Monday is my day to reset for the week and get my ducks in a row - make some plans for health, home, holiday, and prepare for Grandson fun. Today I'll also make plans for inner peace, generosity, and daily harmony.
Agenda:
1. Read "The Sweet Spot"
2. Generosity practice
3. Holiday Mindset
4. Advent school plans
5. Fall Order and Home projects
1. Read "The Sweet Spot":
This chapter is about the day-to-day relationship rifts that cause strain: Tiny things we do that put space between us and our loved ones - things like checking our phones constantly instead of paying attention; to family interactions and play, and just generally being too busy to make time for friends. Also, emotions like disappointment and annoyance can do the same damage.
The advice is: Be deliberate and really present. Choose to act on your highest values. Make sure that the activities I choose facilitate connection rather than a false sense of importance. Schedule in weekly or monthly calls or meet ups for important relationships, and ritualize traditional annual gatherings. Remember to "cultivate feelings of gratitude" in our relationships to diminish the feelings of disappointment.
2. Generosity practice:
On the third day of the waning gibbous moon, I practice a love meditation, and then journal about generosity with time and attention. I start with ideas for being generous with myself, then my family, my neighborhood, community, and the earth. I might decide to give money or a gift, or simple acts of helping and sharing my time.
This month's generosity plan:
- Winter wildlife care.
- Progress on Earthcare group tasks
- Tenacity with Big House projects
- Gift-making for family
- Write some Christmas cards!
- Order myself some new books
When I'm motivated by the desire to give, just the intention to offer my help, and my willingness to listen, will begin to lessen suffering in the world.
3. Holiday mindset:
In order to keep the main thing the main thing this week, my intentions and priorities are:
- Savor the experiences of making crafts and lighting candles with my grandsons.
- Begin to plan a Christmas week schedule, and write some cards.
- Make a list of final out-of-town gifts and schedule time to collect them locally.
Our fall schedule includes a two-day pre-school, with coloring pages on a different theme each week, related outdoor projects, field trips, and art. I want to focus on nature awareness, process art and basic art skills (drawing, painting, cutting, glueing, etc.).
This week the theme is the People:
- Make a piñata.
- Make paper dolls and color faces differently.
- Books on Christmas around the world?
- Set up our snow scene.
5. Fall Order and Home projects:
This month I set an intention to create order and simplicity in my sanctuary, so that everything I keep has a place, all things are honored, and I know what is in each space: Try a daily morning-10-things / aternoon-5-things ritual to help me break a habit of slothfulness (which is really mental overload), because outer order supports inner calm and resilience, and opens the time I need for being Godly. My goals this week:
- Clear the shelves and mantle, and the top of the china cabinet.
- Clear out the junk left in the yard, and find places for it.
We are stalled a bit on our big renovation project, partly because of the threat of major rains. My next steps:
- Take photos of the saws and post them on Craig's list.
- Help to start the first step on the deck steps: Mark out placement of posts for railing and a roof.
- Paint the front of the house, and the bedroom windows.
- Move dirt and finish the mini-patio so I can buy bamboo!
- Design a shower, towel hooks, and screen.
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