Personal Values – Living Elysian

Meme: an element of a culture or system of behavior that may be considered to be passed from one individual to another by nongenetic means, especially imitation.

I love picture memes. Funny memes, mind testing memes and of course memes of the inspirational kind. Sometimes, however I think our minds can be like tumbleweeds blown in the wind when it comes to memes. “This is exactly me!”, then two days later, a polar opposite meme is posted and “This is exactly me!”.

I do at times, find myself totally zoned out on social media as I scroll through meme after meme after meme. Not that they are bad or wrong. Believe me, I love the ones that seem to speak directly to me. Though, they can be additional noise that keeps me from focusing on what my own personal values are. I wonder, instead of Meatless Monday, could we go Meme-less Monday? Would we survive? I don’t know. My mind is too overwhelmed to start such a movement.

There are also those memes that seem to excuse inexcusable behavior. But the picture is so brilliant that it must be true, right? The meme that has me most concerned for my fellow sisters is the one that contains the following “If you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best”. You know what that says to most potential love interests? “Run like Hell!!”

I believe in memes. Still, while we read these “Inspirational” or “Deep” memes, we must consider if it resonates with our spirits. Is this our truth or the writer’s truth? Is it a message for me or possibly a loved one? Life is deeper than just a few short words, but sometimes we only have a few short minutes and so these memes do come in handy.

When we have the time, we might want to read a book written by the person who is being quoted if they are an author. Or find out the source of this belief and do some research. There is often more to learn on the topic. We might find that we absolutely do not agree with the belief or we might find a whole new way of thinking/living. It is worth taking the time as an investment into our spiritual and psychological wellness.

I wish you all serenity in these turbulent days. The light in me honors the light in you. Stay Blissful My Friends – E

Personal Values

In my last blog “A Moment of Clarity“, I posed the following questions:

“Ask yourself if you still believe the words that you speak or even the thoughts that you think. Are your actions representative of the values in which you are living today? ”

I also wrote of taking action. Elysia, where do I start? I’m glad you asked. A few years ago, I experienced yet another painful bursting of a bubble. I found a support group on-line and one of the first assignments handed out was to prepare a Personal Values statement.

I had done this several years before after reading The Purpose Driven Life. Again, I found myself asking the same above questions. Not a bad place to be really. At this point, I would do anything to step outside of the raw emotional pain I was enduring. The Personal Values writing process was simple and I would love to share it with you today!

Start with a list of everything important to you. You don’t need to overthink this, just write. Some examples: Having dinner at the table as a family; Getting to Work on time; Daily Meditation and Prayer at a specific time of day; Going to the Gym in the morning; Spending one night a week with my girlfriends; Volunteering once a month at a shelter. Got it? Good. So write, write, write!
Review this list and choose 5-6 of the most crucial items for you today.
Summarize these 5-6 items. Elaborate and expand on the importance of each value.
Then again, ask yourself if you are already living according to any of these values.
- If yes, identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement.
- If no, how do you intend to make these work? Where are your strengths and weaknesses in following through? Might you slightly tweak one of these? For instance: It could possibly be more attainable to have dinner at the table as a family three times a week, or meet up with your girlfriends every other week.
Ask yourself if your current work/life situation is allowing you to live these values.
- If yes, then you are ready to go forward with living your personal values! I like to post them in a place I can see them daily as I begin the process of living them.
- If no, well, this part can be difficult, because you are probably due for a major life change. But be fearless! This is an exciting part of your life!

Life changes are a positive thing, just not always easy. I remember when my little Chevy Aveo was a total loss due to a rear ending accident. I was sad. I loved that little car. It was fun and it made a really cool sound when I accelerated. Then I saw my new car…A beautiful purple Ford Fiesta with all the perks that the Chevy did not have! I know this is just material, however transportation is a daily part of life for most of us.

If you trust the process, you can truly experienced the satisfaction of breaking on through to the other side!

You know the day destroys the night
Night divides the day, tried to run, tried to hide
Break on through to the other side

Break on Through

I know right? How do The Doors fit in with all this personal values jigger? This song can mean so many different things. Today I see it as anthemic. I am ready for a change. Fired up, ready to go, ready to break on through! This song did not represent such a thing to me several years ago. That my friends, is the true magic of music. But that is a topic for another day ha! I love the idea of changing my perception or psychic change if you will. I have a tattoo of a blue rose that specifically represents this type of change.

Today is a different day. The bubble has been burst. Nothing will ever be the same. Thank you God!!

Now Go!

…And stay blissful my friends – E

Tag: Personal Values

What’s in a Meme?

Personal Values/Break on Through