On building the new

Via Shutterbean

Summer is really and truly here. The day's rhythm had come to feel both restful and chaotic. We don't have the same deadlines to meet (wake up, eat something, no really Shira eat something, get dressed, no you can't wear a turtleneck in June, come on we'll be late, no really, come on, oh wait we forgot sunscreen, come on it's almost time for school!!), yet the endless packing up of swimsuits, picnic blankets, and snacks feels like it's taking over our lives. So be it, life, let's go for another picnic. I'll take it over the rush of school any day (well, at least until September).

It's this really strange time for me right now. I'm busy with the girls and teaching, but I also have all this time ahead of me, already earmarked for big personal change. I'm about to embark on this year of doing things differently in hopes of feeling well and happier, and it's hard for me not to feel a bit overwhelmed by all the work to be done.

I get defeated sometimes before I begin, dwelling on the bad habits I've developed over the past seven years, and I wonder if I'm looking at it all wrong. I can't do anything about the not-so-nourishing food I've been eating, or the exercise I haven't done, or all the time spent wandering around wondering why I don't feel well. But I can look ahead to a time when things might be different.

 "The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new." It's exhausting worrying about the past. Doesn't it sound so much more appealing to think instead about all the new choices we can make? A little more manageable? A lot more realistic? I think so.

How do you get started making change? Are you an all-or-nothing, take charge kind of change-maker? Is it easy for you to wipe the slate clean and move ahead with new habits, or do you dwell on the past?

Let's build the new, shall we?

Be well.
xo