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Jika kamu tinggal di Jakarta, kamu pasti tahu bahwa Jakarta bukan tempat yang mudah untuk mendapatkan cinta. Bukan cinta semalam, bukan cinta segitiga ataupun cinta semata. Tetapi true love. Cinta dengan suatu kualitas yang dicari setiap orang, terlebih kalau kamu termasuk the single 30-somethings.

Pembicaraan sepulang kerja, dipojokan bar favorit diantara empat wanita pun, yang dimulai dari pekerjaan dan keluarga akhirnya mengerucut menjadi tentang cinta. Sambil meneguk minuman favorit masing-masing, bergantian kita bercerita. Satu baru mulai jatuh cinta. Satu baru saja kembali patah hati. Satu bingung mau dibawa kemana cinta-nya. Dan, yang satu, baru saja punya crush dengan seseorang yang baru dikenal. Diskusi malam itu menjadi “so, what would love do?” – apa yang cinta akan lakukan?

Love will bring out your best self.

“Soul-mates are people who bring out the best in you. They are not perfect but are always perfect for you.” ~Unknown

Yang sedang jatuh cinta glows - dia bersinar. Ia pun tidak ingat kapan terakhir Ia bersinar. Semua yang melihatnya pun mengakuinya. It is very electric. Lucunya, cinta telah membuat dia jatuh cinta kepada dirinya terlebih dahulu: Ia lebih rajin pergi ke gym, Ia makan lebih sehat, ia lebih terbuka kepada orang lain, Ia pun lebih pe-de. Selanjutnya, she is in so much joy, sehingga “keberuntungan” pun mulai mendatangi dirinya. Berbagai job offers baru pun Ia dapatkan. Ia banyak bertemu orang-orang baru yang mengagumkan. Ia pun menjadi lebih berani dalam mengambil resiko. Wow! Dia mengatakan, “yang terbaik adalah, dengan dia.. I can be myself.” Cinta membuat dirinya nyaman dengan dirinya sendiri. Cinta membuat dia nyaman mencoba hal-hal baru, seperti rasa takut itu tidak ada. Memang, tidak ada hal yang pasti, tetapi cinta membuat dia merasa nyaman, berani dan hidup – cinta telah menjadikannya a better version of herself. That’s when you know… » Read the rest of this entry «

Dear you,

Each morning when you wake up, please know that you are already Amazing.

You are Brilliant and Courageous, and that’s why nothing can hold you back. You always find your way to push through any adversary.  You are Dedicated, not only to your work but also to the people around you, life and growth.  And you do it all with so much Energy, you just shine.

You don’t take yourself seriously. You’re Funny, fun and fearless in expressing yourself. It shows how comfortable you are with yourself.  Even so, it seems that everything that you do is very Graceful, because you do it with such care.

That’s why you’re Humble, because you don’t look for rewards or recognitions.  That’s why you’re Inspiring. People see such Joy in you. They are drawn to you.  Maybe that’s why you’re so Kind and Loving to all around you. I can see it in your eyes, words and actions. » Read the rest of this entry «

Just for today: dance!

“And I’m on my knees, looking for the answer.
Are we human, or are we dancers?”
- Human, The Killers

As the question continues in my head, I wonder, am I human or dancer? Do I have to be either or or? Am I not both?

In each of us exists a being. And I also believe, in each of us exists a dancer. With that said, what differentates a human being and a dancer? In my book, this is how I define them.

Human.
Vulnerable beings trapped in a worldly world, bound my emotions, desires and expectations. Thus, we always say that “We’re only human” – because we’re leaving spaces for mistakes and imperfections.

Dancers.
Inspiring beings, so connected to the music and rhythm of life that they not bound by emotions, desires nor expectations. They feel and express feelings with all of their being, do things with full energy and commitment, do not worry about what the audience feel about their performance — because all they care is to create, express and their own feelings when they dance.

