learned???

Namaste Friends,

BB

Revelations of Gratitude

Good Evening Friends,
I hope you are all peaceful and well. I heard this song for the first time since before I started my journey and this time I listened and understood what it means for me. For all the pain and suffering we endure, it ultimately is a grateful gift of making it through to the abundant light of living. I am so inclined to share it with you.

Namaste,
Blaringly Blunt

Here is the video link:

Alannis Morissette "Thank You" 

How bout getting off these antibiotics 
How bout stopping eating when I’m full up 
How bout them transparent dangling carrots 
How bout that ever elusive kudo 

Thank you india 
Thank you terror 
Thank you disillusionment 
Thank you frailty 
Thank you consequence 
Thank you thank you silence 

How bout me not blaming you for everything 
How bout me enjoying the moment for once 
How bout how good it feels to finally forgive you 
How bout grieving it all one at a time 

Thank you india 
Thank you terror 
Thank you disillusionment 
Thank you frailty 
Thank you consequence 
Thank you thank you silence 

The moment I let go of it was the moment 
I got more than I could handle 
The moment I jumped off of it 
Was the moment I touched down 

How bout no longer being masochistic 
How bout remembering your divinity 
How bout unabashedly bawling your eyes out 
How bout not equating death with stopping 

Thank you india 
Thank you providence 
Thank you disillusionment 
Thank you nothingness 
Thank you clarity 
Thank you thank you silence 

Meditatioin for February 11

Good Afternoon!

 

It's odd that you can get so anesthetized by your own pain or your own problem that you don't quite fully share the hell of someone close to you.

--Lady Bird Johnson

 

Preoccupation with self can be the bane of our existence.  It prevents all but the narrowest perspective on any problem.  It cuts off any guidance from our higher power that may be offered through a friend.  It blocks whatever truths are trying to gain our attention.  The paradox is that whatever our pain, it is lessened by turning our attention elsewhere, to another's pain or joy.

 

when we open our minds to fresh input from others, insights emerge. We need the messages others are trying to give us.  Nothing that is said in a loving spirit is empty of meaning for our lives.

 

We might consider that every conversation we have is a conversation with our Creator.  What we need to know, for our own growth, is guaranteed to be revealed in our many conversations with others. But we can't hear another's thoughts until we let go of our own.

________________________________

 

Full attention to the person sent to me will offer me exactly what I need, today.  My inner guide has beckoned them.  I can be alert, expect solutions, and celebrate the wonder of it all.

 

www.leathernstone.com

www.leathernstone.com

 

Meditation for February 10

Good Morning!

 

God knows no distance.

--Charleszetta Waddles

 

As close as our breath is the strength we need to carry us through any troubled time.  But our memory often fails us.  We try, alone, to solve our problems, to determine the proper course of action.  And we stumble.  In time we will turn, automatically, to that power available.  And whatever our need, it will be met.

 

Relying on God, however, we understand God's presence, is foreign to many of us.  We were encouraged from early childhood to be self-reliant.  Even when we desperately needed another's help, we feared asking for it.  When confidence wavered, as it so often did, we hid the fear--sometimes with alcohol, sometimes with pills.  Sometimes we sim0ply hid at home.  Our fears never fully abated.

 

Finding out, as we all have found, that we have never needed to fear anything, that God was never distant, takes time to sink in.  Slowly and with practice it will become natural to turn within, to be God-reliant rather than self-reliant.

 

Whatever our needs today, God is the answer.

______________________________________________________

 

There is nothing to fear.  At last, I have come to know God.  All roads will be made smooth.

 

www.leathernstone.com

www.leathernstone.com

 

 

Meditation for February 9

Good Morning!

 

 

We have seen too much defeatism, too much pessimism, too much of a negative approach.  The answer is simple; if you want something very badly, you can achieve it.  It may take patience, very hard work, a real struggle and a long time; but it can be done...faith is a prerequisite of an undertaking...

 

--Margo Jones

 

How many dreams have we let die?  How many projects did we start, only to leave them unfinished:  How many times have we promised ourselves, "This time will be different," but then didn't work to make it so?  Negativity breeds more negativity.  Fortunately, its opposite does likewise.  Our attitude will carry us a long way.  and a positive attitude will make all things possible.

 

We are meant for good living.  But we must seek it out and be open to its invitation, be willing to put forth the necessary effort.  Our dreams are our invitations to move forward, to strive for a further goal.  And having faith in our ability to achieve our dreams will make easier the necessary steps. 

 

We have been blessed with dream, all of us.  They are gifts meant to stretch our capabilities.

___________________________________________________

I can trust my dreams and aspirations.  They are mine, alone, and special to me.  Achievement is possible; faith and a positive attitude will ease my efforts.

