Self Nurturing.

I was reading a post on Jeanette Lynton's blog a few weeks back about focusing on 13 self-nurturing practices. Her post talked about thirteen things we can do to brighten, strengthen, reward, and inspire ourselves so we can be a better person to ourselves and others. While the ideas are all things we've heard hundreds of times in our lives, I thought her post served as a good reminder. (we can always use reminders, don't you think?)

13 Self Nurturing Practices

(1) Scripture study
(2) Meditation~ visualize what you desire, etc.
(3) Impressions notebooking~write “on the go” and scribble phrases/ideas that come.
(4) Meaningful prayer~ focus on praise and thanks; don't rush; listen and ponder.
(5) Journaling~ process life events, ask questions of God, answer questions to yourself, reflect on your life.
(6) Fasting with a purpose~ offer deep gratitude to by sacrificing food/water; paired with prayers of praise
(7) Essential oils~ nurture your emotional and physical self in aroma for relaxation and healing.
(8) Creative expression~ experiment hands-on with the medium of your choice.
(9) Soaking in nature~ connect to the outdoors in all seasons. Put your feet in the earth and your face to the sun!
(10) Music therapy~ stream inspirational songs throughout the home, sing, practice/learn an instrument, dance, attend uplifting concerts and cultural events.
(11) Play~ laugh, run, wrestle, play sports, and “be” with children.
(12) Beautify your living space~ create “centers” for expression and unique purposes, decorate, organize, declutter, paint.
(13) Worship~ leave the world behind, connect to heaven, focus.

As the person who chose "enjoy" as their word of the year, this list not only served as a gentle reminder to help me stay focused, but it helped get me thinking about some different ways I can enjoy my life. It gave me some different ideas I could try. What have I decided to try?

Well, I'm determined to get outside more this summer. I love being outdoors, but the past couple of years I haven't been outdoors much. This summer I am vowing to get out and run, walk, bike and hike more. Anything to get me moving (and lose these last 10 pounds!) and anything to get me out there enjoying the great outdoors more!

I have also decided to find a new way to create. Something other than papercrafting. And after much bloggernacking and thinking, I've decided to start refinishing old furniture. It seems like such a great hobby to me! So I've made a list of furniture to search for at garage sales and thrift stores with the hopes of creating some fun new pieces for our home and finding something new to enjoy in the process.

How will doing things for myself, for my own enjoyment, help me to better others? Easy. I'll be a happier person (not that I'm unhappy, but you know what I mean!) and in turn will be a better, happier person to others. Because I will be fed spiritually, emotionally and physically, I'll be better equipped (for lack of a better word at the moment) to help others. It's a win win situation.

Now all I need is to start scouting for some furniture to refinish! And for the sun to stay out for more than 10 minutes at a time so I can enjoy the great outdoors and get some fresh air!