Mary Kate Kopec - marykatekopec.com

Be the Change

“Be the Change you wish to see in the world!” Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi got it right!

If I’ve learned anything in this life (and I’ve learned lots), it’s that you can’t control others. You can’t make them be anything. For instance, you can’t make someone else be happy. You can’t make someone care. You can’t make someone be anything they don’t want to be.

We are impressionable beings. We are social. We hang out in groups, and we listen. We can be influenced.

We can be change!

We can be goodness! We can be love! We can be light!

Today I have a singular light brightening my brain. This light has been calling to me for months. It’s a light I need to shine brightly and to share, because it’s a light of making a positive difference. It’s a light that shows just how good we can be! It shows the change we can make!

Be a BEST PERSON in peoples lives!

A little while back I learned that a dear friend had passed. She was young. … Cancer. Taken before her time, and a devastating loss to all those who were fortunate to share life with her.

She liked ice cold cokey colas. Just about everything she ate needed “a lil salt” after a first tiny bite. Her laugh was mirthful and hearty. No one could decorate a Christmas tree like her, but pilots could use the lights as a landing beacon. And her heart was pure gold!

She was hard work, determination, grit, and a lickity split brain! She was reliable, authentic, and she liked flying under the radar. Meghan wasn’t looking for other people to make her feel important with ribbons and awards. But she was special; she was perfect (in only a way Meghan could be)!

Meghan was a Best Person in my life! (which is why I’m sharing with you!) :0)

Do you have a Meghan (Best Person) in your life?

I think we all have Meghans in our lives. The people who authentically shine and make us look inward to be our best selves!

I think to all the people who have come into my life. Beautiful souls! Bright lights! Angels on earth! Even spritely little fairies of goodness!

I can strive to always be my best, give my best, and help my best for others!

I feel that even if I only get five seconds in passing, I can smile! I feel deep gratitude for you and this time we share! And I strive to always be a light in your days!

I can be the change for goodness! I can be the change for love! I can be the change for authenticity! I can be the change for happiness and wellness!

I invite you to be a Best Person for others! (Be the change!)

Being a best person (the change) isn’t about being perfect. It’s not about always being something uber, impossibly positive.

A smile.
A hug.
Words of kindness, or love, or support, … or all of these!
Maybe it’s a gift of your time to help them tackle something challenging they are facing.
Maybe it’s just time shared laughing together and having a fun chit chat.

“Be the change …”, as Gandhi has said. I call it Being the Ripple!

You are precious!

You are light! We need you!!!!

Our world is faced with many struggles! And one thing is for sure, Our Love and Light can help!!! (It certainly won’t hurt … so … sweet blossom … Let’s be the change! Let’s be the ripple!)

Love and Big Hugging you big … and I’m smiling at you so bright my cheeks are practically in my ears!!!!

Comedy Night at Froggy Bog!
On the Bog (with Kat, Bear, & Wogs)

Laughter is medicine! On the Bog! Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

Comedy Night at Froggy Bogs!

The darkness of night had fallen On the Bog, lit only by a faint crescent moon tucked behind thick clouds, some gently twinkling stars, and lots of blinking fireflies.

The pleasant summer day had been sunny and warm with a happy, cooling breeze to make their playtime an absolute delight! Kat, Bear, and Wogs were all tuckered out from their big outside adventuring and silliness.

Nestled inside Starry Cottage On the Bog, they all snuggled together on their big, fluffy couch and listened to the froggy boggy sounds outside.

Kat (smiling and wondering): It sounds like they’re laughing!

Wogs (nodding and smiling back): Yeah, must be stand-up night, and their comedian is hilarious!

Bear (thinking the frogs were probably laughing at them for spending such a good night inside and missing out on all the moonlit fun, wagged the end of his tail with eagerness, but then yawned): Mrow.

Laughter can actually reduce pain and encourage healing!

And let’s be real … we could all use some healing right now … if not physically, then mentally and emotionally.

As we dip into yet another wave of pandemic challenge and hear more about the climate crisis, and …, and …, and …, … … … whatever the world is throwing our way, it can be hard to stay positive. Upbeat. Lighthearted. … Or even, just to be okay and hanging in there.

Our morale can drop, and with it, it can take our overall well-being (including physical). So it’s important for us to find ways to laugh and lighten up … to be bright and smile!

It’s important for us to connect with our loving, happy peeps! It’s important for us to be seen and heard. And it’s important for us to feel loved, smile big, and laugh hard!

