maralascottsblog children, God, Happiness, inspirational stories, relationships

In Appreciation of Life

Today I look back on my journey realizing how grateful I am for my life. I am only able to say this because I built a relationship with God early when I had mountains of adversity to overcome. It wasn’t mine, rather the journey of my parents that I was born into. But that was the path that I was destined to take so I would seek God, which taught me to understand God’s love, protection, power, grace, and mercy. As time went on, I worked to build that relationship as there was so much more to understand, value, and appreciate.

Years later, when I thought that my relationship with God would protect me from harm, I had yet another bout with adversity that threatened my existence and hurled fear into my children. Still, I reminded my children that God knew I was obedient and without fear, but it was time for me to learn another lesson. I trusted the outcome of a lengthy brain surgery on multiple aneurysms with complete certainty because God told me to get it done. When I opened my eyes, I couldn’t do anything but smile at the sight of my family in front of me. I would not ever go against what God told me for the options that man tried to reason with me. I had yet another level of appreciation for life and a testimony. The recovery took time and was a battle in itself, but I needed to fight. I wanted to fight because I had so much more to do.

People fight every day; children fight every minute for life, but sometimes, we don’t win. When we do, the appreciation is so much greater than what it ever could have been because we have the propensity to take family, friends, health, material things, and God for granted.

Today, I celebrate having five more years of service to God in appreciation of my life. I learned the value of each breath I take, everything I see, and the feel of sand beneath my feet. I am grateful for those who love me as it, too, is a gift.

www.MaralaScott.com

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maralascottsblog children, Forgiveness, God, Happiness, Helping Others, inspirational stories, kindness, relationships, Self-Love

The Truth About Parenting: 10 Simple Tips

family-vacation-less-stressful_47_900x600I have a passion for life! I love who I am and above all, I love God. It is God that taught me to love myself. Then, the need for others to love me didn’t exist, but I learned why it is essential for me to love others. I was apprehensive about becoming a parent. It wasn’t something that was natural for me since my childhood had a narrative that was nothing less than horrific and scarring. Once I was, the test began and the one thing I wanted to get right in life more than anything else, was parenting. As a mother, the choice became mine to submit to what I was familiar with or do something to change the lucid visions that could hurl a fragile and scared little girl into her own dark world. I was determined not to replicate the abuse and pain. I made the decision to leave it behind, taking only the good experiences and memories, although it wasn’t easy.

I remembered my painful tears as a child and promised myself that I would provide my children with the things I prayed for. I wanted them to laugh from their soul, smile because it’s their natural expression, and inspire others because they know how. It didn’t mean they would be without challenges, but I gave them unwavering love, complete trust, and confidence as tools. Then, I taught them to have compassion, persistence, goals and why a relationship with God is an essential part of their existence. Every single day, I told them I loved them and I made a constant effort to make sure they could see it. I shared the mistakes I made throughout my life so they would trust coming to me for advice when they made theirs. My children had to learn how to be fearless because as a child, I lived in fear. They needed to know it was okay if they fell as long as they got back holding their head high. They were pulled close to understand me and talk about their day just as I shared mine with them while we cooked and ate dinner together. We prayed together, laughed together, cried together and lifted one another. They both think they are my favorite because neither of them felt I loved the other more.

The truth about parenting is that you will make mistakes, as I’m sure I’ve made my share. However, learning to correct parenting skills by listening to your children and learning from them helped shape me into the mother I am today.

  1. Love them as God loves you.
  2. Encourage them to be better than you and give them the tools to accomplish that.
  3. Keep them close rather than pushing them away when you get busy. Allow them to share in your success and understand your failures.
  4. When they ask you a question, don’t lie. Tell them the truth so they learn to do the same.
  5. Take time to ask questions before jumping to conclusions.
  6. Don’t assume they know you love them because you are their parent. Tell them, and more importantly, show them.
  7. Be the example that you want them to become. They are learning from you and they see and hear more than you think.
  8. Don’t tell them about God. Show them His work and help them build a relationship with God.
  9. Try not to react or discuss situations when you’re upset. Give it time and revisit it when you have a better mindset. Allow them to share their perspective as it may change yours.
  10. Remember, you were a child once.

