You are astonishing

via A Cidade Branca

 

I wish I could show you when you are lonely or in darkness the astonishing light of your own being. - Hafiz

Skyscraper - and a lot of guts

So I know I'm a bit old for the current Disney generation, but I must say I'm super impressed by this song and am awestruck by the strength that comes with it.  Last year Demi Lovato (from the kids show, "Sonny with a Chance") seemed to have the world at her feet.  She was on a hit tv show, was singing and touring with the Jonas Brothers (including her ex, Joe Jonas) and her smile and fame were the envy of a million girls around the globe.  But cracks started to show late last year when there were reports that Demi had punched her friend and back-up dancer on tour.  Then the inevitable announcement: Demi was checking herself into rehab.  Another celebrity in rehab, and but, oh so very young.  But what emerged was a very real story of some very real problems that afflict teenagers and young adults all over the world.  Demi revealed that she was being treated for anorexia, bulimia, self-harm by cutting and bipolar disease.  What is incredible about this story is the way in which such a young girl who has dealt with so much, has been so open with her fans and with the public.  Of course, her story is just one of many young people battling with such issues at this very moment.  But her honesty and her determination to create a dialogue is inspiring.  What's just as inspiring, is her new single, Skyscraper, which when you know what she has been going through, gives goosebumps to watch...take a look above.

It speaks for itself

via l'elegance du herisson

Falling in..."mutual weirdness" - Dr. Suess

(Photo credit: found on vi.ualize.us.com, from http://iamblessed.tumblr.com/post/5656949449)

"And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while..." (or in the words of Bruno Mars)

 

A dentist friend recently remarked to me on a someone's bad teeth - teeth, he said, make the smile.  But what he said next was more to the point - a gorgeous smile is what makes someone truly beautiful.  As he pointed out a bunch of beautiful friends smiling in photos around my house, versus the pouting, unhappy models in the fashion magazines on my coffee table, I realised he's right.  As I think back to the few times a boy had told me that my "smile lit up a room" I can remember that sort of statement can be a true evocation of just how beautiful you think someone is - at least it's certainly true when I've thought it of others.  In practical terms, I've put it into practice over the last 5 years as I have transitioned from the "Nisha Blue Steel" (which elicited a lot of fun-making by my friends, but a professional photographer told me was a-ok!) in photos to the "Nish Big Smile".

                

On the flipside, it also made me think about some of the incredible friends I have who make me smile and laugh, laugh, laugh  in a stomach aching kind of way no matter what, no matter where.  That is definitely what makes life beautiful.  So embrace the jaw-breaking smile over the pout, and try your best to make someone else smile.

(Photo credits: my random photogrpahy, and my gorgeous, gorgeous friends.)



Love yourself

"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent."

~ Eleanor Roosevelt