I'm becoming more domestic nowadays. This morning I decided to dejunk the bodega. While moving out piles of boxes, I come to this smashed beat up box that show that it is holding piles of old books and magazines. The first book that sprung out of the box is, tadah, "If Life is a Game, These are the Rules" by Cherie Carter-Scott. I let my fingers leaf through its yellowing pages, eyes scanning familiar life lessons. I remembered that that this book has uplifted my spirits more than once. Though it is short, and an easy-read, it is life changing and a gem of a book. I will not junk this book. It is one I will want to revisit--often.
I just want to share with you the 10 Rules to the Game of Life...
1. You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it will be yours for as long as you live. How you take care of it or fail to take care of it can make and enormous difference in the quality of your life.
2. You will be presented with lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time school called Life. Each day you are presented with opportunities to learn what you need to know. The lessons presented are often completely different from those you think you need.
3. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial and error and experimentation. You can learn as much from “failure” as you can from “success”.
4. A lesson is repeated until it is learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it (as evidenced by a change in your attitude i\and behavior), then you can go on to the next lesson.
5. Learning lessons does not end. There is no stage of life that does not contain some lessons. As long as you live, there will be something more to learn.
6. “There” is no better than “here”. When your “there” has become a “here” you will obtain another “there” that will again look better than your “here”. Don’t be fooled by believing the unattainable is better than what you have.
7. Others are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects something you love or hate about yourself. When tempted to criticize others, ask yourself why you feel so strongly.
8. What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. Remember that through desire, goal setting and unflagging effort. You can have anything you want. Persistence is the key to success.
9. The answers lie within you. The solutions to all of life’s problems lie within your grasp. All you need to do is ask, look, listen, and trust.
10. You will forget all of this at birth. unless you consistently stay focused on the goals you have set for yourself, everything you have just read won’t mean a thing.
You might find it strange, but my most memorable Valentine's Day is the saddest one. Many VDays had flown by and I still vividly remember how anger, sadness, hurt streamed down my cheeks and wet my pillow. I can still remember the searing pain of my broken heart. Only now, I can stare at it in the eye, laugh at it and embrace it. Pain has become a friend. It has made me the woman that I am now---better, stronger and not to mention, more beautiful. 
