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talktodiana

~ Igniting the power and passion in others…

talktodiana

Tag Archives: honesty

Vulnerability

02 Sunday Oct 2016

Posted by dianasschwenk in Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, In My Opinion

≈ 40 Comments

Tags

200 words, authentic, courage, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, division, family, Fear, friends, honesty, integrity, Life's like that, love, Relationships, struggles, true to yourself, Truth, vulnerability

outings3

“The marks humans leave are too often scars.”

John Green, The Fault in Our Stars

I have this thing I want to share with you. I’m not particularly proud of it, but I’ve learned so much about myself because of it. But I’m afraid to tell you. I’m afraid you will leave me. I’m afraid you won’t want to be in my life anymore. I’m afraid you won’t look at me in the same way.

We’ve all felt this way at some point with someone, whether it was a lover, a parent, a child, a sibling, or a friend. But sharing whatever it was came with the threat of losing the other. And not sharing came with the threat of losing honesty between us and the laying of the first brick of a wall that will eventually divide us.

It’s no wonder we struggle with vulnerability. It can hurt us, and most probably will. After all the root of vulnerable comes from vulnera which is Latin for “to wound.”

Yet if I am not honest about who I am and you are not honest about who you are, do we even really have a relationship?

~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

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What To Do When You’re Wrong

01 Sunday May 2016

Posted by dianasschwenk in Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, In My Opinion

≈ 26 Comments

Tags

200 words, being right, common sense, courage, defensiveness, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, forgiveness, growing up, health, honesty, humility, I'm sorry, integrity, kindness, lies, life, mistakes, peace, Truth, wrong

egg in face

“Swallow your pride occasionally… it’s non-fattening!” ~Unknown

Upon the realization that you were wrong, you could continue to argue your point and hope that the individual who is right will just give up.

Or when it dawns on you that your neglect or malicious actions have done another harm, you could just continue to act as if you harmed no one, as if you are free from blame, as if it is the harmed one who is to blame, the one who ruined everything.

You could that, and maybe others will believe you, but you won’t find lasting peace that way.

Why not acknowledge the egg on your face. Own up to what you’ve done. Eat crow if you must. Lay in the bed you’ve made. Pay the piper. Take your licks.

You aren’t the first human to mess up, and you won’t be the last. I mean it’s not like everybody doesn’t already know. Your denial doesn’t make it go away.

So say sorry when you’re wrong. Seek forgiveness. Make amends if you can. And if there’s a price to pay for what you did, then pay it.

Swallow your pride occasionally…it’s non fattening!

~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

What Kind of Giver are You?

28 Sunday Feb 2016

Posted by dianasschwenk in Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, In My Opinion

≈ 33 Comments

Tags

200 words, authentic, community, generosity, giving, honesty, integrity, love, motivation, scorekeeper, true to yourself

'I knew this would happen. The scorekeeper and time-clock official have been throwing elbows and talking trash the entire game.'

Teach us to give and not to count the cost. ~Saint Ignatius

I ADMIT IT. I’VE ALWAYS BEEN a bit of a scorekeeper. I don’t like that about myself. But it’s true.

To be fair, I used to be way worse. I’d like to think I’ve grown as a person during the half century I’ve been on earth. And really, I mostly keep score when I feel indebted to someone.

You know, as in ‘you paid for breakfast last time so I can’t sleep peacefully until I buy you breakfast and then we’re even,’ kind of way?

But the concept that I might keep score, especially when I begin to feel as though I’m always giving and someone else is always taking, is not a foreign one to me either.

So what is my motivation for giving?

Don’t get me wrong, sometimes when I give, it’s from a place of love and compassion. But when I give because I feel indebted, or I give because I expect my giving will be reciprocated, can that truly be called giving?

When I give, I want to give without counting the cost.

~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

What kind of giver are you?

Dear Would-Be Prime Ministers of Canada

05 Wednesday Aug 2015

Posted by dianasschwenk in Hump Day Chronicles, In My Opinion

≈ 31 Comments

Tags

Canada, courage, Diana Schwenk, enviromental issues, fear mongering, Government of Canada, hair styles, healthcare, honesty, Hump Day Chronicles, integrity, Justin Trudeau, peace, politics, Prime Minister, rant, renewable energy, Stephen Harper, Tom Mulcair, war, world issues

Canada-sparklers

AND SO A FEDERAL ELECTION has been called…

I could go on and on about income splitting, Marijuana legalization, minimum wage increases, Trudeau’s pretty hair, Harper’s Helmut hair, or how most of Mulcair’s hair is on his face.

Or I could rant about the Keystone Pipeline, the Northern Gateway Pipeline or the one going through Quebec.

Moraine-Lake-canada-9727405-1024-768

I could write an essay about election advertising spending, retroactive laws, sneaky omnibus bills, freedom of speech for scientists, crooks in the Senate and who knows where else, fear mongering, Americanism, dragging Canadians into wars we have no business being in, bringing it to our doorstep and then pooh poohing all over our service men and women when they come home.

I could regale you with my thoughts on putting all our eggs into the Oil & Gas basket; a finite resource by the way (and the production thereof IS causing serious illnesses in Canadians and causing damage to our environment – that’s not even an arguable point anymore), without putting the same effort into developing alternative, or better yet, renewable energy.

images286AZ4XYI could point out that the trickle down theory is not working, that the poor are getting poorer, that the deaths of many aboriginal women continues to be swept under the rug, that our healthcare system is in huge trouble, the blatant disregard for our privacy and basic rights and how they are slowly being taken away from us; like putting a frog into a pot of water and gradually raising the heat, that by the time I retire, I’ll have a puny pension, my daughter won’t have one at all – all while you make sure that you have one, that my grandchildren may never know what a clean body of water looks like and my great-grandchildren will never see nature as I know it today.

