“Self-care is giving
the world
the best of you
instead of what’s left
of you.”
Shade and water are not enough to keep my impatiens from wilting in the sweltering heat today. The same goes for me! As I write this, we’ve been experiencing record-breaking temperatures this week of over 100 degrees in Washington- a state where moss and slugs normally flourish.
My flowers remind me that sometimes, we too can wilt under the pressure or losses of life. Has anything occurred in your world to cause record highs of stress? How is your time spent… rushed with an overcommitted schedule, weighed down by heavy emotion, or something else that is taking its toll?
We might manage okay for a while taking care of people and tasks, but we will lose our reliability, peace, and good nature if we neglect one factor that keeps or efforts humming - ourselves. If we go down, there are a lot of people relying on us (jobs, families, you name it) and we forget that sometimes the most loving thing we can do is take a personal time-out. That is – to rest.
What fills you up? Here are a few ideas to get you thinking: a nap, quality conversation, time to process or journal, prayer, nature, a book, art, music, a massage, a date, daydreaming, exercise, sunshine … the more expended you feel the more you will need to fill up.
I hope you will pause and take notice of your needs and meet them.
Maybe it’s time to find some shade and water. Then that flowerpot of yours will be ready to share its beauty with the world.