DAY 363 - WHAT IS YOUR PERSONAL BEST?

Day 363

During our summer holiday, we went to Cape Cod, Massachussetts, to visit some friends who had rented a house there for a month.  We stayed for five days and had the chance to reconnect with our friends and have great conversations on education, spirituality and life in general.  They have five beautiful daughters between the ages of 3 and 11years old, so their life is even more hectic than ours.

As I was having a conversation with the husband in the couple, he said something that I thought was very simple but valuable for anyone looking to improve their life.  He said that at the end of each day, he looks back and evaluates if during the course of the day he was the best that he could be.

If happiness is about accumulating positive experiences and making the right choices, then insuring that you are the best that you could be on a daily basis could only lead to an increase in your overall well being.  

This doesn't mean beating yourself up at the end of the day for not keeping up with your idea of a perfect day.  It only means taking the time to evaluate the good and bad choices that you've made and, at the same time, keeping track of the things you want to do to improve your daily life and your level of happiness.

The best you can be obviously depends on your individual values and circumstances as well as the goals you have set for yourself.  In my case, it means, eating healthy, exercising, living in the present, being creative in some way, being kind, thoughtful and patient with my children, my husband, my family and my friends, having the feeling that I have accomplished something, giving to others, meditating, etc.  

There are so many aspects of our circumstances that we have no control over, it only makes sense that with the aspects of our lives we do have control over, we maximize our chances of being happy by relentlessly making the right choices on a daily basis.

"Remember that the most difficult tasks are consummated, not by a single explosive burst of energy or effort, but by the constant daily application of the best you have within you." 

Og Mandino

DAY 362- THE JOY OF ENDING 25 YEARS OF PROCRASTINATION

Day 362

This week, after 25 years of procrastination, I finally began a drawing class with my friend Donna.  Let me first tell you that getting to that class on Thursday nights requires a great deal of determination on my part.  I first have to go home (I arrive at about 4:30pm) , prepare dinner for my children and make sure they do their homework.  Then, I have to bring them to their gymnastics class for 5:30 (in the north part of town during rush hour) and, afterwards, go all the way downtown (which is in the south part of town) for my three-hour class....

So obviously this week I was a little late to class, and my teacher reprimanded me (Give me a break!)... When I arrived, students were introducing themselves.  I have always hated that part of a class.  "Hi, my name is Janet and I'm here because I would like to add color to my life". PLEASE!!!!The funny thing is, I never remember anybody's name, what they do, etc.  But I guess it's a convention, and all teachers do it!

I was really excited to begin, ready to take on the world and draw it!  "For your first exercise, come closer", the teacher said.  Excitedly I thought: "Here it comes....my first drawing exercise!" " This is how you sharpen a pencil with an exacto knife", she explained.  I thought she was kidding!  Sharpen a pencil! You mean I waited 25 years to learn how to sharpen a pencil!

This being said, there were wonderful moments throughout the class when I felt completely absorbed, or as Mihaly Czikszentmihalyi would call it, in a state of flow.  All right, so maybe my expectations were a little high.  After 25 years of waiting, maybe I romanticized what a  drawing class would be like.  And maybe I won't become a great artist after this class, but no matter what I am going to learn, I know that for three hours in the week, I will be able to forget about time, problems, worries and really live the moment!

And how about you?  Is there something you have been procrastinating about for a long time?????

DAY 361 - BACK TO THE SAME OLD ROUTINE

Day 361

I always dread going back to work.  I really enjoy the summer and the freedom I have during that time of year.  However, through the years, I've come to realize that I'm never really able to be productive in the summer. At the end of the schoolyear, I often have a list of projects I intend to pursue during the summer, but somehow I never seem to be able to schedule them into my busy days (pool, bicycle, excursion, etc.).  Perhaps, it's because I have so many obligations during the year, so that in the summer I become allergic to 'have-tos'.  All I know is that I often get the feeling at the end of the summer that I didn't have the time to do half the things I intended to do!

Inversely, although I find it difficult to go back to having a routine, I feel that when I do, I'm able to accomplish so much more.  And, at the end of the day, I'm generally left with a feeling of genuine satisfaction.  All right, so I don't necessarily enjoy every single moment of the day and maybe I'm not in the best of moods at all times (ask my husband and children), but I'm being productive and, in a global sense, it gives me a sense of purpose.

Many people wish to win millions of dollars to gain the freedom to do whatever they want with their lives (stop working, travel more, etc.).  I believe that no matter how much money you have, you need a purpose, a reason to wake up in the morning and go on with your day, a sense that you're somehow contributing to society.  That's why people planning your  retirement is so important.  Many people dream of the day they will stop working, but then, when they do, they feel a void in their life.  I love my summer holidays... I love waking up in the morning when I want, with no plan in mind...  I love being able to enjoy my freedom... But my life could never only be about that!