My mother in law says to me this morning..."you can't have self-pity if you are grateful. Go and make a gratitude list today of all the things you are grateful for, and enjoy your 30's because they are the best times of your entire life. There's no other perfect time like today." She's SO right...to explain the 'pity' part - I guess with my upcoming birthday I've been feeling more annoyed with how my body/mind is changing. It's not about the number of years I'm getting to, it's more about how I feel inside. And I'm one to always see the glass as half-full so when I start to complain about things I always remind myself how blessed I am. And all those things are true, really they are, but what about how (and I know every other women out there gets this...) you take care of everyone else's needs and it's so self-satisfying to be needed and loved each and every day, and how you feel deep down that God intended for this part of your life to be as it is...because you know you are doing a great job and it is reflective in the love others have for you. But the missing link here is that for me, I need to open up my mind and heart and love myself more....so...here's my gratitude list...and who cares if my metabolism and skin in going down the crapper? HA!
~Each day I wake up and look over at the man who provides so selfishly for myself and our family. I heard the new Taylor Swift song on the radio the other day called "Love Story" and it reminded me of how young we were when we fell inlove. And how different that love is now, but how its so much better and strong.
~I am grateful that I have energy each day to make my home feel warm, my children feel loved and get myself to the gym when I can to take care of my body, even if it's only 2xs a week.
~I am grateful for my health. This one is almost too scary to dive into...there's too many tragic stories out there of people who have sicknesses and I sometimes think "when will it be my turn" And I know that sounds pessemistic but I can't help it...I am so grateful to God for the body I have at this exact moment, flaws and all.
~Having children makes you realize things about yourself that you never knew existed. I mean maybe somewhere down the line in my life I would've had experiences that taught me the same lessons, but I learned them from my children- like how I have an explosive temper that no one knows about (except my mother and father because they had to put up with me growing up) and dealing with demanding children daily is almost like an anger-management class for the rest of my life! :-) It's taught me to be patient, dig way deep for sympathy/empathy and to be grateful for the ups and downs.
~Maybe turning another year older isn't a downer- there's positives to it too...like being among other women who I can draw strengths from because they are older and wiser as well...and we've all got our own "stuff" to overcome and learn from. yes, I am positively, most absolutely SO GRATEFUL for my girlfriends. Not one day goes by when I don't think of how much they bring to my life and how I feel giddy whenever I can be among them...I love phone calls, emails, text messages, letters in the mail, coffee dates, and telepathic good vibes from them :-)
I'm going to continue to add to this list...this feels good. Like I'm making progress towards loving all the flaws about me. :-)
4 comments:
You are not alone in your thoughts. I think all of us as women, do or have said and thought the same things you mention here. We are all in this together and it's great girlfriends like you that encourage us to all do the same...to love ourselves too..not just those around us.
You are wonderful! Let's be proud of all we have accomplished and keep our heads up...even if the rest of us sags! :)
You are so right on my friend! Love ya!
Well, I'm 30 and it hasn't killed me yet. In fact, I will be 31 in February! I know that everything I do every day makes me a better woman, even eating that ice cream that I shouldn't. We all have our complexes and when times get tough and we get down on ourselves, thats when you lean on God and remember how blessed you are. Every time period in my life I think "man those were the days" but I know that feeling dumpy and having your babies near you will soon be those "days" we remember so fondly. I guarantee it won't be long before we are sending our kids to some state college and we will wish they were little and we were serving them like kings again!
your blog gave me chills. I can so relate to everything you said. But I too am grateful for all that I have, even if it puts me over the edge at times. Your explosive temper made me smile, because I just shared with you about mine too. I am going to try to keep it in check a little bit better! Thanks for sharing your list! And happy late b-day, if i would've known, I would have brought you a coffee!
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