Guest Post by Lee B.

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Symbolic. Ironic. I had been teaching three-syllable words with the /ik/ sound to my reading group when I subconsciously pulled these examples for them to decode. Upon discussing the meanings of the terms, something hit me. My recent past could be summed up by these words; my eyes went wide at the realization.

Let me backtrack and paint you the gloomy picture.

I was pregnant, abandoned, alone and afraid. Years led up to this point in my life – I was supposed to be satisfied with this pregnancy that we had long worked toward, but life had thrown me some intense curve balls. Never had I anticipated that my life would become this: desolation and desperation. With pain and refusal to accept the truth, the pill remained stuck in my throat; it was too difficult to swallow my truth. There, it festered as a life grew inside me. Winter became spring and spring burnt into summer. I became a mother. I said “good-bye” to the green trees blowing in the wind and cried an ocean of tears as I headed inland, far inland, toward the arid desert. I hate the desert. I hated my life.

But it was in the desert that I rose from the ashes, in a place called Phoenix, no less. My soul, in pain and apprehensive began to open. My child became my focus and my selfishness dissipated into selflessness. Why did it take me so long to get here? In my dystopia, I vowed to make good my world, to provide for my child and my soul in ways that I had never done before. Without question, I began to trust that the universe had a plan for me. It was then that the doors began to open.

I was sent here, to this sandy landscape, away from all I’ve ever known, to be reborn. I found life in a landscape representative of death. Happiness and love began to overflow because I was finally open to them. Love was something I thought I understood, yet I was clueless. My child helped me to realize what love is capable of. Looking in the mirror, I realized that I, too, am deserving of love. With a new baby and battle scars, I began to appreciate myself – my mind, my soul and my body. My scars were indicative of pain but growth and strength. My heart became soft again as the scar tissue began to pump away, making one last circulation through my body before departing.

Thank you, life, for the wake-up call. I am now enlightened and finally LIVING. Torch in hand, I have conquered the mountain that stood before me. I have risen up toward the sun, where I can see and breathe, where I have found love, peace, and ultimately, happiness. Thank you, life, for reminding me, through your many tricky ways, to live.

Trish is off to Australia for a much needed vacation with her man slice.  

In the meantime, your doses of gratitude will come straight from some spectacular guest authors. Some you've met before, and some will be making their TGL debut. 
 
Can't wait to see what they have to share...

Sweet treats from some sweet Weeblies: coffee and a caramel waffle that heats up over your cup! Delicious. Thanks, fellas :)

• Ya know....
  
• Folks often confess their jealousy over our office dynamics and the benefits that come along with how well we get along and create together.
• Folks also confess, bluntly, they wish they worked for Weebly (or a company like us).
  
• To them I say: That which you manifest, lies ahead.
• And I fully admit:
  
• It's so nice to be supported and encouraged by your coworkers.
  
• It's even nicer to genuinely call them  your friends.
• (sometimes, they drive me nuts).
• But that's how it is with family, I suppose.

Trip photos to come!

In Gratitude,

Trish

A few moments ago, my plane from Oakland, California to Maui, HI took off over the unusually clear skies of San Francisco. With sweeping cities views below us (I spotted my apartment building!) and a shining sun above, half of team Weebly and I began our adventure to paradise.

As the plane ascended higher above the clouds and Kui, our sweet Hawaiian flight attendant, shared my excitement for the beautiful view of the Golden Gate Bridge we spotted out the window, the only thing I could think was:

I can’t believe this is my life.

But it is. It’s very much my life; real and truly all happening.

As I type this post my sweet and playful B is seated next to me, book in one hand (100 Things Phillies Fans Should Know Before They Die, naturally), the other placed gingerly on my thigh. My friends and coworkers, who have become a part of my west coast family, are settling into their respective seats; swapping smiles of excitement and anticipation.

I am so thankful to be going on this trip. I am in absolute awe and wonder of the simple reality that this is an amazing, special and generous opportunity.  And I get to share it with some of my favorite people, including a man who has brought love and light back into my heart; a man who has filled my days with belly aching laughter for almost the past year.

Folks often ask me about how I ended up in such a unique life scenario, most specifically my current job as a Joyologist (which you can read about here) and I think if I had to break it down into a simple equation of “success” it would look something like this:

One part dreaming + One part affirming + One part action = A whole lot of amazing.

Take this company trip to Hawaii, for example. The dreaming started at a work happy hour—just a small group of start-up kids, asking their boss if he’d ever consider taking us on a trip as a reward for hitting certain goals. The affirming started when we continuously brought it up (bordering on annoying), affirmed that we could definitely make it happen and remained steadfast in the belief of deserving it. And the action part was centered around all of the hard work each Weebly puts in every day; their commitment to our team, our goals and our brand.

A year later, and we are mid-flight. Destination: four days of fun in the sun.

(It doesn’t hurt that we also have 3 Founders who genuinely believe in their team and treat them more like family than employees).

When I first started this blog 2 years ago I went into the commitment of writing with the intention of being deeply focused on gratitude. At the time (if I may be blunt)—my life was kinda messy. Or perhaps not so much messy as not quite how I’d pictured it just a few years prior. There were so many questions and transitions, doubts and regrets swirling around me I sometimes didn’t know which end was up. But despite a lot of anxious moments, a piece of my soul always knew that in gratitude was a good place for me to start anew; that it was a good place for me to become rooted, so that eventually my spirit could grow and flourish in ways I could not have imagined.

