Scroll down to read my latest blogpost, "Falling in Love with My Peace Again "
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Hope you enjoy!
Then click "read more" to continue reading.
Hope you enjoy!
 A Blogpost featuring The Relationship Advice Vault (est. July 2024) on Heartbreak & Moving Forward 2024 has been FLYING by. And life has been so sweet, so hard, and so good. There’s a little both/and for ya. As I look back on the past year, I’ve experienced a variety of relationship breaks - business breaks, friendship breaks, and heartbreaks. While this blogpost may slant most in processing the last, my intention is that it is applicable to anyone going through a break.
Why? Because there is hope. Good things take time, and the hard thing about breaks is that it can easily cloud your ability to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Heartbreaks can break your heart, but they shouldn’t have to break you (Shetty). I finished reading “The 5am Club” in August, a book about owning your mornings and elevating your life. One of my favorite quotes was on how the process of change can be hard at the beginning, messy in the middle, but beautiful in the end. I couldn’t agree more. Be patient, I’m on this journey with you. Let’s dive in:
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 I wrote this blog on my four-day “sabbatical” in Carlsbad, California. The quotes around sabbatical isn’t my doing but others’ when I told them I’m going on sabbatical, and they follow up with “how long?”
Hence, the quotes around "sabbatical." One of the items on my bucket list was to learn how to surf. Little did I know how much I would learn from surfing itself. As I reflect on the first three months of 2024, I was amazed to see various parallels within what has happened to start the year in the expansion efforts of our team in LA, and how it relates to surfing. More on that later. 25 is a new fun number for me. December 25th will be here before we know it (10 days till Christmas, but who's counting?!) and it's one of the most important moments in history to celebrate. It changed everything! I, myself, rode into my own 25 years of life this year, and there was so much good, hard, and sweet that finally came to fruition (or realization) to. With 25, there is so much to look forward to, reflect back upon, and simply live into. Let's keep the magic 25 rolling!  On my last birthday, a sweet friend from high school sent me a text that said this: I pray that this year is full of immense peace, direction, and alignment for you That was one of the kindest texts I received last year. It was meaningful and each of those words have stuck with me. Peace. Direction. Alignment. The idea and expression of "alignment" came up multiple times more in my thoughts, work, books, and talks to a point where I knew there was something to it. I knew it had to be my word for 2023.  Took a sabbatical several months ago. "Kid-adults"—that’s just a fancy word for making intentional time to get away from the craziness of life to return to your truest self when stripped away of all the titles and to-do lists.
I also just love this word. It rolls of the tongue and is just so fun to say. Sabbatical. 
October Blogpost By Liv Shin Hey October! This blogpost’s ultimate credit goes to “time.” We live in a world where we desire success and happiness right here, right now. The caveat is—the world we live in holds us captive in this space called time. I’ve learned that I can either resist the captivity of it, or allow time to grow me, move me, and become me into the person I strive to be. Unfortunately, time takes time…and we all hate waiting, especially me. In hindsight, I’m so glad I let “time” do its thing though. I could have posted something in August…or September…or somewhere in between. Instead, these words are a culmination of all the months up to now, so bare with me because a lot has happened since! 
I've had about three different pieces I've written just hanging out on my desktop and ready to release in June as my monthly blogpost—one on control, another on dreams, and then a hybrid of the two topics with a sprinkle of the pandemic's crushing effect on both of them. Sweet, huh?
But as I began to reflect on the many things that went wrong, I also realized how many things took a turn that I would have never expected...in a good way. Happy February—the month of all the love! And I LOVE love, so I love February! I’m dedicated this blogpost to Marissa, an individual who showed me one of the BEST ways (in my opinion) to love someone—by believing in her. And that “her” was me. I’m only one of the many gals Marissa believes in, empowers, and motivates, though. She runs Etico, a small boutique in Fort Worth. Etico carries various handcrafted products and local treasures. The one commonality in all the vendors—they’re women. But that’s just my short elevator pitch of the store. It’s so much more than that, and I give all the credit to the woman behind the counter—Marissa. Happy New Year’s! Although everyone has been throwing out the “We don’t need another day of 2020”, I think we can all say that we have learned a lot from this year. 2020 has grown us, shaped us, and hopefully—refined us in a way we may never have imagined. All I have to do is abide in what I have received. He cares for the immediate repression and removal of every bud which the old nature would still like to put forth. -Andrew Murray; "Abiding in Christ" Hellooooo September—the month that calls our unhealthy, basic cravings for pumpkin spice EVERYTHING and sweater weather (please, Texas make this possible!) to attention. Before I dive in, I thought I'd start with Sparknotes because this is a long one. I get it if you don't want to read the whole thing, but I'm also going to use this as a hook to hopefully trap you into reading the rest, so here we go: Liv's sparknotes:
That's what Jesus did. We do not need to observe Western culture very closely to realize that it is captivated by the religion of the mediator. "The Spiritual Disciplines: Mediation"
 ****DISCLOSURE: I acknowledge that there is a lot happening in our world. Given the fact that this blog has to do with "time" and the importance of it, I want to let you know that I've withheld this post till later in the month because I wanted to mute my voice to let other voices be heard.
I have contemplated scratching this post, and writing a more relevant one to what is currently happening, but acknowledgement must come before action. For me, acknowledgement has taken the form of listening, learning, reading books, watching documentaries and films, and staying informed on both the latest news, as well as history that has founded what our world is today. The last thing I want is for this blogpost to seem ignorant or insensitive to the hurt that our world and people are experiencing. I hope you can understand. --  Ready to go full circle? Let's dive in. I'm in a moral dilemma. This month, I contemplated cheating on a test. Yep, not one of my high peaks in my life, but a real thought that stirred my mind. It was an online exam, and there was no way the professor would know of the other windows floating around her students' browsers. I had an 89.5 in the class, and cheating seemed like the easy way out.
Long story short, I came to my senses and didn't cheat. Instead, I made a pact with a friend to do the right thing, and so all good, right? Not so much. I ended up getting a grade that I didn't feel like I deserved after answering all the questions with confidence from studying hard. Taking the test felt good because I was prepared and able to explain all the concepts with ease. It was a hard hit when scores were posted a week later. The professor went over the exam in class, and I could safely say that many of us were appalled with the specificity she was expecting on the essay questions. It was as if she was encouraging an open book exam! However, for the most part, while students were aggravated and confused to an extent, they were unconcerned after a certain point. For me, it was different. I knew that what was running through my mind needed some sorting through. Full disclosure — I've received one B in college, which I then pass/failed. It's not that I'm rocket-science smart, but that grades have always been a reflection of my effort. Getting A's are important to me because I like to see the results of hard work and time I put into learning. When I get less than what I expect, it's a wake-up call to see what could be improved. However, what was extremely hard to replay last month was that I was so desperate for a letter grade to say that I was in a "moral dilemma." Cheating is wrong, and that is that. To do the right thing and put in 100% effort but not see the results wasn't easy, though. This whole situation made me wonder. My best friend reminded me to use this time to reflect on what I'm idolizing and prioritizing — goals and motivations, grades and achievements, food and fitness, fun and friends, etc.  “People are making banana bread because of a virus.” That's when it hit me. I was listening to a podcast my editorial manager recommended while I was in the car. It was still Monday, but not any ordinary Monday. Today was the first day of online classes because TCU decided to cancel the rest of the semester due to COVID-19. We would be coming back from an extended spring break via the digital communication platform, Zoom, which is probably making loads of money right now.
So, to stay positive and hopeful amid reality, I decided to bake some banana bread. I set the alarm for 7:30 am even though I wouldn't be going anywhere. Nevertheless, I wrote out a list because that's what I do when I'm stressed — I plan. I rolled out of bed to warm the oven to 375 degrees and then got to work. I chopped up the bananas and walnuts, melted the butter, and whisked the sweet ingredients together during a somewhat bitter time in our world. My roommate wasn't going to be able to attend her senior graduation in May. Businesses were struggling to pay their workers. Cases of the virus were on the rise, and people were dying. Our president warned us that the next weeks ahead were going to be when this crisis is expected to peak. I remember the sweet smell of buttery banana bread that filled the room. Baking banana bread was the right choice.  It's been a while since I've blogged. Part of the reason has to do with the busyness of this semester. Life has been both exciting and stressful, and I've learned that the one thing that balances these two extremities is the choices that I take on, and the opportunities I politely decline.  While January felt like a year in itself, February flew by:
It's been busy! Here's one thing I've learned through it all: Yes, obviously you should say no to bad things, but that's not what I'm talking about. February has been a month of learning the courage and rest that comes with saying no to good things. And now, I've confused you. Please don't stop reading; I promise I have a point.
I got you 7's.1. Whatever type enneagram you identify with, we all live in a society that demands a lot from us.
Whether it is in our work place, school, home, etc, it can be easy to fall into a performance-based mindset and think that our identity is based on what we do, and how much we do.
For me, as a type seven, my passion (what my heart longs for) is gluttony. Not gluttony in terms of food consumption, but in terms of pleasure. If you're a type 7, you TOTALLY get it. Pleasure>pain always, that's our formula. But when we begin to drive our decisions and thoughts into this lifestyle, we can easily burn ourselves out and fall into exhaustion. To get to this passion of pleasure, I find myself constantly planning. That is the Type 7 fixation: planning. Especially then I find myself in a situation that is causing me harm or pain, my immediate response is to look ahead to what's to come. It's who we are— extremely imaginative and very efficient. But the problem with this is that we don't allow ourselves to understand this paradox of complete joy in sorrow.  Sophomore year has come to an end, and I am blown away by not only how fast the year went, but how much the Lord has showed me His goodness in the relationships and experiences He brought me.
