Thinking much lately about nurturing ourselves…how it’s a process, not just a todo list and surely not just something we can say we ‘got done’ as an errand or an appointment.
Surely, nurturing ourselves is way more than jaunting off to CVS or going food shopping.
But here is the thing: it doesn’t have to be hard, laborious, tiresome or even mind boggling.
Nurturing ourselves can literally be a momentary mental massage, one thought at a time.
It’s taken me a long while to value my thoughts as my greatest asset.
With each one I choose to savor, my next steps are birthed out from whatever it is I’m thinking.
So as much as I’m able, I’m striving to really sit still and sift: what thoughts am I allowing shape me, influence me, motivate me?
I’ve gone from living a life of thinking the externals were my goals to realizing all that I truly care about is ensuring my thoughts are so nurtured, so tucked up and so rock solid steady that I’m feeling a consistent safety, stability, serenity.
And while the ‘how’ to nurture our thoughts isn’t a one time deal, that’s the beauty of it. It’s an ongoing life journey. So flubbing up for ten minutes won’t have a detrimental impact. Rather, just with a thought shift can the frustration over flubbing up just wane and can we regroup and recharge and re- establish our right to nurture the kind of moment we want to experience….right this very one.
What helps you nurture yourself?
Eager to talk this up and UP and UP ?
Enjoy each moment today taking care of those thoughts.
I'm trying to teach this to my very sensory 13-year old who got into a nightly funk of laying in bed thinking about rusty guardrails and pointy metal objects that would hurt if he rubbed up against him. I told him to think kinder thoughts. Think about…you ready for this part?…his chakras. And I gave him a chakra tutorial. But in the middle of it he started talking about genetics. There he goes again, I thought. Not even on topic. And my husband said “Tell him to climb into bed and think about genetics.” Duh. It takes me a while to get it. Thinking about genetics IS nurturing to him.
I'm trying to teach this to my very sensory 13-year old who got into a nightly funk of laying in bed thinking about rusty guardrails and pointy metal objects that would hurt if he rubbed up against him. I told him to think kinder thoughts. Think about…you ready for this part?…his chakras. And I gave him a chakra tutorial. But in the middle of it he started talking about genetics. There he goes again, I thought. Not even on topic. And my husband said “Tell him to climb into bed and think about genetics.” Duh. It takes me a while to get it. Thinking about genetics IS nurturing to him.