Gratitudes

Well, hello there!

It's been some time. I kind of feel like we should have caught up over a Pumpkin Spice Latte before diving back into this personal relationship, but alas, time is fleeting and facebook keeps all of us up-to-date on the small talk topics anyways!

The demands of my master's program necessitated that I step away from this blog, and now that my thousands of papers and countless hours of reading educational law and pedagogy are behind me, you guessed it, I'm back to using that time to read nonfiction and write for other purposes... I'm sick.. I know.

This summer, I had the opportunity to be published on a well-known instructional coaching site. As an instructional coach, Diane Sweeney and Leanna Harris are the groundbreaking gurus of the profession, so when they asked if I would write a post for their blog, I was truly humbled.

Click here to check it out!

Moving right along, life has had so many twists and turns for me this year, that I wished I had a map to direct me. And all through those hills and valleys (Which happens to be the title of one of my favorite songs), I kept in mind one of my favorite TED-talker's keys to happiness: reciting gratitudes each and every day.

Shawn Achor shared that the "happiest" people were found to participate in several common activities, and one of these priorities was reflecting on three different and specific gratitudes each day. In this way, no matter what valleys you encounter, you are celebrating even the smallest hills in order to focus your energy on what you do have.

While I try to make this a daily practice before the boys wake up or just before I fall asleep, I recently found myself tapped into this vein but in a slightly different frame of mind. I found myself reflecting on all of the fears I once had that I have now overcome, faced, or simply let go of, and I couldn't write fast enough once they started pouring out of me. Here's an excerpt:

Remember when...

You couldn’t stay alone in a house overnight?

You were nervous to fly?

You had to check closets when you got home, because you were certain someone was there?

You refused to ride roller coasters?

You swore you would never have another child because of your fear of the return of "baby blues".

You were afraid of needles?

Your little cousin, Papa, and Grandma passed and you weren't sure how everyone would be able to move forward?

You were worried you wouldn’t get that teaching job?

You weren’t sure if you would get the instructional coaching job, and then you were requested to step into the role?

You couldn't imagine balancing family and higher education, and then you were walking at graduation?

You tried anything new, walked into a place for the first time, dared to believe what many would think of as impossible or irrational…

You are capable. You need to believe in yourself, stay the course, and know that you have always come out stronger.

I can't tell you how empowering it was to make this list, which I promise you was MUCH longer. I think there's also something crucial to writing in the way I wrote this to myself.

I recently listened to a podcast where they said that the path to mindfulness lies in realizing that the thoughts in your head aren't "you" but a separate entity; then you don't own them as "who you are". Instead, they are only a part of your thinking... I know. Super deep, kumbaya kind of stuff, but it made sense to me.

When I can drive out the hopeless or defeating thoughts with kind words of that which I have overcome, I remind myself of two things:

A. In a world where we're so concerned about what everyone else thinks of us, we should start by caring about what we think of ourselves

B. There were times in my past when I thought a range of things were impossible to conquer or overcome, and yet, here I am, on the other side of that list, looking back and wondering how I ever could have doubted myself.

I encourage you to try this out--even if it's only a few items to begin with. Tell yourself about the fears in life that you have overcome. Reassure the "you" that's deeper than the thoughts that you've got this, and that present challenges never seem possible to overcome until they become a part of your past.

Sometimes we focus too much on who we want to be, when if we would simply reflect on the people we've become, we'd see that we've known all along.





Here's to talking to yourself until you actually listen,

Kristy