In some ways, this is why people are always attracted to and mesmerized by dancers. And when you begin to observe many dancers, you realize that those you love most are not the ones who have the best technique, but those who are so into the dancing themselves. You can see their passion in their eyes and movement – even if it’s just a flick of a finger. It’s like energy radiating so bright that even though you sit 50 rows behind, you can still feel their emotion. At times, you also realize that you’ve held your breath from watching them. They are that hypnotizing.

So, as I grow with this life, I watch myself. I sometimes catch myself being a human and other times being a dancer. I have danced through this life may it be in rain, thunderstorm, darkness and even on sun shine, beaches and heaven. And at times, I have let myself just to be human – to be drowned in emotions, desires and expectations.

When I’m dancing through this life, that’s when I feel most alive – the feeling of being connected to every bits of life. Joy and enthusiasm fill my being. Energy is flowing. Though the body is tired, the soul is rejuvenated. It’s the feeling of being in love for no reason at all – just for being alive itself. Everything I do seem effortless. I don’t have the need to control, judge or change anything. I feel free. The soul is filled with gratitude. I am lost for words. And the only thing I can do is smile. I am the luckiest girl alive indeed.

When I let myself be human, that’s when I feel vulnerable. The feeling of having no control over anything. I feel lost and without direction. That’s when I feel is the hardest to trust and have faith in things. I doubt. I think. I contemplate. I am without confidence. I question myself and this life. I find it hard to move. I find myself without energy and focus. I find myself just living in routines, trapped by responsibilities and expectations for myself and other people.

I’m not saying that one thing is better than the other, because I know we cannot appreciate one without realizing the other. So I’ve embraced both the human part and the dancer part of me. I’m giving myself time to be human for some time and be a dancer at other times.

So, are we human or are we dancer? We are both my friends. Though we are born human, learn to be a dancer in this life. And one day this life and we shall be the dance itself.

Like Osho said, “Life should be a dance; it can be a dance, it is meant to be a dance. That’s my message: love life, and with such intensity, with such fire, that you can reach to the optimum of your being.”

So, my friends. Let’s be dancers with such fire. Even though, at the end, I learn that what makes us great such dancers are because we are human.

Just for today: do something that’ll get you closer to your dream.

“The poorest man in the world is the man without a dream.
The most frustrated man in the world is the man with a dream that never becomes reality.” – Myles Munroe

Today was like a slap in the face for me.

As my girl and I were sitting over wine and beer talking about life, I couldn’t believe that 1/4 of the year is almost over. With only 2 weeks left in March, time seems to have flown by way too fast. Because especially today, I was reminded that even though I have been busy with work and life, I haven’t been busy enough focusing on my personal dreams, on my passions, on my calling.

It was during dinner with my besties from high-school that I once again realized what my dreams truly are. Yes.. not just one dream, but many And I realize that it is so easy to be stuck in routines and business of work and life that I do not work towards these dreams. I have let myself to be guided my circumstances than creating my own circumstances.

So, I told my girl Sarah.. that everyday:

• I’m going to wake up each morning to remember and visualize my dreams once again.
• I’m going to do one thing – just one little thing – that’ll get me closer to that dreams.
• I’m going to spend time, may it be just 15 minutes, to work towards these dreams.

Just like a great advice by Josh Hinds, “Set out each day believing in your dreams. Know without a doubt that you were made for amazing things.”

Oh yes. I know I was made for amazing things. Not quite sure what they are yet, but I’m definitely excited for them.

Because, I’m not going to be one of those people with excuses: being too busy or too tired to do something that’s important for me.

Besides, all I have to do at the moment is dream it, right? Like Walt Disney said, “If you can DREAM it, you can DO it.” So, as long as I think and dream about it everyday, I’ll find ways to do it everyday. So, I can be one step closer everyday.

Because I also believe that, “despite what we’ve been taught, we don’t have to be rich, famous or distinguished to make our dreams come true” as put by Sharon Cook & Graciela Sholander, from the book Dream It Do It

So, my friends.. Just for today. Let’s do something that’ll get us closer to our dreams. Let’s remind each other of our dream. I wrote this – I’m one step closer. What did you do?