That made me smile :)

"ps you deserve more then just those compliments."

MAKE HABIT YOUR SERVANT

Consider this statement by Samuel Johnson: "The chains of habit are generally too small to be felt until they are too strong to be broken!" 


Examine your habits. Where are they taking you? 

I AM . . . 
• I am your constant companion. 
• I am your greatest helper or your heaviest burden. 
• I will push you onward or drag you down to failure.
• I am completely at your command.
• Half the things you do, you might as well turn them over to me and I will be able to do them quickly and correctly.
• I am easily managed, you must merely be firm with me.
• Show me exactly how you want something done and after a few lessons, I will do it automatically.
• I am the servant of all great men and, alas, of all failures as well.
• Those who are great, I have made great.
• Those who are failures, I have made failures.
• I am not a machine, though I work with all the precision of a machine, plus the intelligence of a human being.
• You may run me for profit or run me for ruin -- it makes no difference to me.
• Take me. Train me. Be firm with me and I will put the world at your feet. Be easy with me and I will destroy you.

I AM . . . HABIT.






Note:
(I got this from Facebook and there was no author referenced to this). 

Life Changing Conversations

I love having deep, meaningful and enlightening conversations with my friends and sometimes even strangers. Over the last week and a half I have had some amazing conversations that have given me a lot to think about.

Many of them seemed to have some commonalities - being that it really doesn't matter what others think about me (positive or negative), what really matters is what I think about myself. I saw this quote on Pinterest today (follow me here) and I loved it! :)

PS: Merry Christmas!

Source: sweet-southern-charm.tumblr.com via Cosmo on Pinterest

My first painting

My family (immediate and extended) has been blessed with creative genes. Almost all my grandparents are/were artists. My grandmother (84) still paints and my aunt (by marriage) just had a gallery exhibit (see us together below). I will post some pictures of their art in the future, but today I want to share a picture I took of the first painting I did - TODAY. I have been visiting my uncle, aunt and cousins in Milwaukee, WI for Thanksgiving (we even had an early Christmas) where I was given some drawing paper, and a small paint set.. why? Because I'd told my aunt that in order for me to come visit, I wanted (and needed) a painting lesson!

So this morning as she painted some projects she is working with, I primed a old canvas with white paint, and then began. It was definitely an interesting experience At first I thought I was doing really well. Things were coming together nicely. It was somewhere in the middle thought that I started wondering - all I could see was a childlike mess. My aunt assured me that I just needed to keep going (even though I wanted to give up). I kept going with her encouragement and a hope that in the end it may look remotely decent and resembling what I envisioned.

A couple hours later, here is the result...

I'm quite proud of it :)

Q: Do you paint?

I'm a Graduate! Now and Then.

Then - 2003

Finally. 7 years ago I began my studies at Brigham Young University (BYU). After many LONG days and hundred of hours of class, homework, exams, tests and hard work I am officially a gradate! I now have a piece of paper with my name on it that says I stuck it out. I made it. I held on for dear life on the Roller Coster of a lifetime (some days it felt like a Roller Coaster from hell).

I celebrated this wonderful time with extended family (my family wasn't able to make it out to Utah from South Africa) and friends. The Cox family threw me a party on Thursday evening after Commencement and pictures.

On on Friday I was lucky to have a great friend, Ashley take pictures of my in my Cap and Gown before my college Convocation. It was all a very surreal experience and now that it's over, I wonder if there could have been something a little more memorable and life altering take place... being knighted by the Queen may have helped.


I guess I thought I'd feel different, but I feel about as different as I do on a birthday - not much. What this does do is put a new perspective to the phrase "It's the journey not the destination that matters." And yet, we place SO much importance on the destination that it is almost impossible to not wait in anticipation for the coveted day of graduation (or any other big day). And now 3 months since the day that I officially became Jacqueline du Plessis, holder of a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, I wonder how different I am to the girl who came to the United States in 2004 with bright eyes and dreams and expectations.

Now - 2011

PS: I was interviewed by a reporter from Deseret News and guess what, my name turned up on the font lead page of the Newspaper. I have a couple friends message and text me about it. Here is the full article: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700170163/2342-earn-degrees-during-BYU-summer-commencement.html

What I've Learned #2

A few years ago I spent some time on trains in Europe. I LOVED it. I traveled from London, England to Edinburgh, Scotland and it was amazing! I also took the Chunnel (the train that goes under the English Channel) from London to Paris! It was cool! In fact I wrote one of my first songs on that train after a distressing phone call from South Africa. In the end I love travelling, especially across beautiful landscapes - I can just stare out the window for hours and usually I get lots of inspiration.

Anyway, today I saw a movie about two strangers on a train going across Europe.  I think there is something in us all that wishes we would meet a beautiful stranger on a train in a foreign country and fall in love - I did :)

This movie is so HONEST and so REAL even if some may thing it to be unrealistic. I found myself really believing these characters and this story. It's a love story through and through, a story of two people who find love unexpectedly. It's shot in (what seems like) one continuous streem of events and covers less than 24 hours and at the end you really feel how much they care about each other. It pulled at my heart strings. 

There is a sequel (Before Sunset) to this film, but I found this the first movie, Before Sunrise (1995) to be significantly better. It's inspiring and a reminder that life is best when we seize the moments that we receive. The performance by Ethan Hawke (Jesse) and Julie Delpy (Celine) are amazing and I found this young couple's conversations and raw authenticity very refreshing! I highly recommend it.  

Rated R for language. 

A Love Story Without Expectations!

I saw SUCH an AMAZING movie tonight! I'm pretty sure I saw Griffin & Phoenix available for streaming on Netflix a few years ago (it was released in 2006), but  for some reason I never saw it until now. It wasn't a big hit as it was just made for television, but it's interesting how often those types of movies seems to really resonate with me. 

Griffin and Phoenix is a movie about life, challenges and struggles but ultimately it's about how we can find hope, strength and purpose in love. I'm not a movie reviewer or and eloquent writer, but I hope that if you are reading this you will take the time to watch this movie that will really touch your heart and maybe make you believe in love again! 

I give it 9/10

Poison and Wine - The Civil Wars

Heard this song for the first time today thanks to my friend Trina Harmon on Facebook. POISON AND WINE is genius - lyrically, melodically and overall musically! This song will be on my playlist for a while!