Brighten up your world

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 13th November 2019

As someone who likes to see the practical side of things, connecting with the beauty of the Universe (in my mind) is just simply about aligning to our authentic, loving selves, nothing more, nothing less.

When I am connected to my own heart energy through my thoughts, actions and beliefs, I feel supported and guided in the right direction towards the path that is meant for me. Everyone is unique so we all have our individual stories and paths we are supposed to take too which gives us that feeling of purpose.

Listening to my intuition and being connected with my desires allows me to see myself in a brighter, more authentic light, and gives me the insight and opportunity to make a difference in the world, that space, that opportunity for creativity, which allows me to feel the light within me. With this loving presence around me, through heightening my self-awareness and faith in myself, I feel inspired to take the action and risks needed to bring about new, exciting opportunities to help me become the inspiration I want to become and create that life of my dreams. Even if there are obstacles and challenges that might get in the way!!!

What makes you feel inspired? What colours could you add to your life that will help you live in the way you dream about?

What difference could you make in this world to yourself and those around you?  Every little action counts – make your everyday life more meaningful and live with purpose! Life feels so much better this way…

Where do you think there could be opportunity for you to see or feel the light shining within you? Listen to your heart, what is it trying to tell you? Tap into that heart energy – it is very powerful!

Empower yourself (it’s never too late) and learn to live in joy, to feel abundant energy, spread light and bring magic and colour into other people’s lives, if not only for yourself, but also for those around you to help make the world a more beautiful, happy place to live in.

 

 

Kindness doesn’t cost a thing

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 23rd October 2019

I read the Smartest Giant in Town (by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffer) over the weekend to my little one and it really is such a really lovely, funny book for kids teaching them about kindness to others in need, gratitude and just being comfortable in your own skin.

It has a great “feel good” ending for the giant who was very unhappy at the beginning of the book about who he was and how he appeared, comparing himself to others and making himself feel like he had to look better than everyone else, but then seeing his happiness grow so much when he kept giving away a lot of his clothes to help others in need really highlights how it can make you feel when you show kindness to other people in everyday life.

Children’s books can contain inspiring messages that should be shared and taken on board also by parents and adults too as they relate to how they can too grow their mindset and improve the quality of their everyday life alongside the kids, or maybe you want to reminisce yourself as an adult and go buy those books you used to love reading as a child. Bring that childhood excitement, wonder and fun back into your life!

Although it can really uplift you to show lots of kindness, at the same time, it is important not to give so much that you end up feeling miserable yourself!

A very important lesson for us all ❤️

Let your life reflect your beauty within

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 6th October 2019

I saw “Judy” last night at the cinema…

I must admit I thought it was going to be much more uplifting than it was, and it unfortunately didn’t highlight many of the positive, fun areas of her life as I would have liked, and was very much focused on her drug and alcohol addiction and her troubled life, with some singing on the side.

Nevertheless, it did highlight how little she took care of herself, and didn’t feel able to ask for help.

She was beautiful as she was without having to take all those appetite suppressants and drugs she was made to take as a child to keep her energy up to perform….

Unfortunately, she had very little experience of being loved by those that were close to her that she didn’t know how to love and appreciate herself. It is a deep shame she wasn’t accepted as she was in her natural beauty ❤️

Obstacles are detours in the right direction

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 2nd October 2019

As Gabrielle Bernstein said in her book “The Universe has my back”… but are obstacles really a detour in the right direction?

Life is such a test. It is so hard in the moment when you are experiencing these obstacles to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and we always seem to question ourselves when we are experiencing hardships and struggles in life…. why does this have to happen to me, I don’t deserve this, life is unfair.

So many obstacles have come my way that are out of my control over the past month relating to my health and the health of those around me, the house, this leak, the next leak, the dishwasher and fridge packing in within the space of 24 hours etc, all just before the Jewish New Year starts and I think to myself, what on earth is going on here for all of this to happen at once?!?

All I do know is that as hard as it is, I have to fight with positivity, I have to make sure I am showing gratitude for what I do have, what is going right, so that I can bring even more back into my life again, more sunshine and miracles.

