Wise words from my father

"To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one's family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one's own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him." -Buddha

I'll be honest, lately I have been unable to control my mind. The positivity that I preach to all of you has been disintegrating and at first I didn't know what to do...

But then I went to my family for help.

I feel like I always overwhelm myself when there is no need for that. I put unnecessary thoughts in my mind and I end up thinking the glass is half empty. I hate when I become this way because that isn't who i am. I am a positive person who wants to enlighten people around me; so when I become the antonym of who I truly am, it hurts me.

The other day I went home and I talked to my parents; they are my best friends and when I need help most I confide in them. They raised me to be the woman I am today, so their advice means the world to me. I let out everything that was on my mind and I cried in their arms. My mom cried also because when I hurt so does she and my dad does what he always does; he laughs at me and my mom for crying and then gives the best damn advice on the planet...

He told me this exactly "Danielle, whatever isn't making you happy; change it, whatever is making you worry; fix it, whatever is bringing you down; drop it and do what you can to "make it happen". 

I then dried my tears and my mind went from a worrying mess to figuring out just what I could do to stop being overwhelmed and just be happy. Some say that it isn't that simple, some say it takes more than that but honestly if you want to be happy you must simply "make it happen".

The mind is a scary place, trust me I know. But the only thing you can truly control in this life is your mind. Happy thoughts generate happy feelings and you become happy. Don't let things in life bring you down and get rid of the people in your life that are holding you back. Set a goal and reach it; don't stop until you are where you want to be in life.

"Don't worry, just MAKE IT HAPPEN" -BuddhaBlog 

"There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth... not going all the way, and not starting"              -Buddha

I believe that some people don't start a goal because society makes it seem unrealistic, I also believe that some people don't go all the way to accomplish that goal because society puts doubts into our minds.

This needs to be put to a stop.

Fear is fatal, we develop fears based on our surroundings. If you are surrounded by people who base their lives on fear then their traits will becomes contagious. We must stray away from this in order to reach our goal. 

I have been writing this blog since August 27, 2013. Clearly that is barely 2 months of writing to people that may or may not be reading these posts and becoming inspired. My goal when I began was to reach out to anyone and everyone who needed motivation and along the way i believe i have found my voice and my own motivation.

                               But recently I actually reached out to someone I don't even know

It brought tears to my eyes to know that my words got to someone and I inspired them. It only starts with one. 

You can do absolutely anything and everything that you set your mind to I promise! It starts with getting up and making it happen, it starts with having the mindset that you can achieve whatever you want. Society will not tell us how to be and how to think. Society will not tell us who we are. Only you can define yourself. 

"There's no room for doubt, only room for courage. I believe in you" -BuddhaBlog 

Aspire to Inspire

"Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for the people that hear them. They should be influenced by them for good" - Buddha


Lately I feel like I haven't been able to motivate others. I live to motivate and to inspire everyone around me whether i know them or not...

As you know from my about me post, I play softball for St. Thomas University in Miami, FL.

Ever since i was a little girl i enjoyed playing sports; I had 4 brothers and a dad who was in love with football so sports were instilled in me since i was born. I tried ballet along with every other girl when they were younger i'm sure, but that just wasn't for me.

I developed a love for softball in middle school. I made the Varsity team as a 12 year old 6th grader but i stayed on JV for my friends who didn't make the team. That's what i tended to always do, I never thought about myself, only about everyone else, even if it brought me down. I realized my freshman year of college that i didn't love softball anymore. I didn't have that desire for it that i used to have and i wasn't sure why. I live every day to better myself and to better the ones around me and for me to have worked so hard for years gaining a knowledge for the sport and for me to work so hard to develop a skill for the sport and for all the love to just disinigrate into thin air right before my eyes... it hurt.  

After a few weeks of confusion I realized that my love for the sport may have been gone, but my love for a team worth fighting for would be imprinted in my heart forever. I questioned whether or not i should continue playing, but when i realized that the love was still there and that it was for the team and the motivation; I knew that quitting wasn't an option; quitting is never an option. 

From then on I wasn't playing because I eat, sleep and breath softball; i was playing because I eat, sleep and breath inspiration. 

I will never stop working hard and lately I have realized that i am more of a coach than i am a player. "Those who cannot do, teach". I know softball inside and out, but am i the best? No. I have the mindset to be the best athlete I can be, but I've realized that i wasn't meant to be a star athlete, I was meant to help others catch their dreams and become the best that they can be. I can help my team do 90 things on the field, but i cannot do them myself. Like i said, "those who cannot do, teach". I am a motivator, I am an inspiration. A lot of people would have quit a sport that they fell out of love with, but working hard and overcoming obstacles with a team that becomes family is better than anything. 

Lately I feel like I haven't been able to motivate others. I live to motivate and to inspire everyone around me whether i know them or not... and I hate the fact that i feel like i haven't been able to reach out to the girls on my team now. We may not be a tight close team, but i would bend over backwards for any of them, even though they might not do the same for me. Some people tell me to just stop, to just stop motivating them and i feel like that was the worst advice i could have ever gotten. My voice is the most powerful tool I have, and whether or not it is heard it will never be shut. I may not be able to get through to majority of the team, but it only starts with one. I refuse to stop, I refuse to give up, I will not settle. 

I'm a senior in college and i have a list of A-Z of what i want to accomplish. I will not stop, I will not give up, I will not settle. This life is so limited and we need to realize that we are entitled to nothing, we are privileged and we need to be thankful. I woke up healthy and blessed with a roof over my head. If that doesn't motivate you to do something with your life, then nothing will. Today is the last October 8th, 2013 of your life... What are you going to do to make it count? 

"Family comes first, second, and third... your team should be considered family" -BuddhaBlog

I will not stop

I will not give up

I will not settle

And neither should you