jgardiner

[jgardiner]

Some #lifelessons are harder to learn than others. In retrospect, they seemed to be learned long after the time we needed to have learned then, but they are all important. Life can change in an instant. You’re gonna make your share of #mistakes... along with some #decisions, #choices. Some you can come back from and chalked it up to wisdom and experience... others!? You don’t get a do over. •Expressyourfeelings (From my #perspective as a guy): For the few I’ve showed & for the others I’ve tried to bury. It took some time to learn this one, I never realized how much I trapped myself to the confines that it was unmanly to cry when I felt deep pain, to show how hurt I actually was when I lost someone, or other emotions that came with the experiences as a result of being a human being. Try to develop the right resources of how to properly express you sadness, your pain or anger... otherwise it’s ultimately going to catch you off guard in how they’re expressed. Trust me when I say, #unplanned, #unexpected emotion can often prove to be a bit overwhelmingly when left #unchecked &#unresolved •Make sure to #appreciate what you have while you still have it. If you’re gonna fight for anything. Fight for the things that matters, for the people & the things you love no matter what risk may be. Somethings are just worth the effort. Be #mindful to not fight to late. •Pay attention to the little things. You will never realize how the much the #littlethings do make a big difference. •“3 things you cannot recover in life: the words after it’s said, the moment after it’s missed, & the time after it’s gone.” #Theword: sometimes you actions shouldn’t just speak louder than your words. It should match it. #Themoment: no matter how old you or how much you think you’ve learned or know...There's always room for #growth & #improvement. Try developing a sense of #Consciousness & #awareness to continue to grow, to not just live in the moment,but be prepared for it as well & #thetime: As much we tend to lose sight getting caught in the everyday huddles of life. Never assume you have all the time in the world...You never really do.

[jgardiner]

Strongwomen. Strong women don’t just simply come into existence. If it’s anything I’ve learned from observing my own mom throughout the years , it’s that strong women are forged through the challenges they encounter going through life. And as undeniable and unmeasurable their strengths are, it is either not recognized in the moments it should or appreciated to not enough or way to late. So as we all are showing our appreciation today for those strong women, let develop the awareness and consciousness be consistent in showing our appreciation always. Because of the great respect and admiration that I have for own queen. It also made me recognize a level of respect I can’t help but display when it comes to the other women in my life that I call my moms as well. To all you ladies and others. #HappyMothersDay #Allqueens

[jgardiner]

Dear Mom. Sometimes I’m not sure if my words matches my actions enough to let you know how much I appreciate you. For as long as I’ve known myself. You have been my constant hero and example of how life is lived. The foundation of your parenting continues to still have it impact on the way I am today. You thought me the importance of #integrity, to let my actions not just speak louder than my words, but that it matches it. You thought that #manners and #behavior would take you through this world. I understand what that meant, but that lesson never began so apparent until the 1st I left your nest to spread my own wings. Years later your roots and foundation are the reasons I’ve been able have and build the bond with others over the years that have made a few our now extended family. You never demanded #respect. The way you lived life, i was #insistent upon myself that it been shown. You are the embodiment of what and who I hope to be if I am #bless and #fortunate enough to be a parent myself one day. You’ve thought that balancing of being a parent and a best friend is possible. I hope I am at least half the parent to my own as you are too me. I hope that one day my kid or kids would have a similar outlook on life and based on the foundation I’ve set, they’d lived an even better version than us both. I hope they would learn they are a walking representative of your house, your teachings and your name. I hope my actions be that example. There would never be enough words to reflect my hearts admiration for you. You’ve been more than just my mom, you’ve been my example, you have and will always be #myhero. I don’t necessarily need a #MothersDay to let know these things. I hope the way I try to live life always reflects that. Thank your for being my 1st #queen. Thank you for being my #lifesconstantexample. Thank you for being...You! #muchlove #muchhonor #muchrespect to you, my others mothers and mothers around the world. #Happymothersday

[jgardiner]

#storytime In route to my return trip home yesterday, I had a transit stop in Mexico City. Had about 2 hours to burn so instead of waiting in the boarding area of my flight, I opted to wait in the lobby area. Feet up, heads fitted blasting new found music 🎶 down my ear drums. I was in complete chill mode. Approximately 20 minutes into my groove section. These 3 walked by, shyly pausing a little to the right side of me. If it’s one thing I’ve picked throughout my travels, it’s international body language of someone wanting to greet you, say hi or can I take a picture? With that, I made the 1st move. Holla, como estas? Bien! They returned the greet with excited, relieved smiles while drawing closer shedding a little of the shyness displayed moments ago. And with that they had a request. Can we practice our English with you? Was I surprised, YES! Not because of the request (it’s probably the number one thing request from my foreign teammates & friends sharpening their english) but more so, out of the many people in an airport as huge as Mexico City Int is and for whatever reason, they chose to run into me They were young high school students trying to complete their English assignment. I accepted their request and so it began. Started out basis, getting all the usual fundamental greetings covered from the paper 📝 list of questions they had. The longer we spoke, the more relaxed they got, then it went from asking questions to now having a conversation. (A few correction on phrases, words pronunciations. The same as it for me and still is learning Spanish) An hour later, we’ve covered and talked about topics from #family, to #traveling, #food and #music #preferences, #traditions, #like and #dislikes and #life #values. As we’re about to part ways, they wanted to exchange contacts to keep in touch and to get some more practice in the future (I think I’m going to have a few English homework’s 📚 popping up in my inbox👨🏾‍💻👨🏾‍🏫🤷🏾‍♂️😂) Overall message: no act of kindness, no matter how small is ever wasted. You will never have a completely bad day if you show #kindness at least once bekind #stayhumble #smileoften #betheexampleyouwanttosee #mytravelstories (at Aeropuerto Internacional De La Ciudad De Mexico “benito Juarez” Terminal 2)