With Love,
Marala

Marala Scott with her children
Marala Scott accepting The Shory Award for Best Parent

Watch Marala Scott at The Shorty Awards

Read Marala’s Books

 

maralascottsblog Happiness, inspirational stories

Being Human

 

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I often spend time catching up on my favorite shows like Being Human, Revenge, Nikita, Pretty Little Liars, The OC and Gossip Girl when I’m designing book covers for clients. Having graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology I can’t help but to wonder if the characters are really as human or down to earth as some make it seem or if they are annoyed by the constant intrusion on their life.

It was early afternoon when my mother, brother and I casually stepped into a quaint little restaurant in Studio City, California to grab lunch. It was the first time I’d been there but my brother swore that the menu would satisfy my discriminating palette. Mom quickly agreed. After ordering lunch, we sat down at a table on the left side of the restaurant, closer to the back patio. We had just finished a taping on The Talk and leisurely bumped into Dan Bucatinsky, from Scandal, who kindly indulged in a little conversation with us. Then, Sheryl Underwood made time to say hello after a fun exchange between her and my brother, Aaron. The day was beautiful. Mom and I live in Ohio so every time we visit California for business, we make it a point to have fun. This trip wasn’t any different.

The server kindly came over to our table and placed Aaron’s Chai Tea in front of him along with a large slice of chocolate cake, a slice of lemon cheesecake for Mom and a large chocolate chip cookie for me.

Mom politely said, “I’m sorry, I ordered two cookies.”

Without hesitation the server smiled and said, “No problem. I’ll be right back,” before disappearing around the corner. Mom reached into her purse and eyed the receipt to make sure, then she smiled and said, “Lyss, I don’t see two cookies.” My face lit up as my brother started laughing.

“I didn’t pay for it,” she continued. Just then, the server dropped yet another large chocolate chip cookie in front of her and disappeared again before Mom could say anything. “Well, I can’t take this. I thought I paid for it, but I didn’t,” she admitted with a look of guilt on her face.

“That’s okay, I’ll take care of it. I’ll just go pay for it and explain what happened.”

“But what’s the big deal? It’s a cookie,” my brother teased, “It was a mistake.”

“Yes, one that I can fix because you know how Karma is.” I started to walk away and Mom insisted I take her credit card. “I’ve got it Mom,” I said smiling, watching my brother indulge in his chocolate cake.

I went back to the cashier to get in line and there were two guys in the front and a small group of people behind them. I have a habit of taking in my surroundings wherever I go and for some reason, one of the guys caught my attention. It was his skin tone. I know, it sounds a bit odd, but the guy played a vampire on Being Human. I caught a side view of the gorgeous Sam Witwer and instantly knew it was him before seeing his full face.

His friend caught my stunned reaction and said, “Oh, you’re looking at him? He’s my best friend. Go ahead,” he said motioning for me to approach Sam.

He tapped Sam on the shoulder and when he turned around, my heart raced as I managed to say the same thing he’s probably heard countless times, “I’m a big fan of Being Human.”

Without hesitation, Sam closed the menu, stepped out of line, and told the people behind him to go ahead. “Oh, thank you. I’m Sam,” he said, extending his hand.

“I’m Alyssa,” I said shaking his hand.” Then he lightly clasped his hands together and gave me his full attention, looking directly in my eyes (as his character on Being Human did when he hypnotized people) and so did his stunning friend. At that moment, I didn’t feel like a fan, I felt like a friend, too.
Sam said, “Thank you. How’s your day going?”

I told him about us being on The Talk and with sincere interest, Sam asked, who was on the show. It felt like nearly ten minutes before I asked to take a picture and he replied, “Sure. Of course.”

