Adina’s Cute & Perky Blog!

It’s always funny when I think I’m writing something for myself, or for someone in particular, and I get replies from several people thinking I wrote it just for them.

Those are my favorite replies to get.

When I write something like I did yesterday, I wonder that I am being selfish.

And in a way I was.

I had one person, and one person only, on my mind when I wrote my Blog for yesterday.

I believe in letting the ones you care about know that they made a difference in your life and that they mean something to you.

But in the end, what seemed selfish words for one became shared words with many.

And while I conquered my battle with obesity in public, for all the world to see, his biggest conquest was a struggle in private with few accolades. So the fact that a story he inspired would inspire others has double meaning for me.

So…is being selfish really all that bad?

I say no. Sometimes you just have to be a little selfish.

And sometimes a little selfishness leads to the biggest rewards.

I am selfish with my gym time. No one can have it. As a result, I am a happier healthier person to be around.

I am selfish with my meals. I will not eat out if the only option will be junk. And as a result, my mood stays in check and my spirits stay lifted. That surely makes me a better mom! And when you think of it, a better example to my kids.

And I’m selfish with the last few minutes of my day. That’s when I write this. No calls. No texts. No interruptions.

And as a result, you are reading this now!

Sometimes, you just have to be a little selfish.

We all have to do things from time to time to heal our souls.

I was being tugged in two distinctly different directions yesterday, and it was making me very unhappy.
My soul needed a break.

So I sought out my soul-healing friend, because I knew he would make me feel better. Actually, just seeing his name pop up in my Inbox makes me feel better.

The thing is, he said exactly what I knew he would, in just the way I knew he would say it. “Adina!!! You can’t please everyone.”

And somewhere in the mix there is another phrase he uses on me when I have choices to make. “What does Adina want to do???”

In a sea of tug-of-war, he was my life jacket.

But how many people drown because they didn’t use their life jacket?

When all I could hear was two conflicting views over which way to go, I had to choose to remember that I could remove myself from the situation at hand and seek the advice of a friend.

Just because there are choices to be made does not mean I had to make them on the spot.

So I took a step back, and listened to his words.

And the rest of my day was better, because something he said made me laugh out loud. My best friend made fun of me later, because I was smiling for no reason.

He just called me a dork when I said he wouldn’t understand.

And when my eyes popped open this morning and the stress returned for a moment, I put on that life jacket again.

I wanted to lay there and think of the choices that lay ahead, but I knew what he would say about that too.

“You let THAT keep you from cardio on an empty stomach this morning? Yeah. That’s real smart.”
No matter what is getting you down today or any day, you’re only one friend away from a life jacket. All you have to do is put it on.

So I was having dinner with my friend John Friday night, and he started to tell me a story about his brother – the artist.

Apparently, he had gotten back together with a woman he once dated.

And he painted her a heart for Valentine’s Day.

That made me go, “Awww,” as little happy chills ran my spine.

I’m a girl. I like stuff like that!

I can’t help it!

But that wasn’t the end of the story.

She didn’t bother to tell John’s brother that she already had a boyfriend.

And when he found out, he asked for his heart back.

And of course, she did not send it.

Her boyfriend called and threatened John’s brother…on voice mail.

And so he was arrested.

A week later he received his heart in the mail.

And he mailed it back.

And she mailed it back.

And he mailed it to him mom. From New York, to Texas, so she could mail it back to the ex-girlfriend.

At which point my friend John says, “Mother! You cannot get involved in this. This is crazy and you know it.”

So I stepped in and said, “Give me his heart. I will keep it. I don’t care. I’ll hang it somewhere.”

But my little happy chills were soon to be replaced with cold chills once the picture was handed to me.
You see, it wasn’t what I had pictured. My mind’s eye had created a cute little pink and red mix of Valentine fun.

What I was handed was an anatomically correct heart. I mean to tell you it is text book perfect. Any anatomy teacher would give him an “A” and any psychiatrist would refer him to the proper authorities.
You have to be careful who and what you give your heart to.

I pour mine into my kids, a few very special people, my faith, my writing, and maintaining my loss.

I don’t give it to things that don’t matter or to people who would hold me back.

That man was careless where he sent his heart, and he has no idea that it’s hanging on the wall of a woman in Texas he will never meet and that he will never get it back.

Guard your heart and keep it close. You do not want to have to go off in search of it.