fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
Reflection
By: Maddison Johnson
Tags: Looking Back, Reflection, Support, University, Memories

People say university is where you make friends for life. It’s where you create memories for life. It’s where you have the best years of your life.

Now for me these statements are only half true. Yes I’ve created memories, made friends and had fun. But I’ve also lost friends, and had hard times as well, but one thing I will always stand by is those who care about you will be there for you.

Some of the people I’ve met over the past 3 years have become family to me; and have changed me for the better. They’ve been there through the good, the bad and the ugly and I could never ask for more amazing people.

The memories I have made have moulded me into the person I am now, some good, some bad, all for a reason.

One thing I have learnt though over the past 3 years is when you’re down, and you feel like there is no point in going any further, you are wrong. There is always better things to come. People will suprise you and provide you with the love and support you cannot give yourself. They will remind you why you need to keep going, sometimes they will be the reason you keep going, even short-term. If that’s the case that’s fine, everyone needs a reason, even if it’s not for yourself it’s better than nothing.

Never forget where you’ve been, and how far you have come from there, and who helped you along the journey. Who were your cheerleaders. Who were your team mates. Who were the ones that held the torch for you when you were too tired to hold it yourself.
Amber Moments
By: Cecilia Wessinger
Tags: Moments, Memories, Love, Poetry

In the solitude of an empty house, my mind wanders to comfortable places far away

I open my Pandora’s Box of stolen moments

Each precious gem held up and examined

Viewing each facet with new admiration

Searching deep for the glimmer that reminds me of bliss

Sometimes my retrospection floods into my conscious mind

Like a river unleashed amidst a rainstorm

Other times like the morning dew accumulating imperceptivity

Emanating into a drop barely detected had it not been anticipated

I let my mind wander at times to the precarious place of imagination

In a world constructed without encumbrance

As seen through the lens of youthful innocence

The ‘what might have beens’ and possibilities if you were the only people in consideration

Then the doubt and grounding

Reminding of responsibilities and grown up ways that repress untethered thoughts

Concern about issues, real and imagined

Down the rabbit hole of dark, fearfulness and bewilderment as to whether anything is true

All these musings unexpressed

Journeys halted

Insatiable cravings unfulfilled

The miles in between

Words unspoken

Touch unrequited

Taking a breath…

Coming back into the current moment

Understanding that unraveling came from a single strand…

From fabric, tangible and true

Wrapped around a treasured moment well lived
Memories
Tags: 100 Days Writing, Festivals, Memories, New Year, Mind And Memories

Day 36/100

Exams are finally over and my son’s school will remain closed until early January. What a year it was! We all struggled to cope, yet waded through. As we await the new year with lots of hope, it’s also a time when memories come flooding by.

As a child, we used to have our very own Christmas celebration at home. No fancy party and people coming in but getting the small Santa and an equally small Christmas tree out of the closet and placing it along the greeting cards that used to come in from friends, relatives and office colleges of elders at home. It was also a time when we planned and made our own cards to be posted to our friends. Oh! What a lovely time we had and how busy we thought we were with so many cards to be made and sent on time. The childish innocence and thrill we experienced then are somehow lost on the way as we grew up. Technology has destroyed people to people contact and has introduced instead fancy replacements through which we pretend we are happy! Sometimes, it feels bad that our children can never live those moments that we did but I guess every generation has it’s own charm. Of course, we must acknowledge that life became liveable this year despite a pandemic only because technology kept us connected and sane. And the memories we have formed over this year will also be re-lived by us and our children for many more years into the future.

That’s the magic of a memory. It transports and allows us to re-live the past; sometimes sweet and sometimes nightmarish. One look at an old photograph and we can literally hear the sounds and feel as if it’s being enacted again in front of our eyes. And as long as we have a functional mind, no one can steal our memories away! Now, isn’t that wonderful?

With that positive note, wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful, COVID- free, healthy new year!!
What Takes You Back?
By: Dan Parodi
Tags: Food, Happiness, Parenting, Memories, Family

Call it impatience, but my Tradition calls for eating one batch for dinner the following night to see how we fared. They’re always good, but will they properly honor Nona and Papa?

Instead of the usual tomato and meat ragù, I just toss them in a simple sauce of olive oil, fresh sage, garlic, salt and pepper in order to better taste the filling. Wow. I was surprised. Really surprised! Hmm…best ever??

My wife and daughter were carrying on as if so. As I rounded the half-plate point, I realized every bite was transporting me. A different time: my childhood. A different place: the small village in Italy where my grandfather grew up. We visited 2 years ago and the old woman at the inn we stayed served us her ravioli. They tasted the same. How?

My grandparents passed away decades ago and I’ve been the keeper of the recipe since. I didn’t fully realize this timeless taste was so localized and precise. (Sometimes elusively so.)

Taking another bite, I looked at the girls and said, “That — right there — is my childhood,” and then was startled to realize my eyes had welled up.

