This past four days have been a true gift to me. After the wonderful day spent at Serenity Ranch on Friday my little getaway of reflection and focus continued. Saturday morning, well almost afternoon, my friend Shelley took me on a road trip to Vitality Crystals and Fountains in Bowden (that’s me chilling out in the beautiful hammock). It was such a gift to just spend time with a friend, enjoy the beautiful energy of this peaceful place and walk away with some wonderful gems and a small black onyx fountain for my bathroom. As well as the beautiful Liquid Rainbow Pendant that Shelley gave me. We met up with my long time cherished friend Cathy for dinner. We laughed, we cried, and most importantly we just enjoyed each others company.
When I got home on Sunday I was greeted by my beautiful daughters and my hubby, who had all been working hard to organize and clean the house. As I had forgotten my antidepressants, yet again, I needed to go lay down for a while as I was quite shaky. Don’t worry – I now, finally, have put an emergency supply in my bag, in my purse and in my toiletry bag.
I’ve been reading Cheryl Richardson’s The Art of Extreme Self-Care
an environment that feeds your soul. The one area that has been draining my energy for so long is my office area. We have this beautiful library of books, half of which I haven’t read – yet. So I went to work, lovingly releasing things I’ve been holding onto for far too long, that I no longer need or love. The other reason for this, is I want to commit to reading again. As I can now see all the books on my shelf, and I have even selected the books I want to read as part of my commitment to myself to read a book a week. (You can see the selection at the bottom of this post.)
Once the area was clear I was able to clearly set out my weekly plan. One of the things that puts me into survival mode versus thriving mode is not having a routine. So I went back to my handy excel spreadsheet that I used to follow religiously and started creating. A few of my friends have utilized this themselves, and many have laughed at my colour coded organization. Chunking down my time, including time for me – eating, reading, writing, exercise, along with the activities of a young family. If this is something that you think you could use, here is a pdf download that you can utilize and/or modify for your personal use.
The evening came to a close with quiet family time, and then bed time. I journalled and shared my gratitude for the past four days, unfortunately, because I had taken the nap during the day and I was still a little agitated I couldn’t sleep. So I had to make a healthy decision to set my alarm for 6am versus 5am.
This morning I got up at 6am, did my 10 minutes on my whole body vibration machine, had a bath and read a book, sat outside on the deck and watched the sunrise – all before my daughters got up. I felt so alive, and my girls were a lot calmer and inspired to not go on technology because I wasn’t. I was present with them. A beautiful way to start a day. Now I’m off grocery shopping to fill our fridge and pantry with healthful foods.
One Book a Week Reading List
Many of these books have sat on my shelf for years, now that I’m spending less time online I am making the time to read them. There’s no particular order, however, these are the books I commit to reading.
Courage: Overcoming Fear and Igniting Self-Confidence by Debbie Ford
Living on Purpose: Straight Answers to Universal Questions by Dan Millman
The Five Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman
The Greatness Guide by Robin Sharma
Who Will Cry When You Die? by Robin Sharma
Reason for Hope: A Spiritual Journey by Jane Goodall
Being in Love: How to Love with Awareness and Relate Without Fear by Osho
Peace Is Every Breath: A Practice for Our Busy Lives by Thich Nhat Hanh
Invisible Acts of Power: Channeling Grace in Your Everyday Life by Caroline Myss
The Three Marriages: Reimagining Work, Self and Relationship by David Whyte
