It Begins Within You

07/08/2025

So true. Are you friendships 2way? Do your friends walk beside you and honor you the way you are?

This is pure unadulterated unconditional love. Embrace it! Honor it and be grateful for it!

It’s not about the numbers.

It’s not about having a bazillion friends.
If you can find even one friend who loves you for you, you are blessed.

If you can find even one friend that cheers for you with her whole heart, you are blessed.
If you can find even one friend who reminds you of who you are, when you’ve forgotten, you are blessed.

If you can find even one friend to laugh with till you cry, you are blessed.

If you can find even one friend to do life with you in the messy, the hard, and the real, you are blessed.

Remember it isn’t about having a lot, it’s about having the real deal.

Love,
Jess

31/07/2025

Keep going no matter what. There’s a reason for everything no matter how hard.

Ernest Hemingway once wrote: The hardest lesson I have had to learn as an adult is the relentless need to keep going, no matter how broken I feel inside.

This truth is raw, unfiltered, and painfully universal. Life doesn’t stop when we are exhausted, when our hearts are shattered, or when our spirits feel threadbare. It keeps moving—unyielding, indifferent—demanding that we keep pace. There is no pause button for grief, no intermission for healing, no moment where the world gently steps aside and allows us to mend. Life expects us to carry our burdens in silence, to push forward despite the weight of all we carry inside.

The cruelest part? No one really prepares us for this. As children, we are fed stories of resilience wrapped in neat, hopeful endings—tales where pain has purpose and every storm clears to reveal a bright horizon. But adulthood strips away those comforting illusions. It teaches us that survival is rarely poetic. More often than not, it’s about showing up when you’d rather disappear, smiling through pain no one sees, and carrying on despite feeling like you're unraveling from the inside out.

And yet, somehow, we persevere. That’s the quiet miracle of being human. Even when life is relentless, even when hope feels distant, we keep moving. We stumble, we break, we fall to our knees—but we get up. And in doing so, we uncover a strength we never knew we had. We learn to comfort ourselves in the ways we wish others would. We become the voice of reassurance we once searched for. Slowly, we realize that resilience isn’t always about grand acts of bravery; sometimes, it’s just a whisper—“Keep going.”

Yes, it’s exhausting. Yes, it’s unfair. And yes, there are days when the weight of it all feels unbearable. But every small step forward is proof that we haven’t given up. That we are still fighting, still holding on, still refusing to let the darkness consume us. That quiet defiance—choosing to exist, to try, to hope—is the bravest thing we can do.
-
What’s the hardest lesson you’ve had to learn as an adult, and how has it shaped you?

31/07/2025

It doesn’t matter what others think. Limit what you take on from others. Your opinion of yourself is what matters.

Here’s the truth:

You can be a really good friend, and still not be liked.

You can hold someone dear and still not be valued. You can say all the right things, and still have someone use your words against you.

You can give it your absolute best, and still have it not work out.

You can be pure as humanly possible, and still be painted as the bad guy.

After years of work, these are some things I’ve learned:

1. You can’t control other people. Not even in the slightest, and it is a complete waste to ever assume you can. It will make you angry, and exhausted, and chasing something you don’t have a chance to catch, so switch gears and control you. Control your mouth. Control how you treat people. Control your attitude. Guard your heart, and keep it genuine. Keep showing up, and let that be enough.

2. Other people aren’t you. They don’t think like you, or feel like you. Their experiences belong to them alone. They approach situations differently, and their outlook is nothing like yours. Don’t expect them to handle things exactly like you do. They aren’t you. They’re them. Do your best to love them for it.

3. Some people are never going to like you, and there isn’t necessarily and a rhyme or reason. Your life will improve significantly as soon as you learn this.

4. Sometimes you’re actually the bad guy. Sometimes you’re the one acting foolish. Sometimes you’re the one with the toxic trait or two. Check your own heart. Clean out the junk, and grow from it. Apologize, and now that you’ve learned—take that wisdom, do better next time, stay humble, and give others an awful lot of grace along the way.

5. There is a purpose to it all. There is beauty everywhere. That failed friendship will teach you how to do the next one better. That heartache will remind you to be gentle with other people. That loneliness will help you appreciate connection when you do find it—and you will find it. Not every season lasts forever, but every season does produce something precious eventually, even if it’s just a fresh perspective.

So sleep well, my dear friend.

Life is a long series of letting some things go and holding others close—a catch and release sort of cycle. Let go of needing approval. Let go of bitterness, and resentment, and any of that junk. Let go of insecurity. Let go of guilt. It will keep you shackled like nothing else.

Hold close to your family and the people in your life who have stuck around. Hold close to your morals and your integrity. Hold close to your light and your joy and your hope. Hold close to today. Believe in tomorrow. Hold closest to love. At the end of the day, it’s all that really matters, and as long as you have it—you have more than enough.

