I was scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed this morning, as I do almost every morning, and Facebook shared a memory with me. It was an article I posted one year ago today. I remembered it vaguely, which I considered excellent for my iffy memory. But I decided to reread it, as I recalled it being helpful to me at that time.
And I found the article had a lot of worthwhile reminders for me. Not new ideas, but a conglomeration of many old yet important pieces of advice to help one make each and every day productive and joyful. But as I read on, I ran into many ideas that I "knew" but had dropped from my daily routine.
For example, I gave up on writing a gratitude list each morning. Although I am a huge fan of gratitude as a practice, the daily list went from ten things, down to three things, and I still wasn't feeling it. Now this is not because I'm an ingrate. And it's certainly not because I don't have PLENTY to be grateful for. No, I dropped the practice because it began to feel empty and devoid of true meaning and emotion. For me, the practice became rote. Quite the opposite of how it should be. I think, for me, doing this every single day is too often.
Instead of instituting a new spiritual practice to start my day, I fell back into checking email and scrolling through Facebook. UGH! Mindless and reactive. Not proactive!!! BAD! This article I just reread reminded me of all the things I am doing WRONG.
The other gift the universe sent me this morning was a book. In the snail mail. From the editor-in-chief of the Chicken Soup for the Soul franchise. The title of the book is Simply Happy. After skimming the table of contents, I had a new thought: I am doing a whole hell of a lot RIGHT.
So I decided to start my day today by writing a list of all the things I am currently doing right. I easily got up to 15 and probably could have continued to find at least that many more. And suddenly I felt a LOT better.
I am not perfect. At times, I actually suck quite royally. I tend to be hard on myself, and focus on the things I am screwing up. I wish I never got angry, or fearful, or selfish, or greedy. I wish I was always loving and kind and generous and patient. But I'm a flawed human being and not an angel.
Even with all my imperfections, I'm still doing a lot of things right. My diet isn't immaculate, but I do eat fresh, organic greens every day. I'm not skinny, but my body is strong and it works. I've raised two daughters who are smart, independent women. I have a wonderful marriage--although I have to give my husband most of the credit for putting up with me for 30 years. I take excellent care of my two dogs. I read a ton and I write almost every day. My dental hygiene is the stuff of a cavity's worst nightmare.
And I would bet the same is true for you. It's easy to kick yourself when you are down. Maybe today would be a good day for you to remind yourself of all the things you're doing right, instead. Make a list! I think you'll find it's pretty damn long. There is much for us to be proud of. Let's all keep that in mind.
And I found the article had a lot of worthwhile reminders for me. Not new ideas, but a conglomeration of many old yet important pieces of advice to help one make each and every day productive and joyful. But as I read on, I ran into many ideas that I "knew" but had dropped from my daily routine.
For example, I gave up on writing a gratitude list each morning. Although I am a huge fan of gratitude as a practice, the daily list went from ten things, down to three things, and I still wasn't feeling it. Now this is not because I'm an ingrate. And it's certainly not because I don't have PLENTY to be grateful for. No, I dropped the practice because it began to feel empty and devoid of true meaning and emotion. For me, the practice became rote. Quite the opposite of how it should be. I think, for me, doing this every single day is too often.
Instead of instituting a new spiritual practice to start my day, I fell back into checking email and scrolling through Facebook. UGH! Mindless and reactive. Not proactive!!! BAD! This article I just reread reminded me of all the things I am doing WRONG.
The other gift the universe sent me this morning was a book. In the snail mail. From the editor-in-chief of the Chicken Soup for the Soul franchise. The title of the book is Simply Happy. After skimming the table of contents, I had a new thought: I am doing a whole hell of a lot RIGHT.
So I decided to start my day today by writing a list of all the things I am currently doing right. I easily got up to 15 and probably could have continued to find at least that many more. And suddenly I felt a LOT better.
I am not perfect. At times, I actually suck quite royally. I tend to be hard on myself, and focus on the things I am screwing up. I wish I never got angry, or fearful, or selfish, or greedy. I wish I was always loving and kind and generous and patient. But I'm a flawed human being and not an angel.
Even with all my imperfections, I'm still doing a lot of things right. My diet isn't immaculate, but I do eat fresh, organic greens every day. I'm not skinny, but my body is strong and it works. I've raised two daughters who are smart, independent women. I have a wonderful marriage--although I have to give my husband most of the credit for putting up with me for 30 years. I take excellent care of my two dogs. I read a ton and I write almost every day. My dental hygiene is the stuff of a cavity's worst nightmare.
And I would bet the same is true for you. It's easy to kick yourself when you are down. Maybe today would be a good day for you to remind yourself of all the things you're doing right, instead. Make a list! I think you'll find it's pretty damn long. There is much for us to be proud of. Let's all keep that in mind.
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