Wednesday, February 15, 2012

The little things in life

How is it possible that it is mid-February already? This is my first entry for the month - where has all the time gone? I haven't been feeling that great, and as a result some days are more of a challenge than others to just get "life stuff" done, let alone goals and passion stuff done. My inner jerk has been on high alert lately, but the awesome part is I know when the jerk is present and I'm getting better at seeing through the negative messages.

For example, I baked some tea cakes this week. I didn't make them from scratch - I used a Betty Crocker white cake mix and added a teaspoon of rose essence. I made them in a special cupcake pan which makes the tops look like flowers. I made a lemon icing from scratch. But at each turn, I was super critical. "Really, Betty Crocker?" "The icing isn't sitting right, it isn't pretty enough." Yeah, my jerk is totally mean. Do you think the 12 recipients of those teacakes cared about my need for perfection? Nope. In fact, some were downright thrilled to get a Valentine's Day treat from little ol' me. Was I being particularly neurotic because one of the recipients has formal training in baking and pastry? Most likely. Comparing ourselves to others will only drive us to insanity. Comparison can sometimes inspire us to do better, but when you hear your inner jerk sabotaging your efforts, be alert. 

Breathe. Slow down. We are so unkind to ourselves. What can you do to be more kind?

For me, today is a day of being kind and showing myself some love. It was pretty miserable this morning, with dark, wet skies. After dropping Blair off at work, I went for a massage by the one person I knew in Dallas before we moved, a pen pal of 10 years, and he gave me one of the best massages of my life. Self care is important, especially when you suffer from chronic pain like I do (boo migraines). When I came out afterwards, it was gorgeous and sunny! We went for a lovely lunch, a mini tour of Dallas. I stopped by a couple of interesting stores, and now I'm enjoying some time to myself at Starbucks before I pick up hubby for dinner and a movie. This is probably one of the best Jean days I have had for a while. :)  

While I haven't blogged for the past 2 weeks, I am honouring some of the things I stated as important: I have  been social with a friend at least once a week, I'm working on my comedy, I'm discovering parts of Dallas I didn't know. I am reaching out to the deaf community where I live. I think there will be a few stickers on my calendar by the end of the week. In fact, tomorrow I weigh in for the first time at my new Weight Watchers' program. It provides structure and accountability for me, and that's something I know I need in order to be successful. It seems to be going very well so far. Yay! 

Is today's post particularly "profound"? My purpose in writing was to say that there may be some days or weeks where you aren't power-focused on your goals, but that if you continue to live in harmony with your values and intention, you'll be moving closer to those goals, sometimes without even realizing it. 

Today's little joy? There were many. And I am thankful for the little things that make me smile. 

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