Harness Your Power: Leave a Legacy of Love...

So, I poured my heart onto the page for a new article I wrote for my column in Vanguard Newspaper (Nigeria)...I am giving you a sneak peek this week...it came from deep within....

Fast forward again. On March 15, 2010, I receive word of another shocking loss.



Taking the braids out of my younger daughter, Skye’s, hair should be a normal experience, right? It wasn’t this time. These braids were special. They were put in by a 16 year old Sierra Lionian girl named Mattu. “Why is this a big deal?” you might ask. Let me explain.


Several months before, I had met Mattu at a local restaurant through a mutual friend. She noticed that my girls’ hair needed braiding and kindly offered her services. We accepted. This opened the door to a friendship that grew quickly into shared meals and enjoyable times together with Mattu and her brothers and sisters.


Mattu became dear to us. We were very sad when she told us she would be moving to Florida with her family. On her last evening in our neighborhood, she came over for dinner and braided Skye’s hair one last time. We bid the family goodbye comforted with the promise of her return to Philadelphia for a visit in the summer. That was Saturday, March 13th.


Then Monday I received a phone call, “Mattu is gone! She was hit by a car and killed instantly.” I felt total disbelief. My whole body went numb. “What? Are you sure? This can’t be true!” The reply was simple and somber, “Yes, it’s true.”


Last week I attended a memorial service given by friends of Mattu’s in the Philadelphia area. I was struck deeply by the words of the many who shared their memories with the group. Mattu had touched each of them with her joyfully vibrant spirit. She is remembered as a happy young woman who loved friends and food and shared everything she had with her mother and her siblings.


Just yesterday I unraveled the braids that Mattu wove in my daughter Skye’s hair. As I did I was smiling through tears remembering Mattu, still touched by her generosity.


As I move through my days these past few months I often feel surges of grief quieted by waves of joy. I am poignantly aware of the fragility and mystery of life. A beloved father joined his wife in heaven after 86 full years; a beautiful young woman was called home by God at age 16. Both are remembered for the greatest legacy anyone can leave. That legacy boils down to L-O-V-E.


What do you want to be remembered for? Don’t rush over this question. Contemplate it. Meditate on it. Open your heart. Why not be make a conscious decision about the way you will choose to live each day?


Life does not come down to who has the biggest house or the most expensive jewelry. It has little to do with the highest title or the fattest bank account. Rather, it comes down to simple acts of love. Each loving gesture is a deposit we make in the hearts of those we meet. A smile, a kind word, a prayer said on someone’s behalf, a meal prepared with care, time spent listening, laughing and sharing in meaningful conversation—any act of compassion or understanding makes a lasting impression.

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I pray that these words have you thinking deeply about your purpose in life...Focus yourself.  Enjoy each moment.  Be YOUR best :)

Sending you love this week,
Patricia Omoqui, The Thought Dr.
http://www.patriciaomqoui.com/

Harness Your Power: Share with Purpose

I find that the Universe brings the most unusual people onto my path to serve.  And, sometimes service comes in sharing the simplest things.  There is a girl I met in my neighborhood who has a small baby.  She needs food and encouragement.  As I've cooked this past week I made extra portions.  What joy this small offer of kindness and food brought to this young lady. 


I used to think that serving others meant doing big things.  But now, I am seeing that Mother Theresa was right -- it is small things done with great love that change our World.

I see that I can't take care of all the needs.  So I've been guided to investigate the many non-profit organizations in the area so that as people come into my life, I can connect them to the resources they need.  I am amazed at how many individuals and organizations care so deeply for the lives of others.  I am happy to be growing my network so that I can be part of sharing my time, energy and resources with purpose.

What small things are you being called to do for your family, friends and community?  You do have a calling.  Open your eyes this week and ask, "How can I serve?"  Be prepared.  You will be guided to simple ways to show love to others.  In doing this, you will receive so much joy in return.

Giving and receiving are truly the same thing!
In giving we receive.  In receiving we give the gift of accepting another person's desire to give.

With love for you as we share ourselves purposefully with the World,

Patricia Omoqui, The Thought Dr.
http://www.patriciaomoqui.com/

Harness Your Power: Give Yourself the BEST Gift!

The most important gift we can give ourselves is Self-Love and Acceptance.  How might your life change if you moved beyond all self-doubt and self-criticism and decided to simply, unconditionally value yourself?

Here are a few ideas to help you:

To overcome your self doubt, the first and most important step is to become fully aware of your self-criticism. Take today and really study your thoughts. Why is it that you doubt yourself? What is it that you believe about yourself that causes you to think you aren’t as good as other people or that you can’t attain the level of success you desire?


To really get beyond self-doubt, you need to know why you doubt yourself.

Observe your thoughts. Write down on paper what you think so that you can see it clearly.

Next, ask yourself, “Where did these thoughts come from?” Look closely and try to get a sense of who told you this about yourself or why you decided this was true.

You may begin to see that your parents, siblings, teachers, friends etc. convinced you years ago that you aren’t good enough or you don’t have what it takes for success.

QUESTION THIS!

You are born with intrinsic value and a unique set of gifts. How could the Creator make mistakes in how you were created? You are an incredible person, one with great power. To activate your power and potential you must open to knowing your personal value. Value doesn’t come from what you achieve or what possessions you have. You ARE valuable already. Once you know this, everything in your life will begin to change.

Remember that these old thoughts of self-doubt are habits. You’ve been practicing this type of thinking for many years. So, it will take some effort to create a new set of thinking habits.

