Keep Moving Forward

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Happy Monday!

Out into the world we go! 

As of this writing, the center of COVID19 cases in the Philippines - Metro Manila is on General Community Quarantine , an eased up version of the Enhanced Community Quarantine we have been in for almost 80 days.  

Honestly, I woke up afraid.  I checked the news and my friends posts and easily in the next 5 minutes commented to express my own disappointment to how things are going.  

It is so easy to feel anger, disgust, even fear when we find ourselves in the midst of these situations:  not enough government action, an invisible enemy we can get from anyone and anywhere, economies nose diving.  

The key word being EASY.  

I paused and said: NO, I am not made for easy.  I am made to find how I can deal with this with grace. No matter how hard it is to find positive feelings in the day.  Besides, its MONDAY, my day. 

So my call for today is not for you to find a silver lining.  It is not to simply to count your blessings. Not even to keep positive thoughts. You've heard these all before. 

My call for today is simple. Name your feeling, honor and validate it.  

Let me repeat: 
STEP 1:  NAME
STEP 2: HONOR
STEP 3: VALIDATE

We are entitled to feel and in most cases, it is backed by a lot of previous experiences, thus it is automatic to feel a certain way in certain situations.  However, it is important to name our feelings to stare it down. This prevents us from getting overwhelmed and label it as stress, anxiety, or even on the positive end like excitement or love.  These are complex states and not feelings.   Complex overwhelms. Simplify it.

Once you are able to name the feeling: Anger, Fear, Sadness, Disgust, Joy, Surprise, Anticipation, Trust - honor them.  Acknowledge that you felt them.  Remember though that you are not yet done.  The next step is to validate.  

This pause to validate can be to ask ourselves any of the following questions: 
1.  Is this feeling accurate for this situation? 
2.  Is this feeling going to move me forward? 
3.  What is next? 

Over the course of this journey we are in, we will be challenged to feel as others feel.  It is good if you are always surrounded by people who look ahead. If you are not, you may be stuck in feelings that does not help you act.  

There is always something we can change. There is always something we can contribute to in a situation. Look towards that direction.  Charge on, my friends. This battle is not yet over.  This generation was not made for easy.  True, others may make it even tougher, but they only make our growth as a person exponentially faster.  


Defining moments are not always momentous.  Defining moments can be at every fork in our road, every moment of integrity, every moment of choice.  

Keep moving forward. 

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