You Got This! (Life and the rest…)

Jul 27, 2018

 Dress : Kwimbo  | Photography: Chip | Heels: Ego Desire

I know what life is like, and how quick it is to TRY and steal your joy! But I just want to give you three reasons why it ain’t gonna bring you down friend, You got this! Also must add that this dress is not in the KWIMBO store but if you would like one, let me know and I will get it for you in the next batch!

1. You’re STILL here

We tend to get so caught up in where we are going, that we sometimes forget where we came from. The journey you have been on to get where you are is MIRACULOUS! I know you might have dreamt of being somewhere else at this point in your life, but think about all the times you LOST your way, all the times life got you really down and yet you fought, you kept on going to be here in one piece (Or two or three but hey, we aint counting 😉 You made it here coz you are a survivor, God kept and brought you to this point because he is not yet through with you!

2. You are wiser

You are like ‘Metiya, that’s a big assumption to make!’ But I made it, and I’m very comfortable in saying that YOU are wiser, because if you are human, which I presume you are (otherwise animals are welcome, aliens I’m not sure) then you will have made MISTAKES along the journey to get here. And because you are wise, those mistakes taught you something. I have made several mistakes – we could write a book with thousands of pages on that. But I have learnt so much about life, myself and others through the mistakes of my past. Your mistakes are the bricks that will allow you to build your character. The lifetime value the present in way of lessons, is greater than what they might have taken from you. Always remember that your mistakes do not define you, but it is how you pick yourself from your mistakes that does. Y’all remember Jesus’ favourite phrase in the New testament? He says on several occasions to past sinners ‘Go and sin no more.’

3. You ain’t finished yet!

The great thing about it all is that you are not yet even in your FINAL FORM! I have seen this going around on twitter (you better add me right now – @metiyachique) where people speak about not yet reaching their final form. They say things like ‘I am so fabulous but the funny thing is, I’m not yet even in my final form!’ Final form here means the completed process of self-improvement. I can say confidently that You nor I are not in our final form yet as I believe that this is a life’s work. We are human so we can ALWAYS improve, be better and be kinder to those around us. But more than that, we are always growing. Final form for me means I am living a purposeful life daily walking the path God planned for me long ago. You might be lucky enough to feel you are living that way right now. But for many of us, we are still working towards aligning our actions with our purpose and it is a journey. You can keep on going with faith that you will reach the destination and ultimately a place of fulfilment and happiness in the life you live.

Keep on going my friend, you got this.

Love and light x MC

Discover your gifts

Jun 23, 2018

1. Define happiness for you

Ask yourself, when is this life have you been happy? Like really in bliss and content and filled with joy. What where you doing? Where were you? What caused you to feel that way. And most importantly why? Write down as many happy memories as you can remember

2. Recognise your strengths

For some reason, we tend to pay more attention to the negative things people say about us rather than the positive ones. Let’s flip the script! What are you good at? What do people always say – WOW you are GREAT at that! For me, it was always writing, but like many of us – I didn’t really pay attention to that because it came so naturally to me. What comes naturally to you? Pay attention to these things, play to your strengths.

We all know actions speak louder than words. There are some things we are quite good at but don’t believe. This could be for various reasons, perhaps they make us uncomfortable, or we don’t realise just how good we are because nobody tell us, and when they do, we don’t believe them. For example, I used to be a brilliant high jumper at school, my P.E. teacher would enter me into all sorts of competitions across the county. But I hit my teens and developed really bad anxiety. I would dread competition days so much that I failed to sleep dreaming about them. My teacher noticed I was more reluctant and said we could work through the nerves,  but I was too scared. *insert sad emoji here*

4. Reflect on the hard times

So this one is interesting, but have you ever gone through a low patch? Has your friend gone through a low patch? How did you behave during that time? You are here today, maybe you are going through a rough time right now, but you’ve made it through before. How? Some of our best qualities shine in the darkest of times. Last year on my birthday trip to Miami, we were caught up in hurricane Irma. We had to evacuate South beach and find somewhere safe to ride out the storm. We had no electricity and tornadoes hit us night after night, but I got to experience a different, very protective side to me. My number one goal was to make sure my best friends were safe. I now add ‘protective’ to my list of qualities. What characteristics did you display in times of difficulty?

