Wondering how to invest in yourself and why it is important and powerful? Well, we are in July already, wow! This reminds me that I have already passed the first six months of the year and probably not been aware of my progress. Now, I feel the need to pause and take a look back at the last six months. Here's a brief look and I urge you to think about how you have fared in the last six months too!
FOLLOW MY PINTEREST BOARDS
Family First!
As a mother, the most important thing for me is to be involved and committed to my thirteen year old son. Given that I am a working mother, this is not easy to manage. As my teen steps into the turbulent teen years, I want to walk with him every step of the way.
This summer, for instance, I wanted my son to savour an unusual experience of participating in a spiritual camp at the Chinmaya Mission in New Delhi.
After much persuasion, my son agreed to attend the summer camp and he found himself enjoying the summer camp so much that he didn't want it to end! He was entrusted with an opportunity to co-anchor the grand finale program! The entire narrative was in Hindi but on the day, he performed very well. Only I knew how tensed and nervous he had been before setting off from home early morning!
This taught me a valuable lesson - sometimes what our families need is a nudge outside their comfort zone and to do something together in an involved way.
Setting Boundaries in relationships
This is a first for me because I have never believed in boundaries, particularly in relationships. Any individual who knows me would be aware that I tend to put my heart and soul into nurturing a relationship with loving care and patience.
Not anymore. I am setting boundaries to protect my energy.
Experience has taught me.
Those you care about need not love or respect you in return.
Expect nothing - not even basic human decency. Keep calm.
Remember, Swami's teaching - Help ever, Hurt never.
A tweet by Inner Practitioner caught my attention and has been a significant pointer, which is why I want to share it with you.
The tweet reads: Never forget: it is never about what others think of you.
In other words, you alone decide how their thoughts affect you.
Therefore, the power is in your hands, not in their thoughts of you.
This year, I have focused on valuing my energy and sharing my space only with people I feel happy with. For the same reason, I have consciously cut all interactions with those whose energies are laced with self-interest and malice towards me. I am conscious that while I cannot change human nature, I can calibrate my response to malice. Therefore, I chose to consciously direct my energy towards those interactions and activities are in sync with mine.
Simply put, I reject negative vibes and I try to spend my time wisely. I have ceased to make any energy exchanges with people, whose energies deplete mine.
Result?
I feel happier, lighter and on top of the world and in charge of my choices.
Reading Books slowly
Loving and breathing books is a part of who I am. But I have been increasingly selective about what I want to read. These are books that I keep on my writing desk at home.
This year, 'disturbing' non-fiction has been my staple diet.
I have just finished reading Jinnah by Jaswant Sinha, Rukmini Devi's biography and Lisa Ray's heart wrenching memoir 'Close to the Bone'.
While these books are completely different from one another and a comparison would be illogical, the narratives are pervading my consciousness like a forbidden embrace, filling me with apprehension as I spiral towards the end of the deeply disturbing narratives.
Result?
I feel happier reading fewer number of books. Reading is a joy that I refuse to quantify by the number of books read. It gives me enough space to embrace the ideas they hold and their experiences seep into my soul, like ink on blotting paper.
Changing Food Preferences
From the start of this New Year, the most significant change in my life has been related to food. As a child, my parents had to force me to eat food. In my teens, I ate so little that I was always underweight and was teased as a 'skeleton'. My relationship with food changed in my 20s. I began to experiment with different cuisines and a foodie within was slowly coming to life. The last two years were a marathon of junk and hotel food! It began to take a toll on my system in several ways. [READ: Crossing forty is fun and now I am loving it!]
A big surprise for those who know what a sea-food lover I am - I have turned vegetarian from the month of June, starting with the date of my birthday.
Result?
Believe it or not, I no longer crave for non-vegetarian food. All is well.
Investing in one's own growth and happiness is something that many of us neglect to do. Be it health, fitness, activities that make us happy or sad, remind yourself: I am in charge of my life. I make my choices consciously for my best interest and growth potential.
We know that many energies don't match but we still go out of the way to make the relationship work or take care of those who do not like or accept our efforts in the first place.
So, what is the way forward?
Time to focus on energies that are in sync with you. Be happy always - it is your inner compass that can bring you closer to achieving this state of mind.
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