Happy Friday! Writing has been steady but a little slow for me this week. My mind is going in a dozen places, and I anticipate it will stay this way for most of the month, but I’m hanging in there and trying to plan my work on a daily basis, rather than worrying about tomorrow.
1. Life is too short to spend it freaking out about something, then gasping with relief when that something is over. Maybe this isn’t profound for you guys, but I’m getting tired of wracking myself with anxiety about an event and then looking forward to just getting over with it. I want to approach scary things as adventures, and not load myself down with doubt. Life is short, and it’s meant to be enjoyed.
2. A thoughtful word of encouragement is worth at least ten generalized ones. “You’ll do fine on your presentation! Stop worrying!” is weaker than, “Would you like to practice anything in front of me? That sounds great! I would change {insert suggestion here}. I think it’s time to stop torturing yourself. I give you permission to do that.” Maybe I’m preaching to the choir here, but this particular thought is in reaction to those well-meaning blanket statements of “You’ll be great” that actually induce more insecurity than comfort. Intentional, personalized encouragement is something I personally can’t survive without.
3. Laughter is the best medicine and hugs are a close second to that. I took a poll and hugs came in as the winner behind laughter as the best medicine! This means when your friends are feeling sick, go in for the hug! Don’t quarantine the sick person when the thing they need most is love and care! Also come prepared with lots of jokes and embarrassing stories to make them smile. I thought this timely since it syncs up with flu season!
4. Housewarming gifts aren’t a one-time thing. What a beautiful difference it makes when you, as the visitor or dinner guest, bring along a present for the hosts. Whether it’s a bottle of wine, a salad, flowers, etc, the thoughtfulness leaves evidence of your friendship behind after you’ve said goodbye. I’m not a big gift-giver apart from Christmas and birthdays, but seeing how much this particular gift warms relationships, I think I might build a new habit or warming houses over and over and over… 🙂
5. I anthropomorphize. This basically means I assign life and personality to inanimate objects. My imaginatiion compelling me to such things as kissing a stone elephant that I discovered on and Island in Cabo, Mexico this year.
