Noel Espinal

Finura hecho en Brooklyn

[talkingwithnoel]

Are We Making it?

A personal check in for humans trying to make it through day.

Where did time go? I mean it’s already been 4 months, around 112 days, about 2,688 hours. We are here and some of us are full blown chefs, reinvented artists, or masters of a trade. By now you get the idea we have had much time to attempt life in this “new normal”. We are coping with many realities at this moment and trying to move forward with all the pain, lost, and suffering. Our Nation is being bombarded with so many social issues as well as political turmoil. We are living very crucial days and encountering personal truths. Living in chaos has become normal, reading bad news, a standard, and waiting for the worst to happen, a silent expectation. However I hope to encourage you with these words by giving you a new outlook on life. Allow me to also be transparent with you as I share some of my own personal encounters through these very trying days. We are trying to hold on to some type of hope. We are looking forward to reuniting with friends and family. How hard has it been to regain that normalcy? To reclaim our social appetite. I for one got caught slipping away mentally, emotionally and socially. I was annexed, on the edge far more than the normal. My reclusiveness was coming at an expense, that if I kept on the road I was choosing, If I’d continue to feed the chaos around me. The end result would’ve been one of regret. So here are a few things that came to me during these days I’d love to share with you.

Sincere connections and thoughtful conversations in times of chaos

Maintain your lines of communication open. Text those you love even if it’s to see how one of you is doing. What this allows us to do is get in the habit of keeping tabs with yourself. You’re checking in creating habits that generally send a message to other person and yourself and get you into the groove in creating a new connection, maintaining the ones you have, and rebuilding the ones you may have forgotten. It’s easy to shell back in panic and lose yourself these days. But I urge and implore that you open yourself. Be sincere and honest about how you’re feeling, if you’re comfortable. share. If you’re confident enough, ask for help. This will allow you to grow even in the midst of chaos.

Dreams shouldn’t die in the face of storms

This pandemic may have accelerated a sense to run and run fast. I caught myself closing journals where I wrote out plans for the quarter ( 3 months plans) , one night I stood outside of my apartment asking God if I should continue to serve at my church because I really felt like this chaos would eventually overtake my faith and creativity. There wasn’t a sense of direction and meaning was super dim. I wasn’t sure about many things, people, and places. My circles were getting small, I wasn’t dreaming anymore yet were entertaining other thoughts that were threatening the very source that brought curiosity, joy, and wonder. I started turning that around. I was intentionally asking myself: “What are your dreams Noel?” I may sound like a crazy person. But honestly, I needed to remind myself daily. What was I looking for in life, faith, and more. I disconnected from group chats that weren’t feeding that source. It was kind of a selfish act of care but I had to for the time being. People wouldn’t understand. But the more closer friends would have conversations with me and we would come to an understanding.

Feeding your soul with: Good news, Good Food, and Good Times

Yes sounds really superficial and kind of cliche in the climate that we are living in today to propose an such as this one. Honestly I won’t argue the facts that are things that will happen out of our control and things we need to be well informed on. However I caution on the habit of an “overload” of information that leads us to a breaking point. How could you avoid this? Be intentional about your intake. Read good books, good news, good conversations. Break away for a day and go out with caution but go out and buy some food. Ask a friend to join you and be intentional about having a good time. Don’t lessen your expectations. Don’t succumb to the intensity of our culture. Find your rhythm and set your pace. Have quiet time with God, create a book club, ingest soul lifting music. This will contribute to a better outlook and at the end give you to look forward to.

Well you may already be doing these 3 things. This may sound like modern self care. But I hope you’re reminded that there’s goodness waiting to be experienced if we allow ourselves to open our eyes, hearts and minds. There’s sincere conversations waiting to be had, dreams waiting to be dreamt, and good times to be had. If you have questions or thoughts about this piece do not hesitate in messaging me.

