Inspiration Friday 2025.02.07

Inspiration: Happy Friday!
Today is the 38th Day of 2025.

We have $38,000.00 today.
10% savings = $3,800.00
40% taxes = $15,200.00: This week I am expressing gratitude for these tax dollars being spent to support the Everglades National Park. Located in the state of Florida. The Everglades National Park was established in 1934. You will find among other wonders the largest subtropical wetlands known as a “River of Grass” to explore. You might also see alligators, manatees and perhaps the endangered Florida panthers. Learn more HERE.

How will you be spending the remaining $19,000.00 today?

HERE IS MY PLAN: Heart Health

“Storytelling strengthens our bond with others. Sharing, hearing, and remembering heartwarming stories can be a powerful tool for social change-not only in the way it changes our brain and our behavior, but also because it can positively affect our relationships with other people.” — Neuroscientist Dr Paul Zak

World events are nudging me to want better for family, friends, communities, countries and more people. I find myself wondering what I can do to contribute love. What questions can I ask those that matter to me? What stories can I share today? I invite you to consider sharing more heartwarming stories with people in your life this week. It is an exercise in conscious choice. Telling stories that can fuel hope, expand giggles, or inspire action are investments in humanity. We can all do something today to contribute to a better world simply by sharing a heartwarming story with each other. The following account was written by Sarah Owen Bigler. It is a story that I share often because it raises the frequency of love with ease. Each time I re-read or tell this story it makes me feel good. Remember to feed your mind and expand your heart with kindness. The world needs more love. You can do something to make a positive difference for yourself and others by retelling stories with heart.

“Yesterday my husband was sick. I picked Archie up from the sitter and Eloise from school and decided to run to Target for a few things. I had hoped to be in and out quickly. I found a line with just one person ahead of me and began organizing my items on the conveyor. After placing my items, I look up to see that the person ahead of me was an elderly woman. She was paying for her items with change and wanted to purchase each item separately. Part of me, the part that had a long day at work, the part of me who had a 1 1/2-year-old having a meltdown in the cart, the part that had set an unnecessary timeline for Target and getting home, was frustrated with this woman and the inconvenience she had placed on me.

BUT then I watched the young employee with this woman. I watched him help her count her change, ever so tenderly taking it from her shaking hands. I listened to him repeatedly saying “yes, mam” to her. When she asked if she had enough to buy a reusable bag, he told her she did and went two lines over to get one for her and then repackaged her items. Never once did this employee huff, gruff or roll his eyes. He was nothing but patient and kind.

As I was watching him, I saw that Eloise was too. She was standing next to the woman, watching the employee count the change. I realized I hadn’t been inconvenienced at all. That my daughter instead was witnessing kindness and patience and being taught this valuable lesson by a stranger; furthermore, I realized that I too needed a refresher on this lesson.

When the woman was finished, the employee began ringing up my items and thanked me for my patience. I then thanked him for teaching us patience and kindness by his treatment of that elderly woman. And although my timeline for target was askew, when he was finished, I pushed my cart through the store trying to find the manager. I wanted her to know of the employees’ kindness, and patience, and how much it meant to me. After tracking her down and sharing the story with her, we left Target with a cart full of consumable items, but what is more, a heart full of gratitude for such an invaluable lesson.”

This story reminds me to look for the good things happening all around me because those wonderful moments are always available when I allow my heart to open with love. I hope your heart grows ten times bigger today.

How are you showing up in the world?

$100.00: for self-care. I am upgrading equipment to monitor my blood pressure. And I love that!

$0: Priceless: Healthy Hearts

“When you find it in your heart to care for someone else, you live a story worth telling.” – Maya Angelou

How healthy is your heart? Thirteen years ago, I was at work about to go out into the field with a team when my phone buzzed. My friend’s husband said, “Peyton is in the hospital, please come as soon as you can.” She had a heart attack at the age of thirty-five and never came home from the hospital. The First Friday in February is National Wear Red Day. It is an opportunity to participate in heart health awareness. Today marks the 23^rd anniversary of this campaign to educate the public about saving more lives from heart disease and stroke.  Wear Red Day organizers are encouraging us to talk with our doctors and learn about our Blood Pressure, Cholesterol, Blood Sugar, and Body Mass Index (BMI) to take charge of our health. Our hearts depend on it. Do you know your numbers? What would it take to live a story worth telling?

How open are you to living in a better world in 2025?

Respond with love. Repeat. What would it take?

$5000.00: I am sponsoring a cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) class. CPR is a lifesaving technique that begins with chest compressions and can double a person’s chance of surviving a heart attack. So, bring someone you love to class.  It’s time to get certified! What action can you take now?

$2, 900.00: These dollars are supporting the Go Red campaign by donating to help their mission to increase public awareness and health education regarding our hearts.  Do you know about heart health? What are you doing to take good care of yourself?

$10,000.00: I am funding innovative research to build healthier lives through The American Heart Association.  February 2025 is the 61^st consecutive American Heart Month. They are extending more lives with education.  Learn more HERE.

How open is your heart to shift perspective and choose health?

What are you contributing to living in a better world in 2025?

$1000.00: for a date with my husband. This week we are gathering with neighbors to share more heartwarming stories and fuel our heart health with meaningful connections. How much love can you stand?

Flow Five Friday: Current “real” life expressions of gratitude, love, and contribution to wellbeing.

$5.00: this week’s five-dollar bill went to the American Heart Association. The address is AHA National Center 7272 Greenville Ave. Dallas, TX, 75231. I am choosing to be the energy of what works in life. Go Red!

Five Increments of Time: This week after a zoom reading session with Max, his five-year-old sister Bella wanted to show me her school papers from kindergarten. Her voice sounds like a sweet treat. Being there. How are you “Flowing Five” this week?

Well-Being: Something that I am doing or not doing for self-care in real time. I am checking and tracking my blood pressure. All is well. What are you doing or not doing for self-care?

Planet Awareness: Contributing to the health of Earth. I wonder. What do we need to be paying attention to these days? Where and when do we add our voices to contribute to plenty of healthy, nutritious food and safe drinking water for all? What actions can we take today to feed the world tomorrow? Our choices matter. What are you doing for the health of our planet?

Hold Space or Contribute to a Friends Life Intention: This week I am supporting my friend Pat who is hosting a gathering for friends. One of Pat’s Living Intentions is to create experiences that foster Conscious Conversations.  She often invites people to participate in a themed dinner followed by lively discussions around current events. You can support Pat’s Living Intention by inviting some of your friends or family to share a meal and stories. Remember that every connection is an investment in yourself. I hope you fuel your heart by sharing some heartwarming stories this week.

Choose joy. Be kind. Love others and strive to be a better human. What would it take?

Choose to feel good. Be Joy. 
Practice gratitude. Amplify Kindness. Expand Generosity. 
Ask, Receive, and Give with More Ease. 
Respond to life with Love.

PS: If you have been playing with me for several years, below are the current daily deposits in other years Vibrational Accounts: