Paying it Forward: Random Acts of Kindness

This is a very special post near and dear to my heart,

"Selflessness is the sincere concern for the well being of others.  It's about love.  It's about compassion.  It's about kindness and faith.  It's about making a difference in the world.  Sure, you are only one, but you are one.  You cannot do everything, but you can do something.  Smile and enjoy the fact that you have the ability to make a difference-one you'll likely remember forever." 
(http://www.marcandangel.com/2012/05/25/60-selfless-ways-to-pay-it-forward/)

It is the best time of the year; for people who really know me they know it is my favorite time of the year.  It is time to be thankful for everything around you, cherish the people in your life, appreciate the little things, and best of all: time to give.  Thanksgiving is on Thursday and Christmas is right around the corner.  What better way to kick of the holidays than to perform some Random Acts of Kindness and brighten someone's day. I wanted to share this to inspire all of you to "pay it forward" or to perform some Random Act of Kindness.  I would love for this post to inspire even just one person to do something that will make someone else's life brighter.  That act could inspire that person to pay it forward and the giving will just become contagious. "Even the smallest act of caring for another person is like a drop of water- it will make ripples throughout the entire pond." - Jessy and Bryan Matteo. 

 One of my favorite quotes is from the genius Albert Einstein and I don't know about you, but I believe everything he says

So I decided to "pay it forward" while I had a little bit of free time today.

I left a dollar in the toys at the dollar store and wrote a note on the back of the card so a child can enjoy a new toy.

I went to Walmart and purchased a gift card to leave near food items people might purchase for Thanksgiving.

 I love scratch cards, so I attached two scratch cards to a gas pump and wished them luck!

As I was driving out of the parking lot I noticed a cart at the very end of the lot.  I ran it back and organized the carts.  

There are so many ways to Pay It Forward and these are just a few things that I did.

Here are some other ideas :)

• Volunteer for local charities
• Shovel someone's driveway or sidewalk for them after a snowstorm
• Donate books or clothes 
• Write an awesome review for a small restaurant or independent business.  It will really make someones day who has worked hard and believes in their business.  If you believe in it too, express it.  It will make them feel great.  
• Smile or give someone a compliment.
• Tell a friend how much they mean to you. Write them a letter.  People do not express enough how much others mean to them.  It will mean more than you could imagine.  
• Be a friend who listens..and I mean really listens.  Sometimes thats all someone needs.
• Leave some money on a vending machine for the next person to use.  
• Write a nice note to a stranger in a popular book in the library when you return it.  
• Pay for the person's coffee behind you in line.
• Fill an expired parking meter.
• Buy a friend their favorite candy and give it to them 'just because.'
• Share your umbrella on a rainy day.  
• Brush off someone's car when it snows.
• Spend some time on Free Rice.  

There is no better feeling in the world than to make someone smile or to make someone feel special.  In college, I was part of a group called LIGHThouse Leadership society.    I was lucky to be a part of the first ever retreat and then chosen to be the first group of facilitators to plan the retreat for a new group of students.  These retreats took 20 strangers on a weekend that would change their lives.  This group of college students would leave campus strangers and return family. It was our passion to make people smile, to be that ear to listen, that shoulder to lean on, to give back, and to make anyone's day a little brighter. This group organized an annual "24 hours of light" event for our school that was dedicated to 'paying it forward.'  Being part of the first ever group of LIGHThouse facilitators has ingrained into my life the importance of making others feel special and loved and I know my fellow facilitators would agree with me.

I always say the people in our lives are the most important thing and if we can make others feel special, even strangers, then maybe we can all appreciate each other and how lucky we truly are.  Remind people that there is kindness in the world and as we say here on Zoe Lane, we can strive for absolute fullness of life for everyone.

"Even after all this time, the sun never says to the earth, "You owe me!"  Look what happens with a love like that, it lights up the whole sky."  -Hafez

So make it part of your daily routine to make someone smile even with the simplest of gestures. Cherish that fact that you have the power to impact someone's life in such a positive way.  I hope this post inspires and ignites a light inside of you to pay it forward and perform some random acts of kindness.  So get out there and give; take this Zoetic Challenge and the next time someone wants to repay you for something, ask them to pay it forward. 

Let me know some of the ways you pay it forward :) 

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! 

Dream, Believe, Inspire

Carrot and Ginger Soup

Happy Monday!

