DAY 15! WOOOOOO!!! WE'RE AT OUR HALFWAY POINT! I'm gonna be honest with ya'll... I wasn't sure I was going to stick to this series! I mean, I know I wanted to, but I also know that procrastination is my Achilles heal, and when I procrastinate too much, I just decide not to do the thing anymore. I know! That's not good, I'm working on it. But seeeeeee progress, we're on DAY 15! That's got to mean something right? Ok ok ok, let's get started.
So recently I started purging my apartment. I mean, I just started going through EVERYTHING and getting rid of like 40-50% of it. I've thrown away giant bags of stuff, I've given away some things, and I have a box full of things that aren't trash, but I don't want them and I have to give them away. have already sent 3 contractor bags FULL of clothes to the Salvation Army, I already have another bag ready to send, and I'm STILL not done going through it all. While I was putting clothes in the giveaway bags, I noticed that some of my "nicer" clothes, still had tags on them. NOT BECAUSE I PLANNED ON RETURNING THEM lol! They still had tags because when I bought them, I imagined where I would wear them. I had a specific occasion in mind, and even if it wasn't a specific occasion, I knew the TYPE of occasion I wanted to wear them to. So while I waited for the occasion, these clothes collected dust in my closet, and then eventually found their way into the giveaway bag. (Woah! As I'm writing this, the Lord just downloaded a different message to me entirely. Remind me of the word "talents" later, and I'll write a post on that). But then the words of Melissa Fredrick (AKA Mrs.Kevonstage) rang in my head and I was reminded of this lesson:
YOU ARE THE OCCASION
So, I'm going to spend the remainder of this blog post yelling at you, but I'll really be yelling at me. So don't take it personally. OK? Here we go
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! WHY DO YOU KEEP WAITING FOR THINGS TO BE RIGHT FOR YOU TO DO THINGS, SAY THINGS, BE THINGS?! Why do you keep letting the idea of "how it needs to be" cripple you from even being?! Baby, so many things in your life have not happened yet because you're "waiting". Waiting for what?! It's like you're up to jump in the double dutch ropes and you keep rocking back and forth. You look ready to jump in, you got the rhythm, you know the concept, you have the skill, you are capable, but you're standing by the ropes.... waiting. Now a bunch of people done already jumped in, had their turn, went again, had some more fun, and you're still rocking by the ropes.... waiting. You're cheering everyone else on, even helping them know when they should jump in, but STILL, there you are rocking by the ropes.... waiting. Waiting for what?!
Now don't get me wrong, sometimes there is wisdom in waiting. The Holy Spirit may lead you to wait a little bit and "Practice patience" as I tell my niece all the time. But that is not what I'm talking about. You know that sometimes the reason you haven't done something is that you are afraid, or because you think you need somebody to do it with you, or because you feel like you're not ready. You have become the master of creating excuses that make sense... but it's a cover-up.
You keep waiting for the occasion. Well, baby let me tell you something: YOU ARE THE OCCASION. You want to wear that outfit, but you want to lose your stomach first? Forget that. Wear the outfit now AND when you lose the belly. You are the occasion. You want to celebrate a small victory, but you feel that maybe you should wait for a bigger accomplishment? Forget that. Celebrate now AND when you do something bigger. You have an idea you think can elevate your business, but you want to wait till everything is in place. Forget that. Start working on it now AND be ready to execute it when things are in place. Guess what! Things may never be in place, at least not the way you envisioned it. Create your own space and make it work.
There's a part of me that feels like I'm not making any sense, and that I'm also mixing 2 messages together. But there's something in there for somebody.
Let me end with this. YOU ARE THE OCCASION is a mindset. You have to understand that you are the main character. You gotta walk around here like " I can and I will". You can't wait for somebody to buy you flowers, buy your own. Why? Because you are the occasion. You can't wait till Sunday to wear some heels? Wear them today, you are the occasion. You want to take a trip, but you don't have a reason to.... uh, reason? Baby, you are the reason! You are the occasion. Stop letting joy collect dust in your closet because you want to wait for the appropriate time for when it will make sense to other people. You are the occasion.
Now don't go out there wilding out and saying "Woods said I was the occasion". Remember, we got to have balance and exercise wisdom. But go on and BE. Go on and LIVE! Go on and ENJOY LIFE! Go on and do the thing you've always wanted to do! Buy the thing you've always wanted to buy. Wear the outfit you've always wanted to wear TODAY and take lots of pictures. Stop standing by the double dutch ropes rocking on the sidelines, jump in there and have some fun! Stop waiting for this imaginary "right time" or your idea will find its way into the giveaway bag, and someone else will pick it up and enjoy it the way you never did.
Ok, I'm done yelling now. Go on about ya'll business. I love ya'll for reading, and I love ya'll for real! ooop! That might be by the new sign out line! "I love ya'll for reading, and I love ya'll for real!" Come on somebody! I'm about to shout! Let me go on and get out of here.
- Woods
Lighting up the woods, one Syllable at a time
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