N,

[talkingwithnoel]

The Oppertunity To Wait

Often times, often seasons, and often situations call us to wait. I know in a culture where campaigns for action are on our daily feeds, commercials and blogs. It’s sometimes hard to appreciate the habit of waiting. It’s compelling to feel like life needs you to act at every corner. I would encourage you to appreciate the opportunities to wait. What can you gain from waiting before making big decisions, transitions, or in moments of suffering?

1. The chance to feel sure

2. Process emotions before they are realities

3. Connect with your true values and purpose.

These simple factors really shape the habit of making choices, decisions and creat intuitive confidence. Waiting is often the most effective weapon in our self development and spiritual growth. I really believe if become open to hearing from God and become patient in the seasons where waiting is required I believe the results of our waiting will give us the opportunities of growth. I agree there are moments far more called for that hustle and grind mentality. However on the other side of that I believe the balancing factor is the dedication to quiet time, soul searching, and self realization.

Part 2 next week

[talkingwithnoel]

The Love That You Need

Here goes an intuitive reminder:

 To the person wishing relational situations were different. To the person with hopeful desires to flourish in a relationship that seems to be drying out. To the person feeling out of touch. To the Guy finding dead ends at the bar and just another night out. To the Girl contemplating closing her dating apps. To the person trying to get over that lost love. Here is your reminder, Do not forget yourself. Yea sounds blogish and super "quote of the dayish". Yet we want flourishing relationships, we want good people around us and we make great strides to accomplish this. We put ourselves out there and granted it does take some type of emotional investment. Some of us are scared of doing things that put us in unfamiliar spaces. But seriously DO NOT FORGET YOURSELF. How many times have I felt that I needed to pursue a relationships where it felt forced and superficial. This is no generalization of how you ought to pursue life. This is a reminder that we journey in life and we make decisions daily, countless decisions. We apply to a job here, we go out to other side of the city for a party, we schedule a date there, oh don't forget you need to clean the house this weekend. We are plugged into this decision making machine. But in more cases than others we forget ourselves. We forget our essence, our peace, our mind, our soul. We get lost in searching for love, life, peace that though the base reasoning can seem that it is for "US" there are factors that drive the decision before it is truly, genuinely for US. We filter love, life and peace by the likes of others, attractions and cultural currents which do not genuinely come from us. When you've come to the core of yourself you are already this diluted version with no real thoughtful consideration for yourself after you've passed through the filters of outside perspective. We fill out task in order to make "self-realization" a reality. But we struggle to even know ourselves before crossing out the sections from Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. We already came into the game losing if we are not conscious of what we truly need, if we do not remember ourselves first. So I write to you to take a couple of minutes more on you. Slow down the pace to decisions and really ask "IS THIS FOR ME?",  is this what I want?, is this what I want to say?, is this what I want to pursue?. Do not forget you.

If you got comments, questions, impressions. Message them over.

[talkingwithnoel]

The New 30

Thirty Years of Life is on the way and I’m running through the expected anxiety and deep reflection some scientist found in their studies about Men turning Thirty! But to be quite honest, I’m truly grateful. Third decade and I can say I’m healthy, stronger and expectant. God has granted me so much and for me to write about what I’ve learned with a slight bent towards “i wish I could do it over” would lead me to the cycle that I’ve found my self in many times(further explained on another note). I wanna write with full gratitude and set my eyes on the opportunities coming. I would love for you to read this and understand that our lives may not seem like they are headed towards the wished or dream outcome. You do have now. You have this moment to ground yourself in gratitude. Look back, and say “I’ve gotten here.” Of course there’s that tendency to compare, feel behind and get emotional. Those are natural states of your mind. You gotta will your way through those mental mazes. You got to speak life, surround yourself with people that speak life, do things that bring you to life. Actively talk, and seek support. Some may caution you and me on this next point but be transparent about your current state. Be undisclosed about your confusion, frustration, your mood. You can’t un-think your darkness if you don’t manifest it. It must be spoken and must be seen.