So some of you might know I have been struggling with GI issues for over a year now.  I have had every test you can think of done and it is still some mystery as to what is wrong with me.  Long story short I have been changing my diet many different ways to see what foods triggers my symptoms.  I met this nutritionist in NYC, when I lived there, who actually helped me feel a little better.  After I moved home I reconnected with her in September.  She is part of this company called "The Plan"  (click to visit the official website).  I decided to try the program for the 20 days.  I learned a lot about my reactive foods, but I also learned really great recipes.  This is one of the recipes that I still make on a weekly basis.  I eat this soup for either breakfast, lunch, or dinner depending on what I am in the mood for.  Here are the step by step instructions on how to make Carrot and Ginger soup. (This recipe is from the book "The Plan" by Lyn-Genet Recita)

Here are the ingredients:
8 carrots
1 large zucchini (or 2 small)
1 large onion
5 cloves of garlic
1 inch of ginger
1 liter of water
1tsp of cinnamon (more to taste)
fresh ground black pepper (optional)


You will also need
a pot
cutting board
blender
peeler
knife

Fill the pot with 1 liter of water and bring to a high simmer

Then peel and roughly cut the carrots because these vegetables will be placed in a blender at the end, but make them small enough so the carrots will become soft when simmered.  Place the diced carrots into the pot.

Cut the zucchini, the large onion, five gloves of garlic, and the one inch of ginger roughly and place into pot.

Let all the ingredients simmer until soft (usually takes about 20 minutes).  I usually stick a knife or fork into the carrots to test it; you want the carrots to be soft so they will blend into a creamy texture.

Pour the entire pot of vegetables, including the water, into the blender.

Add cinnamon to the blender and blend until creamy.

And just like that, you have your soup!

It is also suggested to add chia seeds, sunflower seeds, or even pepitas (pumpkin seeds) to the soup for added fiber and protein. Make sure the seeds are raw and unsalted.

I sometimes add cinnamon to the finished soup instead of during the blend.  Either one works.  Enjoy this super simple soup recipe.  It is digestion friendly and tastes really good!

Let me know what you think of it!

Dream, Believe, Inspire,

21 drops Live on Zoe Lane

I am so excited to share one of my favorite products with you today! I have collected these for about four years now and they travel with my wherever I go.  They are my essential oil blends by 21 drops. The website states:

"Each of our Essential Oil blends is tried, tested and incredibly effective. Select essential oils are carefully infused to create a targeted and customized solution…from Headache to Heartache.

All of our Essential Oil Therapy blends are 100% natural. We source each essential oil from either wild-crafted or organically grown herbs or plants, collected – sustainably – from all over the globe. These therapeutic oils use an organic Jojoba carrier oil as their base." - 21drops.com

These blends come in 21 different scents all pertaining to a certain state of being and have different scents for you to feel the benefits through aromatherapy.  They are the perfect size to carry around and use throughout the day.  Some of my favorites are de-stress, inspire (of course) and equalize.

I apply these scents to my wrists, slightly behind my ears, down my neck, and on the sides of my temples.  I also breathe in the scent for a little bit to get the full aroma.  Equalize is one of the best smelling scents made with sandalwood wood oil, palmarosa grass oil, rose flower oil, and frankincense resin oil.  

 

I thought the combination of headache, pain relief, and hangover would be great after a long week of being active, being at the office and then an eventful weekend. Yes, they even have one for a hangover.  21 drops actually makes combination packages such as The Weekender with passion, sleep, and hangover.  I think this is an awesome idea. Check out the website for other combination packages.       

I have quite the collection that I use quite often, my main focus right now is on digestion (17), which is my newest sent for my crazy ongoing mystery GI issues.  They really do work!  I share my digestion scent with my friend at school who shares similar GI issues and she says she instantly feels better.  She said to me today, "I love you for this, my stomach calmed instantly." They even come in a cute little box that I just want to keep and display all over my room.  It's no surprise that their packaging was  nominated for Best Packaging Personal Care Prestige in this year's HBA's International Package Design Awards.  I think it's well deserved!  

These blends are $29 each, but I really enjoy them.  I asked the founder Cary Caster, who is a Clinical Aromatherapist, about upcoming promotions and she said they are working on them now.  I will be sure to post any promotions they have for the holidays when she lets me know. These would make a really nice gift for the upcoming holidays.  BeautySage is a huge fan of 21drops and distributes the scents AND TODAY ONLY you can use the code BDT (on the entire site) for 20% off and they have free shipping!

After yesterday's Zoetic Challenge (if you didn't get a chance to read it click here) I think inspire would be a great investment to inspire you to work towards your goals and break out of your comfort zone!