Last Christmas I made these for some out-of-town extended family. A first. Sitting next to me at dinner was my older cousin. Suddenly, she drops her fork in her plate with a loud clang and sits back in her chair, silencing the table. Everyone looks; alarmed. What!?

She is full-on weeping.

Pointing at the plate, she mutters, “I haven’t tasted that taste since I was a little girl.”

Ah. Yes, I understand.

Do you?

It’s so strange how we can hold certain things inside forever, all locked up. Very certain things — good and bad; times and places; people. Some of them are like treasure, and occasional encounters with that sort can elucidate deep joy and unexpected…Security? Calm? Peace? Comfort? Some feeling. Even in these times.

What have you been doing these past months to encounter your treasures — those deeply-seated memories of goodness? What uncovers them: a taste, a smell, a photo, a song? Maybe you need to do some digging? Maybe you need to do some celebrating?

And what treasure have you been actively burying for the people in your life? I mean, proactively?

I know my daughter will someday make these same ravioli for children of her own (and recall my tears that one night we sat around the table). And they will all share a little of my treasure; my father’s treasure; my Noni’s treasure…

And isn’t that sort of sharing, itself, one of life’s most mysterious joys?

Buon Natale.
A Father Gave $10 Before His Death For His Son 21st Birthday
By: Status Book
Tags: Inspiration, Memories, Birthday, Life, Stories

A Father Gave $10 Before His Death For His Son 21st Birthday

Credit: Matt Goodman Tweet

A father gave $10 to his wife before his death so that after a while he could give this money to the son. The father wanted his son to spend this money on beer. This story of father and son is being shared on social media, let's know the whole matter.

According to a tweet, when a boy named Matt Goodman turned 21, he thought that his father would be present today to celebrate with him. But Matt had no idea that his father had made some special arrangements before his death.

Matt's father John Goodman, who lives in Massachusetts, US, died 6 years ago. He had cancer. But before his death, he gave $10 to his wife so that the son could drink beer from this money for the first time when he was 21 years old.

Even after the father's death, Matt's mother and sister kept this secret to themselves. Finally, at the age of 21, Matt was given the father's money by his mother to drink beer. On December 6, Matt spent his father's money on his alcoholic drinking age (21 years) in Massachusetts.

The tweet went viral when Matt shared the story of drinking beer with his father's money on Twitter. The tweet also caught the attention of beer company Budwiser and the company sent 8 cartons of beer to Matt.
Medium = Elaborative Encoding
By: Dr. Jarryd Willis Phd
Tags: Courtship, Gamergirl, Memory, Ｍedium, Ucsd

Update 3.16.2021 — Context Dependent Memory

Stephanie on Wordpress

“Context-dependent failure

means that if we are in a different place than we were when learning, the memory may not be accessible. This is why when visiting your old school/ neighbourhood, you might remember more things than you would’ve been able to had you not gone back there. Here’s some supporting research:

Abernethy (1940) found that participants, after learning some material, recalled it less well when tested by an unfamiliar teacher in an unfamiliar room than participants who were tested by a familiar teacher in a familiar room.

Godden & Baddeley (1975) got divers to learn material either on dry land or while underwater. Those who learned the words underwater had better recall when assessed underwater than on land (and vice-versa for those that learned the material on land).

State-dependent failure

means that if we are not in the same physical and emotional state as we were when the learning happened, we may not be able to access the memory. This could be when you were happy, sad or even when you were in love. Here’s some supporting research:

Overton (1972) got participants to learn material when either drunk or sober and found that recall was worse when participants were in a different internal state at recall than their internal state at coding — for example, recalling information learned when drunk was better if the information had been learned when drunk rather than sober.

Darley et al (1973) found that participants who hid money while high on marijuana were less able to recall where the money was when they were not high than when they were high again.

Research source: PSYCHOLOGY for A-Level Year 1 and AS by Jean-Marc Lawton and Eleanor Willard pg. 79"
All In Black
By: J.D. Harms
Tags: Image, Musing, Memory, Funeral, Poetry

All In Black

Photo by Jr Korpa on Unsplash

Here we were mourning, but everyone’s in white, the sunlight offensive in the collected misery, sympathy spread and drained and heaped, piled up in the newly deaf ears, the solace not showing up and instead of the blanking of everything all in black, the blinding white serves just as well.

The softness of everything has been removed, revoked, all in the angles, the jarring harsh unequivocal depths of the atmosphere, questions left at the door in their own pile of uselessness, singing now crying now the end of any of this in absence.

I didn’t even have anything black, could hardly speak that day, but still remember the sun and looking at it to find a reason for the tears, and this is and ending I relive and relive and cannot bring back.
College Memory
By: Venkatesh Uppala
Tags: Memories, College Days

When I was in the final year of b.tech I faced one unforgettable situation now let me share with you.

We had mid exams at that time, after the completion of my mid-exam. My friend got a phone call that 3 laptops and 1 phone is missing in your beside room, we don’t know what’s happening in our hostel. Few months before this my friend Vinay’s laptop is stolen by someone in the hostel.

We made one decision and we went to the Administrative office and given complaint and requested to fix the camera’s in the hostel, so many laptop and phones are missing… what we have to do… if we went to write the exam again this time our phones and laptops also going to miss, what we do sir.. please try to understand.

After this next day again we went to write our next exam. When we came to the hostel all are discussing that again one laptop is missing.

All the hostel mates decided that this is the time we need to do something otherwise this will continue like this only. Management would not take care of our problems. so finally all the hostel students decided. I and my roommates don’t know about this.

At 7'o clock, I and my roommates went to the juniors hostel, the reason that only the final years had the mid exams so there is a possibility of second and third-year students doing all the stolen things.

So we went there and we start searching in each room. Juniors warden came near to us
Party Style Twists
By: Laura Culberg
Tags: Wisdom, Gen X, Self Love, Memories, Self-awareness

Photo by Laura Culberg

Last week I wore my hair down with two twists, one on each side of my middle part. Because of my cowlick, I couldn’t get the twists even, but I wore them anyway. When I was a kid we called this “party style.” I rarely wear my hair down. It makes me feel young, somehow not myself. That night I chose this style to disguise my incoming gray hair. Maybe it was a subconscious move to try to create youth in the midst of inevitable aging.

Since wearing my hair in twists that night I’ve had a series of random memories from when I was a girl. I remember in fourth grade, Ms. Funk’s class at William H. Ray Elementary in Chicago. It was picture day and I’d decided on my burgundy v-neck velour shirt with juliet sleeves. It was one of my nicest shirts and I had begged my mother to buy it for me at the tiny Breslauer’s Department Store on 53rd Street. I was obsessed with my hair that morning, desperate to get my two twists to match. I wanted my long brown hair to cascade down from the perfectly matched twists that crowned my head like a princess. But I didn’t have the right supplies. I needed bobby pins and all I had were mismatched barrettes and rubber bands.

That same obsession for the perfect twists has recently replayed itself in my memory. I don’t know if it was the same year, but in my mind’s eye, I am about the same age. It was my grandfather’s birthday party and we were all to get dressed up. I had a red and white seersucker blouse and skirt that my grandmother had splurged on at Saks Fifth Avenue downtown. It was perfect. But my hair! I remember standing in front of the living room mirror with my sisters and cousins, five girls all primping, and I could not get the twists to work. “I need bobby pins!,” I howled to no one in particular, and before I knew it my dad was out the door to the Wilco to get a package big enough for five heads of hair.

I don’t know why certain memories stick in our minds and I don’t know why they revisit us at certain times in life, but the prominence of these two hair-twist memories feels like something worth attending to. One of the things that happens in middle age, in part because of hormones, and in part because of earned wisdom from life experience, is that we come back to our true nature, that essence of self that can become buried during the twenties and thirties when other big life events take center stage.

I’m grateful for the clarity and potency of these memories. In middle-age there is a quieting, a slowing down that makes room for that essential nature to resurface, like coming out of the rubble after an earthquake, there is a peacefulness, a stillness. Maybe these memories are a sign to me, a message from fourth-grade Laura, that this is time to come back and revisit that energy from my younger self. Or maybe these hair-twist memories are here now to show me how much I’ve learned, how far I’ve come from that place where a botched hair style was a national disaster. Now I know it’s just a pesky cowlick.
In the company of children
By: Lori Mccray
Tags: Children, Memories

Little Scotty, little me. Same profile, even our ears are the same! (I need to find the originals and see if I can make some magic)

I just had a thought I don’t know how to convey in words. I’ve always felt the presence of the child I once was, in my heart of hearts, and this morning it occurred to me that I also have the presence of the child Scotty once was, and the two of them, so loved and lovely and lovable, keep one another company in the sweetest of ways.

An early morning epiphany, Lori Beth Wilcox-McCray 12/23/2020
The “Memory Tree”
By: Erika Burkhalter
Tags: Short Story, Christmas Ornaments, Memories, Travel, Photography

“Our first ornament.” Photo ©Erika Burkhalter.

As I have gotten older, I have continued to add to the ornament collection. Each year’s ornament represents a moment in our lives, a memory of someone we loved, or a representation of something we are passionate about.

The oldest ones that my husband and I have together are just simple glass balls on which I drew gold stars with a marker. We did not have much in the way of money back then, so we had a tree full of these, plus my childhood ornaments. Nowadays, we just hang a few of them, in memory….

This year’s ornament is this glass moose, from Alaska. We were either lucky or unlucky enough to get COVID in March. We both still have antibodies. So we fulfilled a dream of mine and went to Alaska this summer. We spotted many moose in Denali National Park.