So hug yourself or the creature sitting next to you (human or furry), and tell yourself this goodness: I am LOVED! I am NEEDED! I am a BRIGHT, BEAUTIFUL LIGHT IN THIS WORLD!

Smile and laugh! Share your smiles and laughter with others! (Did you know that even if you have to force a smile or laugh, it still helps??? … It’s true!)

So in these times when it can be easy to see darkness, I offer to you the gentle, loving, hugging reminder to Focus On What You Can Do To Help Your Body Cope And Heal!

And right now, you can smile and laugh! And know I love you!!!

Art as Self-Care:
Lights Digi-Painting

Art as Self-Care. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

Art as Self-Care: Lights Digi-Painting

About a week ago, I had a really scary experience. A something that triggered my anxiety/panic-button in this COVID pandemic time. Irresponsible, disrespectful, self-righteous behaviors of others that put my improving-but-still-fragile health at risk. I never saw the danger coming. I was in a supposedly trustworthy medical environment for a very necessary yearly appointment. Yet, there I was, surrounded by unsafety.

The day it happened, I almost held up throughout. My therapy techniques held me until the night … which is when I’m most vulnerable (cuz like, I’m tired, ya know?).

Well, so, I made it through the day; then, I cried that night. The fear caught up with me. I woke up the next day almost numb. Or rather, I simply felt so depleted I was barely there. I retreated into myself to try to cope and to allow the post-experience healing process to continue. I was quiet. I felt a dark, cloudy bubble surrounding me.

It wasn’t fun.

I didn’t feel well. I felt low and vulnerable.

I didn’t want to talk with friends. I just wanted to be very, very, very quiet.

But, slowly, throughout the week, I gained ground. Bit by bit.

A few days “post-event,” I found myself sitting in front of my computer, staring at my project planner. I knew I needed to do something to get out of my shell. But as I stared at my screen, I didn’t engage.

I wasn’t ready “to work” (like blogging or story writing).

I needed something less structured. With no expectations beyond creating a healing experience for myself.

I scrolled the pages of my digi-planner until a little gem caught my eye.

I have a variety of projects: small, medium, and big, with different purposes, involving different skills sets and interests. This variety helps me stay active for almost any energy/ability/mental level. And when I run into “down” time that requires some extra self-loving and self-caring … I’ve made sure I have lots of choices to pick from.

The Little Gem That Caught My Eye

In any given moment, I create to let my heart and mind express whatever they need to express. I don’t force myself to create anything. I just let my energy flow. Sometimes I doodle. Sometimes I I write. Sometimes I digi-paint using snaps of nature as canvases. Sometimes I use an inspiration snap to guide me wherever I need to go.

That’s what happened here.

Original snap found somewhere in the interwebs universe.

Inspiration and Healing

When I saw this little image I came across somewhere in the interwebbin werld, I felt it again … the peaceful joy this image induces in me. I’m not sure why it makes me feel so calm and happy. It’s just a blurry snap of a city street and crosswalk somewhere in the world at night with lights. But I suspect it’s the colors and the lights and how the pinks pop out against the darkened teals and blues. The lights and colors remind me of Christmas lights, and Christmas lights have been one of my favorite things on earth since I was old enough to crawl under the Christmas tree and fall asleep.

So with a bit of peacful joy guiding my heart, I kept studying the snap (the colors and the feel) and digi-painted, starting with a blank white canvas and some digital watercolors. I didn’t do anything fancy. I simply “moused” color onto my digital canvas, seeking the experience of color. Of quiet. Of peaceful time to savor and feel safe in.

In case you are interested, anyone with a computer + mouse or touchscreen + pen can do what I did here (and beyond those already purchased items, you can do it for free). I used the FREE Adobe Fresco App and my mouse for the entire painting. Adobe provides an quick start-up tutorial that will have you painting in about 5 easy minutes … SERIOUSLY!

My one creative splurge for my final outcome was to add a PhotoShop Elements “Paint Daubs” filter to my image to help my lights pop a lil bit more.

You can either paint something in your heart/mind’s eye, or you can find a snap/IRL-setting of something that inspires you … and start painting!

While painting, I used a coupla different watercolor brushes (Watercolor Wash Soft + Basic Watercolor).

My goal wasn’t to recreate the image. I just wanted the colors and feeling the snap gave me to guide my color choices and placement in a manner consistent with giving my painting the happy visual punch of lights against darkness in a way that makes me feel happy.

