Set aside your worries and search out positive action and reinforcement for your problems.

“When I look back on all these worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of trouble, most of which never happened.” ~ Winston Churchill, The Finest Hour …

In our pursuit to avoid mistakes, many of us become the source of our stress, anxiety, and misery. We worry and fret over things that we fear could happen, yet have not. And perhaps this tendency would be laughable if not for the amount of pain, sadness, and heartache that it causes. We can learn a tremendous amount of wisdom–and lessons about life–from those who have already faced similar situations and experiences and have made it through them, and this story is one such reminder: things that have not come to pass may never happen… and there is simply no good in worrying about such things. Imagine how many relationships might have been saved, how many friendships might have grown deeper, how many children might have received more attention, and how many more nights of blessed rest we might have realized if we only had been able to remember that those things that we are worrying about will more than likely turn out ok.

And yet we often expect the worst, which means that most of our thoughts are on what can go wrong. If we are in a financial crisis, we worry about what will happen when our money runs out. If we are having difficulties in our relationship, we worry about what will happen if our significant other moves out, or moves on. And while thinking about such possibilities is definitely natural and ok, worrying about them is not–it is unhealthy for our entire being and negatively affects those around us. Most importantly, worrying will do nothing to make our finances or relationships any better–only careful planning, positive attitudes, and focused action can change our situations. If we are in financial trouble, we might budget better, watch our spending, save up more money when applicable, and possibly find new ways to bring in additional resources. If our relationship is in trouble, perhaps we need to devote more time, energy, and love towards healing, or try to be more compassionate, forgiving, merciful, and just; maybe an attitude adjustment is all that is necessary to change our hearts and demeanor.

It is ok to recognize the things in our lives that are not going right and to take the time to think, plan, and act towards resolving them; it is also ok to think about the potential problems we may face in the future and to seek to avoid such pitfalls in our words and actions. But we should avoid worrying about such things, as worry is useless and only adds more negatives into our lives and the lives of those we love. This road leads to misery, unhappiness, and stress, whereas, if we plan for them and do our best to prevent them, we will find our days are much more productive and enjoyable. And if we ever find ourselves traveling down the road of worry, we can simply remind ourselves that “even if we have to pass through unexpected obstacles, and experience some difficult times, things will turn out alright.”

Set aside your worries and search out positive action and reinforcement for your problems.

Questions to consider:

Why is it so easy to worry that the worst will happen in so many situations in our lives?

How many of the things about which you have worried never have come to pass? Did your worrying do any good?

Why do so many older people tell us that the time they’ve spent worrying in their lives has been time wasted?

For further thought:

“Worry not about the possible troubles of the future; for if they come, you are but anticipating and adding to their weight; and if they do not come, your worry is useless; and in either case it is weak and in vain, and a distrust of God’s providence.” ~ Hugh Blair, Lectures on Rhetoric and Belles-lettres

Find some areas for positive improvement in your life.

“The old woman I shall become will be quite different from the woman I am now. Another I is beginning.” ~ George Sand, Isadora …

Our lives can be broken down into chapters–childhood, teenage years, young adulthood, adulthood, parenthood with young children, parenthood with older children, post-parenthood, and so on down the line. And although the idea of ending one chapter of our lives and beginning a new one might be frightening for some–for many of us grow accustomed and comfortable with who we are, what we know and believe, what we like and do not like, how we react–it can also be very liberating and inspiring as it means that we never have to cease growing and becoming.

No matter what our condition may be–even if we are stuck in a rut or living in self-destructive, ruinous, and harmful ways–we can always choose to start anew. But we must be open to learning, growing, and changing in positive ways, which is actually quite simple; we can constantly reinvent ourselves in ways that are healthy and uplifting and make a difference in our lives and the lives of those around us. The old me of a year ago is not the same me today, and I fully expect the me of next year to be significantly different as well. After all, I learned a lot over the last several months and I will learn even more in the coming few, and I truly hope that those lessons will have a strong positive effect in my life.

