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Picturing and releasing: April OLW

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Naomi

This month Ali invited us to do two things: (1) pick something to let go of/release in your life and (2) connect with your word through photos.

“Cherish” in photos:

1) These two love birds are still making our backyard their home and I love seeing them every day; 2 ) This 10-day e-mail reminder was perfect for reminding me to make space and slow down; 3) The three of us had a sort of stay-cation in Galveston, staying at a condo on the beach rather than with my parents. It was really fun to concentrate solely on being together and relaxing; 4) Daily walks outside or on my new treadmill helped me cherish my body more. Eating healthy foods helped my energy levels too; 5) I’ve been working through some of my favorite phrases and making little art canvases. I’ve got some in my Etsy shop; 6) I finally have all my paints up on the wall! Thanks to my handyman for fixing my botched effort; 7) Loving Brené Brown’s e-course, part 2; 8) Mo had to have a special procedure at the vet, and after the first test, we had to take him back for a retest, but we couldn’t ever find the guy. It was a month of trying to catch him and rescheduling appointments. He was afraid of me for once, which led me to extra cuddles for him. Turns out he is fine, thank goodness; 9) As I write this, my sweet girl is home sick with a fever, leaning against me and whimpering. Still, she is sweetness itself. I cherish her so much.

If you’re interested, you can read previous One Little Word posts here. On Friday, we’ll be joining in another Photo-Heart Connection. Thanks, as always, for being here.

Posted in Creativity, Mindfulness, One Little Word | Tagged Ali Edwards, animals, body care, compassion, One Little Word, self-care, slowing down, time in nature | 9 Comments

Wanted: time for integration

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Naomi

Ever feel you are rushing through your days, trying to keep multiple balls in the air? Of course you do. We’ve all been there at some point.

I feel incredibly blessed that I get to spend the time my daughter is at school doing whatever I want. It sounds better than it feels, for some reason. Exercise. Shower. Read e-mail. Do blog stuff. Run errands. And the majority goes to my classes and creating time.

Every day there are way more to-dos than I could possibly accomplish. It feels like I’m rushing. I can’t find time to do it all.

Sometimes you need to create space in your schedule. A couple of friends have implemented self-imposed restrictions on taking courses, social networking, and even TV time. One friend took a year off of visiting his life coach and called it his Year of Integration, where he allowed what he’d learned to settle in his mind and heart.

By now you know that I am taking too many e-courses (and yes, I agreed to contribute to “Inspired Mama” – more on that soon). They are delicious, but they don’t allow for any down time. You’ll notice, however, that after the end of May, many will have ended. After June, they will all have ended except for the ongoing monthly ones. I plan to take advantage of the extra space in my schedule. If I aim to find stillness and calm in my days, adding more and more is obviously not the answer. Let’s see how I do with fewer to dos and more quiet, daydreaming, lounging, and reading.

How are you balancing your life?

Like the little watercolor drawing? See it here.

Posted in Creativity, E-courses | Tagged balancing, doing too much, space, time | 16 Comments

You are worthy

Posted on April 25, 2014 by Naomi

I made this for you. Print available here

Perhaps you’re sitting confused in a class, but everyone else is silently listening and taking notes. Should you raise your hand and be that person who just doesn’t get it? Maybe you’re in a meeting at work, thinking of contributing something to the conversation at hand, but you second-guess yourself. Or maybe you’ve just seen the 88 comments on someone’s Facebook timeline wishing them a Happy Birthday and you think the 89th (yours) won’t mean as much since they are apparently already well-loved.

I’ve been in those situations and I retrospectively regret that I didn’t say a word.

That kind of insecurity stems from fear. Fear of inadequacy. Fear of not being liked. Fear that we are not enough just as we are.

Just as a drop of water is a tiny piece of a larger ocean, we are, each of us (and that means you too), a part of Divinity itself. You are whole and complete and magnificent, all by yourself. How could you not be if you are Divinity? Simply being exactly who you are, you are more than enough. You are magnificent.

And if that weren’t fabulous already, it turns out that there were other people in that class who were confused too. And that idea that remained unspoken would have saved countless hours of work. And your relationship with the birthday girl is completely separate from their relationship with anyone else. They can’t get that YOU-ness from anyone other than you.

If you don’t share YOU, who will? Come on! Give us all a piece of you. You truly are crazy beautiful. We’ll be better people for knowing you.

4×5 art print available here

Posted in Creativity, Spirituality | Tagged class, Happy Birthday, people, water | 14 Comments

Sun-dappled Sundays: the need for calm

Posted on April 23, 2014 by Naomi

Knowing when to rest is a huge accomplishment for me. When I’m feeling anxious and stressed, I know that I need more time to do less. Don’t we all!?

Tell me, where do you go (physically or in your mind) to find calm? What represents calm to you? I love water (the fluidity, the power, the flow) and feel peace when I’m near it, even if it’s only a little desk fountain. I love being in nature.

When I’m feeling my best, these are the ingredients:

Enough sleep
Connection to those I love
Spirituality – reading, praying, quiet time
Gratitude practice
Time for expressing myself creatively

This week, I am practicing finding a few minutes during the middle of the day just to go for a walk around the block. It is helping me settle my mind and body and breathe.

What can you do to add a dose of calm to your day?

Posted in E-courses, Mindfulness | Tagged brene brown, rest, time, water | 3 Comments

Knowing when to rest

Posted on April 21, 2014 by Naomi

“I am not a hero if I deny rest; I am only tired.” ~ Susan McHenry

A former work colleague and I used to have an unspoken contest to see who was the most busy. She would tell me about her rushed morning of going and doing and I would share all the tasks on my own list. I wonder what we thought the most busy of us would “win.” It was as if we derived our self-worth from our to-do lists.

Two different variations of “tired” have taught me that this type of thinking is frivolous. First, the exhaustion of having a newborn baby. Surviving on very little sleep and caring for the entirety of another person’s needs, you are useless if you do not take care of yourself. Second, the bone weariness of clinical depression years before that. Lack of self-care and rest can lead to feeling so overwhelmed and unmovably heavy that you can’t even begin to complete the simplest of actions for yourself or for anyone else.

After these major life lessons, I finally know my limits. I don’t always listen to the first warning bells, but I know enough to eventually recognize the feelings of exhaustion and to give in to them. There comes a time when I need soft hours of quiet. I need to allow my energy to be replenished. As a highly sensitive introvert (HSP and INFJ, to throw some acronyms at ya), I require lots of alone time and space in order to thrive. And I finally know enough about myself to not feel guilty about that.

The current week’s lesson in Brené’s e-course is on cultivating stillness and calm. I totally relate to what Brené writes in The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are: “We convince ourselves that if we stay busy and keep moving, reality won’t be able to keep up. So we stay in front of the truth about how tired and scared and confused and overwhelmed we sometimes feel.”

It turns out that stillness does not have to be literal. According to Brené, it’s more about creating a mental clearing and giving ourselves the chance to “feel and think and dream and question.” For me, that breathing space is so necessary.

It reminds me of Sylvia Boorstein’s book, Don’t Just Do Something, Sit There. It’s rather counter-cultural to us. It is so important to pause, to breathe, to daydream, don’t you think?

Posted in Books, E-courses, Mindfulness | Tagged productivity, self-care, tired | 6 Comments

Pike Place market, Seattle

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Naomi

I’m delighted to share some signs of spring with you all, just in case you don’t have flowers in your neck of the woods yet. These photos were taken last August in Seattle at Pike Place Market, one of my favorite areas to wander around with a camera.

bouquets and prices