[jgardiner]

“The biggest room in the world is the room for #improvement. “ As you get older you’ll realize it’s in our uncertainty and the unknowing that most of life’s adventure and wonder comes from, which in turn often leads to #fulfillment. We all wake up to the world with a driven agenda of striving towards to attaining the goals we’ve set for ourselves. We’re going to get it done!!! and when we don’t fully accomplish them or not satisfied with the outcome, we deem ourselves failures. Neglecting that feeling unsure and lost is part of the experience as well. At times we need and should pay just as much attention to what's going wrong as what's going right and use that discomfort to making things better. Somewhere along life I picked up the habit that as a man, I should keep my feelings in check, not realizing those feelings tend to catch people of guard. I’ve leaned towards silencing any feelings for so long that I didn’t developed having the proper resources for handling certain issues when they did arise. And with them being so unplanned and an unexpected wave of emotions, it often time proved to be quite overwhelming. I say that to say this, our inner selves more than often knows and see the truth we try to hide, bury or repress which is why if we don’t address them... it will keep popping up, no matter how many times you ignore it. Always try to address the elephant in your room. #manthoughts

[jgardiner]

#lifelessons to live by... and if you’re not 🤷🏾‍♂️ #StayHumble - but not timid. Be strong but not rude. Stay true to yourself and try to never let what anyone else says distract you from your goals. #BeHonest - Value your honesty and integrity because truth matters. These two I’m insistent on... you don’t take shortcuts or play by your own sets of rules. Your character, word and actions should reflect such. Trust takes time to earn and it’s easy to lose. And if at any point when you’re approached about negative and false attacks, don’t invest any energy into them, you know exactly who you and you gotta know what you stand for. #StayLoyal - Value Loyalty. There’s no grey in this. The situation may be a "grey" matter but your action can never. It has to be black and white. You’re either loyal completely or not at all. You don’t get to pick when it only serves you and #BeKind - never have I ever regretted being kind. Not just to others, but to yourself also. #quotestoliveby #values #movtivatedbymydreams #drivenbymygrind

[jgardiner]

One day your entire life will do like a movie in a flash back. You just need to make sure it’s worth watching. #wakeupandlive #morelife #ometepe #nicaragua #discovernicaragua #beautifuldestinations #tropicalparadise #butterflies #naturesbeauty #mytravel #mytravelstory #mytravelblog #mytravelvblog #mytravelgram #mytraveling #travelblogger #travelingphotography #veiws #förëïgndrëäms (at Ometepec)

[jgardiner]

“Traveling – it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.” – Ibn Battut Follow link👇🏾for full video: https://youtu.be/C4KIXvmr0xs #sanjuandelaisla #sunrise #sunrise_sunsets_aroundworld #earlymornings #wakeupandlive #sanjuandelaisla #ometepe #nicaragua #discovernicaragua #beautifuldestinations #naturesbeauty #mytravel #mytravelstory #mytravelblog #mytravelvblog #mytravelgram #mytraveling #travelblogger #travelingphotography #förëïgndrëäms (at Ometepe, Nicaragua)

[jgardiner]

“Know what you want to do, hold the thought firmly, and do every day what should be done, and every sunset will see you that much nearer the goal.” #knowyourworth #dreams #goals #life #sunset #beautifuldestinations #discovernicaragua (at Ometepe, Nicaragua)

[jgardiner]

“Doubt has killed more dreams than failure ever will.” Don’t doubt your worth. #motivatedbymydreams #drivenbymygrind

[jgardiner]

Sights and sounds of an early tropical morning🏝 #beautifuldestinations #blessedopportunities #chillvibes #tropicalsunrise #earlymornings #outsidemywindow #veiws (at Managua, Managua)

[jgardiner]

#aboutlastnight Last night was a grind!! Am I #happy that we pushed through and got that win in the end. #Yes Am I satisfied? Not even close as I got to do better with those #freebies 🤬🤦🏾‍♂️😤. I am after all my worst critic. #unsatisfied but yet #thankful and #blessed for the #opportunities the #game continues to give. #basketball #ligasuperiordebaloncesto #playoffs #officespace #paintbully #motivatedbymydreams #drivenbymygrind #förëïgndrëäms (at Managua, Managua)

[jgardiner]

#gametime #playoffs #officespace (at Polideportivo Alexis Argüello)

[jgardiner]

I read somewhere that Birthdays are good for your health. Studies have shown the more birthdays you have the longer you live.”😁 Continue to stay bless in life and health ma.. Sending you massive hugs Much love always ma!!! #happybirthday 🎂🏌🏻‍♀️

[jgardiner]

If you’re ever lucky enough to find a way of life that you love, you have to find the courage to live. Every dream worth having is worth the effort you put in to living it. #internationalathlete #justaballandadream #motivatedbymydreams #drivenbymygrind #basketballneverstops ##mygrind #staypositive #stayhungry #staydriven #blessedbeyondmeasure #hoopdreams (at Managua, Managua)

[jgardiner]

#justaballandadream

[jgardiner]

Shot gun riding with my main guy. Off traveling to familiar places... Opportunities given by a love for a game. #basketballneverstops #familiarplaces #samegrind #förëïgndrëäms #justaballandadream #internationalathlete #motivatedbymydreams #drivenbymygrind (at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport)