This global epidemic has shown the worst in some human beings. Surely, you cannot eat 'Toilet Paper' when you run out of food. But it has shown how greedy humans can be when desperate. It has become a "Dog Eat Dog" world. The media has created such a panic storm which outlines more of the negative side to our situation rather than filling social media feeds, television screens and newspapers with a more hopeful approach. An approach that may help uplift mankind than getting them to ransack the grocery store for the sake of fear and show the most ugly side to being human.

It's no secret that what is happening in this era will forever go down in history. We are living in a historic moment or did we indulge ourselves so much into being isolated we forgot to acknowledge it? We cannot help what has happened but we can abide by the government laws given in order to protect ourselves and the ones we love. While social distancing ourselves for who knows how long, we've been told 6 months or maybe longer. Have we ever thought of what we may be like in the future when all these new rules get lifted? If this develops into a habit, would we know how to socially interact with others like we did before?

This pandemic has shown how temporary everything is. Your job. Your freedom. Your entertainment. Your food. Your car. It also shows how much we are slaves to the economy. We cannot survive without money to pay all the expenses we have. If you rent, you need to pay the landlord, the landlord needs to pay the bank or whomever they owe to. If you don't pay up, both parties suffer. 

This pandemic also shows how unprepared we are. But that's not the focus of this post.

What I'm getting at -
You've seen what this outbreak has shown you, everything is temporary. So FOCUS on things worth your time. If you felt unprepared when this outbreak hit your shores, be PREPARED in the future. Find better ways to manage your funds to minimise your expenses.

It is very easy to fall into fear when people around you are in the same bubble and the media shoves all the horrible stories down our throats but stay hopeful, prayerful and positive.

Don't wait for this epidemic to be over and then never take anything for granted.  Start now. Don't take today for granted. Cry if you need to but hold on and stay strong  x 

Stop living in fear.

- Corina Jane (CJM)

My lips are sealed.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Time for that "New Year, New Me" But not for me, New Year but SAME ME. Last year was a roller coaster but through it all, I survived. One of the major things that I did last year was to declutter, take a step back and not explain myself to anyone.  Hence the title of this post: "My Lips Are Sealed"

One of the faults we may have as humans is taking in too much of the outside world. What I mean is, imagine you have a circle around you and yourself being in the centre of that circle, along with your family and those you hold close to you. Then outside from that circle is what you would call "The Outside World" and in that category would be people you're not so close to, those who don't know you on a personal basis. Now outside your circle (referring to the outside world) You may have people who may trash talk you or belittle you in some way (which is a form of bullying and abuse) Their motive is to break your circle. You have to understand that some people will go through extreme lengths to destroy your reputation, this is not a myth. It is a fact.  So you have to be prepared for it. Now you being in your circle, have to think on where to invest your time? Will you:

A. Be focused on entertaining those who seek to destroy your peace and your circle?
B. Be focused on building a stronger YOU and protecting you, your peace and your circle?

If your answer is B. Well done. You chose wisely. 

Not everything that comes your way needs a reaction. So if you are currently in this kind of a situation or you find yourself in one. Assess  it then ask yourself questions like:

"Is it worth my time?" "Am I getting paid listening to the negative opinions of others?" 
"Is it worth acknowledging?"  "Does this help me progress?" "Do I need to prove myself to them?" 

I would personally say "NO" to each of those and I hope you did too. I've developed a habit of being quite selective in who I get close to, what I say and do. Your own choices, decisions and the way you decide to live your life, is your business and yours alone. Be comfortable being your own company. Understand that there will be people who don't share the same view as you. It is always best to be sweet than be bitter. If there are stories about you in a negative light, let people believe what they want to. The main thing to learn is to train your mind to block out all the unnecessary things that doesn't help you grow and continue on your journey for yourself and your circle. Lastly, silence is always best. It literally is. You don't always have to have the last say. Silence is a great way to gather yourself and to refocus on what's important. It's not that you're weak, it's because there are greater things for you to pursue than arguing or letting something destroy the calm environment you have created for yourself. The one who makes the most noise usually is the foolish one, so it is wise to teach yourself to be silent when something doesn't need a reaction.

You don't need to explain yourself to anyone. Make your moves.

- CJM

D.I.Y Project Step by Step

Alot has happened since the last post & when I say alot, I literally mean ALOT! But I'll save that for another time. If you know me, I'm a curious child, a bit of a wild child and well someone who likes to take on challenges. So my team and I worked together to put together our first D.I.Y (Do It Yourself) project starting with a "FIREPLACE" as we come to the Christmas Season. 


