Inspirational Cafe

Yesterday it was Family Day in Ontario, which I spent with my 2 children curled up on the couch watching some great movies. It was cute on Sunday afternoon, when my 6 year old Hannah looked up at me wondering what we’d do for Family Day- she pointed out that “we already did stuff today and yesterday as a family.” I reminder her that every day is Family Day in our house, where she just smiled and laughed and went about drawing more caricatures on her sketch pad. On Monday, I sat us down to watch the incredible true story of “Secretariat.” It was my second time watching it, and I cried once again with sheer joy and inspiration many times throughout the movie!

I love watching a movie where there are insurmountable odds to overcome. Penny and Big Red triumph over all adversity to win the race and win the fight. This true story inspires me to press on and never give up. Penny eloquently states, “I will not live the rest of my life in regret” This is a true statement that speaks truth, and should be listened to very closely for everyone!

The spirit of Big Red (Secretariat) is awe inspiring- since I was a little girl I’ve been hypnotized by the beauty of horses. When I was 4, I followed a big red ribbon to find at the end of it, my very own horse, whom I named Timmy- how I loved Timmy! My whole life I’ve watched horses play and interact with each other and the humans that they love and I’ve always thought deep down that they can communicate almost telepathically (reading minds).

Not only is the horse seen as the underdog, but his owner Penny Chenery Tweedy is “just” a housewife whose voice is also not heard. Her place is in her home, raising her family and taking care of the house and her husband. As a woman watching this story it inspires me beyond measure! This movie, fits with the theme of my personal life, that “anything is possible” and she proves this by doing the impossible and her story is set in the books of history. Penny says, “This is not about going back. This is about life being ahead of you and you run at it! Because you never know how far you can run unless you run.”

This is a move worth watching, over and over again! It’s truly inspirational… I loved when her brother who was an economics teacher at Harvard told her that it’s impossible to raise $6Million, it was Penny that creatively thought outside the box, raising $6.8 million and went on to win the Triple Crown with Secretariat!

This is Secretariat’s historic 1973 Belmont Stakes victory, where he won in a matter of 2 minutes, 25 seconds making him The Triple Crown winner. “ I’ve run my race.  You run your’s.” – Chenery speaking to Secretariat the evening before the Belmont Stakes.

… and did he ever run his race!

It’s no surprise how much I love music… I’ve been in love with music since I was a very young girl. My Dad born in 1943 (war baby cohort group) and my Mom was born in 1951 (baby boomers cohort group) so I was introduced to many different styles and eras of music. I was born as a GenX baby and lived through the 80’s but it was the 90’s (Skid Row, Bonjovi) that impacted me.

My Dad always had music playing in the car and some of my favourites included The Tennessee Waltz, Hank Williams Sr. and Jr., A LOT OF ELVIS, old country (and later on new country)… my Dad never thought he had a good voice but growing up I loved hearing his deep voice sing to a country song or an Elvis song, as I was Daddy’s Little Girl… 33 years later I still am and adore my Dad so much- he taught me about many things!

My Mom would talk about The Beatles and used to show me her albums, but I gained my respect for classical and theatre from her and it was through my Mom’s prodding that I fell in love with singing.

As a teenager I fell in love with 70’s rock and roll… Music is timeless, and I feel that it’s a window to someone’s inner soul. It can transport you back in time, reliving certain emotions (good and bad) and music can speak and communicate if you are listening….

In the winter of 2002 my Dad fell from a truck landing on his feet, shattering the ankle bone in his foot. My sister and I rushed to the hospital listening to the doctors talk about his age vs surgery and hoping the bone would fuse together to allow him to walk again! To say the least we were in SHOCK… I remember my sister and I taking my Dad home from the hospital in a cast just before Christmas, bringing him to our house to heal and take care of him. It was a bad night indeed.

As we were preparing to have Christmas at our house, I was setting up my bedroom so that my Dad could sleep in there as it was on the same level as the bathroom. I didn’t want him to get bored so as part of his Christmas present, I researched old, rare and never before videos of Elvis, as I knew Elvis was my “Dad’s” favourite artist. During hours upon hours of watching videos, listening to interviews, watching movies and looking at news articles, I went from really liking Elvis as my Dad’s favourite artist, to falling in LOVE with everything about Elvis!!! He is the perfect example of why I love music… when he sings he is transported within the song and sings with such emotion and heart that I’ve never seen another artist be able to compare; I guess that is part of the reason they call him the King of Rock and Roll. Elvis is timeless and unique and so many artists, including Lennon and McCartney (and many more) talk about how Elvis influences them along with music itself.

