Karla’s Korner

 

Keep Calm: Lessons from a Little Bird

In her book Pearls of Wisdom, Lailah Gifty Akita wrote “when the unexpected occurs never panic, by keeping calm you gain control over the situation”. Sitting quietly gazing out over the Atlantic Ocean waiting for the sun to break over the horizon I am intrigued by the man ocean birds and their seemingly normal morning routine. The ocean, while at times peaceful and serene brings about a fierceness and power as wave after wave breaks and crashes upon the and shore spitting out a vast array of seashells, sand crabs, seaweed and numerous little water creatures. There is a balance between chaos and serenity in the sea.

As the pelicans soar peacefully in the sky above only to plop not so gracefully headfirst deep into the ocean to catch their dinner the seagulls and other foul hang out closer to the calm of the shore. On this particular morning an unidentified feather foul caught my eyes as “he” rode the waves gracefully offshore. As each wave began to take shape the bird would disappear diving under to avoid the crash of the waves and getting tossed about. Once the wave had passed the bird would re-appear floating gently again until the swell of the next wave appeared. As if he was sizing up each wave he would only retreat under the big ones and choosing to “ride out” the smaller, less fierce ones; pretty clever I think.
Life, I think, is a lot like the ocean; filled with waves of peace and tranquility as well as chaos, calamity and a fierceness that can cause us to dive under searching for calmness much like the little bird floating in the ocean. And like the little bird we must determine if the “waves” life is tossing at us is worth riding out, facing being unsettled or if it really isn’t worth the struggle and diving under to find peace.

While some might consider “diving under” to avoid all of the waves of life, it is necessary I believe to ride some of them, the ones worth fighting through, the ones that will teach us a lesson and make us stronger are worth the effort. Making the decision to fight through the life waves that are significant and worthy of the fight can be difficult and often frustrating to muddle through but in the end you will find that it’s worth the work; the end result is a life lesson learned.
Asking ourselves what brings calm into our life while striving to bring balance into our world as well is an essential element of creating a successful, happy, joy filled life. Can calm and balance co-exist? I believe it can as long as we are willing to put the work into it. When striving to decide whether to ride the waves or dive under we must ask ourselves 1) if the work to stay afloat is necessary and 2) is I wrote better to turn and walk away; to dive under the chaos and let it pass. Author Ron Baratono wrote “There’s calm in each and every day, we just need to practice reaching out for it.”

I encourage you to search your heart, seek out the calmness of each day, while taking time to float along with some of life’s struggles, allowing yourself to learn along the way. Much like the little bird whose reward is sometimes under the sea in the deep darkness of the water and sometimes above the water floating along to the rhythm of the waves dancing in the morning sun we must embrace each day with the determination to live each one to its fullest. It’s up to us to make each day, each moment count. Live your life to the fullest, love with your whole heart, run, walk, swim, dance, dive in and be all you can be for yourself, your family, your community. I wish you well…

Peace,
Karla

I think we all need a touch point a place we can go to be inspired. Karla is my children’s teacher, a good friend, and a person with a heart of gold. I hope that her words will inspire you to do more. We are only as good as the people we surround ourselves with. It is important to listen with your heart and proceed with your eyes open. Enjoy!

Read more Karla’s Korner, also please visit Karla’s Lifetime Moms page and read her articles.

Check out Karla’s 24 Day Advocare Challenge!

Find out how Karla transformed her life and lost over 80 lbs.. it all started with Advocare!