Sorry for the delay between posts-life has been interesting. In the course of two and a half weeks I have celebrated my birthday, my husband got a promotion, and we have our bags packed ready to move to Oklahoma. Yes, you read that correctly. We are moving to Oklahoma. Over these two and a half weeks, we have had to say goodbye to friends and family, find a new place to live, find a new home, and make plans. This process has been a learning tool and when all is said and done I can’t wait to share my insights with you! Until then, this will have to do.
A few weeks ago I celebrated my birthday and like most people I take a moment to reflect on the previous year. I take time to look at what I’ve accomplished, what I want to accomplish in the upcoming year, and how to be more intentional in my daily life. My birthday activities also taught me a few things that I am definitely carrying over into the next 365 and hopefully beyond.
Birthday Reflections
*Treat Yourself. This is something that I constantly struggle with, and I know I’m not the only one. Many women have a hard time doing something for themselves. We feel obligated to care and take care of others first before ourselves. Sometimes we don’t treat ourselves because we would rather go without or just spend money on basic things. We don’t see it necessary to spend money on ourselves or that we aren’t worthy of nice things. In fact, we are! We are worthy of nice things and spending some of our hard earned money on that fancy watch, sunglasses, or even a mini shopping spree at Target. The moment we treat ourselves to something that we want and indulge we instantly feel better and our self esteem increases. I’m not saying go crazy and go all out every day but a little treat here and there is good for the soul. It feels awkward at first but I’m not gonna lie-it felt great! I can’t wait to treat myself again!
*Make a Timeline. What goals do you want to accomplish by your next birthday? To accomplish your goal/s make a timeline. Give yourself a deadline and work towards it daily. For example, mine is to get my ACSM Exercise Physiologist Certification. This certification will help me to get a few jobs I have my eye on and further my career. I am planning to make this happen by the end of May. After that my goal is to take my GRE by August and to apply to grad school in the Fall. Hopefully my dream of going to grad school will come to fruition by my next birthday! #goals
*Read. Over the past few months I’ve been getting a list together of books I want to read or re-read. I feel like I’m spending too much time on media platforms or just wasting time doing mindless activities that my brain is turning to mush (it may not be, but it feels like it at times!). Also, I realized there are so many books I’ve always wanted to read and I don’t know why I haven’t. There are also books that I feel would take on a completely different meaning now that I’m older. I’ll be sharing my “book club” via IG and writing about my thoughts on each novel or short story.
*Make Time for Friends. Friendships are very important and honestly with today’s social climate it’s easy to “fake” friendships or forgo social interaction because you think liking a post on IG or FB will keep your friendship alive. These small social interactions aren’t the same as face to face conversations and coffee dates. Also, stop making excuses for reasons not to see your friends-especially if you are beginning to feel a bit down in the dumps. Friends are instant happy and friendships add life to your days/years. Over the next year I’m reaching out to some of my good friends that I miss and reconnect more than FB messages or IG comments. I truly miss some of my old buddies. I need more than cute Xmas and birthday cards.
*Adopt More Mindful and Meaningful Activities. Going back to the reading reflection, I feel disconnected and mushy. This past year it has been on my mind to restart my meditation practice/mindful practice and unplug more often. After being away from a daily mindfulness practice for quite some time and doing mindless behaviors, I feel as if it has made my anxiety worse (I also am feeling guilty about not being consistent in my yoga walking/talking). So I am making plans to replace my screen time with other activities. I’m thinking about going back to journaling, recovery principles, meditation after yoga practice, affirmations, list making, etc…
I believe that adopting these reflections will make for a great trip around the sun. Do you do birthday reflections? If so, what were your reflections?
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