TURNBACKTUESDAY#18 From Scars to Stars

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TurnbackTuesday is a section of LovingSunshine.com dedicated to personal thoughts and other stories of inspiration, love and life that I share with you every week. TurnbackTuesday is scheduled every Tuesday, 11:30AM PH time. 

I have three (actually, now five) nasty scars on my left knee. Funny, every time I would scar my leg, it'd always be on the left leg. It's where my dog wounded the entire length of my thigh, and of course, it was on that leg's knee where I got an infected wound (my fault) that had to be operated while I was conscious.

I know, in a way, I'm still very blessed to live such a sheltered life, so today, I just want to share one of my favorite "old" photos because in this photo, I was clean off the scars that I have now. My chin was scar-free. My knees were scar-free. Life was simpler, but I had lessons to learn.

Photo above was a test-shot photo during one of our shoots back when I was still an editorial assistant of a local magazine. I was posing on a very nice biodegradable yoga mat by the way. :)

Today let me share three things I have to admit, I learned the hard way. I hope this sharing helps someone make sense of a certain confusion out there. Or at the very least, contribute to that ongoing school of thought that promote the universality of our emotions: love, loss, hunger, joy.

1. You shouldn't be too careful.
I think it goes without saying that it isn't healthy to be overly calculating and careful about everything. Life is best lived rough around the edges, I find. The scars I earned last year are definitely earned through carelessness but they gifted me with lessons that are as permanent as a tattooed piece of art.

Murphy's law--no matter how much you take care of the details, careful not to screw anything up, if something can go wrong, it will go wrong, usually in the worst way possible...

So let it go wrong should the water crack the walls you built up.

There is peace in resignation. There is calmness in doing your best (because you should always do your best when you decide to do something). Our actions aren't always about the perfection of our strides, they are most often than not, about the stride alone. If things go wrong, do what I do best, WING IT! :)

2. Be an active learner.
It's in our genetic makeup to make mistakes. The wrong turns and jerks we do, these are our casualties, a universal flaw we share with everyone--though we just experience and encounter the becoming of these flaws in different forms. With this, just imagine the possibilities of lessons for the picking if you only open yourself up to the idea of learning.

I always believed that a person who's too self-assured is doomed. Whatever craft you do, if you already think you're good at it (worse, if you think you're flawless at it) then you're setting yourself downhill. There's always something else, something new to learn and improve on.  Never be 'satisfied', but find satisfaction in whatever best you can deliver, in the moment. :)

3. Forgive.
yourself. For the things you failed to do, learn and become. Forgive yourself for the lapses and the shortcoming--forgive so you can emerge. Forgive and let go. You don't have to forget, but at least, let go and don't let the past pin you to a stagnated resignation.

In relation to celebrating happiness, let me share with you an event that would definitely put a huge smile on your face! Literally, this event would add more color, life and playfulness to your sparkling eyes... I'm talking about Majolica Majorca's Big Mascara Face-Off! :D

I would be joining the event at SM Makati, most likely on the 9th! So if you'd be there, I hope you would be, please do say hello! :)

Happiness is a choice--and is best shared!