2,000 and climbing!

 

 

When I woke up this morning, I did what I do everyday. I got up, walked over to my computer, and went straight to the Positive Life page. This day however was different than all of the rest. Today I looked and saw that we as a family reached over 2,000 people! When I started Positive Life 4 months ago, I never expected to reach as many people as I did, but it was always a goal of mine to reach the world. The world has always made me nervous and it took me 20 years to realize that I wanted to step up and do whatever it took to make people see that it needs changed. I believe that we all have something to offer this world and I want to help you reach your goals and motivate you to keep pushing. I want anyone who feels lost, to feel found, and I want everyone to feel like they can bring all of their problems here and feel safe and loved. This world wasn't meant to be about a select few, it was meant to be about US. We are a team and I am blessed to have all of you on mine and I hope that our team continues to grow. So thanks to all of you that made me believe that I am not the only person that wants change, and thank you to everyone that showed me anything is possible. I love you all from the bottom of my heart, and be ready for what I have planned for Positive Life!

 

-Austin

I wish.

 

 

I wish I had all of the answers to life. I wish that I could understand what it took to make someone see the beauty of life behind all of the daily burdens. I wish that I could take your burdens and make them disappear so that your life could be one amazing day after another. When I look into the eyes of a person that hurts, I wish so badly that I could take that hurt and turn it into the most pleasant of memories. Behind all of that hurt lies an endless cycle that this world will never part ways with no matter how hard we try to fight it. I've never seen perfection, but I have seen so many amazing moments. Moments that I wish could be a constant visual in my life because every now and again I know we all have nightmares. Some dreams will make you want to stay asleep forever because you know when you wake up you will have to face another day of endless sorrow. Life has a funny way of always reminding us that anything can happen at any given moment and it's the moments that we aren't expecting that define us the most. Some days will go by just as the last and some will change the way you look at all of those days,and make you want something more. When I look at life I see a vast majority of opinions that we are all entitled to have, but some of those opinions when they are voiced can make or break a spirit that could make this world a better home. I can never take your burdens away, but I will help you carry them. When you go to bed at night you can rest assure that there is someone out there that loves you. In the end all we have is hope. Hope that this world will someday realize we all meet the same fate and that no one person is above or below. Opportunity may be in your favor, but that just gives you more reason to share in your success. We should want to see more people want to be themselves instead of trying to fight to be just like someone else. I hope that this life gives you something to remember yourself by and that each day isn't meant for misery, but for moments that make you appreciate what a gift you have been given. If you ever need a hand, there will always be one for you here. This life was never meant to be about me, but WE.  

 

 



Cora Peters Legacy Lives On!

Torri: Cora Peters. This name has made a lasting and positive impression on not only our small town community but hope fully on this world. Cora brought so much life and happiness to the people who have surrounded her with love and positivity. She has changed people’s lives who didn’t even know her on a personal level, if you ask me that’s pretty incredible. Cora Peters has left a legacy behind her and I will forever be grateful to have known her. She will forever be in my heart and on my mind. 5 of Coras best friends have willingly wrote a little bit about Cora and they were so happy to do this when I asked them! I look up to these girls for their strength and courage that Cora has planted in them. I hope you all take these words and run with it, spread the word of Cora Peters and tell people that she won her battle with cancer like a boss. We are and will always be Coras Crew.

 

 

  Lacey . Never in a million years did I think I would have to watch one of my best friends slowly slip away from me. Not too many 18 year old girls would be able to keep a smile on their face as they watched their hair fall out and slowly began to realize they would be losing their life, EXCEPT for Cora. There were so many times we forgot she was even sick because she was the strongest girl in the world. She never let us know how much pain she was in. She still wanted to go out to eat, window chalk cars, go out with boys, dance, or anything else highs school girls do. When we were with Cora, she was determined to do everything we did, no matter how much it hurt. I can’t help but smile a little as I write about her because smiling is a “Cora-like” thing to do! She always smiled no matter what cancer threw her way. Her smile was contagious, in fact, it still is. When I look at a picture of her or think of something we did together, I get a little sad, but then smile because I know she wouldn’t want me to do anything BUT smile. Her story, courage, and beauty, inside and out, will keep people smiling for a LONG time.

