Monthly Archives: January 2015

The Love Song

Never Fade by Jack Johnson

“It feels good to be the one that you want – when all I want is you.” If I could write a love song to myself, this would be it. We all fall in love with ourselves at some point in life. Maybe it’s that we are proud of our accomplishments. Maybe it was obvious when we moved to another place and could see ourselves against the blank canvas. Maybe a break up revealed who we were and we were happy to finally see this without the other person.

Choose to Fall in Love with Yourself! Maryland, 2015

But, yes, it feels good to be the one that we want to be. In the back of our minds, we have a picture of who we are and who we want to become. Along the way, our choices and actions begin to reveal a clearer image of the picture that is hiding in the back of our minds.

Jack Johnson "From Here to Now to You" — Jack Johnson “From Here to Now to You”

I was just recently shuffling the iPod around and came across this song. A lover of Jack Johnson and the ocean, I began to fall down the rabbit hole of my life. As I fell, I saw the most beautiful visions of my past and present that have formed me. Much of my memory is filled with different versions of sunsets, sand, and running along the water. As I relived one of my favorite moments, sitting on the sand flicking shells and watching a picturesque sailboat go by, I could see that to every grain of sand this melody of Diane has continued to sing along.

I began to sing Jack Johnson’s “Never Fade” to myself, and what once seemed a love song that I wanted to share with someone else, became the love song to myself. I felt myself craving every piece of the melody all for only me. This made me laugh, because one of my Aunt Margie’s favorite lines about the nature of the Contreras’ is “it’s all about me” – well there you go. I sang this song to myself as if I was playing the guitar on stage and looking out at the crowd. I could see everyone’s happiness as they watched me close my eyes and fade out the syllables to myself.

Song of My Heart, National Shrine in D.C.

Like the crowd, we are truly happy for others when they embrace who they are and share it with the world. But, it is an even more amazing feeling to be on the other end. To the ones singing to ourselves – we are in a heavenly state of feeling all of the dots connect and truly giving thanks to God and to ourselves for believing in one another.

In Steve Jobs’ commencement speech at Stanford a few years back, he stated this in reference to his own spontaneous milestones of life,

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.”

Dots Connecting - Turns out St. Monica has been watching over me this whole time. (National Shrine) — Dots Connecting – Turns out St. Monica follows me wherever I go. (National Shrine)

I believe that as we become closer to God, we are actually falling more and more in love with ourselves. As we learn to love ourselves wholly, we naturally fade more into ourselves and to whom God calls us to be. The image of ourselves in the back of our minds becomes clearer as we look backwards at the dots connecting, and in that moment, we are pleased to see that simply BELIEVING and TRUSTING truly works.

Allow this to be a testament for you. At times we picture another person with us in our future or a breakthrough in our careers that leads us to complete success. But playing this life to our fullest potential is actually much more simple. Simply being aware of that image of ourselves in the back of our minds, is enough.

Trusting - National Shrine — National Shrine – a place of peace in trusting and believing.

St. Ireneaus tells us, “The Glory of God is man, fully alive.” So be it then. Allow the vision of yourself to become clearer through the moments of life and choices that you make. If it does not ignite the same feeling as the love story going on within yourself and in your heart, then without hesitation head towards the route that leads you back to that vision of yourself and trust.

Sometimes when I forget the image of myself, I turn to music. I allow the melody to take me where my mind and heart need to go. The world slips away and I am lost in the dream of who I am. Then, I see the waves again. I see the sailboat. I see myself, swimming without fear and without needing anything else in life but that truth in the vision and in the song. A feeling of weightless grace overwhelms me, and I trust that the next thing I do in that moment will be true to the love song written to myself.

Our Lady of Guadalupe - mysteriously always has flowers. (National Shrine) — Our Lady of Guadalupe – mysteriously always surrounded with flowers. (National Shrine)

“… cause our love can never fade – no our love will never fade …”

The one love that we know we can believe in completely is this love within ourselves. It comes from God and it pours out to others. When we ride that wave by ourselves according to our own love song, we inspire others to find their love song and stay true to it. We then attract those who want to ride alongside us – now that’s love.

"... it feels good to be the one that you want ... " — “It feels good to be the one, that you want.”

