Hanging out on my porch last night, as I am wont to do, I was thinking about appreciation. Earlier in the day, someone let me know that they appreciated my efforts on their behalf. It was a nice feeling.
I like to write notes of appreciation. I send them both through email and snail mail. Thanking someone in writing for a pleasing or helpful attitude, the fulfillment of a favor, for being a good friend, the reasons are myriad, is a quick and easy way to spread around that feeling of appreciation.
But how do we appreciate ourselves? I like the concept of "future self." How do I show my future self that I appreciate her? A clean and orderly house, lovely, wholesome groceries, enough sleep, and fun plans are all ways that I appreciate my future self.
Pampering, movement, meditation, journaling, snuggling to name a few, are ways to show my current self my appreciation. My focus is always on the treat-nature of the activity. If I turn it into a labor, then it ceases to be an act of self-appreciation.
Why is it important to appreciated ourselves? For a lot of people, being shown appreciation isn't something that they see much. They may have busy families, or challenging work situations. They may spend a lot of time alone, or with non-demonstrative people. If you relate to this, you know your situation.
Not feeling appreciated can lead to feelings of lack, a tragedy in such an abundant universe, and those feelings of lack can lead to a sense of deprivation which, in turn, can lead to choices that leave you feeling empty like too much TV, binging, over-spending or buying junk, this list can go on and on.
By taking a few minutes a day to appreciate yourself, you will develop a habit that will serve you well, and keep you happier and healthier for a long time.
How do you appreciate yourself?
2 comments:
very interesting, thanks
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