 

 Shannon . There are not enough words to describe Cora. Cora was such an inspiration to anyone who she met. She had everything going for her except for her health. She never let that stop her though. She continue to live as normal of a life as she possibly could. We would always go and get turtle pie or ice cream and talk about nothing for hours. Her voice was so soothing and gentle (except for in the morning that's a different story!) She gave other cancer patients hope too by showing them to enjoy everything in life and to make the best of every moment. Cora will be with all of us forever, and will always be close to my heart.

 

Sam . I think about Cora a lot. I think about all the good times we had together, I think about the closeness of us girls, and I think about the laughs we shared. It is a bittersweet feeling knowing I can’t make more memories with her, but it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter because I know Cora is still with us, just not in the way I expected. Being friends with her came easy, it was almost as if she was never sick. I have been friends with Cora since around Jr. High and she is quite the girl. She’s stubborn, energetic, very optimistic, has a huge heart, and so much more. I can remember so many of the things we did together. Things a typical teenage girl does. We went shopping, watched so many movies, went to football games, got ice cream, and talked about boys. Even though we did a lot of ordinary things together, let me just say, there was never a dull moment with her. For as sick as she was, she always managed to make sure we had a good time. That is one of the things about Cora I will never forget. She was certain to make sure her sickness didn’t get in the way of anything. She was a fighter, that’s for sure. She kept going through it all. It’s difficult to write something about Cora, mainly because I can’t even come close to saying what I want to about our friendship. But I will say, being in Cora’s presence and being able to know her was a blessing. I was very humbled to be around someone like her. She never complained, and she never burdened anyone with her cancer. She changed lives; I know she changed mine. She went out of her way for others, including myself. I will always miss Cora Peters, but I am somewhat content because I still see signs of her every day, and I know it’s her saying hello. I love that girl and she will always be my best friend. #CoraLove

 

Janelle. Thinking of my senior year of high school, I never thought I would have to attend the funeral of my best friend. As much as I miss her, I know that she is still with me every day. Cora changed so many people’s lives in such a short amount of time. She showed us how to see the light in everything. Throughout her journey of her battle I never once heard her complain about having cancer. She knew that God had a plan for her and she wasn't going to question it. Her strength still astounds me. Cora had more faith in her 18 years here than anyone I have ever meet. I can only hope to one day have as much faith and love for God as she did. Even though she isn’t on Earth anymore, that doesn’t mean her faith still doesn’t shine. After her visitation, her faith shined through so much that three people got baptized that night. I never really understood the saying “gone but not forgotten” until this year. Our community and Bureau Valley High School has done so much to make sure that her spirit lives on. I can still see her in the sparkling snow that seems to not stop falling, I see her in the pink and purple sunsets. I see her in my friends everyday at school and I know that she will never be far from my heart and mind.

 

Kalie. Every time I would be with Cora she'd have a smile on her face. No matter what kind of day she had or what she went through, she was always smiling, like a boss. It made me and many others look up to her. For her strength, positivity, and happiness. I think Cora lives on through many people, her family, friends, and anyone she's made an influence on.

LOVE by: Michael Crew

Dear everyone who reads this,

                My name is Michael Crew, and today I’m going to touch on a subject many people have a giant misunderstanding of.

LOVE

This word can be used in two ways; as a noun that means an intense feeling of affection or the verb usage which means feel a deep romantic or sexual attatchement to something or someone. I hope some people do not have sexual attachments to objects, but hey, live your life. ZING!!

Now on to my take on love… I was kind of a troubled child, and teen. I moved around a lot going from school to school, changing friends and homes. I grew up in a divorced household, with a younger sister. I love everyone in my family dearly, however, I went through a phase where I thought nobody loved me back. Man, was I dumb to think that. Your family is your rock, whether there be arguments or not. Each and every member of your family loves you. Now, they might disagree with what you are doing, who you are seeing, your habits, taste in music, heck, anything can be disagreed upon. With that comes acceptance. A lot of people disagreed with how I dressed, the music I listened to, and the things I did. From grade school, and honestly the media, I learned a lot of swear words. I got in trouble for using them at school, outside of school, everywhere. I’d get grounded and say “THIS ISN’T FAIR! I HATE YOU!” Did I mean it? No. I was just upset. Then it got to where I was hitting puberty, and finding my own sense of style and things I enjoyed. The heavy metal culture spoke to me in ways I can’t describe. Wait, here’s one way. I LOVED AND STILL LOVE IT! Now it’s typically a dark and evil genre and culture, so people assumed that I was some “emo kid” or “freakshow” at points. The clothes are different, I still wear most the same stuff, to be honest. Then after hearing what I thought was people just making fun of me or “hating on me” I found music as an outlet. I started with the punk/heavy metal genres. Still am currently involved in some projects as well. Then my parents would find songs, or poems or verses I would write and think I’m some suicidal depressed kid going through puberty. BOOM! Then high school hits, and it is like the cultural smelting pot of cliques, races, sexes, and most of all opinions. Due to being good at sports, and being on the teams, I had a decent amount of friends, some of them are still very dear to me to this day.  I also had my fair share of “High school sweethearts”. Then high school turned into a gateway drug kind of, I found out what cigarettes, marijuana, alcohol, and even what girls were all about. I started partying, having sex, smoking, all these horrid things. Got the label as a player, which really took a toll on my usage of the word “love” and it’s meaning in my mind and heart.  Then I got in trouble for cigarettes, and my parents, to say the least, were not pleased in the least. So I got grounded. Here I am thinking “Nobody loves me” “Why can’t I just be me” so I’d walk around with a bad attitude. The first guy who said something wrong I was looking to fight. Which, by the way, is absolutely stupid… Stick up for yourself, but don’t cause harm because you’ve had a bad day. So then that trouble came along. Once again, grounded. Then I got in trouble with the law for alcohol two times my senior year of high school. My college football dreams were gone. I felt like the biggest failure to my friends and family. I worked hard jobs and saved my money out of high school, joined a metal band that rose to successful heights, and had more friends than ever. I was still feeling as though I was missing that one thing. Love. I would sit some nights crying my eyes out, thinking that nobody would ever love me. No girl, no family members, nobody. Then I made my change.

I started to see how negative everyone was towards each other. Obviously opinions are going to vary, but don’t go putting someone down because you don’t like their hair or iTunes library. This was something that really troubled me. So I started thinking about what I could do, to make sure everyone around me felt loved. Granted, I have had my fair share of ups and downs, financially, socially, with my family, and relationships. I have probably done and said some things I haven’t meant. Don’t just “YOLO” through life with those regrets on your shoulders, because as they came crashing down on me, they will for you as well. Mine smacked me in the face one day. Then I was like “Why did I say or do that?” was it emotions? Was it my bad attitude? Who knows… I wanted to spread love, but still had a void there. Then I realized “DUH, YOU DUMMY!” No matter how negative you feel, your family will always love you, this I promise. So I wanted to make it clear, that I gave my love away like candy at a parade to the family members surrounding me. Boom, knocked one section of the love out of the park. Now the whole “I need a girlfriend, or boyfriend” No you don’t. I feel as though in order to channel your love to someone else, you need to love yourself. Drop the crappy negative attitude, and think about all the positive things surrounding your life. Your full stomach, your nice warm bed, your favorite shoes, and most of all your loving family. I went through a long soul searching phase where I really found who I was, and although some people disagree, or have different opinions. I don’t spread negativity, it is a waste of my energy. I want to spread love. TO EVERYONE. Not in a sexual manner, but in a spiritual manner. We need to understand that we are loved for who we are, by someone, somewhere. If you think you won’t meet the girl of your dreams. Just settle down, Rome wasn’t built in a day, things take time. You need to evaluate what you think might be ideal for you to find in a romantic partner. You can grab at strings, look up and down, ask everyone out on a date. There are many ways to find a romantic partner. However to find a love, is something else, as building Rome did, this takes time. You might be head over heels in the first week, but that other person might be far more sheltered and insecure than you ever could imagine. It’s not that they don’t ‘like’ or ‘love’ you. It’s just that they are unsure of what is happening in their hearts and well as you are weary about yours being broken. Take your time, and you will find that person who is your sunshine and the love of your life someday. They are out there, think about all the people in the world. THERE HAS TO BE SOMEONE TO LOVE YOU! If not, I love you, not only because you deserve it, but why not spread anything but love and positivity throughout the world. It’s became quite the negative place. One by one, day by day, we can restore it into a romance filled, hugs and kisses kind of place. I’m kind of rambling on about this now. All in all, what I’m trying to say is; Someone out there loves you, whether you think so or not. I know your family does. Don’t you? I came to peace with feeling alone, because I realized everyone around me has a love. I found mine, it’s my family first, then myself. Sounds conceited, I know. But love yourself, and love the person next to you, tell them to do the same. Spread it like wild fire, and nobody will stop your heart from growing. If the Grinch can do it, why can’t we. After all we aren’t some green tree stealing monsters, we’re human. Love each other, for love’s sake. So do me a favor if you sat through this, call your family, your girlfriend, your best bud, and tell them that you love them to the moon and back. Once you find it, love is the most powerful force of all. Spread it.

