Category: Discovering Strength

Connecting to the wonder we are, Discovering Strength, Healing

The Earth’s Healing Messages

Erin Keane

The earth brings forth healing through its wondrous beauty, its inspiring growth, and its ability to survive even when faced with incredible storms.

These words, are ones I needed to write as my heart is finally able to grieve over the last week of sorrow, & uncertainty that has happened around our city. They are also words that remind me of endurance, and strength. And they are words, that I hope inspire you too. They certainly are not the words and images I would usually use for Earth Day, but they are the ones, that come from my heart right now.

  • Placing my hands in the dirt these last few days, to bring forth a fertile ground for my plants to grow, has been my comfort, and a place to leave my sorrow.
  • The wonder that comes as I watch new buds come peeking through the soil, and the anticipation to see the beautiful flowers that will peek out, gives me a sense of hope.
  • Knowing that life is still beautiful despite, the pain that has happened around my city this last week, brings healing to my weary heart.
  • Even though a plant may break, it has the strength to keep growing, and living. And that even after horrendous storms, roots that run deep and hold strong to the ground will not falter. We can overcome, and be strong and recover, because Love wins, and its roots always run deeper than any pain.
  • There is an amazing sense of calm and peacefulness that erupts gently within my heart, when I am at the top of the mountains, or along a beautiful coast line, and this connection to the earth transcends my spirit and brings me closer to the Divine.

What happens within you when you feel connected to the earth? Where has this happened for you? Go there in your imagination and allow yourself to feel.

Our wonderful Creator, knew we needed this earth. It is where we are able to connect to a sense of wonder, and awe. Experiencing the earth allows us to free our imaginations and inspires us to sing, paint, photograph, write, run, play ball, ski, climb trees, etc.

Earth Day Quote by Bella Bleue

The earth really is a place of wondrous healing.

How has the earth brought healing into your life?

Blessings, Erin, Bella Bleue

© 2013. Bella Bleue Healing™ All Rights Reserved.
Please also visit my photography site: Photography by Bella Bleue.

See my Facebook page for daily inspirations and messages.

Connecting to the wonder we are, Discovering Strength, Healing

It’s Okay to Cry, Really It Is

Erin Keane

Why do people cry?

“Maybe emotion becomes so intense your body just can’t contain it; your mind and your feelings become too powerful and your body weeps.”–City of Angels

Have you ever cried so hard that your tears weep from the depths of your soul?

I have.  Recently…

About a month ago, I had something difficult and unexpected happen in my life. Something I wasn’t particularly prepared for, but knew could happen. And when it did, and I understood that the experience was real, I began to cry. The kind of cry where you full-out weep, with your hands over your face. And tears like raindrops creating puddles and waterfalls cascading over your hands onto the floor. The kind of tears that run down your face with trails of black mascara. The kind of cry that makes your cheeks and eyes turn red. The kind of cry that weeps deep down from the pit of your soul.  The kind of cry that leaves you feeling numb when you are done.

For a few days the tears just kept coming whenever they felt like it: washing dishes, combing my hair, hugging my husband, petting my cat… I stopped here and there wiped my nose, caught my breath, and sat quietly too.I got a break every once in a while, however, where I could feel quiet and calm.  And regain some sense of myself. And day by day it got a bit easier and the tears got a bit less…

Tears and crying are a part of our creation; they are a part of our human design; i.e., they are a part of life. We hear of people weeping in stories, we watch it happen on TV, and we also weep. Tears have a purpose in our creation. Something changes in us when we cry. So I ask, What changes within you when you cry?

  • For me I realize over and over it’s like the quote at the begining from City of Angels: allowing ourselves to cry allows the deep pain within our bodies to be released. Crying allows your mind, body and spirit  to release the pain, the anger, the grief, the anxiety, and the fear. And we are changed by this release.

Are you one to cry and let out your grief? Is it a comfortable release or something you avoid?

We each make meaning out of our emotions and others emotions differently.  Tears, and crying can mean very different things to each of us. Thus, we all have different comfort levels with grief, and especially grief that is outward, such as tears. Tears can be a very natural and comfortable release for some of us, and for others of us, tears can be very uncomfortable and try to be avoided.  How we make meaning out of our expression of emotions effects our journey of healing.

When I worked in the hospitals and visited patients, sometimes we would have a deep conversation that opened itself to the person needing to release their suffering through tears, and yet s/he would stop himself/herself  from  crying because s/he saw tears as a sign of weakness. I would encourage him/her to let out the tears, but often the person was unable because s/he wanted to be strong.