—————————————————————————————————————–

“Never Fade”

by: Jack Johnson

It feels good to be the one, that you want
When all I want is you

When I first saw you come across the room
And then you saw me, then I knew what to do
I tried to play it cool and attached no strings
But by the end oft he day, I needed the whole thing

It feels good to be the one, that you want
When all I want is you

You see I knew right then, that this could last so long
I went home that night, I wrote my first lovesong

And as the days went by, I knew I had it made
Well you could try to pretend, your smile gave it away

It feels good to be the one, that you want
When all I want is you

And It feels good to be the one, that you want
When all I want is you

And now here we are, how could we ever know
I knew I loved you then and I‘ve watched you grow
So it came to be, that I raised you and you raised me
We’re lucky that way, ‘cause our love can never fade

No our love can never fade yeah
Our love will never fade yeah
Our love can never fade yay

It feels good to be the one that you want,
When all I want is you, can never fade yay

When all I want is you, can never fade
All I want is you, can never fade

When all I want is you…

Positively True

January 9, 2015Uncategorizedcontreras.diane@gmail.com

The Winner Is . . . by Mychael Danna and DeVotchKa

(from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack “Little Miss Sunshine”)

1 Positive Attempt Against 10 Negative Ones - Little Miss Sunshine 2006 — 1 Positive Attempt Against 10 Negative Ones – Little Miss Sunshine 2006

There is only 1 way to look at this world . . .

. . . and that’s . . .

. . . POSITIVELY.

Let it sink in . . .

SNOW DAY!!! It's all how you look at it - Washington, D.C. — SNOW DAY!!! It’s all how you look at it – Washington, D.C. 2015

Let it bring back all the times that you have overcome life’s challenges . . .

Overcoming the 12 K's of Christmas - Georgetown 2014 — Overcoming the 12 K’s of Christmas – Georgetown 2014

Every. Single. Time.

YOU believed that YOU could overcome THAT challenge from the get-go.

Believing since the Starting Line - Georgetown 2014 — Believing Since the Starting Line – Georgetown 2014

And when you fell? Or cried? Or wanted out? There was someone close by who reeled you back in and reminded you of who you were and are to the core. There was a prayer that brought you back to your senses. There was a random phone call from a family member or a knock at the door. There was that perfect sunset that connected all the dots for you. There was a co-worker with wine and laughter.

I CHOOSE TO BELIEVE in every ounce of positivity in this world. Even in the most negative of times, I now see the positive. And most of that time that positivity brings out laughter! Excelsior! If you will! A concept from Silver Linings Playbook that cracks me up beyond cracks me up. A story of thanking God for a 5 out of 10, praying over bets and parlays, setting up the ju-ju just right, and in the end, finding peace in the ultimate silver lining: that some are certifiably crazy and the rest have not been certified yet.

Crazy Compatible - Silver Linings Playbook 2012 — Crazy Compatible – Silver Linings Playbook 2012

Then, Little Miss Sunshine. Oh my. An all time favorite, of which this score takes you through the ups and downs of the most dysfunctional family on the planet. In listening to the progression of keyboard, to piano, to rhythmically riveting snare drums, you can vividly visualize that horrific yellow van putting its way across the country with probably only 1 positive force out of 10 negative ones. Ironically, the father was a motivational speaker with no motivational fire. But his fist-clenching faith gets them to California where his chubby, little daughter will stick out like a sore thumb amongst the vanity of the pageant world for tots. And where is the silver lining? The silver lining happens to be just that. While following what seems to be an endless adventure, you are rooting for the daughter to fully embrace her little, chubby, genuine nature against the backdrop of mystically, tanned 7-year old tots, one a la mode at a time.

The positive part about thinking positively is that it turns into FAITH. When you choose to believe in positivity, you are choosing to believe – period. And belief, over time, becomes consistent, which then solidifies into FAITH. Just when you thought things couldn’t get more positive within the realm of positivity, it did.

Rockefeller, NYC for NYE - January 2015 — Just When You Thought . . . Rockefeller, NYC for NYE – January 2015

Therefore, when we believe in something, we internally have faith in it.

A dream. A vision. A job. A person. We can have faith in each of these consistently.

