I read this article today on Daily Om and it really hit home. The person they descibed is ME. I am always saving things, rather than indulging myself and enjoying the things I own. For instance, my husband will buy me fancy chocolates and rather than just eating them and enjoying them, I have to savor them and only allow myself one every once in a blue moon. Well, it never fails, they either go stale or get eaten by my husband (or accidentally by the dog) before I ever get to enjoy them. So why do I insist on sacraficing and saving for a rainy day? The article below helped me realize that I need to stop this nonsense. Maybe it will help you too.
We all know someone who keeps plastic covers on his or her couch in order to protect it. The irony is that many of these people may live their lives without ever having actually made contact with their own furniture! This is a poignant and somewhat humorous example of the human tendency to try to save things for special occasions, as if everyday life weren’t special enough to warrant the use of nice things. Many of us have had the experience of never wearing a particular piece of clothing in order to keep it nice, only to have it go out of style in the meanwhile.
It’s interesting to think of what it would mean to us if we let ourselves wear our nicest clothes and eat off the good china on a daily basis. We might be sending ourselves the message that every day we are alive is a special day and a cause for celebration, and that we are worth it. There is something uplifting about treating ourselves to the finest of what we have. It is as if we rise to the occasion when we wear our best clothes and set the table beautifully, as if for a very special guest. We are more mindful of where we place things, what we are eating, and who is with us. Using the good china, eating in the dining room, and taking the plastic off the sofa might be an invitation to be more conscious of the beauty and grace inherent in our everyday lives.
If there are things you’ve stashed away for a special occasion—a bottle of special wine, a gorgeous pair of shoes, an antique lace tablecloth—consider taking them out of their hiding places and putting them to use tonight, just because you are alive now to enjoy them, and that’s a great cause for a celebration.
Saturday, December 30, 2006
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Femail Creations
Have you ever heard of a wonderful catalog called "Femail Creations?" Well, if you haven't . . . let me introduce you. This is a catalog packed full of the most unique and inspiring creations, made FOR women, BY women. If you looking for something really special for a friend or you want to treat yourself to something that you probably won't find anywhere else, then you have to check it out. You can visit their website here, and request to be added to their catalog mailing list.
And the best part? . . . Femail Creations is featuring a pair of YogaDudes earrings! To see the Tree Pose earrings on their website, click here. Be sure to check out all the wonderful products in their catalog. It will be a catalog that you just can't throw away.
Friday, December 22, 2006
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Me and My Sheltered Little Life
Last night I watched "Santa Claus is Coming To Town" . . . you know . . . the one with the Heat Miser and the Cold Miser. I have always loved this show since I was a kid. And ever since I was a kid, I thought it was completely fictional. I mean WHO would ever want to prevent Christmas from happening???
Well, last night was an eye opener. After 30 'something' years, it gets brought to my attention that the story is based on facts - not fiction. OK, I know there isn't really a Santa that comes down the chimney. And if there is . . . he has some explaining to do because he obviously has me confused with some 'bad' folks. Anyway, my husband laughed at me last night when I so innocently showed my complete ignorance to the evil ways of the world in the past.
You see, my husband grew up in Hungary - behind the Iron Curtain. Not that he lived through much of this himself, but his parents got a taste of what it's like to live with restricted freedoms. He explained to me that his parents lived through this period of time when Christmas was not "sanctioned by the government." In other words, they were not allowed to openly celebrate the holiday. Any Christmas spirit had to be kept under wraps in the privacy of their own homes. In fact, they felt like criminals for celebrating the holiday.
So as we watched my favorite little show, things kept dawning on me . . . the evil police man with the German accent (never thought twice about that). The whole tradition of hanging stockings by the fireplace. I didn't know that people actually did this to DRY their socks!! My husband had a ball laughing at me. He asked me "Where have you been?" and my answer was "Right here in the sheltered USA, living my sheltered little life." Makes me realize how lucky we are -even without any presents under the tree. Sometimes it's hard to understand how good you have it until you see things from a whole different perspective.
By the way, one other thing I learned last night was that December 5th is the day that many Europeans celebrate "Father Christmas" or "St. Mikulas". On the night of the 4th kids would shine their shoes and leave them by the door. The good kids would get presents in their shoes. The bad ones would get coal. My husband knows all about the latter part! So I got up this morning and checked my shoes . . . nothing. But I guess that's better than coal.
Well, last night was an eye opener. After 30 'something' years, it gets brought to my attention that the story is based on facts - not fiction. OK, I know there isn't really a Santa that comes down the chimney. And if there is . . . he has some explaining to do because he obviously has me confused with some 'bad' folks. Anyway, my husband laughed at me last night when I so innocently showed my complete ignorance to the evil ways of the world in the past.
You see, my husband grew up in Hungary - behind the Iron Curtain. Not that he lived through much of this himself, but his parents got a taste of what it's like to live with restricted freedoms. He explained to me that his parents lived through this period of time when Christmas was not "sanctioned by the government." In other words, they were not allowed to openly celebrate the holiday. Any Christmas spirit had to be kept under wraps in the privacy of their own homes. In fact, they felt like criminals for celebrating the holiday.
So as we watched my favorite little show, things kept dawning on me . . . the evil police man with the German accent (never thought twice about that). The whole tradition of hanging stockings by the fireplace. I didn't know that people actually did this to DRY their socks!! My husband had a ball laughing at me. He asked me "Where have you been?" and my answer was "Right here in the sheltered USA, living my sheltered little life." Makes me realize how lucky we are -even without any presents under the tree. Sometimes it's hard to understand how good you have it until you see things from a whole different perspective.
By the way, one other thing I learned last night was that December 5th is the day that many Europeans celebrate "Father Christmas" or "St. Mikulas". On the night of the 4th kids would shine their shoes and leave them by the door. The good kids would get presents in their shoes. The bad ones would get coal. My husband knows all about the latter part! So I got up this morning and checked my shoes . . . nothing. But I guess that's better than coal.
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