Since the making of that Christmas gift for my Dad in December 2002 I’ve been a HUGE Elvis fan! There was a specific performance that caught my attention, which illustrates exactly the passion and love Elvis has for music. Whenever I am in a down mood, or need to find inspiration, I remember this video and turn it on.. It also reminds me of how amazing my Father is… with time and a lot of work my Dad was able to give up the crutches and cane and start walking on his own…. he is a true hero and I am so luck that he is My Dad!

On the video it’s a live version of American Trilogy (my top fav song!), at the time lapse of 3:29 Elvis (with his back to the crowd) begins to “feel” his way back into singing and continues to bring me to tears each time I watch it (of course with a SMILE on my face!)

Special shout out today: I love you Daddy!

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We live in such a fast world, where most of what we have we honestly take for granted. One of the things that I noticed when I was volunteering in Fiji that touched my heart was how truly grateful Fijians felt for everything in their lives. Here I was half way across the world (literally), student broke (lol), where I successfully had raised $2000 to help out the community of Vugalei in Fiji, with another $2000 on plane fare and vaccinations and at the end of it all, it was the Fijian’s that helped me the most! We live in a world where we have everything, and everywhere I look, people around me are always talking about how they want more… it’s a rush to get the newest gadget or the better car, house, blah blah blah!

Well, here I am in this small village where poverty is present everywhere, and have just met my house family that I’ll be staying with for the next week. My house Mom, Laisani offers me a cup tea which I graciously accept. Knowing how important sugar is to Fijian’s I accept the jar of sugar to open it and find it filled with crawling red ants! Yup, red ants crawling everywhere! I remember in that moment, thinking about how life was like at home and then just as quickly leaving my idea of what “normal” was and embracing everything surrounding me, which included the red ants in my tea! In a country where by our standards, Fijian’s have very little, they are so humble, thankful and grateful for everything they have.

I think that was one of the things that I brought home with me, and I know that my children also have embraced this as well. Still, almost 1 year later this simple act of giving still resides within my heart! I am so thankful for everything I have and never envious of what I do not have.

My greatest wish is to make a difference in the lives of others, mostly because it is so very simple to accomplish and so very rewarding. It fills my heart with such joy to know that my love and support can make a difference in the life of someone else and it takes so little to bring that change about. Lead with your heart!

Compliments, seem like a thing of the past and I often find when I offer up a genuine compliment, people I don’t know often think I have a hidden agenda. I often get the roll of the eye, when I compliment their choice of clothes, or how happy they seem that particular day but it doesn’t stop me from doing it. The compliments that I like to give the most, are often ones that I find unique about someone, never thinking that they don’t want to hear it.

Today, I received a beautiful compliment from a new friend of mine Wendy and it brought a huge smile to my face. I was at the end of the day, exhausted and worn out and still searching for my placement for school when I received it. She inspired me to reach out and keep up the search with renewed energy and faith. She said, “When you’re gone no one will remember what car you drove, how big your house was or how much money you had in the bank…what they will remember is the positive impact you had on people and how you made them feel This is what people need to remember eh Tasha..I wish I could clone you or bottle your inspiration. oxoxo”

THANKS WENDY! You inspired my evening and I thank you greatly from my heart! Paying someone a compliment can be a very natural practice for some people. However, many people may find giving a compliment difficult. Giving compliments is critical to building relationships and encouraging other people. It is easy once you have an idea of how to go about it and it’s something so small maybe to you, but it can have a great positive impact on the person you are sending the compliment to!

Yours in Gratitude,
Tasha
xoxo

I was inspired today by a blog article written by Kevin McCort who is the President and CEO of CARE Canada . It’s an older article that he had written in 2009, titled, “An Innovation Microfinance Project in Nairobi”  It first grabbed my attention as I am a huge supporter of micro donations to raise money for organizations, such like what Camp Ohana is doing all over Canada and the USA with their pilot project happening in Ottawa on March 5th, 2011.

I’ll let you read this inspiring blog article yourself- I love the idea of how it illustrates the effectiveness of microfinancing in developing countries. By providing financial services to low income individuals or groups, who traditionally lack access to such services, it allows these people and groups a chance for hope and true change to happen in their lives. Much like Kiva, which I’ve been part of for almost a year now; their mission “is to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty.” It not only warms my heart but it’s fun to give and see the money come back and give to another person or group or people.

