Many years ago family relative died of cancer. At the time I was too young to understand what was going on. To me he was just smiley, happy person, who suddenly moved to hospital. He wanted to be remembered as a funny guy and that's how I remember him until now.
I was too young to understand the meaning of terminal illness and death. One day we just stopped hospital visits and since then I never saw him again. Since then he never came to play with my dog anymore. Since then he never made me laugh so hard that tears would roll down my cheeks. Since then he never told a silly jokes about his moustaches. Since then he never made a paper planes with us. Since then he never took us fishing. Since then his chair was always empty and his welly boots were never muddy from chasing us in the rain. Since then his face started to fade away more and more each day. I was too young to understand that maybe if there would have been enough research on cancer he might have had a chance to be with us today. I know someone who survived. It was a long and lonely ride for them. It was hard to understand what they were going through. They never complained. All they wanted was to get away from the chaos that was caused by treatments, hospital visit and change of lifestyle. They never wanted cancer define their lives. He was just an unwanted, unwelcome, rude guest, who forced they way into their home and followed them whenever they went - like a dark shadow. It can happen to anyone. We might be passing people fighting cancer every day and we might not be aware of their struggle. How often we take our health for granted? What if one day that uninvited quest would force its way into our life? Wouldn't we wanted to have the best support possible? Wouldn't we wanted to be able to talk freely about our struggles to people who understand, because they experience the same feelings? Wouldn't we wanted to be listened to without feeling judged? Wouldn't we wanted to have place where we could find answers to every question that we might have? Wouldn't we like to have warm hug for no reason? Wouldn't we like to have a place where we can get away from all the drama and just have a good laugh? Wouldn't having a support help us to get rid of uninvited guest or just forgot about all the worries ? Wouldn't we like to be surrounded by people who care? I decided to go for a 26 miles hike to fundraise for Macmillan Cancer Support charity because they care. In addition to that I like to make my upcoming birthday meaningful and special and so if you are my friend, acquaintance or just a random person reading this you would make me and thousands of people in need of support extremely grateful and happy if you sponsor me in my challenge. www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Aneta-Zych1 We all have forgotten coin at the bottom of our handbags, drawers or pockets. These forgotten coins mean nothing to us but they may mean world to people supported by Macmillan Cancer Support Charity. Together we can make a difference. Thank you with all my heart. Aneta
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We always want more... more freedom, more time, more staff, more money, more opportunities, more travel... We may be so stubborn and determined that one day we get what we want :more freedom, more time, more staff, more opportunities, more money or more travel. We feel really happy. However, after a while we realize that sometimes we cannot have everything at once. Sometimes we need to choose and everything comes with a price. If we got more freedom, more money, more opportunities and more staff we travel more, spend more, buy more, find more opportunities and our needs grow and cause us more stress, more work or more problems. We decide that there is still something missing. Once again we think we need more, and so we spend more time to get what we want and once again our needs grow. It's like vicious circle that never ends. It's an endless hunting for happiness.
The restless mind is endlessly searching for stimulating activities depriving us from peaceful nights. Its never enough. The wonder never stops. Did we ever notice the little acts of kindness that happen to us every day? One day we start to count them, influenced by our favourite blogger, and we realise that we have so much to be grateful for. We realize that maybe we always get what we most need at the time. We begin to understand that sometimes less is more, because every little act of kindness that we experience every day it's a sign that we are on the right track. There are times, when we feel like we failed, like we are in the wrong place and this is the time when the little miracle happens. This is the time when we receive another act of kindness and its like something telling us that all is well. It's like telling us to hide our sick ambitions and be grateful for the kind people around us, for the things we can afford and those little miracles that happen to us more and more often. Practising gratefulness is what we all need sometimes. The more things we notice that we can be grateful for the more happier we become. The happier we became, the more acts of kindness we experience. The more kindness we experience, the better person we become, because we want to be that kind person that cause others to smile. The more people we make smile, the better we feel with ourselves. The better we feel with ourselves, the happier we became and we notice even more things to be grateful for, because happy people attract other happy people. After all if we are not happy with what we already have, how do we know we will be happy with more? Best wishes Aneta This year I spend Christmas in Poland - my home country and I would like to tell you the whole truth about the traditional polish way of celebrating Christmas. Basically its all about food, food, food and more food. Let me begin. If you go to Poland about two weeks before Christmas you will notice that everyone is cleaning something