If you’re approaching a personal landmark. I want to first, congratulate you, and then want you to root yourself in gratitude. Feel the moment, deep connection and breathe out in gratitude. Want you to feel it. This will sound and look different for everyone. However this is the fundamental experience to life. Hoping this encourages someone. If you got questions, feedback or a comment. Hit me up. Much love.

[talkingwithnoel]

Not right now

You may feel like you need time alone. You may feel disconnected from your usual group of friends. Like you need to really think about your future. I would encourage you to step into your circle and be open about what you feel. You have question? Ask them. You have doubts, fears? Express them. The moment you feel you need to step back is when you should step in the most. Send a text to that person you’ve been ignoring and face the issues. This is a moment for action not withdrawing. Is it gonna feel weird? Yes. But fear can make any of us feel out of our element. So face your fear, doubt, worry and take action. Don’t ignore the people seeking for you. Don’t believe you’re not enough. Not right now. Not ever.

[talkingwithnoel]

Time and Time Again

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying “life is short” and I’m sure you’ve experienced this in many forms. Maybe some more than others. It seems unfair to some and some feel cheated out. So this saying may put you off. I’m not here to prove the obvious. Life is short. Wether we like it or not. Unfortunately some have lived life shorter than others. The truth is that we are not here for long. We are truly temporary beings. I’ve come across this idea for some time now. I’m taken back on the miracle I am every day I awake. I hope you understand that the opportunity is in front of you to live a life full of love, joy and health. I hope whoever you are that you make the best out of some things we can easily take for granted. That in consciousness we express deep gratitude to ourselves, others and everything created. The reality is that we won’t live for long. Time is nonnegotiable. But we can do is live the now. Act in it and make memories that mark our timeline forever.

In closing, I hope you find light I hope you find fullness of life. I hope you find real joy. I hope your life is expanded by good company, good times and health.

With Love,

Noel

[talkingwithnoel]

Don’t be afraid. A life that’s authentically yours is a life with no secrets to failure

[talkingwithnoel]

What do we feel?

Experiences are the binding ties to our emotional reel. Either left with a bitter, or sweet or a bland taste. We remember what and how we felt. Do we follow the trends of those experiences or do we dare to create new ones? Do we take it for what it was and move on? Or do we guilt ourselves to regret what a moment could have done for us if an alternate path was taken.

Here’s my advice to you: Create and live a new moment. Take the experience and ask yourself did this align me to my overall vision? Do you feel closer to your purpose because of it? If not then it’s sign you were drawn away. It’s perfectly normal. But don’t wander off into your self pity and doubt. Run straight towards your vision. Don’t look for invisible alternate realities. Don’t create scenarios that could be but create the now. Your life was meant to be lived not analyzed, not guilted, not judged by emotional tides or public opinion. Live authentically in line to your dream. Wether in romantic relationships, friendships, careers, education, personal development. Take the steps you need to in order to get in line of fulfillment, meaning and a life that you’ve been able to create. Live in grace with yourself and others. Cut the loose ends and look forward.

The momentum is in your hands. Just rev and get going.

[talkingwithnoel]

The Failure of Expectation

I've seen what my expectations are capable of doing to me. They either make me the figural energy booster of a room or the pressing weight upon my shoulders when I fall short. This is important to note because I come to a point in life where I use this scale to balance expectations from within and also those from the outside. I had a friend of mine Preach at my Church this Sunday and he was talking about how as a community we should look for the thing that makes us distinct and not what makes us common. A personal application of that message and a noteworthy takeaway from this post that I find so relevant to my personal journey is that as much as I place the bar so high for myself I also place the bar for others and guess what? I lose out. Yes I lose out on the opportunity to be my best when I place my worth, expectations, standards on how others should give me what I expect I deserve. One reality is that it cost to be "distinct" and it's easy to be common. For us to find our true uniqueness and genuine selves we have to believe the following: All I have is what all I'll ever need. This is not a self sufficient affirmation or a new mantra. This is a reminder that the expectation(s) I have should be within my grasp and control. Our expectations shouldn't drain us from People, Family, God. Causing us to live strained and uncomfortable with ourselves because we need more than what we give. You have all the things you need now to make this your best life. You just have to dig deep and look beyond the barriers, limitations, traumas and failures. Give yourself room to do what you know are capable of doing if you focus on the NOW and not what you're getting back. I hope this serves you and gives you a glimpse to an endless light of possibilities. Share, repost and think on these words.