“Alaska Moose.” Photo ©Erika Burkhalter.

My neighbor, Bev, also gave us this “Hand of Fatima” ornament this year. We saw this symbol a lot when we were in Turkey many years ago. It is supposed to ward off the evil eye.

“Hand of Fatima.” Photo ©Erika Burkhalter.

“Nutcracker.” Photo ©Erika Burkhalter.

I was a little sad when I put up the ornaments I purchased last year— a ballerina and a nutcracker. I almost said,” we need to remember to get tickets,” and then I remembered that there would be no nutcracker this year.

Perhaps the funniest ornament on our tree is this wooden Santa from Aurangabad, India. Why he is wearing blue-striped pajamas and carrying a pot of eggs, I will never know. We call him “grumpy Santa,” because he just looks angry.

We also have a tiger and a peacock which remind us of India. I can still see, in my mind’s eye, a tigress who strolled down a rocky embankment in Ranthambore National Park to crouch at the edge of the creek and lap up water with that pink tongue while we were watching. And the call of the peacock, a sound like the cross between a cat yeowling and a baby crying, is to be heard all over the country.
My 5 Most Cherished Childhood Christmas Memories Ever
By: Deante L. Young
Tags: Life Lessons, Christmas, Childhood Memories, Memories, Self

Like the song says about Christmas, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year!”

I can definitely agree with that, even though I didn’t really care for it during a period of time in my teenage years. But for the past couple decades (I know, I am elderly), I have gained a significant fondness for the roughly 40 day period between Thanksgiving and New Year’s.

As with most people, the most enduring Christmas memories took place during childhood, and I am no different.

Here are my 5 most cherished Christmas memories from my days as a youngin:
It’s the Middle of the Night and My Thoughts Are Falling Into Place…
By: Liya Davidov
Tags: Sleep, Imagination, Thoughts And Feelings, Memories, Writing

…and all at once it hits me. All of my ideas, stories, projects — literally any thought I’ve ever had rushes out of its home and enjoys a communal reunion. My head is pounding, and I’m racing to focus in on at least one of them and get them on paper. In the hours I least need something to write about, everything is longing for me to grab.

(What I imagine I look like processing my restless mind in the middle of the night)

It’s literally midnight now as I write this out. What better a time to write about the agenda of my truly complicated writer’s block than during the hours at which I actually have the words to write it?

Truth be told, it’s kind of frightening how this brain of mine shelters and reveals ideas both new and old. While I do feel a creative relief to be able to actually produce something that I’ve been meaning to begin, sometimes I’m not yet prepared to hear my own thoughts.

One night not too long ago, I was thinking back to the end of my senior year of high school. The thoughts overwhelmed me in a way I’d never felt before. Things happen in high school to every high schooler ever, but there were some things holding me back that I had to overcome entirely in order to become the person I am today. This being said, at the time it was more of a general acceptance that these events had happened to me, less of me accepting what I was feeling about myself and the situation. So when the thoughts started lingering in my head around this time not too long ago, it was unbearable.

Truly unbearable…but the tears inevitably race down my cheeks and suddenly I’m gasping for silent breaths trying not to wake the rest of the house in the middle of the night.

Of course the rest of the house isn’t exactly the greatest writer on the block, so it is only I who can relate to myself. So I let the tears pour and the feelings creep toward the edge of my skin suit and the blanket hold me close in its warm embrace.

From this high school memory I trail off to other ones, and soon enough the leftover trail of tears on my cheeks is crunchy. I no longer have the strength to cry, probably no more water left to spare either as my last sip was hours ago. I lay still, eyes wide open and thoughts quieting down. The sun is probably setting in the village and it’s time for them to retreat back into their homes. I wish them goodnight and once again beseech them to awaken with me so that we can work together in the daylight.

Speaking of daylight, it’s probably best if I see some tomorrow, which means this story has reached the end of its chapter. Who knows, there might be another one if there’s still a compromise to be made with the town of thoughts settled in my head. I guess my final words will be words of encouragement to my morning self: good luck with the writer’s block.
Want to share!
By: Manvi Baheti
Tags: Emotional Intelligence, Mindmap, Healing, Mind, Mental Health

Don’t you think there’s something that stops us from sharing our thoughts?

If you are unable to express your feelings then yes, you landed in the right place.

There are various emotions that reside within us, and these emotions are not very complicated but just simple emotions that are being felt, but the problem lies in expressing these unsaid emotions. Like you, many people feel the same way. So don’t worry too much. There’s a friend of mine who usually doesn’t share her thoughts much until I push her to speak. I asked her why she has trouble speaking what she feels and she hesitantly said that people might judge her. So yeah, many people have different reasons behind not speaking up.

Some people fear that their negative, troubling emotions like anger or resentment could result in conflict and might affect the relationship with that person. Likewise, there can be many other reasons like fear of being rejected or be misunderstood and some reasons might have to do with the past, maybe u felt hurt or betrayed.