just because you need to have extremely clean house for Christmas including spotless windows, curtains and every corner of the house needs to perfectly clean. There is a belief that the way you spend Christmas will define your following year, so if your house its clean and tidy at Christmas time, the following year will be organised, clear, easy and tidy. Even if your windows are clean you need to clean them again, so you can sympathize with others, who are complaining on the workload before Christmas. There is another option, if your windows are clean and you do not want to make your life harder - leave them like that but never admit to anyone that you have not cleaned your windows before Christmas as you may cause them a heart attack. ;) After a couple of days of cleaning or more (it depends how big your house is and how many windows it has) your house will look spotless, it will smell lovely and it will feel homely and cozy. You, on the other hand may feel exhausted and if you think it's time to rest and you are ready for Christmas - you are very wrong !!! After cleaning it's time to shop for ingredients to make Christmas food. Yes, everything it has to be made fresh and from scratch, so the next few days its about searching for ingredients in shops, markets and butchers, which are full of people looking for exactly the same things, so you have to be quick and smart. Once again, if you decide to buy ready Christmas meals instead of ingredients - keep quiet and pretend that you are going to cook everything from scratch and discuss the Christmas workload in the kitchen like everyone else. Once you got all the ingredients at home, unpack them, then you probably realize that it's not enough, so you go shopping again and buy some more. Do not forget about vodka !!! Again, if for some reason you don't drink vodka, do not admit this to anyone and buy some alcohol for goodness sake !!! Unless you produce your own bimber (home-brew very strong alcohol) or homemade wine, then you are safe and highly respected by your neighbors, family, friends and the rest of polish population. ;) Once you brought home all missing ingredients, it's time to start preparing Christmas food. Be ready to spend at least two whole days in the kitchen (it could be more, it depends on how many people you invited for Christmas Eve and the following two Christmas days). Do not forget to make 12 dishes on Christmas Eve, they have to be meatless: some kind of fish- it can be carp or any other preferred fish, red borscht with ceps raviolis (remember that you have to make the raviolis from scratch) or mushroom soup (usually with homemade pasta), sour cream herrings, homemade dumplings stuffed with cabbage and sauerkraut and dried forest mushrooms (remember that you need to make the stuffing yourself), braised sauerkraut with white beans, cabbage rolls, poppy seed cake, old, polish piernik (gingerbread), cheesecake, the winter salad, the herring salad and the fruit compote. If you think that's it for cooking - you are very wrong!!! Do not forget that in Poland there is two days of Christmas and you must cook some more food for these two Christmas days!!! On the Christmas day number one and two you are allowed to eat meat and so you have to prepare the Christmas day's food : dumplings with meat, meatballs, meatballs stuffed with mushrooms and plums, chicken legs, bigos (hunter's stew made from traditional meat and cabbage stew) and more meals with meat, you may also bake bread if you wish to. Do not forget to bake some more cake!!! You haven't thought that the cake you baked for Christmas Eve it's enough, have you ? Well, if you had then you are very wrong!!! You definitely must bake more cake. Ok, once you baked and cooked for at least two days and you have lots of food ready for Christmas Eve and the two Christmas days, you may..... ...... clean the kitchen !!! Once your kitchen is spotless, you may take a shower, wear your smartest clothes and tidy your hair. Cover the table with white, elegant tablecloth and don't forget to place a little bit of dry hay under the cloth. Hay under the table symbolize the hay in the stable, where Jesus was born. Set the table and get ready for the Christmas Eve dinner. Don't forget to place one extra set of plates and cutlery for unexpected guest - it's a part of tradition !! However, you have to wait for the first star to appear on the sky to start the celebration. If for some reason you missed the first star, don't worry, just don't admit this to anyone and pretend that you've seeing it and all will be fine. ;) The celebration begins with a very special tradition of breaking the "opłatek" (pronounce: opwatek) (it's a thin wafer made of flour and water, similar in taste to the hosts that are used for communion during Mass) during which wishes for peace and prosperity are exchange between each other. This is my favourite part of tradition as you receive the best hugs ever from everyone, (even from someone who doesn't really like you). The piece of opłatek is also given to pets and farm animals. Legend has that if animals eat opłatek on Christmas Eve, they will be able to speak in human voices at midnight, but only those who are pure of spirit will be able to hear them. I never heard any animal speaking in human voice so probably I am not pure of spirit. Well, no one is perfect. Then, it's time to eat. The tradition says that you have to try every of the 12 dishes on the table. The food it's so delicious that it's irresistible. However, after eating 12 meals, even if the portions are small - you are so full that you hardly can move. You may be offered the pepermint tea to ease down the feeling of full stomach, however, once you finished your tea, you will be offered more food - just in case you still hungry !!! Don't worry, if you refuse to eat more, that's ok. You may be offered a shot of vodka, homemade bimber or glass of homemade wine to ease down the discomfort of overeating. Then, it's time to open the presents