Endures all things is a simple blog about a married woman's life in California.  She is a beautiful minded person who writes in ways that keep me captivated. I love her photos that are kind of like little insights into her loving life. The love that she has for her husband is a kind of new age fairy tale. Her beliefs of tolerance are not as visible as I wish they would be in the 21st century, but she still seems to be a delightful person.

Yogahound is another blog I enjoy but for completely different reasons. I learn so much just by reading a few of her posts. Her latest post taught me a lot about matcha, which I've been really thinking about trying.  But her tab on yoga was really something that I enjoyed reading.  She wrote about common misconceptions that beginners have when starting yoga. Complaining that yoga injured them is something that I hear a lot. That they went to bend a certain way and ended up in bed for the rest of the day. People dont understand that yoga is a way of letting your body readjust to its natural state. And that you shouldnt push yourself past a limit you know your body cannot take. The eight limbs of yoga is really interesting because I just found a drawing that explains these and makes them easier to remember.

Post #5

My diigo account

Several years ago, I was the type of person who would always choose McDonalds if they had a choice between that and a home grown and cooked meal. How could you beat McDonalds? It was cheap, fast and delicious. But as time went on I could feel my body begin to lag, my energy had dropped and I became severely anemic. I was missing all of the nutrients that my body needed because Mcdonalds and other fast food restaurants do not provide all of the fresh and healthy food. Thus beginning the strongest three years my body has ever had. 

Most people my age do not know what a tomato tastes like. We may buy from our local grocery stores and think "Oh, well they say fresh, so that must mean that its a real and healthy food." But if you really study about where your tomato comes from, you find out that your "tomato" has been grown genetically and with as many chemicals it can to be brought to your table in the cheapest and fastest way. If you look onto the little sticker that is on your produce you can really learn a lot about what you are buying. They are called PLU labels which stands for, price look up.  It tells you where your produce is grown, if it was grown with pesticides and artificial fertilizers, if it was grown organically, or even if it was genetically modified. I never even took notice of those stickers before I read this article. This tiny inconvenient sticker can pretty much tell you if its real or an impostor.  Genetically modified is a scary word when its in the same paragraph as food.  It sounds like they are creating some sort of mutant. Which, they might as well because eating those things do not give you any nutrients, at all.  Most of the time, they dont even know what side effects these foods could have on our body.  Becoming aware of what your putting into your body could be the most important thing you do.

Earl Butz became part of the U.S. department of Agriculture in the 1970's. You would hope that this man who is taking care of our food would make the best choices for us and for our farmers. He let the Government abandon our local farms to take root to Mega Farms. These mega farms worked to make as much food at the cheapest amount. He became known as the "Corn King" because he helped to create high furctose corn syrup. Nowadays we use corn syrup for everything, from soda to chips.  People believe that this new modified ingrident is just the same as table sugar, but if you read this article, you will find that if your intake is high you will gain more weight.

Doing your research on what goes into your body is one of the smartest things you can do. Going organic is an even better way to help your body and also help local economy.  I'm not saving that I dont go for a nice big mac here and there, but I mostly eat the foods my body was made to break down.  Organic foods contain the nutrients and minerals that you should have every single day. When you buy food that has been shipped all of the country, all of those important "supplies" have disintegrated away. Being more conscious in your everyday life is always a smart decision.

Theresa's post on exercise is another thought that I think is so important. It goes along with eating well. And I like the picture of a rock climber because that is what I do every week to get in my 150 minutes. 

#2

My blog is not only going to explain how positive thinking bring out the good in absolutely everything, its going to keep me on my own path of self help, and I'll be able to show everyone the few activities that constantly make me happy.

The picture above is called a Mandala.The word "mandala" is from the classical Indian language of Sanskrit. Loosely translated to mean "circle," a mandala is far more than a simple shape. It represents wholeness, and can be seen as a model for the organizational structure of life itself--a cosmic diagram that reminds us of our relation to the infinite, the world that extends both beyond and within our bodies and minds.

This is one of my favorite Mandalas, you can create one with just about anything; Draw one, paint one, create one with the items nature gives to us, or just imagine your own.

