Wake Up!

Each sunrise is a gift. http://www.barbaratalley.me

Each sunrise is a gift. http://www.barbaratalley.me

SO, JUST WAKE UP ALREADY!

You can’t wake anyone else up if you are asleep yourself. Signs of being awakened are love, kindness, appreciation, gratitude, and joyousness.  Complaining, backbiting, and pointing out other people’s shortcomings are signs that we too are not fully awakened to your reality and power.  Awakened people understand that the thoughts we hold take hold of us, and so we consciously choose to live in a positive state.  Awakened people realize that negative displays don’t make things better, they just waste their valuable time and energy.  Sadly, most of humanity is asleep to their identity, power, connectedness, responsibility and capacity.  Most think we are just a higher version of the animals destined by some unknown fate. We are so much more!  If only we could see our own nobility and power and that of others, we’d instead focus on educating, encouraging, and envisioning a better future for us all.

When people know better, they do better.

It is irrational to expect people to make changes when they are still asleep and unaware of their power. Mindfulness, alertness, and self awareness are essential gifts that are available to everyone. Unfortunately, so many people are mentally asleep, unaware of their gifts and powers, or are too busy scurrying about to notice the magnificent blessings all around us.  Life itself is a blessing!  Awareness is a blessing!  To have the power to create or re-create reality is a blessing.

We have to train ourselves to be in the NOW, to be aware of the present moment, and to notice what is happening right now.  The majority lives in the past or the present, and so few live in the present.  And the  irony is, CREATION ONLY OCCURS IN THE CURRENT MOMENT! If we want to change our circumstances, we can only do it in the current moment.  But to change, we must be present in the current moment.  Just start noticing and appreciating more and you will become more aware.  You  can train yourself to become more aware by beginning to habitually notice a simple sunrise.

The sunrise is just the beginning of the gifts that the aware will notice throughout their day. The Creator paints the sky each morning and evening with a fresh picture and in beautiful breathtaking colors to remind us that we too are creators and that we are loved and valued.  With each step we take during the day we can learn to appreciate the ability to move.  With each sound we hear during the day we can be grateful for our hearing.  With each smile we give and receive we can be thankful for our ability to touch others and feel their warmth and love.  With each thought we choose, we can be thankful for our ability to create new realities.  Haven’t we been taught that the reality of man is his thought?   With each word utter we can be mindful of its power to influence and we can willing choose the words that encourage others instead of those that depress or sadden them.  We can mindfully choose to spread hope and joy instead of fear and doubt.  As humans, we must always remember that we have a choice, AND that’s what makes us human.  But, with this choice and OUR innumerable blessings come great responsibility.  We are here to grow, mirror the qualities of God,  and make things better.  Today is a wonderful new day and it’s ours to do as we wish.  I’m determined to make mine magnificent, you can too?

You Could Have Been An Onion!

You Could Have Been An Onion.

You Could Have Been An Onion.

Stop!

Before you complain again about anything, appreciate the fact that YOU HIT THE CREATION JACKPOT.  You could have been an onion, slug, a roach, or a piece of sand. Instead you are blessed  to be human beings, to have the potential to mirror the attributes and qualities of God, and to be so valued and trusted as to be given consciousness, free will, and dominion over this world. Just think about the billions of  creations in this magnificent world of ours.  There are untold numbers of fruits, vegetables, plants, insects, birds, fish, organisms, and animals.  And yet, if you are reading this, you hit the creation jackpot because YOU GOT TO BE  A HUMAN.

“Humans have conscious thought and are aware of their consciousness. With this power, we can create or destroy, love or hate, believe or fear, take from others or serve them unselfishly. Circumstances may not be to our liking, but at least we have the capacity to change things and that’s the miracle and blessing of being a human.  Humans can create new reality.  Humans can make new and better choices.  Humans can willingly choose to change their circumstances through decisiveness, commitment, and focused action.”

Barbara Talley is a professional speaker, poet, and author.  Her presentations focus on vision, values, and virtues.  You can find more about her programs at www.ThePoetSpeaks.com

Sometimes Changing Course is Wisdom And Not Quitting

Darwin-change-V2

We’ve heard, “Winners never quit, and quitters never win!” Winners win because they’ve learned to not confuse activity with accomplishment. Winners continually assess their options and take the best route to their dreams. The don’t quit their dreams, they just change vehicles when necessary. Their ultimate loyalty is to their dream and not the vehicle.

It’s not illogical to jump a little ship stuck in the harbor to get on a yacht sailing around the world, if your goal is to see and change the world.

Just like every car has a spare tire, every ship has a life boat. The life boats are there for a reason.

And finally, it might be advisable to those who have invested time, energy, and sweat in an endeavor that is not working to read the book “Who Moved My Cheese’. And finally, remember, Charles Darwin’s advice, “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.”

I’m Barbara Talley, the poet who speaks and inspires.  To find out more about me check out my promo sheet or visit  my website.

Facebook Etiquette As I See It

Today, I’d like to talk about Facebook Etiquette. We each have our own wall, page, and status.  Each time I log onto Facebook,  the robo program greets me with, “What’s happening Barbara?” or “How are you doing Barbara?”  or  “How’s it going Barbara?”  The common thread in all of these questions are ‘Barbara.’  It’s designed to get an update about ME!  I know that you receive similar prompts. It seems so simple, yet it isn’t.  For some reason people think that a person’s personal status is a place to update information about THEM.  It is for that reason that I decided to share what’s on my mind today, Facebook etiquette.