My friends:

Keep dreaming.

Keep affirming.

Keep trying.

And keep a sense of wonder, always. Allow yourself to be so present in a moment that you become one with it—a seamless connection and flow of life, light and love.

Hold me accountable for the same, OK?

In Gratitude,

Trish

So far, so good.

The Weeblies are off to Maui tomorrow morning! This is a great opportunity for our team to relax, rest and enjoy eachother's company in a beautiful (understatement of the year?) setting. It's also a chance for inspiration, motivation and a little sun worshiping (...under layers of SPF 30, of course).

Enjoy the next few days and expect a few photos from me as the trip unravels :)

PS- Don't forget to vote again for my Pinterest board, if ya have a minute!

Mahalo,

Trish

A badass pup who paddle boards in Sausalito...and whose ears make her look like a bunny :)

Just a dose of cute I couldn't resist sharing!

This contest might have been a bad idea, I said to B. I feel like I'm embarrassing A for being so public and vocal on wanting to take her as my plus one if I win...I don't like competing with other girls who probably have never been to Costa Rica and I have so why should I get to go again....and I don't like feeling *annoyed* at these other girls that their content is all re-pins or pins of someone else's work, when my board is built entirely of original photos and writing from TGL. Gah! This isn't fun....

As you can see, the ol' ego has been up to its nasty tricks this weekend.

Learning you could vote once every 24 hours from now until February 27th also dampened my spirit a tad--I hated the idea of pestering my friends and family each day, reminding them to vote, vote, vote. Hey Jenny, how's it goin? Great, great...so...uh...like...did you vote today? Ugh. Yucko. Makes my skin crawl. I don't know how politicians do it.

This contest should be feeling like an honor and a compliment, but it was starting to feel like an awkward burden...after a whopping 3 days. No bueno.

So, after a bit of patient and honest reflection (read: a moment of shut up ego, let me hear myself) I realized at the heart of it I was simply feeling unworthy of this incredible trip opportunity and that while I was putting myself down and projecting insecurities on how folks would feel about me promoting myself, I should have been sending out gratitude for all the great people who have already voted for me. I should have been talking myself up, accepting props for even giving it a shot and trusting the process.

What will be, will be. Truly.

Seeing my friends and coworkers so joyfully high-five (or wi-five...get it? wireless high five? dork status accepted) me for being brave enough to enter makes my spirit feel huge. There's no need to be embarrassed about a little self promotion every now again...

...if we don't act as our own cheerleaders, who's to say anyone else will?

Thanks for the votes :)

In Gratitude,

Trish

My girl Dre is super badass...check out her Nike photo props on Instagram!!

Go, Dre, go!!! So proud of you :)

xo,

Trish

Hey Grateful Lifers!

I have a big favor to ask of you.

A few weeks ago I entered a contest hosted by the fabulous Jordan Reid of Ramshackle Glam and the folks over at VERA SaveLoveGive, a company that helps you optimize your wireless plan by reducing wireless waste, reusing everyday minutes and recycling the savings for a good cause.

The simple request was to create a Pinterest board that showcased saving, loving and giving. So, I pulled a couple posts from TGL, posted them on a board and....

...I'm a finalist! Pretty cool, huh?

If you have a minute to vote for my board on Facebook, I would deeply appreciate it: Vote!

The contest winner gets a trip to Costa Rica...which is crazy amazing and gives me butterflies in my stomach to think about.

Plus, while voting, you can enter yourself into a secondary contest to win a really cool prize pack.

Thank you again for the support. This blog means so much to me and your readership is what makes it particularly dear to my heart. You truly make my spirit feel big every single day.

Happy Friday!

In Gratitude,

Trish

It is rumored that Bob Marley's last words to his son, Ziggy, before passing away in 1981 were:

"Money can't buy life"

Although this may very well be one of those urban legends left behind to symbolically summarize a man and his message, the famed Rastafarian singer was certainly well known enough for these kind of sentiments that I like to believe it's true.

One of the solid truths about life is, simply, that it is fleeting. ("Nothing is certain but death and taxes.") When our time is up, it's up, and the reality is that we have little to no control over that timing...no matter how much money or stuff we may have accumulated (because yes, all of the richest riches in the world is just stuff at the end of the day...or at the end of our lives).

But I wonder: What if we changed our currency?

What if we looked at buying life in terms of exchanging not bills or coins, but love?

Can you imagine the wonderful things that would be brought into our lives if we actively chose love and kindness (including for ourselves!), above all else? How we would leave behind a mark on this planet, long after we've left it, far more valuable than any old tangible heirloom? Heck, if you think about it, love is the most eco-friendly and recyclable inheritance out there! What if we willed love to our family and friends, instead?

This Valentine's Day I encourage you to ask yourself (and maybe hum in the tune of the classic Marley song): Could you be love, and be loved? Can you give, send, spread love generously, wholly, authentically...can you be love in action? And can you open yourself up to allow love to come to you, as well? A kind of love without judgment or fear or stipulations? This is a key piece to the equation; the exchange part. Don't ever forget to take in real love, too.

Can you believe you are worthy of this? Because I sure think so.

So, I guess what I'm trying to say is; If we make love our currency, I'd argue we most certainly could not only "buy" life...

We'd be billionaires.

What do you think? Let's do business :)


Happy Valentine's Day, loves bugs.


In Gratitude,

Trish