I've got 10 days to read my Book Club book before the next meeting and I really don't want to end up skim-reading it late into the night at the last minute. There's the possibility that I wont enjoy the book itself but I want to enjoy the process of reading it, sitting quietly, tucked up on the sofa with a cup of tea, feeling the texture of the pages as I turn them. So I need to decide just how important it is to me to do this, and what is not so important that it can wait a while.
The article below also asks some questions about doing the things we want to do, and the excuses we use not to do them. Number 5 is my most frequent excuse, so that's why over the next 10 days I'm going to make some quiet reading my top priority.
5 Phrases That Are Stopping You From Living Your Best Life
Now, having been in the best health of my life for the last four years, one of the biggest daily struggles I face is letting go of the excuses that were embedded in my experience during those dark years.
The phrases you’re about to read have probably entered your vocabulary at some point. The excuses you tell yourself might not sound exactly like these word-for-word, but underneath it all, the energy and feeling behind them is exactly the same. The crux if it all is whether you choose to live your life by them or not, and I’m sad to say that they’ve influenced a lot of my decisions over the years.
In many ways, all the phrases below are linked — once you start diving into one, the others will probably come up for you, too. The very first step, however, is to catch yourself just after you say or think these sentences. Is it your voice or someone else’s? When are you saying it? How do you feel as you’re saying it?
Meditating on these simple questions will help you step into the space of this fear, rather than pushing it away again.
1. “I’m not the type of person who would …”
Maybe you are just that person. Where have you developed boundaries and walls for yourself? Is there someone in your life or an event that has pushed and narrowed your boundaries and sense of self?
This phrase also presents you with the opportunity to examine whether or not you're necessarily judging others. Is this phrase coming from the best place, or is your perception of the situation or another person rubbing up against your personal boundaries?
2. “I could never …”
Like phrase number 1, in many ways you limit your possibilities when you say this. Exploring the "what ifs" in life is a magical experience, but don’t cut yourself off at the source. If you’re terrified of heights, then saying, “I could never bungee jump” is completely justifiable, but make sure your head and your heart are on the same page.
3. “It’ll never happen.” (and any variation along the same lines)
A certain degree of realism is sometimes necessary as we go through life, but cutting yourself off before you’ve even tried means you’ll stay frustrated and, in many cases, stuck. Isn’t it better to have a go than never know?
This is one of the phrases that I still struggle with personally. Often, I think myself out of an idea or situation before I’ve ever tried to do anything about it, often within the first few minutes of its landing in my head! As embarrassing as this is, this is one of my patterns, and I’m grateful for every opportunity I have to work on it.
4. “Oh well, never mind …”
If you've tried everything and there’s no way around the situation, there's great strength in accepting the present moment. However, if you’ve let your dream or idea float past you like a cloud without even meditating on the possibility of it, then maybe it’s time your reversed the phrase: “mind- never.”
5. “I don’t have time.”
This is another one that I seem to catch myself saying a lot, particularly when it comes to exercise. It’s a bit of a vicious circle- you want to get healthy or change-up your exercise routine, but this one little phrase can always be used as an excuse. We’re all busy, but we have to ask ourselves where our priorities lie. Are you really as busy as you think you are, or are you using this as an excuse to stay small? Timetabling activities, even if it’s just once a week, and telling others about your commitment can help you to stay on course and break your habit. Make the decision to keep yourself accountable for your actions.
Have you been using any of these phrases as excuses in your life?
This week I'm visiting...www.lululemon.com
Lululemon Athletica is a Canadian company specialising in workout clothing, particularly yoga and running gear. Their clothing is lovely with great designs and colours, and it feels like a luxury to have such a wide range of yoga clothes to choose from. It is a little expensive, but if you love your yoga and practice regularly then price-per-wear it's worth the indulgence.
