Please join us in welcoming Owning Pink's newest blogger, loveologist  and author Wendy Strgar.  *Claps wildly*

“The supreme reality of our time is the vulnerability of this planet.”  -John Fitzgerald Kennedy

The life of the heart is one of contradictions. It is where our greatest strengths are often our most profound weaknesses. Finding balance between seemingly opposing forces or feelings is key to finding balance in love. I can’t think of any two more complementary forces for love than the capacity for vulnerability and the experience of confidence. Consider each one on its own: The confident but invulnerable heart can be brash, ego driven and unavailable. The confidence does not serve because it is not tempered. The vulnerable insecure heart is pitiful, full of self doubt and starts to resemble childlike dependence. It is easy to see how the vulnerability of childhood is easily confused with its more mature adult version.

Do you ever feel like you’ve cheated yourself – sacrificed your wants, needs and values – by lying about how you feel -- perhaps for someone else’s sake? How often have you wanted to say NO but instead responded with Yes to please others?

In our world of dualities, it seems like there is always a choice – yes or no, good or bad, right or wrong – and there is always someone bombarding us with their answer. But how do you determine your answer?

I forgot how much I liked to sing until my son was born. I sang as a teenager, and although I never had soloist potential, I held my own in the audition-only chorus and had the lead in the school musical. But when I started college and stopped singing, something happened that was akin to a former athlete losing her muscle tone: I completely lost my sense of pitch, and with it my confidence and my willingness to sing, even in the shower.

Pinkies, please welcome back the magnetic and magical Danielle LaPorte, author of the blog White Hot Truth and creator of the Fire Starter Sessions.

I used to think I was weak n' needy for wanting my "big break." I dreamed of being discovered. I toyed with the willingness to enter some Svengali deal where an agent dude or silver foxy dada would see my raw talent and shape me into a formidable star--a fresh new voice on the scene. I longed for Someone Really Important to give me a Yes that would change my life.