What you'll need:

Fireplace:
3 x Big boxes
2 x Brown Paint bottles
1 x White Paint bottle
- Paint brushes/rollers
- White Masking Tape

Fire:
- Red & Orange Cellophane
1 x Himalayan Salt Lamp which lights up, perfect for night time as it gives an illusion of 'fire'
Add: Sticks around 'fire'
Optional: Battery operated string lights in replacement of Salt Lamp for 'fire' used together with Cellophane.

Decorations:
1 x Green and Red ribbon Garland
- Stockings (we had 7 due to 7 children attending our Xmas dinner)
- Thumb tacks to hang stockings up on fireplace.
Extra:
- Photos of memories hanging on a string, zig zagged and placed on top half of fireplace.
Optional: Battery operated candles can be used placed around sides of fireplace etc.

Note: If placing lollies or heavier objects in stockings, use stronger hooks to hang up stockings on fireplace. We waited til the end of the night and did some quizzes for children to fill their stockings with lolly bags at the end.

STEP ONE 

Gather 3 boxes. If you can't find one, ask one of your local stores if they have any unwanted boxes. Tape the flaps down so both ends of the boxes are closed. Do this with 2 of your boxes. 

STEP TWO
Get your paint bottles and brushes. There are two ways you can do this step. (BRICKS) 

1. Paint all your boxes white and then put masking tape around horizontally, leaving a 12cm gap in between each line of tape. Do the same vertically as well.  This masking tape will leave behind white lines (for the brick outline) when you paint the box brown (2 coats preferred)

2. Paint all your boxes brown (2 coats preferred) and with white paint, start painting the white brick outlines on top of your brown paint. Same measurement as above or do your own measurements. 

Paint BRICK DESIGN on 3 sides of all the boxes (leave the back as it will not be seen) and leave the flaps brown.

STEP THREE. 

Putting it together. 

There are also two ways you can do this step.

1. Tape 2 boxes together and with a stanly knife, cut a small square hole in the middle at the bottom of the box, this will be where you will put the "fire" 

2. Put your 2 boxes together leaving a small gap in between the box. With a spare piece of cardboard paint the bricks on it, matching the bricks on the boxes and then measure it to fit in between the gap. Using a strong hold tape (duct tape). Fold the ends of piece of cardboard, so the flaps are facing inwards and tape down the flaps to the sides of the two boxes. That will leave a gap underneath for the 'fire'. 

STEP FOUR 

Top half of fireplace. 

With the 3rd box, lay it out flat. Cut one of the sides off, so there should only be 3 sides. This box should also already be painted with bricks on 3 sides. Leave the box flaps brown. Position this box on top of the bottom half of the fireplace. With the top of the chimney, diagonally cut the corners of the box flaps (like the side of a triangle) and then tape the box flaps together and coat again with brown paint to cover the tape. 

Add decorations. 

FOR THE FIRE

1. With the cellophane, mix the red and orange cellophane together. Lay them on the ground flat and layer each colour on top of the other. 

2. Get your salt lamp (low voltage) and place in the middle of cellophane. 

3. Wrap up your salt lamp with cellophane and design your style of 'fire'. Use tape to secure the cellophane. 

Add sticks to make your fireplace more realistic. 

They're attracted to me

.
.
.
.

"They come around like honey, cause I'm fly like a bee. Man I got 'em all buzzin', buzzin', buzzin', buzzin'. Da da da da da da da. Man I got the  world buzzin'.." - Buzzin' by Mann 

The current song on my playlist as I'm writing this.


In my recent post. I talked about being an empath. I sense people's energy and their vibe, which lets me know of their intentions towards me. Of course, I don't judge them based on it but it does help me keep my guard up and be ahead of things if it were to come crashing down.

I'm not sure if you are aware but the people you surround yourself with can also influence you, good ways and bad. Sometimes, you don't even recognise it at first. If someone likes to gossip, you will often find them socialising with others that like to gossip. If someone is all about business, you will often find them associating with those of the same mindset. If someone is optimistic, you will often find them surrounded by positive people. The same with a pessimist.

So who do you attract?

Think about it honestly.

What to do if you attract the wrong kind of people?

Check yourself. 

The energy you put out there is the same as the one you receive.

I've always believed that we are here to learn and grow. Part of that process is to be surrounded by those that can uplift you to higher places and even if at times you find yourself with the wrong crowd, there is always room for improvement. It's never too late.


