Motivation Ain't Permanent!

It's day 196 of documenting 2025.

Although I was pretty sleepy today, I managed to finish marking the exam papers for the senior class.

C'est fini! 😁

I still have the exam papers for the junior class tho...but they're just two classes and one subject.

Tres magnifique!

(You're probably thinking, "she losing it again 😒)

It's just teacher stuff...

Now I understand how teachers feel when their work of grading and recording is done...or almost done.

Whew!

Besides that, today was pretty great.

I went to see a friend at her house...and it turns out, her grandma celebrated her birthday today.

I couldn't help but kneel in front of the woman as I wished her well.

I wonder how she feels about the many years she has lived.

I couldn't ask tho...the visit was a short one.

I'm home now...

Thinking out loud by 8:32pm and still wondering what style I would choose for the school party outfit.

The school's party is around the corner...and we teachers got the material we would be using to make our matching outfits on that day.

Same material...different outfit styles.

Hold that thought, Duon...

Oh! Highlights!

Let's get into it...before I continue blabbing about this or that 😏

By the way, if you don't know what Highlights is all about (maybe this is the first post you're reading...), let me explain.

There's a particular book I call, "my writing companion for this blog".

That means, I can't type and publish any post here without highlighting a few quotes or notes from each chapter of the book...which is actually every numbered day in a year.

Funny enough, the book is titled, "365 Days With Self-discipline" and it's written by an amazing author called Martin Meadows.

As the name implies, it contains notes for every single day about an aspect of consistency and discipline.

Some days, I highlight the important points of the note.

Other days (like today...), I share the whole enchilada.

Let's see what today's note is about...

365 Days With Self-discipline 

📌 On Impermanent Motivation

"Of course motivation is not permanent. 

But then, neither is bathing; but it is something you should do on a regular basis."

Quote by Zig Ziglar

Don’t assume that if you’re motivated now, you’ll be motivated forever, and if the motivation is gone, it’s time to give up on your goals.

You should draw your motivation from your personal reasons why (such as your desire to build a successful business to offer your family the best of what life has to offer), but you’ll have to periodically do some spring-cleaning and revise your motivators.

Resist the temptation to give up just because you temporarily lack

motivation. 

Instead of treating it as an excuse to discontinue your efforts, come up with practical solutions that will recharge your motivation.

Just like you need to wash your body regularly to keep it clean, you need to regularly take care of your motivation. 

Replenish it whenever it drops and

always look for new ways to strengthen it.

I strongly suggest creating a document in which you’re going to put anything that fires you up. 

For example, I save articles I find inspirational, jot down songs I find motivating, and download images that inspire me. 

Whenever I feel under the weather, I can access my “inspiration bank” and lift my spirits.

The last paragraph was the author Martin talking.

An inspiration bank... 🤔

I'll look into it.

Well, that's all for Highlights.

Let's make it a Fiction Tuesday, shall we?

It's an upcoming character in an upcoming story series...

Ursula.

And this time, she got a call from her friend.

Fiction 

Title: Changed The Silence 

Ursula isn’t expecting the phone to ring.

She’s been lying on her floor for the last hour, eyes fixed on the ceiling, listening to the hum of a fan that doesn’t cool anything. 

The silence feels both comforting and crushing; the kind that wraps around you like a blanket but also whispers questions you’d rather not answer.

Then her phone buzzes.

Name on screen:

Someone who knows her well enough to hear what she isn’t saying.

She hesitates.

The silence has felt safe.

But something about this call feels…necessary.

She picks up.

“Hey,” the voice says; soft, familiar, but firm.

“Where’ve you been?”

Ursula exhales, a pause dragging between them.

“I don’t know,” she finally admits. “I’ve just been… quiet.”

Her friend doesn’t rush to fill the silence. They let it stretch.

And then:

“I’ve noticed. And honestly? I wasn’t worried you were falling apart. 

I was worried you were disappearing.”

That hits.

Ursula blinks. Her heart clenches like it’s bracing for impact.

“You’ve been doing the work, I get it,” she continues. 

“But there’s a fine line between healing and hiding. And I think you need to know...you’re not meant to stay in the hallway forever.”

Something in her stirs.

She sits up. Words rise, but she swallows them. 

Her throat is tight. Not from pain; from recognition.

It’s Memento Mori again.

But not in a cloak this time.

This time, she’s speaking through a friend. 

Through truth. Through love that doesn’t flatter.

“You know this season is important,” she says.

“But don’t use it as an excuse to not show up for your future.”

Ursula swallows hard.

“You're still here for a reason. Don't let the silence make you forget that.”

The words land differently. Not like advice. 

Like remembrance. Like a mirror being held up again.

She realizes… she’s not broken.

She’s awakening.

The call doesn’t last long. 

They don’t even say goodbye with a big moment. Just a simple, “Take care of yourself, okay?”

When the line goes dead, Ursula stares at her phone. The weight in her chest hasn’t disappeared, but something lighter has started to grow beneath it. 

Resolve, maybe. Or clarity.

She breathes in deeply.

Sits up straighter.

Grabs her journal.

On the first clean page, she writes:

“The hallway was never meant to be permanent.”

“I can heal and still move.”

“I’m allowed to keep going; even if I’m still becoming.”

That's the story.

What do you think, my friend?

Was the call more of a random happening with meaning, or a coordinated event in time?

If you can, share your thoughts in the comments.

I would love to hear from you 🙂

That would be all for today, my friend 

Thanks for reading 🎀 

I still have those papers to mark...so I'll get right on it.

I'm Duon Ada.

I'm documenting 2025,

And I'll see you tomorrow.

Ciao 💕