Greetings and welcome to the Why Struggle podcast.
I'm your host Barbara J.
Faison and my intention with this podcast is to offer ideas,
Insights,
And inspirations so you can live life better.
Greetings and welcome to 2024 week 15,
Celebrations.
This is a podcast about celebrating friendships and enjoying life.
My dear friend Bonnie is celebrating her birthday and a group of us will go salsa dancing on Friday.
When I was chatting with her earlier this week,
Neither one of us could remember exactly when we met.
Well,
We remembered when we met,
We just couldn't remember the year.
We were pretty sure it was around 2000-ish.
At that time,
I was dancing once or twice a week around various places in Atlanta.
One Friday night while I was at the duplex listening to music and dancing in place,
Bonnie came over and struck up a conversation.
That act started the beginning of our friendship.
Over the next 20 plus years,
We experienced a lot.
Whenever I had a program and needed support,
Bonnie was there.
She would be there early,
Stay for the program,
And help me clean up afterwards.
In fact,
After I got married,
My husband noticed whenever something was taking place,
Whether it was people coming over to the house or an event that I was part of,
Bonnie was there.
I told him we should all have a friend like Bonnie.
If she can be there,
She will be there from the beginning to the end.
We have had countless meals together and laughed until we couldn't stop.
We have traveled together and danced salsa in Miami and Puerto Rico until the wee hours of the morning.
As we grew older,
We would laugh the next day after we stayed out way too late and remind ourselves that we were not 25,
35,
45,
Or even 55.
I have lost count of all the times Bonnie was there.
Whether it was helping me get my mom to an event because I needed to be there early or checking on her when she was in the rehab center.
I'm so grateful my mother got a chance to meet her.
After my mom passed and when it was time to go through her things,
Bonnie's support and presence was like a healing balm.
It's so important that we take time to celebrate friends and relationships.
Celebrate Everything is the excerpt I'm sharing from my book e-book audiobook,
Why Struggle Life is Too Short to Wear Tight Shoes.
Celebrate Everything.
Life is a journey,
A trip,
A deck of cards.
Life defies a single definition because moment by moment,
Life changes.
Just as life changes,
We change and grow based on our experiences.
Treat yourself to something because you met a goal.
Celebrate.
Life simply is.
Being alive is cause for celebration.
Take a moment to think of a reason to celebrate.
Treat yourself to something because you met a goal.
Celebrate.
Perhaps you didn't use your cell phone when you were having a meal.
Celebrate.
Every day find reasons to be grateful for life and celebrate.
Sometimes it's just as simple as not beating yourself up about something you did.
Now that is cause for a major celebration.
Practice.
Think about the music you've listened to,
The movies you've seen,
The friends in your life,
And how they may have changed over the years.
Treat yourself to something you enjoy.
You deserve it.
Affirmation.
I celebrate life and I am grateful for all my life experiences.
A group of us called Afro Salsa will be celebrating Bonnie for her 60th birthday at the Sanctuary Night Club on Friday night.
We never know who will show up for our celebrations and we always enjoy ourselves.
Happy birthday Bonnie Young.
You are loved and so appreciated by so many.
What will you celebrate this week?
Leave a comment where you are listening to this podcast.