However, believing in people seems to be the biggest challenge of them all. We tend to have more faith in ourselves than in others. For example, when we want a particular job we get ignited with some kind of overly, positive flurry to make it happen to the point of jumping through networking hoops. There we are, hitting up old professors as if we never lost touch, striking up conversation with strangers in our work field, dropping in on a buzz-word slightly related to what we do: “ Yes! Education Reform!? Do you know so and so!?” We slap on some really great smiles and slide right into that program or position we wanted, the whole time on a high of belief in our gifts, talents and creatively-wired schmoozing skills. Never once did we doubt all the hoops we jumped through or stop to think that we weren’t going to get the gig. Our heart was set on it with some kind of positive force honing in on the position and visualizing ourselves already sitting in the desk chair. But, do we believe in others the way we believe in applying, what can only be described as the Roxbury Brother, High-Energy Networking & Schmoozing Technique? Do we have that instinctive inclination to believe without a doubt in our friends, our spouses, our parents, our siblings, our kids, our co-workers, our bosses, or even the students we are teaching? They could use a little Roxbury faith as well.

Just Surrender to Positivity & Belief - January 2015 — Roxbury Snow Angel – Washington, D.C. January 2015

Society has us thinking that believing in others is different from believing in ourselves. However, I would like to argue that in the end, it’s ALL the same thing; it’s ALL belief. Believing in ourselves is actually JUST AS HARD. The only difference is that we think we have the inside scoop since we can see into our own gifts and talents. Suddenly, this makes us think that we can’t believe in others because we do not know their potential. Well, sorry, we don’t 100% know ours either – we only try our best to visualize it and put belief into what we see and feel for ourselves. So why not do the same for others? Being blind to the ins and outs of someone else’s gifts and talents should actually inspire us to root for them all the more and pray for them constantly with no doubt in the back of our prayers – pure prayers of faith in that person.

Put the Purest of Prayers Out There - Washington, D.C. January 2015 — Put the Purest of Prayers Out There – Washington, D.C. January 2015

On top of thinking it’s pointless to pray or believe in others, we get sucked into the propaganda about TRUST. Do we trust other people? Society tells us not to trust certain people and to look out for Red Flags. Yes, true – don’t marry these ones and stranger danger of course. But let me tell you a little about trust. BELIEF COMES BEFORE TRUST. Belief builds trust. Belief helps others trust. When we believe in ourselves, we are able to trust ourselves and thus, we must believe in others in order to trust others. So, even trust stems from positivity. When we say, “I don’t trust her,” we have already initiated a negative block where we no longer attempt to believe in the person one bit.

Belief Before Trust - Washington, D.C. 2015 — Belief Before Trust – Washington, D.C. 2015

So, there you have it. Believing in people is actually on the same level as believing in ourselves. All we have to do is make the attempt to believe in the first place, which originates from thinking positively.

This world is full of people at all different stages in life. We give everyone negative labels from liar to selfish, from sociopath to psycho, from mental to lazy, and so on. Apparently it makes us feel good to compartmentalize everyone in the world. But, nothing feels better than having full faith in the person next to you and full faith in yourself – that is peace on Earth, right there! Doubting others only fuels more doubt. The same way the positivity can keep increasing within positivity, the negativity keeps increasing in negativity. We don’t always do it on purpose. Sometimes we are just hurt and stricken with shock that the world could “do such a thing to us.” But in actuality, we are swimming in the negativity for our own reasons. Imagine if we thought positively about one another a little more, then believed in one another a little more, and ultimately had faith in one another consistently? The world would have a lot less “liars” and “socios” wouldn’t it? – A world with no need for labeling in the first place.

A World without Labels - San Fran, December 2014 — A World without Labels – San Francisco, December 2014

A fun way to pull ourselves out of negativity is to find the truth in the negativity and recognize how hilarious it is. It’s actually hilarious that people can be so selfish and make such poor decisions that hurt others in contrast to being the positive, loving people we are called to be. When you think about it, negativity is just a high level of being ridiculous.

Grumpy Cat is one of the funniest things I’ve seen since John Belushi’s “Bad Luck of the Irish”. Both comedic catalysts point out the irony in negativity. It’s as if they pull out the truth from a negative statement, flip it around for all to see, then laugh directly at the societal truth. It’s a beautiful slap in the face to negativity – I love it. And THAT is how we must look at the world – as if there is a societal joke to be pulled out of every negative choice made.