I believe tears, are a great source of healing for us. And thus, allowing ourselves to cry makes us stronger because when you cry you make space within your mind, body and spirit for healing to happen. Instead of holding in anxiety, grief, anger, fear which weaken us and can make us ill, your body is being given permission to heal because you are “letting go” of these feelings.

So my answer to my question, What changes within you when you cry? is:

CRYING allows You to BEGIN to HEAL.

So even if you haven’t been one to cry,  or even if you are one to cry..

Remember, sometimes it is good to cry and let grief have its way. Your tears allow you to release pain, sorrow, and disappointment, in a very bodily, and emotional way. And allowing yourself to cry makes room for healing and hope.

May you allow yourself to grieve when you need to, and to open yourself to hope and healing, as you go through the process.

And most importantly as you grieve:

Be gentle with yourself, you are a marvelous creation, even your tears are a part of the wonder you are.

It's Okay to Cry Quote

There is a Divine LOVE ready to embrace you.

Blessings, Erin, Bella Bleue

© 2013. Bella Bleue Healing™ All Rights Reserved.
Please also visit my photography site: Photography by Bella Bleue.

See my Facebook page for daily inspirations and messages.

Discovering Strength, Healing, Inspiration

Messages of Hope, Healing & Love

Erin Keane

What changed in your life to help you heal? How do you continue to offer yourself the gift of healing each day of your life?

One of the main reasons I began writing this blog, was to heal from my postpartum depression, and to find a source of fulfillment outside of being a new stay-at-home mom. I notice that many of us who write do so for healing, and purpose in our lives. It is amazing how now, our thoughts can be shared with thousands, even millions in seconds, whereas, in the past you would have had to hope someone would want to accept your manuscript for publishing.

Thank you to all of you who have shared in this journey with me, and offered your support, your comments, and just being you.

This past year has challenged me to look deep within myself and discover more fully who I am, just as me, and it has been quite a wonderful experience. I’ve learned more deeply how important my spiritual life is, how much I love to love and be loved, how much I feel blessed to be a mother and wife, and how it is truly a gift to share the gift of healing with others, and in return receive healing.

Since I often find it challenging to sit down and write, with a three-and-a-half year old always by my side, I have enjoyed writing on my Facebook page and sharing brief messages with those who stop by.  I want to share some of them with you because they are a great source of my healing, my heart, and my hopes for you & for me.

May you be blessed today and always!

Spending time with those who love you, and who you love opens your life for powerful healing, and pure experiences of joy. May you be blessed with love in your life.

____________________________________________________

Today is a new day!
It’s the start of a new week!
Your life can begin renewed when you choose to show yourself and others the gift of forgiveness;
when you choose to allow healing to bless your life;
when you choose to have a good day no matter where your path takes you.

____________________________________________________

Snow is blowing and falling here, winter storm Nemo. But within my heart and body I am calm. Embracing this inner calm  grounds me  when my world is in chaos.We all need to try to find ways to be centered and calm when life throws us a storm–whatever we can’t control outside ourselves. Because we do have the ability to control how we feel and react to the outside world.

May you be blessed with calm in your mind, body & spirit today and always.

____________________________________________________

Grateful today for the gift of the human spirit, that has the courage and strength to move forward even after faced with difficulties or challenges.

You have an incredible ability to heal, and move forward along your journey.

____________________________________________________

Blessings come in all shapes and sizes, some are expected, some unexpected. Keep your eyes, your heart and your ears open, so that you may receive blessings throughout your day.

May your day be blessed with joy ♥ Bella Bleue

and one of my favorites:

You are Loved Quote & Meditation

What has helped you heal?  I would love to hear your experiences or what kinds of rituals, or sources you use to offer yourself healing. Your wisdom is a marvelous and wonderous gift…

Blessings, Erin, Bella Bleue

©Bella Bleue Healing™ All Rights Reserved.
Please also visit my photography site: Photography by Bella Bleue.

See my Facebook page for daily inspirations and messages.

Blessing, Discovering Strength, Inspiration, Spirituality

Keep Yourself Moving through Life

Erin Keane

What keeps you moving in the world? What gives you the ability to overcome obstacles? What gives you the energy to be creative or inventive? What inspires you to go forward with the beginning of a new day?