This is perhaps one of the strongest reasons that we should not hold grudges against others; people change, and something hurtful done to me several years ago does not necessarily apply today. In truth, there really is no excuse for us to be angry at that younger version of someone, who more than likely has learned from his or her mistake and no longer harbors ill feelings towards us anyways. Of course, holding grudges is also a poison that usually affects us alone, as often times the other individual is living their life unaware of our feelings of anger or resentment.

Be open to learning and growing at all stages of life. No matter where you are now, challenge yourself to adopt new thoughts, ideas, beliefs, and ways of being. I still have a difficult time keeping my workspace tidy and cleaning up after myself, but I am constantly working on becoming better at it. At the same time, I am also trying to become more accepting of my messiness and seeing as an extension of my creativity, and so I am becoming new in spite of my continued messiness. If we truly desire to leave this Earth a more compassionate, loving, merciful, forgiving, humble, balanced, generous, and wiser individual, then there is no better time than now to begin taking beneficial steps, and making positive changes, to who we are.

Find some areas for positive improvement in your life.

Questions to consider:

What is so frightening about changing who we are and what we think?

In what ways might we go about looking for and finding areas in our lives that are ripe for change?

Do you want to be exactly the way you are now when you are older?

For further thought:

“Development can indeed continue beyond childhood and youth, beyond midlife, up to and beyond the seventies. It can continue until the very end of life, given purposes that challenge and use our human abilities; given exercise of that individuation, that autonomy, that can be ours at childhood’s end. . . . In sum, our development does not necessarily end at any age. We can continue to develop into our eighties, even to our nineties. We can use our own unique mix of human energies and abilities for purposes we now have to find for ourselves, as long as our environment permits it, until a short period just before death.” ~ Betty Friedan, Fountain of Age

Find importance in a few things that you are uncomfortable with in life.

“Real development is not leaving things behind, as on a road, but drawing life from them, as from a root. Even when we improve we never progress. For progress, the metaphor from the road, implies a man leaving his home behind him: but improvement means a man exalting the towers or extending the gardens of his home.” ~ G.K. Chesterton, The Victorian Age in Literature …

Trees offer us so much–shade from the sun on a hot day, oxygen necessary to sustain life, even parallels with which we can observe and draw life lessons from, which Gilbert does here by stating that the real development of a tree can be witnessed in its roots. The roots are the source of nourishment–drawing up the necessary nutrients and water needed to live. They are the source of strength and stability–providing a solid foundation in the Earth in which the tree can grow and develop to its full capacity. And like a tree, we must have strong roots in which we can build upon and grow from, roots that can nourish and sustain us through all that we experience in life. For if we were to reject those things of our past–our education, our experiences, our friendships, our relationships, and even many of our possessions–then we are casting them off, leaving ourselves without nourishment and strength for when we experience difficulties in life, and without a solid foundation that can offer us stability and balance in our lives.

Several years back, I had bought my first lawn mower at a garage sale. That mower is still with me in the form of an important lesson that I learned–I bought it because it was the cheapest I could find, and I was short on money. Unfortunately, it was a horrible buy, and I almost spent more time fixing it than I did using it. I had to completely take apart the carburetor to clean out moisture, the back wheels fell off it after a couple months, I had to sharpen the blades because they could barely cut cheese, and on and on. Instead of getting a great deal on a used mower, I ended up having to buy a new one the next year and ended up with both a new mower… and a broken one that no one wanted to buy or take.

As with much of life, “we get what we pay for.” If we want our lives to be rich experiences, then we have to be willing to seek improvement in them–and that means building upon the past and extending our skills, abilities, relationships, things, and understanding of life. For if we choose to completely forget the past, then we also choose to forget what we learned from it, and the ways in which we grew and changed as a person. This also means we forget what we gave to other and put forth into the world, and the kinds of good, healthy, uplifting, and positive things we created and gifted.