and sing carols and get ready to go to the church for midnight Mass called pasterka, which means Shepard's Mass, because when Jesus was born, only humble shepherds came to adore him and to spread the good news. Pasterka its a very special Mass to Poles and even if they don't visit the church during a year, many of them will attend the Shepard's Mass. Once you back home after the midnight Mass, make sure you go to sleep as quick as possible - before anyone offers you more food- because trust me you can't say no to this food. The next day it's the first day of Christmas and it starts with setting the table with meals with meat. It doesn't matter, whether you go to visit someone or someone comes to you - you will be offered lots of food - everywhere. Once you finished one meal, you will be offered another one, and lots of different kinds of cakes. Don't worry, if you feel discomfort because of overeating you will be kindly offered vodka or homemade wine for better digestion, so you can eat some more later on. The second day of Christmas it's similar to the first: you go to visit your loved ones or they came to see you and basically whatever you do or whenever you are - you eat some more of Christmas food. And between eating you have a little nap and then .... ......don't forget to eat some more!!! Yes, it's hard work to make the Christmas traditional food from scratch..... ......and its time consuming but ....its the best food ever. Best wishes Aneta It was a year full of crazy events that I attended and I spontaneously jumped into any ideas represented at the events. I started one thing after another , I committed myself to a few projects at the same, not quite knowing where I am going to end up and what is my destiny. My decisions were spontaneous, crazy and not always well-thought through. They were not always the best decisions and I wasn't always honest with myself. At some point there was so much going on in my life that I felt overwhelmed, stressed, emotional and negative. I took it too much on my shoulders trying to prove that I can deal with all on my own in the comfort of my home. A couple of months ago I realized that I don't need to prove anything to anyone and if the projects remain unfinished its ok, because maybe the timing isn't right. There was a voice inside me that was screaming to stop chasing something that may not exist or maybe it never meant to be mine. Maybe things that we failed at never meant to be ours, so maybe it's better to accept and appreciate things that we already achieved.
There were ups and downs. However, I believe that everything happens for a reason and that we always end up where we meant to be. We always end up in the right place, even if it doesn't make a sense yet. We are there for a reason , even if its hard to see the reason and we may feel like a failure. Sometimes, it takes a time to see where we are going to, but we always meet the right kind of people that takes us closer to the place of our destiny. The people we meet along the way may completely change who we are and the way we perceive the world around us. They may show us that the only thing that define us it's the way we treat others and who we really believe, we are deep inside in our hearts. They make us realize our potential and make us see the final destination, the perfect place for us, where everything makes sense and we will be the perfect fit. Somehow we know that this is it. We never experienced such a feeling before. We are aware that there is still long way to go but it doesn't matter because we know that this is where we belong and sooner or later we will end up there. We never meet people by chance, for no reason, we meet them because they need us or we need them. I believe we should value and appreciate the people around us because they may be the people that influence the change inside us, so we can finally see the destination of our long and bumpy ride. Maybe they bring blessing in our lives or maybe we are there to make a difference in their lives? There is no greater feeling than knowing that we made a difference in someones life just because we care enough to be there for them. Then, suddenly we realize that we never really failed. We realize that everything we considered as a failure was only a lesson to be learned and not a failure, because if I wouldn't have failed at that time I would not be where I am at the moment and I would never have met the person who made me realize what my final destination is. The funny thing is that she isn't even aware of what she has done, because there was no questions asked, just one unintentional sentence that made me see clearly. Everything is suddenly falling into place, it's very real and very possible and it feels good. It does't matter that there is still a long way to go, because the worst is behind me and the road a front of me its not so bumpy. The big difference is that I don't even feel the need to share this with anyone, because there is no need of anyone's approval, because I know that this is it, for the first time in my life I know this is it. At the end we always end up in the place we should be and the most important thing is to be kind to others because there must be a reason why our paths crossed. Best wishes Aneta There are things in this world that we take for granted: social communication and interaction, ability to freely express our thoughts through verbal communication. Socializing with other people doesn't cause us any trouble. We don't experience the struggle with sensitivity to light, touch or noise. Our hearts don't tremble when we are just about to interact with new people for the first time. We don't experience that suffocating fear and anxiety when the well-known routine is out of place. We have the copying skills to deal with unexpected changes in our routine, environment, social circle. We don't need to perform the rituals that make us feel safe. We don't feel constantly lost in this big world. We are very lucky.
