Sometimes we just want to hear someone say, “it’s gonna
be okay.” To simply say “you’re doing just fine” and smile and give you a big
warm hug. Ben Rector has this song
and I love him because he’s so straight up. He says, “here’s the truth/life
sucks sometimes.” Yah, it sure does, Ben, it sure does! BUT, “life keeps movin
on.” And that, that’s what we need to get caught up in. It sucks, but it’s
gonna be okay, and life does keep moving on.
I subscribe to two magazines: National Geographic and Real
Simple. National Geographic
because I just love that stuff. And the photography is amazing. And it’s just so real. Real Simple because it’s an interest magazine geared toward women
and how to get through life. Like how to prepare spaghetti squash or a
compilation of a ton of laundry tricks in one place. It’s WONDERFUL! And it has made my life
easier. The other part I like is that it has a section titled “life lessons”
and its 5 ways to (fill in the blank). It’s really great because they’re 5
pieces of advice fit onto one page and can be ripped right out of the magazine
and put into my wallet. So far three of these bad boys have a permanent home
behind my credit cards and drivers license.
So I would love to have someone tell me “it’s gonna be
okay” and for it to be enough for me to send my worries away. And sometimes it
does. But, sometimes it doesn't or I feel embarrassed to just say, “can I have a hug” or go
crying to one of my besties about what’s going on. So thanks to those “life
lessons” in Real Simple, my family,
friends, Jesus, teachers, etc. I have a few tools in my back pocket to rise above the
weights that try to drag me down. Here they are in no particular order, well
besides one:
(1)
Dance it
out…I’m totally serious! (thank you to “5 Ways to Get out of a Funk”). And it TOTALLY works. So your next question
might be what dance mix should you use? Here are three off the top of my head:
“Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina and
the Waves, C2C’s “Happy” and “Believer” by American Authors. So good! Yah, I don’t like people watching me
dance around either…and my dog might think I’m CRAZY…but ain’t nobody around
when I’m at home.
(2)
Take a
hike. I read this awesome article the
other day about taking a hike and how it helps you to heal. You can look into that here.
Some folks aren’t very nature oriented, but I feel like it’s more my home than
these four walls that make up my house sometimes. This is why I cannot wait to
go camping in a few weeks even if it is going to be roasting in the
desert. There is nothing that beats the
stars in the sky, the smell of rain, the flash of lightning…nature is AWESOME!
(3)
Or you can
take a walk around your neighborhood. Real
Simple taught me the benefit of this too in one of their “5 ways to…” I usually walk my dog a mile or three and
that helps me clear my head.
(4)
Speaking of
dogs….they are the best! Y’all know this
already though. My dog, aside from Jesus, is my favorite thing in life. Just
ask me and I could talk your ear off.
He’s the cutest and the craziest (yah he’s not calm all the time
folks....oh no). AND
I love it. He challenges me and comforts me. You should really think about
getting a (rescue) dog if you don’t have one already. I can help point you in
the right direction J
(5)
Go do something
for someone else. There are plenty of opportunities out there where our help is
needed. I myself help with 2 or 3 non-profits in a given time frame. I just can’t help it! It makes me feel good
always and I know I’m helping someone else too.
(6)
Watch a
really sad movie. Sounds morbid, right?
But this weird tidbit all made sense when I read about the benefits of it in
another Real Simple “Life Lessons”
article. My go-to movie is My Sisters
Keeper. I cry every time and feel
better afterward. Maybe we just need to
let a little emotion out in order to get past what we don’t fully understand is
going on in our heart and mind yet.
(7)
Number one on
my list, really, is to pray it out. I know not everyone believes in God, but
you don’t have to believe to pray. It never fails. And suddenly my dark skies
start to become a little clearer.
“Life
keeps moving on…” And it does. And I
want to be caught up in it, not stuck on the sidelines trying to figure it all
out. I don’t want my worries. They can worry about themselves (thank you
Matthew 6). So there!
