I recently saw a word-art image that left me smiling after I looked at it, and it made me happy enough that I decided to share it—in hopes of making readers happy too. Enjoy!
Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”
Over the weekend, I spent a few minutes just lying down in the grass under a tree, looking up through the bright green leaves and watching the clouds go by.
That wouldn’t have been particularly notable, except that the last time I did it was so long ago, I’m not even sure how many years have gone by. When I was younger, I would often lie down in the grass and relax, not even thinking about it. Now I’m all grown up—and even though I spend time outdoors regularly when I go down to the river to row, it’s part of a regimented exercise program, so it doesn’t calm my mind in the same way as just being in nature and doing nothing.
I wasn’t even sure how to tag this post, honestly. I settled on Meditation because that seemed the closest. That left me wondering how my life had gotten so far away from simple little things I once took for granted.
I had a rather long day. Work, hair appointment, race-practice exercises on the rowing machine, more work, then some easy rowing outdoors to unwind. This wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, but it was after 11 PM by the time I sat down to write this post, and nothing particularly imaginative came to mind.
So I decided that instead of stressing about it, I would give myself permission to simply relax and not expect anything more of myself tonight.
Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”
There isn’t much left of the gravel path between my rowing club’s boathouse and the dock. It got neglected during the pandemic, as many things did; and by now, the grass has grown all through it. Walking to and from the dock is like going for a walk through a country meadow, bright green with spring grass and clover, and clumps of violets along the path here and there.
More gravel will be put down sometime this season; the club’s board already has approved the expense. It really does need to be done soon because the path is uneven, with groundhog holes and other hazards that might cause someone to fall. Even so, as peaceful as it felt to walk through the grass this afternoon, I was almost wishing it could stay like that a while longer.
Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”
Eclipse day was beautifully clear here in western Ohio. My husband and I went down to the river to watch from our boat. We brought extra shirts so we wouldn’t be chilly, but Monday was such a warm day that we only needed to wear them during the totality. Seeing the light fade away until the sky looked like sunset was pretty amazing. We felt lucky to have had the chance.
I’ve been reminding myself this week to slow down and appreciate what is around me. When I catch myself running through a list of to-dos in my head, I stop and replace that thought with a reminder that I am only doing one thing at the moment, along with a reason for gratitude to be doing it. Even if it’s something as simple as getting a glass of water, for instance, that is much more convenient for us than it was for our ancestors, who had to trudge to the pump or cistern and could only get ice in the winter.
Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”
I’ve had more than usual going on this week and have felt somewhat distracted, like I am ping-ponging between too many activities without enough time to rest and reflect. When that happens, generally the best thing is just to breathe quietly for a minute or so, letting the mind slow down. Everything will get done—or maybe some of it won’t, and that is probably okay too. No worries.
Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”
As a trustee for a nonprofit organization, this past week I worked with the other board members interviewing candidates via Zoom to replace the departing executive director. It wasn’t a disruption to my regular workweek because my employer, LexisNexis, allows a reasonable amount of paid time for charitable work during business hours. I’ve been with the company for many years and appreciate having such benefits.
Still, the prospect of interviewing job applicants, which is not something that I have done in my career, gave me a serious case of impostor syndrome. The candidates reminded me of my younger self, feeling judged and at the mercy of other people’s expectations. Now, I was one of those doing the judging. What kind of puffed-up faker was I, wielding power to determine other people’s futures?
(Creative Commons image via flickr)
As the week went on, though, I began to feel more comfortable. I realized that it wasn’t about judging people personally, but about assessing skills and how well they matched the job, and that I did in fact have a reasonably good sense of what was needed.
Although I can’t honestly say that I have overcome the fears of the younger self who nervously applied for jobs so long ago, I do feel closer to getting there.
Although I knew that my old plates and bowls needed replacing, I hadn’t yet gotten around to doing it, mainly because of having fond memories of family dinners. The plates were getting a bit worn around the edges, but they still seemed to be usable.
Then I got a ceramic splinter in a finger on Monday while I was unloading the dishwasher. I thought it all came out right away, but something was still in there causing irritation the next day. When I asked my husband to look for it, he couldn’t find anything either. It seems like he got the speck out, though, because the finger is looking better now.
I’ll definitely be going to the mall to shop for new dinnerware—sooner rather than later.
Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”
Several chilly, windy days this week left me feeling impatient for warm spring afternoons in the sun. Tomorrow’s forecast does indeed call for warmer temperatures, but rain will be moving in, not surprisingly. Rather than complain about it, though, I may just go out for a jog anyway and enjoy being outdoors, whatever it happens to do.
Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”
Today felt a bit hectic. A required meeting turned up on my work calendar for this afternoon, conflicting with an appointment I then had to call and change, and I had to go out and get groceries before thunderstorms blew in. After my rowing machine exercise late in the afternoon, I still had more work to do. And, after work and dinner, when I sat down to write this post, my computer was crawling super slow.
It’s okay, though. The storms have blown through, the computer is functional (knock on wood), and nothing more needs to be done today, so I’m just sitting here peacefully.
Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”