There are so many question that can relate to this statement, “Keep Moving.” What question or questions do you have within you, that give you courage, strength, purpose, imagination, hope, etc. to explore another day of your life?

I’ve been tired, maybe a little weary from the long winter days, and my spirit seems to have ups and downs more frequently than during the warm spring and summer months. And life has taken me down a few unexpected paths, that I have been forced to accept with grace or be defeated by frustration. So I’ve chosen to be accepting, because frustration depletes my spirit.

And since I’ve chosen to be accepting of my unexpected paths, I have been reflecting on what has given me the courage to move forward. Do you ever reflect on your strengths as you move through life? Do you offer yourself credit, and celebration when you have overcome day by day, that which you thought you could never live through?

If you haven’t you should, and if you already are, Good for you!

Celebrating and recognizing your strengths as you move through obstacles in your life, gives you courage to keep going, and develops a deeper wisdom within you so that you keep learning. These gifts of courage and wisdom allow you to move through other challenges you may face along your path, so that you can always keep going, even when life seems like it wants to make things difficult.

For me courage has come from my faith. One day while I was going through my most recent challenge I decided that I was going to get out of my head, and lead my body, mind and spirit with my faith. And by letting go, and not trying to be in charge of everything…which I certainly know I’m not in complete control because if I was I would NOT have to face these challenges!…I began to feel at ease. (Why I wrote about feeling comfort last week). There is something completely humbling about “Letting Go” and as I like to say “Letting God.” My wisdom comes when I remember all the times when I have allowed myself to ask for help from God, the Universe, Spirit, etc., and let go of being in control, I actually begin to heal, to be at peace, to feel comforted, to feel an inner strength, and to trust again in this beautiful life that I have been given the gift of experiencing.

So the answer for me to all the above questions is it is my relationship with the Divine; it is my faith that keeps me moving forward always. It is a special relationship for me that is never forced, but waits for me each time with open arms to accept me where I am, and with whatever I have to bring to the table.

What about you? How do you answer the question of what keeps you moving through life even when life places challenges or obstacles in your life?

Blessing by Bella Bleue

Blessings, Erin, Bella Bleue

©Bella Bleue Healing™ All Rights Reserved.
Please also visit my photography site: Photography by Bella Bleue.

See my Facebook page for daily inspirations and messages.

Blessing, Discovering Strength, Healing

Comfort Me

Erin Keane

Prayer for Comfort by Bella Bleue

COMFORT

in the midst of your struggles
appears, when you call out of the depths
of your heart, asking for peace
like a soft quiet snow falling softly upon your face
it is so very gentle, yet powerfully transforms
your inner being into a sanctuary
where you feel safe, whole and loved
and fear, anxiety, anger and sorrow have disappeared
and been replaced by Faith.

Although last week left me feeling full of uncertainty, I have come to a place within myself that I call Comfort. I still do not have my answers, but I have prayed, and asked. I have searched, and been loved. And now deep within I know it is my Faith, that has given me the courage to keep moving forward. It is my Faith that has allowed, me to feel comfort, a wholeness, where once only anxiety and fear lived.

May you also be blessed with Comfort in all those places in your life, where you need to feel whole and at peace again.

Blessings, Erin, Bella Bleue

©️2012-2020. Erin Keane. Bella Bleue Healing and Blessings. All rights reserved. No portion of any post or photo may be copied or reproduced without prior written permission from the author, Erin Keane. Find me on Instagram @Erins_blessings and at Facebook Bella Bleue Healing & Blessings by Erin Keane.

Discovering Strength, Healing, Inspiration, Spirituality

Attempting Certainty in Your Uncertainty

Erin Keane

So you don’t know where life is taking you? Maybe you thought you were on one path and suddenly there is a detour, and you are forced onto a road you would never have chosen on your own. And as you are going down this path you keep looking for road marks that you recognize, and sometimes you find one, but when you get up close you realize it is not the marker you know. In other words, life is filling you up with uncertainty, and you are doing all you can to regain the certainty in your life.

Lately, I have been having uncertainty on a daily basis, and I don’t like the way it feels. I’ve been trying to just ignore it, which doesn’t work out so well. I don’t know how you are with uncertainty, but even if I’ve convinced myself that everything will be okay, my body does a 180 on me and messes with my system. And this underlying physical discomfort continues to remind me that I don’t really know what is going on, even though my mind is saying, “JUST LET IT BE.”

So I’ve been working at calming myself daily, to regain my center, to just feel like me again. And daily I seem to be discovering something that does allow my mind, body and spirit to regain some balance, even if I fall off track again.