Here are some new possibilities:

I am amazing.

I am valuable.

I am important.

I am here for a reason.

I am gifted.

I am talented.

I am strong.

I am full of love.

I enjoy life.

I have fun all the time.

I am kind to others.

I am smart.

I am a leader.

I lead by example.

I listen to my heart

I respect others.

I speak my truth.

I am honest.

I love to read and learn.

I make the World a better place.

That’s enough to get you started.

To move beyond this self-doubt will take some effort on your part. But, if you do, the rewards will pay off in HUGE dividends for the rest of your life.

I have written many articles on the topic of self-esteem. If you want more of this type of writing from me, send me an email at allure@patriciaomoqui.com and let me know you want to move beyond self-doubt.

If you want to share your observations of your thoughts with me, then drop me another email and tell me what you’ve discovered. I can help you find alternate thinking that will empower you in 2010.

Also, I have a free daily email list that can support you in seeing yourself in a more positive way. Go to my website www.patriciaomoqui.com and put your email in the red box called Food For Thought if you are interested in receiving these.

Blessings and Love,

Patricia Omoqui, The Thought Dr.

www.patriciaomoqui.com

Harness Your Power: Serve

The question that burns in my heart every day is, “How can I serve?”


I have found nothing more satisfying than helping another being by sharing my love, time and resources with them.

As philosopher and physician Albert Schweitzer said, “I don’t know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.”

Yes, there is pleasure in enjoying material goods but that soon wears off.

Yes, there is excitement in traveling the world and seeing new places, but we always long to return home.

What lasts? The only mark we leave is our loving service to others. This is what truly matters. This is what people will speak of when our life comes to an end.

The wonderful thing about services is that it is simple to do – often the smallest acts of care change the lives of people around us.

Do you have ears? Serve this week by taking the time to really listen someone who needs your attention.

Do you have arms? Offer a hug to someone who is struggling to find hope.

Do you have a few extra Naira? Offer help to a family who needs help funding their children’s education or surprise them with food that they hunger for.

Do you have expertise? Find a young person who needs your advice and support and commit to a mentoring relationship.

In the words of Anne Frank, “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” Don’t wait another minute!

Use the question, “How can I serve?” to guide you through every day this week.

Wholeheartedly serving with you,

Patricia Omoqui, The Thought Dr.

www.patriciaomoqui.com

Harness Your Power: Let Your Wounds Heal (Don't pick at them!)

Have you ever noticed that when you have a cut, it begins to itch as your body heals it?  It is all too easy to start scratching at the scab and open the wound back up.  In fact, I've been witnessing this first hand with one of my daughters this week.  I was reminded clearly:  wounds don't heal, in fact, they can get quite infected, if you don't let them heal without picking at them!

Isn't that the truth with our inner wounds too.  Time heals our inner traumas, that is, if we aren't constantly opening them up.  Many people spend time talking of dramas, traumas and past hurts, re-living them over and over in their head.  They do this so much that they prevent their complete healing.  I'm not saying that it isn't good to express how we feel about things we've experienced that have been hard for us.  It is good to process and tell your story.  It's powerful to understand the roots of our patterns for the purpose of moving forward and not repeating them.

Remember this week that repeatedly opening up old wounds to dig around in them is much different than applying ointment, a bandaid and letting the natural process of spirit-mending to take place.

If you could use support in moving beyond the past so you can fully enjoy the present, please drop me an email at thoughtdr@patriciaomoqui.com .  Life coaching might be just what you need to make huge leaps forward in your personal well-being.

With all my love,
Patricia Omoqui
http://www.patriciaomoqui.com/

Harness Your Power: Recent Observations

Share your dreams with everyone you meet! Let passion overflow from your heart as you tell others about what you love. I'm doing this regularly and it is amazing the connections that occur when I do. Not only are people happy to hear someone excited about life, but they often are very helpful and willing to connect me with the next person I need to meet.

This happened last night at a birthday party we attended. There were some Africans at the party. We got to talking about the need for development on the continent. I shared what my concerns were and the way I believe change could come about in Nigeria. One word led to another and before you knew it, I found that the person I was speaking to had a contact at a TV station in Kenya. You just never know!

Most importantly, I felt happy and uplifted by the conversation we had. I met a fantastic human being who cared about positive change. Those moments are to be treasured and savored.

Then, this morning after walking on the treadmill I felt the urge to go shoot hoops. I haven't done this in months. I followed the feeling and had a great time. As I shot I was reminded that when you develop a skill, you don't ever lose it.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, the ball went through the net! I hadn't lost my touch and it was fun to see that the thousands of hours I'd spent training are never lost. Dedication, perseverance and daily practice pays off no matter what skill you are trying to develop. I have found that it works just as well with speaking and writing as it works in becoming good at a sport!

After I finished shooting around I picked my girls up from the Kids Club at the gym. They wanted to know what I had been doing so I took them over to the court to see first hand. They loved what they saw! We walked out of the gym and a gentleman asked me, "Where did you play?" I told him about playing at Princeton and overseas. Guess what? He had just applied to Princeton for graduate school. We had a fantastic conversation. Again, I just shared from my heart and enjoyed the momentary connection.

People are wonderful. Years back I would keep to myself and not have much energy to connect with others. Now that I feel better about myself and life, I am meeting people more than ever. It feels good to see this change.

So, dear friend, share your dreams. Connect with others. Have fun talking. Help others and see how willing they are to help you!

Have fun this week,

Patricia Omoqui, The Thought Dr.

http://www.patriciaomoqui.com/