Falling Off the Wagon

Aside ~ November 7, 2019 ~ lifeontheskinnybranches ~ Leave a comment

I got very caught up in getting my work out there yesterday and did not post.

I am tempted to say that I “fell off the wagon.”

But the fact is, I put my attention elsewhere. And as one of my mentors, Erin Stutland recently posted about, there is no wagon! I was just living my life. Sometimes I get to everything I plan to, sometimes I do other things.

So here I am today, taking the time to post. I had a casting this AM and am now in the midst of preparing scenes for classes and for auditions. I am also finishing the first draft of the teaser for the web series I am co-creating with my production company collaborators.

I can see that there’s a steady flow of getting my work out there going on this week.

But it doesn’t really feel like it.

That, I think, is one of the tough things about being your own boss. Running your own business. There’s very little tangible feedback the way there is when you work in a division, under a manager. You have to remember to give that to yourself. To inventory and acknowledge accomplishments (however small). To take time to make an honest appraisal of where your time and energy are going.

There’s no wagon to fall off, but there is a plan, after all. And there is a living to make…

And there is life to be lived. Today, I am choosing to live it with joy and grace and ease. And some sweat. And laughter. And maybe some dancing. Lots of creating.

What about you? How are you choosing to live today?

#TheGetMyWorkOutThereChallenge #daytwenty-two #keepgoing

Proof of Life

Aside ~ October 9, 2019 ~ lifeontheskinnybranches ~ Leave a comment

I listen for my own breath, feel the beat of my heart.

I’ve been a hostage so long, no longer know my own name.

I must be real, must be a person. Am I right? I don’t know.

Racing thoughts, like the beating wings of a thousand birds,

Chase away any sense of Self, bring on the fatigue that I call Me.

With no true mirror to look for evidence that I exist, no clues of who I am,

I once again drift off into the abyss of the Land of the TV People

Where I find my home and family, where I live out my wildest dreams.

#The Get My WorkOutThereChallenge #DayThree

You-Me

Aside ~ August 17, 2018 ~ lifeontheskinnybranches ~ 1 Comment

I feel you there

Just behind my eyes

Behind the long-since modified smile the world sees

I no longer wear a mask

Yet I know

I know

That the me I was before

The me that has yet to live

Still lives a ghostly life within

I get glimpses when I look

With the right sight

The way a child sees playmates

Where others do not

Other times you are gone

Do you leave me

Or do I leave you

Inspired by The Daily Post Daily Word Prompt 2016: ghost

Thanks to a new daily post community: https://guestdailyposts.wordpress.com/guest-pingbacks/

Maybe Someday, Button

Aside ~ August 10, 2018August 10, 2018 ~ lifeontheskinnybranches ~ 2 Comments

Maybe someday I will…

Feel confident about my talents

Love my thighs

Forgive “God” for not giving me what I secretly demand of life

Appreciate my own heart

Speak up for myself in the moment instead of going blank until it is too late

Embrace my imperfections

Drink enough water

Go to sleep simply

Leave my phone out of the bedroom

Be able to do three pull ups

(Do one pull up)

Stop caring so much what I think others will think of me

Spend more time in a day talking positively to myself than I do negatively

Really start living

Inspired by The Daily Post Word Prompt: maybe

Inside-Out

Aside ~ June 27, 2018June 27, 2018 ~ lifeontheskinnybranches ~ 6 Comments

It is easy to live life unconsciously hurting yourself in ways that seem subtle, but add up.

These are the small and large ways I deprive myself daily:

I do not drink enough water

I wait until my towels and sheets are seriously past their prime before getting new ones

I hurl myself through experiences sometimes with little attention to the scared parts of me that are there being hurled too

I push myself to seem happier than I feel so as not to bum others out

I push away my anger, hearing my father’s voice: “No one loves an angry girl.”

I skip over little hurts (but they still hurt,) sending the message that they don’t count (but they do)

I don’t take the time to cheer myself for all that I am doing right

I hold off going to pee until it is the last minute

How are you depriving yourself in little and large ways?

Acknowledge that, turn each thing around on itself by identifying the opposite action, and voila! You have a beautiful self-care list!

Inspired by The Daily Post Daily Prompt: deprive

Note to Self

Aside ~ June 23, 2018 ~ lifeontheskinnybranches ~ 5 Comments

I’m in awe of you

Of your courage

The capacity of your heart to forgive

Your continual willingness to try no matter what

Your full-hearted commitment to living your truth

Your love of life that always manages to overcome your darkness

Your never- ending spirit in the face of despair

I am in awe of you

You are my hero

Inspired by The Daily Post Word Prompt: awe

(Thanks to you)

Aside ~ May 23, 2018May 23, 2018 ~ lifeontheskinnybranches ~ 4 Comments

I have been operating under the following assumptions:

That I am plain, average and dull

That I am unmemorable, forgettable

That to surrender to pleasure is a death sentence

That love becomes humiliation overnight

That vulnerability ends in shame

But I am finally reframing these beliefs

I am choosing to find new truths:

I am lovely, unique and vibrant

I am memorable, unforgettable

Pleasure is safe and begets more pleasure

Love always elevates and is never wrong or cruel

Vulnerability is my birthright and there is no shame in it ever

So you see, I got this

(No thanks to you, btw)

Inspired by The Daily Post Daily Word Prompt: assumption

Black Box

Aside ~ March 31, 2018 ~ lifeontheskinnybranches ~ 2 Comments

Warning: This woman no longer accepts less than she deserves. At times, may erupt into genuine, whole-body laughter. Has been known to cry when she is so moved, and could care less about what other people think of her. Determined to use her voice and talents until her last dying breath. Interact with her at your own risk. Could cause deep joy and love when taken with respect.

Inspired by The Daily Post Word Prompt: warning