For the love of Fall

Fall. I love everything about it. The crisp, cool, air with the refreshing clean smell as if earth has shed the old revealing the new.

I love warm sweaters and sitting around a bon fire with family and friends, feeling the heat from the fire on my face. I love getting lost in thought with each flicker of the light and red pulsating embers.

Reflecting on the past few months, remembering the fun in the sun but so much welcoming the new days ahead. Making new memories through Photography. To hold still the very thought of the moment.

Walks down winding country roads with a view of the reds, yellows, browns of the trees and leaves beneath my feet. Snuggles, kisses and blankets make the Fall season a welcomed event.

It reminds me to hang on to every second of it before it loses itself in the winter's bitter cold. Lost forever until earth decides to shed the old once again the next year, repeating the cycle we call, "Seasons"...

Written by: Belinda Taylor 9-16-2013

This knot

What is this knot inside that seems to be taking over her being? Is it dread of awakening another day? What comes of the detached soul once it has been abandoned over and over again? Is there hope for it?

The soul cries out in pain and sorrow for it's very existence. The mere thought of continuing seems to instill dread.

Wanting to pass on but scared at the same time, it seems unfair to even have been born only to be forgotten.

A cruel joke as it turns out. Just something placed here to be played with. Taunted, sacrificed for the humor of society.

If the soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts then hers must be black. The color of the hurt, the anger, the dwelling within where her being was formed, molded, created to be despised by all it would touch.

For what she thought was a good heart inside her she has realized it is a mere organ to keep her sustaining the horrible life she is forced to live. The question is "Why?" She surely doesn't know the answer, she was never supposed to know the answer.

Nowhere to call home, nowhere to belong. Her fault for not ending her misery years ago, before she learned what caring for others was, before the demons took over her mind, her life. Before she had something to lose.

Perhaps it isn't to late, for the dead knows nothing, the dead feels not, the dead has nothing to lose. Why must she endure another stab, another heartache, another day of being shown her fate of this existence called life?

Walt Whitman said - “Whatever satisfies the soul is truth.” This is not true, it is the epitome of a lie, a wolf in sheep's clothing, the lead beneath the gold layer. It appears as truth then vanishes quickly once it has taken that which it came to rob, the soul itself.

The mentality of the human race is walk on or be walked on. Why couldn't this be her mentality? Is she the only one? Are there others? Who knows  but she sees why people choose to no longer exist. Inside us there is something that has no name, that something is what we are.

One of the deepest longings of the human soul is to be seen. Hers would drown in darkness. She has given herself over to the powers that be. Have her, she will no longer fight, she will no longer hold to hope, she will no longer be...

Written by: Belinda Taylor Sept. 1, 2013
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Loyalty

loy·al·ty  

/ˈloiəltē/

Noun

1. The quality of being loyal to someone or something.
2. A strong feeling of support or allegiance
   
   
   Synonyms
   allegiance - fidelity - faithfulness - devotion - faith

This is a word of the utmost importance when dealing with those we claim we care for. Whether it be family or friends. To know no loyalty is to not have morals or values.

Anything short of loyal is erroneous, and we don't need those people in our life.

“We have to recognize that there cannot be relationships unless there is commitment, unless there is loyalty, unless there is love, patience, persistence.”

Anything worth having is worth fighting for, worth being loyal to. If another is willing to give their all to you then give something back. Why wouldn't one want to give back?

Don't expect to keep closing doors in the faces of those who have been loyal to you and expect them to keep coming back for more. Yes, we may keep coming back for a little while but eventually we tire of the undeserved treatment administered by the one who fooled us.

Why would we throw loyalty to the wind and watch it scatter about? Isn't it a characteristic that is hard to obtain? Not many can be dubbed as a loyal person. Grab hold and cling to that title because usually it means you have earned it. It should be flattering to us when we are referred to as a loyal friend.

Unfortunately there are those out there who claim they will stand by you no matter what but then when the going gets tough they tuck their tail and run. Why? Because the lives of others are merely a game to them, they prey on the vulnerability of their target, they are not who they present themselves to be in the end.