We need strong and healthy roots to keep us steady and balanced in life, roots that will allow us to bend, but not break, in the winds of the storms that will pass through our lives. Of course, these winds will still add difficulties and hardships into our lives, but they might also allow us to develop into stronger individuals over time if we allow them. And although we might not be comfortable with our current circumstances–our relationships, our spirituality, our education, our possessions, or the ways in which we treat others–we do not have to reject them or toss them aside, usually, all that is necessary is a slight adjustment. If we are faced with adversity, or we encounter people, things, and beliefs that do not align with ours, we can use those things that we wish to change as the base for a new direction in our lives–as new roots from which we can draw life to grow taller and stronger and improve ourselves.

Find importance in a few things that you are uncomfortable with in life.

Questions to consider:

Why do we so often feel that our best strategy is to reject those things that we are not comfortable with?

How should we distinguish between the things that we should cast away and the things that we should use to draw life from?

What kinds of experiences and possessions in your life make up the roots that hold you steady and give you life?

For further thought:

“What we call wisdom is the result, not the residuum, of all the wisdom of past ages. Our best institutions are like young trees growing upon the roots of the old trunks that have crumbled away.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher, Life Thoughts

What you want in life.

“Warm, eager, living life–to be rooted in life–to learn, to desire, to know, to feel, to think, to act. This is what I want. And nothing else. That is what I must try for.” ~ Katherine Mansfield, Stories …

How many of us have actually sat down and came up with a list of what we want in life? Such a thing would really make things simple. If we know that “this is what we want… and nothing more,” we could make all our decisions based off of what we have already considered and decided–no more indecisions, no more second guesses, no more regrets. And the ways in which we live our lives could be more aligned with helping to bring our desires to fruition here during our lifetimes.

And most likely your list would not be the same as mine or anybody else’s, and that is ok. For it is personal and unique–authentic to who we are at our very core and therefore should consist of those things that define us and our happiness; it is not the words that are important, but the fact that we take the time to form a basis in which to live our lives. If this list were mine, the first thing I would do is add “to love” in it somewhere, and then perhaps “to grow, to inspire, to give, and to add and produce things of great beauty for this world.” Of course, Katherine might have had this in mind when she used words such as “to act, to feel, and to learn.”

It is also safe to say, that we change, so will our lists. If my list included “to help my children through school,” then once they have completed school, I would need to make some revisions. Or if my list included “to save up $1,000 in an emergency fund,” once I had the necessary money I would need to revise it to something else, perhaps to keep the fund above a certain level throughout the year.

One key thing to note here is that Katherine chose to say, “That is what I must try for.” We should not expect that we will accomplish everything we want or desire to in life, nor should we base our happiness or worth upon our ability to do so… we should simply seek to try–to give it our best shot. After all, it is in the trying that we become the person we are meant to be–succeed or fail–and it is important that we never lose those opportunities.

Create your list of what you want in life.

Questions to consider:

What are the things that you most want? Have you ever written them down?

What would such a list look like for you?

Why do we not tend to look at life from the bigger picture perspective, instead focusing on the minute details of our day-to-day goals?

For further thought:

“The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don’t define them, or ever seriously consider them as believable or achievable.” ~ Denis Waitley, The Winner’s Edge: The Critical Attitude of Success

Yearn for something positive in your life.

“The best antidote I have found is to yearn for something. As long as you yearn, you can’t congeal; there is a forward motion about yearning.” ~ Gail Godwin …

Somewhere along the path of graduating into adulthood, many of us have picked up the idea that happiness lies in our ability to accept our lives as they are, even if that means giving up our wants and desires. But our happiness is not tied to our desires–we do not feel discontent and unhappy because we want something, as desire is part of our humanity. We are creatures who desire, often with intense passion; and when we can use that desire as a catalyst for growth and positive change, then that yearning for something realistic and positive is an amazing and beautiful thing.