 

www.leathernstone.com

www.leathernstone.com

 

 



Meditation for February 8, 2014

Good Afternoon!  Today is Saturday, February 8, 2014

 

Reaction isn't action--that is, it isn't truly creative.

-Elizabeth Janeway

 

We must learn how to act rather than react.  Unfortunately, we've had lots of training at reacting.  And we're all such good imitators.  We are a society of reactors.  We let the good or the bad behavior of another person determine our own behavior as a matter of course.  But the opportunities are unlimited for us to responsibly choose our behavior, independent of all others in our life.

 

Change is ours, if we want it.  A scowl from a spouse need not make us feel rejected.  Criticism at word doesn't have to ruin our day.   An inconsiderate bus driver might still be politely thanked.  And when we decide for ourselves just how we want to act and follow through, self-esteem soars.

 

If we are put down, it may momentarily create self doubt, but when we quickly reassure ourselves that all is well and respond with respect, we grow.  A sense of well-being rushes through our bodies.

 

Being in command of our own feelings and our own actions prevents that free-floating anxiety from grasping us.  We are who we choose to be.  And new adventures await us.

____________________________________

 

The opportunities to react will be many today.  But each time I can pause, determine the action I'd feel better about, and take it.  My emotional health gets a booster shot each time I make a responsible choice.

 

www.leathernstone.com

www.leathernstone.com

 

 

Daily Meditation for February 5

Good Morning on this shiny, sparkly, snowy day.  Here is today's meditation.

 

February 5

 

Don't compromise yourself.  You are all you've got.

-Janis Joplin

 

When we don't know who we are, it's easy to compromise ourselves.  When we don't know where we stand on an issue, it's easy to be swayed by a forceful voice.  Values may be cloudy in our minds, or we may not be aware of them at all. It's then that we are vulnerable to the persuasion of another.  In this Twelve Step program, we are offered the way to know ourselves.  We re supported in our efforts, and we realize we have friends who don't want us to compromise ourselves-who value our struggle to know and to be true to ourselves.

 

One of recovery's greatest gifts is discovering we can make decisions that represent us, our inner selves, and those decisions please us.  We all are familiar with the tiny tug of shame that locates itself in our solar plexus.  When we "go along," when we "give in" on a personally important issue, we pay a consequence.  We lose a bit of ourselves.  Over the years we've lost many bits.  We have a choice, however.

_______________________________________

 

I will have a chance, soon, to act according to my wishes.  I will take it.

 

www.leathernstone.com

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Daily Meditation for February 4

Good Morning Friends.  Here is our Tuesday meditation.

 

February 4

 

Genius is the talent for seeing things straight.  It is seeing things in a straight line without any bend or break or aberration of sight, seeing them as they are, without any warping of vision.

 

--Maude Adams

 

We are learning, each day of our abstinence, to see more clearly what lies before us.  Less and less are we hampered by our own selfish needs, distorting that which we face.  We all have within us the talent for seeing things as they really are.  But it is a process that takes practice, a process of turning within to the untapped talent which is one of the gifts of a spiritual life.

 

We are spiritual entities, one and all. And the genius to see as God sees is ours for the asking.  This program is paving our way.  Each day it becomes easier to live an honest life.  Each day we trust more the people we encounter.  And each day we take greater risks being our true selves.

 

The need to distort that which we see ahead lessens as we begin reaping the benefits of the honest, caring spirit-filled life.  Our unhealthy egos stood in our way in the past.  And they can get in the way even now, if we forget to look ahead with the eyes of our inner genius.

_______________________________________

 

My path today is straight, clean, and love-filled, if I choose to follow my genius.

 

www.leathernstone.com

www.leathernstone.com

Daily Meditation for February 3

Good Afternoon, here is the day's meditation.

 

February 3

 

When we begin to take our failures nonseriously, it means we are ceasing to be afraid of them.  It is of immense importance to learn to laugh at ourselves.

--Katherine Mansfield

 

Perfectionism and its control over our lives stands seriously in the way of our growth and well-being, emotionally, spiritually, and even physically.  Life's lessons come through failures probably more than successes.  Through our failures we learn humility.  We learn to look to others for help and guidance.  We learn how to let others fail, too.  We fail because we are human.

 

When we no longer fear failure, we are free to attempt greater feats.  We dare to learn more, and life is fuller for it--not just our own lives, but the lives that we touch.

 

Laughter over our mistakes eases the risk of trying again.  Laughter keeps us young, and the lighthearted find more pleasure in each day.
____________________________________

I will fail at something I try today.  I can laugh about it, though.  My laughter will open the way to another try.

 

Daily meditation for February 2

As the day comes to an end, we can reflect on it with the following meditation:

 

February 2

 

What most of us want is to be heard, to communicate.

