When You Surround Yourself With The Right People

One thing I learned last year is how the people in your world can have a big influence in your life. Now, I'm not talking about liking Chinese food because it's your mom's favourite or wanting to go to Italy because it's your best friend's dream. I'm talking about habits and behavior. 

For about five years, I surrounded myself with people who were not so different from each other. You see, they all had one thing in common: they wanted to be great in life, but they didn't want to do anything to achieve greatness. They all had big dreams, but they didn't want to fight for them because of the idea of "we're too young, so we still have plenty of time to do things." Since I was surrounded by them, I started to live the same way. I really enjoyed my time doing nothing and fought to have more of it. Of course I believed it was the right thing to do because everyone in my world was doing it.

During the year 2015, I lost friendships and got a couple of new ones. I also became closer to others. I went through a lot of changes, which led me to creating this blog, getting my first job, and learning things I always wanted to learn. I also got to try new things and prove myself how capable I was of doing things I'm interested in. 

One day I woke up and noticed how changed I was because of all the things I had achieved in just a couple of months. And that's when it hit me. When you surround yourself with the right people, that's when you'll be better. All these parts of me that I got to improve were because I was surrounded by people who motivated me to be better. They taught me to fight for what I want, that change is good, and that I'm actually good at what I do. So, if I'm starting 2016 in the right path it's because the people in the pictures. They are all incredibly important in my life, and I'm the luckiest for having them.

When The Ones Who Left Come Back

Today I want to talk to you about a special tradition called Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead). I’m Mexican, and I have to say it’s one of my favourite traditions in the whole wide world. Why? Well, I’m about to answer that, but, before I do so, I need to explain what the tradition is all about.

Día de Muertos is about making a tribute to our loved ones who passed away to celebrate their lives. According to the tradition, it’s the day the deceased visit the living ones. The main way to do celebrate this day is by making an offering with nine basic elements:

• photos: in honour of your loved one
• candles: to light the deceased’s path
• cempasúchil flowers: to attract the souls
• salt: symbol of purification
• cut paper: symbol of air
• water: for the everlasting thirst
• calaveras: the acceptance of death
• pan de muerto: represents the body
• food and drinks: for your loved ones to enjoy just like they used to when they were alive.

These elements don’t need to have a specific order, you can put them wherever you want on the offering. The important thing here is to make them feel welcomed into your home. So, if your loved one used to be a fan of Coke and pizza, it’s totally ok to include them.

Other way to celebrate is going to the cemeteries and visit the deceased, put them some music, talk to them, and bring them flowers to color their grave. 

This is my favourite tradition because I love the idea of remembering and celebrating the deceased without feeling sad. It's all about making our loved ones feel welcomed when they come visit us. I know it sounds weird and maybe a bit creepy, but if you think about it, it's actually sweet.
This year I decided to make my very first offering, and you might be wondering why is it my first. Well, the thing is I never had someone to make the offering to. But at the beginning of 2015, my wonderful grandma passed away. So, I couldn't just pass this opportunity of feeling closer to her for one night.
I have to say I loved making the offering because it meant something. And I don't know how to actually explain this, but let me tell you something. It's true that the deceased come and visit you that night. I dreamt that my grandma was holding me in her arms, and I couldn't believe it was just dream because of how real it felt! It was one of the most surreal experiences I've ever had in my life, and I totally recommend you to try it someday.

One Night Can Turn Into Magic

Before I start explaining the video, I should let you know I love to travel. It's one of my favourite things to do in life. Why do I love it so much? Well, the answer is simple. I get to discover new places  and learn about food, people, and culture. It's not just the fact that I spend some time away from reality, but the fact that I get into a new world.

Every year, I normally travel twice with my family, but this year plans changed, and I was told we would stay home all year. I have to admit, 2015 has been very productive; however, I've been craving a getaway for months. 
September was my lucky month, and I found this festival called Festival de Globos de Cantolla. For those who don't know what that means, it's a balloon made of tissue paper. It's one of Mexico's traditions, and there are events like this one all over the world.
I have to say it was quite an experience. It's so breath taking to see the balloons all up in the air. And if you ever have the chance to go, please, don't miss it. It's totally worth it, I promise. 

New Opportunities Are Always Welcomed

Hello, everyone! Can you believe this is my 10th post on the Journey Spark blog?! I can't! It all started almost three months ago, and it's going pretty good. I've had the most amazing time meeting a couple of bloggers, having some positive comments, and coming up with new ideas for the future.
As a celebration, I want to share something important with you! I've been invited to write on the website ideafortoday.com.  

You might wonder what that is, and I'll tell you all about it now. This website is a space where bloggers write articles with ideas every single day (ergo the name). They're all about ideas, tips, and challenges related to cooking, fashion, and lifestyle. Sounds interesting doesn't it? It's something new right now, but I believe it's going to be big in the future.

Well, that's the new update in my life, and I hope you follow what ideafortoday has to share. I'm not so sure if I'm going to share everything that I write there, but maybe a couple of things. You know, when I feel it's blog related or something like that haha. However, I invite to join this community!

Thank you for being part of the beginning of this blog journey. I can't wait to share more life experiences with you!

One Look Can Say Everything

Before you start reading this, I should warn you. This post is cheesy and full of love. 
The guy I'm looking at in the picture is my partner in crime and best friend. His name is Omar. This is a summary of our story:

Boy meets girl in a school trip to New York City.
It all starts with a prank and sharing Pringles.
Then it takes a look into each other's eyes.
They start talking all the time after that. 
They plan to go out, but doesn't happen.
Weeks later, they go out on their first date.
 Everyone notices there's a spark there, but them.
Days later, he asks her out. 
And she nervously says "YES."

Little did we know, this relationship would end up being the greatest adventure of our lives. We've been together for three years  and six months now, and we keep getting stronger. 

You might be wondering why I'm talking about this. Well, the answer is simple. He's my biggest motivation and support. No matter how much I dislike my projects, how perfectionist I can be, or how easily I can get obsessed with stuff, he's always right there to share it with me, to cheer me up, hold me, and steal some laughs from me. 

Sometimes I'm surprised how he's all in when I have my crazy ideas like having themed photoshoots and making cheesy videos haha. It still feels weird to hear him say "let's do it," I must admit. But every single time he does that, he makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the world. 

Pd. Another reason why I'm talking about him is the big possibility of mentioning him in the future haha.