With Love,

Noel

[talkingwithnoel]

To trust someone is to empower them.

Ex

[talkingwithnoel]

Thursday at Café 19 located on 84 Manhattan Ave, Brooklyn Ny 11206

[talkingwithnoel]

Monday 7/24/18 was a uniquely mad day. This view doesn’t explain all that I had experienced that morning and the night before. Ending it by the pool and talking with a friend was just what I needed.

[talkingwithnoel]

My Friends Took Me On A Trip

I wondered where all my years have gone (that’s how you know I’m getting old). Turning 28 in a few days and I can’t help but think about it. Last night we were sitting in our usual hangout spot for the summer, Casa 15 backyard. Our conversations range from everything and anything. Topic of the night was their Spain Vacation recap. I sat there, asking them some questions and they painted the picture perfectly for me. I only thought about how I lost a great opportunity to be with them. Did I feel sad? No because it was practically not smart to do for myself. I would’ve loved to but hey, there is always next year. Point is that I want to relive and tell my story as my friends came to tell me about their Spain Vacation of 2017. I want to recount the good and bad destinations of my life. Where I thrived and where I failed. A recount of such can be daunting because let’s be honest that leaves room for vulnerability and transparency. Which through time can sometimes lead other’s to judge you and misquote you. So we draw the line on certain details. But think about it, if my friends failed to pain the picture of their Spain 17’ trip I would’ve never saw the beauty of destination I wanted to see. Sometimes, you have to show your destination and journey life as so. Let the details go and speak about the trip. Because such details draw a picture in someone’s mind. Don’t be afraid to open up and show your wins and losses. Own up to them and make the changes necessary to break whatever you assess or are led to correct. At 28 there can be much debate in my mind of where I should be. We can all agree that we are own worst critic when it comes to accomplishments. We always want more, and more is not just out of ambition. But more in the sense that we want to keep on adding to the resume.  Fortunately I’m arriving to 28 and I’m enjoying every sweet and bitter moment. I can’t write them all right now and would hope to one day. But motivation this morning is to encourage you to look at life and tell your story. I do not know your means of communication and how you look to express thoughts and process life. I think you can inspire anyone to look at your journey and help them go along on their own. Don't dismiss your story because as anything in life, details matter.

[talkingwithnoel]

Dedicating this post to a memorable person in my life. In recent news my dear friend and father figure Juan Lluberes passed away this weekend 4/6/14 in a car accident. Juan Lluberes was dear and vital to my growth as a Christian and a boy growing up without a consistent father in my life. Juan Lluberes you have influenced many people in a great way. You took out the best of people and loved genuinely. You were thoughtful and kind and the upmost respectful person in this planet. In your trials you remained faithful to God. In your valleys you championed over fear and doubt. You did it and came out a winner. To me and many of us in NewYork City you were the go to guy. Not just your spiritual wisdom but your person and character held so much radiance. Thank You for that Pastor Juan. You are a hero to many and a example I would love to follow. Because you loved God and Family, is the reason we will remember you. Always and Forever. You sure loved your Yankees and the Pinstripes. Today you have a place in my Hall of Fame. No one like you Juan. 

To my brothers from another mother. Tito, Issac and Jeremiah. I want to tell you guys that Life will be different and difficult at some moments. But God is with you every step of the way. You guys a hold a piece of your father in your way of being and character. The Legacy your Dad left is one that will last for a long time because he has three champions that will carry it out. Men of God, chosen for success and victory. I'm proud of you guys. See You Soon.

  Pastor Juan I love you and I will miss you dearly...

See you in Heaven one day.