In Kevin’s article he says, “For a microfinance initiative to be successful it has to work in two directions: it has to serve its customers but also make a profit. The regulatory framework in Kenya is constantly changing. WEDCO and Opportunity Kenya must influence microfinance legislation in Kenya so that it benefits poor people. That is why we are involved. CARE has its feet in the market and a seat in the boardroom. We can talk effectively to people like Pauline but can also pick up the phone and talk to a representative in the central bank who can influence policy that ultimately affects poor people. That is our strength.”

Care Canada has an incredible mission, which is, “to serve individuals and families in the poorest communities in the world. Drawing strength from our global diversity, resources and experience, we promote innovative solutions and are advocates for global responsibility…CARE is Canada’s global force dedicated to defending dignity and fighting poverty by empowering the world’s most vulnerable and greatest resource for change : women and girls. We proudly partner with Canadians from coast to coast, and in the communities in which we work, to make this goal a reality.”

Microfinancing offers hope! I encourage you to look at CARE Canada today and see the amazing difference that they are making in the lives of people globally…

For the full article, please go to: http://care-kevinmccort.blogspot.com/2009/06/innovative-microfinance-project-in.html

In gratitude,
Tasha

“Sometimes fear makes you push away the people you love most.” I speak this as truth…. I’ve been that person that has always asked for help but in my need of hour when I was most afraid of the outcome I pushed away the people I loved most, in the time when I needed them the most. I don’t know the underlying reasons why, but when I heard this quote, it spoke truth to me and I chose to see it for what it was.

I then pushed past the fear barrier and asked for help. What came next was wonderful and healing… today, I encourage you that when you are most afraid, push past the fear barrier and know that’s it’s ok to ask to love even in the face of fear.

Life= Risk

Light and Love,
Tasha
xoxo

I’ve written many times about my adoration for what Camp Ohana is all about and they have issued a challenge, which I would love to help assist with!

CampOhanaAloha! Tomorrow is Director of Micro Donations and Social Media, Stephanie Arne’s 28th birthday and she would be thrilled to see CampOhana reach 500 fans! So let’s take a few minutes to encourage our friends and family to check out www.campohana.org and become fans today! Mahalo to those who believe in CampOhana’s vision and are helping our family grow.

To become a fan, sign up on FaceBook today! Follow this link: http://www.facebook.com/CampOhana

Camp Ohana Foundation provides a sense of Ohana to many orphans and underpriviledged children. “From our Ohana to yours… thank you for your support”.

..please stay tuned also for some really exciting news where you can learn more about how to get involved with Camp Ohana. The pilot project will be in Kanata (west end of Ottawa, Ontario Canada) on March 5th. Amos’ sister will be cooking some Kenyan food and inviting people to come over and talk story but also share about Camp Ohana Foundation and their work. There will be a slideshow presentation on Camp Ohana, some Kenyan food and good stories.

This is very exciting and will be happening very soon! I will be writing more as the information becomes available, so please email me with any questions and stay tuned for more information!

Light and Love,
Tasha
xxoo

From the blog Life Coach Mary I found this pretty great recipe to help start your day off in the right direction! Lately, I’ve been drinking a lot of smoothies to keep up my energy and keep my mind healthy and loved this one. I also add a scoop of Veggie Greens to give it an extra kick of superfoods.

Mary’s Veggie Smoothie

1/2 cucumber
1/2 red pepper
1/2 lemon
1/4 avocado
1 celery stick
1 carrot
Handful of parsley
Handful of cilantro

Chop coarsely, and toss in your blender. Then add about 1 cup of liquid (either water or apple juice). I also add an optional 1 teaspoon of lemon flavored fish oil (for Omega 3′s). Occasionally I throw in a few dried cranberries. Lately, I’m tossing in 1 scoops of Jay Robb’s Vanilla Protein Powder (from Egg Whites).

NOTES: The apple and lemon hide any of the “green” flavor. I do find it plenty sweet with simply water. So, if you’re watching your sugar intake, go with water only. The sugar from the apple, carrot and red bell pepper is plenty! My preference is organic whenever possible. And lately…Farmer’s Market!

If you run out of a particular vegetable, it still works. Mix and match the vegetables suits your taste, but remember the greens are what brings the BEST nutrition. I’ve also added tomatoes, arugula, cabbage, and mixed green salad. I also tried wheat grass a couple times, but WHEW… be careful, it’ll give you a jolt like caffeine if there is too much!