--Dory Previn

 

Our personhood is denied; the self we are presenting to the world is negated each time we speak, yet go unheard.  "The greatest gift we can give one another is rapt attention."  If we want attention, we must also give it.  That means letting go of all extraneous thoughts when we're in conversation with someone.  We cannot expect to get from others what we are unable or unwilling to give.

 

Being heard and hearing another person is more than just listening.  It's letting ourselves be touched, in an intimate way, by the other's words.  We don't want judgment, or shame, or to be discounted when we share who we are with another.  We want to know that we have been intimately heard.  And when we have a chance to hear another, we listen intently for the words meant for us, words that will stretch our personhood and bring us closer to our inner selves as well.

 

The beauty of hearing each other is that it helps us to hear ourselves.  We know better who we are when we listen to one another.  Every conversation offers us a chance to be real, to help another person be real.

______________________________________________

Rapt attention is my greatest gift.  If I want to receive it, I must give it.

 

www.leathernstone.com

www.leathernstone.com

 

 

Daily Meditation for February 1

Good Morning!  Today is the first day of February and here is today's meditation.

 

February 1

 

You were there when I needed you.  You stood above all of the others with your strength and you guided me.  To each of you.  I offer my being, my love and all that I am.

--Deidra Sarault

 

Each of us is guided while we act as guides to one another, throughout the day, throughout our lives.  We are interdependent.  Everywhere we look, someone is learning from us and we from her/him.  We often know not what we give, when we give it.  And we seldom realize the value of what we're receiving at the time we accept it.

Resistance to what another person is offering us may be our natural response.  But the passage of time highlights the value of the experience.  We can look for the comforters in our lives.  They are there offering us strength and hope enough to see us through any difficulty.

We need both the rough times and the soft shoulders of a friend.  They contribute equally to the designs our lives are weaving.  The rough times press us to pray, to reach out to others for solace.  And our pain gives others the chance to heal our wounds.  We are all healers offering strength.  And we all need healing.

__________________________________

One of the greatest gifts of my recovery is giving and receiving strength.

 

 

Blaringly Blunt:  As a parent, I must remember my son is learning from me.  He is watching my actions, expressions and listening to my tone of voice when I speak and to whom I speak.  There are hurts I must set aside if I am going to show him the way we are meant to act toward others.  Yes, I falter and as I do, I will apologize to him and tell him how I could have done things differently.  Today is a day I must put my painful feelings aside for another person he adores, be the good example and simiply smile as I assist him in doing something kind and thoughtful.

 

May Peace, love and light guide you, always.

 

Daily Meditation for January 31

Good Afternoon, here is today's meditation.

 

January 31

 

Woman must not accept; she must challenge.  She must not be awed by that which has been built up around her; she must reverence that woman in her which struggles for expression.

 

--Margaret Sanger

 

Our desire to grow, to make a place for ourselves in the world of our friends, to know that we have counted in the lives of other, is healthy and necessary to our existence as whole women.  The inner urging to move ahead, to try a new approach to an old problem, to go after a new job, to learn a new skill, is evidence of God's eternal Spirit within.

Our meaning in this life is found through following the guidance that beckons us toward these new horizons, perhaps new friends, even new locations.  We can trust the urge.  We can reverence the urge.  It will not lead us astray, provided we do not try to lead it.  We each have a special gift to express in this life among those to whom we've been led.

For years, many of us quelled the inner urge out of fear; but , fortunately, it didn't desert us.  To be human is to have a constant desire to be more than we are.  The fears still come, but as we move through them, with the support of other women, other friends, the program gives us the thrill of achievement.  We know there is meaning in our existence.

______________________________________________

 

The need to grow, to affect the world around us is part of God's plan for each of us.  I will trust the urge; I will let it guide my steps.

 

www.leathernstone.com

www.leathernstone.com

 

Daily Meditation for January 30

Good Evening Everyone, Here is today's daily meditation.

 

January 30

Fortunately (psycho)analysis is not the only way to resolve inner conflicts.  Life itself still remains a very effective therapist.

 

--Karen Horney

 

The passage of time, coupled with an openness to the messages gleaned from our conversations with others, can provide answers we need for the way out of painful situations.  Life is ebb and flow, peaks and valleys, struggles ans sweet times.  What we fail to realize, all too often, is that the struggles make possible the times that are sweet.

Our conflicts are our special lessons In life.  We can learn to flow with them, move through them, trust their value to us as growing, changing women.  How good it feels to have found security with one another and that power greater than ourselves who can, when we are willing, show us the path to resolution.

Life will never be free of conflict--nor should it be.  Our lessons move us to higher planes of awareness.  We can experience the joy hidden within the conflict.  We can help one another remember that the sweetness of a moment is tied to the pain of a former, forgotten moment.

_________________________________

All events, all experiences, are connected.  The path I travel, alone and with others, is bringing me brighter days.  I will trust my path.  It's right for me.

