“Lighten up, Francis!”
— Sergeant Hulka, Stripes

Does the world seem extra heavy to you right now? I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but nature begs to differ. She is giving us comfortable temps, mild breezes, beautiful blooms, and lots of sunshine that beckons our spirit to lighten up. Take some deep breaths, go outside, slow down, and allow ease to penetrate your bones. Start saying yes to things you love. At least once a day do things that bring you joy and fill your soul.

This month’s Hissy Fit is a giant complaint about complainers. I could make it short and just say, “get grateful and shut up,” but that’s not whiny enough to appeal to true complainers. Is that too harsh? Maybe, but isn’t it what we all want to say to those people—and we all know at least one—who complain about everything?

Complaining is a bad habit. All of us complain from time to time because life throws curve balls, and we don’t like it. However, some people complain constantly, and those are the ones we're tired of; they are very hard to tolerate. Speaking of intolerable—have you noticed most complainers usually have cringeworthy voices and a special talent for dragging out words and ends of sentences ad nauseam? Think fingernails on a chalkboard. Even if they were handing out compliments, it would still sound annoying.

“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as who you become by achieving your goals.”
— Zig Ziglar 

I love who I’ve become in my 21 years of publishing Pink Magazine. Though it has been grueling and tough at times, this job, which I consider a mission, has made me smarter, wiser, more savvy, humble, well-read, patient and disciplined. However, owning Pink comes with a huge responsibility, which I don’t take lightly. I am absolutely inspired every day to feature women from all walks of life and offer the best stories in hopes of making a positive difference.

Life is short. And I’m not saying to eat dessert first, or anything like that, unless you want to of course, but we all need to start savoring our minutes. If you think about it, time is the only currency we spend without ever knowing how much we have left. So, with that sobering thought in mind, is it really worth spending your precious moments doing mindless, unenjoyable things. I’m not talking about dishes, they are a necessity. I’m referring to things like watching endless reels of some doctor popping massively infected pimples or scrolling through profiles, looking at everyone else living it up. (Even though they are not really living it up, either—trust me.)

“Kindness gives birth to kindness.”
— Sophocles —

There are few things on this earth as impactful as kindness. The ripple effect one kind encounter can have is immeasurable. Kindness is a powerful gift you can give away every day, all day, and never be replete. It’s the gift that keeps on giving to both the recipient and the giver.