There is a difference between pretending to be fine, and being positive and making that choice within to minimise negativity in your life. Positivity can give us much more strength to get through the challenges we face each day. It is the proactive choice we can make to feed our souls with positive thoughts to help change our subconscious thoughts and beliefs to help us make better choices for ourselves which relate to our individual happiness and health which must be prioritised.

Each and every day we are alive is a miracle, we have to acknowledge each and every one – we won’t always be able to experience it again for sure. Nothing is certain once the day has ended until we move onto the next day.

Each day is a new opportunity to start afresh and find our way out of the darkness into the light, put a bit of sparkle into your day, or even just to shut your eyes and visualise that light shining into your life, in whatever form it comes to you best.

Go create your own light to feed your soul, create a gratitude list, whether in the morning and/ or when you go to bed. Even if it’s just 3 things. Think about all the things you have that you can appreciate right now…. just take that moment and be thankful.

What can you be grateful for right now?

Here are of just a few things I thought of this morning to be grateful for today:

• I am grateful to be alive, for all the energy I do have and for all my body parts that are functioning.

• I am grateful for all the love in my life, my amazing family, husband and children, and friends.

• I am grateful for the food we have to eat and the freezer that still works in the meantime.

• I am grateful for electricity and gas, that enables me to cook food, and keep me warm.

• I am grateful for the house I get to live in, especially now it’s wintertime, and for my nice warm bed I get to sleep in.

Happy New Year to those celebrating Jewish New Year! And for everyone else too, wishing you all a sweet new year ahead and lots of love, joy, good health, happiness and smiles to come ❤️

 

How much do you value yourself?

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 23rd September 2019

How many times do we say “thank you” to ourselves for who we are, what we have achieved and the struggles we have gotten past or battling in this present moment?

Think about what you might do to thank someone else if they show kindness to you… what would you do?

It’s really important to say “thank you” to yourself for all those things you have achieved in life that you may have taken for granted, all the little things you do that may be part of your daily routine, the simple things sometimes…

Another thing to bear in mind, aside from also the things you might do for your family and friends in your life, is of course all your unique qualities (strengths or weaknesses), gifts and talents. This is something you can be proud of and grateful for, which can help you to boost your energy, happiness and joy.

We should never take ourselves for granted, or anyone else for that matter too. We have all been brought into this world for a reason, and must share our gifts and our real authentic selves as much as possible to live our happiest life possible…

So there is no need to hide in the darkness… Don’t be afraid to step into the light.

Most of us have let others determine our own worth in the past (including myself), whether we think we are good enough or not, and this can really have an impact later on in life how much we value ourselves and our everyday happiness.

This doesn’t have to be the case – having a good sense of self-worth is really important and shouldn’t be ignored!!! Praise and gratitude (I realise now) doesn’t always have to come from someone else, it can come from within yourself especially if you make a habit of doing it – it really does help to make you feel stronger as a person too.

Don’t wait for others to appreciate you as it may never come or come in the way you expect it to – just because you put time and effort into something, it doesn’t mean it’ll be appreciated. So we just need to be grateful for what we have, make the best use of it and treat it with kindness and love.

Think about the kindness you give to others, turn it inwards and give it to yourself.

Learn the difference between what you are getting and what you deserve. YOU are W-O-R-T-H-Y of being appreciated and of the beauty life has to offer!!!

Are you listening to your body signals?

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 6th September 2019

I decided to re-read Chapter 7 of “The Universe has your Back” book today by Gabrielle Bernstein which talks about clearing the path for certainty to make room for what you desire, as I would like to start developing some healthier habits for myself after neglecting myself more than I would like during the school holidays… Though I did keep a few little habits going over the past 6 weeks, it just wasn’t enough, and not what my body and mind needed.

Time to get my energy back up again as best as I can whilst I have my littlest one still with me (my big kids are back at school) whilst he naps in the car or plays in the soft play area… whatever little chunk of time I can grab.

At the start of the new school year, and the end of a long summer holiday with all the kids, my body has been sending me strong signals that it has had enough, especially first thing this morning. I just felt so exhausted and in pain too. My body was crying out “Stop!!”….

I decided to listen really carefully to myself this time.

