If only it was as easy as 1-2-3.
Someone gets sick in the family. Work overlaps with home life. Travel restrictions are still on.
With everything that's happening around us, we make do with what's within reach. Our phones, social media, the kitchen, the garden. We look left and right for answers, but they're nowhere.
I question a lot of things lately and wrote this to get some clarity if at all possible.
Photo taken from Camotes Island, Cebu. By the author.
What if my plans don't come to fruition? What will happen next? When do I get the reward I've been working hard for?
Being unsure about the future puts me in limbo.
What I listed below has been helping me daily, and maybe one or two from this list can guide you as well.
1. Find where the spark comes from.
Gardening? Praying? Cooking? Watching your kids while they sleep? Whatever it may be, once you find it, stay there. Then keep going back.
There's no need to be productive, no need to be busy ALL THE TIME. Find that place and linger there for a while. Find where the spark comes from.
2. Take good care of yourself.
Sleeping in is not a sin. Self-care is not indulgence. Me time is not selfish.
If you can make time to set a call with a friend, to update your boss, and to take care of your family, why not do it for you? Move your body, eat nutritious food, keep yourself hydrated, consume positive content, sleep well.
Make time and feel good about it. When you do that for yourself, you can do it for others, too. Take care of yourself.
A stray cat takes good care of herself on a cushion in El Nido, Palawan. Photo by the author.
3. Stay connected.
I find this hard to do these days. I keep to myself most of the time.
But whenever I get to connect with a friend over chat or a call, it always feels wonderful in the end. Then I realize how important friends are and how much I miss their company.
Neuroscience researcher John Cacioppo said 'loneliness is perceived social isolation’. We experience loneliness when we feel disconnected.' - Brene Brown's Braving The Wilderness
Positive, nourishing, fun relationships are energizing. They're worth keeping. Stay connected.
4. Sit with your fear, anger, and anxiety.
In yoga, we are taught to be in the present moment. What does this mean?
To sit with these emotions, focus on the breath and allow these emotions to pass by like the moving clouds in the sky.
Most basic work for peace is to return to ourselves and create harmony among our feelings, perceptions, mental states. -Thich Nhat Hanh
When we sit, close our eyes, and breathe, we become more awake in our lives. Emotions help us adapt to life. They aid us in making decisions that are good for us. Sit with your emotions.
5. Live by the day.
It's hard to think about the future these days. Changes happen every 2 weeks which makes it pointless to plan.
Living by the day takes the pressure off our shoulders. If the only thing we can do today is a grocery list, so be it.
The whole future lies in uncertainty: Live immediately. -Seneca
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What if my plans don't come to fruition? What will happen next? When do I get the reward I've been working hard for?
If the plans don't happen, there are other things to work on and do. We don't need to know the future, all we need is to live fully for today. Tomorrow will take care of itself.
Rewards come with hard and smart work. Be patient. When we chase after our dreams with good intentions partnered with the right actions, the opportunities will come.
Let the future take care of itself. Live by the day.
Little by little, we'll discover ourselves again amid this chaos.
We never really lost ourselves, it was only hidden for a little while waiting to be awakened and found.
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