Are you a victim or a survivor?

Since I first commenced this journey and shared it through my blog I have been contacted by many friends and many others who I barely know. I’ve been praised for my bravery, my courage and my honesty. I’ve been applauded that I’m strong enough to make the change.

We all have the same choice.

Each and every one of us has the choice to choose how we live.

Do you live as a victim?

Is everything someone else’s fault? Do you feel you don’t have control all the time? Do you have an excuse for everything? This is harsh, but that’s your choice. No matter what happens to you, how you react is your choice. You can choose the victim mentality or you can choose the survivor mentality.

I am a survivor.

I don’t have regrets in life. I have lessons learned. I don’t blame others for my own shortcomings, I try my hardest not to focus on them either. I am in control of my life. I choose how to react to situations that life throws at me. Yes, I can’t change the weather, but I have a choice, I can whinge and moan about it, or I can do something about it, I can choose to see it as an opportunity to continue on my blog. To do the chores or to watch a movie. When a hurdle crops up in life I don’t run from it, I work out how to overcome it.

It’s rarely easy, but the end result is always worth it. I am living a life that I have made based on my past experiences and my reactions to them.

When you are happy with your life, this does not mean you’re not striving for greater goals, because I believe we always should be one way or another.

I also believe in paying it forward. When someone does a good turn unto you – what is your first reaction? You’re happy, smiling, overjoyed and excited. Most of us share that excitement but that’s as far as we go.

What would happen, if each of us decided to do one good deed per day for someone else without expecting anything in return, no acknowledgment, nothing. The world would certainly be a better place.

I dare you to try it.

Tomorrow, be a survivor, greet the day with a smile and don’t let things affect you that you cannot change. Pay it forward, do a good deed for someone else without expecting anything in return. The internal warmth you’ll feel afterwards will be your reward for being a survivor who pays it forward.

There are going to be hurdles that come up in your life that are hard. There are hurdles in my life that I’m still not ready to tackle, but I’m getting closer to tackling them. My biggest hurdle is my weight. It is holding me back physically, mentally, financially and socially. It affects me more than I ever should let it.

I am still adapting my way of thinking about my weight to a survivor frame of mind. This is what my journey is about. I hope that upon successfully completing this life challenge that my journey will inspire others to think about what they can do and to empower them to reach for their goals.

This is only the beginning of what I feel will be my lifelong journey, the weight is only the first chapter.