But therein lies the rub. All too often, we are narrowly focused on yearning for materialistic things that are not necessarily positive or helpful for our personal growth. And so we have to recognize that the yearning that Gail is talking about here is not for things harmful, unhealthy, unrealistic, or distracting things, such as yearning for that expensive new car or an intimate relationship with a married friend of ours–for such desires are harmful to us and those we love. Instead, she is talking about a fire within us to live with great purpose. Such a healthy yearning can be a catalyst to propel us into new and exciting things, greater challenges and opportunities, and more positive states of being. A desire to spend time on the beaches of St. Lucia might cause us to economize and simplify our lives so that we might be able to afford the trip. And wanting a career change might help us to find the motivation to go back to school to get a degree.

To have passion is a wonderful thing. It drives us forth on the journeys of life and carries us through even the darkest of days–the ones when we feel like giving up and do not know if we can continue any further. And if we feel like our lives are becoming stagnant, yearning can push us in a “forward motion,” as opposed to congealing or staying where we are. All that is necessary is finding positive and healthy things to yearn for–things like a caring and nourishing relationship or a home filled with love. Or perhaps something that adds depth such as a job that is rewarding and adds purpose to our lives, or an education for our children or for ourselves. Or maybe something that makes our lives less stressful like a vehicle that is safe, practical, and reliable, or an active way of living that allows us to reach a healthy physical state. There are countless things that we can desire that might benefit our lives and the lives of those around us if we would only do so with an open heart and mind.

Find something positive to yearn for in your life.

Questions to consider:

What kinds of things do you tend to yearn for? Do these things tend to be positive for you, or do they add to stress and tension in your life?

What kinds of things might you change in your life to make the things that you yearn for actually become reality?

Why do so many people yearn after things that are ultimately bad for them?

For further thought:

“And yes, there definitely are many good desires. For example, without the desire for food we would not stay alive. It is when our desire becomes an unquenchable craving or obsession, or causes us to do harm to ourselves or others, that it creates suffering and unhappiness. If you have ever been hurt because you tied your happiness or well-being to a person, place, opinion, self-identity, behavior, or goal, then you have firsthand experience of desire.” ~ Donald Altman

Appreciate all the world has to offer you.

“I would like to thank… the birds outside my window who constantly reassured me that nothing is desperately important and the joy of life is just looking at it.” ~ Alec Guinness …

I love how Alec is able to let something as simple as the birds outside his window remind him of how incredibly important our perspective is in life. We all seem to think a lot. And no matter how big things tend to get in our minds, it is healthy for us to recall that life is much larger than we are–and much bigger than our simple bubble of existence is–and many of the things we think are pressing and crucial are things that are minimal and will work themselves out in time. Birds understand this. They go about their lives without stressing out on the little things, taking things in stride and keep on keeping on. Yet we humans often fill our minds with unnecessary worries, insignificant things, inconsequential deadlines, and unfortunate situations, causing us to lose sight of what is truly worthwhile in life–the joy in it.

Still, it is quite easy for us to lose our focus–to become stressed out with how our lives are going or to feel that what we are experiencing is the most important thing in the world. I have had many such times in my life, moments when I felt that the things that were happening to me were “desperately important.” Yet it always turned out that after several days, weeks, or months had passed, I ended up looking back at those periods in my life and realizing that they were not that big of a deal after all.

If we always wish to be cognizant of the beauty and joy of life–and there are infinite amounts of both–we need to discover ways to remind ourselves, and remain aware, that everything we experience in life is relative. And although something terrible or awful may occur, life in all its glory and splendor is still happening around us, and our perception of that will either find us filled with love, joy, and appreciation, or leave us miserable and unhappy. Listening to the reassurance of the birds is a great start. Then there are sunrises and sunsets, and the sound of the thunder crashing and the rain splashing down upon the Earth. There is the pleasure of the sun and the cool breezes to upon our skin, and the smiles and laughter of children at play. There are things that lift our hearts and spirits such as music and song, and acts of kindness and compassion. There simply are so many things that can remind us that looking at the life all around can be one of the greatest joys of all, and it is effortless and free.

