Are you stuck in routine?
Do you feel like you are losing at this weird race, society makes us believe is normal?
Pause
Take a break from whatever you are doing. Go take a bath. Go outside and take nice pictures. Draw, or just color a clipart you downloaded and printed. Just do nothing if you have to, but occupying the mind is a good thing.
Listen
How about going outside? Listen to the birds. Or hear the noise of snow under your feet as you walk. Hear the rain fall on your umbrella. Just stand under the sun and feel its warmth against your skin. Just realize it's there. You don't have to do anything about it. Be there. And feel.
Breathe
Long breaths. Inhale. Exhale. Slowly. Be grounded and relax. This is where you are right now. In the present. Try and focus on what you feel. Are you comfortable? Are you well?
Now
This is where I want you to be.
In the now, with me.
Welcome.
We are all disconnected from the real life.
If you are in the present, you are living.
Else you are just a shell of yourself.
Take the time to come back to yourself from time to time.
Priorities
I had to make a big mistake in my life to realize I wasn't true to myself. 2020 was a year of change for me. And I think it's gonna be the same for a lot of people.
It mostly made me think about my life's priorities. I thought everything was fine until it wasn't. Nothing was clear in my head on the why I didn't feel as happy anymore. I wasn't "unhappy", just "less happy". Yet it made me do stupid things which I then regretted. Mostly because I felt like the routine took over my priorities.
With kids, it's easy to lose yourself. The more you have the more they take. And the more you let them take, the more they do. I love my kids but I had to let some things go, or change my habits to be more happy. I needed to take time for me. Just like that, be totally selfish and think about myself first.
But what
Yeah. What did I want exactly. I has been so many years I didn't think about me that I forgot what I used to love. I proceeded to make a list. Remembering what I used to do. What I wanted to do and haven't done before. I made a brainstorm list too, about random stuff.
Since I'm a total nerd, I used lucidchart to do that. One box per thought. It was really harmless stuff like
- I want more alone time with you where we can talk
- Talk to me more about yourself
- Let's be crazy
- Touch me during the day
There was maybe 20 boxes like that. At first I did it for myself. But a week later I decided to show it to my wife. We never communicated so much since then. I will try and do it more often. Even if it's only once a year, I think it helps put words on stuff we feel.
It forces me to take... Time.