- CJM

The hell with everybody

The hell with everybody!

I bet the title is enough to make you wonder what had happened? Well nothing really happened. I just remembered a piece of advice my mom gave me that I use to this day and quite frankly, I am absolutely grateful for it because I’ve used it in every stage of my life. (I do apologise if the word "hell" being used this way is offensive to anyone, feel free to replace it with "heck") 

I haven’t written in a while and the reason being is because I needed a little break from everything to refocus. In between family life and my own personal goals and ambitions, my mind was a little full on. I needed to find balance again. It is quite easy to be distracted. So I took time off from everything and I made this decision after the Dance Festival where I had the opportunity to overlook the performances for this event. From everything, I mean once I got released as the Primary Counsellor, it was time for me to use this time to take a step back completely. In this time, I re-evaluated so much, this included the people I associated with, where my time was put, me as an individual and those around me. I started to distance myself from people for a reason. Being an empath, I tend to feel energy and vibes so strongly and usually absorb their energy which does exhaust me physically. After sorting out the social aspects to it, it moved to the personal goals and ambitions to habits and family and yes, this decluttering process should’ve been done earlier. But there is a time for everything. 

That’s when I remembered my mother’s advice (her actual words): “The hell with everybody” and there are times in life, you need to just say to yourself: “The hell with everybody and everything” and take a step back and D E C L U T T E R. 

My declutter process took me to Sydney. It was a great chance to see my father for Father's Day since he lives interstate. I left with my son and husband for the weekend. It was a birthday present from my two main guys for me. We stayed in a hotel, got room service and went exploring the main tourist attractions and spent time together with my dad.

A part of me, I had missed was being adventurous. I've always had it in me but as you journey through different stages in life, you have responsibilities and priorities which take over other parts of your life. Taking a step back allowed me to re-discover myself, take risks and live a little. I gave so much to others, I never realised how much of me personally was vanishing. I'm still currently in this 'declutter process' and have come to find peace. Alot of that has to do with getting more personal with Jesus Christ and learning about his life and what he endured and how similar his trials were to what we experience in daily life. 

It's okay to leave everything on PAUSE. It's okay to declutter. It's okay to distant yourself from everything and everyone to re-focus. Don't ever feel guilty for taking a breather. You deserve a moment to yourself. Value your peace, protect it and do whatever is necessary to keep YOU close to YOU. 

"The hell with everybody and everything" 

- CJM 

It is never what it is.

Yesterday, I attended a Youth Night. This particular night is dedicated to the Youth to spend time together with their leaders and peers and to learn and grow. Last night the Young Men in Youth got together to learn songs for their upcoming camp. As I watched and listened to them sing, I reflected on how important it is in life to have support.

See, a smiling face doesn't necessarily mean that everything is perfect and tear drops don't only mean sadness. We often just assume when we see either form of expression, we take it as it is. But it never is what it appears to be. The most important necessity to have in life is support, in our triumphs and in our trials.

From a personal perspective, I've always had the right people supporting me through every part of my journey, as a child, a graduate, an employee, a mother, a wife, a leader, a performer and so on. Without the support I have received, I wouldn't know how to handle the challenges that were ahead of me. Life always seemed a bit easier when you have the right team behind you.

I have also seen how having lack of support can affect a person, mentally, socially, physically and emotionally. Someone who received close to little of support usually will doubt every decisions they make in life which will have an impact on their future life choices. This type of person will be comfortable with their own space and may find it hard to adjust to changes or to show themselves outside of their comfort zone. Life will seem twice as hard in their eyes.

Everyone needs someone to be there to assist in any way possible through their trying times or their victory. How can we be their support? Try listening. Try being actively present. Try showing affection. Try complimenting. Try without judgment offer advice that will allow them to see positively. Try serving them by doing a nice gesture. Try comforting them. Be their cheerleader at all times. No one deserves to feel lonely. All deserve to feel loved.

It never is, what it is - so be the first to show support.

Don't forget to ENJOY YOURSELF

For the past months, I have been quite busy with Dance Fitness. I had the chance to also share Dance Fitness with the little kiddies. Through this, they reminded me how much fun life is when you really don't care for the opinions of others. At first when trying something new, we will be a little shy but as we are used to it, we will forget the world and enjoy ourselves.

I'm grateful for this reminder as I travel through my journey in life and will have moments where my nerves may get the best of me. I will most definitely remember this experience and how these beautiful energetic souls reminded me of a very important life lesson.

Love,

Corina Jane (CJM)