Allow yourself the gift of experiencing the abundant life that surrounds you. See. Feel. Hear. Taste. Laugh. Love. Sigh. Cry. Appreciate. Say thank you. Focus on those things that we often miss when our thoughts only revolve around us or on our own little worlds.

Take some time today to appreciate all the world has to offer you.

Questions to consider:

Why do we tend to think that so many things are desperately important?

How can we teach ourselves to be more aware of the many things that are around us all the time that we could and should appreciate?

When was the last time that you noticed and appreciated the birds who have songs for us all the time?

For further thought:

“A heightened state of awareness comes when we look, and then look again, and then relax into whatever situation we are in. When we have a capacity for fascination with simple things, we are able to sit peacefully for hours on a park bench, or in an airport, engrossed by the different gaits and gestures of people as they walk, talk, and stand. We develop the ability to be patient as we stand in line at the grocery store because we have the ability to look with fascination and wonder at all that surrounds us.” ~ Charlotte Sophia Kasl, Finding Joy: 101 Ways to Free Your Spirit and Dance with Life

Find time to let your mind rest.

“I always forget how important the empty days are, how important it may be sometimes not to expect to produce anything, even a few lines in a journal. . . . The most valuable thing we can do for the psyche, occasionally, is to let it rest, wander, live in the changing light of a room, not try to be or do anything whatever.” ~ May Sarton, Journal of a Solitude …

A lot of us tend to let our minds race about, multitasking and overloading them with data, input, and information. But if we always keeping our mind busy with thoughts and never allowing it time to simply rest and relax, we can end up feeling overwhelmed, stressed out, burnt out, unhappy, lethargic, irritable, and so many other negative emotions that hold us back from living our lives fully and being completely present in the moments. Yet as our minds calm, our hearts lift up a step at a time, and our entire beings become filled with a deep sense of peace and serenity.

And it does not take much, just a simple walk or a bike ride out through nature, or a soothing bubble bath and some relaxing music. Or perhaps a quiet drive around the countryside or some quiet time in meditation on the porch during a rain storm. I have often found that the most valuable things I do for myself are often the simplest of things, things that many would consider not really doing anything at all–sitting on the couch with my eyes closed listening to the children play, spending time in meditation and prayer, sitting in the backyard listening to the wind rustling through the leaves, the birds in the trees, and the bugs in the grass.

In such moments, I feel unity with all of life and discover a deep awareness of my existence, for they allow me to get in touch with being instead of doing. Here, I can explore the depths of who I am, visiting the eternal part of me instead of that physical me that others see on the surface; here I can find a glimpse of eternity and recognize my place in His plan.

We all spend a lot of time wearing down our psyches–our logical and intellectual minds, and our emotional souls–sometimes even to their breaking points. We let our bodies unwind after are a long day of work, or sleep when they are drowsy and tired, but we seldom consider rest for our minds and spirits. But our psyches also need to be strengthened, nourished, and renewed to their full potential. Take a break now and then. It may not seem like a lot can come from a day in which we seek nothing, do nothing, want nothing, and produce nothing, but such days recharge us, fulfill us, and strengthen our sinews so that we can be at our best–so we can be whole. Suffice it to say, that sometimes nothing is exactly the something that we need to keep us going.

Find time to let your mind rest.

Questions to consider:

Why are so many people so reticent even to consider doing nothing in a quiet and solitary place?

What are some of the possible benefits of allowing our psyches to rest?

How can nothing be a positive something?