So now you could have identified your reason which hinders you from speaking up. Now the problem lies in how to deal with this? See it’s simple, you could share your thoughts with your closed ones because they will really not judge, or hurt and betray you! So speak freely and try to find those right words which can help you to be understood. And if you had done this already and freely expressed your emotions and then also if it didn’t help you much by telling them, then I’m sorry but they are not the right ones to help you!

Another solution is to consider paper as your friend. Yes! You read it right. Pen down your emotions, feelings and thoughts. Write as freely as you can. By doing this you could feel much better as at least you had expressed your thoughts to someone.

It’s just that by expressing your thoughts to someone or somewhere or even to yourself can be very much stress relieving. And by putting those thoughts into words can make you self aware of yourself and could also help in finding reasons to your emotions which you’re feeling. So, it can be very rewarding for your mind.

Unknowingly you would find yourself in peace!
Keep The Balance
By: Ayesha Athar
Tags: Life Lessons, Poem, Healing, Poetry Sunday, Poetry

Keep The Balance

Photo by Fanny Gustafsson on Unsplash

Washing sins in the present

Karma playing its role

For those blessed ones

Who don’t carry it further

To the everlasting threshold

Of no return.

One deed of regret

Hidden by fear

And this is the wash

That was called for

It was needed

For your own betterment.

Take it with you

As a lesson

In the darkest hours

Of your vision.

Keep it in mind

Not to take revenge

But a source of gold.

Feel blissful and free

From the guilt you had preserved

All those years

Turning into a statue of shameful repentance.

Time to forgive and forget

The balance much awaited.
Aakash Vani
By: Tuli Das
Tags: Healing, Emotions, Forgiveness, Aakash Vani, Love

Aakash, a man probably in his sixties is sitting on a garden bench, surrounded by winter fog. Nainital winter is hitting his body with cold and chilling wind.

Though children are playing and some senior citizens are jogging in the park, Aakash remains oblivious to every other detail surrounding him.

A drop of tear fell from his eyes.

Aakash Vani | Airofeast | An Indian’s way of story telling

It is less true, when people say time heals every pain, then why this pain refuses to go!

Aakash with slow steps starts going back to his house, though he is feeble he knows he has to go back and prepare his food.

Reaching his home, he saw a young boy in his twenties standing outside his house. ‘Uncle, I am Rishi. I have recently joined a hotel here as a chef, and somebody told me you are looking for a paying guest.’

Aakash couldn’t take his eyes off Rishi, Rishi’s face is so pure and full of innocence. Aakash gave a nod to his request and took him inside his house…..

To read further, please refer the given link below.

https://airofeast.com/aakash-vani/
Integrity
By: Jenny Justice
Tags: Integrity, New Years Resolutions, Healing, 2021, Poetry

I remember asking 2020 to be the year of clear vision

And now as I leave it with tears in my eyes, I know my wish was granted.

I ask now on behalf of the many grieving, the many lost, the many

Who put out their empathy, gift wrapped and sealed with a kiss for years and years,

and had it returned, empty box, ripped paper, a turned back instead of a kiss -

I ask that 2021 be the year of integrity.

May it exist, may it exist, may it exist and surround me, surround you with

This healing depth of honesty and loyalty, this flood of being with people who

Do no harm, take responsibility for their actions, put others needs above their own,

From wearing masks, to choosing love over fear, to offering to help those in need

For real, not for show, with authenticity, not ambition — I wish for 2021 to give us all the benefit of the doubt, to listen, to listen, to listen

and to let those of us harmed, hurt, left — speak. Let. Us. Speak.

Let us be heard, those of us left without resolution, left without explanations, let us be heard and let 2021 be a time that gives respect to our voice

respect to our lives, respect to our humanity. I ask that we choose honesty in all things, that we show respect to everyone, that we manifest humility

In the face of ego, in the fallout of arrogance, as we pick out the shrapnel buried in us from the explosions of selfishness and from those who have

caused harm, those who have made mistakes, those who have not seen what

They could have seen, had they only looked around in compassion.

I ask that they, in 2021, admit they were wrong, show they are reliable, and convey deep kindness — that they do

As Oprah said, the right thing even if no one knows they did it, even if no one sees it, even if they get no reward, even if they get no applause, that 2021 be the year when we reach out and

Repair the damage caused in 2020, the brokenness, the bleeding, the lack of breathing

I pray, I pray 2021, that we can stand strong in uprightness, and choose the best in ourselves, so that when we

Show up for each other, we show up with integrity and trust that these promises of never again, not this time, do the work, be better, are honored without doubt or hesitation — May integrity be

the new normal, people with strong values and morals, may it be as common and expected, assumed and assured,

and may we, may I never waver.
I Became A Ruin Where Nobody Visits Anymore
Tags: Life Lessons, Healing, Relationships, Life, Self

I Became A Ruin Where Nobody Visits Anymore

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

You were good to them all the time.