Love,
Amy

10/07/2025

In The Garden of Friendship

May the bonds of friendship unite us all,
not only in moments of joy and celebration,
but also in times of struggle and uncertainty.

May we become a circle of strength and support,
where no one stands alone,
and where each person is seen, heard,
and valued for who they truly are.

Let our connections be rooted in kindness,
trust, and mutual respect,
growing deeper with every shared experience
and every act of love.

As we journey through life’s changing seasons,
may we bloom in our own ways,
each of us unfolding into the fullness
of who we are meant to be,
while still growing side by side.

May we lift each other when we falter,
celebrate one another’s victories without envy,
and offer comfort when the road gets hard.

Together, may we cultivate a space where:
dreams are encouraged,
differences are embraced, and every heart finds belonging.

In this unity, let us not only grow, but thrive,
individually and as one,
nurturing a lasting bond
that time, distance, or hardship cannot break.

For in the garden of true friendship,
we do not simply exist,
we bloom, we rise, and we rise together.

~ 'In The Garden of Friendship' by Spirit of a Hippie

✍️ Mary Anne Byrne

~ Art by Katja Perez

27/11/2024

Great perspective on toxic relationships. Is this what’s happening for you?

Repairing a toxic relationship can be complex and difficult.

It can be done, but by the time most people realise their relationship has turned toxic, it's too late...

But identifying if you're in a toxic relationship can be even more difficult because it's hard to see it when you're on the inside.

There are many traits and many faces that make up a toxic relationship.

A beautiful relationship can turn toxic even when there's still love, but if it's not fixed it becomes an attachment that no longer resembles love.

A toxic relationship is when they always bring up your past mistakes and continue to judge you and punish you for them even though you've taken positive steps to fix things.

A toxic relationship is when they show no empathy or compassion towards you and they don't care about your feelings or the way they make you feel.

A toxic relationship is when they constantly break your trust, breach your privacy, and knowingly do things that are disrespectful towards you and that they know upsets you and hurts you.

A toxic relationship is when there is selfishness instead of selflessness, and everything seems to always be about them.

A toxic relationship is when they want you to make them a priority but they won't treat you like a priority in their life.

A toxic relationship is when they won't communicate with you but when communicate with them, they don't communicate back with any sort of level of emotional maturity.

A toxic relationship is when they never apologise or take accountability for their mistakes, wrong-doings, or the ways in which they've hurt you, but they make everything your fault by deflecting, blame-shifting, manipulating, gaslighting, and turning things around to make you feel guilty for something they've done.

A toxic relationship is when they neglect and manipulate you by deliberately withholding what they know to be your love languages; such as giving you their affection, spending time together with you, and communicating openly, honestly, and effectively.

A toxic relationship is when they constantly put you down, make you feel worthless, and tell you that you're not capable.

A toxic relationship is when everything you do right is negated by that one thing you do wrong; and they continue to remind you of this over and over again, and make out like everything you ever do is wrong and you can't ever do anything right.

A toxic relationship is when they make you feel guilty for bringing up how you feel or how they've upset you, because they always turn it into and argument blames you for something they did.

A toxic relationship is when you don't feel emotionally safe, and you're too scared to express how you really feel because you know they will become angry and defensive instead of acknowledging what they did, trying to be better, and trying to make things better.

A toxic relationship is when they deliberately hide things from you or do things behind your back. They do this in a secretive and deceptive manner to avoid you finding out what they're really up to.

A toxic relationship is when they have deteriorated your support network, restricted or significantly deteriorated your finances, and their abuse has deteriorated your mental health.

A toxic relationship can cause a significant decline in both your mental health and your physical health.

A toxic relationship will give you depression, anxiety, fear, anger, stress; while decreasing your levels of happiness and feelings of self-worth, confidence, and self-esteem.

The way you feel in a relationship is important, but the way someone else makes you feel in a relationship is more important.

If someone really loves and and they really value you and your relationship, they will work together with you to fix things and make things better again.

But if someone doesn't care about fixing things, and they don't care for you feeling respected, safe, heard, understood, and loved; they've just shown you exactly how they really feel about you.

Don't waste your heart, your tears, and your emotional and mental well-being on someone on someone who refuses to see their own toxicity that they bring.

Relationships are always a two way street, and relationships are only ever going to work if two people are willing to be accountable for what happens, and be committed to making things better...

~ Mark Smith

15/11/2024

Value and appreciate each and every day of your existence. Some of us don’t truly appreciate what we truly have.

The truth is — the amount of days we have here is actually not so large. So if you have the opportunity to wake up tomorrow, to let this world age you and weather you and meet you where you are for even just one more golden minute — I hope you show up for it. Do as much as you possibly can with your time here. Risk your heart. Express. Take care of others, leave them better than you found them. Give yourself permission to take up space. Be all that you are. Love the way you hope to love, and love people on purpose, with depth and intention. Keep rescuing those younger parts of yourself. Forgive. Put every ounce of your patchwork soul into this world, crack tenderness into all of its dark corners. Stay soft, stay curious, but most importantly - just hold on to your hope. Hold on to your hope.