I realised that I urgently need to tune back into the energy of love. Like a radio station, our bodies also have a frequency which controls the experiences we have in our everyday lives. And in the same way we can tune into whatever radio frequency we like, we can do that with our bodies and minds if we choose to, which helps to keep our negative experience of life to a minimum. Though it doesn’t get rid of them completely. Fear has a funny way of getting to us sometimes, and we can still lose our way, our mojo, our lively spirit, get stressed, overwhelmed etc but the important thing is to get back up again to the place you feel happiest, enjoying life and feeling good in yourself.

I really must slow down and let my body recover somewhat. Aside from a couple of late nights recently, I have also lately been dipping a lot more into fear and negative self talk lately as I’ve had a stressful time potty training my toddler and just managing my kids generally over the summer holidays, plus also, the limited self-care I have given myself over the holidays has just tipped me over the edge and it’s taken a toll on my body and my energy. It’s just really hard work with three kids, more stressful, more to juggle, more food to cook, more clothes to wash, dishes to clean, the list goes on. But I push through it somehow in the best way I can as this is all I can do.

I also realise that I lost a little faith over the holidays too as I didn’t have so much time to focus on myself and my goals. So I have now made some positive decisions for myself, that involve the need to bring back my newfound faith in myself, and also to tune back into the energy of love and faith in the Universe as a whole. New beginnings are coming this month, especially for me as my littlest one is approaching the start date for his new nursery, life is full of change as it evolves and somehow, we have to learn to adapt to it all and embrace the future that lies ahead however imperfect it may look right now.

The important thing right now is that we regain that connection with ourselves, with our goals, our vision for the future, so that you can go and be that person right now instead of trying to search for the right time, the right moment. We have to trust that our plan for the future will happen as it is meant to happen at the right time, but in the meantime, it is important to tap into that energy of joy to be able to see more clearly, to feel more excited about what’s next to come, and make yourself a top priority in life.

Listen to your body, go and do what you need to do to get your energy and joy back up – self-care is absolutely necessary and a priority, not a luxury!!!

How connected do you really feel?

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 27th August 2019

As a mum and someone who is now living in an era where technology is just everywhere – even our central heating and lights can be controlled by the internet (very frustrating when the internet is down which happens occasionally), so it is very hard to escape technology completely. And so we have to make a conscious effort to switch off, otherwise like housework, it is relentless the amount of time you can spend surfing the web or using any kind of social media if you don’t discipline yourself to stop.

On one hand, it is amazing how we can connect with like minded people from all over the world in an instant, but on the other hand, we can find ourselves easily lost in the world of the internet if we are not careful and forget about what it’s actually like to have human connection in your life.

Having easy access to technology can really make you think you are well connected but in fact, it’s not always the connection we really need as a human being. It’s not easy being a mum, as there is a lot of time spent alone in your own company working around the restricted time frame of school hours or holiday camps, or maybe you are waiting for the time the kids are in bed before you can connect with friends whether by phone or getting out of the house and interacting face to face with them. Maybe you have a baby or toddler like me who at this stage, don’t know many people with little ones the same age as my toddler, and need to entertain your child on your own and manage them all day long, all the highs and lows included. It is really hard on your sanity, and so there is such a constant need to relax and uplift, plus you do have to become more picky about which battles to fight and which to let go of. I realise that over the years as a mum, I have really missed simple old-fashioned human connection, the adult conversation, the mental stimulation and laughs to help me get through my day.

This is why I decided to run a weekly Summer Karaoke club during the school holidays (which are normally so very intense), as aside from helping to relieve my stress, I wanted to make live human connections with friends and like minded people who can feed off each other’s energy, fulfil a sense of belonging, and just release any tension and have some fun and sing without fear of being judged in a really warm environment and in small groups which are always nice too. And even though not everyone knows each other, we all get along well as we can share our own experiences of motherhood, let off some steam, and just get lost in the moment, and sing along and dance to our favourite tunes in our own private room.

Don’t let your human connections slide and technology control your life and relationships (it is very easily done as it is so addictive)…. Instead, take whatever action necessary to deepen your connections with real people too away from the distraction of technology, and focus on the task or activity or hobby you are doing one at a time wherever possible, and more importantly, enjoy the moment. It is these little mindful habits and moments we can create for ourselves that help determine the focus of our lives and help you to shine a light on each day.

How can you lose yourself in the moment, and form better connections with yourself and/or other people in the world around you?