For the first few days, I did my research. I educated myself. Sometimes this puts my mind at ease, other times it just creates more worry. But I like making sense of things so it mainly helps.

I looked for stories about other people who went through what I am going through to both normalize my situation, but to also find comfort in knowing that I’m not the only one who has the questions I do. There is something very comforting in knowing I am not alone in my journey.

I have reached out to those who I love, and who love me, and just asked them to listen. And to pray for me. I find that there is great power in communal prayer or intentions of healing towards those we hold in our hearts. So I always ask for prayers when I need them.

I have opened myself more to the Spirit, and offered prayers for myself, asking to have my mind and body calmed; for acceptance no matter what the outcome is; and for blessing upon me.

I have begun to pause throughout my day and be thankful for what I already have in my life, and to celebrate these gifts more intentionally throughout my day. Gratitude heals worry.

Every time, I remember to I try to breathe in, hope, peace, and love, and to breathe out all that burdens me. Giving intentionality to my breath helps my body relax.

I am attempting to exercise, to get the powerful positive endorphins moving though my body, so my cells can be filled with healing. This creates a better balance between my mind and body.

I’ve been using the gift of remembering to put my heart at ease. I look back at times when I was filled with uncertainty that I somehow made it through. This is a source of inner strength that I can turn to over and over: I’ve gotten through difficult uncertainty before so I can do it again.

And I have been remembering that even though when I am uncertain, and I want answers right away, that getting them right away isn’t always that easy. But that the answers will come when they are supposed to, and whatever they are, I will be okay.

And I am working at being in the present moment, instead of always looking at the future.

A message to leave you with:

Thich Nhat Hanh Quote by Bella Bleue

How about you? What do you do with uncertainty that helps you feel better?

I’m always looking for ways to help put balance back into my life. It certainly is a daily chore.

Blessings, Erin, Bella Bleue

©Bella Bleue Healing™ All Rights Reserved.
Please also visit my photography site: Photography by Bella Bleue.

See my Facebook page for daily inspirations and messages.

Discovering Strength, Healing

Loving the Best We Can: Living through Tragedy.

Erin Keane

Yesterday, afternoon, my son and I were visiting a friend and her daughter. The children played and we talked about the challenges of being parents, and how hard Life can be when we love our children so deeply. We had no idea about anything that was happening in Newtown, CT, as we discussed the challenges of life. Life was happening right where we were, and yet LIFE was also happening only a couple hours away from our home.

As we went about our visit, we engaged our children, resolving conflicts and teaching them how to acknowledge each other’s feelings, especially when they hurt the other child’s feelings. Sometimes the children  freely went up to the other to say I’m sorry, other times they resisted feeling they had a right to defend themselves. And yet, through it all we offered them our LOVE, in the very best way we knew how…accepting and receiving both children as beloved, beautiful, and whole…we affirmed them, redirected them, challenged them, we mirrored empathy and compassion for the other, as well as for self.   Both my friend and I, acted out of LOVE for our children, and for each other’s child as Sacred, Beautiful, and Whole.

After we said our good-byes my son and I got into our car, and turned on the radio, and then we began to hear The News. But none of the radio stations mentioned what had happened. It was as though, God, was watching over me as a mom, to not know what happened as I drove,  because when I took a moment to cook dinner and go on my phone to check the web, I began to sob, and the sounds of the cook vent drowned out my tears, as my son played on the floor with his cars in the other room. I would have probably had to pull off the road if I had been driving, and how would I tell my 3 year old son why mommy was crying?

Our hearts ache as parents, as people who love, as people who are deeply good. Every day, we Live, we have to work at Life. There is something about encountering the Sacred innocence of children in pain, that breaks at our souls. Its a deep hallow grief that goes to our core. This pain we feel, says something about who we are as we have been created: We were not made to be so broken. We were not made to ache the way we do. Our created selves were made to be whole, to be filled with love.

So I ask myself, deeply, as a parent, a mother, a wife, a friend, a sister, a daughter, am I loving the right way? As I engaged my child and lead him in conflict resolution, and learning to accept and love the other even when your feelings have been hurt, I wonder, am I teaching him LOVE? I hope and pray that I am every day of my life.

What happened in Newtown wasn’t just about one person, it is about all of us. It’s about our culture that glorifies violence, and death. We hush our voices when we talk about God, and so often we give up on trying to learn how to Love the other, because it’s too hard or he or she doesn’t complement us the way we feel they should, so we give up and fill ourselves with emptiness or loneliness instead.

