About small notes…

One thing led to another…. Goes the saying. In the most innocent of ways.

From one book we hear about new books and discover new writers. From one podcast we hear about new people and their world or even more podcasts. From one course or learning we discover we might have a passion, a new area is been calling you all this time and you just found its expression in most beautiful way.

My overriding intention in many things I dwelve in is simply being happy. I love intentions and I love starting my day with one, going to a new place and thinking of one, going to bed and still thinking of one. I keep them grounded now and always soaked in gratitude.Heart-felt gratitude. Saying this might be triggering for some as we might consider them too big a words, depending on the culture we have been brought up into. I do have a very clear memory of my neighbour, 3rd floor, passing by me either on the staircase or just in front of the building we lived in. Her smile was infectious, she always made sure she is happy to see me. “So Madi, how are you today? “ she would say really gentle and full of goodness. “ I am good Mrs. M. Hello. (Si dumneavoastra? And yourself? “ - to be honest, I was still growing up, and could not remember if I had any proper manners as in which words to rightly use yet RESPECT was big in our community. She would then smile even bigger, stop over a bit to take a breath and also making this small chat equally important and would say: “This is so good Madi.I am so happy to hear that. And if you are happy, I am also happy.( Bine, Madi. ) Ok now, I let you go outside and play”. And she will continue up the stairs.

What led me here then? I found this platform via a writer, Emma Gannon as she was talking about her book” The Myth of Success” Emma Gannon on a podcast that I love so so much “The Happy Place” by Fearne Cotton and please do find here too Happy Place .Fearne is just launching a new book as we speak this week too called “Little Things”. I cannot really remember how I discovered Fearne but before all of this I came accors Emily Coxhead and “The Happy Newspaper” instagram account. And you can also find her here - the loveliest ray of sunshine I have met on social media launching also this week a kids book. Emily Coxhead. This was most probably happening when I gave up watching news as we know then on the telly and pretty much gave up having a tv in my homes. Proudly TV free for many many years now and so liberated.

This platform in a very very nutshell made the writer in me just show up and follow my inspiration step by step with a small promise every week to myself and to all of you too.

Intentions are good. Introductions sometimes are necessary. Hello October…

The steps I take really daily to be happy involve most of the times a lot of notes taking. Having a pen in my hand, my bags, my desks is pretty a better accessory to me than jewelry. And taking also notes is pretty much the same. Sure, look I use digital notes too, Goodnotes, notes on the phone, Onenote, this platform and the other platform… we all drench our ideas in them or let me stay within my own territory : I drench my ideas in many platforms. Maybe some of you have discovered a better platform to make sense of all of this and you are loyal to only one kind of note. Which brings me to this question - how loyal are you to the old good way of having “Post it” notes on your desks. One colour at a time, or go for the full colour ways…. The more the merrier. Green works for me the best. Pink also. Yellow some how makes me think I need to correct things - but they all pretty much my colours. Lime green is splendid - the moment you see the note from afar you even remember what you wanted to do, remember, be,become.

How much is it on your own notes( even if they are mental and do not involve any act of writing or jotting down) related to DOING, PLANNING…

And then how much would be there in REMEMBERING.

And then have you wondered how many would you place them as BEING, BECOMING.

And if you wish even a bit of a more challenging little question … how much would you note about NOW. That being a skill I am currently developing too. We might see on this journey together that there is so much in NOW.

A simple quiz for a light chill Sunday morning. I do keep my dreams also on these little notes. And sometimes is funny how I find some old ones in some book or notebooks. I have a full page at the end of a work notebook last year …plastered in small post-it notes. Some of them quite major resolutions.

Some of them say “ Mama photos” / “Ram Dass -foundation to restore blindness - research “ / “Mic/ ANC “ / “Turkish Etsy Store - Oil Burner, great design”/ “Natural Alcaline water “/ “ Travel” / “4 generations”

I have a ton and I did not even wanted to get started this way but Substack made me do it.. .seems words are flowing on this page.

One thing though I wanted to say here that is quite pivotal for me in the way I organize my dreams with post its. When I sit down be it early morning or later during the day, you also start cleaning the notes and tick the “done” ones. Use a marker too- all goes hand in hand. Then I take them off the desk or monitor and dust them off, creating new space for other things to “be” ,to “happen”.

The very action of “done” ,the very thought of”accomplished” , the conscious act of noting the note - is for me a victory. I feel good. This makes me happy. And just reminding myself is not always about doing and planning. Is also about reaching out for the things or people or groups or something out there in the universe that really brings me joy, that resonates with me. And sometimes we can bring life back into it. And sometimes one thing leads us to another…… as I was just saying.

One more little thing I wanted to mention and be grateful for here with you. Chatting with a consultant last week about a felt blockage I stumble upon this year -she has also mentioned pretty much a very similar thing. Make yourself a small promise every day. A small promise that will bring you closer or keep you tight on the one you want to be, on the one you want to become. And probably one day later, just going though my little routine of small notes and colourful post-it - it was just there in front of me. I was practicing exactly this “small promises” everyday. And felt really syncing in all of it.

I have also one more note somewhere saying “ Have more fun” … and lovely friends - this is what I will be finding myself doing today. Connecting, having more fun and going with the flow..especially when all is organized by others. Cheers to a “Say Yes” kinda of day for all of you and many many smiles.

Remember, if you are happy, I am also happy.

Much love, Mag