However, how would we feel if the world would seem to us like an alien planet, where locals communicate the language that we don't understand. Can we just imagine for a moment that we land on the foreign planet, where everyone speaks foreign language? We don't understand a word from it and yet everyone is talking to us and expecting us to behave in certain way. They don't get it that not only we don't know what they're talking about but also we don't understand their ways of interaction and we are scared of the loud voices. It is very loud planet with very bright lights. Sometimes creatures on this planets do not give us enough personal space to recover from all that loud noises. They come too close and we panic because we don't know what they expect from us. They talk too quickly, too loud, using words that are too complicated, giving us too many tasks at once and not giving us chance to learn their language. They taking us to places we don't know without giving us any clue what's the plan. No one gives us a map or a dictionary to help us adapt to the life on this planet. Of course, sooner or later we would feel anxious, nervous, misunderstood, lost, annoyed, angry, scared and emotional. If we lucky enough we would develop copying strategies to survive in this alienated world. We would keep our emotions and feelings inside and create our own world. World of music, art, colors, comforting touch, games, numbers, shapes and repetitive behavior. Maybe we would develop our own rituals and routine that feels safe, because we know it well.These behaviors eases our anxiety, gives us a sense of control, a sense of belonging. However, if we not so lucky - the emotional pain might be so strong that we would self- harm ourselves, because its easier to deal with physical pain than with suppressed emotions. We just wouldn't know what to do, how to behave, how to fit in, how to make the locals understand our world? We cannot express ourselves verbally, because we don't know the language, we are exposed to prejudice, judgement and ignorance of the locals, because we are the odd one out. No one on this planet speaks our language and they think we are strange. They think there is something wrong with us, without trying to find out what language do we speak or if we could communicate in different ways or at least help us to learn their language so we could have a chance to live a normal life on this strange planet. How would we feel on the alien planet described above? Wouldn't we have to fight an inside battle every time we approach someone new? Wouldn't we feel hopeless, meaningless and frustrated? Is it fair to expect from anyone the empathetic behavior, the excellent social interaction and clear communication if we didn't went the extra mile to understand their language, their world and their way of communication? What if our child is that foreigner that have to live on that alien planet? Wouldn't we like to make the life easier for the child? Wouldn't we go that extra mile to explore his world?Wouldn't we like to do everything possible to help him adapt to the alienated planet he has to live on? Wouldn't we like him to be socially accepted, to fit in, to allow him freely express himself, have friends and give him a chance to lead normal life? Aren't our children the most important individuals in our lives? We want them to be happy and prepare them for the next stage of life. There is a charity that understands the lonely planet of Autism. They make a difference in the lives of many families and they give families affected by autism a chance to live a normal life. They use different ways of communication: art and music therapies, one to one support, visual aids and many more. They go the extra mile to improve the quality of lives of those special individuals. They help with social communication and interaction. They offer non-destructive copying strategies. They help with the skills that we often take it for granted. They do it because they care and their work its priceless, because its makes a difference. Sometimes the most simple things means a world to others. That is why I chose to support them. In May 2016 I am going to Wales to climb Snowdon, however, I want to make this hike special. I want this hike to make a difference, because my motto is: "If it doesn't make a difference it's not worth doing it". We all have forgotten coins at the bottom of our handbags, drawers or pockets. If we donate a pound or two, it may not mean anything to us but it will make a huge difference to many families and individuals supported by Resources for Autism Organisation. Please support me on this special journey "To the top and beyond". Here is a link to my fundraising page. https://www.justgiving.com/Aneta-Zych/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=fundraisingpage&utm_content=Aneta-Zych&utm_campaign=pfp-share Thank you Best wishes Aneta Paris - such a beautiful city of love with the remarkable architecture, iconic buildings and the magnificent Louvre Museum.
