Must Do

So, this late morning I find myself alone… ah, alone at last. Every now and then I need a few hours with no demands or expectations. This becomes clearly apparent after several days of being overwhelmed. It’s time to regroup. Inevitably, my thoughts usually come right back to the basics. What are those things that I KNOW I should be doing but don’t always do? Those things that when ignored or put on the back burner make for some crappy consequences, like oh… let’s say… a self-loathing, exhausted person.

Well, sometimes I need to remind myself of the things that I already know. These are tried and true basic principles for me. These basics are not suggestions I’ve read in some book that claims to share the keys to health and happiness. These are the things of MY book. I know them because I’ve lived them for better, and I’ve NOT lived them for worse. They are proven, no deliberation necessary pieces of my life that need to be in place in order for the chaos to even have a chance at finding order.

Here they are in no particular order- cause there really is no order—they are either all in place working together or I’m flailing and failing:

1- Take my Prozac every day. What happens when I get lazy and miss several days in a row? I end up in a mess of tears for silly reasons, and I face mountains that should be molehills.
2- Exercise. If I take a week off because I’m too busy or not feeling well, guess what? I will still be busy and not feeling well. I believe that exercise serves much the same purpose as the Prozac in that it helps me be balanced in the mind. And of course, doing it improves my physical wellbeing.
3- Get some sunshine regularly. Same benefits as #1 and #2! No way!
4- Pray daily. Checking in with Heavenly Father and asking Him for guidance keeps me from spinning my wheels on fruitless tasks and helps me keep priorities in check. It reminds me to be thankful for all the good in my life and to have a positive and hopeful attitude.

These 4 things are so simple and so obvious that I really want to kick myself in the tush when I realize that I feel like junk and it’s because I’ve neglected these basics. "C'mon! You know better!" I say to myself.

Now there are tons of other things that I should be doing that will make life run more smoothly and happily— read the scriptures, have dates with my husband, play often with my children, keep up with laundry, make wise food choices, fix my hair, drink plenty of water, pay bills on time, and so on and so forth. It can get very overwhelming when I look at such a list. So I just wanted to get down in black in white those 4 things that I MUST DO in order to function at my best.

I took my medicine this morning and took the dog on a walk in the chilly sunshine. I’ve been praying to make good use of this time I have to reflect, re-evaluate, and course correct. So, I’m off to a great start. Tomorrow will be a new day and I will need to do those things again… and again… and again…