December, Hope, and an Overdue Blog Update!

In all the hustle and bustle of work and writing for NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), I'm afraid I've somewhat neglected this blog over the past month. I'm really sorry for not blogging in a while but I will do my best to post more frequently over the next few weeks.

The good news is that NaNoWriMo is finished for the year! The bad news is that I've got an extensive editing job on my hands before I decide what to do with my newest work of fiction. I'm not going to lie, a part of me wants to tidy this one up and publish it because I think a lot people would identify with the content—even if, at times, the story makes for slightly uncomfortable reading!

Anyway, I have a lot of exciting blogs planned for the pre-Christmas run-up and I hope you'll enjoy them! There's gluten-free recipes, a list of the best festive films, ideas for Christmassy events, tales of festive frolics...and much more on the way to you so stay tuned!

Also, for anyone who wasn't following me last year, feel free to check out some of my old festive blogs: Top Ten Festive Quotes, Christmas Spirit: The Non-Boozy Kind, A Little Christmas Hope and Love and Christmas Magic.

In the mean time, though, I shall leave you with a festive quote and a little message of hope. Wherever you are, no matter how bleak things seem sometimes, there will always be a flicker of a flame which will help guide you out of that dark tunnel. That flame belongs inside of you and is your own inner strength. You're stronger than you think and you can achieve your dreams. Part of that strength is about remembering that you can ask for help, too—whether from friends, family, or by drawing on your own faith. Often the most successful people become that way from simply believing that they can do it. You can do it, too.

Happy December to all of my wonderful readers!

"Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas."

—Calvin Coolidge
F x

Funny and Happy Quotes to Raise a Smile

Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them, and you have their shoes.
―Frieda Norris


 The conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.
―Arthur Bloc


 Why do people say "no offense" when they're about to offend someone?
―Author Unknown

I laugh at myself. I don't take myself completely seriously. I think that's another quality that people have to hold on to... you have to laugh, especially at yourself.
 ―Madonna


The best way to treat obstacles is to use them as stepping-stones. Laugh at them, tread on them, and let them lead you to something better.
―Enid Blyton, Mr Galliano's Circus 

Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward.
―Kurt Vonnegut

Forgiveness is a funny thing. It warms the heart and cools the sting.
―William Arthur Ward

Age is just a number. It's totally irrelevant unless, of course, you happen to be a bottle of wine.
―Joan Collins

A Life of Regret or the Risk of a Sting?

Lately, I've been trying to follow my own advice and actively seek out my dreams. Dreams cannot be made into a reality if we only daydream about them every day, after all. To get anywhere, sometimes we need to be brave and take a leap of faith.

The problem, of course, comes when you take that leap of faith and everything falls apart. At the risk of being humiliated, I think it's fair to say that I've taken a few bold steps and done my absolute best these last few months to achieve my dreams. The issue still remains though and I feel further away from this dream than ever before―and more humiliated, too. Putting all of your cards on the table is a risky little thing to do and there is a part of me already regretting it. A wise person told me yesterday that they would do anything to make their dreams become a reality. They were quite right and you should follow your dreams...but I guess you should know when to stop, too.

At least I can honestly say I've done everything in my power now. It seems cruel that one can work so hard at achieving something and gain no ground at all. If a compromise or glimmer of hope could be given, it would be enough. Except that's not the way the world works―and that's okay. I've still done my best and I can hold my head up high. I didn't give in or give up; I kept trying to make things work. Maybe, in the end, I've been stronger than I ever dreamed.

I know I can be happy, no matter what happens, but building confidence in hope again is a tricky little project when everything seems to be driving in the opposite way. Thankfully, I'm scrappy enough to keep charging on even when the going gets tough. I'm not going to be afraid of stings, not when the only other option is to look back later in life and wonder if I could have done more. See, pain is temporary...but regret gnaws away at you if you let it.

The Christmas magic is still in the air. Perhaps things didn't quite work out for me on this particular occasion but there's still hope for you guys. Make it happen and be proactive. Actively seek out the future you want and make it happen. If other people in the world are finding happiness then there's no reason why you shouldn't be either. Live in hope and actively achieve your dreams.

It's your dream. Only you can make it a reality. Let go of any fear and expect the best for yourself.

Top 10 Inspirational Quotes

These are just some of the quotes that have helped to pick me up in the past when I've been flagging. I hope they inspire you just as much.

1. "I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence, but it comes from within. It is there all of the time."
―Anna Freud

2.  "In any project the important factor is your belief. Without belief, there can be no successful outcome."

―William James


3. "You must be the change you wish to see in the world."
 ―Gandhi

4. "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do, so throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore, Dream, Discover."
―Mark Twain 


5. "The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any."
 ―Alice Walker 


6. "In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure."
  ―Bill Cosby 

7. "So comes snow after fire, and even dragons have their endings."
―J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit


8. "It is never too late to be what you might have been."
 ―George Eliot 


9. "Hold fast to dreams,
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird,
That cannot fly."
―Langston Hughes

10.  "The greatest disease in the West today is not TB or leprosy; it is being unwanted, unloved, and uncared for. We can cure physical diseases with medicine, but the only cure for loneliness, despair, and hopelessness is love. There are many in the world who are dying for a piece of bread but there are many more dying for a little love. The poverty in the West is a different kind of poverty -- it is not only a poverty of loneliness but also of spirituality. There's a hunger for love, as there is a hunger for God."
― Mother Teresa