For the Love of Haiti

This weekend I was able to watch Oprah's Next Chapter, where she interviewed Sean Penn who has been in Haiti for the last two years since the 2010 earth quake.

Oprah's interview with Sean Penn focused on the people of Haiti and their indelible spirit to survive. The Haitian people have not only survived many natural disasters, including the most recent earth quake, they are also the most impoverished nation in the western hemisphere. And even so, the Haitian people are tenacious and proud. Oprah told stories of little girls living in tents who take time combing and braiding their hair meticulously. There were also little girls who spend a great deal of time studying math, reading and hygiene in preparation for great futures. The Haitian people have a lot to teach each of us about how to survive and even thrive after devastation occurs.

If you are looking for an opportunity to be of service, I believe supporting Sean Penn's work in Haiti is a worthy and valiant cause. His organization is not simply giving people homes, they are teaching them to build a new community and rebuild their lives and families in the process. Donate to the Haitian recovery go to www.jphro.org or you can text JPHRO to 41010 to give and $10 contribution. Supporting the people of Haiti is a very Thoughtful Thing to Do.

Peace and Blessings,

Monique Ruffin

It's good to seek circumstances that will humble you. - Sean Penn

Bless The Dress

Today's Thoughtful Thing:

We've written about it here before . . . the closet swap!  Get together with a few of your girlfriends, raid one another's closets, and exchange outfits!  Yes!  Right?  Well, let me tell you a story!

A few months ago, my husband and I went to New York for a Black Tie event.  Not being a "Black Tie" kind of gal, I took the invitation as a challenge to find a wonderful dress for the evening.  Further, in addition to not being a "Black Tie" woman, I'm also terribly cheap.  If it's not on sale, it's not on my back.  I have outfitted nearly my entire closet on Anthropologie's sale rack (MY ABSOLUTELY FAVORITE STORE!!!)  But, about the New York event . . . after scourging Nordstrom's sale rack, I found the dress of my dreams, and, while on sale, it was still way more than I'd typically spend.  So, when I purchased the dressed, I did so with the intention that it be used well, a lot, and by others.

Just this week, I get to lend this fabulous, sparkly, Cinderella dress out to a girlfriend going to her own "Black Tie" event.  It started with her innocent Facebook status lamenting the fact that she needed to find a formal dress.  Before long, emails were exchanged, the dress is dry cleaned, and she is dressed like a princess . . . or a rock star . . . depends on how she accessorizes!

Sharing our prized possessions with others, especially our friends, is a Thoughtful Thing to Do for sure.  I can't wait to see pictures!

Peace and Blessings,

Nicole Walters

Don’t Compare, Dare to Be You!

So often we live our lives comparing and critiquing ourselves with others. There can be an experience of self rejection so deep within that it causes us to distrust our inner-knowing and our unique way of being.

There is only one ‘you’. Who you are and the gifts you offer can only come from your unique way of thinking, being and doing things. Our attempt to compare and contrast ourselves with what the world deems acceptable, beautiful and intelligent is a method of denying what can only come from within our hearts and spirits. No one else can offer what you can better, because no else has your unique set of experiences that filter your perspective.

Today is the day to begin celebrating your thoughts, emotions and perspectives. Do not worry if others think you are odd or just a little off beat. Being odd means you are being more yourself than you had been prior. Don’t play small to make others feel comfortable while you suffocate. Let it out! Let you out! Whatever you’ve been resisting in an attempt to fit in, is necessary for the world to flourish. Give what only you can offer, its terribly needed in a world were beauty is so easily missed or hidden. Being ‘you’ without apology is a Thoughtful Thing to Do.

Peace and Blessings,

Monique Ruffin 

There is inside you a great storehouse of treasures which are beyond your wildest imagination. You have only to look inwards to see it and get it.”

Red Tails

Today's Thoughtful Thing:

Watching Oprah's Next Chapter tonight with my hubby.  In this episode she interviews legendary film director George Lucas and two of the actors from his recently released film Red Tails, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Terrence Howard.

During the interview, Cuba shared with Oprah the pride his sons, 15 and 17, took in witnessing the film's trailer.  He said that in their locker room, as they prepared for a football game, they chanted a refrain taken from the movie as a rallying call for their team.  They shouted, "We fight!  We fight!  We fight!"  The pride on the actor's face was evident.



Hey, maybe a Thoughtful Thing for you To Do is to take your son or daughter to see and support this movie about an overlooked narrative in our shared American history.  That might be really cool.

Peace and Blessings,

Nicole Walters

Love Endures

Today's Thoughtful Thing:

If you ask anyone what they want or desire most, I’m guessing if they not in a relationship, or a healthy satisfying relationship, the answer might be love. Love is the thing most people will say they can’t live without. Yet oddly enough love is the thing we resist the most.

Many of us have fantasies about being swept off of our feet and being thrust into love, the problem is these hot and heavy emotions couldn’t be further from real love. Most of us desire romantic love and don’t realize that when the essence of romance wears off, which usually happens in six months to a year, we are left with the opportunity to create a long-term loving relationship that will hopefully include and endure our shortcomings along with our strengths. From what I see, and I do mean see as a single woman. Loving long-term relationship require that we be willing to stay present during the hard times as well as the good. What happens when our own difficult personality traits surface? Do we blame our partners or take responsibility for our fears and insecurities? From what I see couples that endure seem to be willing to love in and out seasons of romance and wonder. They have a way of allowing the seasons to pass and beginning again anew when necessary.

Love is a worthy desire and I believe a most satisfying experience, which is why it’s sought after. However everything that shines also has its shadow. If love is what you truly desire, ask yourself “do you have what it takes to endure during a harsh winter or scorching summer? If the answers are yes, then you might be destined for love that endures and thrives through all seasons. Having a realistic approach to loving relationship is a Thoughtful Thing to Do toward enduring romance.

Peace and Blessings,

Monique Ruffin

Love endures only when the lovers love many things together and not merely each other.

Walter Lippman