His friend said, “Here, I’ll take it for you.” And then his friend smiled and added, “I’ll take two for good measure.”

I glanced at the picture and Sam asked if he could see it too. “That one’s a little blurry, do you want to take it again?” Sam asked.

I swiped to the next picture and said, “Oh, this one’s perfect!” I thanked Sam and his friend, and told them both it was nice meeting them.

He returned to the counter to order and I stood behind him before another cashier said, “I can help you down here.” When I explained to the cashier what happened, she said, “Thank you for your honesty but I would have just eaten it.” We both laughed.

But this was one of those little things that Mom taught me a long time ago about Karma. I started to walk away and then I spun around and touched Sam on his arm. “Thank you for taking the time.”

“You’re welcome,” he said with an incredibly authentic smile and caring tone. My mouth fell agape as I floated back to the table.

By the time I sat down, Mom said, “What’s wrong with my baby girl?” noticing my eyes were filled with tears. Okay, well the tears were falling. I recanted what had just transpired and told her that Sam was exactly the way I thought he would be as his character seemed to be a true representation of him. I told her that it’s nice to meet people that are larger than life in their profession and they sometimes draw us into buying or believing their character is who they really are, and at times, we simply want to believe they are like that. Okay, obviously Sam isn’t a vampire but his character is kind at heart and tried to blend in and be more human. It was a reprieve to see that Sam was human and treated me more like a friend than a fan. And his friend, oh my goodness! I knew him and I knew him well as I was a fan of his too. Being on such an incredibly high cloud from meeting Sam, I couldn’t gather my thoughts together to ask him for a picture and tell him how much I love his character. He was more interested in me meeting Sam after seeing my reaction towards him then feeling disregarded. He was extremely kind and had a warm air of sophistication about him. He was none other than the guy you can’t help but love, Jack from Revenge, Nick Wechsler! He too was being human. When they walked past our table, Nick nodded and smiled. Sam gently touched my shoulder as if to comfort me from my unbelievable encounter.

There’s nothing wrong with being human and revealing your compassionate side towards others regardless of what’s going on in your life. Showing people you care is a beautiful way of inspiring others.

Award-winning Novelist
Alyssa Curry

maralascottsblog God, Happiness, inspirational stories

Allow This To Inspire You … The Little Signs Are Really The Big Ones

I was walking along the beach where I found my first sand dollar years ago. I am a collector of them and was searching for another one. After a few days of searching, I realized the ocean was not willing to share it. My mind was clear and I was as carefree as one can get. It’s my way of taking in peaceful moments so that when I take in the negativity or stress from life or others, my peace will not diminish.

Typically, sand dollars are found near the shore burrowed in the sand. For some reason, I didn’t want to leave this beach without one. An hour later, the sun was beginning to set and I paused for a brief moment and said, “Father God, I’d really like a sand dollar. Just one. A big one, but just one.” Yes, it seems like a very insignificant request, but meaningful to me. If you don’t know the spiritual significance behind a sand dollar you will want to know it. It was my daughter that shared it with me.

As I continued to comb the beach searching for sand dollars, I didn’t realize that a wide stream of water separated me from the ocean. To get closer to the ocean I walked across two feet of water. When I reached the other side, I looked down and saw this very beautiful and large sand dollar on the edge of the water, partially buried. The smile on my face was so broad you would have thought I won the biggest lottery. I reached my hand into the water and carefully scooped it up. “Thank you God,” I said jumping around the beach with my smile. “Thank you!”