~ Bianca Sparacino

Photography Source: Pinterest (no photographer credited)

24/10/2024

Easier said than done sometimes but great advice

There will come a time in your relationship when moments grow scarce, distance sets in, and conversations become fewer. Everything might feel uncertain and fraught with doubt. When this happens, take a moment to remember where you began and the joy you once shared.

Instead of giving up, fight for the one who has always been by your side, even in the face of your flaws. Choose the person who chooses you every day, despite your imperfections. Stay with the one who understands you, even when you’re hard to understand. Hold on to the person who will stay with you through life’s greatest highs and deepest lows.

✍🏻 Words of Wisdom

22/10/2024

Never be in a hurry. This is a great point. Many people rush this part abd wonder why things fizzle later.

BENEFITS OF BEING FRIENDS BEFORE DATING:

Being best friends before dating can have numerous benefits, including:

1. Deep emotional connection: A strong foundation of trust, understanding, and empathy.

2. Familiarity and comfort: Knowing each other's quirks, habits, and interests.

3. Effective communication: Open and honest dialogue, reducing misunderstandings.

4. Shared values and interests: A solid bond built on commonalities.

5. Trust and loyalty: Unwavering support and commitment.

6. Emotional intimacy: A deep understanding of each other's thoughts, feelings, and desires.

7. Reduced anxiety: Familiarity can ease dating nerves and pressure.

8. Authenticity: Genuine connection, free from pretenses or trying to impress.

9. Conflict resolution: Established communication and empathy can help navigate disagreements.

10. Strong foundation: A friendship base can create a resilient and lasting relationship.

11. Mutual support: Encouragement and support in personal growth and goals.

12. Inside jokes and memories: Shared experiences and laughter can strengthen the bond.

13. Unconditional acceptance: Accepting each other's flaws and imperfections.

14. Smooth transition: A natural progression from friendship to romance.

15. Long-term potential: A strong foundation can lead to a lasting and fulfilling relationship.

Remember, every relationship is unique, and not all friendships evolve into romance. However, being best friends before dating can create a beautiful and strong connection. Thats your reading baby

22/10/2024

Very true. But also hard to avoid when you’ve invested so much if your life!

AVOID THIS TYPE OF RELATIONSHIP
1. You should avoid a relationship that is based on s*x alone. It has no future. If all you do is to sleep with each other instead of
discussing things that will benefit your life then that relationship is a waste of time and destiny.
2. Avoid any relationship that has no direction, purpose or aim.
3. Avoid any relationship that doesn't add any positive impact on your life.
4. Run away from any relationship that gives you more sorrows than joy.
5. Run away from any relationship that makes you cry or gives you more tears and cry than laughter.
6. Do not stay in a relationship where you love someone but the person makes you unhappy many times.
7. When you see signs that a relationship can't work, don't try to make it work. IT JUST CAN'T WORK. There is no need remaining in such r/shp. Flee from it.
8. Avoid any relationship where you find yourself struggling to love your partner.
9. Avoid any relationship where you are caged or restricted from enjoying your basic fundamental human rights. No relationship should restrict you from your
rights, not even marriage.
10. Most importantly and above all. Avoid any relationship that will keep you far away from God.

Cheers
❣️🍾🥂🍎 Thats your reading baby

17/10/2024

Grief masks us for awhile. Signs do appear and our loved ones that passed are with us always.

"I know you're waiting for a sign
I've sent a few,
But I think you're too distraught to notice .
I'm going to try harder
To get your attention .
I know it's been so hard for you,
But I'm okay,
I made it over to the other side .
All is well , I'm at peace
It's beautiful over here .
The colours, the overwhelming feeling of love
I've come home .
I'm safe ..
But ...
I wish you would stop crying..
You would notice more with dry eyes .
The feathers I left outside the back door,
I told you I would , but they went unnoticed.
The robin that came every day last week
to sing sweetly on the bench
Where we used to sit ..
His song and vivid red breast were much brighter
than the dreary music you were playing...
How can you hear me when you're drowning in that noise ?
Please, be more attentive ..
I'm really trying .
I haven't been here long, so I'm still working on my powers to connect .
I'm here ,right next to you , please notice me .
In time I hope you learn to feel my presence,
I know it's early days, but I'll always be around .
I didn't leave
I still exist.
Look for me in nature,
In the gentle breeze,
The falling leaves,
A colourful sunset,
The smile of a child.
Think of me as being eternal
I live on in so many ways .
Connect with me
Through prayer,
Our favourite songs,
A beautiful poem,
The sound of the rain .
I continue to exist, just in a different way .
Just make the most of your time left on earth
And know that you'll see me again ..."
by Serendipity Corner 🫧 For Jake 🩵
Artist Credit : Anna Tang

Sending healing hugs for those dealing with grief and loss of a dear one🩵