Today is my birthday. I was so filled with anticipation that I could hardly sleep last night! Really, who gets this excited at my age? Oh dear, that makes me sound really old, doesn’t it. I am not reticent in the least to announce that I’m 42 years old today. Or is that 42 years young? It depends upon how you look at it I suppose. What I know is that I was never this giddy over my birthday as a young child!
Perhaps it is that I now savor and appreciate each year of my life. Perhaps it is that I more fully understand how incredibly lucky I am to be alive and healthy. Perhaps it is that I have learned to grab on to each moment if joy as it comes. Or perhaps I have learned that life is an unpredictable journey of twists and turns; that interwoven amongst the challenges and heartache are moments of sheer bliss. That is a life to be grateful for!
My birthday wish for all of you is that you wake each day as thrilled to be alive as I am.
Month 3 Lessons Learned
I just realized that it has been 3 months already since my husband left for Afghanistan. I hesitate to say that I don’t know where the time went, because I do. It went to work, kids, home maintenance, family and volunteer commitments, worry and sleepless nights. Some of my time consumers are getting better; some worse. As the journey continues I continue to stretch and grow and learn along the way.
Month 3 Lessons learned
You can do so much more than you thought possible – This month I have had many firsts and am ever amazed at the expanding limits of my capacity. Without my husband to lean on this month, I have learned my way around a caulk gun, helped to close the pool for the season, successfully opened the fireplace while managing not to blow up our house, negotiated more car repair visits than I would like and helped my mom ready her home for sale. Who knew?
You cannot do as much as you think you can – In a seemingly direct contradiction of my first lesson comes the second one. Projects will take longer than expected, obstacles will arise and demands on your time and attention will test your limits when you can least afford it. You can’t do and be everything for everyone without losing yourself in the shuffle. I have found that when juggling competing needs, my time, my health and my care are the first to be overlooked. That can only lead to burnout.
For the month of October, which also happens to contain my birthday, I am renewing my commitment to me. I need the reminder that I am the central force and touchstone of our family unit right now and just like the crash scenario on the airplane, I need the oxygen mask first.
Do What You Think You Cannot Do
Image via Wikipedia
You must do the thing you think you cannot do. – Eleanor Roosevelt
What is it that you always thought you could not do, but would kind of, sort of, really like to do? We all have limits in our minds of who we are and what we can accomplish. What one thing could you do if you had just a little more strength, a little more knowledge, a little more skill or a little more courage? What would happen if you tried it anyway? Let’s find out.
Share what you’d like to do or have done!
Have You Forgotten to Dream?
Photo by DreamActivist/Flickr (Creative Commons)
“Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.” – William Butler Yeats
Have you forgotten to dream? When was the last time you thought about those old wishes, wants and desires? What happened to all of those ideals and big plans for what you were going to do “when you grew up?” Well, you’re presumably grown up now. Take some time this week to unearth those dreams, dust them off and put them in front of you.
Do they still call to you?
Maybe you have new dreams or the old ones need updating?
What do you need to do to make them happen?
Take the first step, just one. You can do that. I know you can. The only person stopping you is yourself!
Key Questions: What Are Your Limits?
Are you limiting yourself? Do you even realize that you are doing it? Most of us don’t. It’s certainly not intentional, but most of us are guilty of it at one point or another, myself included. We just have in our mind the belief that we can’t do something; we aren’t talented enough, strong enough, smart enough, whatever the reason. We think this belief is fact, but in reality it is only our thought and it is not set in stone. If you are willing to take a fresh look at these self-imposed limitations and honestly question them, you’d be surprised at what you might discover.
This past weekend I really wanted to go for my morning run, but it had been raining horrendously and it was threatening to start again. Normally I would have dismissed the idea out of hand. I’m a fair weather runner. I only like to run or walk outside when it is sunny and 60 degrees. You will not find me with my hat and gloves or rain slicker. Just for a moment I had a flash of daring and I thought why not? What is the worst that will happen? I may get soaked. I may have to cut my exercise short. I may be uncomfortable and hate it. Just once I decided to take a chance and go for it.