MY STATUS

Facebook-Like-or-Dislike

My STATUS, is MY status. YOUR status is YOUR status. I get to go to your page and see what you’re up to and you get to come to mind to find out what I’m up to. MY status is like my personal desk, home on the web, or brand. It reflects MY interests and values. I decide what goes on it. Each day it asks, ‘What’s on MY MIND?  I share that information with like-minded folks like you who have befriended me. My goal for my site is to be diversity friendly, respectful, zero profanity, motivating, and to education on things that matter, uplift, and make us better.

Underneath each message is a place to COMMENT, SHARE, or LIKE.  If you think it is something I’d be interested in, send me a private message and I will be notified. If it is of interest to my friends, I’ll share it.That is how we interact and I get to know what you feel about my topic.  Please continue to do that. That’s how we communicate. So many of you do that now and I thank you and that makes Facebook a rewarding experience.

MY WALL

On my WALL I get to see the messages of those whom I have befriended. I love that. I can then choose to select those messages that resonate with me and put them on my wall. If you think it is something I’d be interested in, send me a private message and I will be notified. If it is of interest to my friends, I’ll share it. If you’ve got an event, thought, product, or service you think  I’d be interested in, send me a private message and I will be notified. If it is of interest to my friends, I WILL share it.

MY status is a place to share with my unique friends. That remains my choice. Good etiquette means that people don’t decide what to put on MY status (without permission.) That’s what their status if for, to put the messages of their choice to create their own unique brand, style, and on-line personality.  I get to see each of your interests, on-line personalities, and values on my wall or your status.

GROUPS AND PAGES

Next, we have GROUPS we can subscribe to that encourage us to post whatever we want. Each group has a vision, culture, and LIKE-MINDED people who are invited there because of their connections and like interests. And, finally we have PAGES to sell products, invite people to events, and to promote your brand. [NOTE: While it’s best to create a page for selling, you can in limited amounts share info ON YOUR OWN status to DIRECT PEOPLE TO YOUR PAGE, BUT YOU SHOULD NEVER SELL YOUR STUFF ON ANOTHER PERSON’S personal status page. It’s just not good etiquette. I’m learning like many of you. Hope this helps. Please share your FB Etiquette best practices and annoyances below.

I’m Barbara Talley, the poet who speaks and inspires.  To find out more about me check out my promo sheet or visit  my website.

Pray for The Exploited Children

homepageadMy Facebook status box asked, “What’s on your mind?” I had planned my day very differently and thinking or writing about child exploitation was not on my list.

But then I  received an email from Innocents at Risksharing the good news that 245 perverts and exploiters of children had been arrested.  Great good news for a change. But so many are still missing and being exploited. I’d rather not know this.  I’d rather think about something else.  I’d rather turn away, but that won’t make this problem go away. The picture above from the ‘Innocents at Risk’ website reveals the horrid reality. Nobody wants to see a child hurt, but it is the turning away that allows it to continue. As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote, “History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people!”

Please don’t turn away because this is painful.  You can help in so many way!  “The sexual abuse of young children, often at the hands of people they trust, is a particular wrong,” said ICE Director John Morton in the ICE report. These exploited children have had their innocence stolen. I’m reminded of a stanza in Courtni Webbs poem about victimization and innocence.  Courtni was suspended from school from writing a poem that included these lines.

They want to hold me back
I run but they attack

My innocence I want back
I used to smile

Awareness and prevention are paramount.  It’s impossible to totally restore these children to wholeness and innocence. Many exploited children will turn to drugs, exploiting other children, or end up in jail or the morgue. Storing up the hatred for their perpetrators (and the silent by-standers) for a lifetime of victimization can cause these kids to act out. You have probably noticed kids that seem a “bit off” and probably ignored it.  You might be their savior. Keep your eyes and your heart open to hurting children.

So, what’s on your mind today? Today and everyday we have a choice of what to think about, care about, and pray about. DID YOU KNOW THAT BABIES AS YOUNG AS 3 ARE BEING EXPLOITED FOR THE SEX TRADE?  These atrocities are happening in our own back yard, in our own country. Your daughters, sons, nieces, nephews, cousins, sisters, brothers, neighbors, church members, and students are potentially at risk.  Trafficking is a 32 billion dollar industry and no group, gender, or class is immune.

110 victims were just rescued in 19 of our United States. Victims were as young as 3, with 35 were under the age of nine!  Both young boys and girls are victims. Please don’t ignore this! Unfortunately, we tend to LIKE catchy sound bites, but ignore the serious issues unless they affect us personally.  Please people pray for the children, especially those exploited or about to be exploited. If another mothers babies are unsafe, it’s my issue too.  Everyone CAN do something, even if it is to educate others and PRAY! Please LIKE if you’re going to PRAY, COMMENT, OR SHARE.  Those are ACTIONS.

Don’t just look out for the weird-do or the stranger.  People you know could be exploiting children right under your nose. NCMEC CEO John Ryan. “They could be your neighbors’ children, your child’s classmate, or even your own child. We thank Director Morton and everyone at ICE for their strong commitment to rescuing the most vulnerable of victims.”  You can read the entire article at the ICE website but here is an excerpt.

“HSI and partner law enforcement agencies arrested 245 individuals during the operation, which took place Nov. 1 to Dec. 7. Of the 123 victims, 110 were identified in 19 U.S. states.  Of the 123 victims identified during Operation Sunflower: five were under the age of 3, nine were ages 4 to 6; 21 were ages 7 to 9; 11 were ages 10 to 12; 38 were ages 13 to 15; and 15 were ages 16 to 17. Twenty-four of the victims identified are now adults who were victimized as children. Seventy were female and 53 were male.”

Check out ICE’s facebook page to keep abreast of what they are doing and how you can help.  They regularly post pictures of the innocent and those who are perpetrators.  Also the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.  offers training on how you can help.

I’m Barbara Talley, the poet who speaks and inspires.  To find out more about me check out my promo sheet or visit  my website.