Accumulate positive experiences...a dear friend shared this piece of advice with me yesterday. I immediately had to write it down. Not just random positive experiences but intentional ones. Seeking out every day some positive experience. I'm one of those people who sees the glass as either half full or refillable but somedays my glass is utterly empty and I desperately need it to be refilled. The concept of intentionally accumulating positive experiences is very attractive to me. So I jotted down a few things that are "positive experiences" for me:
- walks
- gardening
- 5-finger intentional prayer
- a cuppa coffee in the morning sunshine
- reading without interruption
- blogging
- cooking
That was a pretty quick and easy list to come up with and I'm sure I could think of more if I put my mind to it. I think I really like this idea so I decided to do a quick Google search and I'm thrilled with this new (to me) approach at life! I found positive admonitions like, do pleasant things that are possible NOW! My favorite by far was: be mindful of positive experiences.
Perhaps this resonates with me because it seems lately in too many areas of my life I feel overwhelmed. At the end of the day I feel as if I've been put through an emotional wringer; I seem to forget to be mindful of my positive experiences because they've been unintentional and I haven't even noticed them. I am at a place in my life right now that I need to be mindful of the positive, maybe to even go so far as to schedule that positive!
Handsome and I have been accumulating positive experiences in our marriage without giving it that name, we've been "dating the alphabet" again. Our goal is to date our way through the alphabet, we've made it through the letter "C" so far this year. We're looking for our "D" date so if you have any ideas, bring them on! It is incredible what an afternoon movie can do for your positive mental attitude! I need more of those moments not just as a couple but for myself every day.
This Lent rather than giving up things, I took on some positive habits, one of those is journaling every day. But I think I've been doing it wrong, I've been using it as a stress relief and often it has the negatives of the day and I forget to include the positive. I'm going to re-do my nightly journal and include at least one positive each day, in caps at the top of the page. The idea is I want the positive to be the most visible part when I thumb back through. I must remember my own motto "always crazy blessed!"
Take some time today to not only find the positive but to actually plan for and accumulate some positive experiences! So when you see me looking a little more relaxed and a little less exasperated, you'll know I've been accumulating those positive experiences in my life because after all, "today is a good day for a good day!" Thanks Anna & Mellissa for helping me remember just how crazy blessed I am every day!
My friend Mellissa's positive admonition to me in the midst of my 15 doctor note visits from October! |
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