Self-Kindness (A #1000Speak "Nurture" Post)

February 20 marked the start of an amazing movement - 1000 Voices for Compassion. One thousand plus bloggers came together to flood the blogosphere with posts dedicated to the theme of compassion. I wrote a post simply called "1000 Voices Speak for Compassion." A month later, on March 20, the movement continued and bloggers posted around the theme of "Building Beyond Bullying." This time I wrote something a little outside of the theme, but with an important message nonetheless: "Positive Stereotypes, Do They Exist?" Now it is April 20 and the theme for this month's post is "Nurture." Once again bloggers are linking up and spreading goodness across the globe. The link up is live until Noon GMT on April 21 so why not join us? After that you can still read all of the blogs (the link up will just be closed) and find us on Twitter @1000Speak and with the hashtag #1000Speak.

Besides the fact that 1000Speak is an incredibly beautiful initiative to be a part of, I'm also participating because it fits so well with my own project that will come to life in 2016. B(e) Kind 366 is a kindness project that I have been dreaming about bringing into existence for a few years now. In 2016, that dream will become a reality! I'll be doing a Random (or not) Act of Kindness (RAK) every day of the year in 2016 and raising funds for World University Service of Canada, an organization that has changed my life.

Throughout the month of April I have been taking part in the A to Z Challenge and posting lists of Random Acts of Kindness ideas for each letter. While it is wonderful to perform kind acts for others, it is equally, if not more important, to treat ourselves with the kindness we deserve, to NURTURE ourselves. With that in mind, I thought I would provide a few self-kindness ideas in honour of April's 1000Speak theme while still keeping with my A-Z theme.

Keep a Happiness Folder - when something makes you laugh, when you have one of those really great days, when you receive a compliment, when you are the recipient of a RAK, jot your recollection of those moments down and put them in a folder (or jar, or box). On those days that really aren't so great, pull it out and remember happier days!

Literally STOP and smell the flowers.

Practice Mindfulness - There are a number of ways to incorporate simple acts of mindfulness into your day. I'll give you two. Mindful eating - sit in silence with your food, look at it (at the colours, the textures, the arrangement on the plate), smell it (what is the scent of each individual item? what is the scent of the whole plate together), take a bite and just hold it in your mouth for a moment without chewing, roll it around (how does it feel in your mouth? what flavours can you taste? are all of your taste buds engaged? bitter? sour? salty? sweet?), finally chew slowly and as you swallow imagine the nutrients entering your blood stream. At least once a week try to have a meal where you really appreciate and are mindful of your food. Journey of the Senses - whenever you are feeling overwhelmed or just whenever you feel the urge, stop what you are doing and stand or sit still. List off five objects that you see. Close your eyes and list five sounds that you hear. Then breathe in deeply through your nose and list five scents that you can smell. Finally, list five flavours that you can taste. Try to do this at least once a day; it's a really effective way to be fully present in any given moment and focus on things that allow us to clear our minds of clutter.

Relax - lie down and close your eyes. Starting at the top of your head consciously think about your entire body relaxing one part at a time. Think about the tension leaving the back of your head, your neck, your shoulders, and continue down the back of your body to your toes. Once you have relaxed each individual toe, work your way up the front of your body. Think about the tension leaving the tops of your feet, the fronts of your ankles, legs, knees, thighs, etc, all the way back to the top of your head. I promise you, you will be relaxed by the time you are finished. The key is keeping your mind focused on your body relaxing.

And finally - any kind thing that you would do to nurture someone else, do to nurture yourself every once in a while! Buy yourself a gift. Write yourself a poem. Send yourself a letter.