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…

Which Side Are You?

Has it ever occurred in your life where you asked yourself if you are on the wrong side of the fence? Just a few hours ago, I had this dream. In my dream, I was still in school. In a particular class, there were a few of us that were not chosen to be included…

{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…

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…

Finding My Circle

The past few days have been quiet for me, literally. I have been racking my brains and tugging at my heart hoping I’ll come up with something to write about. But then, my writing is not all about made up stories or forcing myself to come up with some “feel good moments” or “I don’t…

One Day

Busy. If busy is not the most used word, what do you think would it be? Suppose that you are only given just one more day to live – what would you do? I think it would make a big difference if we were given the chance to know this in advance. The problem is,…

Picture Perfect!

In photography, it’s not enough that we have a good camera. Knowing how to use it properly is of upmost importance. I am a natural light photographer, so the time of day plays an equally important role. Luck and timing is needed at certain times if not most. But one that is not given much…