For further thought:

“Sometimes the most urgent and vital thing you can possibly do is take a complete rest.” ~ Ashleigh Brilliant, Everyday Greatness

Actively pursue your chances of being productive

“The happiest people seem to be those who are producing something; the bored people are those who are consuming much and producing nothing.” ~ William Ralph Inge …

Happiness, as William puts it here, is perhaps a measure of how much we produce as opposed to how much we consume; of how much we give as to how much we take. And if this is the case, then one would expect to find the happiest people to be those who keep themselves busy, those who set goals and commit to achieving them, those who fulfill their duties and act out of necessity, and those who learn new skills and abilities and strive to live purposeful lives–which in my experience has seemed to always hold true.

Yet far too many individuals let boredom and inactivity become a dominant element of their lives. Perhaps they fear taking challenges and trying new things or prefer the safety, comfort, and consistency of the regular paths they are used to. Maybe they are afraid they might not finish things they start or be criticized by others for how they work and the results of their labors. Or perhaps they live a very indolent or passive life, preferring to sit around and consume what others are producing instead of being active themselves. But in all of these cases, they are letting either fear or sloth determine how they are going to live their lives and sabotaging so much of the happiness that is available to them through producing positive things that are real and tangible.

In truth, being productive is a wonderfully easy way to exercise our body and mind and to keep our heart and soul feeling alive and fulfilled. And it does not even matter what we are producing–as long as it is not harmful, immoral, or illegal–as the mere act provides us with a deep feeling of accomplishment and an abundant source of happiness. If I enjoy producing music and song, I do not have to be famous–I can sing with my children or play a musical instrument for those in a hospital or retirement home. And if I love sewing or crocheting, I do not have to sell thousands of my creations–I can make beautiful blankets, garments, and apparel for friends and family, for decoration, or simply to give away.

Each individual on this planet has the ability and opportunity to produce something of value and worth. And doing so gives to us feelings of accomplishment and satisfaction, important components to a healthy and happy life. In addition, when we successfully produce something, we are inspired to produce more, giving us hopes, dreams, and aspirations of what our lives can be. In the end, happiness is most often the result of being active in making the most of our lives each and every day, whereas boredom is the result of sitting around and watching as life passes us by.

Make today a productive day for yourself.

Questions to consider:

What do you think William means when he says, “those who are producing something?”

What kinds of things are you good at? How often do you actively pursue your chances to produce things?

Why do so many people get caught up in merely consuming without producing?

For further thought:

“If you observe really happy people you will find them building a boat, writing a symphony, educating their children, growing double dahlias in their gardens, or looking for dinosaur eggs in the Gobi desert. They will not be searching for happiness as if it were a collar button that has rolled under the radiator. They will not be striving for it as a goal in itself. They will have become aware that they are “happy” in the course of living life twenty-four crowded hours of the day.” ~ W. Beran Wolfe

Be more aware of the ways in which you are spending your time.

“Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you.” ~ Carl Sandberg …

Picturing our time as a coin we have in our possession is such a wonderful reminder of how precious and valuable it is. After all, most of us understand monies–we have experienced firsthand the results of being responsible and saving them up, as well as the consequences of being careless with them. And so how we spend our time is a great indication of what we are becoming both as humans and as eternal beings. If we waste our time on stuff that does not help us to grow into something better, or on stuff that simply does not matter, we are making our lives poor and wasting of the precious wealth we have been gifted. But if we spend it on things that help us to become something better than we were yesterday, and something that helps the world around us to grow and to flourish as well, then our lives will become rich.

Perhaps you have had the experience of missing something important because of work or a prior engagement, or from an unexpected occurrence such as a flat tire, a traffic jam, or missing the bus. We often like to be in control of our time and to be able to manage our schedules, and so these occurrences tend to be a big source of frustration in our lives. And yet in the broad scheme of things, these instances are small and few, and the vast majority of our time is in our control. However, few of us actually use our time wisely, instead allowing others to dictate it for us or to control it. Perhaps we are afraid of letting someone down or hurting their feelings, or of losing our jobs or ruining our friendships. But if we imagine our time spent in terms of costs, then spending it in ways that add value into our lives and the lives of our fellow man is of much more significance and worth than spending it watching hours of TV shows we have already seen, or in other mindless activities that simply bring us further from our spiritual selves.