I’d just been through an experience that darkened my days, and I know that the way back to healing is to focus on the light – and I love Pink light, especially.

This painting took me about 2 hours to complete – it was a relatively quick painting (many of my creations take much longer).

In my 2 hours, I came away from my digital canvas smiling and feeling brighter than I had the whole week. I was excited to share my creation with close friends and my honeybun (which got me outta my troubled and introvert shell).

My creation time was self-caring time that allowed me to focus on something different than the fear, the scary moment in time. My anxiety quieted. My mind calmed down and found peace. This self-caring time allowed me to rest and heal in a positive and supportive manner. It was soul-soothing delicious time well spent! It gave me strong steps to letting go and moving forward!!!

So … lemme show you what I created! As I am quite excited!!!

The first image is of my original watercolor painting, and the second one has the “splashy/flashy” filter added for a popping-of-the-lights effect.

I love both!

So now that I shared my experience, let’s talk about the health benefits of art-ing, painting, writing, crafting, … creating.

Creating is focused, mindful, and calming (it actually produces dopamine, an antidepressant). Art as self-care checks off a lot of boxes. It helps you de-stress. Add to all of these just stated, creating will help you feel happy and smile. It can get you connecting with loved ones again. It can help break through the dark haze holding you down.

And the good news is, evening creating (say, for instance, coloring) for 5 minutes a day can make a difference in your daily life … it’s excellent daily self-care!

Creating art can help improve symptoms of depression, anxiety, PTSD, stress, and more.
You can use art therapy to process trauma and mental challenges.
Creating art helps build connections in the brain, helping to prevent memory loss. (https://www.riteaid.com/articles/the-arts-and-healthy-aging-how-does-art-affect-the-brain)
When you color or create, you help the part of your brain that makes you afraid/feel fear relax. It is a form of mindful quietness that is Self-Care AWESOMEness!
Even just 5 minutes a day can help!

Art as self-care, my beautiful blossoms and bright stars, is a happy, healthy, fun, healing way to process life’s challenges!

Love yourself with some create time!

paint
write
color
doodle
draw
crochet
knit
quilt
write a short story
journal
make a collage of snaps you collect from online or IRL
mold and shape clay
paint ceramics
build fused glass gloriousness!
create tile mosaics
… uh, this list goes on and on!

Whatever you do, enjoy it! Let it free your mind. Give yourself a much needed rest and break! Let your tensions chill da hellz out for a while! (lol). Heal. Find peace and calm. Be well again, my amazing sweet pea!

You are worthy of this time and your art-ing to self-care!

Thank you so much for sharing this growing, healing time with me!

Take a deep breath in, and know you are loved! Cuz, I loves you SO BIG!!!

Eat something nourishing today! And know I am hugging you GIGANTIC!

A Scary Time!
On the Bog (with Kat, Bear, & Wogs)

scary time. positive relationships. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

A Scary Time!

It was a scary time On the Bog! Lightening struck, and thunder shook the very walls of Starry Cottage!

Dark skies roiled. Heavy rain blew and blustered, drenching everything in sight and obscuring the usually chipper sights of the Bog. All the creatures were silent and still, hiding in their homes and shelters, hoping for the storm to pass quickly.

Inside Starry Cottage with a candle lit in the window for hope and light, Kat, Bear, and Wogs huddled closely together, holding each other tight.

Kat (shuddering in response to a loud, nearby lightening strike): I’m scared.

Wogs (hugging Kat tighter and gently stroking Bear’s head for comfort): Me, too. But it’s scary outside, so that’s normal.

Kat (cuddling in closer to Wogs and petting Bear with calming love): I’m so grateful we have each other!

Wogs (loving Kat and Bear big time with gentle comforting hugs): Me, too!

Bear (loving Kat and Wogs so big and thankful for their comfort in such a scary time, snuggled deeply into Wogs lap and felt calm with Kat’s gentle touch): <3

Live an Inspired Life! Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

It would be great if scary times didn’t happen, but they do. They can throw us off-center and disturb our calm. They can bring tremendous upset and upheaval. We can struggle to navigate these difficult times.

But navigate we must. One step at a time. One foot in front of the other. One breath at a time.

They help us be a little braver, be a bit calmer, and help us find the strength we need to get through the scary time with less soul scorching … less fear … an in a way that helps us feel not alone, … and simply better.

Nourishing positive relationships with others, growing love with friends and partners, and investing in meaningful connections all take time to flourish, but these bonds are gifts in our lives! They brighten our days! We have goodness to share! Support to lend! Hugs to hold us!