You nourished them, you kept them alive.

After all these years, spending all of your time taking care of them,

Today when you see your face in the mirror, you look at yourself, you try to find yourself,

You see nothing!

You try hard again, even harder the next day,

Just to get one glimpse of your soul,

You find nothing!

A faded wall, some broken glasses, a few old books, a shattered vase,

And a musty smell.

Nobody will see, nobody will know, nobody will come, nobody will go.

You became a ruin where nobody will visit anymore!

— Prudence
Everyone deserves to be healed
Tags: End Of The Tunnel, Healing, Journey Of Life, Healing From Trauma, Healing Emotions

The first thing you need to know about healing yourself is that you have to believe there is light at the end of the tunnel. The process of healing a deep wound takes time, it takes so much time. But a cut doesn't stop healing just because it’ll take long. Your body keeps going, one day at a time.

Your mind is equally as important as your body. When you’re healing your mind and your heart, you have to be willing to tell yourself to keep going just the same. Our physical bodies can withstand a lot, but we are more mentally resilient than we know.

Everyone deserves to be healed,

of their sorrow, of their sadness, of their trauma, of their fear, of their wounds we cannot so clearly see. Those are the wounds that run the deepest. So when you make the courageous choice to work through your pain and to heal your soul, you must recognize that it is a journey. It is a tunnel that, however dark, houses light at the end of it.

You must tell yourself this, again and again, because you will face the journey day after day. Sometimes the worst part about getting hurt is the scar that comes after. But everyone desrves to be healed. Believe that you do too.
She is healing.
Tags: Poem, Poetry Writing, Healing, Deep Thoughts, Poetry

She is healing.

Having gone through so much,

having to walk on coal with bare feet.

She is healing.

It never was easy for her,

she had to forgive,

had to let go.

She had to throw away the lies,

she had to take out the arrows that were planted in her skin.

She had to learn to live…

Because her story

would one day make an impact.

The darkness has turned into light,

and it fights to stay lit up.

Some days it is dim but

I will say again…

She is healing.
Healing Ingredients
Tags: Grace, Healing

“So how’s 2020 thus far?”

When you hear this question, what are the very few things occur in your mind? Mine was pain, both the physical pain and broken heart-pain. 2020 was indeed such a grace period for me to rest and reset.

I have been experiencing an acute gerd problems since late 2019 and it went worse till January 2020 that I need to take few days sick leave. After that very first doctor visit in 2020, I promised myself to put my health as the priority above all else. In fact my gerd issue is not about me skipping meals but it was my emotional health. I was having difficulty expressing my own emotions that I suppressed everything and thought: as long as everyone is happy then I’m good. I never realized it was actually a thing called emotional health until I met my mentor. Cherry on top, I went through a breakup.

Hence if I can conclude the year 2020, it was really a grace period for me to heal from within both emotionally and physically.

How did I make it? Heaven knows how, but coming back to my commitment I want to be healthy and happy this year. I will do whatever it takes to reach my goal which includes:

Setting up boundaries and learning to say no thank you;

Respecting my own body by providing enough rest, good nutritious food, and lots of vitamin and juices; and

Simply having fun in my own ways.

Yes, there are so many opportunities I need to sacrifice and even investing more for my own health. But am glad to say, it is all worth it. I have come up to be a healthier person emotionally and physically. In fact, that January doctor visit was my only hospital visit in 2020 — such a miracle. In terms of emotional health, now I have grown to learn how to express my emotion and being brave to be vulnerable even if it means rejection.

Time does heal, it took me 365 days+ but the three ingredients for authentic healing is indeed: Grace, Truth, and Time.

Sharing few books that have helped me gain new perspective on healing this year. Thank you, 2020. It was painful but it is essential for growth.

Changes That Heal by Dr Hendry Cloud

Emotionally Healthy by Peter Scazzero

Boundaries by Dr Hendry Cloud
How Do You Heal from Feelings of Worthlessness?
By: Yael Wolfe
Tags: Healing, Self Love, Self Worth, Self, This Happened To Me

How Do You Heal from Feelings of Worthlessness?

Photo by Mario Azzi on Unsplash

When I was eleven years old, my family made its semi-annual trek to Solvang to get away from the L.A. bustle and have some fun celebrating our heritage. We went to one of our favorite restaurants for breakfast, and it was extra exciting because our parents let me and my middle siblings sit at a table all by ourselves, a few yards away from theirs, so we could pretend to be grownups.

I was the only one who ordered æbleskiver, which was a bit surprising — it was everyone’s favorite Danish treat. But not everyone loved a sugary breakfast as much as I did. (I was, admittedly, a bit chubby at the time, unlike anyone else in my family, thanks to my sweet tooth.)

The waitress made two trips out of the kitchen with our food, serving my parents and baby brother first, at their table, and then returning with two plates which she then set down in front of Tegan and Levi.

