The power of simple gestures...

Let's be honest with one another for a moment, how often have you felt overwhelmed or at least a tad mentally bruised during the last 12 months? I don't know anyone who has had a totally effortless and pain free year. At some point and time we have all had those sucker punch moments, or the feeling when you get into bed or collapse onto the couch that you are spent, the tank is empty, and your remaining reserves have ordered an Uber. Tensions have run high, nerves have gotten frayed, and you've caught yourself daydreaming of entering witness protection and starting a new life in Novia Scotia. I get it! But also answer me this, have you also had those moments when somebody surprised the heck out of you with a simple gesture that shot a beam of light through your heart and made you feel connected, noticed, and appreciated if only for a short while? I certainly felt that recently when we received two handwritten thank you letters from a couple of lovely guests.

Just the very notion that someone took the time to put pen to paper and carve out sentences of gratitude without expecting anything in return was enough to warm me up inside. We all live such fast paced lives that to truly slow down, and I mean slow down so much that you actually allow yourself to be 'bored' or just devoid of immediate pending actions, is often viewed as the impossible task or even worse...only for others that deserve it.

The thing is, we all deserve to slow down, because when we do, that's when our real selves can step forward with a big exhale, and we can take stock of what has been going on around us. The reality is that most of us put others first as we scrabble to please bosses, spouses, children, even the animals we keep! We ignore the mantra of put your oxygen mask on first. But that is to our detriment and in turn to the detriment of those around us. Because, when we really take the time to slow down, we can nurture ourselves properly and this brings out the best in us. That part of us blossoms once again like the skies clearing of smog during a lockdown. We get to shine and that light spreads far and wide. Little acts of kindness and thoughtfulness are inevitable. Small gestures are made and passed on and before you know it, a few of us caught in that light no longer feel lost or overwhelmed. How powerful that is.

So give yourself or someone else the gift of being bored in your own company. To take the time to get back to simple living, and to be able to just....be. You'll be amazed what the cascading effect is as a result. I don't think I'll be moving to Nova Scotia for a while yet.