Together, we celebrate the good times, and comfort each other in the scary and difficult times!

Together, we make life happier, healthier, PINKer, kinder, more loving, more caring, … simply filled with more goodness!

I am filled with gratitude for this shared time with you! Thank you for being here with me as we navigate the good days and the bad days! Thank you for sharing your brightness with the world!

May any scary times you face pass quickly and without lasting debilitating impact. May you have the love and support you need to hold you, comfort you, and guide you safely back to brighter days! May you always feel my love holding your heart!

Living an Inspired Life
Making It Happen!

Living a Happy Life. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs.

Living Your Inspired Life: Making It Happen!

Living an Inspired Life: Welcome! Let’s Get You Started! (Introduction all about who, why, what, when, where, and how for Living an Inspired Life and the steps to get you started envisioning yours!)

Living an Inspired Life: Time to Reflect and Imagine! (In this post, we take all the doodle-thinking pages you created in the first post, and we dig in with with reflection and imagination to see what your Inspired Life looks like!)

Okay, Beautiful Blossoms!

Let’s get you living your inspired life! Let’s make it happen!

You’re gonna want to have all your original doodle-thinking pages from our first meeting, and all of your notes and vision/dream boarding from our second meeting …

Make a List!

What is different between the “current you” and the “living your inspired life you”?

What new things do you need to grow into your life?
What old things no longer serve you and must be let go of?

Make a list! It doesn’t have to be a big list. It doesn’t have to be organized in any form (not quite yet). You just need to get all down in front of you, so you can see what you want to grow and let go of as you live your inspired life!

For me, my list is based on my values of happiness, healthiness, wellness, gratitude, kindness, love, and positude (If you’ve been reading my posts and enjoying my positudes and watching my videos, this sounds like me, right, … big hearts and big smiles to you!).

For me, I want to live a happy life. A healthy life. A life of light, love, gratitude, and goodness. I want to be light and love in this world and to help spread smiles and big hugs!

Have a beautiful, happy, supportive, loving, wonderful life with my honeybun
Create happiness, light, love, joy, positivity
Live in gratitude & wellness
Grow and nurture beautiful relationships
For my body, mind, soul, efforts, and energies, nurture, nourish, live, learn, and grow with sustainability, conservation, goodness, wellness, healthiness
Movement in my life through yoga, walking, bouncing, and outdoor adventures
Be authentic and genuine and my best possible self
See and experience the beauty of nature
Live and die painlessly
Have a positive, kind, loving impact on all those I encounter … and if possible improve the earth’s wellness through my actions and helping others in need, like seniors, homeless, and abused and neglected animals

When you make your list, let your values guide you! This is your inspired life, and only you can know what you want and need! This is personal! This is all about you and for you! So be brave! Be honest with yourself! And give yourself your best, … because you deserve your best!

You + You Living Your List = You Living Your Inspired Life!

Once you have your list, you have your ideals, growth goals, letting-go goals, … you have the foundation you need to get started living your inspired life!

Some of your list items might be easy to simply start living. Others may require planning and effort. Some of your list items are comprised of many smaller growth steps (my list is like this, as I wrote mine in overarching ideals).

So before we go any further, let’s help you create a “Living an Inspired Life Action Plan”!

You have a list – let’s organize it into a path of sorts! Mind you, this isn’t a permanent path, or inflexible path. Your life is always changing. You are always changing. You are always growing. This path is simply meant to be a vision of growing-you-forward progress in an form that feels ideal to you right now.

As you look at your list:

Is it a path of individual steps growing one forward into the next?
Is it a path of multiple steps happening at once?
Is it a combination of multiple steps and single steps?
Is there a visible logic in forward progression … to do this next ideal, you must first accomplish this ideal?
Are there “easy” and “quick” steps/ideals you can start living immediately or grow pretty quickly? (This can give empower you with an immediate boost of growth that can make you feel really good about your new path.)

Doodle-think out what your path looks and feels like? Where would you like to start? Do you need to accomplish one thing before you can do another?

Ways to Live Your Inspired Life … Envisioning, Creating, and Living Your Do-able Path!

Know that how you grow – what you tackle first, second, and next for always – is up to you what feels good and right for you … when you are ready!

I encourage you to grab your dream/vision board and have it for constant reflection and reminder as you think about your path and laying out your steps. Let your Inspired Vision guide you as you lay out your path! One step, multi-steps, or a combination as you go and grow … you live your do-able Inspired Life!