Be kind to yourself

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 9th August 2019

Time and time again, I hear many women speak so negatively about themselves, and comparing themselves to others, in a way you wouldn’t talk to other people, and it niggles me – I do it too sometimes. Why do we do this??!

Our self-talk is so important – it really does affect how you feel as a person the words you speak about yourself… It really does become your reality if you then go and strongly believe those words are true and speak these words in real life… Go and be the amazing person you want to be and don’t let your mind talk you out of it!!!!!!

Fill your mind with positive words, with all who you want to be, all the nice things, every day, and fill your hearts with more love for yourself with some or all those things you say you never have time to do or put off for whatever reason, make regular time in your diary, in your life, for self-care, otherwise what can you project to the world outside…

You are worthy of feeling your very best – go out and do more of those things that make you feel amazing and you will start to feel better in yourself, about who you are as the unique person that you are.

Everything you do, practice it consistently as much as you can, slot it in your diary, your routine, your life – that’s the key. It’s hard to be perfect all the time, I do have off days, I do treat myself too, but the trick is to acknowledge how you are feeling, what your body needs, and more importantly, what you are worth so you can get back on track again soon afterwards.

Sing and shine

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 28th July 2019

When we get excited and have fun, it allows us to access a brighter part of ourselves and it brings us a sense of newfound both mental and physical energy, and especially if you are consistent with doing what lights you up inside.

Consistency is key, building fun habits as well as those more mundane ones into your life. Therefore, excitement can be in essence our guide to bringing more happiness into our lives on a regular basis if we let ourselves feel that feeling.

Have you ever thought about what your purpose in life is? It’s not just about what you do work-wise (if this is something that excites you), it’s something that you can think about to cover all other areas of your life too. Of course we interact differently with different kinds of people but we can show up as a whole as one kind of person and take control of how we want to feel in life, which’ll ultimately come across in the way we behave with ourselves and to others in the outside world.

Singing can really make a difference if you make it part of your daily or weekly routine – you can do it anywhere, anytime. There is much more opportunity now to have music surround you in life wherever you are, what with access to YouTube on our phones and Bluetooth too… You can use those spare tedious moments effectively by including music into your life to uplift and de-stress you.

Singing has been such an important part of my journey in improving my energy, growing my mindset, motivating and empowering me, making me feel good, and more importantly increasing the flow of joy and happiness into my life.

So let excitement be your guide – never lose your childlike spirit!

Sail away from the safe harbour

Posted by: Sara Benveniste Posted on: 19th July 2019

Mark Twain was right. There’s so much more to discover about ourselves when we start exploring within our very own selves that we never even knew existed.

A year ago, I never knew I would be writing regular blogs, actually produce the content for most of my book, and get as inspired as I have done with all forms of music – it has played such a big role in my life fulfilling lots of different purposes.

Life is so full of stress, overwhelm, obstacles and challenges, and so it is crucial that we must look within ourselves when we come across and have to face any one of life’s challenges. It’s important to learn to find the opportunities to learn something new and pull something positive from each one of these experiences even if it is a negative experience. Push past those barriers, have more faith in yourself, take the plunge, each and every day of your life is valuable – we mustn’t waste a moment.

Sometimes I don’t always know if I am heading in the right direction (it can be difficult to know for sure), but I do have to just trust my intuition as I go along, that gut feeling inside, that I am taking the steps that are right for me and the path I am heading towards, my goals and ambitions. My future. And your’s too.

It’s important to remember that it’s your road and your’s alone – other people can walk it with you but can never walk it for you, which is why it’s so important to empower ourselves to live our best lives through connecting to ourselves, our needs and passions to get the best out of life. No one else can know this better than us.

If time, money or even children weren’t an issue, what would you want to pursue in life? What are your ambitions, what do you dream of? Open your heart, eyes and mind… see what comes up.

We have to give ourselves the mental space to breathe and think about what these even are. When we go from one task to another without stopping, it’s hard sometimes to know what you want from life as there’s not much time to think about it all.

Dedicate a little time in each day to think about this, find a little activity that you could do regularly that would start helping you to build those blocks towards that thing you dream of – and include it as a regular, routine part of your life. Routine doesn’t have to be boring!

Don’t let mental blocks control you. Use them as an opportunity to grow, feel more freedom to be yourself and ultimately start to see yourself in your true colours.