{Out of Character}

“Being unmotivated means you need deep rest from the character you’ve been playing in the world…” I read this somewhere but there was no credit to who actually said it. Have you felt unmotivated lately? Unmotivated to write, maybe take photographs. Unmotivated to let yourself love freely, forgive easily or to just simply be. What…

That Thing Called Self-Love

“If you have the ability to love, love yourself first.” – Charles Bukowski At some point in our lives, we were told to give our all in everything. To love with all our heart. To be the best person that we can be. To always put our best foot forward. That sacrificing is the greatest…

A Man Like No Other

Theirs was a marriage meant for the books. He was a man like no other. My father was the youngest among six children. Him and my mother were neighbors. They eloped and were married on March 3, 1963. They were blessed with five children, with twins. I always remember Daddy to be a hardworking man….

Don’t Do That

“Sometimes people are beautiful. Not in looks. Not in what they say. Just in what they are.” Markus Zusak I feel like it’s been forever since I tried writing my thoughts down. For the past several years, I’ve been very open about my feelings. I have no qualms in showing my vulnerability to others. I…

{Brave}

“The only way to being at peace with yourself is to be accepting and loving of who you are.” Let me share you a story. Before I started blogging fourteen years ago, I was in a woman’s group and from there I became aware of this thing called blogging. And I told myself, Charina…you can…

Embracing Negative

I’ve seen it all and read it all. This thing about positivity. Positive thoughts. Positive feelings. Positive influence. Positive vibes. Positive crowd. You get my point? I have nothing against someone who sees and feels nothing but positivity. In fact, I have so much respect for those people. But you know… Negative feelings matter too….

Things I Learned Before Fifty

Next month, yours truly, will be celebrating the big 5-0! Actually, no big celebration is in the works as I don’t like partying or socializing much. Every year, I write myself a birthday letter but this year, I don’t feel like doing it. Instead, I am going to share the things I’ve learned in no…

What’s Your Blueprint?

It’s been a quiet few days, (or was it weeks?) here at Charina.Writes. Actually, I have about three drafts written in my “Charina Writes” folder in my notes application. But quite frankly, it sounded desperate. You know, like I wrote it just for the sake of being intentional. So I am here to admit, that…

Messy Grace

Blue skies. Snow covered trees. Empty benches. Sunrises. Sunsets. These are a few of my favorite things. I was going to complain about a few things today, but then, I was reminded that most of the things that I want to complain about…a lot of people would loved to have.. But before you judge me…

What’s Your Story?

When all is said and done. And it’s time for us to go. These writings will be a beautiful reminder of who we are, A life beautifully expressed and lived…. In writing. charina.writes If you are a writer, chances are – you know what I’ll be talking about (be sure to read the underlined, I…