Know you (and learn you as you go):

What helps you?
What will empower you?
What do you need to grow forward?
What obstacles do you foresee, and how can you face them and overcome them?
What support do you need?

Allow yourself to grow and adapt!
Allow yourself to let go of ideals that no longer serve you!
Allow yourself to amend ideals to better meet your ever growing self!
Allow yourself to immerse yourself in the joy of living and growing in your Inspired Life Vision!

Then you can use the smaller do-able sized steps to grow your success into achieving your ideal and goal.

Here’s one of my rather large list ideals:

For my body, mind, soul, efforts, and energies, nurture, nourish, live, learn, and grow with sustainability, conservation, goodness, wellness, healthiness

I’ve broken this down into MANY, MANY, MANY smaller do-able steps. And even some of those steps have been broken down into smaller do-able steps.

For instance, the part about nourishing my healthiness, I needed to start living an anti-inflammatory life. This includes ALL KINDS OF THINGS (growths and letting go’s):

reducing stress
getting movement into my body
cutting out added sugars
cutting out gluten
getting regular, restful, rejuvenating sleep
and lots more

So let’s take a look at the cutting out gluten … I’ll blog about this someday … as it’s been quite the growth adventure … but it started with doing the obvious: stop eating wheat.

Then I had to learn more about where gluten is … it’s not just in wheat, it also in rye, for instance. And it’s hidden in so many unsuspecting places … like any food packaged in a facility that processes wheat. It turned into a spiral of “ohmigosh, wheat is everywhere!!!”

So … baby steps. I didn’t suddenly cut out gluten, and it was completely gone. It’s taken learning, growing, adapting. Finding new ways to eat. Find new recipes.

I once was a person who could justify eating cake with a glass of milk for breakfast … lol. And now, cake? Cookies? Yes, but differently. And I’ve grown into them, and I love them. But had I tried to do it all in the beginning, I would have been overwhelmed. And I would’ve hated the food.

Slow and steady. Growing. Living it!

Empower your new Inspired Life with happy accomplishments and growth!

Feel good about you and what you are living and growing into your life!

Mind you … you may not be ready in this moment to do “it” … you may need to baby step it with those smaller do-able sized steps. So you’ll have to differentiate between “willing to” and “ready to.” If you’re not willing to do it … don’t bother putting it into your path. But if you’re willing, just not ready … well, then, sweet beautiful blossom … all you have to do is figure out the smaller do-able step path to empower your successful achievement of the growth you want to live!

Living an Inspired Life is NOT a Destination … It’s Now!

If I may …

We have been programmed in life to set goals and achieve them. And that until we achieve them, the goal isn’t complete.

The problem with this thinking is that life is ongoing … it’s not a Do-It Done sort of thing. Well, sure. In the long run, one could look at it in restrospect and reflection like that.

But while we’re living it … we’re hopefully going to be here for a while … so thinking that you can’t live your inspired life until you get all your steps done is not the right kind of thinking. In that, it’s not empowering or helpful or guiding or loving or kind … or patient to think that way.

Your Life Is Happening NOW!

You are living it, breathing it, being it … right now!

Your inspired life is yours to have and create! To live and grow! To rejoice in and be free to be your bright, beautiful self!!!

I think of that quote from Allen Saunders: Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans.

So …

Your List

Your Ideals

Your Path of Do-Able Steps of Growing-You’s and Letting-Go’s

It’s flexible … it grows with you, changes with you. It’s a vision of how you can activate your Inspired Life … how you can start living it.

But don’t get mired down in waiting for it to happen.

Once you begin … You ARE Living Your Inspired Life … how many ever steps at a time that work for you!

Jim Rohn has famously stated, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

If you want to empower your success, you will generally do better when the folks around you support you instead of challenging your every ideal.

Personal Share: MK’s Empowering Her Success

In cutting gluten out of my life, I have not been joined by my friends or my family. For them, it’s not something they want or need.

However, my honeybun has been all about my success! Even though, it’s not something he is seeking to do, he supports my wellness, my healthiness, and my efforts to live my inspired life.

So, he helps me watch for gluten in foods. He helps me cook/bake gluten-free foods. And when I eat gluten-free foods he enjoys, he’ll eat them, too. And when I don’t, he simply makes something different for himself, or I do. We work it as a supportive team!

My point is … your peeps … your blossoms … they don’t have to be on the same exact page as you (it can help if they are, but who really is ever on the “same exact page” [we’re all so very different]).

