Don’t skip the upkeep.
Don’t get Poisoned
If you bought me a beautifully giraffe-wrapped present and found out that I didn’t like giraffes, you might be tempted to rewrap that present. But the toxic giraffes would still be underneath the new tiger wrapping. The present has become the victim of comparison. So unfair. This is how we start out comparing bodies, beliefs, material possessions and all the stuff that we cling to outside of our souls. Because there is a never-ending number of things to compare, our minds get poisoned by the lists we create with the rankings. These gifts can help shape your inner world but can be discarded after use. Leverage all thoughts to your advantage. When it comes to self-care, be selfish. Consider getting some of those stickers used to keep children from drinking the chemicals stored underneath the sink. Of course, they aren’t the only thing to do because it is often more fun to be tempted. You know what I mean.
Clean up your own Mess
This is the most obvious stuff that you have heard all your life and still don’t follow. Let’s get a good list going. Grab your journal. List ten reasons why you don’t exercise regularly. Let me clarify those. They are excuses. Scratch them out, get up on your feet and march in place until you feel your body. Stand up every time you don’t want to so you can prove to yourself that you mean something to yourself. In the morning, you cannot take your shower until you march in place and make your bed. Really. Before you bathe, find the good towels and put them out to use. You are the most important guest in your home. Tomorrow don’t speak until spoken to. And even then, listen and resist talking back for a full minute. Don’t worry about the silence, somebody else will blabber on. Walk past everyone else’s mess. Pretend it’s not there. Even at work. All of these activities come under exercise. Funny, huh?
The Forever Question
Can you count the number of times you ask yourself about why you do something? This is the warning signal for unhealthy behavior. It’s like a siren going off to warn you to stop prior to doing damage. This helps with understanding how certain foods get eaten even when you don’t want them, agreeing to do tasks that you had no intention of doing, wearing anything that is not comfortable or spending time with the folks who are disasters. Stop, look and listen. If you can’t come up with a reason for not listening to yourself, you need to go back to bed and start over. Make sure you remake the bed. This also helps you ignore the attitudes of those who need a little extra recognition just because they like the attention. Check your mood at this point.
Maintenance plan
The reason not to invest in a warranty is because you don’t need it. If you put your feet on the floor when you wake up, tell the world to reward you for the outstanding method you will follow as you plan and execute your life, and you will get results. Great results. And you know this. You have heard this enough time to understand that this is for real. The best thing to do is go back and ask yourself why you don’t do it. Hint: look behind your initial thoughts. Option one is never the real answer. To prove that it is really under your control, do one thing on your list and then stop. Ignore the rest. Repeat it again and again. Just the one thing. You will give yourself the most self-satisfying feeling when you grab the list and pick a second. Boredom is a good motivator at times. Be willing to refine you.
Breathe Again
You have already been working on this one. Congratulations. When you were born, you took your first breath. Right before you die, you will take your last. There will be millions of breaths in between. This is meditation. Close your eyes. Breathe. Count to 10. Breathe again. Count to ten again. Breathe again. Count to ten again. You have learned to meditate. There is no need to push away your thoughts when you are counting. There is no need to sit any special way. There is no need to do anything but breathe and count. Imagine that. You have learned the most important part of selfish care. Breathing is the basis of living. Without it, well you know. The most basic habit has been right under and in your nose all this time. Let’s do it together. Hand on heart, eyes closed, breathe in, count and breathe again. We have joined the mystics.
Can this be the day you make a change in your selfish care? Do one thing. Breathe.
