I woke up this morning feeling blah and fuzzy and off my game. Most days I exercise in the morning and then write and work on projects while the kids are at school, but today I decided that after the bus stop I would be back in bed watching The Bling Ring.
I needed a morning of being alone in Sophia Coppola’s brain world (that’s our resident term for imagination and vision). I needed a morning of sweatpants and cozy covers. Well, maybe need is a strong word but it felt like the right thing to do today.
After replying to some comments on my recent post Do you work outside the home? (Only when I’m not in bed watching The Bling Ring….), I felt incredibly grateful that I could take this little retreat. And then it hit me, there are some daily mantras that I have that give me permission to take the time that I need to just be when everything around me is chanting go, go, go! Sometimes it’s just a 15 minute break and sometimes it’s a morning with a movie.
Here’s what works for me:
it always gets done – When I start to get that itchy overwhelmed feeling like I can’t and won’t be able to manage all of the things I’ve taken on plus the dishes and laundry and the million little school details and all the things I want to do and need to do and hope to do, I just stop. I stop my brain from spiraling out of control and remind myself that it always gets done.
it could be worse – This morning when I settled into my movie and the school called to say that I needed to pick up my son from a field trip in the city because he was sick, I could have gotten really worked up. But I realized it could be worse. My day wasn’t going to be productive (which had really already been determined when I turned on a movie at 9:30am) and now I’d have a sick kid on my hands. I had to drive into Philadelphia, a place that I don’t know that well yet and get my son. I packed a stock pot, change of clothes and towels expecting the worst having no idea where I would park or the fastest way there. It all worked out. I pulled up in front, his teacher walked him out, we made it home where we sat on the couch for the rest of the day. I watched the end of The Bling Ring on the iPad thinking, it could be worse.
there’s always tomorrow – This flies in the face of the idea that we should live for today, and is readily applied when I’m feeling like I haven’t accomplish what I had hoped to. On those days when I’m judging myself for not getting through the old to-do list, I gently remind myself that I’ll simply have to start again tomorrow. Like this post that didn’t get finished yesterday, is now getting done today.
You see, it always gets done. It could be worse. And there’s always tomorrow.
Have any mantras that you love?
My recent mantra is “Lead with your heart.” It helps me physically to keep my shoulders back and my head high, but more importantly, it reminds me of how I want to walk though the world – with an open, vulnerable, compassionate and loving heart. Hard for me because I tend to be “well defended.”
Love this. I used to roll my eyes about heart opening poses in yoga but now I’m like – bring it on!!!