Your peeps don’t have to be on the same ideal page … but empowerment is improved when they are on the “supporting your success” page!

I hope all of this insight and experience helps you envision, create, and live your Inspired Life!

This is the insight and experience I use to help me and my coachees envision, create, and live our Inspired Lives!

Thank you so much for sharing this Living an Inspired Life blog mini-series time with me! Thank you so much for this opportunity to help you feel love, light, and big hugs in your life!

I am loving you with all the PINK in my heart and hugging you so big!!!

PS: If you have any questions or comments about Living Your Inspired Life, feel free to reach out to me!

PPS: If you feel this blog mini-series can help others you know, please feel free to share this post with them (all the blog post links for this series are provided in the opening paragraph for ease and convenient access.)

Living an Inspired Life
Time to Reflect and Imagine!

Living an Inspired Life! Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

Time to Reflect and Imagine!!!

For those of you who missed the first post in this blog mini-series: Living an Inspired Life, click here to see the post and get more details!

I love this part! … Okay, I love all the parts, cuz they’re the steps to growth and being me … but so, this part is cool, too, because we get to really pull all the bits and pieces together to see what our life puzzle is starting to look like.

For some of you, tho, you might be thinking, … oh, gah! Reflection?!!! Like, is this meditation or something??? Lol. It’s something, but it’s not meditation.

But it could be. Feel free to find a happy spot to meditate on your Inspired Life, if you feel called. That’s awesome, too!

When I’m coaching a blossom, I help big time with this part. I take a look at all my blossom’s categorized doodle-thinkings, and I look for connections. I apply my many years of depth and breadth experience and see things maybe they can’t see, and often don’t. And we talk our way through to some exciting imagining!

But since, you and me, here in this moment, we are connected via the interwebs and my blog of love and big hugs to you … I’m going to do my best to guide you through this next step with some thoughtful insight from me, so you can do it for yourself! We’ll see how we do!

Okay, so … spread your pages out in front of you … I like to see them in the following type order: likes, dislikes, strengths, challenges, motivations, knocks me flat, & values. For me, this is a progressive insight into how my blossom sees herself. So try this, and if you like a different order, go for it!

Example of Doodle-Thinking

Next, it’s analysis and reflection time. It’s putting the pieces together. And doing it in a manner that uses your imagination to what you think your Inspired Life looks like.

Like, for the blossom who says, in my Inspired Life I see myself healthy, happy, and working at XYZ Inc. Or whatever she thinks she sees.

Like a blossom who wants to be healthy, but is stuck in the dieting trap, getting nowhere.

So, look at your doodle-thinking pages and compare away. Look for the solid and supported “truths” of you. Look for what seems wonky, and ask why?

Ask yourself what works for this idea of what you see in your Inspired Life. Ask yourself what is holding you back. Ask yourself with all that you are seeing about yourself … in line with your values … what does your Inspired Life look like in more detail?

You want to flesh out your vision. See it in color. See yourself today, and ask yourself …

Am I looking to make big changes?
Little changes?
Middle-sized changes?

What are you focusing on?

Health?
Wellness?
Happiness?
Career?
Relationships?
Family?
The whole kit and caboodle?

10 Life Must Haves + Must Do’s

OK … so there’s a next helpful step. It will help clarify or reinforce what you are thinking. Time to grab another sheet of paper and your colorful pens/pencils/markers …

Life List time!!!

And now look at your life again … here’s that reflection time, big time:

What are you looking to keep?
What are you looking to change?
What in your life (friends, work, family) is working for you?
What in your life is bringing you down?
What things can you change?
What things must you adapt to/can’t change (like a pandemic)?
What is serving you?
What is holding you back?
How does your 10 Life List things match up with what you want to keep and what you want to change?

What can you do to make the change? What actions do you need to take? (like eat nutrient dense food, get up and move around every hour, move to a new place) … I mean, these actions can be big and small and in between …

I love to dream/vision board what I’m seeing and feeling. If you like that idea, give it a try. Outta your head on paper in front of you … it’s the big trick and key. In your head is a jumble … on paper, you can’t hide. It’s right in front of you!

And next time, we’ll wrap up with growing you from here to there. Laying a path for you to travel. Determining the steps you need to take and empowering you to take them!

This is the good stuff, sweet beautiful blossom and bright star!!!

SEE YOU, THE REAL YOU AND YOUR INSPIRED LIFE!

