Take the Two Hours Challenge

I’m a doer. I have a hard time stopping…shutting out the chatter….being….just breathing. I think I have no time to take the time. Is this familiar to you?

If so, I invite you to take the TWO HOURS CHALLENGE with me this year. In an earlier post about the Sacred Gift, I shared my promise to myself this year-scroll down to the bottom of the post. I am committed to feed my body, mind and spirit for 2 hours each day.  I won’t go into all the reasons why. If you’re like me, you’ll know why.

Here’s the challenge, some ideas to start you off and some benefits. Oh, got excuses already and I haven’t even laid out the plan :•(?  Have children. Work full time. Have a long commute. Care for a disabled or aging relative. Am just too busy at work. Even more reason to do this with me…sorry, you are not Wonder Woman or Super Man.

The CHALLENGE: Spend 2 hours each day caring for yourself. Doesn’t have to be 2 hrs in a row-can be 15 minutes here, 30 minutes there. Nope!  Don’t go there…. I can’t! I am just too indispensable!  Really?

A LAUNDRY LIST OF IDEAS to help you Take Time Out:

• Sit in the garden for 10 minutes – just notice the birds, and bees, smell, touch, listen
• Try a Sitting meditation for 15 minutes – just sit, shake your head a little back and forth if your mind starts to race or you get distracted by something in the environment
• Listen to music while you are sitting quietly or doing a craft/art project
• Create something cool – a vision board of where you want to be/what you need….Write a poem….draws a silly doodle or 2…what every floats your boat
• Keep a morning or before bed journal – let it flow; record your dreams; muse about them
• While you’re in the car, instead of listening to the news, listen to motivational recordings, or your favorite music or …..
• Go for a silent walk at lunch time, in the am, at the end of the day….just by yourself or with another but in silence
• Honor your body by doing yoga (10 minutes or 90 minutes), hiking, biking…whatever you like to do; shake out your bones…literally shake your body in place or move around a bit for 5 minutes
• Breathe – conscious breathing – I use many techniques – for 5 minutes or 20.  Powerful.
• Read motivational books or stream them from the computer
• Cook a special meal just because and sit outside in the evening with a friend/loved one/family and inspire them to listen
• Eat slowly, savoring the tastes, the aromas, the colors

I could go on and on. What I hope you notice is that you can take time – a few minutes here and there and it will add up to 2 hrs. Take one lovely, silent hike or yoga class and that will suffice. But you are going to want more once you get started. YOU CAN DO THIS. What does it take?  A belief that not only do you need it, but you deserve it. Or it may just take a body, mind, heart, spiritual crisis to get there.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?

I’ll leave that up to you to discover.  For me, it was the necessity to learn to receive and to just be more. To regain a little balance.  I love my life and what I do as a Hand Analyst, but with out that softening of time and space, I get STUCK.  My health, my business and my relationships suffer. Now I take time for my 2 hours everyday. And I’m so much more content and productive.

Good luck and have fun.  Let me know how you’re doing please!