Do you ever sit back and look at your life thinking ‘Wow, I have it all!’ The perfect partner, the perfect home, the perfect furry friend, the perfect life all wrapped up and topped with a beautiful bow of perfection…then BAM! Life throws you a curveball and all of a sudden your perfect life is swept right out from under your feet, leaving you with one thought ‘what the fluff just happened?!’ It’s crazy how much life can change in one year. Last year I was cooking Thanksgiving dinner for my boyfriends family and this year I find myself single, picking up of the pieces of my life, focused on turning something sour into something sweet. As sad as it is to admit, this is my reality. My perfect little world of perfection is no longer and for lack of a better phrase, it sucks! Now don’t get me wrong, I know life isn’t perfect but when you find beauty in life’s imperfections and you love them, to me, that’s as perfect as it gets.
Pretty deep for a first blog post, right? If I haven’t lost you already, stay with me, I promise there’s beauty at the end.
I don’t have any regrets in my life. I live each day with intention, to show kindness to others and lead with love (a lesson I learned from my dogs - more on this later). When life has given me obstacles, I always face them dead on - after I cry, and who I am kidding, cry some more. I’ve learned its better to face your fears, than to runaway. One of the beautiful things about life is that there is always a lesson to be learned, whether its good or bad, we can always learn something from every life event. We exhale the stuff that doesn’t serve us and we inhale the good, the nuts and bolts, the things that make us stronger, more resilient. This is one of life’s most unused features, embracing our struggles, reminding ourselves that our faith is stronger than our fear.
For the record, I’m certainly not sitting here claiming to be an expert on life, BUT…let me tell you, I’ve had more than my share of life challenges. I am a survivor. Yet, here I am again, heartbroken, bank account broken, have I mentioned heartbroken. I could choose to wallow in my sadness or I can choose to channel my energy into something that matters, something I’m passionate about and something I love. At this point, I have nothing to lose, so why not go after my dreams. Why not start a dog photography business? And for the love of dog, why not blog about them too? My fearful side could argue ‘I’m broke and lonely, this isn’t the right time to start a business.’ But, my faithful side would counter ‘there’s no start up costs, I already own a camera and my words are free.’ So why not go for it? The only thing that would hold me back is fear and I decided a long time ago that fear will not come between me and my happiness.
These days I find happiness in my two goldendoodles, Vito and Luca. If you’re reading this because you’re fans of my boys, then first I want to say thank you for loving them and all your support. Second, you probably already know I love dogs. Like, really, really, really love them. They are the most amazing beings our world has to offer. We can learn a lot from these furry angels if we pay attention…little lessons like to pick yourself up after you fall, remove judgment and accept people for who they are, to strut your stuff like your poo don’t stink, to live in the present moment and love unconditionally. I feel blessed to have not one, but two dogs in my life. These boys have lifted my spirits over the past four months and remind me everyday that I am loved. They are my motivation to venture into social media influencing. They are my muse to step into dog photography, They are my inspiration to blog. They are my reason why. Since it’s just the three of us now, taking care of them is my priority. Everything I do, I do it for Vito and Luca. I don’t need much in my life to make me happy, it truly is the simple things which brings a smile to my face. I learned to be content with the bare minimum years ago. As long as I can provide for my boys, I know my life will always be filled with joy and richer than Jeff Bezos, because it runs on love.
So yeah, my perfect little world might be a bit sour at the moment, but I know the secret to balancing it out. I’m gathering up all of life’s sweet moments, the little gifts I receive each day and I’m going to rebuild. Some days might be bitter, but my faithful side knows the possibility of living a perfect little life again is within reach. I invite you to join me on this new adventure and follow along as I share dog tips, recipes and beautiful photos of people’s best friend - Dogs!