I believe THIS is the age for finally being done with negativity – an age of Kale, Gluten Free Products, Streaming TV, Start Ups, Amazon Grocery Delivery and Parks and Recs. From food, to career, to TV we are positively transforming and squeezing out the negativity. So, I’d say it’s time to throw in the towel of negativity once and for all and take one giant step towards believing in others and ourselves completely and consistently. And when we pick up a doubtful thought or someone else inflicts a poor decision on us, we will put their face on a calendar, slap a witty slogan on it, and turn it into a year round document worth of laughter, jokes, and hilarity for all to reflect on. Cheers to pulling out the positivity, and believing in ourselves and others once again!

"The best part about snow is . . . " — THE BEST PART ABOUT SHOVELING SNOW IS! . . .

Set Sail Samba

Samba da Bencáo by Bebel Gilberto

(from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, “Eat Pray Love”)

The flow of energy in our lives is directly proportional to how much we trust God. Letting go is described in many ways. In my life, sometimes it means deviating from the lesson plans and allowing my intuition to guide the day according to what the kids need. I struggle to do this, thinking, “I don’t even agree with this way of teaching – this isn’t Ms. Contreras’ style!” But, it’s not about me. I am trained to help children and guide them. The best way to do that is to surrender to what they need, even if I do not agree with it. Sometimes the hardest concepts to surrender to are the ones in our own field of expertise.

What They Need . . . Ms. Contreras 2014 - 2015 Brookland D.C. — What They Need . . . Ms. Contreras 2014 – 2015 in Brookland D.C.

When we butt heads with ourselves, this is a sign that we are at odds with what God is asking us to do. As much as we want to resist and fight it, we know what the right answer is. We know we must let go of the strings on the marionette and let the puppet come to life.

Marionette Hair Gone Wild - Let Go! (Newport, CA 2014) — Marionette Hair Gone Wild – Let Go! (Newport, CA 2014)

Always One Step Ahead - Metro Life Maryland 2014 — Always One Step Ahead – Metro Life Maryland 2014

When the puppet comes to life, we realize that we have already created such a solid foundation, like when we overprepare because we are already one step ahead of ourselves. Take for example a night when you know you are going to go out with friends and come home late. Somehow, you managed to have everything ready for the next morning and extra money on the Metro card, just in case. This was all so necessary at one point, like when first stepping out into the world or let’s be real, in college. But, at a certain point in our lives we don’t need the overprotective version of ourselves anymore. That part of us needs to go. It’s time to cut ourselves loose from our own strings and balance on the strengths we now KNOW we have. This is what it means to have faith in ourselves. This is the essence of confidence. Having faith in ourselves is actually us just reaping the benefits of who we’ve become.

Play to Your Strengths - Maine Marathon 2014 — Play to Your Strengths – Maine Marathon 2014

I am a supreme multitasker and can pull anything together in a short amount of time, from a Christmas Play to a sweetly written academic paper. Some may call this winging it – I call it, faith in myself. I already know my strengths, and I choose to play to them. Letting my spirit run like a sailboat in the wind is the same as letting go of the battle with myself. I believe most of our anxiety stems from when we are controlling ourselves down to the very last hair follicle. Somewhere along the line, even though we did well in school, landed substantial jobs, and held down major responsibilities, we doubted how we got there. Hello!? YOU got YOURSELF there.

So, it’s time to stop scolding yourself by the elbow. It’s time to let the Samba take you to a land of sweet dreams and sweet fruit. There’s no need to doubt who you are anymore – you’ve already crossed the Finish Line. Enjoy the party and immerse yourself, in yourself! It’s like a vacation within YOU – it’s already paid for, so why are you trying to plan another vacation when you’re supposed to be enjoying the one you’re already on?

Finish Line Smile for Life - Santa Monica, CA 2014 — Finish Line Smile for Life – Santa Monica, CA 2014

I hope this allows you to set sail and let the wind guide the boat . . . you’ll know when to head in another direction. But for now, enjoy the view, then close your eyes, and let the wind take you where you need to go.

