As a Woman Thinketh…..

I think at some point in our lives we are told to watch what we say because there is power in the tongue, or we are told to be mindful of how we think because there is power in our thoughts. Some would say we have the ability to manifest positive outcomes if we would just re-route our “stinkin-thinkin” and send it on a permanent detour to NoWhereVille! I could probably be a poster child for stinkin’ thinkin’, but I think I’ve gotten a little better with my stinkin’ thinkin’, so I’ll just say I could probably be a poster child for Tart Thoughts. Yes, me, the Scribe In A Skirt, the girl that sees a lesson in everything! Ha! I see the lesson, but sheeed, I have been known to repeat the same lesson over and over again…maybe once, maybe twice, maybe a thousand times, because even though I know better, I can admit that in many instances, there’s a whole lot of room for me to do better! There have been a lot of self-imposed road blocks placed in my way and if I’m honest, a lot of those road blocks start with my “Tart Thoughts”….they start in my mind, not in my mouth (although I can be reckless there too, but I digress, that is a topic for another day lol). I know I’m not alone!

I learned a real hard lesson about the power of my thoughts a few weeks ago…LITERALLY! And let me just tell you, sometimes it’s a whole lot less painful to partake in the positive than it is to nibble on the negative. So here it goes. A few weeks ago I was with a group of young students, walking down the same steps I’ve walked down many times, but for some reason on this day, right before I went down the stairs, I said to myself “Lord, please don’t let me fall down in front of these churn today.” There was absolutely no reason for me to think this, but I did! So I went on to descend down these harmless stairs, being careful of course, because by nature I am clumsy and anything can happen, right? Welp, I cleared the steps with no problem, got off the last step, proceeded to start walking on flat pavement and BOOOM! Just like that I was on the ground and had no clue how I got there! (Sidebar: Don’t tell my mother I fell again!) It was as if someone snatched my left foot from beneath me and said, “you thought it, so I brought it”! In an instant, a random negative thought rendered me in a supine position on the ground with 4 shocked little faces standing over me. “Dr. Johnson, are you alright?”, said one of the children attempting to help me up. All I could say was, “I’m okay baby, I got it, just think happy thoughts”. I had to laugh after the fact, because I guess one way or another, a force far greater than me was going to show me exactly what happens when you nurse Tart Thoughts (or for some people, that good ole stinkin’ thinkin’)!

In the midst of your chuckles at the image of the snatch that had me on my back, I know you must wonder, “why did you share that embarrassing moment Scribe?” Well, I shared it because while my pride was hurt, along with my these bones of mine, something I knew was quickly confirmed. As I said in the beginning, there is power in your thoughts and this was a perfect illustration of how a detour in thought, can distract you from your destination. I knew where I was going, I knew why I was going there, I knew how to get there, and I knew who was going along with me on the journey. The plan was all laid out, and in just one instant, I allowed distraction to take precedence over direction! Can you see the life parallel? Read that again! Never mind, let me re-type and add a little extra sauce to it! In that moment, distraction (my thoughts) took precedence over direction (my destination) and led to derailment (detour)!!!!!

How many times has this happened to you!!!! Sometimes we know all we need to know, and still find a way to alter the directions we have been given by a power far greater than we are. It has happened to me professionally and personally. Let’s face it, we all have a story to tell. The distraction can be caused by the people around you, the decisions you make, or the things you entertain. The distraction can also be you. Avoidance is a distraction, confinement is a distraction, complacency is a distraction, silence is a distraction! The list goes on, but in the midst of all of the distractions, you have to be clear enough about yourself to not rest in the distortion of your thoughts! That is such a hard thing to do, but eventually it can be done. It is ok if it takes you a while to get to your “eventually”, as long as you allow your rebound to be your rebuttal. Let your your next move be a rebound from every distraction that has led to derailment or and every thought that has been muddled with distortion!!! YOU ARE WHAT YOU SPEAK, EVEN IF YOU DON’T SAY IT OUT ALOUD! You can hear your thoughts when no one else can so change the rules of your game and move forward to victory! It’s your voice that matters…internal and externally, not all the other noise that can disturb our thoughts.

By nature of her work, when I would call my sister at work, sometimes instead of answering a question yes or no, she would often say “negative” or “affirmative” which used to get on my nerves because sometimes she was really doing it to be a smart….nevermind, she was being the oldest with a smart mouth sometimes (I love her though). Anyway, where was I going with that? I’m going somewhere with those two words she used and I encourage you to affirm yourselves regardless of the type of distraction you’ve encountered. Turn your negatives into affirmatives! “I am a work in regression”, said no one ever!!! We are all a work in progress and we are so much better than some of the thoughts we allow to take up space between our ears.

Who do you think you are? Firm up those I AM statements! As a woman thinketh so is she! I AM ME! I AM EVERYTHING I WAS CREATED TO BE! I AM ENOUGH! I WILL GET UP IF I FALL!!! AND I WILL NOT FALL DOWN IN FRONT OF THESE CHURN!!!

Song Reference: Unstoppable By Sia

Song Reference: As I Am By H.E.R.