A weekly tradition where we pop the cork on the week that was, celebrate what worked, reflect on what didn’t, and look forward to a sparkling new week of possibility. I hope you’ll join me and share your reflections in the comments.
What am I celebrating?
Fine tuning the ordinary to live extraordinary is all about the simple things that we can do to make life shine brighter. Very soon we will have a new weekly tradition to start the week off, called Monday Bites, where we share the ordinary things that makes us feel extraordinary, or at least (a bit) brighter and happier.
I believe there are times when doing these simple things come easily to us without a second thought and there are other times when we feel so stuck that it is difficult to come up with one simple idea let alone do something. I also believe that in the simple things there is no better way to discover than to find out what someone else is doing and give it a go.
This week I am celebrating the simple yet meaningful things that I have discovered the women around me are doing…
- Kay for successfully completing Dry July. This became so much more then raising money for a cause she believed in.
- The women of Ash Industries – Annie, Karen, Louise & Margaret – who now have a Champagne Friday moment every week before leaving work behind them for the weekend. What a wonderful ritual, a great way to connect, catch up and enjoy each others company. We know how difficult it can be to spend quality time together (which is important in a working team) when you are focused on the busyness of work, no matter how close your desks are.
- Judith and her husband who each Friday enjoy a glass or two of bubbly together at the end of a full week of work and family responsibilities.
- Jane who has made the effort to create space in her life for exercise and in the process has gone from thinking “I must” or “ I should” to “This is all about me” – Go Jane.
- Carmel who recently made the significant and emotionally difficult decision to use day care a couple of days a week and is finding time to breathe again.
- Me, who on arriving at the beach on Sunday realised that I had left all reading material at home and instead of rushing out to buy the paper sat, watched, played and took a short break.
What am I acknowledging?
That it is OK not to feel grateful, up, hopeful and positive every freakin' waking moment. Monday I felt ordinary (no reason, just did) and like any good life coach I started to challenge my thinking and focus on all the things that I have to be grateful for. After a moment, I thought “bugger it”, it is OK to feel blah sometimes, recognise and “honour” that feeling for as long as it lasts as I know that it will blow away quickly.
What was missing?
Self control when it comes to strawberries. I love strawberries (they are high on the list of favourite foods), but they don’t love me. A few kilometres away from our home there is a strawberry farm that sells the freshest and juiciest strawberries in great sized punnets. They are delicious to eat and I have been eating them – too many of them which means a flare up of eczema on my hands (not a good look or feeling).
What small change can I make for next week?
This week I will be making a number of small changes that combined will bring a significant shift to my health and well being over time.
Last week, I discovered I was anaemic and I was hoping that two small pills a day would fix it (nothing is ever that simple). This is not the first time that I have experienced symptoms like this, so I knew deep down that it was going to take more. I made an appointment with a specialist that I have consulted with before and discovered in non-medical language my body is running on about 5% of iron function and “it's a wonder you can get off the couch”.
Changes I will be making: more attention to be placed on my diet to give my body more adequate fuel, regular iron injections, backing off on pushing my body and the exercise I do (this is extraordinarily anxiety provoking for me) and continue to challenge my thinking.
This week I will think on the wise words of Sally Field that I came across in the September issue of the Madison magazine (so they must be true!):
I’m starting to let go of the feeling that I need to push myself to do things I don’t want to do – an impulse that has always been linked to the feeling that I am not enough.
Ready to pop the cork with me? I’d love to hear about your week in the comments…
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Yes you are worth celebrating Desolie! Wonderful news with your Mum. A strong bedtime routine is essential to a restful sleep, I have fine tuned mine many times.
Hello wonderful, savvy women.
I'm celebrating: some of my online efforts are starting to pay off; a client was delighted with the newsletter I wrote for his business and wants me to produce one each month; a potential client and a new client, both in the training area; and that my Mum didn't pass away on my birthday (although she came close three days prior).
I'm acknowledging: the faith that my family and friends have kept in my abilities, and their support.
I was missing: 'zing' because I let anxiety have too much room.
I'll change: my bedtime routine so that I don't take ages to drift off because I'm thinking too much.
So that's me this week.
And next week will be worth celebrating, too, because I'm worth celebrating!
Desolie