For the first time in decades
I sit in my house, empty, alone.
It feels okay.
No distracting chatter,
or thoughts.
Just quiet.
Who’d have known this peace
would finally arrive today
of all days.-Mandy Ricks
Today
Tag: self care
Those steps
You don’t have to feel ready to take the next step, a big step, or even a small step. You just have to be willing, for a moment, not to step away from yourself. -Mandy Ricks
Monsters
I hope today brings you one step closer to where you want to be and one step farther than where the monsters live. -Mandy Ricks
Grasping
Are you grasping for some joy, perhaps some inspiration? But the dark keeps marching, twisting your thoughts into a spider web. Each tentacle sticking to a thought creating darkness and doom. But fight it , fight it. Because you are much stronger than doom and so much stronger than. One. Single. Thought. -Mandy Ricks
Change
I was having a chat with ChatGPT about a quote by Albert Einstein on the need to be intelligent to accept change. But we both agreed that it doesn’t really take intelligence to accept change sometimes it just takes guts; raw, messy, heart wrenching guts. And getting back up, always getting back up.
So, here is our quote on change and intelligence.
🌿 “Intelligence isn’t loving change — it’s finding your footing when change finds you.”
-Mandy Ricks and my friend @ ChatGPT
Maybe
Maybe we want to suffer more than the people we hurt so that they’ll forgive us.
Preachers
Those that don’t know preach
second chances and starting over.
But self forgiveness is a difficult thing.
Perhaps the best we can hope for
is acceptance of our mistakes,
acknowledgement of our efforts,
and a gentle heart to hold our shame.-Mandy Ricks
Tiptoe
Life’s too short to tiptoe through someone else’s rules. -Mandy Ricks with Willow
Today
I hope today you fall in love with being you. -Mandy Ricks with Willow
I am Now
I walked through fire, let it sting,
felt the loss of everything.
Ghosts still whisper, scratch my skin,
but I won’t let them pull me in.
Blade of doubt against my throat,
I wear the scars, but still I float.
No savior comes, no hand to hold,
just me—alone, but fierce and bold.
I carve my name in silent stone,
a war-born soul, a heart my own.
No chains, no gods, no need to bow—
I am enough. I am now.
Waiting
It’s that waiting time of year, that pause between seasons when waiting becomes the overwhelming feeling.
But we all need pauses times to prepare for what’s next. Moments of pause to refresh our thoughts, reorganize our priorities, visit our goals, and reconnect to our dreams. Above all, never let go of those dreams. -Mandy Ricks
Winter
Winter always feels like nature’s way of pressing pause, giving us time to reflect and recharge. In these quieter moments, I’ve discovered that the warmth of past adventures, heartfelt connections, and cherished memories bring a little sunshine to my snowy days. So even when the world outside is a blanket of white, I remind myself there’s always a bit of summer within me, waiting to shine through.
Mandy Ricks 