I logged off Friday night from both Facebook and Instagram with all the intention of staying off until Sunday night. There were some notifications, which took about ten seconds to decide if I wanted to click on any of them. I had some private messages, an invitation to a night out, a friend who was in town for the weekend and another couple that I had to follow up on. Didn’t even bother mind-numbingly scrolling through my newsfeed (it’s 4am by the way).

What have I learned in being offline in my little experiment - I didn’t miss that much.

March has felt like I’m having a growth spurt (because let’s be honest, at five feet tall, I didn’t have one of those as a teenager), and because my energy has fluctuated, I’ve been really protective of my vibe. I feel like the butterfly in the pupa stage - here I am in my cocoon, sleeping, letting nature take its course.

Life, Motivation, Self Love, TravelRonna Grace Funtelar25 March 2018thebutterflyjourney, leapoffaith, theotherside, lettinggoComment

Sometimes You Have To Suck It Up And Be Your Own Cheerleader

I recently reactivated an old social media account, one that I hadn’t used for almost three years. It was like discovering an old childhood diary or photo album at your parents’ house - it triggers nostalgia and the memories, with each photo serving as a visual aid, were in fact, mostly junk. I obviously took a lot of photos of food (I still do), which makes you wonder how people ever knew what you ate during the day before Instagram, right? *Insert favourite sassy emoji here.*

The collection felt like a digital time capsuIe. I deleted almost 300 photos from this account, but not before I made time to look at each one. Some were more precious than others, like the ones of the puppies, or the first time I ventured to Singapore for a dance camp. There were forgotten snapshots of my marriage. I looked at each one, said goodbye and deleted them with love. Yes, with love.

Life, Motivation, Self LoveRonna Grace Funtelar21 March 2018lifechoices, selflove, selfworth, motivation, beyourowncheerleaderComment

Keep Your Fears. Share Your Courage.

I blinked twice, was I reading it right? The screen said 91% humidity. A fever can play mind tricks on you, particularly when it comes to convincing you that it’s a good idea to wear a sweatshirt, even when it’s almost 100% humidity. I look down at my gym shorts and realised I was embracing both winter and our tropical summer.

The beads of sweat that rolled down my face, back and legs was somehow soothing, yet gross at the same time (for obvious reasons!). I spent a few hours in bed in and out of the blanket, trying to find that sweet spot of sweating but not overheating from a blanket sauna.

Life, Motivation, Self LoveRonna Grace Funtelar25 February 2018life, motivation, self love, taneatua, new zealand, street art, owendippie, tameitiComment

Close The Door So That It Clicks

I went to see an acupuncturist a couple of days ago. She also practises Reiki. There was a tightness in my left hip that had been persistent for the past month. It wasn’t painful, just mildly tight and sometimes an uncomfortable feeling at night. I had been following her on Instagram for some time and had read her reviews - the Universe insisted that I go to see her that Friday.

My acupuncturist talked about the left and right sides of the body and what they represented to her as she treated patients. The tightness on my left hip was being caused by fear, and possibly furthermore, habitual fear. Feeling stuck and indecisive, as well as becoming frustrated because I can’t (or won’t) make decisions that I know will help me to move forward. Like booking my tickets for Peru. The tightness I felt in my upper left glute felt the same way as if I had been sitting on a concrete floor for hours. There’s that word again - stuck.

The point I’m making is this, sometimes, when we need to move on, you need to make sure that proverbial door clicks...shut. Then you make a promise to yourself that, no matter what, you walk away. Don’t let the fear of having that one part of your life ending hold you back from the thousand other (read “better”) ways for you to be happy.

Life, Motivation, Self Love, TravelRonna Grace Funtelar16 February 2018closethedoor, movingon, selflove, selfworth, how to be happyComment

Hey. You're Doing Great.

On a lightpost in Whakatane is a black and white sticker which says:

Hey. You're Doing Great.

I walk my dog down this street a lot, and have probably walked past it a thousand times before I noticed it that morning. Someone must have taken the time to drag a ladder to the street corner because it’s high enough not to be just a spontaneous burst of optimism. Its message of motivation made me smile...a lot.

People have asked me if I miss having the dance studio (it’s been just under two months now). My reply is that I will miss the students, but the constant rushing, like going from my full time job to a class, not so much. Life’s been cruising lately - I’ve been doing lots of bush walks and I’m pretty sure I’ve finally made some decisions for South America. Sometimes when you see infinite choices before you, it becomes daunting to narrow it down to a simple yes or no. It looks like I may have to break down my travel plans into several trips if I truly want to explore the content. I can have that proverbial cake, but in smaller slices, with sweaty gym sessions in between.

Adventures, Life, MotivationRonna Grace Funtelar6 February 2018onepu, nzbushwalks, youaredoinggreat, motivationComment

What Happened When I Took A Break From My Phone For A Day (OK, Just During Work Hours)

THE BACKSTORY: I made a choice this morning to turn off my phone and leave it at home. I felt like I was always checking it during the day and wanted to see what it would be like to take a break from being constantly accessible. To be honest, how I felt at the end of the day really surprised me. Read on to find out how my day went...

I got my first mobile phone the summer I turned 18 - it was one of the original Alcatel bricks. You know, the kind that kept your ears warm when you’ve been talking more than 30 minutes. Yes, one of those that could have been used if I needed to defend myself from an attacker. It had a fixed antenna, but came up short of having to extend it to use the phone. Back in the days when texts cost you 20 cents, pxts were 50 cents, and the best game was Snake. The time when you only had dial-up internet, and you had to choose between being on the internet and using the landline.

Ah, those simpler times. Now you see ten year olds walking around with iPhones, and instead of asking for directions, we’re all in search of free wi-fi.

Life, MotivationRonna Grace Funtelar1 February 2018mindful, lifechoices, turnoffphoneComment