Thoughts

👑Prince (c)Harming *Been super MIA this past week because the coronavirus blues have hit hard. Hope everyone is staying safe and well and using this time for self-care and creativity! -L 📷@canva #author #write #writer #writersofinsta #writersofinstagram #writing #writingcommunity #poem #poet #poetry #poetryreader #poetrycommunity #journal #thoughts #quotes #quotable #logophile #perception #selfawareness #reflection #grief #griefwriter #lldowning https://www.instagram.com/p/B-2g7uZFtww/?igshid=h63hxxq4k2t0

🔪 #write #writer #writers #writersofinsta #writersofinstagram #writingcommunity #writelife #igwriters #igwritersclub #journal #journaling #author #poet #poem #poetry #poetsofinstagram #poetryreader #poetrycommunity #prose #spokenword #quotes #quotable #grief #griefwriter #logophile #bibliophile #spoonie https://www.instagram.com/p/B-kd5eblumM/?igshid=iuotm9ndigx

🦴 #amateurwriter #write #writer #writersofinstagram #writersofinsta #writersofinstagrampoetry #writeitout #writingcommunity #poetry #poem #poetrycommunity #poetsofinstagram #poetryreader #bibliophile #logophile #words https://www.instagram.com/p/B-aBW2HFiwO/?igshid=2q1asedlo2z7

*trigger warnings* This is a big "fuck you" to every lie I fed myself growing up in regards to "healthy" equating to "thin." It is an obit to every fad diet, punishing workout, impossible beauty standard, and shameful binging session when I couldn't maintain "perfection" any longer. Guess what? "Healthy" has nothing to do with size. It has to do with knowing what our individual and unique body needs through inner strength and self care. Remember that it is not what is on our outside that dictates health, but rather within. If we are not mentally healthy, we cannot truly be in a good place physically. So today, let the impossible standard of size go. Eat a slice of cake if you want to. Go for a walk if you want to. Light and candle and meditate if you want to. Go to the gym if you want to. Watch Netflix if you want to. Take a break if you want to. For once, give yourself a moment to quiet your inner voices of guilt and take a moment to LISTEN to your body and what it WANTS--instead of TELLING it what the world says it needs. #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealth #recovery #bodyimage #bodypositivitymovement #bodypositive #selflove #selfcare #instawrite #write #writersofinstagram #writer #femalewriters #author #prose #writingcommunity #journal #writeitout #creative #encouragement #strength #doyou #expression #letitgo #allsizes #justthewayyouare https://www.instagram.com/p/B-Lvr6MFbU4/?igshid=cm1834ye1bxh

You are epic and unique. Cubic Zirconia just can't sparkle the same next to a diamond. If cubic zirconia doesn't want to be your friend, remind yourself: she is only worried that she will be lost against your genuine shine. Keep being you.💎 #writersofinstagram #instawrite #writer #write #writelife #femaleauthors #prose #poetry #author #bookish #selflove #selfawareness #encouragement #bodypositivity #selfesteem #youarebeautiful #wordsofaffirmation #affirmation #affirmations #quotes #inspire #inspo #unique #oneofakind #special #nerdygirl #beyou #diamond #hatersgonnahate #followformore https://www.instagram.com/p/B-H76HolN1U/?igshid=1cqwx3ig0a9ys

🎵 As a musician, this is a daily mantra for myself, and a message I try to share with my piano students. But when you truly think about it, this application should be taken beyond music to any life encounter. So often myself, and students, struggle to keep motivated when a piece is challenging. Because, being honest, things are rarely fun when they are difficult. However this is where the true test of character development lies...it becomes more than just a piano piece. The question becomes what are we truly practicing: the piece or our world view? How we face challenges and difficulties in childhood and in our hobbies shapes the very person we become; whether life throws us a difficulty in finances, in work, in relationships, or in crisis, we need to be prepared. When it becomes a challenge, will we be the person who walks away? Or will we rise to the occasion and make something incredible out of it? Just like a blacksmith tempers a sword with fire to build the blade's strength, our daily small stresses are there to mold our character and minds into our own weapon against adversity. Two days ago, I coached a piano student through a difficult passage in her music. We were working over the phone, due to social distancing, but I could hear her scribbling notes down with her pencil and the earnest concentration filled her voice. We worked together for almost an hour. Last night, her mom sent me a video of her proudly playing the piece in full. There are few greater joys than overcoming a challenge. Just ask St. George about his Dragon, Frodo about the Ring of Power, Lucy Pevensie about the White Witch. We love these stories for a reason: because in the end, we all want to be strong enough to be hero who beats our bad guys. So, today if something is getting you down, ask yourself: "What will I do today that will shape who I become tomorrow?" #instawrite #writersofinstagram #writer #write #author #journal #prose #foodforthought #inspiration #dailyinspiration #inspo #practice #practicetechniques #achieve #believe #selfawareness #selflove #confidence #music #musician #musicteacher #piano #pianist #pianoteacher #teach #success #dreambig #workhard #follow https://www.instagram.com/p/B-FRyjVlorb/?igshid=iifyi6kn99aa

🍵 After being put on furlough until May due to COVID-19, my crazy brain has been on overdrive with inspiration. Sometimes work , responsibility, chores and exhaustion are to our brains what static is to a radio: the music is still there but we don't hear it. But now that I have had time to adjust the dial and soothe my introverted soul, I am ready to to take a little leap here: I have been writing prose since I was 5, andddd I have also pretty much been keeping my prose a secret just as long. 😂 See, I write when my feelings are strongest, and subsequently my feelings are at their strongest when I write. This is me at my most honest and most vulnerable state. I often wear my heart on my sleeve when it comes to my joy. My sadness and grief, however, have always travelled through my whispers in the ears of close friends, or locked away here: my journal. LL Downing comes from me; it is my name, but it is also a street. A street I grew up on: a street with an appearance that has remained almost unaltered for the past two decades. Behind its seemingly unchanged houses and foliage, however, is a street whose heart is dramatically moving: colorfully shaping the lives of those who reside in the houses bathed in the light of its street lamps. Where there has been laughter, there has also been grief. Where there is joy, also despair. But the lamps shine down all the same. Because a mirror might reflect appearance, but it never shows us inside. That is what memory is for. If you fancy channeling your inner emo, depressing yourself even further during this quarantine business, and seeing my soppy side, my dark side, my real side... give us a follow and see if it is for you. You might not always like what you read here, but again neither do I. 🤷‍♀️ #author #writer #prose #vulnerability #cuppa #follow #support #lockdown #heart #soul #inspired #journal #support #aspirations #griefsupport #motherlessdaughters #journey #tellingitlikeitis https://www.instagram.com/p/B-Delvsl2ch/?igshid=umn8gp7rtsue

-Roland Barthes

-The Neverending Story

-A.D. Posey