Meg Evans

Sometimes showing enthusiasm can feel a bit scary. Maybe there was a time when something felt really exciting, but other people complained it wasn’t useful or laughed at it. Even if that happened very long ago, those memories are still swirling around in the subconscious mind, just waiting to pop up at the first stirrings of enthusiasm. And if they have been deeply buried for many years, they could be sucking the excitement out of life without it even being apparent why.

We shouldn’t judge ourselves as weak for having such fears. After all, most people have had them at one time or another. Trying to bury them deeper doesn’t help either—they’re sure to work their way out eventually. Simply acknowledging that they are there, without judgment, can be a first step toward calming the mind. Finding little things to feel enthusiastic about on a daily basis is a concrete way of demonstrating to the inner doubter that it’s safe now. After a while, those draining old fears will naturally fade away, replaced by much healthier thoughts. Then we’ll end up surprising ourselves by how much we can accomplish!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

Sometimes we need a push to get going, and that’s especially true when we get into the winter doldrums! My work emails often include cheerful word-art from two coworkers who decided they’d be the team morale boosters a few years ago. When this one showed up in my inbox, it seemed just the thing to repost for this week’s Nurturing Thursday entry:

When we get that little nudge we need to start us going, there’s just no telling how fast we might find ourselves zooming along!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

On these long winter nights when it seems there’s not much to do, we shouldn’t be so quick to turn on the TV and distract ourselves with other people’s drama. Instead, we might do better to spend some time listening to that small inner voice offering guidance. Even when we’re not aware of it, the subconscious mind is constantly making intuitive observations, to better lead us along the path; but we can only hear them if we’re quiet enough to listen.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

In keeping with my resolution for this year to cultivate gratitude for life’s lessons, whether or not it feels like anything positive has come of them yet, I have been reminding myself that there are always multiple ways of looking at any situation. Often, taking the time to list some of the possible outcomes will reveal that there are plenty of good ways to look at it.

Such a change of perspective naturally leads to more positive feelings. After all, it’s much easier to be cheerful when looking around at a landscape that is full of opportunities, rather than obstacles!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

Although the days are slowly growing longer in the early part of winter, sometimes that’s hard to notice when it gets dark and snowy, without a hint of sunlight anywhere. We just have to take it on faith that spring will arrive after a while because, well, that’s always what happens.

And when those dark winter days leave us feeling gloomy, as if the good times are nothing but long-ago memories and far behind us, we also need to remind ourselves this won’t last forever. There will be plenty of delightful surprises in the future because that’s always what happens too!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

Once again it’s time to make resolutions for a new year—and yes, they can be kept, so don’t let any of those pesky doubts sneak in! One of my coworkers shared this motivational graphic in an email recently, and I thought it was a good fit for the season. Wishing everyone a successful, can-do year in 2017!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

When the winter days are dark and still, and the usual workday routine has been put on the shelf till January, self-doubting thoughts can start popping up in the quiet moments. Even when there really isn’t anything that needs to be done right away, we’re so used to having tasks and goals, it feels that there is always more left unfinished—that whatever we did wasn’t enough.

In truth, there is always more we could be doing in this busy world, so full of possibilities. But without having the quiet, reflective, self-nurturing moments to center us, we likely would just scurry around aimlessly, rather than making meaningful choices. No need to rush through life—whatever might be happening at a particular moment is probably okay, and there is always more to explore, learn, and enjoy!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

As the winter solstice draws near, staying cheerful doesn’t always come naturally. The lack of sunshine can leave us subconsciously feeling as if all the light has drained out of the world. Our ancestors dealt with such feelings by lighting candles and bonfires as symbols of longer and happier days to come, a tradition that has carried over into our modern-day Christmas decorations. This morning I put a sparkly purple Christmas tree animation on the art display in my dining room.

The star on top twinkles while other small stars appear and then fade slowly around the tree, like fireworks, cheering up an area on the north side of the house that is otherwise dark and still for much of the day. Wishing you lots of fun sparkly things to brighten your home too!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

Christmas may be bright and merry, but it’s also the season when many of us have tasks to finish up at work before going on vacation for the rest of the year. That can get us stressed out, especially if we are rushing around buying presents and making holiday plans. Something is bound to go wrong.

When a problem does come up, we should keep in mind that in all likelihood, it’s not going to be that hard to fix. Most of the time it’s just a minor annoyance, not a catastrophe—and we should plan to relax and enjoy the holidays anyway!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

Dealing with problems doesn’t necessarily mean working on them right away. Often it’s more effective to slow down and consider the alternatives. But because the modern world is so busy and competitive, not solving a problem quickly can get uncomfortable—it brings up all sorts of old anxieties about wasting time, not knowing what to do, and being a failure. So, instead of calmly looking at the situation and realizing that there are many possibilities, people are likely to overlook all but the most obvious solutions and to pick one without giving it much thought.

Taking time to consider possible solutions, rather than doing whatever comes to mind first, is not really wasteful. It leads to a calmer and more productive mindset in dealing with problems generally, and it’s likely to have much better results than hurrying to do something right now.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.