Importances of life

I've always wondered what makes someone feel important and why they live their lives the way they do. The thing I find humorous though is that most will say something like "I'm not that important" or "I haven't really done anything to feel important yet". After I hear so many people say this, I think "WOW, that is really sad" because I can see how important they are but they can't. Then I realized, maybe no one makes them feel important or reminds them that they are. I think now we are becoming such a "hi, bye" generation, that we don't stop to take the time to make each other feel important. I know we all don't have the same hobbies or passions but I know how it feels to feel like none of what you love to do matters. We focus all of our time and energy into working hard for a career, a perfect body, and a perfect life that we literally forget how to make other people just smile and feel loved. You might think I'm crazy and maybe I am, but how often do you reach out to someone that sits alone during the day or say hello to someone you know that has a hard time making friends? Importance doesn't mean that you have to have the most friends, a lot of money, or be the star athlete, importance is how you help make someone else feel and what you give back to the world. You will forever be important if you make the effort in life to change the negatives that the world has created.

-Austin

Freddie Williams (DC Comics) talks "Motivation"

 

Hey everyone! This week I reached out to my friend Freddie Williams II (DC Comics artist), to get a little insight from him about how he accomplished his goal of becoming a comic artist. My goal in life has always been to also be a comic book artist so I am very grateful that he was able to get back to me. Due to his very busy schedule and deadline requirements, he wasn't able to send me a written blog, but he did do something pretty awesome! Below is a video Freddie sent me where he talks about motivation and always having a goal. Freddie is one of my idols in the business and one of the nicest guys I have ever met. I hope you guys enjoy the video and make sure to check out some of Freddie's work! Also here is a quote he left me with in the message I received. "persistence and focus on a goal is what will break you through obstacles!" 

WAKE UP!

 

 When you go through darkness, you have a choice at that exact moment of how you will decide to live the rest of your life. You can either keep letting yourself fall into the darkness or you can climb out and shine brighter than you ever have before. Life is beautiful but it also will never slow down for you no matter how hard you try to make it. The sun will rise and it will fall, and it is up to you to figure out how you will live each day. You can live in envy, always focusing on the negatives and hating life for what it hasn't given you, or you can live in hope and focus on the positives, and fight for what life is waiting to give you. Sometimes you will feel like you have to live in a way that doesn't describe you and it is at that exact moment where your real story can either begin, or never start. If you choose to stay the way the world wants you to, then your book will close and life will pass by, each day becoming less fulfilling than the next. If you choose to become the person that describes you then the pencil will start write and each day will become a page that will always be worth reading. No one story will ever be the same and that is the beauty of life. There is no name-brand on life, one set career, or one look that describes how life should ever be. There can only be one word that describes life and that is undefined. No person in this world has all of the answers or the correct way to live, just a belief of how it should be. When you see life drowning someone, will you put your hand in the water and pull them out, or will you sit in silence and watch them sink? If you give someone your hand, you are giving them hope that they are not in this life alone. Success is not the clothes you wear, the house you go home to, or the money you have. Success is helping others succeed, loving everyone you meet, and effecting lives in a way that will make life seem worth living. So when you wake up, life will be waiting , and it will be ready to take you wherever you want to go. 

 

-Austin