If only one could single those people out before becoming involved with them on any level. We would sure save a lot of time wasted on them. To be loyal one must have heart for their fellow man. Not just family and friends but also for strangers, those people we have absolutely nothing to gain from.

If having a soul means being able to feel love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals are better off than a lot of humans because a lot of humans will treat us unworthy to defend whereas an animal would lay down his life for us. True?

Loyalty. Is it something only dogs know? When I think of it, I wonder if I would rather have it than love. Whereas love is often an over-used word and an unpredictable feeling, the other is nothing but dependability.

“But what are loyalty and caring really worth? "To me? Everything."

Written by: Belinda Taylor 8-20-13
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Loss

Human beings tend to measure loss in many different ways. Loss of a loved one, loss of job, loss of relationship, even loss of ones self. The impact of each loss varies from person to person.

One may be irreversibly destroyed by a situation while another may be more likely to chalk up a loss and move on to another avenue of their life.

“Anyone who has lost something they thought was theirs forever finally comes to realize that nothing really belongs to them.” ― Paulo Coelho

No truer words have ever been spoken. We are merely loaned the pleasures of life we indulge in. As quickly as they come, they go. Some stay for a while and some go soon after we realize them but the pain of losing either is of equal greatness.

Healing depends on how long and how deep we wallow in our misery. Definitely each person requires a different amount of time to adjust and heal from their losses. Some never do and wander aimlessly though life without ever trying to measure their loss and store it away.

“eventually, everything goes away.”, “You never know what you have till you've lost it.” “Every one of us is losing something precious to us. Lost opportunities, lost possibilities, feelings we can never get back again. That’s part of what it means to be alive.”

Indeed to be alive is to lose. If we never lost anything then we would never understand or appreciate the things we have in life that are true and dear to our hearts.  Without loss we would never know what we have, it would mean nothing to us when what we have goes away.

Reach out and feel the loss. Mold it with your hands. Turn it into what you need to make it make sense because how we cope with our losses very much determines our degree of happiness for the rest of our lives.

Don't mire up in self despair of your losses, learn from them and move on to other good things in life. Don't stop allowing the sunshine in because of the fear that winter will come and engulf the warmth. Hold it close to you to help you through those cold winter days when you need it most, when you have lost what you hold dear.

Written by: Belinda Taylor 8-18-2013
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Reality is...

Reality is what we experience when the fantasy fails us. Sometimes we think our fantasies are reality until reality gives us a swift kick in the butt and makes us take note of what is real and what is not real.

Real is we are all prone to self destruction, to lose, to hurt, to die. So how does reality become so obscured? How do we forget ourselves and get lost in the raging sea of real life?

We are resilient when it comes to the lines crossed from one realm to another. We snap back quickly when the fantasy has been interupted. But then we start a new reality because the old one is now lost in that raging sea to never return or be the same again, and if we are lucky we will be able to handle our now reality.

“Resilience is accepting your new reality, even if it's less good than the one you had before. You can't fight it, you can do nothing but scream about what you've lost, or you can accept that and try to put together something that's good.” ― Elizabeth Edwards

People tend to cling tight to their version of reality. Why? Because we feel safe there. Nothing can hurt us there. And because we are scared of what really exists for us on the other side of it. Pain, sorrow, anquish of being merely mortal.

Because it is too hard to move past the pain and build anew. We rather believe the lie we have created within us, the one that allows us to be whomever we want to be.

Distorted truth? Most times yes! Are we all vulnerable to our own truths? Yes we are but just as vulnerable to the truth reality has for us as well. Are we ready for it when it happens? Usually not.

Can we be happy with reality once the fantasy has been destroyed? Absolutely. Will it take work and perserverence? You betcha! Will it be worth it in the end? Absolutely!

“Regain your senses, call yourself back, and once again wake up. Now that you realize that only dreams were troubling you, view this 'reality' as you view your dreams.” ― Marcus Aurelius

So, whatever your reality is don't forget about the one that runs parallel to it. The one that strikes in a second and strips you of everything you THOUGHT was real.

The one that never discriminates and forces you to look into the mirror we all avoid with all our mite, ourselves...