Lululemon have showrooms in Chelsea, Richmond and Islington and have recently opened a new store in Covent Garden (it looks great - take a look here), but you can order online too. The website is easy to use and the Blog section has some inspiring articles - I'm working my way through the previous posts, picking out all the yoga ones. There's even a couple of free classes for you to do too. Below is their fabulous manifesto - why not print it out and use it as motivation to live your life to its fullest potential.
The phrases you’re about to read have probably entered your vocabulary at some point. The excuses you tell yourself might not sound exactly like these word-for-word, but underneath it all, the energy and feeling behind them is exactly the same. The crux if it all is whether you choose to live your life by them or not, and I’m sad to say that they’ve influenced a lot of my decisions over the years.
In many ways, all the phrases below are linked — once you start diving into one, the others will probably come up for you, too. The very first step, however, is to catch yourself just after you say or think these sentences. Is it your voice or someone else’s? When are you saying it? How do you feel as you’re saying it?
Meditating on these simple questions will help you step into the space of this fear, rather than pushing it away again.
1. “I’m not the type of person who would …”
Maybe you are just that person. Where have you developed boundaries and walls for yourself? Is there someone in your life or an event that has pushed and narrowed your boundaries and sense of self?
This phrase also presents you with the opportunity to examine whether or not you're necessarily judging others. Is this phrase coming from the best place, or is your perception of the situation or another person rubbing up against your personal boundaries?
2. “I could never …”
Like phrase number 1, in many ways you limit your possibilities when you say this. Exploring the "what ifs" in life is a magical experience, but don’t cut yourself off at the source. If you’re terrified of heights, then saying, “I could never bungee jump” is completely justifiable, but make sure your head and your heart are on the same page.
3. “It’ll never happen.” (and any variation along the same lines)
A certain degree of realism is sometimes necessary as we go through life, but cutting yourself off before you’ve even tried means you’ll stay frustrated and, in many cases, stuck. Isn’t it better to have a go than never know?
This is one of the phrases that I still struggle with personally. Often, I think myself out of an idea or situation before I’ve ever tried to do anything about it, often within the first few minutes of its landing in my head! As embarrassing as this is, this is one of my patterns, and I’m grateful for every opportunity I have to work on it.
4. “Oh well, never mind …”
If you've tried everything and there’s no way around the situation, there's great strength in accepting the present moment. However, if you’ve let your dream or idea float past you like a cloud without even meditating on the possibility of it, then maybe it’s time your reversed the phrase: “mind- never.”
5. “I don’t have time.”
This is another one that I seem to catch myself saying a lot, particularly when it comes to exercise. It’s a bit of a vicious circle- you want to get healthy or change-up your exercise routine, but this one little phrase can always be used as an excuse. We’re all busy, but we have to ask ourselves where our priorities lie. Are you really as busy as you think you are, or are you using this as an excuse to stay small? Timetabling activities, even if it’s just once a week, and telling others about your commitment can help you to stay on course and break your habit. Make the decision to keep yourself accountable for your actions.
Have you been using any of these phrases as excuses in your life?
This week I'm visiting...www.lululemon.com
Lululemon Athletica is a Canadian company specialising in workout clothing, particularly yoga and running gear. Their clothing is lovely with great designs and colours, and it feels like a luxury to have such a wide range of yoga clothes to choose from. It is a little expensive, but if you love your yoga and practice regularly then price-per-wear it's worth the indulgence.
Lululemon have showrooms in Chelsea, Richmond and Islington and have recently opened a new store in Covent Garden (it looks great - take a look here), but you can order online too. The website is easy to use and the Blog section has some inspiring articles - I'm working my way through the previous posts, picking out all the yoga ones. There's even a couple of free classes for you to do too. Below is their fabulous manifesto - why not print it out and use it as motivation to live your life to its fullest potential.