 

www.leathernstone.com

www.leathernstone.com

 

Daily meditation for January 29

Good Afternoon, here is today's meditation.

 

January 29

"I can't help it"...that's what we all say when we don't want to exert ourselves.

 

--Eva Lathbury

 

Irresponsible behavior is not unfamiliar to us.  Passivity is equally familiar.  In the past, excusing ourselves of all responsibility prevented us from being blamed.  We have learned that it also prevented us from feeling worthy, from fulfilling our potential, from feeling the excitement that comes with achievement.

 

Our fear of failure helped us to be irresponsible.  We may still fear failure, but the program offers us an antidote.  We can't fail if we have turned our lives over to our higher power.  We will be shown the way to proceed.  Our fellow travelers have messages for us that will smooth our path.

____________________________________

 

I have chosen recovery.  I have already said, "I can help it."  I will celebrate that I am taking responsibility for my life today.

Daily Meditation for January 27 and January 28

Good Morning, Friends!  My apologies for the delay of yesterday's meditation.  My studies have resumed, so there may be times I will add 2 days into one.  Without further adue, here is yesterday's and today's meditation.  I hope you find them meaningful.  Much love, light and peace to you.

January 27

 

Surviving meant being born over and over.

 

--Erica Jung

 

We have decided to live.  And each day we make the decision anew.  Each time we call a friend, work a step, or go to a meeting, we re renewing our contract with life.  We are being reborn.  Before coming to this program we died, emotionally and spiritually, many times.  Some of us nearly died physically.  But here we are, starting a new day, looking for guidance from one another.  We are the survivors.  And survival is there for the taking.

 

We will have days when we struggle with our decision to live.  We will want to throw in the towel.  We will want to give in or give up.  But we've learned from one another about choices.  and the choice to survive, knowing we never have to do it alone, gets easier with time.

_______________________________________________

 

I am one of the survivors.  Today is my day for celebration.

Daily Meditation for January 26

Good Afternoon! The weekend is winding down and here is today's meditation.

 

January 26

 

You've got to get up every morning with a smile on your face, And show the world all the love in your heart.  Then people gonna treat you better.  You're gonna find, yes, you will, That you're beautiful as you feel.

 

--Carole King

 

Act "as if."  There's magic in behaving the way we want to be, even though we don't yet feel it.  The behavior seems to lead the way.  The attitude, the mental state, follows.

Many days we may not get up with love in our hearts for our family, our friends, our co-workers.  We may, in fact, wan them to show their love for us first.  But if we reach out, give love unconditionally, focus on another's needs, love will return tenfold.  And the act of loving them will lift our own spirits.  We will know love; we will feel love for ourselves and the many other persons close to us.

The attitude we cultivate, whether one of love or selfishness, inferiority or superiority, will determine how the events of our lives affect us.  The principle is so simple.  If we meet life with love, with a smile, we'll find love and something to smile about.

__________________________________

My attitude will make this day what it becomes.  Meeting it head on, with love, will assure me of a lovely day.

 

www.leathernstone.com

www.leathernstone.com

Daily Meditation for January 25

Good Morning!  Here is today's meditation.

 

January 25

 

The time of discipline began.  Each of us the pupil of whichever one of us could best each what each of us needed to learn. 

 

--Maria Isabel Barreno

 

"When the pupil is ready, the teacher appears."  Life's lessons often come unexpectedly.  They come, nevertheless, and they come according to a time frame that is Divine.  As we grow emotionally and spiritually, we are readied for further lessons for which teachers will appear.  Perhaps the teacher will be a loving relationship, a difficult loss, or a truant child.  The time of learning is seldom free from pain and questioning.  But from these experiences and what they can teach us, we are ready to learn.  As we are ready, they come.

 

We all enjoy the easy times when the sailing is smooth, when all is well, when we are feeling no pain.  And these periods serve a purpose.  They shore us up for the lessons which carry us to a stronger recovery, to a stronger sense of ourselves.  To understand that all is well, throughout the learning process, is the basic lesson we need to learn.  All is well.  The teacher is the guide up the next rung of the ladder.

______________________________________

Let me be grateful for my lessons today and know that all is well.

 

 

Blunt:  This is exactly how it happened for me.  When I was ready, the teacher appeared.  I have learned that we need to remain "teachable" .  Teachable means we are willing and open to learning which equates to growth.  We are never too old to learn or re-frame or reposition ourselves, our views and our lives.  My life may not be "perfect" and I still have turmoils that I walk through; however, what is very important is to know that "All is Well" even as we walk through turbulent and trying times.  These times lead us into the sunlight and make us ever more grateful when we are basking in the light!

 

 

Light, Love and Peace for you!

 

--Blaringly Blunt

 

 

www.leathernstone.com

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