OMG - 60 Seconds on Self-Care

Forty-three. The number of peace, love, happiness, encouragement, safety and stability.

I just completed another trip around the sun. To say that I am abundantly blessed feels like a major understatement. On a day that started out rough, I was bound and determined to celebrate the strides I've made. To survive through 2 years of a global pandemic that reshaped the way humans live is certainly no easy feat. During 2020 alone I became more prone to celebrate the little things, because those small bits add up to larger chunks. In celebrating the little things, I also became proactive in carving out time to proactively manage the stress that comes with uncertainty and being newly secluded in the house with a spouse 24/7. Self-care Fridays became a consistent source of not only preserving, but also improving my wellbeing. They were peace during tumultuous times.

I continued to hold space for myself on Fridays through 2021, and for the most part have held this space through the time of this writing as well. I struggled initially, feeling like it was selfish to take time for myself. After about 2 months of Self-care Fridays, and some good coaching, I realized that taking care of myself was an act of love. What good could I be to others if I wasn't the best possible version of myself?

This whole self-care thing is important. It brings a deeper sense of happiness. It allows you to feel encouraged and safe. When practiced consistently, it brings stability to your life. Not boring, predictable stability, but the type that helps us grow in knowing that despite the challenges in front of us, we can only give our best and go from there.

So that rough start to my birthday - I faced it. Definitely not head on, but kind of sideways in my best attempt at a tiptoeing escape past a sleeping lion. I faced it nonetheless. What I found as I started to push the urgency of celebrating a year of growth, is that my tribe, my friends, my family, all stepped up in a major way to do the same...without hesitation and in some surprising ways. See we teach others how to treat us, and caring has a boomerang effect. Whatever we put out in the universe - whether it's how we care for others or for self - gets returned to us when we don't even know how much we need it.

So yes, I feel abundantly blessed and grateful for the year gone by. I'm looking forward to whatever may come this year - I'll be setting some intentions soon. Until then, I'll continue to practice self-care, so I can continue to feel peace, love, happiness, encouragement, safety, and stability within.