 Visit 21 drops official website here!  You can read all about their mission and even follow Cary Caster's blog.  This product is really quite amazing and inspiring in itself. She is brilliant!

Dream, Believe, Inspire

Fortune Favors the Bold

One of the best things in life is having a dream or a goal that you put your entire heart and soul into.

I love encouraging people to be brave enough to go for their dreams.  It gives me an immense amount of satisfaction and joy when I see people making bold moves for a goal or dream.  Many people get stuck in a rut or are what I refer to as "comfortable" as mentioned previously.  Being comfortable feels...well..good, I guess you could say, but where is the great?  Where is the 'I feel amazing?' That is what could happen when we break the comfort zone.  Zoe Lane will strive to challenge you to think about breaking your comfort zone in different ways.

Here at Zoe Lane I will have weekly challenges for you to do on your own; maybe a little assignment for you to do or something to think about throughout the week.  I will post these on Monday to give yourself a little boost for the week.  How many times have you said "I will definitely start it...on Monday."  Usually it feels better if we say we will start working towards our goal and following a certain plan on Monday.  Well probably because Monday feels like a new week has just begun and a new beginning can emerge so I will use Monday for your weekly challenge days to focus on reinventing and making some zoetic changes.

In honor of Zoe Lane being launched today I will start you off with a little Zoetic Challenge.  I want you to put the breaks on, stop, and take some time to just think.  How much time a day do you really take for yourself to just be in your head with no distractions?  My guess is almost zero.  Taking this time will instantly make you feel more determined and inspired.  Take a piece of paper and write down the answer to this question.

What is one thing you would do if you knew you couldn't fail?

Now in your mind picture that you already made that dream or goal of yours happen.  Now write down the steps of exactly what you did to make that happen.  Read those steps and repeat that goal out loud or in your head a coupe times.  You can see that this goal is possible to obtain.  I am not saying you have to go out and get that dream right now, but it gives you the confidence and the understanding that some of the variables that you think are roadblocks are really just the fear of stepping outside your comfort zone.  This is a quick exercise that I have done for myself and it has allowed me to see a concrete plan of what I would have to do.  When I feel the time is right, I know I can set this goal into action. Now no one said it would be easy and most of the time it is really difficult, but that is what makes it rewarding. Yesterday I received an not too long ago from a good friend.  She said this.  

"That fact that you never give up allows you to learn something not many people get the chance to fully learn.  You understand-tenacity and being well rounded in the art of determination. And yes, determination is an art."

Her words really stuck with me.  Why not master the art form?...but determination is for another day. Take this Zoetic Challenge and make it your own.  Use it to inspire you and to drive you.  Start small with a short term goal.  Take that piece of paper, put it somewhere safe and refer to it as needed.  

I have a lot planned for the future of Zoe Lane and I am so excited to share it all with you.  I have great recipes, products, fitness tips with workouts, motivations and some DIY projects coming up. 

Tomorrow I will share with you one of my favorite products I use daily.  Here is a little sneak peak!

 Dream, Believe, Inspire

Welcome to Zoe Lane!

I am so excited to finally have Zoe Lane up and running.  I can't wait to share organic and healthy products, recipes, lifestyle secrets, projects and inspiration to all my readers.  You might be wondering what the name is all about. I wanted to make a blog focusing on inspiring a full life.  I searched for a word that would be powerful enough to illustrate this mission  The word Zoe means 'life' and Zoetic means 'pertaining to life.'

Zoe (n.) absolute fullness of life, both essential and ethical, the state of one who is possessed of vitality or is animate, a life active and vigorous

I remember being told by someone that he never wants to be fully satisfied because he always wants to be striving for the next thing and that made his life full.  I know this could initially sound like an unhappy life, but when I heard this I never forgot it, because I too live my life this way, but with one addition.  I live my life never being fully satisfied, but I am fully grateful.  I am grateful for everything I have in my life, but I know that I can always improve and strive for a bigger dream.  In other words, don't get comfortable.  One of my biggest pieces of advice that I tell people is to never get comfortable and once you feel yourself becoming comfortable, stop and shake things up again.  This is how you learn and grow.  This is how you collect amazing experiences and meet life changing people.  Here on Zoe Lane, I will push myself and encourage you to do new things, take chances, dream, and believe that you have the power to make life full.

It is the mission of Zoe Lane to provide a place to learn, to dream, to believe, and to be inspired.  I am so happy to have this platform to share new things with you everyday.  Thank you so much for joining me on this journey down Zoe Lane.

Dream, Believe, Inspire