Life goes on around us all the time. We may not be in the middle of the chaos, or we might be right in the center of Ground Zero; where ever we are Life is happening. We have a choice each day, how we are going to offer our love to our children, our spouses, our friends, and neighbors. We have a choice to stop and pause, no matter how busy our days are, and let someone else know, “I SEE YOU. I AM TOTALLY PRESENT TO YOU: TO LISTEN TO YOU, TO LOVE YOU, TO HEAR WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY BOTH IN YOUR WORDS, AND IN THE EMOTIONS OF YOUR BODY.”  We also have a choice to let God, Spirit, Love, into our lives more, so that we don’t have to do all this hard work alone. For we have a Creator who desperately wants to be a part of our lives, and to carry our burdens for us. But so often we don’t want the help, or we are too lost to ask for help, because so many of us are just too busy to notice when someone is hurting or we turn away.

So today, and every day, remember to take the time to LOVE. It will be the greatest gift you can ever give, and ever receive. And keep trying, Keep Loving the Best you can every day, for you, and for all those you cross paths with.

May God, ease the pain of the brokenhearted, and enter our lives, to teach us more deeply about LOVE.

Tell and show those you meet along your walk in life & Tell and show yourself:

You are Loved Quote

May you be blessed by Love, Erin, Bella Bleue
©Bella Bleue Healing™ All Rights Reserved.
Please Visit my Photography blog: Photography by Bella Bleue

Discovering Strength, Inspiration, Life

Life’s Unexpected Travels

Erin Keane

Lately, I’ve been needing to remind myself that some of the turns and twists that I am faced with in life, are not just to fault me, or disrupt my feeling of balance. But these twists and turns are an invitation to discover something else about myself…

How do you make sense of unexpected disruptions in your life?

Blessings, Erin, Bella Bleue
©Bella Bleue Healing, Health & Inspiration for Your Life™ All Rights Reserved.
Please also visit my photography site: Photography by Bella Bleue

Discovering Strength, Healing

Don’t Panic!

Erin Keane

Yesterday, I Panicked! That feeling of “Oh, No!–This can’t be happening!” My panic wasn’t the result of the most awful thing in the world. No one was hurt; everyone I love was safe and sound, and the earth was still tilted and spinning normally on its axis.  But, it was life-shattering for me in my immediate moments of realizing what had occurred.

I put my photo memory card in my computer, and it wasn’t recognized. Of course, no worry yet. I had the brilliant idea of trying it in my camera. It would certainly read in there. But, NO! No response, no recognition. Hu? Why? What’s going on here? THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING! All of my pictures of my son for the last 6 months—GONE! NO! A portion of the story of our life as a family erased. And of course this is when my heart, Sank.  And panic flooded my insides…Hot hands, racing heartbeat, uncontrolled thoughts all dismantled, defeat, worry….

But wait a minute...I don’t want to feel this way!

With everything else calm and quiet around my house, I was able to grab a hold of the chaos inside me, and put it on pause for a few minutes. Okay, brain: You work. You got to help me out here: You [mind] got to get this heart of mine under control, and help me FIX THIS! I won’t accept defeat!  Normal brain function returning, I was able to start solving this problem like a puzzle: Getting out another memory card, and examining the two together, I realized a significant part of the edge around the access point of my broken card was missing.   So of course the panic returned for a minute, and then my mind started buzzing:  “I’VE GOT to FIX THIS, I’VE GOT to FIX THIS!”

Stabilizing myself, I began some creative ideas to fix this. But none seemed practical. And then I paused, as I sat at the window, and I began to say a prayer: “Saint Anthony, I know I ask you to help me with things I have lost, I’ve lost my photos. Please help me find them.“—Connecting to my faith calms me down; it re-centers me….What works for you??  Believe it or not, I started to get my answers. I went back to where I was sitting on the couch the night before, and laying on the rug, was a tiny strip of black plastic. After many cross-eyed tries at the microscopic puzzle and with super-glued fingers, I got that strip back on! I put my memory card gently in my computer. And there were my photos. BREATHE, AGAIN. All was not lost.

I realize this was a lesson for me about Life, not just about this particular moment of panic. I know in many situations when I am panicking I lose all sense of hope; i.e., I become hopeless. I feel like nothing will change. And I get stuck. But yesterday, I handled myself well. I need to remember   this experience when I lose control of other parts of my life. I know that I won’t be able to fix everything that’s placed in front of me. But I can learn to work at re-centering myself, and being more intentional about asking for help (because we aren’t made to walk this walk of life alone).

