LIVING LIGHTLY THROUGH OCTOBER

Choosing to live life lightly.  And how that looked  throughout the month of October.

LIVING LIGHTLY OVER THE LAST FEW WEEKS

If you read my blog regularly (thank you if you do!) you'll know I chose "Live Lightly" as my Word(s) Of The Year for 2023. I've made a pledge to myself to chill out a little this year and to take things as they come, rather than trying to push too hard or trying to control everything. I hope my year will reflect taking life at a gentler pace and stepping lightly and slowly.

So, on that note, to wrap up October, I'm sharing a few little highlights that contributed towards a lovely month....

IS CHOOSING A SLOW RETIREMENT COUNTER-CULTURAL?

Our society worships "doing" over "being" but let's be counter-cultural and live more slowly and intentionally.

CHOOSING TO LIVE SLOWLY

I love it when I receive comments on my blog posts, and I love it even more when someone takes the time to send me an email to share their journey and to let me know that what I write about encourages them to live life more slowly or more intentionally.

Recently an email arrived in my inbox from Michelle to tell me she was about to retire, and that after working so hard, she was going to choose a slower pace and find her identity in something other than working and being busy all the time. Her words made me pause for a moment and think how our society worships "doing" over "being" and how it's almost counter-cultural to want a gentler way of life when we stop working.

Today I thought I'd share three ways to counter our culture of busy-ness.....

DOING MY BEST TO LIVE LIFE ONE DAY AT A TIME

Life gets so much simpler and more peaceful when you live it one day at a time. Being present in the present moment.

LIVING LIFE ONE DAY AT A TIME

I used to be a planner and a worrier - well, I'm still a planner and a worrier....but I'm getting better at not being controlled by those two traits. I remember reading how living in the moment - being present in the present so to speak - reduces stress and worry exponentially. And the more I practice living one day at time, the more relaxed I'm becoming.

I wanted to share a few quotes and thoughts about that today because I think we all need to be reminded now and then that yesterday's been, tomorrow hasn't come.... we just have now...

LET'S ALL TAKE A MOMENT TO THINK BEFORE WE SPEAK

With age comes wisdom and the ability to choose what we say to others, always remember it costs nothing to be kind and gracious.

DISCERNMENT IN MIDLIFE

One of the many gifts of Midlife is being more self aware and discerning. I think we learn to slow down a little and think about how our words and actions impact others, and adjust them accordingly. It seems like such a natural thing to me to not want to hurt others by saying something insensitive or by being passively critical. 

But maybe that's not the case for every woman hitting her 50's or 60's.....

SELECTIVE IGNORANCE AND WHY IT MAKES SENSE

Selective Ignorance is all about intentionally choosing what to pay attention to and what to ignore. It gives us the power of choice.

CHOOSING TO BE SELECTIVELY IGNORANT

In January I chose "Live Lightly" as my Word of the Year because I had a deep desire to simplify my life and to focus on what was important - while screening out all of the background noise. I wanted to shed some of the weight/baggage that I carried around with me, but I also realized that I wanted to be more selective about what I allow into my thoughts and what I give my time to.

Recently I discovered a concept that really appealed to me, it's an effective way to intentionally choose what to give my attention to. That concept that resonated with me is "selective ignorance"....