Set Sail for Life - Newport, CA 2014 — Set Sail for Life – Newport, CA 2014

We Are Love

January 5, 2015Uncategorizedcontreras.diane@gmail.com

No Regrets by Hans Zimmer

(from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, “It’s Complicated”)

In this fleeting moment... (Laguna Beach, CA) 2014 — “In this fleeting moment what extravagant respite as booming surf spears its mystical passage across the undreamed depths.” – Laguna Beach, December 2014

Love is magical . . .

. . . like the rain coming down when you least expect it; like the snow falling as if it just transformed from rain drop to snowflake right before your very eyes; like the brisk wind swooping in and filling your jacket up with hope and joy somehow from the inside-out; like the sunset slowly descending leaving only remnants in the sky of what was once lit.

Love is found within us.

We can ask for it any time. We can call it in to comfort us whether we are alone or surrounded by people. It is already there, in us, just waiting to be put to use.

My Mom, The Hummingbird, & I - Laguna, CA (December 2014) — My Mom, The Hummingbird, & I (Laguna Beach, CA) December 2014

Love already exists.

Simply closing our eyes and picturing our world of love and kindness, can make us feel more loved than any person can convince us of its power.

Deleware Memoral Bridge and its unspoken beauty ... January 2015 — Delaware Memorial Bridge and its unspoken beauty … January 2015

We forget that we were made from love. This is the case. When we believe and know this to be true, we are able to depend on it at any time – even in the darkest of times.

Saint Monica's in Santa Monica, CA. Radiating with love for all who enter. December 2014 — Saint Monica’s in Santa Monica, CA. Radiating with love for all who enter. December 2014

On my loneliest or saddest nights of my life, I have closed my eyes and asked God to show me what love truly is. Visions of me hiding under my parents sheets, hoping they’d never find me, followed by my Dad carrying me to bed while I was partially conscious, have proven my doubting heart of what love really looks and feels like. Visions have popped into my head of my brothers and I laughing together around the dining room table, imitating each other and finding warmth at the center of our jokes.

Contreras Casa - endless amounts of unconditional love. (December 2014) — Contreras Casa – endless amounts of unconditional love. (December 2014)

Visions are not our imagination – they are foundational parts of our lives either in the past, present, or the future. When we relive a memory and immerse ourselves in it we can feel everything that happened – the pain, joy, and flutter of other various emotions. But, there is nothing like reliving or creating visions of love.

Running helps you relive the most powerful visions - National Mall, D.C. (January 2014) — Running helps you relive the most powerful visions – National Mall, D.C. (January 2015)

We can remember these visions of love, find them in our present lives, or design them for the future. A song, such as the melody of this calm and hopeful score by Hans Zimmer, can help paint a vision of love. A candle, standing in the middle of the room emitting a beautiful aroma, can bring back from the dead the hope of the love you have inside.

The Capitol Building - it all started with a vision. January 2014, D.C. — The Capitol Building – it all started with a vision. Washington, D.C. (January 2014)

We constantly doubt about everything right in front of us, but what if we believed it all instead? Believing and knowing that we are made from love and that we can feel it and create it at any time, could be the one simple change in your life that puts your heart at ease. Believing otherwise would be an unnecessary internal battle, and a very stubborn one to say the least. This year, stop fighting yourself, and allow yourself to feel the love coming from your own soul . . . and soon you will see the love being extended to you from everything around you and all of the people in your life.

"Keep the visions coming," says the Capitol to the pedestrian. January 2014 — “Peace is in believing,” the Capitol said to the pedestrian. January 2015

Let the Ball Drop!

Maestro by Hans Zimmer

(from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack “The Holiday”)

Sometimes a song does not need words to inspire an unstoppable energy in us. Sometimes all it takes is a few chord progressions and a variance of methodically, racing, fluctuating sounds, as “Maestro” so does inflict. A creature of habit and repetition, I find that watching the same movies over and over and returning to specific songs that have been the soundtracks to my life, brings a new sense of clarity each time and a stronger foundation of truth that pieces together over time, thus helping me evolve into the person that I dream of becoming.