Paris - city associated with romance, kisses, laughter, amazing culture, french cheeses, the best croissants. Paris - full of tourists exploring the secrets of Louvre and not thinking about religion or politics. Paris- the victim of terror attack. The innocent people died only because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. They died because they went to the wrong theater. They loved wrong kind of music. They died because they wanted to enjoy their time out with their loved ones. Maybe there were teenage sweethearts on their first date or parents of a young baby on their first night out since the baby was born. Maybe there were lovers on their romantic trip or group of friends from university, and none of them expected this will be their last night in their life. They weren't given chance to say goodbye to their families, they will never see their baby growing up, they will never go out for a second date, they never will experience the first kiss - just because someone made this decision for them. How cruel is it? How unfair is to rob people off their right to live? How unfair is to cause so much pain to families of killed, innocent people? What is the reason behind the inhuman violence? Is it religion, politics....? Does it matter so much that someone has to kill for it ? Does it resolve any problem or proves anything ? I don't get it. Who are those monsters? Have terrorists lost their hearts and minds? Who gave them permission to kill ? The killed, innocent people can be blamed only for one: they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. They trusted its safe. If Paris - the city of love and romance it's not safe than where is safe? Best wishes Aneta We meet different kind of people through our life course. We go from one chapter of our life to another and maybe we have different friends in both chapters. Sometimes, as we close one chapter of our life, we leave everyone behind, except of one special friend that we choose to take on our new exciting journey to the next level of our existence. It’s a friend that we had shared a special journey with through the world of essays, exams and hours of studying books that we probably never fully understood. This friend is so special because it’s so different than us, and these differences fascinate us and it doesn’t matter that we both busy with different things and we may lead completely different lives, because we always remember about each other.
We celebrate important dates together and we always have something to talk about – even if we haven’t seen each other for months. It doesn’t matter that we meet only once in a while. There is something special in our friendship. We give each other chance to experience our differences, which show us that being the odd one out might feel really cool. It all depends on our attitude and willingness to share the special moments. That’s how my friendship with Creative Tulip looks like. We are so different and yet so alike. Sometimes we can be the loudest social beings on the party and other times we can be the quietest little mice in the room. Last weekend I had a very special opportunity to experience something new. Dress code: the princess look... ... so I turned into one. The atmosphere on that event was incredible, full of friendly people who were treating everyone as they would knew them forever. The magical rhythms of soca music and the steel pans took the whole venue to the world of Caribbean, where I could taste the traditional food, watch and be a part of cultural traditions and most importantly became the part of this world. Despite that I was the odd one out distinguishable by my bluish/greenish eyes, blond hair and pale skin I felt like one of them, because of the way they welcomed me in this Caribbean world, where you could hear waves of Caribbean sea and feel the warmth of it’s water. However, my warmest memory from this exciting experience reminds me of Caribbean Beautiful Mermaid that looked after the most valuable accessory of every woman – the handbag. Mermaid was over 80s, she had sparkly hair and she was kind, trustful, reliable and majestic. Mermaid was the most welcomed member of the big Caribbean community that everyone love and admire but the human’s dance floor wasn’t her thing. However, Beautiful Mermaid had a big heart and she offered to watch everyone’s handbags and that’s how she became the most important person on the party. Can anyone imagine more responsible role on any party than looking after the treasure inside women’s handbags? I don’t things so. We keep in our handbags most precious things: the house keys, the oyster card, the magic lipstick that turns us into a real beauty in a few seconds and many other important things. I was really grateful that Mermaid was there, looking after my little handbag. Knowing that my treasure is in such a good hands gave me peace of mind and freedom to enjoy the exotic rhythms of soca music. At the end of the party I gave her a big, warm hug to show my gratitude and sympathy towards her kindness, because she didn’t have to take such a big responsibility on her shoulders. She done it because she has a big, kind heart and I loved it. I loved that party. It showed me that sometimes we don’t need to go far to find ourselves on the other side of the globe. Why don’t we celebrate our differences and let our friend’s to take us to their part of the planet Earth ? I loved every minute of it. Thank you Creative Tulip for letting me into your world. Thank you Beautiful, Kind Mermaid for watching my precious handbag. Best wishes Aneta He moved in about three weeks ago and he made himself comfortable.