Okay, it sounds strange, but it is truly my faith. You see God sends me little affirmations all the time to let me know He hears me. So when the big things happen or the beautiful things evolve, I know it’s because of Him too. God knows my true spirit, heart and mind. He knows that I ask because I know He can and will. With all of the troubles and burdens of this world, He has always made time for my prayers and conversations. He has healed me from feeling the pain of my childhood and given me tremendous strength to endure. Regardless of what you may think, it is your faith that will bring you to this if you truly believe. I don’t believe in coincidence but I do believe in God. Sometimes the little signs are really big signs to let you know that God is listening, so believe.

maralascottsblog Happiness, Helping Others, inspirational stories

Switchfoot’s Wave of Inspiration

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I was sitting at my desk overlooking a beautiful view of the woods, but I couldn’t seem to pull my thoughts together and write. Everything was peaceful, yet I couldn’t remember where I should begin or what to write about. Noticing that my fingers weren’t striking the keyboard of my computer, my daughter, Alyssa walked up behind me and said, “Let’s listen to some music.” Before I knew it, she selected one of my files and suddenly the melodious sounds began streaming into me. “Do I like this music?” I asked. “No,” she replied, “You love it.”

I was recovering from a craniotomy where I had multiple aneurysms clipped only two months prior. My speech was slow and my short-term memory, poor. I had trouble reading and writing, but I allowed the inspiration of Switchfoot to move me, and it did the same for Alyssa. The romantic, psychological thriller, Intuition was inspired by true events and one chapter after another was written to a seamless collection of their music.

Intuition was released a week prior to Switchfoot playing in our hometown. It was unquestionable that we’d go to the concert. Excitement filled me at the mere thought that they might play, “Where I Belong” because the conclusion of the story was specifically written to it. They did, and Jon Foreman exhibited the most incredible display of passion possible. He dove inside the music for the duration of the concert, belting out soul-shaking lyrics. He didn’t know it, but during one of the songs, he walked along the banister to where Alyssa and I were standing and held my hand while emitting a solid hardcore performance while the base rocked my soul! The luminosity in my daughter’s face was most likely reflected from their inspiration that night. They were a collective effort of perfection at its finest.

After the concert, we met Switchfoot backstage and shared our story of how and why Intuition came to be. Every one of the guys gave us their full attention and I will never forget the look in their eyes. I was humbled by their keen passion for life, flawless music, making a difference and inspiring people like me … without ever knowing it! I’m certain the countless fans of Switchfoot have undoubtedly been inspired as they have my daughter and I, so you get it. But if you haven’t listened to them yet, pick up any of their albums and ride the wave of inspiration. Listen to their soul tell stories about their lives, feel the creative elements they distribute freely, absorb the lyrics, feel the salt water and stars. Allow them to breathe inspiration into you. It works miracles.

 

Thank you Andrew, Ike, Jon, Tim, Drew, Jerome, and Chad!

With Love,
Marala Scott & Alyssa Curry

Visit Switchfoot’s Official Site

maralascottsblog Forgiveness, Happiness, relationships

Give Your Dull Relationship A Makeover

Once a relationship has been going on for a while doesn’t mean the loving touch that was there before has to end however, it will if the both of you allow it. There are many ways to keep your relationship fresh and full of love if you really want it to work. Try these tips and watch that intimate loving touch return:

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Ø  Stop looking for things to complain about instead, find things to laugh over.

Ø  Don’t pick your battles; don’t pick anything except healthy negotiations to resolve personal issues.

Ø  When dining out, sit next to one another so it’s easier to hold hands and share intimate conversation.

Ø  Put a heartfelt card under his or her pillow, in their drawer or on the car seat. Regardless where you place it they will know that you are thinking of them at the most random times.

Ø  Be random with a surprise, meaning just because on any day, at any time.

Ø  Leave a thoughtful message on a stressful day to help improve their mood. If you know their day is stressful don’t add to it.

Ø  Share words of inspiration as a reminder of the blessings you have.

Ø  Agree to disagree and understand that there are always at least two perspectives and yours belongs to you so be willing to compromise.

Ø  Don’t forget the loving things that brought you together.

Ø  Leave the negative past in the past if you’re still together.

Ø Take time away from everyone else to focus on one another.

Relationships are a work in progress that will have a healthy progression if you choose to pair love with understanding.