Time is a valuable commodity. Society has created entire markets and venues for that are geared at making money off convincing us that we need to spend our time using their products, listening to their music, watching their shows, attending their games. But we have people who need and depend on us–families who would like to spend time with us, friends who need help, loved ones who could use someone to talk to, and selves who are in desperate need of solitude and spiritual nourishment. And time in which we learn or gain valuable insight, help another human being, or build up the positive in this world, is time well spent.

Do you love life? Then do not waste or squander the precious time made available to you. It is your time… and just as we need to be aware of how we spend our money, we need to be even more conscious and careful of the ways in which we spend our time. For we can always earn more money, but our time… that is a limited and precious resource.

Be more aware of the ways in which you are spending your time.

Questions to consider:

Why do we tend not to consider carefully how we spend our time? Why do we just “let” things happen?

In which ways could you make sure that you are spending most of your time wisely, in ways that are helpful to yourself and others?

How many people try to convince us that our time is best spent serving them and their purposes? Why do they do this?

For further thought:

“How you spend your time is more important than how you spend your money. Money mistakes can be corrected, but time is gone forever.” ~ David Norris

Take a moment to discover something your soul craves.

“If I had but two loaves of bread, I would sell one and buy hyacinths, for they would feed my soul.” ~ Muhammad, The Quran …

While most of us are aware of our physical hunger, and are prompt to respond to the slightest longing for want of food, many of us forget to feed our spirits. This is due in part to the fact that it is generally very easy to buy food to feed our bodies, and we do so regularly, sometimes without even giving it much thought. It is also very easy for us to feel hunger as our bodies make sounds, become weak, and send all sorts of signals to us when they need nourishment. But what about our souls? They, too, grow hungry, yet are all too often neglected.

What does my spiritual garden look like? Have I planted the right seeds? Have I tended to it lately–watering and nourishing the season’s growth and removing any weeds? The time and effort I pour forth into my spiritual life provides sustenance for my soul and spills over into all the other aspects of my life–physical, emotional, and intellectual. Perhaps this might involve spending time in prayer or meditation, or immersing myself in nature. Or maybe it requires finding an hour of silence and solitude to unwind and to still the voices and thoughts in my head, or to take a hot bath to calm my nerves and relax my muscles. Perhaps it simply means buying flowers as suggested here, as anything that adds beauty to one’s life is food for the soul.

We eat when we are hungry and drink when we are thirsty; yet when our souls hunger for joy and happiness, for purpose and meaning, for wonder and beauty, for kindness and compassion, for positive and uplifting experiences, we often neglect that core of who we are. And at what cost? What kind of long-term effect does such neglect have upon us, and what impact does such malnutrition of the soul have on those we love?

Take a moment to discover something your soul craves.

Questions to consider:

What is the cost to us if we neglect our spirits?

In what ways might you feed your spirit in positive, fulfilling ways?

Why do we tend to take our spiritual side for granted?

For further thought:

“Sadly, some people wait until they have a heart attack or ulcers, or have a teenage child who gets into trouble, or until their spouse leaves them, or the like, to attend to their soul needs. . . . But you don’t have to wait for disaster. You can open yourself to the possibility of nourishing your soul, and you can make it a priority. Take careful stock of the way you spend your life energies doing things that are not so nourishing. Often, in the middle adult years especially, people find that they have been busy being productive in some task-oriented way, some way in which their souls were excluded. The responsibilities of everyday life–taking the kids to school, paying the bills, doing the grocery shopping, all the stuff that life requires of mature adults–expand to fill the entire life.” ~ Jean Shinoda Bolen, M.D., Windows of the Soul