I’m thrilled that you guys are getting into this with gusto! Thanks for doing it on your blogs or in the comments. It is kind of challenging, isn’t it? I know I could easily list 100 things I don’t like about myself in less than five minutes. Why, then, is it so hard to list the things we like about ourselves? And further, not only to list them but to treat ourselves with kindness and love.
OH! And here’s Anita’s blog with her lovely list of five (and what a list too! I’m glad I’m her friend – she’s pretty cool!) Go. Read. Comment. Come on back. I’ll be here! hehe
Okay so, I am struggling with some really buried anger issues that I just don’t want to feel. And I’ve been eating more and more to keep it at bay. My butt and thighs are taking the brunt of this deal I seem to have made (eating stuff = not feeling icky feelings) and I feel weighted down, especially in those parts of my body. When Rixie brought this up in our talk the other day, I couldn’t get away from the topic fast enough! Which was funny to me because it was like standing outside myself watching the drama unfold. I could hear her talking, could hear the thoughts in my head saying “well, yeah, this is all true and blah blah blah but I have other stuff to talk about and I don’t want to look at this now”. And stepping back further, I could see that my reaction to her even talking about the anger was a microcosm of how I am not dealing with it in my life. It was like “Run! Run! Run away!”.
I remember last year receiving a Reiki session with my master/teacher David. He commented that I hold a LOT of anger in my body. I said that I really didn’t feel angry much … pissy sometimes, but not usually anger. He said “that’s because you are holding it all in your body somewhere and not processing it”. How can you process what you don’t feel, I wondered aloud. Ah ha! He said that as a Reiki practitioner, I would draw the clients to me that not only needed what I could give but who could provide just those experiences for me that helped me work on those issues I was most hiding from (i.e.: anger). Oh joy, thought I. Can’t wait for that! (/snark) (BTW, did you know that cancer is about anger?)
Anyway, while I’m working on my anger = snarfing issues, here’s my list of five ways I am a magnificent wife!
1. I give “wubbies” on demand (don’t ask, but trust me it’s nothing kinky (dammit))
2. I’ve been known to slip a sweet note into his suitcase for him to find later when he unpacks in some strange city.
3. I know how to ride out the storms now and just go find a quiet bit of space and read for a while.
4. I never, not once, ever take for granted the love and tenderness he shares with me. He’s a gem and I know it.
5. I love him with my whole heart.
Looking forward to hearing what you all share in your quest for magnificence. Don’t be shy! List at least one great thing about yourself and I promise to match it and name something *I* think is magnificent about you! :) What a deal, hey?
Ok, the librarian in me is coming out (I knew there was a reason I pursued this degree) so here I am recommending another book for you. The title is Do I look fat in this? Life Doesn’t Begin Five Pounds From Now by Jessica Weiner. I started reading it myself this pas month and it’s good. Weiner makes a lot of good points about the language of women and the language of fat and what we women do with it.
To say something like: “I give ‘wubbies’ on demand” and then suggest that we don’t ask is just wrong!
Your list of things for me is better than mine. I think you should ghost write my blog for me. You have an excellent way with words, and that, my friend, is one of the things I find magnificent about you.
Woo Hoo! Good job! Here are my four 4 U!
1. You have lovely tanned legs in the summer
2. As hard as it gets sometimes, you keep right on in there, working out your inner demons.
3. You are a wonderful hugger
4. You were one of my true angels at Lauren’s funeral (thank you so much for coming. It meant a lot to me that you did!)
:) Love you
OMG – How DO you get in my head??! “How can you process what you don’t feel” is exactly what J and I are digging at, man o’ man does is suck. But the end result will be and healthier more open me – right???
Magnificence –
This has made me think so much! I think of something and my inner snark comes out with a “yeah but” buuuutttttt here we go:
1. I am compassionate.
2. I am a good daughter.
3. I am teachable.
4. I have good eyelashes.
Have a GLORIOUS DAY!
H-L Kim