Beauty sleep is good for the body and soul

Do you ever have those days where you just feel like you are constantly on the go? When you feel like the first time you get to sit down is when you lay down to go to sleep at around midnight, only to have to get up in about 5 hours...well, welcome to my life. It may sound absolutely awful, but this is a lifestyle that I have grown to be quite familiar with and to the surprise of many, I enjoy it. Each day when I curl up in my warm bed I feel like I have accomplished something. I learned in psychology a few weeks ago that we spend 1/3 of our life sleeping.....33% of our life is spent ASLEEP! How crazy is that?! Now, I am not saying that I am just going to cut that number down or anything, but I am going to make sure that I embrace the time I am awake. However, our bodies need sleep. Matthew 11:28 says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." God realized the importance of rest not only for our bodies, but our minds as well. It is perfectly fine to be on the go all day long if you allow yourself the chance to sleep and rejuvenate. In turn, you will be in a better mood and will be more willing and able to take on the tasks of the next day. Life advice: Stop depriving yourself of sleep! Take a nap, put the homework aside for a little while, relax---the people around you, your body and your soul will thank you for it! 

Carpe Diem

Carpe diem. This phrase is thrown around so often that we sometimes forget what it truly stands for. This is a Latin phrase that means to seize the day. Seize the day. What exactly does that mean? Today was an absolutely beautiful day. It was over 70 degrees outside...not your typical February day. However, I decided that it was absolutely necessary to enjoy every second of this wonderful day that God granted us with. Work was a blast and my only class of the day got cancelled; everything was falling into place for a perfect day. I was productive and took each and every opportunity to enjoy myself and have fun. However, something that I started to think about was why I didn't start each day with this attitude. Sure, the nice weather was definitely a mood booster, but I should be looking at EVERY day in the same positive light that I viewed today with. Every single day is a gift from God. Every second of every day counts, so why waste them?  Life advice: Carpe diem. Not just when the weather is nice or on days that you don't have to work, but every single day. Embrace each day for what it is and always be looking out for opportunities to seize the day. 

Perfection is not something to strive for

No, I am not quoting Miley Cyrus when I say that everyone makes mistakes; it is a fact of life. However, to someone like me who strives to be perfect in everything that I do, making mistakes is completely out of the question. I don't like disappointing or hurting people. I hate not doing as well as I think I should have on tests or projects. I hate not achieving goals that I set. Perfectionist does not even begin to describe me. Who decides what is perfect though? Yes, 100% on a test is technically a perfect score, but in other aspects of my life, who says what perfect is? Perfect is a high standard that I set for myself. Me. I do it. I set ridiculously high standards for myself and when I can't accomplish them, then I get frustrated and down. That isn't how it should be. The only person who could even fit the word perfect was Jesus. He walked among humans and was God's perfect son. No one else in the entire world is, was or will ever be perfect like He was. That being said, I need to re-evaluate what it is I am striving for. I want to be a good daughter, a good best friend, a good sister, a good student, a good member of my sorority, a good Young Life leader, a good citizen, a good worker....all of these things I can do, but there is no way of being perfect at any of them. Trying to do everything possible to make people happy can take a toll on yourself; you will find yourself being spread too thin and thinking of things as more of a chore than something you enjoy doing. I need to take a step back and stop striving for perfection but rather try hard to be the best I can be. My personal best needs to be good enough for me. Life advice: Stop trying to strive for perfection. Perfection is not a word that is attainable by any human on earth. Don't be mad at yourself if you make a mistake or let someone down...it happens to everyone. Be the best you that you can be and let that be enough. 

When you least expect it...

Has something ever happened to you...something that was so great and it seemed to come out of nowhere? Well I know the feeling. The past two days have been absolutely wonderful. Not only did we have two snow days in a row, but some things really started looking up in my life. I have been getting frustrated and fed up lately, but I feel like a weight has finally been lifted off my shoulders. I had an absolutely amazing time with the girls in my sorority these past few days. I feel refreshed, happy and content. There are times when things seem like they couldn't be worse, but before you know it, things will all of a sudden change; your luck will change for the better. I wish that this would happen at the snap of your fingers, but unfortunately it is not that easy. It is so true that it takes some bad things for you to appreciate when times are truly good. So here is my advice for the day: trust. Trust in God's timing and trust in the fact that great things will come along when you least expect it. Get through those tough times and stay optimistic...cuz things are bound to look up :)