MK’s “Dreaming Big Living It Small to Make A Difference” Save the Bees Dream!

Bee Kind. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

In my Inspired Life Dreaming Big … I’m helping to save the bees and the trees … and clean water and clean air.

But for today, let’s talk about my DREAMing BIG SAVE the BEES idea … like for fun, but also in seriousness.

In the “for fun” of things, I recognize one small simple truth: I don’t have a hundred million dollars, nor do I have any contacts with some spare hundred mill worth of change rattling around in their pockets who might be able to set this dream up.

Nonetheless … I love the energy and the intent of my Big Dream … so … for the fun of it, and the seriousness of it (cuz let’s be real, if the bees die, we die … it’s just how it is … and we keep killing them like we don’t know that), here it is … my Big Save the Bees Dream:

Empower an organic & unspoiled land, clean water, no cell towers, no pesticides, no fertilizers bee sanctuary sufficient enough to help the bees live and as a bonus plus … create true organic honey (currently, as far as my research as indicated, none actually exists) … and promote environmental wellness!

Project Notes and Needs:

bees require a file mile habitat radius from their hives
a little bit of math time … don’t worry, I got this … read to the end of this bullet for bottom line .. (5 miles x 2 to convert from radius to diameter = 10 miles diameter … converting a circle shape to a square shape with estimation to be easy for creating a more recognizable unit of measure … square miles … 10 miles wide x 10 miles long = 100 sq miles) … so we’re roughly gonna need about 100 sq miles of continuous land
land is sold in acres … so I looked it up, and 100 sq miles is about 64,000 acres … so we’re gonna need a REALLY big piece of bee happy land with natural/fresh/clean water, trees, plants, flowers … think of all the bunches and bunches of beautiful wildflowers … A BIG BIG BIG BIIIIIIGGGGG piece of bee happy sanctuary land
some beehives
bees
beekeepers
a consulting ecologist/land manager
another bonus, we could get it designated protected lands, or something sustainable (add lawyer, team of lawyers to budget list … maybe they’d work pro bono?!)
we could also consider designating a portion of the area a “park” (add park rangers)

Well, so, that should give you an idea of my dreaming big …

So if you wouldn’t mind checking your pockets for some spare change, I really think we can make this happen!!!

*ISObillionairewithbigheartandawilltosurvive*

In the meantime, to help save the bees with the means I have available to me, I:

have committed to buying organic and sustainable in every way possible (food, home textiles, … I have even started buying organic clothing … cuz the pesticides that are used for cotton farming account for HUGE amount of the pesticides being used overall … and it’s terrible.)
have gone paperless in every way I can … I even do all of my doodling, arting, and noting digitally
have committed to consuming less … I’ve walked away from the buy more, buy bigger motto. Working to live more sustainably and growing my knowledge and skills as I can.
have created (and am learning to expand) an indoor, year round growing system (in part using TowerGardens for a substantial part of our harvest)
have planted bee friendly flowers and created a bee friendly space in our yard

I may not have a hundred million billion zillion dollars, but I can do things in my own way. Maybe it will help. Maybe it won’t. But I feel good trying and helping to make the world a safer, cleaner, more sustainable place for all.

Well, beautiful blossoms … there it is my Dreaming Big Living It Small to Make A Difference Save the Bees Dream!

I hope you’ve enjoyed my dreaming big!

And if you’d like to do something simple, but wonderfully big to help the bees in your area, here is an wonderful tip from FarmAndDairy.com:

Nighttime Spectacular!
On the Bog (with Kat, Bear, & Wogs)

On the Bog! Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

Nighttime Spectacular!

Kat, Bear, and Wogs were all snuggly buggily sound asleep in their happy little Starry Cottage On the Bog.

But outside, nightlife was vibrant and alive in a peaceful nighttime spectacular! The frogs and crickets chirped and sang in a restful, serenading ambiance. Fireflies twinkled everywhere being delightful little stars on earth. Stealthy deer sticking to the shadows waded amongst the tall wildflowers, nibbling and munching on yummy nummies.

And the moon! Oh, the moon! A dazzling orange sherbet light in the sky, hovered just above the treetops and cast a sherbet glow on the clouds nearby. The moon was making its evening trek toward the horizon, half full but filled with captivating excitement!