I am angry. I have been angry for a long time about these and many other issues, but I’m not going to go there.  And I’m not going to buy into that bullshit that my voice means nothing anymore; that the government is a well-oiled machine that will just keep going like a bulldozer crushing everything in its path, regardless of opposition.

Instead, I’m going to shoot for the moon. I’m going to call you back to the basics would-be Prime Ministers.

I’m going to hold you accountable. You still work for the people, don’t you? Well I’m one of the people.

It’s time to break it down and build it up again.

Because I don’t think the government works anymore. I don’t believe in you anymore. I don’t trust you. I don’t think you remember the definition of democracy.

But go ahead and prove me wrong.

Make me believe you care about Canadians, all Canadians – present and future.

And here’s some little bonus tips for you. I’m not going to vote for the party that:

  • has the best commercials, in spite of what your polls, focus groups and publicists tell you
  • tells me who I shouldn’t vote for based on trivial grooming observations
  • asks me to stand with them, without telling me why I should
  • uses fear-mongering, bullying tactics or says that the loss of my privacy is for my own good
  • acts the most American
  • only cares about how they look and succeed in the short-term, while they’re in power, without considering future generations

*And don’t bother conducting a poll on the above mentioned items, I’m pretty sure I’m not alone in this.

Sincerely a weary Canadian, Diana Schwenk of Calgary, Alberta

~ HUMP DAY CHRONICLES ~

There are standards to which government, religion and higher education should be held. There are examples that politicians and principled businesspeople should endeavor to set, regardless of whether their peers are making that effort. There’s right and wrong, not just better or worse.

And there’s a word for recognizing and rising to that: leadership. We could use more of it. ~ NY Times, Weary of Relativity, May 23, 2015.

What We Can Find Again

02 Sunday Aug 2015

Posted by dianasschwenk in Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, In My Opinion

≈ 50 Comments

Tags

200 words, caring, children, community, compassion, courage, curiosity, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, growing up, honesty, integrity, kids, life, living in the moment, world issues

DSC_6036

Listen with curiosity. Speak with honesty. Act with integrity. ~ Roy Bennett

As soon as I read today’s quote, it made me think of children and how they take in the world with such awe and curiosity.

From the moment Michaela could string a sentence together, she began to question everything.

I can still see her big round eyes looking at me as she carefully listened to my answers. And if she still did not understand, she asked more questions!

What I loved the most is when she finally understood an answer to a question like why are some kids starving for example; she was not satisfied with because-that’s-the-way-it-is answers and would call it what she believed it was – STUPID.

As we transition from childhood to adulthood we lose something important that changes how we view the world.

Maybe we put blinders on so we can cope.

Maybe we’re told so often that we can’t fix something, that we start to believe it.

Maybe other things that affect us directly just take priority and we reason away our responsibility to others.

~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

It’s amazing what you can find again by just watching a child.

You Are So Much More Than That

08 Sunday Jun 2014

Posted by dianasschwenk in Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, In My Opinion

≈ 37 Comments

Tags

200 words, beauty, daughters, Diana Schwenk, empowering, encourage, generosity, good character, helpful, honesty, image, integrity, kids, kindness, life, love, miracle, self-worth, teens, true to yourself, Who I am

Always remember–you are a fine piece of china. Don’t let anyone treat you like a paper plate. ~ Naomi Campbell

Michaela in the mirror

Michaela in the mirror

MAYBE IT’S BECAUSE I was a teenager once, or maybe it’s because I raised a daughter…

…but when I read this quote I thought of women and how we compare ourselves to impossible ideals.

When you look into a mirror, what do you see?

Are your eyes too close together? Too small? Do you have uneven skin tone? Are your teeth crooked? Too yellow? Is your nose too big? Are your lips to thin?

If I looked at you, I’m sure I would see beauty. But you are so much more than that.

When you look inside your heart, what do you see?

Are you true to your word? Are you kind? Are you gentle? Are you motivated by love? Are you mindful of others? Are you helpful? Generous?

You are worthy of respect. You bring value to this world. You are a glorious miracle.

Don’t let anyone ever tell you different.

~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

 Are you a fine piece of china or are you a paper plate?

Caught Off Guard and Unprepared

11 Wednesday Dec 2013

Posted by dianasschwenk in Hump Day Chronicles, In My Opinion

≈ 31 Comments

Tags

accountability, Diana Schwenk, excuse, honesty, Hump Day Chronicles, lazy, procrastination, responsibility, slacker, Truth, writing

untitledWell… unprepared – yes. Caught off guard? Not so much.

I mean it’s Wednesday. Wednesdays I write my Hump Day Chronicle post. Been doing that for a year.

So there’s nothing ‘caught off guard’  about it!

It’s my own fault. I knew Wednesday was coming, but every time I thought I should at least have a subject in mind, I just said nah and did something else.

Here’s the weird thing about that. I love writing these posts. I love that moment when I get an idea. Sometimes I get so excited I yell out YEAH and run to the desk to boot up my laptop so I can type my thoughts before they fly out the window. Sometimes I grab a pen and paper while the computer boots up (It’s so s-l-o-w) so I can capture the words even sooner!

It’s more typical for me to be writing a post and miss a dentist appointment, or forget to brush my teeth, or forget to eat, or forget to go to the bathroom.

So I don’t know what happened this time. I don’t know why I didn’t ‘get on it’  – I knew it was coming and did nothing. What can I say?

I can’t be the only slacker though. What aren’t you doing?

~ HUMP DAY CHRONICLES ~

Talk to Diana


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