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    Unity is a Choice…….

    We were born with no choices. We weren’t able to choose to be American, African, Asian, or any other nationality. We didn’t have the choice of hair, eye, or skin color. We couldn’t decide what sex we would be. We were just born how we were with what was given to us. As we grow, we get choices. We decide what we like and don’t like. We choose how we live our lives. We choose to attend school and be educated. We choose what job we will do for a living. We choose where we will live. Of course, life alters plans and we do what we can at where…

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    Dear Toni Tuesday……..

    Dear Toni, I have been trying to fulfill a dream for a couple of years now but it just isn’t happening. How long do you keep trying before you give up? Sincerely, R Dear R~ I give you kudos for following a dream and taking steps to achieve that goal. Good for you! Goals/dreams are very important to grow and achieving them is a wonderful feeling. Some dreams take a while to achieve. Some can wear us out. Do we continue and not give up or do we just say enough is enough. How much longer can I keep trying? Is this not meant to be? When to stop is…

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    Dear Toni Tuesday……..

    Dear Toni, There is so much happening in the world right now that is negative. The politics, protesting, fighting, racism, mass shootings, and so much more. It’s too much. It makes it hard to stay motivated. With so much bad, how can you focus on the good? T Dear T~ Very good question. I am going to answer this in two ways because I don’t know if you are asking me directly or in general. As for me… I focus on the positive as much as possible. I am also realistic which has caused me to be called negative. You can be positive but still see what’s going on around…

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    Positive or push over?

    I speak a lot about boosting others, helping yourself, rising above, and moving forward. I believe it’s important to find the positive in tough situations. I think being a good role in the world is a good thing to work towards. Even if it’s putting a quarter in a charity dish. I think walking away with your head held high is an asset most of us don’t have but should work on. I also believe that there are times when enough is enough. We try so hard to find peace in a chaotic world. We try to keep our mouths shut as not to offend others. We fight to keep…

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    Dear Toni Tuesday……

    Dear Toni, I’m so tired of working everyday to go nowhere. I can barely get by and I’m tired of scraping and working so hard. I just need a break. Any suggestions? T Dear T~ You may not like my response to this but ….. work! That’s all you can do. We need to work to survive and at time we are JUST surviving! It’s tough. Many people who make it big worked hard to get there. Many were below survival at the time. JK Rowling, who wrote the Harry Potter series, was broke, a single mom, and contemplating suicide. Now a billionaire. To make it more simple, a friend’s…

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    It’s No Accident

    “Wow! This world is crazy!” We are hearing this more often now days. With the political battles, the race division, the cop issues….. it just seems that more aggressive behavior is on the horizon. Not just in the United States, but with other countries around the earth. It seems there is so much anger. The media boasts on problems with our country and elected officials. It pushes division among race, leadership, and first responders. The environment feels tense. People seem to be acting irrational and appear to judge. People are convicted before even standing trial. Businesses cave to save face and their customers. Media is left to be untrue and…

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    Dear Toni Tuesday……..

      Dear Toni, I have been sick for years with COPD. I know it’s getting worse and the doctors say I have about 3 years at the most to live. I am scared because December showed me how quickly I would go. I am remembering less and less and it scares me to death to not remember my kids, grandkids, true love, high school or my marriages. Doctors say I won’t know a lot soon so I revised my will, updated my life insurance and will live! I know I am not ready to go so God’s Plan will just have to wait! ~J Dear J, I just lost a…

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    Dear Toni Tuesday…….

    Dear Toni, I have been passed up for a promotion two times now. I know I am doing a good job because my evaluations are always great. I don’t know why I keep getting passed. I am trying to stay positive but it is hard. How can I stay motivated to keep going? If I get passed up one more time I think it would devastate me. Thank you. Signed, W Dear W~ I am sorry you did not get promoted. That’s tough. I have been there a couple of times and it hurts. There are a couple of suggestions I have on this. The first one is to know…

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    It’s OK to say good-bye to more than just a year….

    Another year has been left in the past. We move forward to the new year and leave everything behind but memories. Some are good, some are bad. Some are happy, some are sad. Some are fabulous, some we wish didn’t happen. No year is perfect but some are pretty darn close. It seems as we get older, we appreciate our years. We also appreciate friendship and family even more. Drama gets a side kick and peace moves in. We grow into life teachers and get to a place where little things have more value of good and less stress. When each year passes we leave something behind. Pieces of us…

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    Create your balance….

    I am back from some much needed time off. I had “fun time” and worked on getting a couple of projects caught up that I needed to focus on. Too many things at one time is not always a good thing. Sometimes we need to slow down to catch up. Which brings me to this blog. Balance! We need to live with balance in order to thrive. We often hear or have said that we need to find balance in our life. If we try to find balance, we will not find it. Balance is not something you can seek. Balance is something you need to create! If you are feeling out…