Kat (dreaming of their recent Bog Daze fun and smiling in her sleep sends loving thoughts and hugs to you): … love and big hugs
Wogs (lightly snoring, rolled over onto his side and pulled his blanket a lil higher … he’d hug you, too, but he’s deep in sleep): … love and big hugs

Bear (catching the twinkle of a firefly, he opened his eyes and peered out his window perch catching a glimpse of the wonder and thought, … wait til I tell Kat and Wogs what they missed! … then, he snuggled back into his curled up ball to dream of being outside catching fireflies and chasing deer … oh, and he sends you hugs, too!): … love and big hugs

tulip flower. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs.

Hello Sweet Beautiful Blossom!

Thank you for being here with me today! Just in case you needed it extra big … today is a big day of hugging and loving you my biggest!!!!

Please remember to give yourself a lil love … hydrate, eat something nourishing, take a moment to rest and breathe, and hug yourself for the brightness you are!!!!

Muah, SO BIG!!!!

Clog On the Bog (with Kat, Bear, & Wogs)

Clog On the Bog!

The rains came and went, leaving bright sunny skies, happy greenery, and brilliant blossoms On the Bog!

To celebrate, Kat, Bear, and Wogs hosted a delightful Bog Daze summer fun day! But with all the fun, games, and yummy nummies at the munching stations … there was a clog On the Bog as everyone waited their chance to use the Starry Cottage’s outhouse.

Even still, smiles were bright, spirits glistened with glee, and the merriment continued into the night with the big campfire!

Kat (doing a little jig): I’m glad I’m next … I drank too much lemonade!!!

Wogs (smiling and shaking his head at Kat): You always drink too much lemonade!

Bear (flicker-waving his tail is using his waiting time to say HI and hug you big!): Mrow!

This special On the Bog is by request and is in response to the loving hugs and ribbing my sweet blossoms from afar (UK and Australia) are giving me about the title of my story-sharing time with you!

For fun and happiness, Honeymuppin and I do truly live in our lil Starry Cottage On the Bog, and we love it!!!! As we were getting settled in, I started telling stories about the creatures and bog life … Honeymuppin said I should share, cuz the stories are cute! I was looking for a medium to short-story-share and digi-doodle … so On the Bog was born … without me knowing that “on the bog” also means to poo for some … like my gorgeous lights of love abroad. So when I told them, they, uh, … laughed … really hard!

So. On the Bog is our running happy joke! In a recent women’s circle chat, we all got a good laugh about them all coming to visit Starry Cottage and creating a Clog On the Bog … and so … here we are!

I hope this little inside share has brought a smile to your face and lifted your spirits today!

I’m hugging you so big, with brightest PINK in my heart!!! And with so much loving gratitude in my being for you sharing time with me, I wish you light, love, big smiles, and abundant wellness … always!

Invasion of the Frogs?!
On the Bog (with Kat, Bear, & Wogs)

Invasion of the Frogs?!

Early summer rains brought cool winds and dark skies. Kat, Bear, and Wogs were nestled warmly near the toasty fire in their Starry Cottage On the Bog!

Inside, Kat, Bear, and Wogs cozied up on their comfy couch and listened with giddy glee to the happy, froggy harmony coming in from the Bog. You almost couldn’t hear the steady pour of rain for the loudness of the frogs.

Kat (giggling at the delightful sound): They’re SO LOUD. The rain is making them very happy!

Wogs (turning to look at Kat with big, wondering, playful eyes): What if it’s not lots of frogs? What if it’s just one REALLY BIG frog!

hearts. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

Kindness and Caring. These go a long way and make a big difference in the world around us. And for ourselves.

Dear Sweet Blossoms,

I find myself vibrating with the stress of an unkind, uncaring interaction today. We had trees planted here at our Starry Cottage On the Bog (we are so grateful for our new trees, the life and light they are, and the life they will support)!

The trees are a delight!

The planters of the trees were unkind and uncaring, and their actions and attitudes have been a challenge to process. I mention this, not to be a bummer, but to highlight our actions have impact. Whether for good or for bad. We can be bright lights and love and bring ourselves and the world up, or not. It is our choice.

I feel our times are changing us. I’m feeling harshness where once their was, at minimum, social civility.

It does not have to be this way.

We can be kind. We can care. We can love. And we be bright lights!

For me, I find it feels wonderful sharing and smiling and hugging and being there for others!

Being here with you is AMAZING!!! Being here with you is SQUEE!!! Being here with you is HEALING!!! Being here with you is LOVE and BIG HUGS!!!

Be well, my sweet peas! May you find yourself surrounded by kindness and caring today, and everyday (and for when you don’t, know I am hugging you tighter and brighter, all day long!)!!!