Running the C&O Channel in Georgetown to Clarify - December 2014 — Building Clarity along the C&O Channel in Georgetown’s 12 K’s of Christmas – December 2014

As I break and break each year, like a ceramic piece made with love, broken with love, and transformed again and again into whatever I choose to be, the masterpieces that are formed are new renditions of the earlier works of art. No matter how many times I am completely content with myself, I choose to break again. I choose to see what happens when I am challenged and forced to surrender more and more. Thus, the “-ing” in who we dream of “becoming” – it is a progressive, continual, ever-lasting joy that keeps the evolution flowing much like the build up of “Maestro” from piano to violin, ultimately leaving you with peace and love by the end of the song.

Peace and Love at San Fran's Pier 39, December 2014 — Peace and Love at San Fran’s Pier 39, December 2014

Nostalgic love for myself seems to build up until the glass is full, then, I choose to be dropped and shattered, only to find that I will become even more beautiful the next time. My favorite love stories of all time from Sleepless in Seattle to The Holiday happen to demonstrate the life of a protagonist who just simply cannot accept that reality is all there is. Somewhere in the protagonist, he or she believes in a more fulfilling version of what is right in front.

Beyond Reality at Embarcadero, San Fran - December 2014 — Beyond Reality at Embarcadero, San Fran – December 2014

Just the same, my ten seasons of F.R.I.E.N.D.S. prove this same notion of something, so ordinary, like how having a group of friends can actually be a more meaningful version of “I’ll Be There For You.” Without knowing it, the 6 friends meet in a coffee shop where their lives lead a rather pattern-like scheme of surface level jokes and unnecessary facial expressions – when in reality, they are each encouraging each other to be something beyond what they are in that moment.

My Parents, My Best Friends - Encouraging Me to See Beyond, Laguna Beach December 2014 — My Parents, My Best Friends, Encouraging Me to See Beyond – Laguna Beach December 2014

Each character is a masterpiece, surrendering to the changes and ages, breaking with every season as they evolve into Monica & Chandler, Ross & Rachel, and of course Joey and Phoebe. Rachel chooses a life beyond what her rich parents have laid out before her. Ross refuses to let his divorce get the best of him and embraces his role as a father. Monica dares to follow her innate skill of cooking rather than submit to the norm of the East-Coasting pressures of Long Island. Chandler finds comfort in his own jokes and discovers the depth behind his jester persona. Joey humbly depends on friendship and values their love to the max as he aspires to do the impossible and become an actor, in New York. Finally, Phoebe. She represents a character the writers so smoothly integrated into this piece – one of imagining a life beyond living in a box and being abandoned by her parents. All 6 were created and developed under the pretenses of our very own society and of our very own generation. Real stories hidden by the laugh factor, they can be watched over and over, time and time again as we break ourselves over and over, and time and time again, to be something more, to imagine something greater, to follow our hearts with deep trust, to submit to our dreams even when we think they are a joke. What was once an idea became a protagonist and what was once a thought became a Pilot Episode – and then they were watched continuously for all to embrace and ruminate over, somehow making it into endless amounts of small talk that then turned into real relationships and friendships.

Friends Via F.R.I.E.N.D.S. - San Clemente December 2014 — Friends for Life Via F.R.I.E.N.D.S. – San Clemente, December 2014

So the same happens in our tangible life lived, like a reoccurring movie or a show put into syndication and then continued onto Netflix – we are developing like a sketch made in the writing room. With a rapid energy of flowing ideas and intuitively spot-on jokes, we are revisiting older scenes in our lives and readjusting. We are brainstorming new scenes and crafting them to our liking. Then, just when we are happy with what we have created, we drop it and let it all shatter, only to re-craft an even better version of ourselves with more detail and attention the same way music evolves one decade at a time, the way new hit movies are put up on the big screen every Christmas, and the way fresh, comedic TV shows premiere, sucking you into another 10 Seasons of tears of laughter.

I hope we all drop the ball (pun intended) in that New Years Rockin’ Eve kind of way and let it hit the ground, counting down the moments that have made us who we are today and how they will change us for tomorrow.

Have Faith in Choosing to Bloom,

Yours Truly

Central Park, New York - December 2014 — Central Park – New Year’s Eve 2014

Bloomified

Inspired by My LA Marathon Playlist

Monthly Archives: January 2015

The Love Song

Positively True

Set Sail Samba

We Are Love

Let the Ball Drop!