It also made me realize, how much I don’t want to sink into that trap of Depression again. It’s funny how proactive we can be with ourselves, when we are working in opposition to something negative in our lives, isn’t it?  And that’s the key here: Yes, I’m writing about not wanting my pictures to be lost, but what I am really writing about is: “I don’t want to get stuck feeling this way!”  And wanting to change the way I feel, has great power in it. This power is what I want to hold onto. It’s what we all need to hold onto when we want to change our emotional state in life. It’s not the kind of power that dominates, and dictates, rather it’s the kind of power that is gentle and honest. It’s the kind of power that says to each of us in our own unique way, “ You are going to be okay.” ” You are going to get through this somehow.” And thus, it is the kind of power that also says, “It’s okay if I don’t know the outcome, I’ve just got to give myself the chance to Live through this, rather than being a puppet of panic and anxiety.”

The best part of this lesson learned, is that the strength to get through the obstacles in life is right there inside each and every one of us. And life offers us the opportunity to tap into our inner strength daily. Sometimes this inner strength moves us forward to discover solutions (like fixing my memory card) other times this inner strength teaches us how to take care of ourselves (like in my case asking for St. Anthony’s help…maybe for you its taking a relaxing bath, meditating, admitting when you need to rest, etc).

So know you are not alone when you panic. It’s a very real feeling for all of us. Knowing this is healing. Taking care of ourselves in the midst of struggles is healing.

Somehow all will be well…Life will find its way to take care of you, when you open your arms to receive healing.

Blessings of healing and peace to you,

Erin, Bella Bleue
©Bella Bleue Healing, Health & Inspiration for Your Life™ All Rights Reserved.
Please visit my photography site: Naturescapes, Flowerscapes & Life: Photography by Bella Bleue

Discovering Strength, Healing, Inspiration

HopeFull Healing

Erin Keane

Fill yourself with hope, and abundance will overflow within you.

What does being hopeful feel like within you?

For me it’s like an ocean flowing within me, and each time I think of something I am hopeful for a beautiful drop of water falls into my ocean, making a splash, sending ripples , and connecting other drops of hope together. It’s like filling myself up with goodness and peace. And the feeling is so full that  I have to connect to things outside myself, and share this wonderful energy with all that surrounds me. This sharing comes from the healthy longing I have for something good, something wonderful…

I call hope a healthy longing, because being hopeful, actually does make us healthier. For example: Have you ever reflected on when you’ve been sick with a cold? Most of us, when we are sick, may be frustrated that our cold is getting in our way. We may do things to take care of ourselves like, resting, getting our vitamin C, and drinking hot tea with honey. We do these things because they are good for us, but have you ever realized maybe you are doing these things also because you are hopeful that you will get better?  This HOPE to get better, motivates you to take care of yourself because you want to be well.  And within this HOPE is also your ability to imagine…you are able to imagine what you will feel like when you are better. Imagining something wonderful and good for you, fills your body with HOPE.  And this HOPE flows within you, filling your body with goodness, healing energy and love. Hope allows your body to rest, by filling your cells with positive energy; i.e., your body isn’t fighting something off instead it is creating balance, equilibrium.

Hope also creates a wonderful energy within our spirit. I often imagine hope is like a flame that keeps burning even when the oil has run out. This kind of hope ignites our spirit…invites us, and even forces us to move forward in a positive way. It creates a longing within our hearts that makes all that is good within us blossom within us. Hope removes our fear and disappointment and fills us with “confident expectations”  that what we want in life will truly happen for us.

I know that being hopeful has brought me through experiences and circumstances in my life, that I would not have gotten through without it. When I was depressed it was very challenging to be hopeful. But it was the one thing that did keep me going. I don’t know how I would have made it without some kind of hope. That is why I deeply believe that “hope is a flame that keeps burning even when the oil has run out.” I kept believing that one day things would be better, even in the midst of my “valley of tears.’ And it did. It is hope that continues to keep me moving forward—and in difficult times, it is the remembering of when I have been hopeful and life has brought me into the light of goodness that gives me strength.

What has hope done for you in your life?

Blessings, Erin, Bella Bleue
©Bella Bleue Healing, Health & Inspiration for Your Life™ All rights reserved.