I laced up my shoes and off I went. About 5 minutes in it started sprinkling. I got a little nervous, but decided it wasn’t too bad and I could keep going. After about 15 minutes the rain started coming down harder, but I was at the halfway point and far from my home. There was nothing I could do now so I kept going, determined to make the best of it. It felt unfamiliar, but not awful. All of the sudden it occurred to me that I was running in the rain; something I thought I never would do and never could do. Huh….imagine that. At the 30 minute mark I rounded the corner toward home, pumped my fists in the air like a gold medal Olympic runner and felt victorious.
If you had told me last week that I would not only manage to run for 30 minutes in inclement weather, but set a personal best time while doing it, I would have said that you were crazy. Today, that limit no longer exists for me and has opened my mind to a whole new set of possibilities. I started to question myself. Where else am I limiting myself? What else can I do that I thought was not conceivable?
This is transferable to all areas of our lives and work. Ask yourself:
What limitations have you placed on yourself?
Could you stretch them just a little?
Is there something that you would like to do that you just don’t think you can manage?
Why is it not possible?
Is it a fact of reality or just a thought or perception that you hold?
Stretch yourself and be open to all of the new possibilities!
Do You Have a Bucket List? 101 Things to Do Before You Die
What is a bucket list you ask?
If you haven’t heard about the Bucket List, also called 101 Things to Do Before You Die or a Life List, it is simply a list of all of the things you want to do, be or have, places you want to see, experiences you want to live, goals, dreams, etc. before you “kick the bucket.” I believe the term was inspired by the movie, The Bucket List with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman who play terminally ill men that attempt to fulfill their bucket list before they die. (It’s a great movie if you haven’t seen it.)
Why a bucket list?
Life passes us by in a blur of commitments and everyday tasks without leaving much time for thought of what we’d really like to experience in life. Our worst fear is to lie our deathbed lamenting that “someday” never came and we never got the opportunity to do all of those things we intended to get to eventually. The painful reality is that we can’t achieve what we don’t know we want!
How do you create a bucket list?
This week, set aside some time to create your life list and stop putting off your goals, dreams and wishes until “someday.” Ask yourself what you’d like to do before you die. If that is too hard to fathom, then start by asking what if you only had a year left to live? If you already have a list, then take time to review it. Look at it on a regular basis, at least yearly, but I recommend monthly or quarterly. You’ll be surprised at what you can accomplish.
Some questions to get the juices flowing:
- What have you always wanted to do but haven’t done yet?
- What would you do if time or resources were not an obstacle?
- What are your major goals and aspirations?
- Any places you want to visit or things want to see?
- What experiences do you want to have / feel?
- What activities or skills do you want to learn or attempt?
- Are there any particular people you want to meet in person?
- What do you want to achieve in the different areas: Love, Family, Career, Finance, Health, Spiritual, and Community?
- What do you need to do to lead a life of the greatest meaning to you
Some suggestions from other’s lists:
- Learn a new language
- Try out a new career
- Run a marathon/triathlon
- Take up a new sport.
- Learn horseback riding
- Start your own business doing something you love
- Achieve financial abundance with your passion
- Be a mentor to someone
- Try an extreme sport – Bungee jump, Skydiving, Parachuting, Mountain climbing
- Make a difference in someone’s life
- Write a book on something that means a lot to you
- Sing your favorite song to an audience
- Public speaking in front of a crowd
- Get a complete makeover!
- Play a new musical instrument
- Take dancing lessons
- Learn a martial art
- Go on a road trip
- Fly in a helicopter
- Go on a cruise
- Learn sign language
About Me
Your guide to living well in every area of life. Freelance writer, Life Fulfillment Guide, Idea Curator, Life balance mentor, Productivity junkie, Book Addict. More...