Written by: Belinda Taylor 8-16-2013
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Crazy Love

Did Harlan Ellison say it best when he said “The minute people fall in love they become liars.”? Isn't that when the term "LET THE GAMES BEGIN" become relevant?

Isn't the heart like a beacon in the night prominantly alerting others of it's whereabouts? "COME HERE! SEE ME?"

We inadvertantly throw up guards when we fall in love. The first downfall being "Does he/she really love me or are they lying?" Maybe they do love you but the lies do begin. Lies to keep the person we love from knowing ugly truths about us, our past, and who we once were.

Why do we lie? It's simple, we want to be loved and never judged. Perfect in the eyes of the one who captured our heart, our soul, our being. We forget that they have a past too and are most likely feeling the same as we do.

Lying is essential to maintain the game of love. Where would the enthusiasm be if we didn't play the game? We have to build our persona to be as beautiful as we can. Don't we?

Harlan Ellison also said “We find ourselves in odd places at various times, and for a brief span we link our lives to others and then, our time elapsed, we move apart. Through a haze of pain occasionally, usually through a veil of memory that clings, then passes, sometimes as though we have never touched.”

Isn't it true that we view love through a veil of pain? Ending with memories which in most cases are bitter endings of sorrow? Those memories do after some time become vague and hard to recall to the forefront of our mind. We tend to forget the good and retain the bad memories and in the end it truly is like we never touched at all.

What then? Should we be afraid to fall in love for fear of the lies that accompany it? Is it possible that by waiting for that perfect one we may miss out on some very exciting times in our lives? Well yes, it is possible.

I have been in several relationships and i walked away with a lot of different lessons from each one. I walked away with the knowledge that we should not give everything we are to another because others will not treat us the way we deserve to be treated.

I walked away with the knowledge that no one is perfect so don't let love lie to you and tell you they are. I learned that no matter how a relationship ends i am still a good person and will not live my life as a reflection of that relationship.

No matter what love holds for us we should always remember that the lies cannot corrupt us and take our self worth, or dignity away unless we let it. Don't guard your heart.

Live, love, learn from every aspect of what love has to offer. The good and the bad. Or as in the another spot on quote, “You must never be afraid to go there.” ― Harlan Ellison

Written by: Belinda Taylor 8-16-2013

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Nowhere

Exactly where is "Nowhere"? If nowhere is nothingness then can we really say we are going nowhere?

Perhaps "Nowhere" is rather a feeling we get when we have become jaded.

You know, that feeling of "Well i have been done wrong so many times i no longer care" feeling. The "I am numb inside because of past experiences" feeling.

Isn't that like saying, "hmm, i give up on the human race. I will never trust another!" You cannot say you will never trust another because fact is we trust people everyday. Maybe not from a relationship standpoint but we still place trust in others every day of our lives.

We trust that the store clerk will give us the correct change back. We trust that the bus will arrive on time. We trust that we will drive down the street safely because we trust the other guy behind the wheel beside us.

We trust in spite of how hardened we think we have become. So, if we can become that hard then maybe there is such a place as "Nowhere".

I have had so many marks placed on my heart that i feel like the scar tissue from them will suffocate it until there is no life left. But then that little thing we call hope pops through just enough to say "nope, not today, here is a spot not marked!"

Maybe i should just step back and say "hey, I'm jaded so don't expect me to care!" Then turn around and indicate that even though i don't care i still wanna be a part of your life.

That is double standards, not jaded. Jaded is what we claim when we don't want to be in a relationship of emotional substance. When we want the benefits without the investment.

Why do we seem to want the one we can't have? Why do those we can't have seem harder to get the more we want them? Why must the one we can't have tease us by hanging onto us by a very thin thread?

Is it the thrill of the chase? Or the thrill of knowing they never have to give in order to get. Who knows but it sure can be confusing.

I guess the moral of this article is to remind you to not give up because hope does reside in all of us and at the very moment that we decide we are going "Nowhere" love will fall into our arms for us to have and to hold as ours forever. I haven't given up or became jaded. Have you?

Written by: Belinda Taylor

August 14, 2013

The Demons Within

The title asks the question, so what is the answer? The demons we face in life do at times very much define who we are.

