Therapeutic

Our weekends are usually packed with activities. Ever since we got here I haven't wanted to waste a minute. I want to see and do and eat everything. Weekends seem so short so we try to enjoy every minute. On Friday, as I was shopping for the 3 day Dr. Oz cleanse I was starting Saturday, I decided that it would be best to just hang around home, that way I wouldn't be tempted by food and tempted to shop, since I am trying to do a "no spend" March. I hate to admit it, but my first thought was, "if I do nothing all weekend, what am I going to blog about?" That's when I decided to take a weekend to focus on myself. How often do we just sit and focus on what our minds and bodies need?

This weekend was nothing short of therapeutic. I slept in later than usual. I drank tea and did yoga in the morning. I drank my Dr. Oz smoothies all day long. I took my vitamins and other supplements. I cleaned. I read. I did projects around the house. I blogged. I thought about the future and wrote down my goals and dreams. I ran. I gave myself a pedicure. I took Lexie on walks. I took a detox bath at the end of everyday.

I read the most inspiring book I have read in a long time, Cold Tangerines. It is about enjoying and appreciating life's little moments. Thanks Julia for the wonderful book and I can't wait to read the next one!

There were a few paragraphs that really hit me:

"The only option, as I see it, is this delicate weaving of action and celebration, of intention and expectation. Let's act, read, protest, protect, picket, learn, advocate for, fight against, but let's be careful that in the midst of all that accomplishing and organizing, we don't bulldoze over a world that's teaming with beauty and hope and redemption all around us and in the meantime. Before the wars are over, before the cures are found, before the wrongs are righted, Today, humble Today, presents itself to us with all the ceremony and bling of a glittering diamond ring: Wear me, it says. Wear me out. Love me, dive into me, discover me, it pleads with us."

We all want to do good in the world, to make a difference, to make a change. We try to fight all of the bad in the world, and we never stop to appreciate the good in life. We always talk about the wars and the diseases, but never talk about the little victories, the good deeds. We are always looking to get somewhere, not appreciating each day and what it holds. 

On wanting the big, movie-worthy moments in life:

"The Big Moment, unfortunately, is an urban myth. Some people have them, in a sense, when they win the Heisman or become the next American Idol. But even that football player or that singer is living a life made up of more than that one moment. Life is a collection of a million, billion moments, tiny little moments and choices, like a handful of luminous, glowing pearls. And strung together, built upon one another, lined up through the days and years, they make a life, a person. It takes so much time, and so much work, and those beads and moments are so small, and so much less fabulous and dramatic than the movies."

I know I am guilty of wanting and wishing for the next milestone in life to happen. We all think that these milestones, graduating, getting married, having babies, are the defining moments of our lives. Those moments are few and far in-between, were as the little moments are the ones that tie everything together. I know I have to appreciate the little moments in life instead of waiting for the next big moment to come around.

During my therapeutic weekend, I decided to write a letter to my future self. I want to remember this stage in life. I want to remind myself what makes me happy and to celebrate the good and enjoy the little moments. I wanted to document such a happy time in our life as a reminder when we face hardships and struggles. I wanted to write down all the things I love about Jake, because I know there will be days in the distant future that we will struggle and I will need a reminder. 

This weekend was just what I needed. This cleanse wasn't easy, but it was nice to focus on self-control. My body and mind feel renewed and now I am ready for whatever life is going to throw at me. When was the last time you had a me day? 

Linking up with Monday Morning Gossip and Funday Monday