She turned to me and said, with a haughty look on her face, “We’re out of æbleskiver. Guess you won’t be eating breakfast today. You don’t deserve it, anyway.”

My heart began pounding in my ears. I could not believe that had just happened. I didn’t deserve it? What?

My sister, two years younger, but with a firecracker personality, looked up in anger. I passionately shook my head, not wanting her to cause a fuss.

The waitress left with a flip of her braid.

“You have to tell Dad,” Tegan hissed from across the table. “This is not okay. She had no right to talk to you like that.”

“No!” I hissed back. “I don’t want to make a scene.”

Would this have happened to anyone who had ordered the unavailable æbleskiver, I wondered. If my mother had ordered it, would the waitress have said the same thing to her? To Tegan?

I somehow knew she wouldn’t have. She specifically chose me to belittle. Why? Because I was fat? Because I was the one ugly person in a family of beautiful people?

Or because…she could see what I most feared? That I was a worthless person who didn’t deserve anything good?
It was abuse
By: Elvia S
Tags: Awakening, Courage, Healing, Abuse, Self Love

It was abuse

Accepting it is so hard. I don’t want to be part of this group or label. I tell myself it’s something else. I tell myself the stories I was told and made to feel. You ungrateful bitch, your fucking pathetic, your an easy women. How did I take this type of language and behavior. Why didn’t I speak up. Why couldn’t I just leave through the open doors.

I stayed for 2 and a half years. And I still have him in my life. Still talk to him and think of ways somethings might work. I dream of the home we had and plans or creating a garden then. I miss my Nala, the Great Dane. And I miss his company and sharing my day.

So this isn’t A victory story or one that says how to save yourself. It’s my story of accepting it was abuse and how I’m learning to feel myself again.
Drink
By: Amy Lauren
Tags: Healing, Empath, Alcoholic, Relationships, Narcissist

Drink

He drinks his pain, until he is numb

He treats everyone else, as if they are dumb

But he is blind you see, blind to the truth

He is two people in one, yet he is no one
Using Anger Positively
By: Annelise Lords
Tags: Anger, Positive Thinking, Healing, Change

A few words on the positive aspects of anger.

Anger is like a fire. It can hurt and keep warm. Image by Annelise Lords

Inspired by: Beware of the Consequences of Anger on Your Health by Khyati Jain

Anger, when utilized for a noble cause, can cause a revolution to change the course of history for the better.

I agree with the above words. Anger can be a weapon or tool and if used correctly, will not only change the course of history but will also change lives, hearts, minds, souls, and thinking. Anger won’t build you up, but it will tear you down. Smart people know how to use their anger positively, thus not giving their rage the power to self destruct. Many of us have experienced the consequences of anger and many have paid a high price for it. Solomon says, “anger rests in the bosom of fools.”

Anger is a powerful emotion and learning to control it is hard for many of us. It can be dangerous for your health too.

I used it as a tool after I have experienced the tragedy, pain, and disaster of my reactions to others whom I have allowed to pull out the worst in me. Anger teaches me many lessons. We will pay a high price for it just like lying, dishonesty, greed, and a lot of the negative things we do. The difference is, anger’s payback is quicker.

Writers on Medium and this platform help not only me but others who use words to express their anger positively, thus helping others to learn and heal.

To the writers and editors of Inspire 250, I hope you and your family will have a safe, healthy, and happy Christmas and a better 2021. Thank you for helping us to use our anger positively.

Thank you for reading this piece. I hope you will enjoy it and have a safe, healthy, and beautiful Christmas and a safer 2021.

https://mediumauthor.com/@thisisanneliselords

https://mediumauthor.com/podcast

medium.com/illumination/interview-with-annelise-lords-421238e49b9f

https://twitter.com/ThisisAnneliseL

https://medium.com/authors-peeps/authors-peeps-interview-d43e38e53898

https://vocal.media/authors/annelise-lords
Is time an illusion?
Tags: Illusions, Time, Meditation, Healing

Is time an illusion?

“The distinction between the past, present and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.” Albert Einstein. Many great minds and spiritual teachers have advised that “Now” is the only reality that exists. I have tried on many occasions to be more present. . . to get into the flow of the now without much success. It’s like trying to achieve enlightenment, or deep sleep, or an orgasm, the harder you try, the more elusive the outcome. All that being said, I am still being given the opportunity to experience the power of the present.

About 15 years ago, I was inspired to create a healing center, where people of all walks of life and varying resources could have access to healing. I set off on creating the center and after about 18 months, I resigned myself to failure and settled for a “real job.” Writing prescriptions for drugs that I don’t believe in and working within a dysfunctional system that creates far more disease than health. I would have moments of inspiration to do something different, but the memory of my failure wouldn’t let me get very far. It was like being haunted by hungry ghosts.

