“I’ve found that there is always some beauty left — in nature, sunshine, freedom, in yourself; these can all help you.”― Anne Frank

Today I thought of Anne Frank.  She was a young girl born in Germany.  Later her family moved to the Netherlands to escape Hitler’s persecution of Jews.   When the Nazi occupied the Netherlands, her family had to go into hiding. 

For 2 years the family hid in a small attic. They were not able to go outside and had to remain quiet during the day.   While in hiding she wrote a diary.  That diary was later published.  She died young but her writings have survived 

I think about what she went through. Not only her, but everyone at the time of the Nazi occupation.  She was basically imprisoned, but she didn’t let her situation consume her.  She escaped in her writing.  She had hopes and dreams.  She planned for the future.   She still believed in the goodness of people and in love. 

If you want to read more about her, you can check the Anne Frank Museum: https://www.annefrank.org  and/or Wikipedia:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Frank

Reading about Anne Frank, her story and writings inspires me and it helps me to keep it all in perspective.  Things can always be worst.  We still have so much to be grateful for. 

Our minds imprison us, not our circumstances.  Four walls is not a prison, our minds and thoughts dictate our situation.  The most important thing is kindness and respect. Kindness to respect and not to judge.  Kindness to help if you, and let it go if we can’t.

“It’s really a wonder that I haven’t dropped all my ideals, because they seem so absurd and impossible to carry out. Yet I keep them, because in spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.  I simply can’t build up my hopes on a foundation consisting of confusion, misery, and death. I see the world gradually being turned into a wilderness, I hear the ever approaching thunder, which will destroy us too, I can feel the sufferings of millions and yet, if I look up into the heavens, I think that it will all come right, that this cruelty too will end, and that peace and tranquility will return again.”- Anne Frank

Like her I am a dreamer, a planner, a believer.  I believe in an amazing future.   It is not only a belief, it is a certainty.  Tomorrow will always be better than today. That knowledge is comforting. 

Dream a little, or a lot.  Let your imagination soar.  Be whatever and whoever you want in your dreams.  Don’t limit your imagination.  Go as crazy and as wild as you can.

I also believe in the goodness of people.  People are good, they want to do good. There are heroes all around us.

“The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quite alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature. As longs as this exists, and it certainly always will, I know that then there will always be comfort for every sorrow, whatever the circumstances may be. And I firmly believe that nature brings solace in all troubles.”― Anne Frank

I try hard to remind myself to observe beauty, nature and the miracles all around us.  Nature is the best miracle of all.  Observing nature brings me close to God.  When I am not able to go outside, just looking at the sky from my window brings me close to nature. There is beauty and miracles all around.  All you have to do is look.

“Human greatness does not lie in wealth or power, but in character and goodness. People are just people, and all people have faults and shortcomings, but all of us are born with a basic goodness.”― Anne Frank

We are all the same.  We are all capable of great things but also capable of making mistakes.  Understanding that helps us be kinder, less judgmental and more forgiving of each other, and also of ourselves.

No one is perfect. Don’t expect perfection from yourself or from others. Don’t judge how someone chooses to spend their social distancing time.  Some people can handle it better than others.

Do what helps you get through at this time.  Do what brings you joy.  Do what brings you peace.  Dance, laugh, play.  Do nothing or everything and don’t feel guilty about it. Follow your heart.

“People who have a religion should be glad, for not everyone has the gift of believing in heavenly things. You don’t necessarily even have to be afraid of punishment after death; purgatory, hell, and heaven are things that a lot of people can’t accept, but still a religion, it doesn’t matter which, keeps a person on the right path. It isn’t the fear of God but the upholding of one’s own honor and conscience. How noble and good everyone could be if, every evening before falling asleep, they were to recall to their minds the events of the while day and consider exactly what has been good and bad. Then, without realizing it you try to improve yourself at the start of each new day; of course, you achieve quite a lot in the course of time. Anyone can do this, it costs nothing and is certainly very helpful. Whoever doesn’t know it must learn and find by experience that: “A quiet conscience makes one strong!”― Anne Frank

I thanked my mother today for giving my siblings and I such a great moral and spiritual base.  I grew up believing in good and wrong. I grew up watching acts of generosity.  I grew up believing in God, spirits, reincarnation, and the concept of karma. Those teachings have been a blessing in my life.

I hope you are safe and enjoying every moment of your life as best as you can!

… and because paper has more patience than people, I write 🙂