Let that Moxie out and let it FLY!!!!

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Moxie - The ability to face difficulty with spirit and courage; vigor; verve; pep. [Moxie week starts here. Go to this post for this week's Bliss Initiatives.]


I am so excited! My new bloggy friend Jennifer, who goes by Jingle on her blog, Just Jingle, and IS so much Jingle that is unbelievably hard to think of her as anything but Jingle, has agreed to be my FIRST guest blogger. I've gotten permission to re-post other posts in the past, but this is the first time someone has written something specifically for Everyday Bliss and I think she has done a marvelous job, so with out further ado here is Jingle (click on the banner from her blog to go there!):

Moxie:  (n.)  Moxie is a carbonated beverage that was among the first mass-produced soft drinks  in the United States and continues to be regionally popular today.
(source:  Wikipedia - aka:  source of all somewhat reliable knowledge in the world.  Just say'n.)

Oh....wait.  For some odd reason, I'm thinking that just MAYBE this is not exactly what Kathy had in mind when she asked me to write about Moxie.  Well, those of you on the East Coast at least will recognize that this IS, indeed, the first thing that comes to the minds of many when considering the word Moxie, but alas, my dear friends, this is not the Moxie of which we will be pondering on this fine day.

So....moving on....

The following comes from TheFreeDictionary.com

mox·ie  (mks)

n. Slang

1. The ability to face difficulty with spirit and courage.

2. Aggressive energy; initiative: "His prose has moxie, though it rushes and stumbles from a pent-up surge" (Patricia Hampl).

3. Skill; know-how.

---

[From Moxie, trademark for a soft drink.]

HA!  It actually mentions the drink!  That makes me smile.

So...here's the thing.  Kathy kindly approached me and requested that I write a guest post about Moxie and what it means to me.  Well, of course I agreed because Kathy is pretty much just a sweetie, so how could I possibly refuse.

Then I panicked.

No.  For reals, folks.  Sheer and Utter Panic.

First of all, I have never written a guest post before so that was a bit intimidating in that wicked intimidating sort of way.  And second of all, she wanted me to write about MOXIE!!!  Of COURSE I had heard the word and of COURSE I knew what it meant.  Well, sort of.  Maybe.

Actually, come to think of it....I had little to know REAL background knowledge on this word.  Odd, wouldn't you say?  You would.  'Cause I'm pretty darn smart so for me to lack this knowledge was, well, quite frankly a bit embarrassing.  FORTUNATELY, the internet is full of dictionaries, so it wasn't too big of a problem.

I know Kathy has focused a lot on the first definition - facing difficulty with spirit and courage.  And yes, I guess I actually do that, but it's not really on purpose.  It's just sort of how it works for me.  When I run into a problem I handle it.  That's my first response.  I'm generally not a 'flight' kinda girl.  That doesn't mean, however, that I won't run around in a tizzy like a chicken with my head cut off worrying about things, mind you.  Nope.  I do that.  It can be amusing, actually.  BUT...I approach the problem for what it is, stare it down, and deal.  That simple.

However, I have to say that the second and third definitions both really caught my attention.  That happens to me a lot, actually.  I generally MUCH prefer a definition OTHER than the first one.  I mean REALLY!  An entire language and we use one word to mean so much.  And it doesn't even matter what that word IS...do you know that VERY few words in the English language have only a single definition?  Seriously, folks.  I wouldn't lie about something as serious as etymology.  I just wouldn't do it.  Just say'n.

So...the second definition:  Aggressive Energy; initiative

Yup.  LOVE.  THAT!

How often do you really allow yourself to exhibit AGGRESSIVE Energy!  I mean HUGE energy.  Not the kind of energy that you pull up to chase your kids in WalMart...no, not that kind.  I'm talking the kind that drives your passion.  I mean the kind that gets your MIND moving at rates that truly challenge you and push you and get you thinking analytically and creatively all at the same time and out of that comes such a fury of energy that your hands simply MUST move and there absolutely MUST be a result?

That kind of energy.

Guys...I kid you not.  That is some GOOD STUFF.

THAT, my friends, is Moxie.  For reals.

I am talking about a strong spirit.  A drive.  A force that is deep within your soul.

Have you experienced that?  I hope so.  I actually do a lot.  I am CHOCK FULL of Aggressive Energy!  Sometimes it gets overwhelming, actually.  My mind just moves and spins and churns until I have so many ideas, hopes, dreams, and plans that I can't even keep track of them all.

This is why I am an artist.  This is why I create.  I POUR that energy into my art.  I express it and I fulfill those dreams through each piece I create.  I know that I can't fly, but a doll that I create most certainly can...as soon as I attach those glorious wings!  Moxie is absorbed in all of my artwork.

Image from Amelia Earhart - Flying Outside of the Boundaries

BUT...you don't have to be an artist to express Moxie.  You know who had amazing amounts of it?  Amelia Earhart.  For reals, folks.  That woman was amazing!  She had such spunk!  (That's another one of those old words that we don't use much anymore, but we totally should because , quite frankly  it's just fun to say.  Go ahead....say it.  Do it again.  Again!  Heee-heeeeee!!!!  Are you having fun yet?  You are and you know it!)  Amelia poured her Moxie into being a woman and doing something about it!  She pursued her dreams and she entered the clouds with what I imagine would have been the biggest smile yet!

So, today I challenge you to live with Aggressive Energy.  Live OUT LOUD!  Let that Moxie out and let it FLY!!!!

***Thanks to Kathy for the opportunity to share with you today!***

--

Jennifer J Ingle

www.justjingle.blogspot.com

jinglesells@gmail.com

Thank you so much Jingle! I really appreciate you doing this AND love that you threw in a  couple of the "for reals" and "just say'n"s that I love so much. You are the BEST! And to you my dear readers, if you made it this far and haven't been over to visit Jingle hop to it now!

Next post: Moxie week comes to a close

My 13 bliss virtues: joy, order, creativity, passion, whimsy, serenity, inquiry, community, romance, gratitude, moxie, humility, surprise