Everything is growing so fast you can literally see things changing from day to day. The mixture of sunshine and April showers is providing perfect growing conditions for all my plants, but its also perfect for slugs and snails, which is not so good. For some reason up here on the chalky hills there aren't many slugs, but there are snails aplenty. Like the author of the post below, I've always struggled with the idea of killing them, preferring instead to collect them in a bucket and then transport them to a wild space nearby. It doesn't mean I like them though, I'm just practicing my non-harming Ahimsa as advised in the Yamas (see my post from February about the Yamas here). However, having read this lovely article on Elephant Journal last week, I'm trying to view them differently...
The Magical, Secret Lives of Snails
Ahimsa: Non-Violence. Cause no injury, do no harm. Maintain compassion towards yourself and others.
Show kindness towards all beings. I learned about Ahimsa about a year ago, while studying the Yamas and Niyamas during my yoga teacher training. For many folks, it may first appear to sound obvious and redundant. Of course, we should be non-violent. We should not hurt or injure other people. We should not treat animals cruelly. It is not right to pit dogs or roosters against each other, to fight for sport.
However, Ahimsa means different things to different people. For some, it means being vegan or vegetarian (not killing or using animals as a means for human consumption.) Others may be ok with eating a steak at a restaurant, but they would never hurt a domesticated dog they saw wandering the street. There are many ways to incorporate ahimsa into one’s daily life, and I’m not here to judge people’s actions or say whose right and wrong.
The reason I’m thinking about Ahimsa is because I have snails on my mind. About this time last year, I was tending to my succulent garden, and I noticed holes appearing in the leaves of some of my plants. I found some of the slimy culprits affixed onto the leaves of one of my aloe plants. Snails. Slimy, sticky little things, which as a general rule of thumb, are not good for cultivated gardens. My natural reaction was to pluck the little buggers from my garden and toss them out into the street. I didn’t do this to be mean. I don’t have any personal vendetta against the slow-moving little brown critters. But I did want them out of my garden. I wanted them to leave my pretty little succulents alone.
But there I was, with Yamas and Niyamas and all sorts of yogic principles, floating around in my head as I gardened. I found myself feeling reluctant to toss them out onto the asphalt to either die for the force of their landing or be crushed by the next car that whizzed past. But they couldn’t stay in my succulent garden either!So, I started gently using my thumb and forefinger to pluck them up by the shell, and walk them away from the garden, out to that little patch of grass between the sidewalk and the street. I’d set them down in the grass, wish them the best of luck, and feverishly hope that they wouldn’t find their way back to my succulents.
It seemed like such a small, trivial thing, yet it was significant to me because I could feel a shift and a change happening within myself. By no means, do I live the “perfect” yogic lifestyle (not even close!), but the more I strive to “live my yoga” I am aware of the changes taking place within myself, subtle as they might be. This doesn’t mean everything is all sunshine and rainbows!
A year later, I find myself still passively feuding with the slimy little pests. I don’t hate the little things. Maybe I should, because they munch up the lovely plants I spend my time and efforts tending to. They are not beneficial (to my garden) in any way; they are just pests!Yet, I see them out early in the morning after a (rare) heavy rainfall the night before. Slowly inching across the dirt, leaving barely visible silvery trails behind them. Their dewy, translucent flesh, so fragile looking, stretching out from their perfectly spiraled, strurdy little shells. Their little antenna-eye things perked up (looking?) at me curiously. They’re kind of cute in a way. Then lo and behold—last night, by chance I stumbled upon some breath-taking images of snails! Colorful, unique little creatures, with amazing spirals swirled around their shells!
The photos were taken by Ukrainian photographer Vyacheslav Mishchenko. He used macro-photography to capture images—photos of snails just living their regular day-to-day lives, yet somehow he makes them appear nearly magical.
These beautiful images portray the garden pests in a completely different light!
Click here to view more; my favorite is the two snails on the cherries, reaching towards each other for a kiss!
As for the snails in my garden, I’ll continue to practice Ahimsa and keep plucking them up and carrying them away.
I’ll keep striving to peacefully co-exist, and I will remain curious about the magical, secret lives of snails.