I can say i am not afraid to die but that would be a lie. Why? because i don't want to leave my family...

This fear, is it a demon within? Sure feels like it when the very thought of it causes you to catch your breath. It is dark and scary, and threatens everything we know as safe and content.

We are all susceptible to having that safety net ripped right out from under us. Leaving us to hang, dangling from high above, scared to believe when we hear," let go, i will catch you"!

Do we cling to the hope we will survive this God awful fall? This leap of faith? To place our lives in the hands of another in itself is like asking for whatever the moment holds for us in the mind of the person offering us the hope of being saved. Right?

Sometimes we need to sit and think about our lives and what we have done with it. Did we benefit anyone else? Or did we just become selfish and greedy? Walk on others before they can walk on us? Isn't that a demon in and of itself?

Why is it that bad things happen to good people? Why must the good always sacrifice while the demons of the world prevail, and prosper, and continue to feed off the needs, desires, weaknesses of others? Surely humans aren't predatory by nature. Are we?

Can we control our destiny? Our fate? I think to a certain degree we can. I mean, if i get hit by a bus crossing the street then was that my fate. Maybe, but if i hadn't crossed that particular street then i could have avoided that bus. Right? So in a way, i created my own fate. Or did i?

Was it the demon within that made me take the quickest crossing, throwing regard to the wind? Maybe i should have waited for the better alternative. But then why should i? This way is faster, easier and i am too lazy to go the long way round...

Close our hearts? Close our minds? Wait to die? Not this girl! This girl will fight hell and high water to survive because the demons can't have me. They can't lie to me anymore. They cannot steal my happiness and reduce me to nothing but a quivering mess on the floor of life. Love me, accept me, keep me, care for me, or leave me be...

Written by Belinda Taylor 8-2-13

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In 3 Years

She sat in disbelief as she read the words on the computer screen confirming her suspicions. Yes, indeed, he was cheating.

The tears rolled as she tried to muster up enough strength to hold her shaking hands steady.

The lies he has told about her jump right out of the screen at her, taunting her self worth. Why would he do this?

She doesn't understand but she realizes understanding it will be of no concern to him because his mind is somewhere else and not with her.

Standing in front of the mirror she looks long and hard and in her own mind tells herself she sees why he wants another for she is ugly, fat, disgusting to look at. Little did she know it was mind play on her own part.

Surely it had NOTHING to do with any of those things but rather had EVERYTHING to do with his own lack of self worth. HE had to convince himself that he is worth something to others, even if it meant lying to himself and everyone around him to know it.

Homeless at this point she sits at the Ohio River with her son and daughter-in-law wondering how this could possibly now be her life now. Knowing that tomorrow she would be standing in a food pantry begging for food and sobbing from the humiliation of it, and knowing he is but a mere 2 miles away, in her bed, on her sheets with another.

She was lost and sitting at the very spot where his son was dragged out of the deep, dark, twisting river, dead at 19 years old 2 years earlier. He had no remorse, no care about those the river seemed to grasp. How many lives must drown before he feels complete?

Over the course of the last 3 years she had learned a lot about herself, about him, about who her true friends are, and about the woman who walked away with what she thought was her life. She would conclude that her injustice would be her blessing in the end.

Confident, healthier, self employed, free, loved by family, and friends she treks forward in life with a smile, thankful for the life she has, and thankful for that life she lost and those people in it.

She has witnessed his misery over the last few years, as well as watched the other woman fail miserably in not only her relationship with him, but in her own financial status, and even as a mother of the unborn child she chose to destroy before birth.

I thank You Lord for what You have done for me and my family. For bringing us where we are today and keeping Your hand on us every second of everyday. I thank You Lord for laying out the map of my life and urging me to follow it.

For removing those people, places and things from my life so that i could live. For showing me that the river wasn't there to hurt us, but rather to clean him out of our lives forever.

For showing me that he is what he is and what he is will NEVER be any different. For giving me the courage to turn my heart away from such evil. In Jesus name, i pray, -Amen and Amen...!!!

Written by: Belinda Taylor 7-9-13
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