5. Celebrate your differences

Despite the world wanting us to believe there is only one way to be intelligent, beautiful or talented, there are several different versions of these things. We were all made for a unique reason and our differences are what drive the success of our being. It’s very dangerous to try and be like everyone else, I recall at one point having some identity crisis in my teens when my characteristics became a trend. But it took me a while to learn that my natural hair, love of avocados and vinyasa yoga are not what made me who I was. My soul makes me who I am, other people can do exactly what I do but NOBODY can do it like me. That’s the difference. You have gotta stay you because authenticity lasts the test of time.

No-one is you and that is your power.

Love and light x MC

Five Steps to a Happier Life

May 30, 2018

Shirt: Bershka | Inside crop top: Missguided | Trousers: Topshop

Hi loves, as you can see – this post was shot in Bradford! I wanted to check out The Broadway shopping centre in hope of grabbing some goodies for myself and browsing the Father’s Day sales. Although I ended up online shopping instead and found a few gems like this luxury Father’s Day Perfume Gift Set  and this Activist Gift Set by The Body Shop, it was still a worthwhile journey to capture the city with my brother.

I am excited to share the series of shoots we took with you. Bradford is one of those places that you hear so much about before you actually experience it. I had the chance to study there for a while and it taught me so much about life, resilience, culture and of course science. So I wanted to share some of the city with you, in the hope that you can see the beauty I encountered there . Just like Bradford, this post is about looking past the multiple layers of perception and finding true happiness within. The truth is we live in an imperfect world and it’s up to us to create our own happiness. Here are five things that are helping me along that journey.

1. Forgiveness

I once read a quote that said ‘Forgive everyone for everything’. Not sure whom it was by, but I find forgiveness extremely freeing. Holding a grudge or even resentment towards someone takes up  energy and space that you might not even realise. That energy could be freed up to use on loving yourself more!  You deserve all your energy, love, and kindness unreservedly.

2.  Purpose

Seeking purpose has been instrumental in helping me find peace. The belief that you are here for a specific reason that only you can fulfill, provides solace through the rough times, and gives an inner joy that cannot be stolen by the world.

3. Stay in your lane

Once you believe in your purpose, the challenge is to focus on your own journey to achieving that purpose. Look neither left nor right but focus on YOURSELF. Comparison is the thief of joy and a sure way to lose sight of your many blessings. Be aware of those who are trying to bring negative energy in your life and steer away from such energies. Protect your energy and always look within first.

4. Gratitude

You are surrounded by blessings, your life is a blessing, your body and mind are blessings and this moment is a blessing. Choosing to recognise and focus on my blessings has helped me develop an attitude of gratitude. When was the last time you gave thanks for your food? I tend to take the smallest things for granted until I no longer have them. But it’s the simple things that we miss the most. Once we start to appreciate everything we have, we see life as a gift and develop joy.

5. Love

Love, love, love. We were created to love. Love is a verb, an action that can be applied to everything you do. Loving others starts with loving yourself, flaws and all. I used to be so hard on myself all the time about everything. It took me so long to realise that I’m not supposed to be perfect – nobody is and that’s okay. Now I am mindful about the way I think of myself, I have learnt to be patient and kind with myself first. Once you love who you are, it’s easy to spread that love and kindness to those around you.

“Three things will last forever–faith, hope, and love–and the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13

I hope you find these points as helpful as I have in creating joy in my life. What do you do to create and maintain happiness in your life? Please share in the comments, I’d love to hear to from you.

Love & Light x MC