BE GENTLE WITH YOURSELF

Kim gives me topics months before. And she has this amazing talent of knowing exactly what I need to write about and when. Even so far in advance. Last week I had a medical procedure. And today is the first day I am dipping my feet back into my work environment. I have read emails, made some payments, helped our GM with various issues over coffee every morning, but today I have done four hours of work so far.

And all who know me, when they hear I am getting back to work, say ‘listen to your body’. ‘Be gentle with yourself’.

I write about loving yourself. I write about being kind to yourself. And yet, as with most people reading this, I am the least gentle on myself. For me it is a daily fight. A daily reminder of just how beautiful and unique and special I really am. I am sure many people have thought about whether they spoke to their friends the way they spoke to themselves, how many of them would still be around. And I am sure that the answer is not many.

And so, as I sit at my desk, I am listening to my body. I am being gentle with myself. Because I know that I deserve it. I know that when I die one day I won’t get a special merit award for pushing myself when I should have been resting, that one day in November 2018. You are the person you have for the rest of your life. So be gentle with yourself. Love yourself. And remember to treasure the friendship with the person who gazes out at you from the mirror.

Relationships that stand the test of time

Why should relationships NOT stand the test of time? What reason could there possibly be that this is not just the norm? the dictionary describes relationship as being ‘the way in which two or more people or things are connected, or the state of being connected.’

So when you meet somebody, and you gel with them, or when you ae born into relationship, one would think that this lasts. That you have found your best friend. Your lover. Your partner. Because they ticked the blocks and you ticked theirs.

However as human beings, we change. We adapt, we evolve. And for many people that means their partnerships and romances and friendships as well. The connection changes. It may fade.

In my life, there have absolutely been relationships that have stood the test. People who have come into my life not only for a season or a reason, but for a lifetime.

These people have left footprints in my heart. And if I had to attempt to ascertain what has made them different, I can absolutely say unconditional love. Friends. Friends of family. Family of friends. Older, younger. It doesn’t matter. It is built on mutual respect, mutual contact and effort, and zero expectations – just celebration in what you have with each other and in each other.

These are not the norm, these are the exception. And when you find the, honour them. Recognise them. and never stop appreciating them.