I have not written since Thursday night because I took myself on a mini vacation to spend some time at a nearby lodge at a lake. It was much needed me time. This was a simple act of kindness I showed myself.
In my quest to learn how to love myself, and not fully knowing where to start, I decided that showing myself simple acts of kindness was a great jumping off place. Think about all the little things you do for others that make their life easier. Things that generally cost us hardly anything, but that make a great difference in another person’s day. It can just be when we let the person behind us in the grocery store with three items go before we start unloading our buggy full. Maybe in that one moment we made them feel better, and they let someone merge in traffic that they wouldn’t have done before, and because of that - the other person made it to the hospital just in time to see their son born….who knows where it can lead to.
So in doing that for others, imagine the impact we can have on our own lives if we allow ourselves to do and embrace simple acts of kindness for ourselves. That is what the weekend retreat was for. I went with some friends, so the cost was split, and we had a wonderful time. It was a gift of time, laughter, nature, and relaxation that I gave myself.
Now I know I can’t go away every weekend, much as I would like to, but I am going to challenge myself to do something kind for myself every day. Maybe it’s just using a “good china” coffee cup to make my coffee drinking special tomorrow morning, or it’s stepping outside for a sunshine break tomorrow at lunch, since I dwell in a windowless office all day, but I am just going to do at least one small thing every day and see where it leads.
I challenge you to do the same. I will report back to you in upcoming posts what I did and how it affected my day/life. Please share your experiences with me. I would love to hear your feedback as well. If you are reading my blog, you are on the same healing path that I am on. There is power in numbers, so please share. You never know who you will help!