Day 6

Mindful living at its best today. Rocking my sweet grandson Cade and then watching him sleep.

Day 5

Surrender to what is. Let go of what was. Have faith in what will be. --Sonia Ricotti

My opportunity for mindfulness came today with Ed (my husband) when we were on the way home from his doctor appointment. Just a brief history for anyone not familiar with us. Ed had an above knee amputation a little over four years ago. Since then, while he's had trouble now and then, he's learned to do quite well with a prosthesis. On December 3 of this year, he had severe pain in his left leg which led to a 2 1/2 week stay in the hospital and inpatient rehab. I won't go into all of the details, but during that time he had two major surgeries (one of which was 7 1/2 hours long in the middle of the night). At one point, we were both very scared he would lose his leg. During the past  several years, I have spent many hours worrying about Ed and what will happen if he loses his other leg. Today, the doctor gave him a good report. (Yay!)  Pulses in the leg are good, wounds are healing, foot is warm, and he has good circulation. He still has a long recovery ahead of him. Probably months. Despite this, on the drive home I concentrated on the good news. No "what ifs". They serve no purpose. I've learned that when bad things happen, you just do what you have to do to survive and move forward. So for now - let go, enjoy and "have faith in what will be."

Day 4

“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.” Carl Jung

This morning I had an email in my inbox from fitbit. Mostly, I don’t look at these, but today I decided I would.  One article really spoke to me. It was “How to Let Go of Old Habits and Break into the New You?” by Daniel Dowling. It focused on how practicing affirmations can help a person change. What is an affirmation? It is you being in conscious control of your thoughts. An affirmation should be a short, powerful statement. When you say them or think them or even hear them, they become the thoughts that create your reality. So instead of waiting until you make a change, you start believing and practicing self-talk as if the change has already been made. For example, my daily affirmation will be “I love living mindfully! I am happy, focused and enjoying a healthy life.” According to this article, and others that I have read, you should practice affirmations daily. First thing in the morning is best. Do any of my readers practice daily affirmations?

I think this article was especially pertinent to me because, while overall I’ve felt really good about what I’m trying to accomplish, when I make a choice that’s not in my best interest I tend to dwell on it. Last night, for example, I had a big bowl of popcorn while reading. I found myself dwelling afterwards and even this morning on this. Why did I give in and eat while reading? Why didn’t I eat just a bit, and why I wasn’t I mindful about it? Based on today’s reading, this morning it would have been more productive for me to wake up and speak to myself with my affirmation in a positive way. Personally, I think it is okay to recognize if something triggers a wrong choice. But, it’s the beating myself up over it that serves no purpose.

As for today, overall it was a great day. I worked out with my personal trainer, Misty Marchant, this morning. I spent the afternoon and evening with my grand kids. I always enjoy spending time with them, but today I was really conscious of just “being” with them and it made or a really nice day!