One evening I was about to fall asleep, the lights were off and I felt very light touch on my forearm. I thought it was my hair. However, once I felt tiny legs moving on my skin, I knew it wasn't hair, I brushed it off my arm and I turned on lights. There was a little spider on the floor running off. He was gone under the wardrobe before I caught him. I began to search for him, thinking I would not be able to fall asleep knowing that he is around. I gave up after a while. I woke up the next day and he was sitting on the ceiling, once again he made a run before I managed to catch him. I must say he runs fast, and after a couple of days of playing hide and seek, he became my pet. I named him Ben. Sometimes I call him Bennie. He must have some night adventures, as I can't see him late evenings but he is back on the ceiling every morning. Sometimes he surprises me in the late afternoons by appearing in one of the corners. It's like he wants some attention or he just wants to say "hello". I must say he is very easygoing flatmate, he is quiet, he doesn't require any shelves in my wardrobe and he has got amazing listening skills. He leads his own, independent life, which is a big mystery to me. All I know about him is that he is faster than me. No wonder he runs faster - he has got six more legs than me. Sometimes he sits on the ceiling and admires my paintings and other times he does his own thing which I don't understand, but that's ok, he is a spider after all. Once he disappeared for a couple of days and I was worried that he got himself in trouble, but then he came back and he was happily sitting on the ceiling in the corner of the flat again. I think he needed time alone in order to find who he is. He doesn't bother me anymore, in fact he is quite cute with his eight tiny, little legs and the rebellious personality. He doesn't talk much tough, but maybe he just needs more time to open up. My life with Ben hasn't changed much.I just tend to look at the ceiling and corners more often. I showed him some of my salsa moves but I am not sure how to dance salsa if you got eight legs. I guess it might be tricky. I know he enjoys classical music, because he gently swings his body when I play it. I think we became friends over the last three weeks and I might miss him, when he will decide to go somewhere else. This morning I caught myself saying "good morning Bennie". He moved one of his tiny legs, replying to my greetings in his own spidery language. I always been an animal lover I just didn't know my sympathy for animals extends this far. Best wishes Aneta Sometimes we look for personalized and unusual gift for our loved ones. We search for something that will express our sympathy, love, friendship or gratefulness. We look for gifts that target the personality, likes and dislikes, passions, talents and dreams of our loved ones. We visit many shops or search on-line in order to find the unique gift. However, can gift produced on massive scale be unique?
We began to wonder, could be there someone who is able to meet our expectations? We might not be aware that the stranger we just passed on the street might be the talented, created and thoughtful person we need. She likes numbers, math is her strong skill and her intelligence is above average. We may assume that her home is full of abacuses and we expect framed Pythagorean pattern hanging on the wall. These assumptions would be very wrong. Instead of abacuses we would find carving set, and instead of Pythagorean pattern we would find self- created picture hanging on the wall. The flat belongs to very talented and creative sculptor, who has her own very unique, intuition driven style. Her sculptures exhibit remarkable sense of humor good taste and thoughtfulness. The sculptor makes personalized sculptures from modeling clay. All she needs is a photograph of a person and a few words about her talents, passions, hobbies or dreams, and she will come up with some unique idea to make everyone happy. The sculptor will carve dimples in cheeks very carefully and with attention to details using the master techniques with rasp sculptural. She will copy every delicate ripples of laughter. However, she has got unerring sense of tact, and so she will miss a wrinkle or two if the gift is for much loved grandma or grandpa . She will make the wrinkles smoother and brighter making the person look a bit younger. She may even secretly add the elixir of youth to the figure of elderly person. Our much loved grandpa or grandma receiving such as sculpture will definitely feel really grateful for the smooth cheeks. Who wouldn't like to be perceived by others as younger and more beautiful ? Each sculpture carries individual and unique message that targets the receiver. Each sculpture stands out and surprises with extraordinary perspicacity, incredible imagination, sensitivity and immense talent. This unique artist expresses in her work dreams, passions and hobbies of the individual. The sculptures are done with such a precision and passion that they became real state of art. These amazing creations have a soul which with deepest feelings expresses love, gratitude and sympathy to our loved ones. The sculptor is a passionate art lover. Could there be a more suitable person to make this special gift? The sculptures are made with pure love and passion and immense precision that they express the things we want to say to our loved ones with great ease, tactfulness and humor. Each of them provides great piece of art that very likely will bring tears of happiness to receiver's eyes and the big smile on their face. Every detail is created to the highest level of perfection, because the artist takes every commission seriously and she will not rest until ensured that the sculpture is done to the highest standard possible. The flash in the eyes will make the sculptures come alive and we may even sense the wind blowing in hand-twisted single curls of hair. The sculptures also reflects the preferences, hobbies and personality of the receiver. If you are a fan of active lifestyle and like chocolate than you may be made with nutella jar kettlebells. If you love to travel, artist may place map in your hand or made you sit on the globe. If you love nature, you may find yourself sitting on the tree or in the bushes. There is no end to the sculptor's ingenuity, creativity and initiative. Isn't this exactly what we look for ? The unique, personalized, inspiring and very special gift that is made with greatest care and passion. Here is a link to the sculptor's website if you interested http://rosegrafix.com/sculptures.html Best wishes Aneta We meet them every day, the random, ordinary people. We pass them on the street, in the restaurant, in the office, in the park, in the underground and we never notice them because they look like there is nothing special about them. A few day ago I met one of them in the underground and this unexpected and unplanned meeting caused me to reflect on how often we misjudge others without even realising it.