In 2020, the inspiration to create a healing center came again and with the whole world in a collective pandemic reboot, it gave me just enough time and energy to nurture the inspiration and begin taking action. Yet at every step the hungry ghosts of failures past have been chasing me. Fear, shame, imposter-syndrome, anxiety, people pleasing, etc. While there has been financial expense associated with my vision, the mental and emotional costs these ghosts demand has been by far the biggest daily drain on my resources.

Which brings me back to the illusion of time. If the past and the future truly are illusions, then the idea of past failure is also an illusion. I realize that my future self doesn’t trust my past self but both of these “selves” exist only as an idea in the now. So what to do when faced with an unsolvable problem? Get creative!

I am creating a meeting place in my heart and mind where these imaginary selves can hang out and befriend one another. At first it seemed weird, but I think about my past self and my future self all of the time, so why not think about them both showing up in the only place that really exists. . . now?

It is too soon to say if this solution will work. At present, these two imaginary selves don’t seem that interested in each other, but I have a hunch that if my past and my future selves can ever become friends, the healing center just might happen too.
Time to Heal
By: Bernie S Poetry
Tags: Sharethelove, Thoughts, Healing, Positivity, Poetry

Time to Heal

Manifestations come true in the light of a new day

This time is lush for healing

The perfect lull-pause moment

In life to reflect and breathe in

Believing our thoughts are real

Manifestations come true

In the light of a new day

We witness our Self renew

© Bernie McCullough, 20 Dec 2020

After what’s been a very long 9+ months for every person on this little planet of ours... the shoots of recovery and hope are starting to be seen and felt, and this holiday season is the perfect time to reflect, sit still and lick our wounds, ready for a new day.

We are strong and resilient, and we must never forget that our thoughts are real things, sprung from an ever-energised source that is capable of manifesting greatness into reality. Never mind New Year’s Resolutions, I think we’ve been making those throughout 2020, So here’s to seeing all our wonderful, joyful and peaceful intentions outpicture into our reality in the coming days, weeks, and months ahead.

Image: Yogesh Pedamkar on Unsplash
When you try to be better
By: Ferderizza Viernes
Tags: Motivation, Healing, Shortstory, Inspirational, Poetry

It doesn’t matter where your starting point is, you just know that you want to be something good at things you do.

You’ll try and put your everything on trial, your determination will be your driving force, and your goal is to jump to the next level of your life.

At first, maybe you’ll see that the result of your hard work doesn’t seem to look good, but please believe that your creation will bear fruit soon, it’ll pay off just like you wouldn’t imagine you would.

Continue to thrive, test your limits each day, and be brave enough to accept every failure you come across.

Someday, when you look back on all the things you did, you’ll realize those times were barely the beginning of becoming who you are and what you are today.
Healing
Tags: Thoughts And Feelings, Healing, Emotions, Mental Health, Healing Emotions

This year has been a year which I’ve learnt so much about myself; we spent so much of the year in isolation which forced me to sit back and reflect on myself. Without all the distractions that life usually brings, I felt like this was the first time in ages that I could dig deep and reflect on myself. I realised this year that I honestly cannot move forward in life until I heal from things that I buried deep inside.

Healing can be the most draining thing ever, it’s messy, scary, it takes time, and it’s hard. But it’s necessary.

It’s such a strange journey; I wish I knew how weird it would be before I embarked on it. Some days I’m so hopeful, happy and I feel like I’m getting there and other days it hurts. It hurts so badly as if I’m still going through all the hurt all over again and feel like I’m never going to heal, that I will always feel like this. Something I’ve learnt is that dealing with all these emotions is a part of healing; you need to feel everything when you’re healing.

I wish I could sit here and write about how the healing process is easy, but it’s not. It’s probably the scariest thing I’ve embarked on, and some days it feels like my attempts at healing are futile. I self destruct more often than I’d like to admit because, in a way, it’s easier to do that then to overcome the thoughts that cripple me. My mind can be my worst enemy at times, and my thoughts can be filled with so much hateful dialogue that does nothing but consumes me and sets me back on my healing journey.

I want to leave you with some tips that have been helping me. I’m no expert; I’m just someone who is trying to heal.

Leave the past in the past. For me, that is something I still struggle with, but I’ve come to see how important it is to stop dwelling on the past and just try and move on from it.

Be patient. Don’t beat yourself up if you feel like in a month, three months or even six months time you’re not where you ideally want to be because this all takes time. You need to be patient, give yourself time to rest, heal and recover.

Embrace everything you feel.

Reach out for support, whether that’s professional support from a therapist or if you're not ready to seek help from a therapist confide in people you trust. Don’t be afraid to ask for help and not only that allow people to help & support you.

Every day, I have to remind myself that this is all a process and all I can do is take everything one day at a time because it all takes time. I want to remind you all as you go through this journey of healing, be kind to yourself, practise the art of being compassionate to with yourself. Most importantly be gentle to yourself, you’re healing.

Thanks for reading!