Month: January 2017

Sometimes my wishes appeared all-consuming. It was easy to lose clarity about what I needed to live. I was hungry for something more in my life, so I began checking glossy magazines and watching movies trying to find answers. They were always blurry. Then I turned to the quietest corner in my home, closed my eyes and emptied my mind. And only after I pushed away all the thoughts, I was able to realize that I had everything I needed and more. I wanted this or that, and after I had them, I realized that I didn’t need them.

To live a fulfilled life, it was important to distinguish between my wants and my needs. Not everything I wanted was beneficial to my needs. I made peace a long time ago with the knowledge that I couldn’t have everything I wanted. Why? Because it was more important to get everything I needed. I asked myself what was it that made me truly happy.  You should do the same. The answers will be different for each of us—a bigger house, a new job, or the perfect someone with whom to share your life. Only after I acknowledged my inner needs, I could harness the energy to manifest them in my life.

If you trust the wisdom of your heart, you will attract what you need.

Love,

Carmen Monica

Do you know how happy are you now?

Most of us know what makes our parents, partners, and children happy. But when it comes to the specific things in life that bring a smile to our faces, we come up short. It ‘s hard to experience moments of happiness if we are not aware of what it is we love. We must learn to enjoy the small, authentic moments that bring us contentment. How about we experience a new cookie recipe or take the time to arrange a bouquet of flowers to appreciate their colors, fragrances, and beauty. Sip a cup of coffee in the sunshine in front of a shop or pause to pet a purring cat.

I delight in shopping for shoes, good books, sudden bursts of laughter, and reading in French. I learned to bake Madeleines. They appeared to be simple but actually required a fair amount of patience and careful following of instructions. In the end, I was rewarded with a truly unique little cake, browned and crispy on the outside and spongy and soft on the inside. They are the perfect accompaniment to my afternoon cup of tea. They come in many flavors: chocolate, vanilla, lavender, and orange. Madeleines are delicious when eaten just from the oven and cooled until barely warm.

Learning to bake this French cake made me happy. I encourage you to discover what makes you happy.

Love,

Carmen Monica

Today, many women feel a sadness that they can’t name. Although they accomplished much of what they set out to do, they sense that something is missing from their lives and they start searching for answers. It sometimes happens that they are staring in the mirror and they don’t recognize the women staring back at them. They look familiar, but they bear little resemblance to the women they are expecting to see.

What went wrong? What is that sadness they can’t name? Perhaps the center of their melancholy is that they miss the women they were meant to be. And even if they ignored their desires for decades, the women they were supposed to be are still there. They didn’t abandon them yet. Instead, the women have been waiting patiently for them to recognize them and reconnect.

Turn away from the world this year and begin to listen to the murmur of your heart. Look inside you. Your silent companion lit candles of love to illuminate the path to discovering who you are. The voyage you were predestined to take has finally begun.

Love,

Carmen Monica

We left the holidays behind, although they will be memories to cherish in the future months. A new year is ahead, a year with new goals to accomplish, errands to run, bills to pay, vacations to plan and birthday parties to put together. How enchanting! Nothing beats the time when friends and families gather to celebrate whatever the occasion for celebration may be.

This month it is my son’s sixteenth birthday. When did the time fly? Who is the handsome, tall man who replaced the baby I held in my arms sixteen years ago? But it is not the height that scares me. No! It is that time when he holds his driver license in his hands and gets all excited about driving his own car, and I get anxious about letting him do it. Not that he is not a responsible driver! Oh, he is! I am the overprotective mom who’s not prepared to accept that her baby is about to detach, gradually, until one day, he will have a life of his own, and I will be the one left behind to watch and help.

I think that for us, parents, our children will always remain our babies regardless of their age. We don’t cease to worry about them just because their physiognomy changes. Parents should give their kids’ confidence, must be their best friends, guardian angels, always watching, helping, providing support, loving, admonishing and forgiving. Parents are the first role models for their children—it is mandatory to be the good one. Parents are ever so special, just because they grow old while their children mature. We don’t even realize when silver touched our temples, when a few wrinkles appeared in the corner of our eyes, when terrifying pain formed in the lower back, when we grow weak day after day after day. The signs are all there—I call them signs of becoming wise.

And one day, a young man or woman opens the door, just as my son is doing at the moment, and we wonder where the time flew? It is crucial to mark each new birthday with something special—cake, candles, balloons, a big party, a new piece of electronics—so that, when we look back at those pictures touched by time, we smile recalling the instant when the child celebrated a special moment because these precious moments make life worth living to the last beat.

Love,

Carmen Monica