A few days ago I sat in the train when suddenly grey - haired man in his 70s entered the train and sat on the opposite seat. I knew him, he recognised me too and he gave me big friendly smile. I returned the smile and said hello. Although, we knew each other for a few years now, we did not remembered our names and we never had chance to talk. However, he was a pleasure to talk to, we had a good laugh together. The best part was that we both knew that no one in the train would ever guess our secret. No one in that train would ever guess that this elderly man, who has got the privilege to be offered seat by younger people in the bus, on Saturday nights in the salsa clubs turns into one of the best salsa dancers. No one would guess that this elderly man dance salsa better than some 30 years old boys, because he dances for over 20 years and he still loves it. We talk a lot and while looking in his eyes I could see that those eyes belong to young, energetic 30 years old boy trapped in the body of elderly man. My first thought was that he is young at heart. The man noticed what I saw in his eyes and said "I have got 30 years old soul, that cannot sit home on Saturday nights instead drags me around salsa clubs." Man laughed, thought for a moment and added: " Salsa it's a passion of my soul and I accepted it. I let the soul to take over once I am inside the club. I give her freedom on Saturday nights, so she can laugh, play and be happy. My soul is extremely grateful for this and so in return she make me feel 40 years younger." I knew what the man meant. I knew the feeling of freedom, happiness, love and the boost of positive energy. I understand why he was doing it: salsa dancing was a way in which he expressed his feelings, emotions, personality and thoughts. We both knew that no one in the train would ever guess that we share the same passion. I dance for a few years now and I understand what every salsa dancer feels once enters the salsa night club. It's a pure freedom. It the best anti-stress therapy, it release tensions, worries and negative feelings. It helps to overcome shyness, because once you in the salsa club the whole world disappears and nothing else matters but love for salsa. Suddenly the only things that matter are: the wooden dance floor, Spanish music, advanced, passionate dancers and the atmosphere filled with magical vibrations of Spanish songs and positive energy.The dance floor is full of dancing couples, which often didn't exchange a word with each other and yet they understand each other perfectly, they read each other minds. Maybe you don't speak English, maybe you stammer or you do not talk at all. It doesn't matter, there is small chance to engage in any conversation, because dancers communicate in silence while listening to the rhythm of the music, every one of them in their own magical world of passion. Dancers communicate using barely noticeable gestures, which makes the dance look like the most unique conversation of two freed souls. The gestures are completely invisible for random observer that knows nothing about salsa. However, those gestures are the most important part of dancing because they make the dance appear like the most amazing, inspiring and fascinating poem for our eyes and feelings.Therefore, once we enter the salsa club it only matters that place, that song, that moment. It does not matter if you are in your 20s or in your 70s, it doesn't matter if you are a lawyer or if you clean the streets, it does not matter what size you are and how much money you got. It doesn't matter what colour is your skin, eyes or hair. Nothing matters except of love for salsa. Maybe salsa is a dance of passion, dance of freed souls. Maybe, every soul need to be freed from time to time so it can play. Maybe the freed souls are so grateful that in return make the dancers feel amazing, light, beautiful, happy, young and it cause the whole world disappear together with its struggles and demands. No one in the train would ever guess what elderly man does on Saturday nights and how incredible he is in it. No one in the train would ever guess that the elderly man is one of my favorite dancers, because he proves that we can be young and passionate at any age if we want to. Sometime we miss to see the unique and special talents/things/abilities in ordinary people that we pass every day whenever we go, because of the prejudice, believes and stereotypes embedded in our society. Maybe we judge people too quickly not giving them any chance to show who they really are? What if we would look deeply into the eyes of every ordinary person? Maybe we would see that there is something special and unique in everyone, even the most ordinary people. Best wishes Aneta |