Self-reflection is one of the most valuable concepts and exercises. My last blog post was almost a full year ago to the day and today was the day I chose to read such reflection from about that time. I've taken some time off to work on myself. I've learned many lessons, ones that I will undoubtedly share but for now I wanted to talk about nurturing your soul.
On my journey of self-reflection I learned about nurturing my soul. It was something that I've tried to keep with me, tried to remember, but life gets busy. We put others before ourselves, we put commitments ahead of what we truly want to do with our time and we start to lose ourselves. That's what I felt. My wake up call was when my partner told me that I had been unhappy for quite a while (since starting a new job). I thought I was happy but I stopped doing things that nurtured my soul. You probably already know what these things are - if not, you may want to start a list.
Examples of things that are on my list (if you need some inspiration): running, yoga (especially when you get to lay down at the end!), hiking through the forest, talking to my sister, head massages, reading while drinking the perfect cup of coffee, making a pillow fort and cuddling with our big puppy.
Think about what makes you happy. What makes you feel like you? My work schedule occupies a lot of my time, so I dedicate those spare minutes and hours to my sanity. I had to stop taking that job so seriously and stop devoting all my energy to it; because at the end of the day, there was nothing left for me.
There are times we need to be selfish - but it's not selfish at all. It's about taking care of ourselves so that we can be well enough to take care of others and serve our purpose in this life.
It's like that safety talk that they give you on an airplane. If the oxygen masks drop, you're instructed to put it on yourself before you help your loved ones put theirs on. If you don't put the mask on yourself first, you won't be conscious long enough to help anyone else.