Before reading and researching about Buddhism, I thought it was just a religion where you sat and thought about things while being cross legged.  In reality, its about bringing out the true and good in yourself. I thought that Buddhism is like Christianity, where you worship the main figure, but the Buddha is actually meant to be celebrate. This was a few hundred pounds lifted off of my shoulders, I was raised a Catholic until I was able to research religions and until I was bullied by my own classmates in my Catholic school. I choose to believe in the God that Christian religions believe in; but to me, the God that I believe in is much kinder and gentler than the one that they would talk about in church. So I was happy that I was able to keep my God in my life as well and having Buddha keeping me stable. 

My mandala is an important part of my life; in the middle, I focus on bringing out the happiest, more gentle part of myself out. The layer outside of being happy is what I do to be happy and gentle, which is helping others, traveling and exploring new places, my family, my cats, my love and photographing the little things that I want to remember. And if I can just make other people think about what truly helps them to be happy, and to bring out that happiness, I will feel as if I've actually done something.

{Edit: I feel the need to really let everyone know that having a plan and a path does not mean that you will be kicked down and that you wont completely lose it. It means that even though bad things may cover up your path or that you may lose all motivation to keep going,   you are worth finding it again. You can always come back to it. This is something that always comes up in my life because I get discouraged that I'm not being fulfilled, I am beginning a very scary and lonely path that may lead to the exact thing that I really need, not what I want.}

The question of "what makes you "You"" is something that is hard to answer, but the question "How do you represent yourself?" is even more difficult.
I'll start by saying that my name is Michelle Fleck, or Michelle Hope is what I go by on social sites. I guess the things that make up Michelle Hope are so simple. Everything that I've been in the past makes up who I am now, I was very self conscious, sensitive, quiet and dark. I went through spouts of depression that everyone kind of shook off as just being a teenager. No matter how hard I tried to fight off my feelings naturally, nothing changed. I could be set off at such simple things, and I could hurt someone without thinking twice, but later on I would feel like the worst human being.  

“Perhaps somewhere, someplace deep inside your being, you have undergone important changes while you were sad.” Rainer Maria Rilke

One of my favorite quotes. We may not see or feel the change immediately, but its happening. Even though my disordered thoughts were still there, I learned to control them. I learned to meditate, and for twenty minutes a day I can leave my mind and wander in nothing. Nothing, became one of the greatest things, I went from constantly thinking too much, to being able to escape them and think of nothing. I needed that nothing. My anxiety and depression don't control me anymore, and that's what makes me, me. I enjoy simple things now, since I don't stress over them anymore. My photography was on the back burner for years, but I've rekindled my passion for it. 

                                                                     http://flic.kr/p/bxQzCu


I get outside more, the sun makes me happy. I've planted a garden and take really good care of it. I started dating a boy who has been a huge part in my change. He has encouraged me to stay happy and to not dwell on the things I cannot change. He also had issues so we were able to talk to each other about it. We've been together for two and a half years this Saturday. We've rescued four cats, three of them are ours and the other two are my family's. Sebastian, who is our oldest, almost two years old, we found him in the middle of a busy road at just a week old. Kitty, who just turned one, my cousin found in her apartment complex, so I picked him right up at three months. Dexter, who is my absolute pride and joy, we found him in a box last summer with no food or water, he was just six days old. And Whiskey, whose mother was a stray and was the only one who stayed with her until she left, he was just a few weeks old. Before Sebastian, I had never owned any cats, I was allergic to them. But when we raised him together, and I saw that his personality was a mix of my boyfriend's mine and of course his own, I knew that I was a cat person deep down. 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/michellehopee/6584256831/in/photostream

I try to represent myself as someone who is patient and kind and open minded. I may not always be able to do that, but trying is enough for now. I have two tattoos, a camera and a cat, I want many many more. I try to show that you cant let anything control you, and that  you can only strive to be your true self, whoever that may be. 

Three things cannot be long hidden; the sun, the moon and the truth.-Buddha

No matter how hard you try to be popular or perfect, "you" will always shine through. I know how much it sucks to try and try to be someone and to fail everything. Being true to yourself, that doesn't mean you can be hateful and just say that's who you are, is the greatest thing you can do. It leads to loving yourself, which leads to confidence, and to being able to love others, which in turn lets them love you.


I cant tell you how others see me. My opinion of myself has always been different from how others see me. In high school people used to tell me that they were always afraid to talk to me, or that I would hit them if they said the wrong thing. None of that has ever been true. I love talking to people, I love debating and I would never get mad at someone else's beliefs. I hope that since college is sort of a new beginning, I can give people the right impression of myself. I'm  shy at first, which people mistake for being mean. Once I warm up to people, I can be silly and care free.