As I got to converse with different people about what my faith looks like in Him, I found myself constantly questioning the authenticity of it. I took a religion course this semester and I learned about a variety of world views in America. It was by far my hardest, yet most intriguing class. I wondered about the famous theory that says all religions lead up to the same mountaintop. We talked about it in class towards the end of the semester; as I listened carefully to many people pour their ideas and responses to that question, I was hoping I could find enough validity and evidence to explain that the answer was yes, yes indeed all religions are striving for basically the same end goal. But what I also found was my intuition—which I believe is deeply connected to the God who handcrafted us— resisting that urge and reminding me of the truth. being strong doesn't always mean going the fastest or the hardest. This week, I struggled. Thursday-Friday transitions are always a little tricky as I teach at 6:30pm on Thursdays, and then Fridays at 5:30am. This week I doubled and taught at 5:30pm and 6:30pm, and then my Friday 5:30am. In between those classes, I pulled an all-nighter...not because I needed to or wanted to, but because I just couldn't seem to sleep. Do you every have those nights? Your mind is restless, and before you know it, it's a new day? Getting burnt out is something every fitness instructor I've met experiences, including myself. I was tired-both physically and mentally. It didn't help that I was beating myself up over how my classes went post-ride. When I'm up on that podium and on that bike, it's no longer about me. It's about my riders. I want to serve them in the best way possible. What I say on that podium needs to be impactful, and what I do on that bike needs to be empowering. However, what I didn't realize in those moments was that I was the one self-evaluating how my riders felt instead of actually knowing the impact that each rider truly experienced. It's not about you. You may be calling the choreo, leading the interval, or building the energy, but you aren't doing the heart change (someone much bigger is). Yes, yes we are crazy. Bella and I decided to go skydiving at Spaceland Dallas today and it was AHHH-MAZING. No, not the puny indoor skydiving place, we did the real deal. Both of us were on about 2 hours of sleep and McDonald's breakfast, but as we got closer, our excitement and butterflies in our stomach woke us up.
We jumped off a helicopter 14,000 feet off the ground and got to pull the parachute at about 6,000 feet! It was exhilarating and beautiful and peaceful all at the same time. All worth it, every cent of it. February flew by so fast, but in the midst of this month, I got to press into meaningful moments, sweet fellowship, and a perspective of constantly learning. Reflecting back, I thought I'd take this post to share some of those things:
1) what I've learned in February, 2) new things I've started, and 3) what's to come Life consists of finding ways to live a little better, a little happier..kinda like a fish in a Brita. You'll have to read this to understand.
 I don't expect you to understand what's going on in this collage I made. I mean, honestly, I don't even really know what's happening. I kind of just starting flipping through an Anthropologie magazine to find some aesthetically pleasing pictures I could cut out to make a collage.
I set an intention to relax today. It's been a crazy week of change, and I finally made it to Fall Break. I wanted to create something that reflected my week, but nothing in the magazine would do. That's when I decided to simply place pictures together, and two hours later, I have something I hope I can look back on and remember. Even though at first I didn't think it was possibly that I could make Anthropologie images relate to what has happened these past weeks, I took a deeper look at my collage. That's when I realized that what I created was a lot like life as we know it. We like to have structure, and purpose in everything we do even before we do it. We like to know what we are going to be, and how we are going to get there. We want our lives completely planned out. We spend so much time focusing on what's to come that sometimes, we forget the beauty in the process.    It's finally FriYAY! This week has been busy, but also exciting as I was able to jump into the new role of being an RA in Foster Hall. A couple days ago, Kam (another RA) and I put on an ice cream social program that allowed people to have a "sweet" time eating ice cream and meeting people.
I also taught my first two spin classes of the year! Both were completely packed and it was really cool to see how hard work and advertising can really bring people to class! On my Wednesday class, I talked about gratitude in one of my songs, and how gratitude can only be experienced when you realize what you have is enough. I think this is so important. This allows gratitude to make sense of the past, focus on the present, and give us a vision for the future. Instead of trying to constantly do everything, gratitude allows us to live in the present, something I struggle with. When I reflect on this week so far, I can list out many things, starting with God being faithful in his Word when He says that He doesn't give anything we can't handle, but moreover, that we are never alone in our sufferings.  6th Year of TCU's "Afternoon Tea" put on by our vice chancellor & Student Development Services (SDS) to welcome those not choosing Panhellenic/Greek life.Sophomore year. Crazy stuff. Last year, I made the decision to not go through the recruitment process to get into a sorority. I wasn't too worried about it because I was never interested in being in one, but I did feel an uneasiness in that I was doing something wrong by not going through it. The week before school has an atmosphere that shouts Greek life as 50 percent of girls at TCU choose to undergo this process. I felt as if I was limiting myself from the number of people I would be able to meet and make relationships with. However, I quickly realized that all of this uneasiness was completely unnecessary.
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oh, hey there!
My name is Liv, and I'm happy you made it here! |
