The other day, I happened to be listening to one of my old Abraham CDs. I know this material well. At least I thought I did. Until I heard something that struck me in a whole new (and much clearer) way. As they say, when the student is ready ...
Put simply, the advice was to identify five things that always feel good when you do them. Do these five things every single day. Then do anything else that you have time for. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
Easy enough, right?
Well, the first order of business was to identify the five things. Now, of course, at the top of my list would be smooch on my husband, hug on the kid, and pet our cats and the dogs. But putting these activities on the list would be like adding "brush my teeth" to my daily calendar. They’re automatic. Non-negotiable.
I had to dig deeper. Here’s what I came up with:
#1 - Meditation
I have been trying to have a daily meditation practice for a long, long time. Most days, I sit once a day for 10-15 minutes, and it does me a world of good. Twice a day would be even better. I'll be honest, it doesn't always feels good while I'm doing it, but doing it always does me a world of good. I feel better for having done it. It completely changes, dare I say improves, the course of my day.
#2 - Reiki
Reiki feels good. No doubt about it. And, like #1 above, daily self-treatments do me a world of good. If I can't/don't treat myself, I can certainly treat another person or a pet. Gladly. Just need to make the time.
#3 - Crochet
This ties in to both #1 and #2 above. Anyone who does any kind of needlework knows that it is a form of meditation. And any Reiki practitioner will tell you that Reiki flows into everything they touch, either by intention or not. One of my greatest joys is crocheting Reiki shawls for others because the intention IS there and it really does make a difference. Crocheting also connects me to my mother, her mother, and countless other needleworking foremothers before me. It is in my DNA and if I haven't made time for it in awhile, I miss it.
#4 - Art/Creativity
This is a huge catch-all for everything creative that I love to do, including #3 above. Let me count them off ... mandalas, check, wire-wrapping, check, decoupage, check, and, last but not least, photography, check. My best days include time for my creativity, in whatever way it chooses to express itself. I am a much happier person when I indulge my Inner Artist.
#5 - Writing
I have kept a handwritten journal daily over many, many years. I used to have an active blog and really enjoyed it. But life was life and there was the full-time job and the family that needed my attention. There just wasn't the time for it anymore. Now I feel a gentle pull back to sharing my journey in a public forum. Right here. And it feels good.
When I look at this list of five things, I can see that they are the foundation of Jakk's Magic Beans Workshop. Over the past year, my "real" job has been especially demanding and, sadly, JMBW has been left to wither on the vine out of what seemed like necessity. There was only so much of me and my time to go around. Now I realize that it is not only my business that has withered over time. Now I realize that I have no choice but to put first-things-first ... or should I say feel-good- things-first ... if I really and truly want to be well, in every sense of the word.
So for today’s Sacred Life Sunday, I ask you to take some time to think about your Five Feel Goods. Share them, if you’d like, either by comment below or e-mail. Let’s remind each other that life is supposed to be fun and that we deserve to feel good ... not just once in awhile, but every single day!
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